Category: Health Conditions

Tweak Your Diet to Prevent Recurring Kidney Stones

If you’ve ever had a kidney stone, it wouldn’t be surprising if your top priority in life is to make sure you never get another one. The blinding, excruciating pain that comes when passing one is enough to strike fear into anybody. New research suggests that about 30 percent of people who’ve passed a kidney…


How Toxic Relationships Can Trigger Cancer

We focus a lot on diet, therapies, and a wide range of alternative natural treatments for cancer, but one area that doesn’t often get the attention it deserves is the state of our relationships with those closest to us. But the data are in. Research proves that our social relationships directly influence our physical health—for…


Considering Knee Surgery? Read This First

Knee surgery is common. Young adults have their anterior cruciate ligament reconstructed after tearing it when playing sports. Middle-aged people have parts of their meniscus trimmed when they have pain and limited knee mobility. And older people have their knees replaced by metal and plastic when their cartilage has worn out. The idea that there…


The Nordic Diet

Every month, there seems to be a new diet doing the rounds online. One of the latest is the Nordic diet, which some claim could be better for your health than the Mediterranean diet. And research is starting to suggest that it could at least have some similar benefits. The Nordic diet is based on…


Natural Plant Compound in Grapes Protects Brain Health, Research Reveals

Over the past few decades, resveratrol, a polyphenol found in grapes and berries, has generated a lot of “buzz,” with numerous – and well-publicized – studies attesting to the cardiovascular benefits of resveratrol-rich diet. But what else can this natural plant compound do?  Claims for the health-promoting benefits of resveratrol have been coming thick and…


Men Have Pelvic Floors Too – and Can Benefit When They Exercise Them Regularly

“Kegels” and pelvic floor exercises are usually associated with “women’s business” – think pregnancy, childbirth, and menopause. But men have pelvic floors too. Just like women, at various times in their lives men can benefit from training their pelvic floors to address a variety of health concerns. About 30% of men visiting the doctor have…


The Sometimes Surprising Benefits of Chewing

Your mother was right: It’s important to chew your food thoroughly before swallowing it. Chewing is the first step in digestion. It breaks food into smaller particles, which increases the surface area so that digestive enzymes can more readily extract nutrients from it. If we rush through our meals, we don’t get the full phytochemical…


The Pathophysiology of Long COVID

One of the most devastating aspects of COVID is that it can continue to affect patients for months—and even years—after infection. Ask Carrie Anna McGinn. After a year of fighting off symptoms, Maclean’s Magazine reports that she continues to battle a cough, cognitive dysfunction, and pain. While most patients successfully fight off the symptoms of…


FDA Finally Approved an Alzheimer’s Drug—But Everything Surrounding It Is Controversial

Analysis Aduhelm is the brand name under which the Alzheimer’s drug Aducanumab is marketed. It is developed by the U.S. company Biogen. The drug is to be administered as an intra-venous infusion every four weeks. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Aducanumab in June 2021, making it the first Alzheimer’s disease medication approved by the…


Glutamate: A Neuron Killer in Disguise

The discovery of glutamate more than a century ago was a milestone in the quest to make food as tasty as possible. Unfortunately, it took decades longer to learn that this amino acid is a critical neurotransmitter and that overeating it can have devastating effects. Glutamate, in all its varied forms, has become a foundational…