Staying healthy

For any parent, keeping the whole family healthy is a big issue. Kids, and adults as well- we all have quite a time trying to keep off disease. Of course there are lots of ways and things we can do to stay healthy. In my house, what we do is we try to eat well. I've been trying out a lot of soups from Wai Lana's Favorite Soups. Now that autumn is here, it's great to have all these hearthy soups.

I also make sure everyone does exercise, and take supplements. My kids just love Wailana's goji juice. And I can definitely see why. It tastes great and feels equally good.

Good to celebrate national breast awareness month too! A friend of mine died of breast cancer two years ago. It's still fresh in our minds.

Yoga Earth and Health-Friendly Yoga Products

Wai Lana, world-renowned yoga teacher and host of the long-running PBS television series Wai Lana Yoga Toning workout, excels at making the ancient art of yoga easy and effective for anyone who practices along with her. Her faithful exercise products continue to impress with their quality, durability, and fashionable designs. To the serene and warm-hearted Wai Lana, the teaching of yoga is not a business but an important service to the global community.

“At the heart of yoga lies a deep respect for all living beings, including Mother Earth,” says Wai Lana. “I wanted to offer products that people could really feel good about—something that reflects the harmonious spirit of yoga. It’s only natural to want your yoga products to reflect this same caring attitude.”
So it is no surprise that the latest addition to her array of user-friendly products is her line of eco-friendly yoga products called Wai Lana Green.

In keeping with the theme “Fitness in Harmony with the Earth,” Wai Lana’s Green line is made from all-natural, ecologically sustainable sources, giving people products that are good for them and for the planet too. Her Green line includes yoga mats, bamboo towels, and organic cotton straps and totes as well as cork and bamboo blocks. Wai Lana Yoga has also added new kid-friendly eco products to the Little Yogis line, including a kid-sized, phthalate-free yoga mat, a Stretch N Play Eco Yoga Ball Kit, and a Little Yogis Eco Tote Kit.

Healthy snacks

I think it's great that Wai Lana has all these healthy snacks available not just for adults- but for kids too. I just got my Yogi Bars from Wai Lana today. I very much enjoyed all of them, especially the apricot one. I also ordered some of Wai Lana Yoga's granola and Little Yogi bars. I'll see how the kids will rate it. I'm sure they'll enjoy it though. They nicked some of my Yogi Bars!

Have a great day everyone. :) I'll post more info on weight loss soon.

Develop Healthy Habits Early

I've been volunteering at a nearby elementary school for the past two months, and more than ever, I realized the importance of developing healthy habits early in life. This responsibility lays largely on parents and teachers, who help a child develop the path and life they will eventually live- on their own. Seeing that many of the children were far above their healthy weight and were- at their tender ages- not very healthy, I raised my concern with the other teachers and parents. I introduced Wai Lana's Little Yogis series to them. Some parents faced my ideas with a little apprehension, while others welcomed the concern. I proposed that the children try it out even just for two weeks, and from there they could assess whether it was working on not.

The funny thing is that many of the parents were surprised that the kids absolutely loved the fun songs and doing the yoga poses with Wai Lana. After two weeks, the parents all voted that the 30 minute "yoga fun and way with Wailana" would continue, and even got Wailana's daydream CD for kids for the preschool children.

I hope and trust that this is a great way to start these children on a healthy lifestyle. As they become accustomed to feeling great and having good fun doing yoga, they will always look forward to it throughout their lives, or at least know how wonderful yoga can make them feel. Kids need to relax too! My next project now is to introduce less sugary snacks, and I know Wailana yoga yogi bars and snacks for kids will be perfect for this.

Wai Lana's Eco Ball kit

Eco Ball kit
Eco Ball kit
Stretch, strengthen, and sculpt your entire body with our new planet- and health-friendly Eco Ball kit
You’ll …

* Firm and tone your body
* Define your abs and waistline
* Release pent-up stress and tension
* Improve balance, flexibility, and coordination
* Look great and feel great with an effective, whole-body stretch and workout

Kit Contains:

* Phthalate-free, anti-burst eco ball
* Complete workout on DVD, set by the soothing, inspiring seaside (running time 25 min.)
* Foot pump for quick, easy ball inflation

Choose the ball that’s right for you:
Height Ball Size Color
5’0” to 5’5” S 22”/55cm Blue
5’6” to 5’11” M 26”/65cm Green
6’0” to 6’3” L 30”/75cm Jade

on Sale, regular price: $29.95 Sale: $22.46

Click here to see the color swatches

Knowing when to go to the hospital

But is it really an emergency? When to take a child to the ER
Naomi Zikmund-Fisher says her son's life was saved by her maternal instincts -- and her son's flat ears.
Jesse's mastoiditis was discovered after his mother noticed that something was not right with his ear.

Jesse's mastoiditis was discovered after his mother noticed that something was not right with his ear.

One Friday night in May, Zikmund-Fisher looked across the dinner table at 3-year-old Jesse and noticed that his right ear, which usually lies close to his head, was sticking out. She went over to check it out and found a big red lump behind the ear.

She e-mailed her pediatrician, who said that it was probably just a mosquito bite and that as long as Jesse otherwise felt fine, not to worry about it.

Jesse did otherwise feel fine, but something set off Zikmund-Fisher's "mommy meter." So the next day, even though nothing had changed, she called the pediatrician's office and spoke to the nurse.

"She told me, 'If you're worried about it, take him to urgent care,' " Zikmund-Fisher remembered.

Her husband took Jesse to the emergency room, and doctors determined that he had a classic case of mastoiditis: an infection of the mastoid bone, just behind the ear. If not treated with antibiotics, mastoiditis can be deadly.

Now Zikmund-Fisher tells other parents to trust their instincts and act, even when a pediatrician tells them not to worry.

"It just didn't seem right to me," she said. "It just seemed like, if this was a mosquito bite, it would have gone away, and this wasn't going away." Listen to how other parents used their instincts to save their children »
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* Natasha's lesson helps save Ohio girl
* In Depth: Empowered Patient

Dr. Assaad Sayah, chief of emergency medicine for the Cambridge Health Alliance in Massachusetts, agrees that parents should use their instincts when deciding whether their child needs quick medical attention.

"'When in doubt, bring them in' should be your first line of defense," he said. "If they don't look right to you, call your pediatrician, or take them to the emergency department, and if they look very sick, call 911." Video Watch for more tips on when to go to the ER »

Although relying on instinct is a good guideline, there are also some cut-and-dry situations when a parent really should to take a child to the ER. Here are five examples.

1. Neck stiffness or rash with fever

According to the American College of Emergency Physicians, these symptoms could constitute an emergency because they might mean meningitis.

2. Fever in a newborn

Any child 3 months old or younger who has a temperature over 100.4 F needs to be seen by a doctor, says Dr. Jennifer Shu, spokeswoman for the American Academy of Pediatrics. The fever can be a sign of infection or meningitis.

3. Head injury with loss of consciousness, confusion, headache or vomiting

This is another red flag that your child needs emergency attention, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Health Library

* MayoClinic.com: Meningitis
* MayoClinic.com: Burns

4. Burns

A burn should receive emergency care if it's larger than your child's palm, if it's deep or discolored, or if it was caused by a chemical, says Dr. David Beiser, who works in the emergency room at the University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital. Burns on the hands, genitals and face are of particular concern, he says. Here's a quick primer on burns

5. Severe abdominal pain

Although many stomach aches are minor, others merit urgent attention. There are several signs to look for, including a swollen abdomen that's tender to the touch or blood in the stool, according to guidelines from Parenting.com and Dartmouth Medical School. Severe pain in the lower right side of the abdomen could be a sign of appendicitis.
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After two shots of antibiotics, Jesse Zikmund-Fisher was back to his usual happy and active 3-year-old self. Even though it's been nearly a year since Jesse's visit to the ER, the lessons his mother learned are still fresh.

"If you are not satisfied with the answer you get, you need to push for the right answer," she said.

CNN Health

Food for the Body That's Good for the Soul

Food for the Body That's Good for the Soul

A real yogi eats to live, rather than living to eat. This doesn't mean your food has to be tasteless, though. In fact, cooking has always been one of my favorite hobbies. Over the years, my family and friends have patiently tested my kitchen creations (which, I must admit, sometimes flopped). But after trying out hundreds of dishes, I now have quite a few tried and true recipes to share with you that are healthful, tasty, and easy to prepare. I'll post a new favorite here each week, so check back often for delicious new additions to your diet.

So what do yogis eat? A vegetarian yoga diet, of course, consisting of fresh fruits and vegetables, beans and grains, nuts and seeds, and a moderate amount of dairy products. You can prepare countless dishes using various combinations of these nutritious foods. Fry up some spices and turn a plain vegetable dish into a savory Indian curry. Add herbs for a Mediterranean flavor or ginger and coconut milk for a delightful Thai entree. With scrumptious and satisfying dishes, even the die-hard meat-eaters in your family won't miss the meat. And if they think "vegetarian" means bland and boring, they're in for a pleasant surprise.

A Spiritual Diet
You don't have to be a vegetarian to do yoga, but as you become more aware of your body, you'll find that eating meat makes you feel heavy. A vegetarian diet, on the other hand, helps you maintain the light and energized feeling you get from practicing yoga. Just go easy on the fried spring rolls and cheese dishes—they can put on the pounds.

The yoga diet is especially important if we want to elevate our consciousness to the stage where we're feeling love and compassion for all living beings—including animals. Eating them, rather than respecting and caring about them, simply hardens our hearts, moving this goal beyond our reach.


Making the Switch
Switching to a vegetarian diet isn't hard as long as you have tasty alternatives. And you don't have to do it overnight. First cut down on red meat, then gradually eliminate it from your diet. As you find other vegetarian foods you enjoy, you can gradually give up poultry, fish, and eggs. You'll join the ranks of thousands of new vegetarians, many of whom have changed their diets for health reasons now that flesh foods have been linked to cardiovascular disease, colon cancer, and so on. Even cutting back on meat a little will benefit you—and I'm hoping my recipes make this transition easy and enjoyable.

Don't worry about getting enough protein. Vegetarians get lots of protein in legumes, grains, and the like. Even the U.S. Department of Agriculture places meat second to last in importance, behind grains, fruits, and vegetables. There's now a vegetarian food pyramid and a wealth of scientific evidence proving the health benefits of the yoga diet. I have my own living proof: My three healthy and athletic kids—vegetarians since conception!

So try out this week's recipe or browse the site for something that catches your fancy. And be sure to visit us again for more tasty and healthful "eat to live" recipes. Bon appetit!

17 Foot Carrots weighing 19 pounds and more interesting facts...

Who'd have known carrots came from Afganistan!!

25 Facts About Carrots
Carrots are a root vegetable that originated in Afghanistan. They were purple, red, white, and yellow, but never orange.

They are a member of the Umbelliferae family, which also includes celery, parsley, dill, cilantro, caraway, cumin, and the poisonous hemlock.

Both the Ancient Greeks and Romans cultivated carrots.

The Ancient Greeks called the carrot a philtron, which translates to "love charm." They believed the carrot made both men and women more amorous.

Hippocrates recommended women eat carrot seeds to prevent pregnancy. Some modern studies indicate there may be some validity to this and that eating carrot seeds after intercourse may in fact prevent the egg implantation process and block progesterone synthesis.

Hippocrates created a broth recipe for good health consisting of carrots, celery, root parsley, and leeks.

As a joke, Caligula fed the entire Roman Senate nothing but dishes made of carrots at a banquet in the hope that their animal natures would overtake them and he could watch them "rut like wild beasts."

China, Japan, and India were cultivating carrots by the 13th century.

In the 16th century, Dutch carrot growers invented the orange carrot in honor of the House of Orange, the Dutch Royal Family. They did this by cross breeding pale yellow carrots with red carrots.

Newly orange, carrots traveled England with Dutch travelers during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

The carrot soon caught on in England as both a food and a fashion accessory. Ladies would often use carrot tops to decorate their hats.

The settlers at Jamestown in 1607 introduced carrots to North America.

Thomas Jefferson grew a variety of different carrots in his gardens at Monticello. In 1814 he produced 18 bushels of carrots.

The scene from the movie It Happened One Night in which Clark Gable leans nonchalantly against a fence eating carrots while talking to Claudette Colbert inspired the creators of Bugs Bunny to give him the same nonchalant, carrot-eating demeanor.

China is the world's top carrot producer. The country produced 35 percent of the world's carrots in 2004. Russia is the second top producer and the United States the third.

Carrots ranked as the seventh most valuable crop produced in the United States in 2004.

California is the top fresh carrot producer in the United States, while Washington is the top producer of carrots meant for canning and other processing.

A 2005 poll revealed that carrots are the third most popular vegetable in Britain. (Brussels sprouts are the least popular.)

Carrots are about 87% water.

Orange carrots get their color from beta carotene.

They have more beta carotene than any other vegetable. One cup of carrots has 16,679 IU of beta-carotene.

Eating too many carrots can cause a person's skin to turn yellowish orange, especially on the palms or soles of the feet. This is called carotenemia. It is completely reversible once the consumption of carrots is reduced.

One cup of raw carrots contains about 52 calories.

The longest carrot ever recorded was nearly 17 feet long.

The largest carrot ever recorded weighed 18.985 pounds.