Radio Naturopath Episode 477: Valentine's Day: Chocolate for Health, Home-Cooked Valentine's Day

It's almost Valentine's Day, which is also Ron and my 20th anniversary! 20 years, can you believe it? 20 years of chocolate, bicycles, love, support and healing. And also, food. We talk about appreciating each other! Then, of course, since it's valentines day, I talked about the health benefits of chocolate, a yearly tradition. I also gave some healthy alternatives to going out to eat on Valentine's Day, like making dishes at home with heart healthy omega 3s, and lots of produce. 

Radio Naturopath Episode 443: Lifestyle Changes to Lower Blood Pressure

This week, I started talking about the very important topic of hypertension, high blood pressure. Our focus this week was on basic lifestyle things to do to lower blood pressure. Some of it is SHOCKING! Stuff like: eat more vegetables and fruit, eat more clean protein, drink more water, get more exercise, stop smoking, do stress reducing activities like deep breathing, leisure walks in nature, yoga, and meditation, and get good quality and quantity of sleep. WHO WOULDA THUNKIT??? It's so important that we'll pick up on this next week, and include actual supplements that help with blood pressure. 

Radio Naturopath Episode 433: Health Benefits of Chocolate, Foods and Exercises for Better Sex

This week I just HAD to get in my yearly chocolate is good for you show! Cocoa flavonols are good for so many things: blood pressure, protection against various elements of cardiovascular disease, mood enhancement, and sex drive. There are numerous foods that help with sex drive and performance so we talked about those too! Not to mention exercises that help. We'll get more into the health benefits of sex next week!

Radio Naturopath Episode 390: Eat to Increase Your Metabolism and Burn More Fat!

This week, we found out that caffeine can increase fat burning! If you don't get jitters, upset stomach, anxiety, or insomnia from it, it can be your friend. It increases fat burning, can help to prevent diabetes, and improve exercise performance. The trick is to find an amount that you can consume without getting the negative side effects. For some, it just doesn't work, but if you can safely ingest up to 400 mg/day it can help! We also found a whole bunch off foods that can increase metabolism and  help with fat burning. Protein, including fatty fish, beans and other legumes, cayenne pepper, unrefined cocoa, and more!

Radio Naturopath Episode 338: Happy Valentine's Day! History, Chocolate, and Love; Herbs To Help With Blood Pressure

This week Ron and I talked about Valentine's Day and our relationship, since it's also our anniversary. 17 years and going strong! We also talked about why chocolate is good for you, and how it came to be part of Valentine's Day. In a word: CADBURY! Richard Cadbury thought up the idea of giving out chocolate in heart shaped boxes with cupids on them! And as usual, and a little history on Valentine's Day. I then went into a number of herbs that have blood pressure-reducing capacity, specifically in the form of angiontensin converting enzyme inhibition. Next week we'll talk more about a number of herbs that have similar mechanisms of action to existing blood pressure drugs!

Radio Naturopath Episode 332: A Little Chocolate, Hiatal Hernia, and Heartburn/Reflux/GERD

This week we started out with a discussion of ALL the chocolate in the house, from the pedestrian to the sublime. We reminded everyone that high cocoa content is healthiest, but it's OK to indulge in the mundane just for the pleasure of it!

The main focus was on hiatal hernia and gastroesophageal reflux disorder, or GERD. It was good to get a review in and discuss diet, supplements, food intolerances, and some habits that can help to reduce the symptoms. Thanks to Matthew Robinson, N.D., we discussed a couple of ways to reduce a hiatal hernia.

Radio Naturopath Episode 329: Nature Cure, Cannabinomimetics, Chocolate, Intestinal Blockage

This week Ron asked me a bunch more questions. We elaborated on what nature cure actually is; we talked about plants that contain cannabinomimetics, compounds that function similarly to cannabinoids; we reviewed why chocolate is good for you; and talked about why Ron keeps getting an intestinal blockage and how we helped him.

Radio Naturopath Episode 292: Montelukast and Psychiatric Side Effects; Why Chocolate is Good For You

This week, we alerted listeners to the drug montelukast, brand name Singulair. This anti-leukotriene drug is commonly given to children and adults with allergies and asthma. The manufacturer has known for at least ten years that it can cause severe psychiatric effects in children, and yet the drug continues to be prescribed. I discussed the mechanism of action of the drug and some possibilities as to its cause. I also talked about nutritional factors that can be managed.

Since it's Valentine's Day this coming Sunday, I skipped over the mushy stuff and went right to chocolate! Why it's good for you, what conditions it can help, and recipes that include it.

Radio Naturopath Episode 246: Know Your Farmer Fair 2020, More on Coronavirus, Why Chocolate is Good For You

It’s the 2020 Know Your Farmer Fair! It’s at Town Hall in Willimantic, CT. It’s a great way to get to know the local people who grow your food! There will be produce, meat, eggs, cheese, honey, maple syrup, and jams and jellies for sale. I had a question about more info about the coronavirus, so I discussed it some more. You also get to hear how Ron and I met! And, the health benefits of chocolate.