Meaningful relationships, belonging and love are essential to our health, happiness and what we want, need and desire. It is one of psychologist Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Human Needs and the one of the most frequently conflicted areas of human interaction. The willingness to be vulnerable to love again after...

It is not a coincidence that the partners in happy couples share many of the same behavioral patterns in how they treat one another. Often we think that being happy means we have fun sharing the same hobbies or doing everything as a couple. While sharing activities enhances relationships, the...

Stuff happens -- especially as we age. Our lives and health generally change. The usual causes include children leaving the nest, divorce, the loss of a spouse or partner, changing financial circumstances or any one of a dozen other events. Often the outcome of these changes can lead to sadness,...

Looking at the state of the world at large, it can be difficult to see much reflection of the up-coming holiday sentiment of "Peace on earth -- goodwill towards mankind." In its place we find war, conflict, hostility, political corruption, crime, greed and pending financial collapse.

Daily news headlines dampen...

As a patient educator and nutritionist, I often hear the following from frustrated patients: just when they think they have a handle on what they are supposed to do to be healthy, the information changes.

For example, up until a recent study was published, those of us over 50 were...

By now, everyone has heard about the benefits of red wine -- that it's packed with heart-healthy antioxidants and resveratrol, which may reduce bad cholesterol and help prevent blood clots. [1] But, as doctors have long known, drinking alcohol is associated with increased cancer risk. The Million Women study, which...

From advanced, minimally-invasive surgical techniques to mapping the human genome, medical advancements that would have been unthinkable a mere 50 years ago are shuttling us toward a ripe old age -- but at what cost? While no one can argue that medicine and technology have changed our lives in many...

Thanksgiving is around the corner, and the December holidays on the horizon. Some say: "It's the most wonderful time of the year!" Or is it? For many of us, the holiday visits back home to family members are something to be dreaded. While we look forward to the pleasure of...

When was the last time you cracked open a fortune cookie? Those little slips of paper filled with uplifting, motivational messages always seem to brighten our days. Snippets of inspiration such as, "You will be sharing great news with all those you love," "Be patient -- success is near," or...

Three research studies from the last few years have explored an interesting tool that could potentially be used to combat the obesity epidemic in our culture. Not unknown in other parts of the world, the idea of addressing the first step to food digestion and an important factor in reducing...

Back in August I wrote a Part I article on the good, the bad and ugly of grain-based carbohydrates. While promising to deliver Part II shortly thereafter, a manuscript deadline got in the way. Well, here is the tardy Part II and by way of apology, I will rely on...

Take all the "white stuff" out of your diet. You've read it in popular magazines, heard it from your friends and even from the lips of Oprah, the long reigning queen of day time television. Taking away all things white from your diet -- bread, pasta, bakery items and sugar...

In an economy that has been reeling in double-digit unemployment and unending home foreclosures, the last thing you would expect is that in the 2010-2011 year we spent a collective $50 billion on our pets. Even more surprising, this figure represents an $8 billion increase in the last...

In Annia Ciezaldo's April 1st article in the "New York Times Magazine," she asks, "Does the Mediterranean Diet even exist?" She suggests that since half of Spain, Portugal and Italy's populations are overweight -- with Lebanon rapidly following suit -- then, contrary to popular belief, the Mediterranean people...