Many people hear the term organic, but don’t really know what it means. Going green and going organic go hand in hand. Eating and giving our families organic foods have been proven to be healthier, better for the environment and promote safer growing and farming overall. If you weren’t aware of the benefits of going organic, you should definitely consider them.

Conventional farmers use anywhere from 2-12 pesticides in their crops. Residues of pesticides are left behind on fruits and vegetables. Some of some these have been found to trigger subtle changes in a child’s development and may lead to health issues including ADHD, autism and even cancer.

Crops on organic farms contain plants nurtured by soil on organic farms. Because the soil has not been tampered with, these crops produce fruits and vegetables that...

I had the privilege and honor of speaking with Mailet Lopez, a breast cancer survivor and founder of the website I Had Cancer. It is a great social network based website to connect with anyone that has been affected by cancer and its devastation.

What advice would you give to those that receive devastating news about their health, such as cancer?

Well, I think that people can get a little annoyed by hearing people tell them to be positive all the time. That’s not the first thing that goes through your mind when you hear that you have cancer. What I would suggest is to come to the site and connect with someone who has been in the same shoes. We are giving you the ability to link with someone by gender, geography, type of cancer- our searches are really designed to be as cylindered as possible to match your...

The dance fitness craze that’s all the rage these days is Zumba. Zumba uses lively aerobic routines modeled on Latin dance moves, usually set to Latin music. Zumba adopts moves from various kinds of dances, such samba, hip-hop, meringue, salsa, and mambo.

This fitness program was developed by Colombian dancer and choreographer Alberto Perez during the 1990s. Supposedly, Perez arrived to teach a class one day and forgot the tape he intended to use for his routine, so he improvised a routine set to music he found in his car, mostly salsa and meringue numbers.

The class became a success in Colombia, and Perez soon took his idea overseas. Today Zumba is performed in more than 35 countries, and there are over 20,000 instructors.

It’s easy to see why Zumba is so popular. A single class can burn between 500 and...

September 23rd was the official last day of summer, and for those suffering from Seasonal Affective Disorder already, the beginning of fall may also mark the beginning of their SAD symptoms.

Though SAD can occur at any time of the year, its symptoms most commonly appear in September & October, when the temperatures begin to cool and it gets darker earlier in the day.

Luckily, there are a few ways sufferers can start preparing for – or even fighting off – the effects of SAD before they strike.

Get as much sun as you can. – Even if it just means opening the blinds in your home, or going outside for lunch instead of staying in the office, soak up as much sun as possible during the day. Sunlight boosts the levels of serotonin, a neurotransmitter that regulates mood, in the brain. The more sun you get, the higher...

It’s decadent, sinful and delicious. But did you know that recent studies have shown that eating chocolate in large quantities can significantly reduce some cardiovascular disorders?

That’s right. Eating chocolate can actually help our hearts. There were seven studies conducted on individuals eating chocolate in different forms like candies and candy bars, chocolate drinks, cookies, desserts and nutritional supplements. These studies concluded consumption of chocolate was linked to lower rates of stroke blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and other conditions affecting the heart. There were no beneficial effects though on diabetes or heart failure.

This report was published in the British Medical Journal and showed that the group consuming the most chocolate had a 37% decrease for cardiovascular disorders...

You don’t have to spend a bundle and see a world-renowned therapist in order to experience good mental health. Techniques you can practice on your own range from exercise to reciting positive mantras. In this stressful era, the key to staying out of Bellevue is to focus on what makes you feel good in your life.

Here are some tips you can try on your way to good mental health:

• Find a type of exercise that helps you relax. Very often people who exercise say that they focus so much on the physical activity that they forget about what’s stressing them out. You may want to try a class that incorporates mental relaxation techniques, such as yoga or Pilates. And the good news is if you have a computer and a mat, you can do it from home and forgo that expensive gym membership that could stress you out even...

Back in June, First Lady Michelle Obama unveiled MyPlate, the replacement to the old food pyramid. The new plate design was meant to be a more aesthetically pleasing version of dietary guidelines. And though MyPlate is visually less confusing than the original food pyramid, the design is still potentially misleading.

The four sections of MyPlate are: fruits, grains, vegetables, and protein. To the side of the plate is a “glass” for dairy.

The main cause of confusion with MyPlate comes from that protein section. Protein isn’t a food, it’s a nutrient, one that is found in most whole foods, including vegetables. So not only should it not be its own section, but the fact that the section is equally as large as the fruit portion is not only deceptive, but potentially harmful.

Most Americans already eat too...