General Health

Articles on general health topics:

(Also see the Pain Articles page.)

28 Keys to Managing Stress – A follow-up to The Anatomy of Stress, this is basically a list of 28 lifestyle factors that help us to be resilient in the presence of stress.

30 Things You Can Do to Avoid and/or Kick a Cold or Flu – I dislike being sick. It still happens sometimes, but I can usually limit a cold to just a few days of feeling mildly under the weather. Here’s how.

34 Tips for Optimal Weight – A concentrated synopsis of the ideas presented in three previous articles (Achieving Your Optimal Weight, Weight Loss: No More Uphill, No More Battle, and Food: The Medicine, The Poison)

Achieving Your Optimal Weight: Eleven Factors You Should Know About

Aging and Stagnant Circulation – This article discusses the issue of reduced circulation which is central to almost all issues of aging and our primary cause of death. What it is and what to do about it.

All About Your Abdomen – What our abs say about us (more than just how sexy we are) & how to get yours in good shape.

The Anatomy of Stress – What is stress really? The work of Hans Selye and how stress affects us.

Ayurveda Series – A few introductory articles on the traditional medical system of India:

Part One: The Art of Life – Rather than focusing on fixing problems, Ayurveda is truly the Art of a Healthy Life.

Part Two: Does Karma Bite Asses? – What is Karma, really? Is the universe really keeping tabs on your good and bad deeds?

Part Three: Before You Name Your Child Dosha – All about the system of defining the mind-body constitution (prakriti) via three basic qualities, known as doshas.

Part Four: The Joints of Life – What Ayurveda says about changes of season and other junctures of life, and how to manage them healthily.

Back to the Tap – Why you should stop buying and drinking bottled water, and what you can do instead.

Basic Vehicle Maintenance: The Skin – Five detoxification strategies, seven nutrition tips, and how the gut is central to skin health.

Basic Vehicle Maintenance: The Digestive System – Things everyone should know about the workings of the digestive system, how to care for it, and how best to introduce food into it.

Becoming a Mental Rockstar – Steps you can take to preserve and enhance your mental focus and clarity.

Big Changes in Small Periods – A brief look at the time line of the human species, where everything changed, and where to focus now.

The Big Picture – A broad examination of all sorts of factors that influence our overall well being, most of which are unacknowledged by conventional doctors.

The Bitter Truth – The properties, nuances, and benefits of bitter foods, herbs, and drinks.

Bowel Health: A Conversation Starter – Americans don’t like talking or thinking about poop, but getting rid of waste is as important to health as what we put in the other end.

The Chinese Clock: A Perfect Time for Everything – Knowing which organ is doing its best work at what time offers valuable insights in shaping our daily routine and understanding what recurrent experiences might indicate.

Coffee: The Highs and Lows – A thorough look at all that’s good and bad about the world’s most popular recreational drug.

Compound Exercises – Get more out of your workout by doing compound exercises; stop wasting your time with isolation exercises.

Dandelion: The Medicine That’s All Around Us – Get acquainted with the many uses of this ubiquitous plant. Once you’ve tried it, you probably won’t regard it as a weed any longer.

Detoxing from the Holidays – Whether it’s too much food, too much family drama, or too much commercialism … what to do about it.

The Drama Fast – One of the best ways to cleanse your system. (That’s a fast from drama, not a fast on drama.)

The Essence and Lessons of Spring / Sensible Cleansing – Springtime (and the spring in any cycle) has a lot to teach. Also some tips on doing a cleanse in spring.

Five Reasons to Take Care of Yourself – Some people need to be inspired. Here are some reasons to start taking better care of yourself! And a whole lot of suggestions of ways to care.

Five Valuable Skin Remedies to Have in Your Medicine Cabinet – Natural topical treatments for a wide range of skin problems.

Food: The Medicine, The Poison – The biological dynamics of foods that play a major role in weight gain and chronic health problems.

Flabby, Inflexible, and Stagnant: How Aging Happens and What to Do About it – Your insides naturally lose tone, your muscles and skin naturally lose flexibility, your blood naturally flows less freely … and there’s so much you can do to favorably intervene in this process.

Get More Out of Exercise by Being Eccentric – The underappreciated eccentric phase of muscle contraction can help you get stronger faster and recover from injuries.

Getting Through the Winter – Why we get gloomy and how to beat it.

Healthy Summer Treats – What to eat when you want something cool and sweet that’s not junk food.

How to Live Healthier Without Beach Whistles – A lesson I started learning in 8th grade and an important one for all inhabitants of the planet.

How to Manage Your Joint Pain Without Drugs – The title pretty much says it all – 30 things you can do.

How to Manage Your Allergies Without Drugs – This one is a bit less exhaustive than the joint pain article above, but I cover a handful of interventions which I consider most valuable for allergy management and relief.

The Joys of Taking Your Medicine – Why “feel good” treatments are real medicine.

Just Eat – How and why to reconnect during the eating process. It’s all about making eating as enjoyable as possible.

Keys to a Long Life – The things I believe are most likely to improve the quality, and probably the duration, of a human life.

The Limitations of Stretching (And How to Do it Right) – Why stretching isn’t always the solution to pain, and how to stretch in a healthy way.

Look Hot in Time for the Naked Bike Ride – Some things you may not know that can help you lose weight.

Love, the Verb – On the nature of Love and why it’s always available to you.

Making Sense of Soy – Soy is alternately glorified and vilified. The truth, as usual, is somewhere in the middle.

Meditation Series:

The Laser Light Show Meditation – The most entertaining form of meditation ever invented.

13 Reasons to Meditate – In case you need more convincing.

What to Do When Meditation is Too Hard – Techniques for getting around the obstacles.

The Stick and Carrot Show – The value of sticks in meditation and why meditation is going to save your life.

Migraines: Sometimes What Doesn’t Kill You Just Makes You Wish You Were Dead – A review of the therapies and lifestyle changes I consider most valuable for preventing and alleviating migraines.

Neti & Nasya: The Dynamic Duo – While neti (rinsing the nasal passages with salt water) has become popular in the West, it has somehow become separated from its vital sibling, Nasya – relubrication. Must read if you do neti.

Qi (Chi) Series: Understanding the Energy Matrix of the Universe

Why The Human Body Can Be Changed in an Instant – And why you can’t walk through walls.

Understanding and Utilizing Your Body’s Energy Networks – How to access the wisdom of Qi medicine.

Tuning Qi With Feng Shui – Basic principles on adjusting living spaces and communities for optimal health and energy flow.

Power of the Voice Series – I received a surprising amount of positive feedback on all of these articles about the power of the human voice – energetically, sonically, spiritually, socially, etc. It’s an amazing faculty.

Embracing Your Inner Mermaid – Opening to the power in using your voice.

The Sound of Healing – The potential of our voice and sounds of all sorts to promote healing.

The Alchemy of Voice – Using the voice to resolve stagnation and blockage.

Honor the Word and Be Honored in the World – Integrity, agreements, and the role of the voice in creation and trust.

Your Voice and the Throat Chakra – The energetic and psycho-spiritual implications of this energy center and its main power – speech.

Read the Label – What to look for when doing your food shopping and analyzing the ingredients in order to make the healthiest choices.

Rituals for Thriving – The attitude with which you care for yourself is everything. Why and how to do it for best results.

Seven Things You Should Know About Pain – The title says it all. Concepts in pain management that are basic and valuable, but not well known.

The Singular Value of Rest – If you have a habit of rescheduling rest when more important stuff comes up, you should read this.

Sorry About the Sugar – If there’s one dietary change that will make more of a difference for most people than anything else, it’s cutting out sweeteners.

Take the Driver’s Seat this Year – A good article for the beginning of a year – choosing a theme to define your year and allowing your agreements to propel you.

Tidbits on Trends – The deep and brief, good and bad, on several trendy foods, such as pink salt, agave nectar, and Greek yogurt.

Treat Yourself Like a Vegetable – For optimal skin, it’s wise to treat yourself the way we treat vegetables and fruits in order to preserve their freshness.

Trigger Points: A Revolution Waiting to Happen – Trigger point theory, developed initially by Janet Travell, MD, explains why and how the majority of our pain occurs.

The Ultimate Taboo – On death, winter, fear, and what it means to “die before you die.”

Water: The New Big Thing – It’s about time people started appreciating the value of good hydration. It can make a difference in so many areas of our health. Here are some guidelines.

Weight Loss: No More Uphill, No More Battle – How our beliefs contribute to our struggle with weight, and what you can do about it.

What Makes a Good Massage? – Whether you do massage or just receive it, this is my opinion on the vital factors that define good massage.

When Moo Juice Won’t Do – A review of alternatives for people who want to avoid cow milk.

Why We Gain Weight, And What We Can Do About It – An exploration of the many factors – some better known than others – that cause us to accumulate excess weight, and some solutions.

Your Nose Should Know – Everyone should know how to smell rancid oils, seeds, nuts, and grains – and why to avoid them.