Month: August 2017

7 Hidden Causes Of Low Testosterone

Post author By HealthyWay Staff Writer
Post date August 22, 2017

Nearly half of men over age 45 have low testosterone levels, a condition that can leave them feeling weak, depressed, and not at all interested in intimacy.
Over time, low testosterone can even make bones brittle and prone to breaking. Low testosterone, or “low-T,” as many pharmaceutical ads call it, can make a man miserable.

You’re probably aware of a few conditions that contribute to low testosterone levels. The usual suspects include high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes, and addictions to certain substances.
If you don’t suffer from one of those common culprits, you might assume you’re not at risk.

But not so fast: As researchers trace the causes of low testosterone back to a menagerie of discrete sources, it starts to seem like there’s a threat to a man’s hormonal balance hiding around every corner.
Here are some of the most surprising (and dismaying) things that have been associated with low testosterone levels:

1. Certain Cholesterol-Lowering Medications

High cholesterol can totally mess with testosterone levels. We know this. Unfortunately, a common treatment for high cholesterol might also cause low-T.

“The problem is that we have become accustomed to expressing the effects of our therapies in terms of the average changes in groups as opposed to also considering the range of changes in individuals,” the authors wrote.
“We need to acknowledge this shortcoming if we are going to learn more about benefits and risks of drugs and really understand whether side effects … truly matter.”

In other words, we don’t know if the testosterone-lowering effects of statins are significant enough to worry about just yet. We only know that they exist.

2. Being in a Happy Relationship

When it comes to low testosterone, it seems you just can’t win for losing. Lots of men worry about their hormone levels because they want to have happy, fulfilling romantic relationships, and low-T can get in the way of physical intimacy.

So here’s a fine how-do-ya-do: Having a happy, fulfilling relationship can actually correlate to lower levels of testosterone in men.
A 2003 study from the journal Hormones and Behavior asked 122 men to describe their romantic relationships. Then the researchers collected saliva samples that were used to test participants’ testosterone levels.

It turns out that the men who reported being in “committed romantic relationships” had testosterone levels that were, on average, 21 percent (!) lower than those of their swinging bachelor counterparts. Maybe this can help explain the arcane process by which “Netflix and chill” slowly becomes actually—you know—watching TV or snoozing on the couch together.

3. Getting Old

Some drop in testosterone is unavoidable. It’s just part of the adventure called aging—that fun journey during which your body falls apart, bit by bit, hurtling down the ceaseless and inevitable path toward its final rest in peace.

You can’t stop this one, we’re afraid. The good news is that the testosterone decrease associated with aging does tend to even out if you live long enough.
According to the American Urological Association, approximately 40 percent of men age 45 and older have clinically low testosterone. That number drops to just 20 percent who are age 60 and older, then settles down at around 30 percent for men over 70.
That’s small consolation, but you gotta take what you can get.

4. Struggling With Obesity

Every day, health reporters introduce us to a truckload of horrors associated with obesity. Here’s your daily dose.

A 2010 study found that a full 40 percent of obese, nondiabetic participants—all male, aged 45 or older—had low testosterone. Throw diabetes into the mix and that figure leaps to 50 percent. If that’s not enough to convince you obesity is bad for your hormones, check out the authors’ conclusion on their findings:
“In view of its high prevalence, obesity is probably the condition most frequently associated with subnormal free testosterone concentrations in males.”
In other words, when it comes to low-T, obesity is the No. 1 culprit.

5. Joining the Army

If a spaceship full of benevolent aliens landed on your lawn and hollered, “Quick! Where can we find the highest concentration of testosterone around here? We need to extract it in a harmless, noninvasive way or else our whole planet will explode and all your pets will die!” you might point them to the nearest U.S. Army training camp.

All those sweating, screaming, straining young recruits are bound to be packed to the brim with testosterone, right?
Um…somehow, no.
A 1990 study looked at what happens to testosterone levels when men go to boot camp. It wasn’t really an Army boot camp that the researchers studied, but a “90-day shock incarceration program, modeled after military boot camp,” which we consider close enough.

Anyway, those guys didn’t get more manly as they ran obstacle courses and saluted and got yelled at, or whatever happens at boot camp. Instead, they developed lower testosterone levels during their 90-day incarceration.
“There were significant differences among individuals in both mean scores and changes over time,” researchers found.

The implications of this research are pretty fascinating. These findings dovetail with previous studies that suggest testosterone production slows down when men feel like their social status has dropped.
How’s that for some fragile masculinity?

6. Health Food

Flaxseeds are really good for you. They’re full of omega-3 fatty acids and every type of fiber you could want moving through you. They also have an insanely high concentration of chemicals called lignans.
For the most part, lignans have a great reputation. Most notably, they might guard against prostate cancer and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

Here’s the thing about both of those conditions, though: They’re associated with high testosterone levels.
In one study, researchers had a woman with PCOS take 30 grams of flaxseed every day for around 100 days. At the end of the study, the woman’s total serum testosterone had decreased by 70 percent.
That’s terrific news for women with PCOS. It’s not great news for men who are worried about low-T. But before you throw out your flaxseed waffles, you should probably talk to your doctor.

Low testosterone isn’t something you can self-diagnose, and the health benefits of flaxseeds might actually make any hormonal effects totally worth continuing to include them in your diet.
Like anything health-related, you should only make these decisions after a nice, honest conversation with a for-real medical professional.

7. Burning the Midnight Oil

Who has time to sleep anymore? Not people with low testosterone, that’s for sure.
A study out of the University of Chicago found that young men who averaged about five hours of sleep per night reduced their testosterone levels by 10 to 15 percent. And those guys were 24 years old and fit.

How much damage do you think a sleepless night is doing to the testosterone levels of, say, a 35-year-old dude with prediabetes or a cholesterol problem?
Takeaway: If you want to keep those hormones in balance, get your beauty sleep.

Tags 50033701, balance, hemingway

Wellbeing

Woman Asks Boss To Take Mental Health Day, Boss Has Perfect Response

Post author By Staff Writer
Post date August 22, 2017

Madalyn Parker describes herself as a “web developer, music enthusiast, rabbit owner, knitter, xstitcher, mental health advocate | empathy engineer @olark.”

Like most working humans—especially those who struggle with mental health issues—Parker was feeling overwhelmed at work and felt like she needed a few days off so she could give her all at the workplace.
Parker sent a note to her boss saying that she was planning to take a couple of days off “to focus on her mental health.”
You may be expecting a snooty response from a money-grubbing manager, but it was the company CEO, Ben Congleton, who responded, thanking Parker for reminding him that it’s totally appropriate—and often necessary—to use sick days to focus on mental health.

When the CEO responds to your out of the office email about taking sick leave for mental health and reaffirms your decision. ðŸ’¯ pic.twitter.com/6BvJVCJJFq

— madalyn (@madalynrose) June 30, 2017

“You are an example to us all,” Congleton wrote to his employee, “and help cut through the stigma so we can all bring our whole selves to work.”

What a boss!

Parker was blown away by her employer’s response and asked if she could screenshot the email and share it on Twitter, writing that “It’s kind of a big deal that the CEO is so supportive of my mental health.” Her boss consented.
Since then, tens of thousands of people have engaged with Parker’s tweet. All of the attention encouraged Congleton to reflect on his simple email response, as well.
“It is incredibly hard to be honest about mental health in the typical workplace,” the Olark CEO wrote on his company’s blog. “In situations like this, it is so easy to tell your teammates you are ‘not feeling well.’ Even in the safest environment it is still uncommon to be direct with your coworkers about mental health issues. I wanted to call this out and express gratitude for Madalyn’s bravery in helping us normalize mental health as a normal health issue.”
The thing is, as Congleton explained, his response to Parker, “should be business as usual. We [humanity] have a lot of work to do.”

Any jobs going where you work? So rare. I left a mental health charity once bc HR wanted to know in advance when I’d have a panic attack

— mollywallop (@mollywallop) July 6, 2017

The Olark CEO went on to address other business executives, reminding them that their job in leadership is “to empower and motivate our teams to maximize the impact of our organization for our customers, our employees, our shareholders, and the world.”
“It’s 2017,” Congleton wrote, pointing out our place in a modern world. “I cannot believe that it is still controversial to speak about mental health in the workplace when 1 in 6 Americans are medicated for mental health.”
“When an athlete is injured they sit on the bench and recover,” Parker’s boss blogged. “Let’s get rid of the idea that somehow the brain is different.”

Not a One-Off Response

This isn’t the first time that Parker has needed to use sick days to focus on her mental health. In a 2015 Medium post, the web developer detailed her history of dealing with anxiety, depression, panic attacks, insomnia, and even thoughts of suicide.
She also wrote about how hard it was to reach out to her superiors to discuss how she could balance her mental health issues with her work responsibilities.

Once she did reach out, Parker remembers, the company leader that she spoke to, “didn’t mention my performance at all. The conversation was quickly focused on my well-being and health, and the team’s willingness to work with me during my low points.”
To top it off, Parker’s decision to speak with her superior “spurred a team-wide conversation about mental and emotional obstacles.”

Company Culture

Parker counts herself lucky to be a part of a company that works hard to provide a healthy work culture. At Olark, a digital chat widget company, they promote the following values:
Chill out, Help each other, Assume good faith, Make it happen, Practice empathy, and Speak your mind.
By nurturing these values, listening to their employees, and creating a flexible workspace for a diverse staff, Olark is showing how a modern company can and should operate.

Thanks to Madalyn Parker for fighting for the recognition of mental health issues as plain ol’ health issues. And thanks to Olark CEO Ben Congleton and the rest of his management team for listening and acting on Parker’s behalf.
The world could use more great examples like Olark.

Tags 50029456, balance, hemingway

Wellbeing

10 Items Under $50 That Will Awaken Your Inner Shopaholic

Post author By HealthyWay Staff Writer
Post date August 18, 2017

Every once in a while, you need treat yourself. But you don’t need to break the bank in the process. Look hard enough and you can find innovative, brilliant, life-changing stuff for less than $50—provided, of course, that you know where to look.
We’re talking about stuff like…

1. AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker

Love espresso, but can’t afford a $3,000 espresso machine? The AeroPress has a brilliant design that immerses coffee grounds in hot water, resulting in lower acidity and an incredibly rich taste.

Get it from Amazon.

2. Otrio Board Game

Think tic-tac-toe, but elevated. It’s great for kids, but adults can get addicted too.

Get it from Amazon.

3. HoMedics Shiatsu Neck and Shoulder Massager

Granted, it’s not quite as relaxing as a real massage, but the heat feels amazing after a hard day’s work.

Get it from Bed Bath & Beyond.

4. Soarigami Airplane Portable Armrest Divider

Whether you’re traveling with kids or sitting with a stranger, this ingenious device will make the flight more comfortable by dividing the armrest into two sides, each of which extends to accommodate an adult-sized elbow.

Get it from Amazon.

5. Viter Energy Caffeine Mints

If you’ve ever wanted to freshen your breath while putting an extra spring in your step, Viter Energy’s caffeine mints deliver. They pack 40 milligrams of caffeine along with a vitamin B complex—and no calories.

Get a pack of six tins from Amazon.

6. Fancii Magnifying Makeup Mirror

If you want your makeup to look perfect every time, this brilliant mirror hits all the right notes. It attaches to your bathroom mirror via a strong suction cup and provides a magnified view with a natural daylight LED.

Get it from Amazon.

7. Prism Glasses

Read while lying down. Sure, it’s lazy, but it’s convenient.

Get them from Amazon.

8. Neat Cheeks Flavored Face Wipes

Flavored with calorie-free stevia, these face wipes stop kids from fussing during after-meal cleanups.

Get two packs from Amazon.

9. Charcoal Companion Potato People

These spud skewers dress up your potatoes like people (literally). They’re functional—allowing you to grill your potatoes without burning them, but they’re also completely ridiculous. And that’s why we love them.

Get them from Amazon.

10. LifeStraw Go Water Filter Bottle

This BPA-free water bottle uses the LifeStraw hollow-fiber membrane technology to filter out 99.9999 percent of waterborne bacteria. Essential for hiking or camping (although we’d still bring plenty of fresh, clean water just in case).

Get it from Amazon.

Tags 50033396, balance, hemingway

Sweat

Telltale Signs Of PCOS And What To Do About It

Post author By Anna Cherry
Post date August 18, 2017

When I was 23 years old, I sat in my OB-GYN’s office looking at black and white pictures of my insides. “See?” he said, gesturing to the round, straight-lined cysts showing up on ultrasound images of my ovaries. “Like a string of pearls.”

This was the main criterion used to diagnose me with polycystic ovary syndrome—aka polycystic ovarian syndrome, Stein-Leventhal syndrome, and PCOS—along with cystic acne that was in full bloom, a BMI that was nearly in the “overweight” range for my height, and a sprinkle of body hair in unexpected places.
My gynecologist also told me that my relatively short menstrual cycles were proof of this hormone condition, which is estimated to affect between 8 and 20 percent of reproductive-age women worldwide.
He wanted to put me on oral birth control, which I’d gotten off of in college because I felt like it was spiking my anxiety, and metformin, a prescription medication used to stabilize blood sugar levels in people with diabetes.
I was told that the former would prevent new testosterone-producing cysts from forming on my ovaries (something that could lead to more acne, body hair, and infertility down the road), and the latter would keep me from becoming insulin resistant.
I happened to be going through a particularly intense phase of eschewing traditional medical advice, and I said “no thank you” to both. After extensive personal research, I’d decided to try to treat the condition through diet and exercise—eating a whole-foods, lower-carb diet and trying to reduce my weight by 10 percent, which I’d read could help regulate cycles.
The double-edged sword of women’s (understandable) affinity for alternative medicine is that through the process, they may become more informed and empowered about their bodies—but they may also overestimate their ability to interpret scientific studies as laypeople and consequently forego essential medical advice.

Fortunately, this time, it looks like I was right to not listen to my doctor. The next year, living in Madrid, Spain, I went to an alternative-medicine OB-GYN, who took an ultrasound and said that I looked like I was about to ovulate (PCOSers supposedly don’t ovulate with regularity, if at all) and that she didn’t think my diagnosis was correct.
A few months ago—a full six years after my PCOS diagnosis—another ultrasound of my insides showed that my ovaries were not abnormally cystic. My new (mainstream) OB-GYN assures me that my short cycles are normal. (Though the average cycle length is 28 days, regular cycles can range anywhere from 21 to 35 days.) He also says I should be perfectly fertile if ever I decide to reproduce.
So, do I have PCOS?
My old gynecologist said yes, my current one says no, and I say probably not but honestly who really knows?
Whatever the case, PCOS is a real condition with real effects on those who suffer from it. Symptoms vary from woman to woman, and confusion abounds about how to diagnose it correctly. But we’ve compiled some information here that may be helpful to you if you think you or someone you care about may have PCOS.

Watch for these signs.

There are typically three telltale symptoms associated with PCOS, and according to Mayo Clinic, doctors will diagnose you with the condition if you have at least two of them: irregular periods, polycystic ovaries, and excess androgen.
“Infrequent, irregular or prolonged menstrual cycles are the most common sign of PCOS,” says Mayo Clinic. “For example, you might have fewer than nine periods a year, more than 35 days between periods and abnormally heavy periods.”

When a woman fails to ovulate during her monthly cycle, cysts can build up in her ovaries. While you might reasonably assume that polycystic ovaries would be a definite indicator of PCOS, this is not always the case. Not every woman who has cysts on her ovaries has PCOS, and not every woman with PCOS has cystic ovaries.
As for excess androgen, this is just another way of saying “too much testosterone.” Women who overproduce the hormone may experience symptoms including acne, male-pattern baldness, and excessive hair growth.
Let’s take a minute, though, to acknowledge that the standards for “excessive hair growth” are probably skewed. As you’ll recall, having some dark hairs in unusual places was enough to be considered suspect by my old gynecologist.

Listen to the stories of other “cysters.”

Because there’s so much confusion among both medical experts and patients surrounding this condition and how to diagnose and treat it, one of the best things you can do is get involved with a community of other women who are suffering from PCOS—or as they very charmingly call themselves, “soul cysters”—and learn from these personal accounts.

I recently reached out to women in my own social network who’ve been diagnosed with PCOS.
Here are their experiences, some of which have been edited slightly for space and clarity.
Krista shared her story:
I was diagnosed with PCOS when I was 25. I had ovarian cysts since puberty but not other issues until I experienced a miscarriage at age 24. My cycle never returned after the miscarriage and we were unable to conceive (due to anovulation). I was sent to a fertility specialist … and after an ultrasound, hysterosalpingogram [x-ray of uterus and fallopian tubes], and a TON of lab work, I was diagnosed. Immediately I was given metformin to take twice daily, and I conceived our oldest living child the same month.
I started hormonal birth control at age 16 so any of the symptoms I may have had prior would have been masked by the hormones. I still have issues with hirsutism, hair thinning and loss, and acne at age 30. I am fortunate to not be insulin resistant and don’t have issues with weight gain. I am currently being treated daily with metformin and have no issues.
In Rachel’s case, PCOS is a family affair:
My sister also has it. Though I have ‘fat PCOS’ and she has ‘skinny PCOS.’ My sister is a urologist, and when I was still in college (19), she said I had the textbook description of it. The only issues I dealt with when I was younger were irregular/nonexistent periods and hirsutism. When I hit my mid-20s, I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression, so I was put on selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).
At 25, I had AWFUL cystic acne along my jaw and far cheek area close to my ear. I was put on spironolactone then and I also use a prescription topical retinoid cream called Tretinoin when necessary. I forgot to mention that I was first put on birth control at 17 after I went through a period of six months where I had no period, and then when they started again, I would bleed for a month straight. I’m currently on birth control, spironolactone, and I’m switching from Prozac to Trintellix.
My sister has irregular periods and hirsutism (hers is milder than mine). She was able to conceive after one round of Clomid and delivered my older nephew in 3/2014. She never had a period after delivering and did not go back on BC, so she had a surprise baby 20 months after my older nephew.
I’ve been told by a reproductive endocrinologist to not even try to get pregnant on my own (when that time comes) and that I should go straight to her. My current gen phys and the repro endo mentioned the name [polycystic ovary syndrome] needs to be changed because so many women don’t exhibit cysts (neither my sis nor I have cysts).
Kara first learned about PCOS in a magazine for teens:
I was about fifteen when I was diagnosed. I had a subscription to Seventeen magazine and read an article that said to see your doctor if you’d had your period for more than a couple of years and it still wasn’t regular (I’d had mine for about 4 by then).

Sure enough I had PCOS, in conjunction with insulin resistance (these two go hand in hand a lot). My doctor put me on metformin for the insulin resistance and a good diet and I lost 40 pounds in a year without trying.
She also put me on the pill to get the cysts to shrink (apparently the estrogen in the pills shrinks them). I had 1 large cyst (14 centimeters across) that the ultrasound tech couldn’t believe wasn’t causing me pain, and two other small ones if I recall. The large one turned out to be located on my fallopian tube, so it didn’t shrink like the ones on my ovaries did. Had surgery with general anesthesia at 15.5 years old to remove the large cyst and my doctor took 2 cups of fluid out of it.
This was right before band camp in high school and having to explain my medical condition to a bunch of teenage boys was interesting! But they were all very supportive (I played a traditionally male instrument in the band). I’m still on metformin and the pill 12 years later to manage insulin resistance and to prevent the cysts from forming.
Sometimes I worry about difficulties I may have if I ever want to get pregnant, and I think this is just another reason I’m leaning towards not having my own children. It’s amazing how many women have PCOS and don’t even realize it, so I’m thankful that Seventeen article was written all those years ago!
Tiffany has jumped through a number of hoops trying to get her PCOS under control:
I was diagnosed with PCOS almost 15 years ago. I would say that since I’ve been diagnosed with PCOS at age 14, things have been difficult. One of the main treatments for this condition is birth control pills. That was quite a process trying to find a pill that didn’t make me feel terrible. Another popular treatment for this condition is a medication called metformin. This medication would always make my stomach hurt so bad. It would always cause nausea as well.
In addition to side effects from the medication, the symptoms of PCOS can be devastating. I experienced issues with the excessive hair growth, particularly on my face. The hair growth got so bad that I was able to grow a decent beard in just over a week. The hair removal process is annoying and it can also become very expensive very quickly.
Also, at the age of 18, I was told that I would probably never be able to have children because of PCOS. That was kind of devastating. In retrospect, the doctors that I visited for treatment didn’t really know a lot about PCOS. In the last 6 months, I have obtained a new OB-GYN and she has enlightened me on PCOS. Some of the issues I have, like muscle and joint stiffness, hot flashes, and loss of appetite, stem from PCOS. After many many tests and a crazy medical adventure with blood clots, it’s hard to say whether or not I still suffer from PCOS.

Seek out second opinions.

Another reason I’d been suspect of my long-ago PCOS diagnosis was that I learned my gynecologist had also diagnosed one of my friends and both of her sisters with PCOS, despite all of us having different symptoms.
Though now I know that the symptoms can vary widely, at the time I wondered if this was some kind of faddish health hysteria—like vitamin D deficiency or gluten sensitivity—that would soon be debunked or a conspiracy wherein pharmaceutical companies were in cahoots with OB-GYNs to make more women take more prescriptions.
When it comes down to it, doctors simply still don’t have a good understanding of PCOS. But getting a PCOS diagnosis doesn’t mean you have to do whatever you’re told.

“Don’t just trust what the first doctor you see says without doing some research,” one PCOS sufferer, Sara Eaton, tells The Atlantic. “Find another woman with PCOS, go online to some of these support groups. Find a reproductive endocrinologist who knows what they’re doing. Talk to other cysters, read the articles, look for doctor recommendations. We have a syndrome that is so complicated and confusing, one of the best ways we can help ourselves is to be proactive and make sure we find the best and most knowledgeable caregivers available to us.”
When you’re not sure where to start, trust what the majority of scientific experts are saying—because science, however imperfect its conclusions, is the best hope we’ve got for figuring out the truth. Know all of your options. Weigh the costs and benefits.
Above all, keep on moving.

Tags 50033626, body, hemingway

Nosh

7 School Lunches That Don't Involve Sandwiches

Post author By Mary Sauer
Post date August 18, 2017

The start of school is here, which means many moms have returned to late nights and early mornings of packing lunches for our kids. Ask any kid or brown-bagging adult, and they’ll tell you just how boring eating sandwiches five days a week can be. No matter how you slice it, you can only eat PB&J and cold cuts for so long before you start craving something a little more exciting.

Of course, when you’re a busy mom trying to get multiple kiddos to the bus, keep up with extracurricular activities, and juggle your own work, finding the time to come up with fresh ideas for a packed lunch may not seem like a priority.

If brainstorming new meals keeps getting pushed to bottom of your ever-expanding to-do list, we’ve got good news for you. We spent some time gathering the best ideas for school lunches that don’t involve sandwiches, and here are the most delicious (and nutritious!) ideas we found.

1. Do you bento?

Technically, any lunch that has been packed in a box is a bento. But there is something uniquely fun about meals inspired by Japanese boxed lunches. They’re also a great way to encourage picky eaters to try new things and to incorporate healthy options into your kid’s school lunch.

The first step to packing a bento lunch is to find a container. You can spend a pretty penny on bento boxes online, like this leak-proof Bentgo box sold for just under $30. There are also some more affordable options, like the Amazon basics bento, which is sold in a set of four for less than $10.

Packing your box is where the fun starts. A lot of parents start with the basic rule of including a protein, a starch, a vegetable, a fruit, and a treat. This easy formula makes packing lunch as simple as checking things off a list. Here are few ideas for bento lunch combinations.

–Cold chicken breast (chopped into bite-sized pieces), steamed rice with a soy sauce packet, sugar snap peas, tangerine, and a fortune cookie

–Tuna salad, whole wheat crackers, sliced carrots, grapes, and a cookie

–Ham and cheese cubes, raisin bread slathered with almond butter, cherry tomatoes, strawberries, and Fig Newtons

We’ve got a feeling that once you start building bento boxes, you’ll realize the sky’s the limit when it comes to selecting unique combinations of healthy lunch foods. You might just have a little fun, too.

2. Give yogurt a chance.

We think that yogurt parfaits should be the next trend to take the school lunchroom by storm. Although yogurt is typically reserved for a quick breakfast or a snack, it really has the makings of a solid foundation for a healthy meal.

Start with a high-protein yogurt without any added flavors. Greek yogurt can have as much as 18 grams of protein in each serving—exactly what a growing body needs to maintain adequate energy throughout the day.

Unless your child has specific directions from the pediatrician, full-fat yogurt is good choice for young kids because it is high in protein, contains the right bacteria to promote a healthy gut, and will keep them full so they can focus on their lessons instead of a rumbling tummy.

Top the yogurt with a heaping serving of fresh fruit. Pineapple, bananas, berries, or kiwifruit all taste wonderful in a parfait. Add toasted nuts (or nut-free granola if you’re working with allergies) and drizzle with a little honey to sweeten the plain yogurt.

Don’t forget to pack a spoon and throw in a baggie of chopped veggies for a well-rounded meal.

3. Fiesta in a Lunchbox

Another approach to adding a little variety to your lunch routine is to pick a theme inspired by a specific type of food or culture. Mexican-inspired foods make for a good packed lunch and can be prepped ahead of time for quick packing in the morning.

A Mexican lunch that’s especially favored by young kids is a cheese or beef quesadilla, which tastes just fine cold if your child doesn’t have access to a microwave. Add a side of black beans and chips and salsa. Carrot sticks or an applesauce pouch are easy to pack so you can incorporate another food group into this fun school lunch.

4. Let’s do blunch.

Everyone loves to punctuate their week with an extravagant brunch on Saturday afternoon, but let’s not forget how simple (and fun) packing breakfast for lunch can be. Planning ahead is the key to pulling this idea off.

When you cook breakfast over the weekend, make an extra portion or two of each dish. Throw together miniature pancakes for easy packing or bake an egg casserole complete with sausage, veggies, and cheese. When your busy Monday morning rolls around, you will be thrilled you have the basics ready to go.

The sides for a breakfast-for-lunch school meal can be simple. A squeezable yogurt, fruit salad, or a hardboiled egg all go great with breakfast foods and require low- or no-maintenance prep.

5. A Salad Even Kids Can’t Resist

Okay, we know what you’re thinking. Packing a salad in a school lunch isn’t going to go over well with most kids, but hear us out. Cold pasta salad is totally a kid-friendly lunch option. You can come up with your own combinations, but one favorite is rotini, chopped ham, cold peas, shredded cheddar, and ranch dressing topped with a small handful of sunflower seeds.

The key to making this the easiest meal you’ve ever prepped is cooking the pasta ahead of time. On Sunday evening, boil the rotini, drain it, and throw it in the fridge to cool overnight. In the morning, you can combine a cup of pasta with your chosen mix-ins and dressings in a lunch container. Throw in a banana, and you’ve got a complete meal!

6. A Charcuterie Lunch That’ll Make You Wish You’d Packed One for Yourself

Take a note from those fancy cheese and meat trays at the last party you attended and put together a charcuterie board–inspired lunch for your kid. Everything in this lunch can be eaten on the go, making this perfect for lunchtime, an after-school snack for a busy kid, or a working lunch for a mom on the go.

There is a lot of freedom in building a charcuterie lunchbox, but we’ve got a few favorite combinations to pass along.

–Salami, sliced Swiss, apple slices, walnuts, pickled beets, and crackers

–Prosciutto, goat cheese, toasted French baguette, dried cranberries, cashews, and a little spicy mustard

–Summer sausage, sharp cheddar, pita chips and hummus, banana peppers, and grapes

The beauty of a lunch of finger foods is that everything can be prepped at the beginning of the week. Slice the meat and the cheese and store in airtight containers, wash the fruit, and divvy up the nuts and dried fruits. The only thing you’ll need to do before school each morning is pack eve
rything in to-go containers to send along with your kid.

7. Lunch on a Stick

Nothing says “fun mom” like throwing together some kabobs for your student’s lunch. It isn’t just about the fun, of course, because lunch on a stick is a great way to persuade your child to try new things. Load up a few skewers with savory combinations like chicken and tomatoes or cheese and celery, and don’t forget to include a fruit kabob or two as well.

You can send kabobs on their own, but hungry kiddos will love having a few sides, too. Hummus and carrots sticks go well with just about any variation of lunch on a stick, and pita bread slathered in peanut butter and honey goes great with fruit kabobs.

Our last bit of advice? Don’t get too caught up in the presentation. There are a lot of pictures of really gorgeous packed lunches on social media and blogs, from a panda bento to color-themed trays. These are so fun and cute, but they definitely aren’t the standard the rest of us should hold ourselves to. The real priority for the lunch rush is healthy and delicious food that is easy to prep each morning.

Tags 50032946, fuel, hemingway

Motherhood

4 Common Mistakes Parents Make When Feeding Toddlers

Post author By HealthyWay Staff Writer
Post date August 18, 2017

Despite being so young, toddlers who won’t eat somehow manage to combine great willpower with the stubbornness of a mule. If your little angel will eat anything you place in front of them one day, then lunch becomes a battle the next, it may have something to do with your approach at mealtime.

But don’t worry, you can get your toddler eating again with a few minor adjustments to your routine. Here are a few things you need to know.

1. Picky eating isn’t a problem.

Many parents will say their child is a picky eater like it’s a bad thing because it’s often stigmatized as such. Children’s tastes and eating habits change as they grow, and this change can feel alarming to parents and caregivers.

Studies have shown kids actually develop a fear of new foods between 2 and 6 years old, but that the fear eventually diminishes as they grow. It’s important for parents to realize this is a normal part of their child’s development. When parents stop blaming themselves or their kids for their anxiety and resistance toward certain foods, mealtime can be more pleasant for everyone.

2. Limit choices.

Parents often think the best way to nourish their picky toddler is to offer as many food choices as possible. If there are more choices available, the child will have to like at least one of the options, right? Not necessarily.

Offering multiple choices may just get you extra “nos” in return. Meals don’t need to be toddler approved, and parents and caregivers aren’t children’s personal chefs. Simply plan meals with at least one item you know you child enjoys, peppering in favorites every once in awhile. If you are feeling brave and want your child to have some input, make sure you limit it to just two options.

3. Avoid too many snacks.

A toddler’s stomach is much smaller than an adult’s, so it doesn’t take a lot for them to get full. If you want to be sure they’re eating enough nutritious foods at meal times, be sure to limit the amount of snacks they’re allowed throughout the day, and that includes milk and juice.

Liquids other than water will cause a toddler to feel fuller. If they drink too much milk, they simply won’t be hungry at mealtime. Toddlers should only drink 3 to 4 ounces of milk per day and no more than 4 to 6 ounces of juice.
It also helps to maintain a regimented snack and mealtime routine. When snacks and meals are eaten at predictable times every day, you won’t have to worry about your toddler feeling hungry and they won’t have to worry about whether their Goldfish or Cheerios will be served before their tummy starts grumbling.

4. Know your role.

There are two main mistakes many parents make when it comes to feeding their children: Either they try to control too many aspects of their child’s eating habits or they allow their little tyke too much freedom.
Micromanaging the way a toddler eats will inevitably result in a frustrating interaction. However, allowing a tot free rein to have any food they request or to snack all day long isn’t the answer either.

Parents who struggle with their children’s behavior and appetites at meal times might benefit from looking into a program called the Division of Responsibility in Feeding, created by Ellyn Satter.
This technique outlines these specific roles for parents and toddlers during mealtime: Parents decide what, when, and where their children eat, while children determine how much, and whether or not, they eat a food item.

No matter what, caring for a toddler will involve some difficult and trying times. Hopefully these feeding tips will help parents to create less stressful meals for everyone involved and nurture kids to grow up to be adventurous eaters.

Tags 50033256, hemingway, parenting

Nosh

How The Clean Eating Fad Is Taking A Toll On Young Women

Post author By Anna Cherry
Post date August 18, 2017

One must stay vigilant living in the age of Trump, Mac n’ Cheetos, Scientology, and Goop. All day, every day, we are bombarded with messages designed to dupe us into tolerating foods devoid of nutrition and facts devoid of truth.
So how do we keep our bodies and our minds right?
Many of us don’t understand our deepest desires, much less the ways marketing shapes and fuels them. Although a part of us knows that something that seems too good to be true probably is, another part of us will throw skepticism out the window in exchange for any shiny new promise of perfection.

Moderation is, we all know, humanity’s enduring struggle. We prefer to operate in the extremes of good and evil—all or nothing. Instead of letting useful principles act as helpful guides, we try to pin them down and make them cast-in-stone prescriptions.
This has long been true when it comes to the pursuit of health, and even more specifically, our behaviors surrounding diet and weight loss. Take “clean eating,” for example.
It’s a clear response to the floundering health of our fast-food nation. The movement’s guiding principle was honorable: Eat more food that looks mostly like it did when it came out of the ground. But for many of its adherents, the #eatclean movement picked up some unhealthy baggage along the way.

What is clean eating?

According to The Guardian, the earliest iteration of the clean eating movement emerged in 2007, when Canadian fitness model Tosca Reno published The Eat-Clean Diet, a book that promoted the avoidance of processed foods, especially white flour and sugar. She also focused on the importance of vegetables and reasonable portions. All of this was wrapped up in a nice little package with her other insights on embracing a holistic lifestyle.

A couple of years later, former cardiologist Alejandro Junger published Clean: The Revolutionary Program to Restore the Body’s Natural Ability to Heal Itself. Junger had already been praised by Gwyneth Paltrow on Goop, and his call to action was much closer to the clean eating mandates of today.
It involved a strict elimination diet centered around liquid meals and eschewed adult beverages, dairy and eggs, sugar, caffeine, nightshade-family vegetables like tomatoes and eggplants, red meat, and more.
Flash forward to today, and the #eatclean movement still resembles its parents. The particular tenets vary depending on the individual who’s preaching, but many advocates of clean eating stress the importance of nixing processed foods and avoiding gluten, dairy, and refined sugars.

Sometimes clean eating is vegan, sometimes it’s raw vegan, sometimes it’s omnivorous—but it’s always touted as the wholesome, pure way to eat, regardless of its disciples’ other food-related views.
The face of clean eating is disproportionately young, attractive, female, white, and affluent enough to be able to regularly afford chia seeds, kale, and coconut sugar.

Ultimately, all this renders the clean eating movement highly exclusive, like a sorority or an ashram geared toward entrepreneurs and those with the money to back their pitches.

How did clean eating become unhealthy?

When you start to view food through the lenses of morality, judgment, and restriction, you’ve got a recipe for disaster.
Dr. Max Pemberton, writing for Daily Mail, points out that, “as every dietitian will tell you, sensible eating is about balance in your diet, not exclusion.” Yet the gospel of clean eating relies on the notion that some foods are clean (aka good) and others are not clean (i.e., they’re dirty or bad).

Meaning, if you want to be good, you must eliminate entire food groups from your diet.
“The central tenet, the very nugget at the core of its belief system, is flawed. The very notion of ‘clean’ eating suggests that some food is dirty or bad—and this simply isn’t the case,” Pemberton writes.
“It’s an inherently disordered way of viewing the world. There are healthy and unhealthy quantities of different types of food, but food in itself is just food.”

Are the tenets of clean eating bunk?

Clean eating goes along nicely with the booming wellness movement, which frequently relies on pseudoscience and a public that’s prone to mistrusting mainstream medicine. Part of this equation involves creating panic around certain so-called toxins and under-recognized sensitivities that either do not exist or are greatly misunderstood.

Take, for example, a popular boogeyman of today: gluten. Many of us believe we’re supposed to avoid it, but we don’t know why. Some wellness gurus would have us believe that gluten is poisoning our guts.
Science, on the other hand, says that unless you have a medical condition that makes you unable to process gluten, avoiding it is pointless and potentially harmful because of the way it unnecessarily limits the variety of your diet.

So what is an expert’s take on a gluten-free diet for someone who is actually able to process gluten?
“We don’t think it’s all that healthy a diet,” Peter H.R. Green, director of the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University and author of Gluten Exposed: The Science Behind the Hype and How to Navigate to a Healthy, Symptom-Free Life, told Bloomberg.
“The things that make things tasty are salt, sugar, fat, and gluten. …Take one thing out and they usually add more of the other.”

Many experts believe that any kind of elimination of an entire food group is bad news for the following reason.

Food dogmatism can be a vehicle for disordered eating.

Most of us are suckers for the promise of a perfect yet attainable diet, physique, and lifestyle, and Instagram celebs are perhaps the most notorious peddlers of this promise.
Their flawless images are calorie-free eye candy for countless young women who have already been primed by cultural messaging to let others tell them how they should be and what it means to be beautiful.

This also just seems to be part of our nature, as Pemberton points out. “Humans far prefer drama, and this is why the endless cycle of excess and restriction, sin and absolution, is so appealing.”
But in a culture that’s already prone to disordered eating, it’s easy for the restrictions of clean eating to reinforce a destructive obsession with “healthy” eating. This is called orthorexia, or literally “fixation on righteous eating.”

Ruby Tandoh, writing for Vice, shares of her own experience trying to escape her disordered eating habits only to be drawn in by the guilt-based guidance of eating for wellness:
“When I found ‘wellness’, I thought I’d found a way out of the storm. What I was looking for was someone to say that there were things that weren’t just OK to eat, but that they would actually be good for me.”

“At the same time, I wasn’t ready to float untethered from my world of food neuroses. Wellness was alluring precisely because of the restriction it promised. There’s nothing left to be fearful of when the bad food is labeled ‘bad food’, and when what’s left is a miracle cure.”

Clean eating gone wrong is a reminder that we need to pay more attention to mental health issues.

Despite what all the headlines are saying, it’s not telling the whole truth to say that clean eating is causing eating disorders, though it’s certainly worth being mindful of what professionals who treat patients with eating disorders are observing.

Pemberton says, “Every person I see in my eating disorder clinic is ‘clean eating.'” And dietitian Renee McGregor, who works with both Olympic athletes and patients with eating disorders, tells The Guardian that in the past year and a half, “every single client with an eating disorder who walks into my clinic doors is either following or wants to follow a ‘clean’ way of eating.”
“Long before ‘clean eating’ came on the scene, doctors like me would see some patients with eating disorders who would describe an obsession with trying to eat healthily. The difference now is that the whole clean eating movement gives them a veneer of respectability,” Pemberton writes.

“This means they can easily justify their behaviour not just to themselves, but also their families.” The result is that people are not seeking the help they need until much later, partly because their behavior has been normalized.
Shame and strict rules shouldn’t be driving your diet. Pleasure and nutrition are not mutually exclusive—in fact, they may reinforce each other.

This doesn’t mean you should be eating whatever you want, whenever you want, in however large a quantity as you want. It just means that eating should be something you actually enjoy, not a shame-inducing or marginalizing experience.

Tags 50030696, fuel, hemingway

Motherhood

These Are The 10 Best (And Worst) States To Have A Baby

Post author By HealthyWay Staff Writer
Post date August 18, 2017

Expecting parents have got their hands full when it comes to preparing for their soon-to-arrive bundles of joy.
What you might not realize, though, is that many of the factors that are less in your control—things like average medical costs and the rate of birth complications—vary widely from state to state. In fact, the differences can be so stark that some experts believe that in the long term, moving to another state might be a worthwhile choice for some expectant parents.

As Diane M. Harnek Hall, professor of family studies at Towson University put it, “Location matters a great deal.”
“There are opportunities everywhere. However, the pathway to those opportunities is more direct in some areas than others,” she explained.
Harnek was one of six experts on a panel assembled by WalletHub to rank all 50 states and the District of Columbia on their friendliness toward new parents and parents-to-be.

The panel evaluated each state on a variety of criteria, assigning each a point value.

Four main categories were considered by the experts: cost, health care, baby friendliness, and family friendliness. Across those categories were a total of 20 specific metrics, each of which was considered on a 100-point scale.

Higher numeric scores represented better conditions for expecting parents and their babies.
Finally, the panel combined the weighted scores of each state and D.C. across all of the metrics, summing them and using the resulting scores to to rank them.

Here’s a breakdown of how each state was scored.

Within the cost category, there were four criteria, each of which carried a weight of 5 points: hospital cesarean delivery charges, hospital conventional delivery charges, the average annual price tag for early child care, and average health insurance premium rates.

Within the health care category, there were 11 criteria. With the exception of fertility clinics per capita, which was weighted at .98 points, every other criteria was weighted at 3.9 points.
Some other health criteria were infant mortality rate, maternal mortality ratio, rate of low birth weight, rate of preterm births, and share of children with all seven recommended vaccines.

The health category was rounded out with the following criteria: quality of women’s hospitals, quality of pediatric neonatology facilities, midwives and obstetrician-gynecologists per capita, pediatricians and family doctors per capita, and the state’s Maternity Practices in Infant Nutrition and Care (mPINC) survey score.
Within the baby friendliness category, there were a total of four criteria. Parental leave policy was weighted at 8 points, while mom groups per capita, childcare centers per capita, and share of nationally accredited childcare centers were weighted at 4 points each.

The final category, family friendliness, which was weighted at 20 points, had a single criterion—the state’s results on WalletHub’s “Best and Worst States to Raise a Family” ranking.
So without further ado, here are the best and worst states to have a baby, according to the expert panel’s analysis.

We’ll start with the worst: states ranked Nos. 42 to 51 (don’t forget D.C.!):

51. Mississippi
50. Louisiana
49. Nevada
48. West Virginia
47. Alabama
46. South Carolina
45. Florida
44. Georgia
43. New Mexico
42. Arkansas

And now, the 10 best states to have a baby in:

1. Vermont
2. Minnesota
3. New Hampshire
4. Connecticut
5. North Dakota
6. Massachusetts
7. Maine
8. Utah
9. Iowa
10. Nebraska
If your state didn’t make either the best or worst lists, find out its rank here, courtesy of WalletHub.

Source: WalletHub

Tags 50033591, hemingway, parenting

Nosh Nutrition x Advice

Take Notice, Guys: Apparently Women Prefer The Scent Of Men Who Eat A Certain Diet

Post author By HealthyWay Staff Writer
Post date August 17, 2017

You already know that your eating habits can affect your sex appeal.
But making dietary choices with attractiveness in mind is not just about slimming down. Our diets influence our natural body odor, and a new study suggests that not all odors are equal.

The study, published in the the journal Evolution & Human Behavior, found that women consider the natural odor of men who consumed a diet heavy in fruits and vegetables more pleasant than the odor of men who consumed a diet made up of a lot of refined carbohydrates.
Although this may be news to some people, the study’s results weren’t exactly surprising to scientists. As Ian Stephen, professor at Australia’s Macquarie University and one of the study’s authors told NPR, “We’ve known for a while that odor is an important component of attractiveness, especially for women.”

That makes sense from an evolutionary perspective, as our diets and resulting body odor can be a useful indicator of physical health and fitness. However, scientists are learning more about the exact biological mechanisms that drive this strange phenomenon.

The researchers started by recruiting gathering a group of healthy young men.

They then asked male participants to complete questionnaires about their general eating habits. In addition to the questionnaires, researchers used an instrument called a spectrophotometer to measure the color of the men’s skin.
The reason? Bright yellow, orange, and red foods contain plant pigments called carotenoids. When we eat those vegetables, the carotenoids influence the color of our skin.

“The carotenoids get deposited in our skin,” Stephens told NPR, going on to say that the spectrophotometer “flashes a light onto your skin and measures the color reflected back.”
Yes, in a sense, the scientists scoped the guys out with a carrot flashlight.
According to Stephens, the information gathered using the spectrophotometer, along with the men’s responses to the questionnaire, allowed the researchers to gain an understanding of their overall eating patterns.

Researchers then had the men wear clean white T-shirts while performing physically strenuous tasks.

Next, Stephens and company collected the sweated-up shirts and had a group of women sniff them to evaluate the odors. “We asked the women to rate how much they liked it.” Then they gave feedback on numerous other factors, from “how floral” the guys’ body odors were to “how fruity” the sullied shirts smelled.

Though the sample size was small, the results tended to be consistent. As Stephens told NPR, “Women basically found that men who ate more vegetables smelled nicer.”

Veggie consumption is not the only surprising thing that ups your attractiveness, though.

Unsurprisingly, lots of studies have been done on what women do and don’t find attractive in men.
One of the more surprising results is from a 2010 cross-cultural study that included participants from the U.S., Germany, England, and China. In the study, women rated men as significantly more attractive when they were wearing red shirts.

Perhaps even more surprising is a 2009 study that found women rated men with facial scars as slightly more attractive than those without.
Possibly the most unexpected finding is from a series of studies that indicates that—contrary to popular belief—women preferred the body odor of men who consumed fresh garlic the night before.

In any case, science says scent plays a substantial role in attraction, and these studies narrow down what you really ought to eat if you’re out to impress a lady. So be sure to keep these findings in mind during your next date night at the buffet.

Tags 50033571, body, hemingway

Wellbeing

4 Things You Should Consider If You're Thinking About Cheating

Post author By Anna Cherry
Post date August 17, 2017

The world is falling apart and nothing matters. We’re all going to die alone. Seize the day as if it were your last! When you look back on your life, you’ll regret the things you didn’t do more than the ones you did.

It feels good to give in to lust. It’s natural. You are but a random blip in the universe, so why not live according to what brings you pleasure?

These are just a handful of lines you might conjure up as possible rationalizations for why you should take part in an illicit affair. Or maybe they’re the lines someone will use to try to lure you into one. Some of them are, to be fair, pretty solid reasons.

But there’s always the other side to consider. Here are four things you should consider if you’re thinking about cheating, according to experts and people who have personal experience with infidelity.

1. You may turn into a miserable liar.

Lying is, of course, a necessary part of cheating, which is itself a sort of lie. But one lie begets more lies, and for many people, this web o’ lies can turn into a very troubling situation—and not just for your conscience.

According to the findings of Anita Kelly, PhD, a psychologist at the University of Notre Dame,

“Towards the later part of the evening, when we were about to leave, he told me ‘I f***ing hate what you did to our family. I hate hearing mom cry every night because of you, she thinks I don’t hear her, but I do. You completely destroyed our family and I don’t think I can ever forgive you for that.’ He left and has ignored all of my calls and texts since.”

4. You’ll learn the power and disappointment of illusions.

According to GoodTherapy.org, up to 20 percent of adults in the United States will participate in an extramarital affair at some point in their lives.

Although some may do this because they’re deeply dissatisfied and in the wrong relationship, others are cheating for different reasons—from low self-esteem to intimacy problems to depression—none of which will be remedied by an affair.

When you’re trying to escape from yourself, any form of stimulation can be intoxicating enough for temporary relief, and cheating is no different.

Because the object of desire in an affair is a human being and not a substance, an affair may even seem like a more substantial and less nefarious pursuit: the pursuit of true love!

Ultimately, however, if you’re using a lover as a stepping stone in a search for the happiness that can only be found within, that person is just a fix. And like any other fix, an affair can leave you feeling empty, exhausted, and still searching for a sustainable solution.

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2. You’ll hurt people deeply, maybe irreversibly.

3. Relationships that are important to you may be lost.