When is the last time you took a good look at your health portfolio?

I am sure in the last several months you have spent time worrying about, analyzing and reorganizing your financial portfolio. But, have you spend the same amount of time and concern with your health? What are your future goals and how does your current health state play into the future you want? Our bodies are amazing and they have the capacity to do more than we realize, but for them to function at their optimum level they need help.

I was doing some research on the Environmental Working Group Website and I came across a new list of the dirty dozen along with their list of the clean 15.

I am just like everyone; there are days when I crave comfort food, especially after a stressful day. One of my favorite comfort foods is grilled cheese sandwiches dipped in tomato soup. I do not enjoy the tomato soup on its own, but when added to a warm, crispy, cheese filled sandwich it is wonderful. I do allow myself to enjoy my comfort foods; however I have been experimenting with some of them. Here is a great recipe for a more sophisticated grilled cheese sandwich. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. Life is too short to not enjoy comfort foods once in a while.

It seems as though BPA, bisphenol A, is in the news again. A resent Harvard study recruited 77 students to partake in a study looking at the amount of BPA present in their urine after drinking cold water out of a plastic bottle. As a beginning flush each student was given a week "wash-out" period where they only drank water out of a stainless steel bottle and an initial urine concentration of BPA was obtained. The following week they were only allowed to drink cold water out of two refillable polycarbonate bottles. Urine samples were again taken and compared to beginning values.

Our bodies are made up of 2/3 water. Water is used throughout our bodies as a solvent and an essential part of many metabolic processes. Without proper hydration, our bodies are not able to break down fats, proteins and sugars properly to be used as fuel for energy production.

This is a great face mask to help hydrate dry skin and soothe sunburns. Enjoy.

Ingredients
2 tbsp powdered milk
2 tbsp cooled chamomile tea

Instructions
Mix ingredients into a paste. Apply to face or any dry skin. Leave on your skin for 10 minutes and then rinse with warm water.

Anita M. Larrow, ND

H1N1 better known as the Swine Flu is all over the news; there have been many posts on Twitter and other social networking sites about it. What is the Swine Flu and how can you protect yourself and your family with Naturopathic Medicine?

Swine Flu is a respiratory disease found in pigs; usually people are not infected however it can happen and when it does it then spreads person-to-person. The CDC is not sure exactly how the virus is spread between humans; therefore precautions need to be taken when interacting with people. Precautions include:

It is allergy season again, which for some of us means dealing with runny nose, watery and bloodshot eyes, sneezing, congestion and itchy skin. How do we deal with the symptoms? There are many conventional treatment options including anti-histamines (Benadryl, Allegra, Claritin), decongestant (Sudafed, Afrin, Allegra-D) or corticosteroid nasal sprays (Flonase, Rhinocort, Nasonex) for your allergies.

Spring Cleaning for your Mind, Body and Soul

Spring is a great time to cleanse the body. Detoxification can improve vitality and reduce toxic body burdens, while increasing energy levels and revitalizing your immune system. This 21day detoxification program is gentle and well organized. Detoxing is especially beneficial for those experiencing allergies, inflammation, pain, immune problems, chronic fatigue, poor digestion, blood sugar abnormalities or other complaints. It is also ideal for those who have no complaints but want to reach a new level of health.

Naturopathic medicine can play a cost-effective role in your family's health care. The price of medical treatments, health care insurance and drugs continue to increase year by year. In 1999 the cost of health care insurance for a family of 4 was around $5,000 per year, while in 2008 that cost has risen to over $12,000 (a).