By Sara Altshul

Last winter, after being in denial for years, a battery of standard tests revealed that I had type 2 diabetes, sky-high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. What’s more, I had a heart murmur, my coronary arteries were starting to narrow, and my heart was showing early warning signs of disease. I mentioned some of this in my blog about meditation last year, but I confess I didn’t come clean about just how serious things had become.

But I stuck with the weight loss and exercise program I started back then, and four months later, I’d lost nearly 30 pounds. By last summer, I was trimmer, stronger, and more energetic than ever, even though I had another 15 pounds or so to go.

Then, like Oprah, I fell off the wagon. My doctor wasn’t helpful. I simply lost the jones to exercise (deadline pressures, I told myself, had to trump gym time), and I couldn’t control my diabetes, even though I was eating less food more mindfully and taking my prescribed meds, and I hadn’t gained back any weight. Stupidly, though, I was back in denial again; I even stopped monitoring my blood sugar and blood pressure. When I finally used my glucose meter and blood pressure monitor a couple of weeks ago, I was in for a nasty surprise: My numbers were back in the red zone.

Mapping my brain chemicals
That’s when I heard about Eric R. Braverman, MD, a professor of neurological surgery at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, in New York City, and the author of the new best seller, Younger (Thinner) You Diet. Dr. Braverman told me that everything I knew about weight loss was wrong. He assured me that I fell off the wagon not because I was undisciplined or lazy, as I’d firmly believed. My fall was most likely due to a deficiency in my brain chemicals, he said.

To prove his point, he had my brain chemicals measured via a series of tests known as BEAM (Brain Electrical Activity Map). He said the tests will assess my brain’s ability to produce the primary neurotransmitters serotonin, GABA, dopamine, and acetylcholine.

In addition to the brain tests, I also underwent an exhaustive series of noninvasive ultrasound scans, blood tests, and other exams to determine my general state of health, via Dr. Braverman’s special Executive Health Program, a sort of one-stop, head-to-toe diagnostic assessment. Though those results aren’t in yet, here’s what I’ve learned about my brain chemicals:

• I have significant dopamine and serotonin deficiencies and a mild GABA deficiency. Combined, these could explain the vague symptoms and behaviors that block my path to health. Dopamine deficiencies are linked to addictions, including food addictions, among other unhealthy problems. According to Dr. Braverman, people who have low dopamine levels have low energy levels and may rely on stimulants, like caffeine.

• Serotonin deficiencies are linked to depression and a host of diet-busting behaviors. GABA deficiencies heighten anxiety, stress, and insomnia—which might explain those sleepless nights I continue to have.

What’s the solution?
In his book, Dr. Braverman outlines the foods you should eat—and those you should avoid—to balance your brain chemicals. He also includes handy quizzes so you can assess your status without springing for the Star Trek-ian brain tests I took. What really resonates with me is that many of Dr. Braverman’s solutions, in addition to dietary tweaks, are herbal or other natural supplements that have been proven over time. He advises people to use certain herbs and spices—like cinnamon or marjoram—liberally, because of their antioxidant potential. Add herbs near the end of cooking time to retain the most benefits.

(Getty Images)

Dr. Braverman also advises patients to drink tea—particularly rooibos, which is packed with vitamin C and 50% more antioxidants than green tea—at every meal. I’ll be sharing more about how herbs and spices can help in the coming weeks. Theory is, once you rebalance your brain chemicals, you’ll have the energy—and motivation—you need to stay on track.

Will it work for me? We’ll see. I’ll be reporting on the results—honestly this time!—of my tests, and will follow the program Dr. Braverman and his staff outline for me next week. I’ll keep you posted by blogging about my progress every week or so. Hopefully, in a few months, I’ll have my sugar and blood pressure under control and be on my way to losing those last pounds. My heart will thank me for it. Wish me luck!

Read more about Dr. Braverman’s program

Previous posts by Sara Altshul:

• We’re all for mind-blowing sex, but losing your mind after sex seems a little extreme. Apparently, sex is one of several triggers for transient global amnesia, in which patients suddenly lose their ability to retain recent memories. We’re pretty sure that’s not the sexual experience we’re after. [CNN]

• Speaking of sex, if you’re not having any (and it’s not because you’re afraid of transient global amnesia), you’re not alone. Here are three types of sexual dry spells and how to survive. One tip: Hit the gym. The endorphins are great for relieving stress. [Lemondrop]

• Who doesn’t love the idea of a nearly guilt-free ice cream experience? But not all light or low-fat ice creams are created equal. That’s why we want this job: Taste-testing the best and worst light ice cream. We’re not sure why we weren’t called (sniff!), but if they do it again, our spoons are at the ready. [Lifescript]

• Want to get away? Need a spa trip or a lengthy vacation where it’s warm? Instead, consider cheaper ways to de-stress: In fact, you could start by doing something you did all the time as a kid. Riding a bike or playing kickball may sound too simple to effectively relieve your worries, but we’re going to give it (or one of these nine other affordable suggestions) a try. Dodgeball, anyone? [Divine Caroline]

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Previous news from Around the Web:

Amputee Runners Don’t Have Bionic Advantage, Music Improves Exercise, and Babies Cry in Their Native Language
Swine Flu Strikes Cat, Kissing May Make Women Immune to Virus, and Woman’s Uterus Falls Out
Orchestra Makes Music With Vegetables, Pumpkins May Cure Yeast Infections, and the Most Effective Stress Relievers

• We love to listen to music while we exercise, and it turns out pumping up the tunes can improve your workouts. Running to a song with a tempo that matches your exercise pace makes you feel like you’re not working as hard, so you’ll last longer. [That’s Fit]

• A team of European researchers thinks that even before they are old enough to talk, babies cry in their native language. [LA Times]

• Amputee sprinter Oscar Pistorius was initially banned from competing in the Beijing Olympics because it was thought his prosthetic legs could give him a biomechanical advantage. But new research disproves these claims, showing that prosthetics most likely put amputee runners at a disadvantage. [MedGadget]

• Healthy eating shouldn’t feel like a drag. If your diet needs a little pick-me-up, check out these eight kitchen gadgets that make healthy eating easier and more exciting. [FitSugar]

• Working out won’t magically melt away the pounds unless you change your diet too. So add these five fat-burning foods to your diet to boost metabolism and help you lose more weight. [FNC iMag]

Previous news from Around the Web:

With all the rain here lately, I’ve found myself living in a very damp climate—the kind of damp in which my bath towel never fully dries, a leather bag stowed in the closet sprouts mold in a matter of days, and my sneakers live in, well, a perpetual state of odoriferous clamminess. I was actually contemplating tossing my kicks into the dryer (and praying they wouldn’t shrink or pound the heck out of the machine) when I read about a nifty little invention called Stuffitts Shoe Savers, which claim to keep workout shoes dry and odor free. I ordered a pair without delay.

A week later, I’m wondering how my soggy self lived without these babies. The concept is sheer simplicity: a washable cover made of wicking fabric over foot-shaped cedar inserts (cedar is an excellent moisture- and odor-banisher); you slip one into each sodden shoe between workouts and it sucks the moisture right out. And you know what? It works.

Power walk in the rain? That was no match for the Stuffitts; my kicks were bone-dry the next morning, with nary a whiff of musty stinkiness. This is a revelation for me, as I often work out on back-to-back days.

The only catch is that I have just one set, so I’m constantly moving them from my sneaks to various pairs of wear-to-work shoes, weighing which pair needs them most. I remember a shoe shop guy once telling me to never wear leather shoes two days in a row, as they need to dry out. Well, sometimes a girl just has to wear her favorite black leather Børn slides on both Tuesday and Wednesday! And now I can—assuming my Stuffitts aren’t already busy sucking up the sogginess from my walking shoes.

It’s time to get another pair.

Product: Stuffitts Shoe Savers

Category: Gear

Pros: They’re super-effective at drying and de-stinking your shoes. Plus, you can wash the covers when they get funky.

Cons: None that I can think of.

Cost: $25 at www.stuffits.com

Extra tip: Spring for two pairs so you won’t have to choose between drying out your workout shoes and your work shoes.

Previous posts by Su Reid-St. John:

They could be the most annoying two words a couple can hear while trying to conceive: “Just relax!”

It feels like an impossible directive. Who can “relax” when she’s over 35, has miscarried twice, and is having a hard time getting pregnant again? I was wound tight as a drum, and I wanted to pull my hair out every time someone used the “R” word. When I finally came home pregnant after a trip to Paris, I dismissed any connection between my daughter’s conception and French wine.

But a Boston-area fertility clinic has released a study that may connect relaxation techniques with higher levels of IVF success. The results are compelling: Patients who took part in a stress-management program led by Dr. Alice Domar during their second round of IVF treatments had a 160% greater pregnancy rate than women who did not participate during their treatment.

A survey of the women in my area who struggled with infertility yielded some apocryphal data that bears this out.

“We were told to ‘just relax’ multiple times when we were trying to conceive,” Julianna Freed, a local mom told me. “In the moment, it is like someone telling you everything is fine while you are crying—obviously everything is not fine and being told it is is having your emotions completely discounted.”

Freed tried to conceive for two years, including IUI and IVF treatments. Instead of paying for another round of IVF, she and her husband spent the money on a long-delayed 10th anniversary trip. “Lo and behold, I came home from a two-week African safari with ‘jet lag’ that just wouldn’t quit for nine more months!” she says. ”So, yes, relaxing and letting it go probably did play a role [in conceiving our son].”

Several women had similar stories: Once they changed jobs (or husbands) or removed some other major stressor in their lives, they conceived their “miracle” babies.

But for every story like this, there are just as many women for whom “relaxing” was not the cure. One local mother told me, “That was the number-one piece of ‘advice’ I heard while struggling to conceive. It made me absolutely despair. It took six years of medical efforts to finally conceive my twins. We took six months off from trying to conceive in the middle of the six years. I needed a break. Needless to say, ‘just relaxing’ for six months did not help me conceive.

“When someone gave me this piece of advice,” she says, ”I would just walk away. If I said anything, I knew I would lose it and just sound like a crazy, unhinged woman anyway.”

I touched base with Hugh S. Taylor, MD, a professor and the chief of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Yale University School of Medicine.

“[Dr. Alice Domar's] program is far more than just telling people to relax,” Dr. Taylor says. “A comprehensive [mind-body] program such as this seems to have benefits.”

Dr. Taylor also recommends relaxation to his infertility patients. “However,” he cautions, ”it has never been proven to work as well as specific infertility treatments. It is difficult for someone with infertility to ‘just relax,’ as many psychological studies have demonstrated that the stress of this condition is on par with cancer.”

Dr. Domar also has a very helpful article about what to say—and not to say—to someone you know who is struggling with infertility.

So while there may now be evidence that a mind-body program may have a positive impact on the success of a fertility treatment, women need to hear this from their doctors—not from well-meaning friends and family.

Instead, how about offering an all-expenses-paid trip abroad, or at least one bottle of French wine?

Previous posts by Erica Kain:

• Turns out pregnant women and the young aren’t the only ones coming down with the swine flu: Iowa health officials have confirmed the first known case of swine flu in a cat! [NPR]

• While many of us have been encouraged to quit playing tonsil hockey for fear of swine flu, it turns out kissing may actually protect women from one virus. If a woman contracts cytomegalovirus while pregnant, it’s bad news for the baby. But scientists think a male’s saliva may make her immune. [New York Daily News]

• We were pretty impressed by this 75-year-old marathoner. Now our jaws have dropped at the story of Lan Yin “Eiko” Tsai, an 84-year-old grandmother who has been participating in a 150-mile bike ride to benefit multiple sclerosis research for the past 26 years—wearing a dress and heels! [Huffington Post]

• Ever wonder how the Granny Smith apple or the Hass avocado got their names? Here are the strange origins of nine fruits and vegetables. [MentalFloss]

• We never knew it was possible, but now we’re completely terrified. This woman has suffered unimaginable side effects and numerous surgeries after the shocking realization that her uterus was falling out of her body. [MomLogic]

Previous news from Around the Web:

• We’re big fans of seasonal fall foods and incorporating them into our favorite healthy comfort foods. But a group of German musicians has been putting fall produce to use in a totally different way: The Vienna Vegetable Orchestra performs on instruments made out of vegetables. [Diagonal View]

• A Bulgarian was on the way to her wedding when she went into labor and had to be rushed to the hospital instead of the altar. The bride-to-be became one of the youngest mothers in the world, as she is only 11 years old! [Daily Mail]

• How do you unwind after a stressful day? A new study shows that we may not be the best at managing stress—Americans blame poor eating and sleeping habits on stress, and resort to some popular sedentary stress relievers. Instead, try pounding the pavement or unwinding with yoga. [Forbes.com]

• We’ve carved the jack-o’-lanterns, roasted the seeds, and are already planning some delicious pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving. But there’s a surprising new use for pumpkins: The fall staple may help fight yeast infections. [Vitamin G]

• Attention, smokers: If patches or gum just won’t curb your nicotine cravings, try hitting the gym. A new study shows that exercise may decrease a smoker’s interest in cigarettes. [ScienceDaily]

Previous news from Around the Web:

• Joining the inspiring runners in the New York City Marathon yesterday was 75-year-old George Hirsch, chairman of the board of directors of the New York Road Runners. He came out of a five-year marathon retirement to run two in a three-week period and finished both in around four hours. We’re officially impressed! [Runner’s World]

• If 26.2 miles isn’t impressive enough, consider a new challenge: vertical marathons. Competitors race to the top of some of the world’s tallest buildings, including the 2,109 steps of the Willis Tower in Chicago. [That’s Fit]

• While optimistic women may live longer, thinking negatively may also have some surprising benefits: Being in a bad mood may make you less gullible and boost your memory. [Reuters]

• Just as height doesn’t make you a naturally gifted basketball player (we wish it did!), a high IQ doesn’t necessarily make you smart. [NewScientist]

• We enjoy a little splurge now and again without completely falling off the diet wagon. However, a recent study found that just one cigarette does a lot more damage than that one extra helping of dessert. Among 18- to 30-year-olds, just one cigarette stiffens arteries by 25%, increasing the risk of heart attack and stroke. [Vitamin G]

Previous news from Around the Web:

As the days grow shorter and the holiday season looms on the horizon, I find my body tends to tense up. One of the best yoga postures for stress relief is Eagle Pose. It opens up your shoulders, releases neck tension, strengthens your quads, and engages your core. It’s an all-over body toner and stress reducer. And since it can be practiced in stages, it’s an ideal posture for yogis of every level.

New yogis—or even those just wanting some all-natural tension tamers—should focus on the “wings,” or upper body element, of Eagle Pose. Begin standing up, with your right arm in front of you making an “L” shape. Then wrap your left arm under and in front of your right, and bring your palms together in a prayer position. Lift your arms up and away from your face to ensure the proper alignment of the pose. This simple part of Eagle Pose can be practiced several times a day, and you can do it anywhere—on an airplane, in line at the coffee shop, and even stopped at a red light.

 

(Thomas Hoefgen)

Once you have achieved that stage of Eagle, you’re ready to add the leg component to this pose. Maintain the stretch in your upper body as you bring your feet together and sit back and down, like you’re hovering above the seat of a chair. Don’t take your thighs any lower than parallel to the floor. Make sure you sit both back and down, as if there were an actual chair behind you. Pull your belly in and up, and draw your tailbone down.

This is all plenty of work on its own. But if you’d like to incorporate the balance aspect of this pose, wrap your left leg over your right. Then curl your left foot’s toes around the ankle or shin of your right leg. Hold whatever version of the posture you like for 5–15 breaths. Release and repeat on the other side.

Previous posts by Sara Ivanhoe:

Ever heard of salba (Salvia hispanica), a cousin of mint that grows throughout southern Mexico? You’ve certainly heard of another product derived from the same plant: chia, whose seeds you grow on silly-stupid, tacky Chia Pets (I’m still unhappy about the awful Obama Chia they introduced last spring).

What you may not know about salba is how utterly packed with nutrition it is. I certainly wasn’t aware of this superfood until I came across it at the Natural Products Expo East in September. And now that summer’s over and I’m back to cooking and baking lots of yummy comfort foods, this little grain will make an easy, healthy addition to lots of my dishes.

According to a 2007 study published in the journal Diabetes Care, salba is the highest source of dietary fiber and healthy fat alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) found in nature.

What’s more, say researchers at the University of Toronto, salba is an “exceptionally rich source of vegetable protein, calcium, magnesium, iron, and antioxidants,” all of which improve heart health.

The researchers set out to discover whether adding salba to the diet could protect the hearts of people with type 2 diabetes. In their small study, which included 20 otherwise healthy people with type 2 diabetes, half took about 37 grams of salba a day for 12 weeks; the other half took about 37 grams of wheat germ. All participants were put on a healthy diet and instructed to continue taking any medications they were currently prescribed.

At the end of the study, people in the salba group had lowered their systolic blood pressure (the top number) by an average of 6.3 millimeters of mercury, while blood pressure in the control group actually went up.

Salba also reduced levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and other heart-health markers. The researchers concluded that taking salba regularly had a major impact on lessening cardiovascular risk factors. They also found that it can help people maintain blood sugar and control cholesterol.

I’m not suggesting you take 37 grams of salba each day, however. Core Naturals, the exclusive distributor of Salba products in the United States, suggests a 12-gram serving of ground or whole seed—about a tablespoon, which contains more than 2,500 milligrams of omega-3s. That’s about eight times more omega-3 than salmon offers—although fish do have different omega-3s (DHA and EPA), which are also, if not more, important for overall health. (This is especially true if you’re pregnant.)

In addition to its beneficial fats, salba boasts 30% more antioxidants than blueberries and 25% more fiber than flax. What’s more, unlike flaxseed, salba doesn’t need to be ground up for you to reap its benefits.

As far as taste goes, it’s neutral. I’m munching on the seeds right now, and I get this mild, slightly nutty flavor. They’re tiny and white, and even smaller than flaxseed. As you chew them, they turn into sort of a gel. This process also takes place in the stomach, which could slow the absorption of sugar into the blood stream, suggests natural medicine guru Andrew Weil, MD, in a piece about chia seeds on his website.

You can easily add salba seeds to cereal, toss them into casseroles, or stir them into yogurt. To smooth out the crunchy texture, you can buzz them in a coffee grinder, just as you would flax.

Salba is packaged whole or ground, and it comes in single-serve packets as well as new fruit-flavored Salba Life Whole Food bars. Find salba at your local Whole Foods Market or health-food store, or online at Salba.com. A 16-ounce jar of whole seeds sells for $27, while the bars retail for $3.29 each.

Previous posts by Sara Altshul: