Last summer a few Alexanders took a girls’ trip to Vegas to visit a cousin and the Grand Canyon. That’s our story and we’re sticking to it based on a long-ago revelation that some of us are distantly related to Celine Marie Claudette Dion, a woman of French-Acadian descent with a considerable set of pipes. Read more
Parents already know the only way to reach their teens is by text. Now, scientists say it may also be the best way to get them to eat a healthy diet. According to Nielsen consumer research group, teens get 114 text messages per day, but get only 1.2 servings of fruits and vegetables per day – far Read more
Cucumbers on the eyes reduce puffiness–hence the classic photo of a woman in a thick robe being pampered with a veggie mask. But did you know that eating vegetables can actually reduce wrinkles, especially around the eyes? A study of 4,000 American women ages 40-74 found that diet has a significant effect on skin-aging appearance. A higher intake Read more
Heard the one about the guy who opened a gym on New Year’s Day called Resolutions? By Mardi Gras, he had to convert it to a bar. Stories like that make us laugh because they strike a chord. We see a little of ourselves in others, and that builds common ground, makes us feel less alone. We’re Read more
Do you struggle to shed the last 5 pounds of unwanted weight? Need a simple New Year’s resolution guaranteed to dip the scales without fad dieting? Women who read nutrition labels weigh on average 9 pounds less than women who don’t, reports Real Simple magazine, and their body mass index (BMI), a ratio of body fat based Read more
A slice of king cake contains between 200 and 350 calories, according to Livestrong.com., depending on ingredients used. A basic cake without filling will be slightly lower in calories than those containing cream cheese, chocolate or fruit fillings. Most king cakes contain flour, water, yeast, sugar, salt, eggs and butter or shortening. To make this Mardi Gras Read more
“All happy families are alike,” Tolstoy wrote in Anna Karenina, a simple opening statement for an 800-page book. And though he lived more than a century ago on a different continent shaped by a different culture, we’d have to agree. So whether your family is big or small, whether Read more
“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. “
–Michael Pollan, In Defense of Food
Coffee often gets a bad rap healthwise, but new studies show benefits, including protection against diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Coffee offers men protection from Parkinson’s disease, and coffee drinkers of both genders are less likely to suffer gallstones. And while it’s true that a cup of coffee can increase blood pressure, long-term studies show Read more
We all know apples are good for you, but some pack a bigger health punch than others. There are 500 percent more antioxidants in the peel of a Red Delicious apple, for example, than are in the peel of an Empire apple, according to the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. But other varieties will still Read more