A ‘Well-being Routine’ – the Real Key to Health

(ARA) – As important as a fitness routine is to your physical health, it’s just as vital to have a “well-being routine” that focuses on your mental health. Being well-rounded physically and mentally can foster balance between your work and personal lives, and help reduce everyday stress.

Stress is a major and growing health concern in America, according to the American Psychological Association (APA). In fact, a third of all Americans say they are extremely stressed, and 77 percent report experiencing physical symptoms associated with stress, according to an APA study.

“Stress is a normal part of life, and small amounts can actually make you stronger physically and mentally,” says Martica Heaner, a health, fitness and wellness expert. “But when stress builds up and becomes overwhelming, it’s time to take action to manage its impact on your life. Looking after yourself by focusing on your wellness is one of the very best ways to take care of what’s on the inside as well as the outside.”

Americans are more focussed on overall wellness than ever before, a fact that has not escaped the notice of companies like The Body Shop, Heaner notes. The Body Shop, long recognized as leaders in the naturally inspired beauty industry, recently launched a line of Wellbeing products that fit into four key aspects of a wellness regimen – Divine Calm, Total Energy, Deep Sleep and Pure Detox.

Your well-being routine should help you create calm, get adequate rest, re-energize and purify your body, Heiner says.

Creating Calm

* Manage small stressors. Try not to over schedule yourself or constantly react to every demand on your time. For example, rather than constantly checking e-mail throughout the day, schedule a few regular times to do so.

* Give yourself time to do nothing at all. Turn off the TV. Don’t answer the phone. Or soak in a hot bath seasoned with a calm-inspiring bath product. Look for products, like The Body Shop’s Divine Calm line, that incorporate naturally calming ingredients such as French lavender essential oil, camomile and soya milk.

Reaping the Rewards of Rest

* Sleep deprivation can leave you feeling “hung over,” impair you as much as several alcoholic drinks, shorten your attention span, make you feel sluggish and even cause you to overeat.

* Follow a calming routine prior to bedtime. Incorporate some pampering in your routine, such as a relaxing shower, soothing moisturizer and a spritz of calming scent in the room, on your pillow or bed sheets. The Body Shop’s new Wellbeing line includes five products designed to enhance rest, like the Deep Sleep Dreamy Pillow and Body Mist.

* Get extra sleep whenever possible. Set the alarm to go off at the last possible minute, instead of setting it earlier and hitting the snooze button a few times. Your body will benefit more from those extra 20 minutes if they’re uninterrupted.

Re-energize Your Body

From improper nutrition, to lack of sleep or exercise and dehydration, there are many reasons why you might feel fatigued.

* Never skip breakfast. Even a small bowl of cereal or a piece of fruit can help you energize for the day ahead. Eat more if you exercise in the morning and will be expending energy.

* Put nutrition first, and worry less about calories, carbs or fat. Add some colourful vegetable or fruit to every meal – spinach or red peppers on your sandwich or pizza, beans in your salad or pasta.

Purify Your Body

You can minimize your exposure to environmental toxins with a few simple steps:

* Choosing organic foods can help you reduce the amount of toxins you ingest.

* Eat more walnuts and walnut oil, which are high in Omega-3 fatty acids that help quench free radicals in our bodies.

* Drink more water. To function at their best, every cell in your body needs to be properly hydrated. Getting enough water can help you feel less tired and flush toxins from your body.

Choose all-natural products in every aspect of your life, from the cleaning products you use in your home to your beauty products. The Body Shop’s Wellbeing products are made from all-natural ingredients like guarana, wasabi, lavender, camomile, eucalyptus and jujube date. Plus, every product contains ingredients sourced through the company’s Community Trade program, so while you’re taking care of your own well-being, you’re also helping communities around the world in places like Ghana, Brazil, Zambia, Namibia and Nicaragua. Visit www.thebodyshop-usa.com to learn more.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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Big Waistline in Women Could Lead to Heart Trouble

A heart expert at Johns Hopkins is calling for all women with a waistline measuring more than 35 inches to get an annual check-up and detailed risk assessment for heart problems because excess abdominal fat, even in the mildly obese and overweight, leads more than a third of women to underestimate their lifetime risk of having a heart attack, stroke or chest pain (angina.)

Cardiologist Erin Michos, M.D., M.H.S., who plans to make her pitch Sept. 23 directly to colleagues during a special lecture at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, says the recommendation is based on a national, multicity screening of 8,936 women, ages 35 to 63, for heart disease risk factors. The screening, she says, found a strikingly high number of overweight American women whose stretched girth was tied to a serious underestimation of risk using traditional tools to assess heart health.

In a report published in the August issue of the Journal of Women’s Health, the research team showed that 39 percent of women screened were overweight (having a body mass index between 25 and 30) and 35 percent were obese (having a body mass index over 30, often overweight by more than 30 pounds.) And when waistlines 35 inches and larger were factored into the risk assessment, 55 percent of these women were found to have hearts at increased risk of disease.

“It is time for physicians and patients to pull out their measuring tapes and for overweight women in particular to start shedding some pounds,” says Michos, an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and its Heart and Vascular Institute.

She points out that traditional risk-factor scoring leaves out waist size, taking into account only such other factors as age, blood pressure, blood cholesterol levels, smoking and diabetes. These measures have long been used as part of the Framingham Risk Assessment, which only assesses people’s 10-year risk of heart disease.

But the team’s latest assessments – drawn from a 2006 annual public screening in 14 communities across the United States, in which women were asked to undergo a short physical check-up and fill out a health questionnaire – changed significantly when expanded waistlines were factored into their calculations.

More than half (59 percent) of the 85 percent of women originally thought to be at low risk of heart trouble were now found to have one or two additional risk factors. And 19 percent of those at low risk and nearly half (41 percent) of the women originally ranked at intermediate risk actually had three or more risk factors.

“These women have a high lifetime risk of cardiovascular disease even though their 10-year risk may be predicted as low,” says Michos, who points out that the presence of a single, major risk factor for heart disease by the age of 50 cuts back on women’s median lifespan compared to women with no risk factors.

“Our results really emphasize the growing epidemic of obesity in America and showcase its potential for misreading or masking future harm to women’s heart health,” she says. “Even if they are not experiencing immediate problems, they could soon be in trouble. Overweight people are more likely to develop risk factors that lead to cardiovascular problems, such as high blood pressure, blood sugar imbalances and excess blood lipid levels. And the reverse is also true: Losing weight, especially abdominal fat, is the first step in lowering blood pressure and getting blood cholesterol levels under control.”

Michos notes that other research has shown a loss of just five pounds lowers people’s risk of pre-diabetes by 31 percent. Losing 10 pounds lowers blood pressure by 5 millimeters of mercury.

Michos says she has started her campaign with local physicians because it will take a few years to amass the necessary additional evidence to change national clinical guidelines. Results from the 2007 screenings, coordinated by the Maryland-based Sister to Sister, Everyone Has a Heart Foundation, will not be ready until later this year.

“Physicians and others have unfortunately become too accustomed to seeing heavy- set people, and there is a risk that we overlook or dismiss being overweight and obesity as a potential and future source of heart problems,” says Michos. “Even if the problems are not evident now, it is more important to start screening women at a younger age to forego heart problems later in life.

“Community screening events have confirmed that many women are unaware of their risk factors and the screenings have proven effective at identifying those women at risk and, hopefully, we will be able to expand these programs in the future,” she adds, noting that 48 percent of women with high cholesterol levels were newly diagnosed with the condition, as were 7 percent of women with hypertension. “Awareness is the first step to implementing heart-healthy lifestyle changes to reduce their risk,” says Michos. The next Sister to Sister community screening event will take place in February 2009.

Furthermore, Michos says annual survey results, though specific to women, also bear significance for men, for whom a waistline greater than 40 inches is considered obese.
Researchers say their next steps are to monitor screened women to see how well follow-up treatments worked at not only lowering risk, but also in lowering actual heart problems and whether or not this stretches out lifespan.

Of 150 women who were screened as high risk in 2006, 71 percent followed up with a visit to their physician, 64 percent changed diet, 47 percent lost weight, 61 percent monitored their blood pressure levels, 6 percent stopped smoking, and 23 percent checked their waistline against the 35-inch benchmark.

According to the latest statistics from the American Heart Association, one in three American women has some form of cardiovascular disease. Sixty-nine million women are overweight, including more than 36 million who are obese.

Funding for this study was provided by the Sister to Sister, Everyone Has a Heart Foundation. Besides Michos, other researchers from the Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Preventive Cardiology Center involved in this study and the Sister to Sister annual screenings were Brian Kral, M.D., M.P.H.; Catherine Campbell, M.D.; M. Dominique Ashen, Ph.D., C.R.N.P.; and Roger Blumenthal, M.D. Other researchers included Irene Pollin, Ph.D., M.S.W., and Laurene McKillop, Ph.D., from Sister to Sister; Teresa Shattuck, Ph.D., Michele Debarthe Sadler, Ph.D., and Karen Boyle, Ph.D., from Shattuck & Assoc.; Khurram Nasir, M.D., M.P.H., from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston; Rita Redberg, M.D., from the University of California San Francisco; and Karlynn Brintzenhofeszoc, Ph.D., M.S.W., from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

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A New Look At Grooming

(NAPSI)-Whether they’re constantly checking a mirror or they’re more concerned with sports than looks, a recent poll found that when it comes to grooming, there are some things men just won’t stand for.

The poll asked 2,000 men for their opinion on perspiration and found that 75 percent of them worried more about odor than wetness. Fortunately, the following tips could help:

• Consider The Cause--Experts at Brut say that underarm odor is caused by bacteria that thrive on sweat. The company’s 24-hour anti-perspirants and deodorants are formulated with Trimax to eliminate that bacteria and leave men feeling fresh with the brand’s signature scent.

• Stay Dry--The company’s anti-perspirants could help you stay dry as well. They contain the same active ingredient as more expensive “clinical” products to combat wetness. In fact, after rigorous testing, they met the FDA’s highest classification for being “most effective” at stopping wetness.

• Drink Up--As a final tip, drink cool water to help lower your body’s core temperature and possibly reduce its need to sweat. An added bonus: Staying hydrated helps skin stay firm and healthy. For more information, visit www.brutworld.com.

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Respect Your Scalp, Love Your Hair

(NAPSI)-Combing through all the methods recommended to keep your hair beautiful, one truism stands out: The foundation for beautiful hair is a healthy scalp. As the summer sun and heat come to an end, it is time to start thinking about repairing summer scalp and hair for fall and winter. Hair experts point out that scalp sensitivities associated with dandruff can cause redness, itchiness, dryness and flakes. These are the symptoms that can decrease the luster and health of your hair.

While transitioning your lifestyle for the end-of-year seasons, remember to keep in mind your scalp and hair care routine. Dr. Marta Rendon, Head & Shoulders Global Celebrity Dermatologist, has five easy tips to care for your hair.

• Avoid spraying styling products containing alcohol directly on your scalp, as they may dry out the skin of your scalp.

• When choosing a shampoo and conditioner, look for one with a rich zinc compound formula. Head and Shoulders Smooth & Silky shampoo and conditioner contains a unique zinc formula that restores the scalp's ideal moisture level, allowing you to achieve a healthy scalp and beautiful hair.

• When in the shower, it is best to use lukewarm water; washing with hot water can promote a dry scalp.

• A good scalp massage promotes blood flow to the area, soothes nerves and relaxes the muscles, keeping the skin flexible to promote hair growth and luster.

• Use a brush whose bristles are made from hair. The flexible bristles are soft and therefore gentle on your scalp.

Hairstyles may be a seasonal trend, but every look needs a solid foundation. Head & Shoulders' system of shampoo and conditioner is essential to achieving a healthy scalp and beautiful hair.

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Daily Tips To Protect The Skin You're In

(NAPSI)-While most people recognize the importance of applying sunscreen at the beach or the pool, many don't realize the value in wearing sun protection every day of the year.

Experts say about 80 percent of a person's sun exposure occurs during daily activities-walking to the car, sitting in front of a window-and that one year of incidental sun exposure is like spending a week at the beach without sunscreen.

To keep skin healthy and protected throughout the day, incorporate a moisturizer that contains SPF into your daily skin care routine, as hydration and sun protection are key elements for maintaining healthy skin.

Skin that is dry may be unable to perform its primary function, which is to protect your body from environmental damage, such as free radicals, pollutants and the sun's UV rays.

Additionally, skin that is dry has a difficult time renewing itself from sun damage, leaving it vulnerable to premature aging, including wrinkles and age spots.

Look for a nongreasy moisturizer with sunscreen, such as Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion with SPF 15, which combines the natural moisturizing benefits of colloidal oatmeal to soothe dry skin with Active Photobarrier Complex, a sun-protection technology that is specifically engineered to deliver very high, very broad and photo-stable UVA and UVB protection.

The moisturizer also contains rich emollients that provide 24- hour moisturization, leaving skin soft, smooth and healthy looking.

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Women Turning To Midwives For Personalized Care

GBB Note: There's just nothing more beautiful than a woman who has the "glow" of pregnancy. Don't you agree?

(NAPSI)-Every year, more than 4 million women give birth in the United States. That's more than 10,000 every day, which leaves many new mothers--and their babies--feeling lost in the crowd.

In order to find a more "boutique" approach to prenatal and primary health care, a growing number of women are turning to midwives. According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2005, midwives attended more than 300,000 U.S. births--and more women are seeing midwives for family planning, annual exams and for help navigating normal life transitions.

"When you decide to visit a midwife, you can expect a special kind of care. Some midwives spend up to an hour with first-time patients, and most midwives stay with women through the entire birth process," says Cathy Collins Fulea, a certified nurse-midwife and midwife expert at www.RealSavvyMoms.com.

Certified nurse-midwives (CNMs) and certified midwives (CMs) are independent providers who care for women through all stages of life and are trained through graduate-level education to handle the majority of complications that may arise during pregnancy and birth. Most CNMs and CMs attend deliveries in hospitals, and with low rates of induction, cesarean section and episiotomy, midwives maintain an impressive safety record for both mothers and babies.

As experts in women's health, midwives focus on early detection of problems and emphasize attentive, individualized care to minimize the chances of complications. During birth, midwives watch carefully to ensure mother and baby are doing well and practice judicious use of interventions--including pain control and fetal monitoring--when appropriate.

"Midwives approach birth, puberty and menopause as normal life events rather than medical problems," explains Fulea. Midwives don't try to "fix" women if there's not a complication. They're there to provide the care, support and information women need to ensure good health.

To find a midwife near you, visit www.mymidwife.org.

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Bright Starts' Second Annual 'Pink Power Mom' Winners Announced

PRNewswire/ -- Bright Starts(R) a baby toy and gear brand of Kids II, Inc. celebrates Breast Cancer Awareness Month by announcing the winners of its Second Annual "Pink Power Mom" search. The eight outstanding women were chosen for their inspirational fight, having displayed amazing strength and courage as breast cancer survivors, strong personal supporters or advocates fighting for a cure.

The search, which launched in May, invited friends and family members to nominate an inspiring woman who embodies the spirit of a "Pink Power Mom." Hundreds of touching stories later, eight remarkable women were selected as finalists.


The chosen winners will each receive:

-- $1000 donation to the breast cancer charity of their choice
-- $500 spa gift certificate to a local spa in their home town
-- $500 gift basket


The Bright Starts(R) Pink Power Moms for 2008 are:

-- Medha Deoras-Sutliff -- Ellie Milbourn
-- Amanda Horgan -- Julie Nations
-- Heather Janssen -- Amy Paterson
-- Kathy LaTour -- Jodi Petit


"Bright Starts prides itself in being a brand that genuinely cares about people and their well-being, and the Pink Power Mom movement is a way of making a positive change in the lives of those who support the brand," says Ryan Gunnigle, President and CEO of Kids II, Inc., designer and manufacturer of the Bright Starts(R) brand. "These eight exceptional women exemplify true champions who are making it possible for the baby girls of today to have a bright, happy and healthy tomorrow."
In addition to recognizing Pink Power Moms, a portion of the proceeds from the top selling Bright Starts(R) Pretty in Pink(TM) Collection will be donated to support breast cancer research. The Kids II Foundation commits its support for breast cancer research with a minimum donation of $100,000.

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