Whether or not a couple is having difficulty trying to conceive, taking time to properly prepare for pregnancy is essential to ensure that the health of mom and baby is optimized. There are many factors that can play a role in infertility. Addressing these through natural methods can have a huge impact on ability to conceive and maintain a pregnancy. Starting 3-4 months before attempting a pregnancy, both partners should work to optimize their health through diet and lifestyle changes.

Acne is far more than what is happening on the skin. It is a reflection of what is happening within your body. This is why conventional treatment options will rarely work to manage acne long-term. They do not address the underlying cause of the acne and rather suppress it.

Proper cleansing and exfoliation is an important part of acne care because it keeps skin clean and pores free of debris. A natural treatment protocol will also include the following aspects to address the root causes and prevent recurrence.

Do you suffer from multiple thyroid symptoms, but your doctor keeps telling you that your thyroid tests are normal? Do you feel in your gut that something is still going on with your thyroid? This is a situation I commonly see with patients in practice. The problem is that the standard for thyroid testing (TSH) does not yield a complete picture of what is happening with the thyroid gland.
 
If you have a feeling that your thyroid is not functioning well but your lab work always comes back “normal” you may want to consider the following lab tests to fully assess thyroid function.

A healthy immune system is vital for helping your body deal with infections caused by viruses, bacteria, fungus, and environmental toxins. As the winter months approach, it becomes even more important to support your immune system by consistently eating a balanced diet, exercising, and making healthy lifestyle choices. But the real fuel for a strong immune system is using food as medicine.

Super Soup
An immunity-boosting diet includes light, easily digestible meals throughout the day, especially soup. A myriad of health benefits and flavors are derived from the herbs, vegetables, and broth. Soups also can help curtail the onset or ease the symptoms of colds and flu. Look for soups that include immunity-enhancing ingredients such as ginger, onion, garlic, mushrooms, and a variety of veggies and herbs in a broth-base. As always, food made from scratch is best!

When it comes to cold and flu season, prevention really is the first line of defense. To keep your body’s defense system—the immune system—in peak condition, follow these immunity-boosting tips to help your body fight off the bugs looking for a host. And, for times when you are feeling ill, the second set of tips can help ease your symptoms and support a quick recovery.

Cold & Flu Prevention Tips
Your immune system is at work 24/7! The best approach to supporting immune function is a healthy lifestyle that includes stress management, exercise, whole foods, nutritional supplementation, and the use of plant-based medicines. On a daily basis, you can take the following steps to help your immune system keep you healthy:

Just like adults, children can benefit from vitamin and mineral supplements. However, children’s metabolism and their immune, digestive, and central nervous systems are still maturing, so the effects and side effects of supplements can differ from those seen in adults. This is especially true for infants and young children. When considering nutritional supplements for youngsters, it’s important to seek a trusted source to increase the likelihood that the product has been properly formulated, labeled, and has gone through quality assurance testing.

A busy butterfly lives just below your Adam’s apple that is responsible for the regulation of your inner state of balance, or homeostasis. Like a butterfly, the thyroid quietly goes about its business without getting much attention until your doctor checks it with her hands during a routine exam. Unless something unusual is found at that time (e.g., swelling) or symptoms manifest that indicate a problem, there won’t be much further ado about your thyroid.

The thyroid is part of the endocrine system, which includes the pituitary gland, hypothalamus, thymus, pineal gland, testes, ovaries, adrenal glands, parathyroid, and pancreas. It makes hormones (e.g., T3, T4) that travel through your bloodstream and regulate your metabolism, brain and heart function, and reproductive and menstrual cycles.

The condition of your skin, hair, and nails are a reflection of your overall state of health. A variety of factors can affect their condition, including genetics, exposure to tobacco smoke, sun damage, medication and drug use, and nutritional deficiencies. Eating a well-balanced diet is the best way to keep the integumentary system—that’s your hair, nails, and skin—healthy. Additionally, vitamin supplementation can support the biological processes that maintain the health of the integumentary system. Supplementation can be especially important for helping to tame the symptoms of hypothyroidism, which is known to adversely affect the condition of hair, skin, and nails.
 
Vitamin formulas for healthy hair, skin, and nails contain many of the same nutrients that your entire body needs for growth and maintenance of cells. Hair, skin, and nails also respond well to vitamins that support keratin production. Keratin is a protein that is an essential building block for the integumentary system. Talk to your naturopathic physician about the following key supplements that can give strength and shine to your hair, skin, and nails.

Raising healthy kids sounds pretty simple: Provide good nutrition and 60 minutes of daily physical activity. Do that, and you’ll reduce your child’s risk for obesity, diabetes, and other chronic disease. But you’re up against a host of unhealthy temptations including advertising, peer pressure, and an abundance of junk food in shiny packaging.

The first and most important step you have to take for your child’s health is modeling healthy habits in front of them. Make a healthy lifestyle a family affair. Keep things simple. And don’t give up when kids get picky. The tips and resources provided below will keep you on track.