Tea Benefits

Steamy or iced, chai or green, bottled or not:
Tea is hot, and ge tting hotter. Tea drinkers can be as passionate and picky about their drink of choice as the most snobby oenophile is about her wine. There are more and more choices. And annual tea sales in the United States have jumped from nearly $2 billion in 1990 to $5.5 billion last year, says Joseph Simrany, president of Tea Association of the USA Inc.

What you’ll see in restaurants
Chefs across the country are weaving tea into signature dishes and specialty drinks. Munch on tea-smoked chicken at New York City’s Yumcha (“drink tea” in Cantonese), or sip green-tea martinis infused with pear at Jack Falstaff in San Francisco. And the first green-tea liqueur—Zen—hit the U.S. market this summer and is being served up in hot spots like New York’s Sushi Samba.

Even rock stars are getting in on it
After electronic-music king Moby opened his own New York teahouse, Teany, he decided to get even more creative. “He was a mad professor behind the counter,” says partner Kelly Tisdale, experimenting with different flavors and launching the Teany line of chilled bottled teas, like the new white tea with pomegranate, carried in New York and the U.K.

Tea as wine
At the chic tea boutique Le Palais des Thés in Beverly Hills, sections of the store are devoted to teas from different regions, similar to the way most wine shops are organized. Increasing numbers of tea snobs are seeking out teas sourced from a single place, like Darjeeling Puttabong, the first tea estate in the Himalaya and the mother of the Darjeeling tea industry.

The coffee comparison
While many people still want their Starbucks coffee fix, a growing crowd is looking for a leafier sip. “The difference between people who drink coffee and those who drink tea is similar to the difference between beer and wine drinkers,” says Le Palais des Thés’ David Barenholtz. Tea drinkers are looking for a relaxing experience, while coffee drinkers tend to slug coffee for a jolt of energy.

The payoff
Beyond its pure enjoyment, tea is packed with health perks. The heart-health and cancer-preventive benefits of black and green teas are well-publicized. And more research is under way; some studies suggest tea may also increase bone-mineral density, boost immunity, fight cavities, combat diabetes, and reduce body fat.

What makes it so healthy?
Scientists point to a group of natural antioxidants called catechins present in all teas, but not in coffee. Certain antioxidants can protect against exposure to ultraviolet light and its consequences, such as sun damage and skin cancer. And while coffee’s caffeine is known to sharpen concentration, tea has caffeine too, sometimes as much as or more than coffee.

Reiki Healing

The notion that a therapist can pass her hands over your clothed, supine body for an hour or so and successfully coax every iota of stress out of you has a too-good-to-be-true ring about it. But that’s been my experience with Reiki, a Japanese technique said to promote healing.

Nothing sounds odder: According to reiki.org, the official website for the practice, Reiki heals by “flowing through the affected parts of the energy field and charging them with positive energy. It raises the vibratory level of the energy field in and around the physical body where the negative thoughts and feelings are attached. This causes the negative energy to break apart and fall away. In so doing, Reiki clears, straightens, and heals the energy pathways, thus allowing the life force to flow in a healthy and natural way.”

That sounds totally out there in weirdville—even to me. Making it even weirder is the fact that anyone can learn Reiki basics by taking a weekend’s worth of classes; advanced training can be accomplished in a weekend too.

A less woo-woo explanation: Reiki practitioners believe they can transmit healing energy to you through their hands, an ability they learn during Reiki training.

Reiki is on the menu at top hospitalsReiki isn’t considered weird at all by at least 60 hospitals across the country who offer treatments to their patients, often free of charge. Among them are highly respected mainstream establishments, including Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, Children’s Hospital of Boston, Cleveland Clinic Center for Integrative Medicine, Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Two federally funded clinical trials are currently underway at the Cleveland Clinic. One will look at Reiki’s effects on the physical consequences of acute stress; another will determine whether treatments can lessen anxiety, affect cancer progression, or affect post-surgical pain and urinary symptoms for men with prostate cancer. Both studies will be completed in August.

In a study published last year, however, researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle concluded that Reiki didn’t have any effect on fibromyalgia pain

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My Reiki experience: deep relaxationI first tried Reiki back in the awful fall of 2001. I was traumatized and fearful after Sept. 11, and decided to see if what I’d heard about Reiki was true—that it could soothe even very disturbed emotional states.

I was ushered into the basement rec room of the Reiki practitioner’s utterly ordinary suburban home—I remember that she was a golfing enthusiast, which I thought was an odd fit for an esoteric healer. There was a standard-issue massage table onto which I climbed, fully clothed except for my shoes.

As I lay there, her hands glided over my body, skimming, sometimes gently touching, sometimes just hovering over a particular spot. I felt—or at least, I think I did—a warmth emanating from her hands, and I know I felt a deep sense of relaxation. So deep, in fact, that I remember thinking I might be in a trance-like state. It was extremely pleasurable, and when the session ended, I remember feeling aglow with energy, as if I’d just recharged my body’s battery. I went back to her time after time, and after each treatment, I experienced the same wonderful feelings.

A Reiki treatment generally costs about as much as a typical day-spa massage, and a large day spa will often have a Reiki practitioner. To learn more about Reiki, visit reiki.org.

Low your stress to reverse aging

Stress can do a real number on your skin and make you look older. It decreases blood flow and nourishment to the skin, sometimes causing a sallow appearance, hair loss, or brittle nails, says dermatologist and clinical psychologist Richard Fried, MD, PhD, a fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Stress also leads to the release of inflammatory chemicals that can worsen acne. The good news: Stress-management techniques (like guided imagery, deep breathing, or progressive muscle relaxation) can help your skin look younger.

Fried recommends square-box breathing: Inhale for four seconds, hold for four seconds, exhale for four seconds, then rest for four seconds; repeat four times.

Make your home pest free with natural remedies

Want to rid pests out of your house?
Are you trying to get rid of insects (or worse) without harmful chemicals? Here are a few ways to vanish those pesky problems with a some easy and natural remedies.


All-natural repellent
Who says you need harmful pesticides to get rid of bugs?
Repellex Bug-A-Tak ($13.50) relies on natural mint, clove leaf, and rosemary essential oils to deter and kill beetles, mites, whiteflies, and other insects.


Gotcha!
Unless you’re the Karate Kid, you’ll need more than chopsticks to catch pesky flies.
Try the Fred Flare Black Fly Swatter ($10), which has an extra-large square head.


Human Best Friend
The mere smell of a cat (or dog) sends mice packing.
Furry pals are great to have around—and they’re good for you, too.
So why not adopt a pet?
Go to www.aspca.org to find an animal shelter near you;
fees typically are $75 for an adult cat or dog.



Patio protection
Reclaim your yard from yellow jackets and wasps with the Oak Stump Yellow Jacket and Wasp Trap ($15.99).
Put the lure (included) and water in this glass trap, hang it in a tree, and you can barbecue without having to bat away stinging insects.

Closet Case

The amazing-smelling blend of lavender, cedar chips, and citronella in Purple Ranch Pest Away Sachets ($3 each) keeps moths at bay without the harmful chemicals found in mothballs.

Storage for your food

One way to get rid of bugs: starve them. Keep cookies, cereal, and other munchies in sealed containers, like The Conran Shop Varon Jars ($12 and up). Made of recycled glass with snug-fitting cork lids, they’re good-looking enough to go right on the counter.

Do It Yourself Repellents

Keep persistent household pests away with these natural, do-it-yourself remedies from Annie B. Bond, green-living expert and author of Better Basics for the Home.

Ants.

They hate the smell of citrus, so mix 1/4 cup citrus solvent (like Citra Solv) with 2 cups water; spray mixture in ant-traffic areas.

Roaches.

Tea tree oil, garlic, peppermint, bay leaves, and hot peppers all work against roaches. Choose one oil or herb, mix 2 teaspoons oil or fresh, crushed herbs (2 tablespoons dry, ground herbs) into 2 cups water; spray infested areas.

Fleas.

“The limonene and linalool in citrus-peel extract kill all stages of the flea’s life cycle,” Bond says. Try this dog rub (cats don’t like the smell): Cut up 4 lemons and simmer for 1 hour in 1 quart water, adding water as needed; cool, strain, and massage mixture into Fido’s coat.

Healthy Diet to help Psoriasis

Losing weight may help
Though many patients find that certain diets help clear their skin, or that certain foods aggravate it, no studies have established a definitive link between nutrition and psoriasis, says Neil Korman, MD, clinical director of the Murdough Family Center for Psoriasis in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. “There’s no ‘Psoriasis Diet,’ but people with psoriasis should try to eat a healthy diet,” he says. “We do know that people who are obese are at increased risk for psoriasis, and that losing weight may help improve your psoriasis.”

“Achieving a healthy weight and eating more healthfully in general” are the goals when working with psoriasis patients, says Brenda Walsh, RD, an outpatient clinical dietitian at the Murdough center. Psoriasis is an inflammatory disease, she says, and “we know that weight loss can decrease levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), which is produced by the body in response to inflammation.” Increasing activity levels and dropping pounds can help lower CRP levels.



What should you eat?


Emphasizing foods that contain antioxidants, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans, which can reduce inflammation, may also help, says Deirdre Earls, RD, a dietitian in private practice in Austin, Texas.

A chronic psoriasis sufferer herself, Earls says she has had minimal outbreaks since she started following a diet based on the University of Michigan Integrative Medicine Clinic’s Healing Foods Pyramid six and a half years ago.



The diet has also helped her patients, Earls reports.Even if you can’t make all the changes, small tweaks (eating more vegetables, trading white bread and rice for whole grains, eliminating processed food) can improve your health. “Proceed at your own pace and focus on the positive choices you make,” advises Earls.



Fruits and vegetables
How much:
Two to four servings of fruits and a minimum of five servings of vegetables (or more if you want) every day.



Why:
Fruits and vegetables are loaded with antioxidants that help control inflammation naturally, says Earls.

“I recommend my patients select a variety of deeply pigmented fruits and vegetables when choosing antioxidant-rich foods,” says Walsh. “Some examples are red bell peppers, pineapple, spinach, raspberries, blueberries, and carrots. I always recommend obtaining antioxidants from food, rather than in supplement form. This allows you to obtain all the benefits available in that food, not simply what happens to be extracted and packaged into a pill.”



What's a serving:
One apple, orange, or medium banana; 3/4 cup of berries; 1/2 cup of raw or cooked vegetables.


Grains
How much:
Four to 11 daily servings of grains, preferably whole grains (whole-grain bread, cereal and pasta, oatmeal, and brown rice).

Why:
Whole grains contain a variety of inflammation-fighting antioxidants, says Earls. They are also high in fiber, which is associated with decreased inflammation levels.

What’s a serving:
One slice whole-grain bread, 1/3 cup pasta, 3/4 cup cereal, 1/3 cup rice.

Beans and lentils
How much:
One to three servings a day of beans, peas, lentils, or peanuts.

Why:
They are all great sources of protein, and also contain tons of antioxidants and have high levels of fiber.

What’s a serving:
1/2 cup cooked beans or lentils.





Soy
How much:
One to two servings a day of edamame, soy milk, soy nuts, and tofu.

Why:
A number of studies have linked decreased inflammation with eating soy, says Earls. In addition, soy is an excellent source of protein and contains isoflavones, which are thought to help reduce inflammation.

What’s a serving:
1/2 cup edamame, 1 cup soy milk, 1 ounce soy nuts, 1/2 cup tofu.


Fats
How much:
Three to nine daily servings of olive oil, peanut oil, canola oil, nuts, avocado, seeds, or nut butters.

Why:
Good fats can help the body fight inflammation. But avoid margarine and shortening that contain trans fats, which can have the reverse effect.

What’s a serving:
1 teaspoon of oil, 1/2 tablespoon nut butter, 2 walnuts.


Fish and seafood
How much:
Two to four servings per week, with an emphasis on fish with a high omega-3 fatty acid content (salmon, anchovies, mackerel, tuna, and sardines, especially wild varieties).

Why:
There is strong evidence that omega-3s help reduce inflammation, says Earls. If you’re not a fish eater, you may want to consider an omega-3 supplement. She recommends two high-quality brands: Pharmax and Nordic Naturals.

What’s a serving:
4 to 6 ounces of fish.


What should you limit?

Foods that may contribute to inflammation should be eaten in more limited quantities or eliminated. These include processed and fast food, foods that are high in saturated and trans fats, and refined starches and sugar.


“When you have an inflammatory condition, it's especially important to avoid fatty meats and fried foods, which promote inflammation,” says Michael Traub, a naturopathic physician in Kailua Kona, Hawaii. “If you’re eating them once a month, that's probably OK. But once a week is not.”


Meats
How much:
Eat up to three 2- to 3-ounce servings per week, choosing lean cuts such as white-meat chicken or turkey, flank steak, sirloin, or pork loin. Higher-fat cuts contain more saturated fat, which may contribute to inflammation.


Sugar
How much:
Try to avoid sweets as much as possible. “Sugar promotes inflammation in the body,” says Traub.


Alcohol
How much:
Limit your intake as much as possible, at least until symptoms clear. Although the exact mechanism remains unknown (inflammation is one possibility), alcohol is believed by some to trigger psoriasis outbreaks.


The gluten connection
Some researchers believe that there may be an increased frequency of celiac disease among people with psoriasis, explains Earls. People who have celiac disease cannot properly digest a protein called gluten that’s found in wheat, rye, and barley. Eating these foods can damage the lining of the small intestine, often resulting in chronic diarrhea as well as malnutrition. (Some people with celiac disease have no symptoms, though.)


If you believe that gluten intolerance may be an issue for you, ask your doctor if you should be screened for celiac disease. If you are gluten intolerant, your psoriasis may improve if you follow a super-strict gluten-free diet (avoiding anything containing wheat, rye, or barley). “It does take real commitment,” says Earls. “But what was disabling psoriasis [for me] has been in remission for six years without any negative side effects."

The Myths about Cholesterol

Even if you think you know everything there is to know about cholesterol, there may be a few more surprises in store. Check out these common myths about high cholesterol; find out who’s most likely to have it, what types of food can cause it, and why—sometimes—cholesterol isn’t a bad word.

Myth 1: Americans have the highest cholesterol in the world

One of the world's enduring stereotypes is the fat American with cholesterol-clogged arteries who is a Big Mac or two away from a heart attack. As a nation, we could certainly use some slimming down, but when it comes to cholesterol levels we are solidly middle-of-the-road.

According to 2005 World Health Organization statistics, American men rank 83rd in the world in average total cholesterol, and American women rank 81st; in both cases, the average number is 197 mg/dL, just below the Borderline-High Risk category. That is very respectable compared to the top-ranked countries: In Colombia the average cholesterol among men is a dangerous 244, while the women in Israel, Libya, Norway, and Uruguay are locked in a four-way tie at 232.

Myth 2: Eggs are evil

It's true that eggs have a lot of dietary cholesterol—upwards of 200 mg, which is more than two-thirds of the American Heart Association's recommended limit of 300 mg a day. But dietary cholesterol isn't nearly as dangerous as was once thought. Only some of the cholesterol in food ends up as cholesterol in your bloodstream, and if your dietary cholesterol intake rises, your body compensates by producing less cholesterol of its own.While you don't want to overdo it, eating an egg or two a few times a week isn't dangerous. In fact, eggs are an excellent source of protein and contain unsaturated fat, a so-called good fat.

Most people think high cholesterol is a problem that's strictly for the middle-aged. But guess what? Research has shown that atherosclerosis—the narrowing of the arteries that leads to heart attacks—can start as early as age eight. In July 2008, the American Academy of Pediatrics released guidelines on kids and cholesterol that recommended that children who are overweight, have hypertension, or have a family history of heart disease have their cholesterol tested as young as two years of age.

Children with high cholesterol should be on a diet that restricts saturated fat to 7% of calories and no more than 200 mg per day of dietary cholesterol, according to the guidelines. Fiber supplements and more exercise are also recommended.

While the guidelines prompted a bit of an outcry from parents worried that doctors would be pushing cholesterol-lowering drugs for kids, a new study suggests that less than 1% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 would be considered candidates for medication.

Myth 4: Food is heart-healthy if it says "0 mg cholesterol"

The Cholesterol portion of the nutritional label refers to dietary cholesterol, which is only one of the things found in food that can cause your cholesterol to go sky-high. (A bigger contributor to elevated cholesterol? A high-fat diet.) It's also believed to be the least important. Saturated fat (found in animal foods and dairy products) and trans fats (found in packaged foods) appear to have a far greater impact on low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the so-called bad cholesterol that causes atherosclerosis, than dietary cholesterol.

Myth 5: Cholesterol is always a bad thing

When most people hear "cholesterol" they think "bad." Like most things in life, the reality is more complex. High cholesterol can be dangerous, but cholesterol itself is essential to various bodily processes, from insulating nerve cells in the brain to providing structure for cell membranes. That's why your body makes the white, waxy substance (about 75% of the cholesterol in your blood is made by the liver and cells elsewhere in your body).

The role of cholesterol in heart disease is often misunderstood. Cholesterol is carried through the bloodstream by low-density and high-density lipoproteins (LDL and HDL). LDL, known as bad cholesterol, and not the cholesterol it carries per se, is responsible for atherosclerosis.

Botox - Warnings from FDA

Reports of deaths among people using popular anti-wrinkle injections such as Botox to treat muscle spasms have prompted a change in labeling.

Botox and similar products will now be required to carry boxed warnings, the most serious type of label warning, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Thursday.

Most cases involved children given the drug to control muscle spasticity associated with cerebral palsy and adults using it to treat muscle spasticity, migraines and cervical dystonia.

“The hospitalizations are very few, deaths are very rare, but they have been reported,” said Dr. Ellis F. Unger, acting deputy director of the FDA’s Office of Drug Evaluation, said during a teleconference.

“We don’t want to discourage use of these drugs as patients taking them have significant disability and the drugs are effective to relieve important problems,” he said. “But people just need to understand the risks that are involved so they can make informed, risk-benefit decisions.”

Other side effects include muscle weakness, difficulty breathing, loss of bladder control and pneumonia. Some people have required feeding tubes.

Unger said the deaths have not been clearly attributable to injection of the drugs, as everyone who died also suffered from other conditions.

None of the cases so far reported have been associated with use of botulinum products in cosmetic or dermatological procedures, such as clearing furrows between the eyebrows, according to the FDA. Botulinum toxins are not approved by the FDA to treat severe arm and leg muscle spasms, although they are approved for dermatological indications as well as cervical dystonia.

Officials believe that most of the problems occurred when one product was substituted for another without corresponding dose adjustments.

“There are now three products approved in the U.S., each with different units, and the units cannot be interchanged,” Unger said. “Switching patients from one to another runs the risk of underdosing or, more important, overdosing.”

The three approved products are Botox, Myobloc and Dysport, which was approved this week. Officials said there have been no post-marketing reports of similar problems with the newest drug.

The injections, which temporarily “paralyze” muscles, are intended to have a localized effect but can pose problems if the compound spreads to other parts of the body.

“When given in a particular place, they spread locally, meaning they move into adjacent structures,” Unger explained. “We have known that for years, and it can be annoying and somewhat of a significant problem for given patients but does not result in disability or harm.”

“The real concern is when there is distant spread,” he said. “It is injected at one point and spreads to areas not adjacent.”

The FDA issued an “early communication” in February 2008, warning of these adverse reactions. The month before, the watchdog group Public Citizen petitioned the agency to add a black-box warning to the two drugs then on the market in the United States, describing 180 “adverse event cases” related to the drugs, including 16 deaths, four in people younger than 18.

Between early 2008 and now, the FDA became “more certain about the cases,” Unger said. “We felt we really needed to nail down the scope of the problem before we placed a boxed warning, which is something we take very seriously.”

The FDA will also require manufacturers to put in place what it calls a risk evaluation and mitigation strategy — in essence, a comprehensive patient safety guide.

“Updating labeling will help patients and health-care professionals better understand the risks and benefits,” Unger said. “These drugs have benefits, but they also can cause serious problems.”

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