Positively Beautiful

As May turned into June, I was in downtown Fargo, attending the smallest conference I’ve ever been to. In fact, the organizers, AJ and Melissa Leon promoted it as a tiny, handcrafted conference for self-proclaimed “misfits,” those trying to lead a thoughtful, deliberate life that may be a little unconventional. Despite my conventional career, I applied, and was delighted to attend.

The Leons are based in New York City, but lead an almost nomadic life—their most recent adventure being “Around the world in 1,080 Days.” Their journey began with desperation. Feeling unfulfilled and miserable in his high-paying Wall Street job, AJ quit four days before his wedding to Melissa in 2008, much to the dismay of his future mother-in-law. Thankfully, his new bride embraced his quest to discover a more meaningful life. They’ve since created a design and consulting business that funds their world travels and humanitarian projects.

Thousands of people follow AJ Leon through his blog, In Pursuit of Everything. I discovered his writing last year through a respected online friend. I signed up, and received his “manifesto.” Since I love to read, I sign up for a lot of blogs. While the information is great, I don’t feel much of a connection. But things are different with AJ, and he created a life-long fan when he sent me a personal email thanking me for joining his readership. He made me feel valued.

When I caught wind of his first ever conference, I was pleasantly surprised that he and Melissa chose Fargo. “I get a wonderful learning experience without a plane ticket and hotel bill? Amazing!!!” But I also thought, “Why Fargo?” But more than 60 people from eight countries were brave enough to take the chance, buy the tickets, and make the trip to Fargo, without knowing who was speaking or what was in store. They believed in the Leons, and the seeds they planted for this tiny, misfit conference. And what bloomed was magic.

Fargo roots were a major part of the magic, as participants were encouraged to appreciate the nuances of our small city. Ecce was the hub, and Mark Weiler was a masterful host. The cozy arm chairs and couches were rented from downtown businesses like MidMadMod and Unglued. The food was organic and locally sourced. No Styrofoam… instead we had ceramic Fargo mugs for coffee and mason jars for water. Art and music played a big role. The HoDo, Zandbroz, the Radisson and Alley Fair were celebration venues. In fact, AJ and Melissa called the conference a kinetic art project, with every choice made intentionally. We took a photo walk that encouraged us to notice our surroundings and we saw beauty everywhere.

Our own Greg Tehven made waves when he spoke about moving back to Fargo, and helping create a community that makes people want to stay. TEDx events, historical parties, StartUp Weekend, Midnight Brunch, art events, social entrepreneurship and a few home-cooked dinners…these gatherings re-invigorated Tehven’s vision of his home town, our Fargo, and the mini-mecca that it has become. There is a sense that more is on the horizon, waiting to sprout. The MisFits reflected that vision back to us, with compliments and care.

Srinivas Rao, successful author and creator of BlogCastFM.com, spoke at the conference. He too, was inspired and later remarked, “When I heard you guys have one (TEDx), I came home and realized we have never had TedX Riverside (California.)  I’m putting in our application today. It made me rethink my town as a place I want to escape, and instead as a place where there might be a community of amazing people.”

This is key. Maybe Fargo is special, but I think any community can be special if a few people don’t just hollowly say “Let’s get together.”  They plan it, do it and are then curious about others, their mission and their stories. Tehven says, “Put your hand up, count yourself in, create and build.” He is a living example. Engagement and excitement in our community has obvious economic benefit, but research shows that empowerment benefits physical and emotional health as well.

Regardless of where you live, the ability to bloom where you are planted, by choice or circumstance, is priceless. How will you grow, and where will you bloom? Kudos to AJ and Melissa Leon, for seeing Fargo in a way that we usually miss because we are too busy with the urgency to embrace the important. I have a feeling the virtual community the Leon’s have created around this event will stay vital and connected, helping nourish and grow many neighborhoods around the world. I am happy that Fargo is my garden.

“I’ve never seen a smiling face that was not beautiful.” – Author Unknown

A smile can be your very best accessory. Plus, it can immediately boost your mood. As clergyman Doug Horton said, “Smile, it’s free therapy.”

There is actually science behind this! The physical action of using the facial muscles involved in a smile sets off a neurochemical reaction that improves mood. Smiling has actually been used successfully as part of a program to treat depression, requiring participants to smile at themselves in the mirror several times a day. The suggestion to fake a smile is a good one, though, because the more you fake the smile, the more real the smile will become.

Smiling will automatically attract people to you and will almost always elicit an automatic response of a returned smile, triggering those same positive emotions. Mother Teresa knew of the importance of a smile, stating, “Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.” It really is a great feeling to flash a broad smile and enjoy the response, knowing that you may have made someone’s day!

When shown pictures of smiling faces, babies as young as a few weeks would smile back, become calmer and more attentive than they did when shown pictures of neutral faces or scowls. We are born to appreciate smiles and positive expressions.

Mood and smiling go hand in hand. Psychology researchers have studied this “facial feedback” hypothesis, stating that “involuntary facial movements provide sufficient peripheral information to drive emotional experience” (Bernstein, et al., 2000). Davis and Palladino explain that “feedback from facial expression affects emotional expression and behavior” (2000). In simple terms, you may actually be able to improve your mood by simply smiling.

A number of research projects support this hypothesis. One study, conducted by Levenson and Friesen, found that involuntary biological changes similar to those caused by emotions were experienced by participants who were instructed to make certain faces. That is, a person told to make an angry face experienced increased blood flow to the hands and feet, which is also seen in those who are experiencing anger. Participants from another study involving posed faces reported more favorable impressions of other people when they were asked to smile.

Research has also found that when you mimic the face of someone else, it may cause you to feel empathy for the other person (Bernstein, et al., 2000). In another research setting, participants were either prevented from smiling or encouraged to smile by being instructed how to hold a pencil in their mouths. Those who held a pencil in their teeth and thus were able to smile rated cartoons as funnier than did those who held the pencil in their lips and thus could not smile (Davis & Palladino, 2000).

Smiling is almost as basic as breathing, but I need to remind myself to do it more often. Some suggestions sure to make you smile:    

•    Make goofy faces at yourself in the mirror.
•    Do something child-like: watch cartoons or go to the playground.
•    Leaf through your baby pictures or a family photo album.
•    Smile and make eye contact with each co-worker you meet in the hallway.
•    Walk barefoot in the grass in the early spring.
•    Pick up a puppy or kitten and peer into its face.
•    Go feed the ducks and watch them walk. If you can watch a duck walk on dry land and not smile, check your pulse.
•    Do something nice but completely unexpected for a friend or loved one.
•    Do something nice and completely unexpected for a total stranger.
•    Splash in a puddle after the rain.

Now go spread the joy!

Those who’ve ever had a colonoscopy know that “preparing” the colon by cleansing out the solids is the worst part. We were just not designed to go to the bathroom that much! But you often see “colon cleanses” being touted on the internet and through health clubs. It’s not new: through history, physical and spiritual cleansing practices often involved special foods and/or fasting, along with meditation or prayer.

The ancient Egyptians were among the first to introduce colon cleansing as a way of purifying the body of food that was considered to quickly ‘rot’ in the gut. Native Americans fasted during their spiritual vision quests. Kosher guidelines are followed in Judaism, and Roman Catholics still fast before Communion and avoid meat on Lenten Fridays. “My body is a temple,” Scripture reads. Some think of cleansing as the physical route to spiritual house-cleaning.

In recent times, most cleanses have a non-religious format, with a focus on weight loss, restoring energy and minimizing pain from arthritis and fibromyalgia. I’ve seen a version of this liquid cleanse floating around my region for a while. Drinking a 60-ounce concoction of water, lemon juice, maple syrup, and cayenne pepper every day for 10 days never sounded appealing to me. And that was before I read that you are also supposed to drink warm salt water in the morning and laxative tea before bed. It seems obvious that weight loss would occur on this regimen, but studies have shown that fasts and extremely low-calorie diets invariably lower the body’s basal metabolic rate as it struggles to conserve energy. Once the dieter resumes normal eating, rapid weight gain often follows.  I would also worry about electrolytes on this program—makes me feel weak just thinking about doing this. Mainstream medicine gives it a thumbs down.

Newer programs, often called detox cleanses, seem more nutritious, with juices (especially green juices) playing a big role. They don’t involve fasting, though they eliminate solid foods for several days. In today’s society, man-made toxins are a cause for concern. There are many unpronounceable words on the labels of our food, household cleaners and personal care products. While unpronounceable doesn’t always mean bad, it is a departure from the whole-foods diet of our grandparents and the sparkle of windows cleaned with vinegar and water. And most agree that our health is suffering for a variety of reasons. Are we being pickled by preservatives?

A detox cleanse also has a prep phase, but no worries about a sore bottom! Getting ready involves eliminating caffeine, alcohol, sugar, processed foods, meat, dairy and wheat, as well as increasing water intake. The cleanse itself is usually a seven day process with lots of options. You can make your own green juice using a specialized juicer, or green powders. Juice Plus makes capsules that have whole-foods powders in green, red and purple. JuiceDietCleanse.com has several options that range from an intense, fresh Max Plan to a grocery store cleanse; you can purchase name brand organic juices to make life easier. There are online companies like UrbanRemedy.com that will overnight ship fresh juices. I tried this for a few days; it was expensive, but very tasty!

The overall premise is to make things easy for your gut to absorb nutrients such as chlorophyll, minerals, vegetable proteins and enzymes. Whole foods are reintroduced gradually over the next week. Most people report feeling more energy and clearer skin after the cleanse, and for many it’s a jump-start for healthier eating.

I took up running in college and continued through medical school and residency. I did a few 10Ks and even took a short run during my lunch break for the MCAT exam. Crazy. I can’t believe I did that, but it did seem to refresh my mind for the next long test session. I always ran solo, and usually without music, using my journeys as time to think. I once was so busy “thinking” I ran 13 miles—double my intended route. I never ran a marathon, though I’ve been scrubbed in for marathon 26.2-hour surgeries.

Three weeks after I finished my residency I broke my tibia while on a walk. I was hit by a dog running full-speed. Perhaps I should have been running and this wouldn’t have happened! I moved back to Fargo as planned shortly after this happened, and started my medical practice, on crutches. I wasn’t allowed to bear any weight on that leg for three months, so I had to hop around the exam chair. A combination of being on crutches and then the winter weather got me out of my running habit.

Today, I run to chase my son around the house, but not much more. I’ve had more orthopedic surgery over the years, and I am hesitant to push my joints to the extreme. The basement-dwelling elliptical machine is my major cardio endeavor. But I watch all of our runners braving the weather, training for the big marathon day with pride. Rory Beil, of Cass Clay Alive, feels that Mark Knutson and his team at the Fargo Marathon have had a major impact on the health of our community, changing our culture to celebrate and support fitness in all shapes, sizes and distances.

Oprah, a marathon-finisher, nailed it with this quote: “Running is the greatest metaphor for life, because you get out of it what you put into it.” And running a marathon means that you are putting a lot of yourself into it, and learning lessons like these along the way:

1. Have an overall vision for success. Do you know what you are capable of? Define your core values and desired feelings and make them the driving force behind your activities. What does crossing the finish line really mean to you?

2. Set goals and believe that you can accomplish them. Goals are the strategic mile-markers that we create to make and mark progress toward realizing our vision. Prepare and focus.

3. Enjoy the journey. While planning is crucial, paying attention and practicing mindfulness bring out things to be grateful for, even when we experience pain and challenges. Life happens both as we train and during the race, not just at the finish line. Sometimes we don’t make it to the finish line, but the journey still holds value.

4. Get out of your comfort zone. Take risks to push yourself. Dig deeper. Failure, embarrassment and injury are possible. But most of us regret what we failed to take a chance on, even more than what we tried to do, even if we come up short. Last is the slowest winner, but you also win just by being in the game.

5. Be flexible and adjust to challenges and change. There are hills, storms, injuries and all sorts of unpredictables that we come across. Difficulty can defeat or strengthen, and we get to choose our response.

6. Great things can be accomplished with love. It is amazing to see how many people run with a cause in mind: from formal charity running groups, to the families who honor loved ones, to those who push or carry a child across the finish line. There is something about living beyond your own headspace and giving to others that makes the journey easier and more meaningful.

7. We survive struggle with the celebration and support of others. I may not be a marathon runner, but I am one of those cheering at the top of my voice.  I love it when people write their names on their number bibs, so that we can give them a personal shout out. We help individual runners achieve their dreams and support the overall success of the event. The music, the parties, the bouncy houses for kids along the route…wow—what a way to show love for the runners, our neighbors and our city. Even in the sadness of the recent Boston Marathon, we know hope because of the helpers—those people who ran toward danger to give care and support.

It should be so easy, this healthy living stuff. We know the rules, don’t we? Eat a clean diet with lots of leafy greens, berries, nuts and seeds, and high quality lean protein. Cut down on the white stuff like flour, white rice, white potatoes and sugar. Drink water, not pop. Sleep eight hours. Move daily…walk, stretch, dance, lift weights or swim. Take a multi-vitamin, and perhaps some extra Vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids. Minimize stress. Breathe deeply. Enjoy nature. Laugh often.

But knowing the rules doesn’t always work. Despite knowing, we can have a hard time doing. And sometimes, even when we do ALL the rights things, we still don’t feel healthy. Dr. Lissa Rankin has spent the past five years living and researching what she calls “whole health,” a blend of mindfulness, hope, optimism, nurturing care, and full partnership with empowered patients. In her new book, Mind Over Medicine, Rankin describes a patient-centered recipe for healing that suggests that we are all equipped with natural self-repair mechanisms, and that our thoughts, feelings and beliefs can flip the fix-it switch on and off.

In medicine, we are not easily convinced of anything that is not proven with a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, and Rankin described herself as skeptical but intrigued. She poured over medical journal articles, and every case report in the Spontaneous Remission Project. She was amazed to find documentation of physiological mechanisms of healing that defied Western logic. As we learn more about the flexibility of our gene expression, it begins to make more sense. Our cells respond to environmental signals such as nutrition, the atmosphere and even our thoughts through regulatory proteins that guide our DNA through sickness and health.

The book is divided into three main themes: Believe Yourself Well, Treat Your Mind and Write the Prescription. Rankin’s mission is to heal healthcare and impact the lives of millions. She certainly believes in the rules that we reviewed above. But she thinks that in order to live a vital life, prevent disease, and optimize the chance for disease remission, you need all of these:

o    Healthy relationships
o    A healthy, meaningful way to spend your days
o    A healthy, fully expressed creative life
o    A healthy spiritual life
o    A healthy financial life
o    A healthy environment
o    A healthy mental and emotional life
o    A healthy lifestyle that support the physical health of the body

She thinks of these elements as fundamental rocks using a visual model of a cairn. You may have seen a stack of perfectly balanced rocks while walking on a far-away beach. So each of these fundamental rocks need to be balanced and supported.

She cites many studies and examples to support her thesis. The story of Roseto, Pensylvania was particularly powerful. Most of the inhabitants of Roseto immigrated from a village in southern Italy of the same name. They brought their old world habits, not all of them healthy! Mounds of pasta, lots of wine and even cigarettes; jobs were tough at the stone quarry or blouse factory. But they had a strong community, with spiritual groups, celebratory festivals and community practices that made virtually every day a block party.

In 1961, a visiting physician noted that Roseto was an oasis of survival, with far lower rates of heart disease than surrounding communities, despite similar vices and challenges. He looked into genetics, since most citizens came from the same village, but he found that those who settled in other regions of the US did not have lower rates of disease. He looked at cholesterol levels, water supply and hospital quality. He finally concluded that it was the supportive, tight-knit community that made the hearts of Roseto stronger. As time passed, new ideas and new lifestyles returned with the now college-educated offspring of hard-working parents. Multi-generational homes disbanded, as did the nightly gatherings. TV and TV dinners became more common. And by the end of the 1970’s, mortality from heart disease in Roseto, PA was equal to the national average.

I’ve enjoyed getting to know and work with Dr. Rankin recently through the Whole Health Medicine Institute, and am looking forward to seeing how this broad approach to health affects my patients, my community and me personally. Her book is hot off the presses this week, and can be a priceless guide to anyone in search of health and healing.

We are really happy about the arrival of SPRING at our house, with warmer weather, longer days, and budding trees. But these seasonal changes also mean itchy, watery eyes, combined with sneezing, cough and congestion due to allergies related to snow mold, grasses and trees. My 5-year-old son Grant pointed to his nose, and told me, “Mom, the holes in my nose are not working. No air is going through.” So, what to do?

First of all, allergies deserve respect. Illness related to allergies are a major cause of absenteeism and presenteeism, meaning low-productivity while at work due to feeling so poorly. The economic impact is in the billions of dollars per year. Allergy sufferers are also prone to mental fatigue, sadness and more migraine headaches.

Severe allergies should be evaluated and treated with the help of your doctor. Testing can help you identify exactly what the problem is and how to avoid the allergens. Medications such as nasal sprays, antihistamines like Zyrtec and Claritin, and decongestant pills are major options. Sometimes anti-inflammatories like steroids might be used to get you through a really tough bout of allergies. But less than 30% of patients feel that their medication provides good symptom control. Some turn to weekly allergy shots, which are used to help build the immune system over time. Another increasingly popular option in my office is drops under the tongue, which provide immune protection that is similar to shots. This is an FDA off-label use, but ongoing medical research indicates that drops are helpful.

Here are some other solutions that may help you minimize office visits and work alongside medical treatments:

1. Avoidance is not always practical, but do what you can to minimize exposure. Keep the windows closed in your home and car, especially on windy days.

2. Nasal irrigation with saline can be very helpful. In essence, you wash away the pollen or mold invaders before they have a chance to bind to the cells of your mucous membranes and cause reactions. You can buy pre-made bottles like Ocean or Ayr, or make your own with one teaspoon pickling salt and ½ teaspoon baking soda mixed in one pint of water, preferably boiled. You can use a Neti pot or a squeeze bottle for rinsing.

3. Supplements like Vitamin C and the antioxidant quercetin work together to knock out allergies. Research shows quercetin suppresses allergy-related inflammation, while stress – including allergy-related stress on your body – depletes vitamin C. Fruits and vegetables like oranges and red peppers supply vitamin C, and quercetin-rich foods include green tea, red onions, oranges, and apples, but you’ll likely need to supplement to get adequate amounts.

4. Herbal remedies such as stinging nettle and butterbur compare favorably to over the counter antihistamines. Also consider using garlic, rosemary, turmeric, and curcumin to spice up your cooking and add an anti-inflammatory burst. But avoid too much spiciness. Extra jalapeños will make watery eyes worse.

5. Anti-inflammatory Omega-3 fatty acids are allergy fighters too. They’re found in wild-caught cold-water fish, chia seeds, freshly ground flax seeds, and walnuts. You might also try krill oil, which is naturally rich in the antioxidant astaxanthin. Try cooking with coconut oil and enhance salads with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

6. Try making some diet changes during allergy season to see if food sensitivities are triggering your allergies. Gluten and dairy seem to be the worst culprits. Eliminate both of them completely for 21 days, then challenge yourself for two to three days with dairy and see how you feel. If symptoms recur, leave dairy out of your diet. Repeat the challenge with gluten.

I hope the holes in your nose work better after trying these!

Saying affirmations always make me smile as I think of the Saturday Night Live skit with Stuart Smalley looking in the mirror, chiming “I’m good enough, and by golly, people like me.” Affirmations are no longer joke material, though we all might feel a little funny saying them. Mainstream medicine is now quite accepting of the power positive affirmations to impact our sense of health and well-being. Some therapists suggest a twist, or shall I say, “tap,” to affirmations, literally tapping specific areas on your face and body while saying affirmations.

It’s called the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) and involves tapping meridian points of the body, gently using the fingertips of your index and middle fingers about five to seven times on each. The 10 main meridian points are:

1. top of the head
2. eyebrow
3. side of the eye
4. under the eye
5. under the nose
6. chin
7. collarbone
8. under the arm
9. inside wrist

The idea is to think of a problem or challenge area of your life and say a positive affirmation with an upbeat, positive manner, while tapping. Most typical EFT affirmations begin with: “Even though I have this ‘fill-in-the-blank’ problem, I deeply and completely accept myself.” Always move from the top down when tapping.   

EFT can provide relief to some after just one session but it also depends on how many issues they need to work on regarding their problem. It can be safely used every day on everything from daily stress situations to chronic health issues. The internet abounds with case studies from individual patients working on issues as diverse as anxiety, allergies, weight loss, smoking cessation, phobias, and balance.

Nick Ortner’s book The Tapping Solution includes many patient stories, and has been endorsed by popular personal development experts Wayne Dyer (No More Excuses) and Jack Canfield (Chicken Soup for the Soul) as well as physicians Mark Hyman and Lissa Rankin.

A search of the medical literature reveals three recent studies that support EFT. One small study in 2009 involved 15 Canadian college students suffering from test anxiety. EFT compared favorably with cognitive behavioral therapy, which is considered a gold standard for psychological therapy.

Another study from 2012 examined the changes in cortisol levels and psychological distress symptoms of 83 non-clinical subjects receiving a single hour-long intervention. Subjects were randomly assigned to either an EFT group, a psychotherapy group receiving a supportive interview, or a no treatment group. Salivary cortisol assays were performed immediately before and 30 minutes after the intervention. Standard surveys were used to assess feelings of distress. The EFT group had the most significant improvement in their surveys and cortisol levels.

Published just last month, a group of clinicians from the medical school at the University of Athens in Greece followed 35 patients meeting international criteria for tension-type headaches. 19 patients used EFT twice a day, for one month, and the control arm of 16 patients was given standard care advice.

Outcome measures included several standardized surveys, a headache log and salivary cortisol levels. Within the treatment arm, perceived stress, scores for all surveys and the frequency and intensity of the headache episodes were all significantly reduced. No differences in cortisol levels were found in either group before and after the intervention.

I look forward to new research on EFT in different physical and mental health arenas with larger patient groups. In the meantime, I’ll be tapping into EFT myself.

Dear Friends,
 
I had something different planned for today, but it just didn’t seem right. This has been a whirlwind week. We got a lovely snowstorm on Sunday, seriously beautiful, except that it’s mid-APRIL! Monday I attended the first ever TEDxNDSU and Tuesday/Wednesday hosted our local livestream of TEDMED.
 
But the week has also held tragedy in Boston and Waco. We are reminded of how precious life is, and how fragile. I was touched by several beautiful posts, and wanted to share quotes with you.
 
“We can see that even in the aftermath of tragedy through the many selfless acts of love and compassion. So while we let ourselves be touched and opened by the grief, sadness and anger, we must also let ourselves be touched and energized by the heroism of the many brave souls expressing the higher aspects of our human nature: those who ran toward the victims, even as the explosions began; and towards the marathon runners who went from the race directly to the Red Cross to donate blood for victims; and towards the thousands of Boston area residents who offered up their homes and their cars to those who were forced to evacuate the downtown area. These acts express and define who we are and who we’re becoming as a human race so much more than the reckless hateful acts of terrorism.” – Claire Zammit ~ www.FemininePower.com
 
“Sometimes we wake and wonder what we can do to bring peace to the violent society we’ve created. Until that day we as a collective decide to live in harmony by honoring and caring for each other and all life, everywhere, I find that it helps to do simple things, like smile at every person who drives past me on the street. Or imagine that each of my footsteps is a kiss for the earth as often as I can, all day long. Or I decide that I will be more alert to any tenderness I can bring to someone, especially a stranger, and move softly to open a door for them, or help an older person lift a bag of groceries from the cart into their car… If we express the best part of humanity as often as we can during such times of darkness, we will remind others that Goodness exists, and that it always has–and that It is Us.” – em Claire ~ www.emclairepoet.com

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On Another Note:

Dove’s Real Beauty Campaign is controversial to some, but I love the video which points out that we need to look at ourselves with kinder eyes and words. If only you could see yourself as those who love you do….beautiful. Make sure to check it out!

When it comes to healthy eating, I find it’s easier to add in good-for-you foods, rather than focus on deprivation. Here are my top picks for super foods that can help us have more energy, look and feel better.

Eggs: One of nature’s perfect proteins in one small package that can be eaten hot or cold. They are an excellent source of a dozen vitamins and minerals and are so incredibly versatile. I grew up with the teaching that eggs had too much cholesterol, but most otherwise healthy people should be able to eat 5-7 eggs per week.

Avocados: These green gems are packed with fiber, protein and more than 20 nutrients, including vitamins A, B and C, and minerals such as magnesium, iron and potassium. You can try using a bit of mashed avocado instead of mayo or butter for a sandwich.

Kiwis: You thought oranges had the most vitamin C, but kiwi is up there on the leaderboard too. Vitamin E, potassium and fiber also make this a power-packed health food. I like mine peeled, cut into wedges and served with strawberries.

Lemons: Like kiwi, lemons are a great source of vitamin C. Plus they can help keep your bones strong and work as an anti-inflammatory. In fact, you can get over 100% of your daily dose of vitamin C when you eat one. They can also help reduce the appearance of age or dark spots on your face, hands or elbows. Splashes of lemon can also add dashes of lightness to your hair.

Berries: You’ve probably heard that blueberries especially have great amounts of antioxidants, and they can also have an anti-aging effect, as can raspberries, strawberries and blackberries. A great source of fiber and low in calories, they can also help control low blood sugar.

Green Juice or Smoothies: Avid juicers claim that a daily glass of green juice or adding greens to a morning smoothie has been life-changing for them. Foods like kale, spinach, celery, and herbs can be juiced or blended, sometimes along with pear, apple or yellow beets for a bit of sweetness. The combination is a powerhouse of nutrition.

Salmon: One of the best sources of protein, iron and omega-3 fatty acids the oceans offer up. Studies have shown over and over again that these fats help protect the heart. Adding salmon once or twice a week to your diet is not only healthy for your most important organ, but it’s great for your skin (acne in particular) as the fats can reduce inflammation that causes pimples.

Tomatoes: The lycopene in tomatoes provides another great source of antioxidants, as well as vitamin A and fiber. Once again, such versatility. Enjoy cooked or raw, and eat plenty of them for extra protection against the sun’s harmful ultra-violet rays. Got dry skin? Eat more tomatoes!

Green tea: Good for hydration and your metabolism, and loaded with antioxidants, green tea is good for every part of your body, even your mind. So if you’re a tad forgetful, adding this source can help with your memory. Green tea extract is also a popular ingredient in skin care products.

Chocolate: Dark chocolate is good for you, full of disease-fighting antioxidants. It can help lower blood pressure, too. Look for a cacao source of 65% or greater. For those of us raised on Hershey’s milk chocolate, it can be a challenge to get used to less sweetness. Let a tiny piece melt on your tongue and savor the flavor. Some people approach chocolate like fine wine, and appreciate the subtle differences in flavor of cacao beans from different parts of the world. A small piece or two per day is enough for health benefits.

Water: Water is not something you can ignore if you want to feel good inside and out. Shoot for drinking 64 oz. of filtered water per day. I use a Brita filter in a big pitcher in my fridge. Look for a reusable water bottle in glass, steel or a non-BPA synthetic. Avoiding plastic water bottles is good for you and for the planet.