It is better to err on the side of caution, that is, to treat your skin as if it were sensitive rather than assuming you can use any bargain brand product on your face and body. Like everything else, it is better to prevent a problem from developing rather than having to treat a problem. Preventing skin sensitivity can be accomplished in the following ways:

1     Stay out of the sun because the sun can cause sensitivity; use protection with a minimum SPF of 30

2     Keep your skin well-hydrated; drink plenty of water and take a high quality Omega-3 supplement;

3     Avoid inflammation and irritation by staying away from products with synthetic and artificial ingredients.

Proper steps for skincare is to:

1     Cleanse twice daily to remove pollutants, oil, dirt, makeup without stripping away moisture;

2     Tone your skin twice daily to restore the pH balance and remove any residue;

3     Treat your skin twice daily to target specific needs of your skin, whether it be anti-aging, blemishes, irritations;

4     Moisturize twice daily to soften, protect, brighten and hydrate your skin;

5     Masque two to four times a week to repair and renew skin to increase luminosity and radiance.

This Christmas season, I decided to organize a cookie swap with the cookies being given to our local county nursing home.  First I ran the idea past the Director of Nursing. I then posted the idea on Facebook addressing it to my local Facebook friends. Within four days, I had 10 people who volunteered to bake. The idea goes like this: my role is to make sure that everyone makes a different kind of cookie. On Sunday, December 18, the bakers will bring their cookies to my home, where we will put the varieties  on trays and wrap them for delivery to the nursing home later that day. Each baker can keep some of the cookie varieties for himself/herself, but 90% of the cookies go to the residents. I am expecting that in another week, I will have at least an additional ten bakers to add their favorite cookie recipe to the assortment

It may not sound like much, but maybe something as simple as a cookie can help to re-connect memories of happier times and bring a small part of the Joy of Christmas to some lonely resident.

I am fortunate enough to have a sauna in my home, which to me is a wonderful way to take some time for myself without having to leave home. Given the fact that I live in a remote area, this makes it all the more practical and appealing. Most Saturday afternoons, I “schedule” time for a sauna. Not only are saunas relaxing, but they are one of the best ways to cleanse the body from the inside out. Saunas are also a very efficient way to detoxify from the various pollutants and toxins we absorb, including heavy metals like mercury and aluminum. It is always best to be well-hydrated before taking a sauna, as all that sweat has to come from somewhere. If you’re not well-hydrated before a sauna, you’ll have some post-sauna dehydration, not to mention not being able to sweat out some of the nasty stuff you don’t want in  your body anyway. Drinking about 16 ounces of pure water with some Buffered Vitamin C added to it 60 to 90 minutes before your sauna will facilitate the hydration and detoxification process. Saunas are also a good way to improve skin health and improve muscle tone (without having to do much). So first take a regular shower and shampoo your hair, to be clean for your sauna. Ladies, this is a good time to condition your hair by leaving the conditioner on your hair while you sauna. It’s also a good time to pumice the feet or any other areas with rough spots.

The therapeutic sauna environment (anywhere from 140 to 180 degrees) for about 15 minutes can be enhanced by ladling some water over the lava rocks. This rapidly increases the humidity to make you perspire more, as the very dry heat vaporizes your sweat so fast, you may not notice how much you indeed are perspiring. Adding a few drops of a pure, essential oil to the water bucket adds another cleansing dimension to the experience, especially oils like cypress, rosemary or thyme. If you are new to sauna, you might want to slowly increase you time in it up to 15 minutes. Children under 15, the elderly, anyone with a serious medical condition and hypertension should seek their health care provider’s consultation before deciding to sauna. When you’re done, get back into the shower and slowly cool you body down by decreasing the water temperature for at least 5 minutes. Be sure to let the cool water flow on your face, neck, back, torso and underarms: in other words think about where the body stores and transports most of it heat and those are the areas to focus on cooling off. If you’ve been conditioning your hair, now is the time to rinse it out. Re-hydrate yourself again after you’re dressed, either with more water or a calming herbal tea (hot or iced). Listen to some relaxing music in the background and light some white unscented candles to add to the sensory experience of your private time……..Perfect!

Whenever possible, use organic ingredients, especially butter and eggs. For the vanilla, I recommend using either Tahitian vanilla or Sonoma Syrup’s Vanilla Bean Crush Extract; European lemon zest is a wonderful ingredient to stock in your kitchen rather than risk zesting your fingers along with the lemon. All are available at www.kingarthurflour.com.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Lightly butter and flour 13 x 9 inch baking pan

For Cake:

1.3 cups flour

1.5 tsp baking powder

14 tbl softened butter

1 cup granulated sugar

4 large eggs at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbl fresh lemon juice

lemon zest of one half lemon

For Topping:

6 large egg whites at room temerature

1 cup plus 2 tbl granulated sugar

2 pints blueberries

3 tbl confectioner’s sugar

Combine the dry ingredients;

Beat butter until smooth and then add sugar and beat until light in color

Add eggs, one at a time

Add vanilla

Slowly add dry ingredients in two additions, then the lemon juice and lemon zest

Spread evenly into prepared pan and bake until golden, about 25 minutes

Remove from oven and cool on wire rack while making the meringue

Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees F

Beat egg whites until soft peaks are formed

Gradually add sugar until  whites are stiff and shiny

Toss blueberries in bowl with confectioner’s sugar

Spread evenly over top of cake

Spread meringue

Return to oven until meringue tips are golden brown, about 3 to 5 minutes

Cool completely on wire rack

Cut into 12 rectangles

As usual, try to use as many organic ingredients as possible, especially the butter and eggs.

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups granulated sugar

6 eggs, beaten

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 cup walnuts, chopped

1 lb dates, chopped

Combine the butter and sugar, add the beaten eggs slowly;

Combine the dry ingredients, then add to the egg mixture

Add the walnuts and dates

Pour into a greased and floured 9 x 13 pan

Bake at 350 degrees Farenhreit for 15 to 20 minutes

While hot, sprinkle confectioner’s sugar over top and cool

While still warm, slice into desired-size squares

Rinse and dry knife between slicing as the dates will stick to the knife.

1.75 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

.5 cup butter, softened

1 cup sour cream

1 egg

.75 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease muffin tins (I prefer metal tins, I never have good results with the silicone ones).

Combine flour, baking powder, and baking soda and set aside.

In medium bowl, beat butter until smooth, slowly add maple syrup. Beat in sour cream and egg. Add walnuts, then combine dry ingredients.

Spoon into prepared muffin tins, filling two-thirds full.

Bake 12 to 16 minutes.

Cool tins 5 minutes then move to cooling rack.

If you would like to add a topping, dip muffins into warm maple syrup and dust with confectioner’s sugar. I usually serve them plain. They are wonderful either way!

Enjoy  

Its metabolic and cardiovascular effects work to maintain blood sugar balance, support fat metabolism and healthy lipid profiles, and promotes circulatory health. Astaxanthin also offers immune cell support by preserving membrane integrity, the production of immunoglobulins, lymphocyte proliferation, and natural killer cell activity. Additionally, Astaxanthin protects vision from ocular stress,  increases blood flow to the retina, reduces eye fatigue and promotes visual acuity and deep vision.

Astaxanthin is a powerful antioxidant which is easily added to daily nutritional supplementation by one capsule a day. You may read  more about it and purchase it in either a two or four month supply through my Licensed Health Provider portal at www.purecapspro.com/drviginiarockhill.

What Makes nutraMetrix Isotonix® L-Tryptophan Unique?  

nutraMetrix Isotonix L-Tryptophan, not to be confused with the culprit of after-Thanksgiving dinner lethargy, is an isotonic capable form of the essential amino acid, l-tryptophan. L-Tryptophan is an essential amino acid that helps maintain healthy levels of serotonin in the brain which helps regulate mood. Isotonix L-Tryptophan provides maximum results by including niacin and Vitamin B6, members of the B vitamin family, which promote the normal absorption of L-tryptophan. By supplementing with L-tryptophan, healthy levels of serotonin in the brain will help enhance mood and support sleep. Bring out the happier you with nutraMetrix Isotonix L-Tryptophan!* 

Tryptophan, an essential amino acid, promotes normal levels of serotonin, one of the key brain chemicals involved in regulating mood and melatonin (a neurohormone). In the body, tryptophan is converted into 5-HTP, which then can be converted into serotonin (a powerful neurotransmitter in the brain). The body cannot naturally produce this amino acid; therefore, it must be a part of the diet or ingested through supplementation. Tryptophan is a component of many animal and plant proteins. Food sources of tryptophan are dairy products, beef, poultry, barley, brown rice, fish, soybeans and peanuts.* 

nutraMetrix IsotonixL-Tryptophan is an isotonic-capable supplement and bears the same chemical resemblance of the body’s blood, plasma and tears. All fluids in the body have a certain concentration, referred to as osmotic pressure. The body’s common osmotic pressure, which is isotonic, allows consistent maintenance of body tissues. In order for a substance to be absorbed and used in the body’s metabolism, it must be in an isotonic state. 

Isotonix dietary supplements are delivered in an isotonic solution. This means that the body has less work to do to obtain maximum absorption of the nutrients. The isotonic state of the suspension allows nutrients to pass directly into the small intestine and rapidly absorb into the bloodstream. With Isotonix products, little nutritive value is lost, making the absorption of nutrients highly efficient while delivering maximum results.

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 nutraMetrix Isotonix OPC-3 Skin Health Formula is formulated to promote skin elasticity, support healthy collagen production, replenish essential vitamins and minerals for the skin, and provide the skin and body with improved antioxidant defenses. This product helps maintain skin health at the cellular level, nourishing and rejuvenating skin cells with some of the finest antioxidants available today, including grape seed extract, red wine extract, bilberry extract, citrus bioflavanoids and Pycnogenol®. They are powerful free radical scavengers that not only work to keep the skin healthy and beautiful, but also provide free radical scavenging abilities which are beneficial in a world filled with smog, pollution and other various unseen toxins. These antioxidants are coupled with specific vitamins and minerals that are conducive to cell growth and division. Cell proliferation is important in maintaining healthy, vibrant skin.*

 nutraMetrix Isotonix OPC-3 Skin Health Formula is an isotonic-capable food supplement that is made from a combination of bilberry, grape seed, red wine, pine bark extracts and citrus extract bioflavonoids, all found to be powerful antioxidants. Oligomeric proanthocyanidins (OPCs) are bioflavonoids (complex organic plant compounds) found in fruits, vegetables and certain tree barks that provide exceptional nutritional benefits to the human body. Studies have shown OPCs to be up to 20 times more powerful than vitamin C and 50 times more powerful than vitamin E in neutralizing free radicals. Isotonix OPC-3 contains the only isotonic form of Pycnogenol in the world. Pycnogenol is a natural plant extract from the bark of the French maritime pine tree, and the most clinically researched and powerful bioflavonoid.*

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