1. Anxiety and panic attacks

Magnesium helps regulate the adrenal hormones

2. Asthma

Histamine production and bronchial spasm increase with magnesium deficiency

3. Blood Clots

Magnesium helps prevent clots by keeping blood thin

4. Bowel Disease

Magnesium deficiency slows down the bowl, causing constipation

5. Cystitis

Bladder spasms worsen with a magnesium deficiency

6. Depression

Serotonin is dependent on magnesium

7. Detoxification

Helps remove toxic substances such as heavy metals

8. Diabetes

Without magnesium, insulin is unable to transfer glucose into cells.

9. Fatigue

Magnesium is involved in more than 300 enzyme-driven biochemical reactions occurring in the body

10. Heart Disease

Like any other muscle, the heart requires magnesium

11. Hypertension

Without enough magnesium, blood vessels may spasm and bad cholesterol may rise

12. Hypoglycemia

Magnesium helps regulate insulin, without it, low blood sugar can be a problem

13. Insomnia

Magnesium is involved in the production of melatonin

14. Kidney Disease

Magnesium deficiency contributes to atherosclerotic kidney failure

15.  Migraine

Serotonin balance is magnesium dependent, without it you may get headaches

16. Musculoskeletal Conditions

Fribrositis, fibromyalgia, muscle spasms, eye twitches, cramps, chronic neck and back pain may be caused by a magnesium deficiency

17. Nerve Problems

Magnesium helps treat peripheral nerve disturbances and the central nervous system

18. Obstetrical and Gynecological Problems

Helps prevents PMS and crampings, help infertility, alleviates premature contractions, preeclampsia, and eclampsia during pregnancy and reduces hypertension in delivering mothers

19. Osteoporosis

Use with calcium, vitamin D, and vitamin K to ensure proper absorption and utilization of supplements

20. Raynaud’s Syndrome

Helps relax spastic blood vessels

21. Tooth Decay

A deficiency causes unhealthy balance of phosphorus and calcium in saliva

Sources:
The Magnesium Miracle by Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D.

What is Magnesium? How it Functions in the Body

Eating foods in season is good for your wallet and your health. Epicurious has a Seasonal Ingredient Map that let’s you pick the month and location to aid you in choosing the freshest ingredients possible for your dish. When food is in season, it has higher nutrition and tastes better. You are also more likely to support your local economy, therefore, engage in a more sustainable and environmentally friendly habits. Plus, eating healthy can be expensive, but eating locally and in-season will bring your costs down.

I’ve already seen strawberries, peaches, nectarines, cherries, asparagus, and artichokes at my favorite farmer’s market in Mar Vista and May has just started!

Source:
http://www.naturalnews.com/035575_seasonal_food_diet_health.html
http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/seasonalcooking/farmtotable/seasonalingredientmap

 

Kensington Solemate Comfort Footrest with SmartFit System 

Rain Design iLevel Laptop Stand with Adjustable Height and Swivel Base 

I bought this stand because it matched my MacBook Pro, plus

it’s pretty and it swivels.

Amazon List Price: Price: $79.90 & FREE Shipping

Wacom Bamboo Splash Pen Tablet

My old wacom recently broke, and I’m currently

trying out this one. The size is on the small end, which I like

as my desk is overly crowded.

 Amazon List Price: $60.41 & FREE Shipping

Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000

Although this is bulky, it’s a great ergonomic keyboard.

Amazon List Price: Price: $37.29 & FREE Shipping

 

Ergonomics Simplifed Yes 74 Mesh Back

I picked this chair because of all the possible adjustment options, and

I like the lumbar support from a mesh back. Plus it was on the cheaper end

for high quality ergonomic chairs.

List Price: $294.00

 

 

Ever since I stopping consuming a lot of kefir, my sugar cravings have been out of control. The reason I reduced my consumption of kefir was due to a really bad detox reaction. I am slowly building up my tolerance to kefir, but in the mean time, I was feeling crazy going on and off sweets. When I ate dessert, even healthy options, all I did is crave more dessert, instead of satisfying that sweet craving. When I didn’t eat any sugar, my energy was crazy low almost to the point of feeling ill. Recently, I think I’ve figured out a good solution to my problem that could be a sustainable lifestyle change, instead of a diet trend. That solution is low-glycemic fruits.

I buy a large bag of organic frozen fruit high in antioxidants from Costco to add them to my smoothie every morning. The bag contains strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, pomegranate seeds, and tart cherries. Besides adding them to my smoothie, I’ve been snacking on them frozen. Berries generally have a GI from mid 30 to 40s and cherries have a GI of 22. I’ve also eaten an apple to cut cravings which has a GI of 38. Note that low-glycemic is 55 or less. Grapefruit is also a great option at a GI of 25, but I’m skittish after I cut myself eating grapefruit, so be careful! Now that strawberry season is back in LA, this diet change couldn’t have come at better time.

Dehydration and Sugar Cravings

I’ve also been trying to increase the amount of water I drink. According to Donna Gates, author of the Body Ecology Diet, “Cravings for sugar are often a sign of dehydration. Drink a couple of glasses of water before you give in to that craving and you probably won’t want those sweets after all.” Since fruit is hydrating as well as sweet, it may also satisfy your cravings better than a chocolate bar or cookies, which will actually make you thirstier and feed your sugar craving.

Why care about a low-glycemic diet and sugar?

Sugar has a inflammatory effect on the body, therefore, a low-glycemic diet is an anti-inflammatory diet. I just started reading The Hormone Diet by Natasha Turner, ND, and she recommends a low-glycemic diet for keeping your hormones in balance. I also recently watched the Paleo diet, featured on Dr. Oz, which is another low-glycemic diet that is extremely popular right now for weight loss and health. The Body Ecology Diet by Donna Gates cautions against sugar, as it can feed dangerous yeast, fungus, and bacteria growth.

If you have any solutions that you use to cut sugar cravings, I would love to about hear them!

Source:
The Hormone Diet by Natasha Turner, ND
The Body Ecology Diet by Donna Gates
http://nutrigenie.biz/gifruits/FruitsGlycemicIndexFoodListPage2.html
http://www.livestrong.com/article/401235-the-best-low-glycemic-fruits/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/21/inflammatory-foods-worst-inflammation_n_2838643.html#slide=2131351