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Beat the Heat: 5 Tips for Managing Menopause Hot Flashes Naturally

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Discover 5 evidence-based, natural ways to manage menopausal hot flashes. Learn how diet, cooling foods, mind-body techniques, aromatherapy, and Ayurvedic practices can help you stay cool and comfortable. Get expert advice from Valencia Porter, MD's functional medicine approach to women's health and wellbeing.

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Nature’s Ozempic? 3 Foods and 3 Supplements That Naturally Increase GLP-1

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With the start of summer season this past Memorial Day weekend, I’ve been getting a lot of questions about weight loss - especially about the GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy. If you’re curious about their use, side effects, and cost and wondering if there might be natural alternatives stay tuned.

What is GLP-1?

GLP-1 also known as Glucagon-like Peptide-1, is a peptide hormone naturally produced in the gut by your body that works in several different ways to help with blood sugar c…

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The Vagus Nerve: Your Body's Secret Superhighway

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If there's one thing I've learned in my decades as an integrative medicine physician, it's that the vagus nerve is the unsung hero of the human body. This remarkable cranial nerve may not get the same flashy attention as some of its more well-known counterparts, but trust me, when it comes to overall health and wellbeing, the vagus nerve is where it's at.

The Vagus Nerve: Your Body's Control Center

Think of the vagus nerve as the superhighway connecting your brain to the rest of your body. It's th…

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Sweat for Your Life: The Benefits of Infrared Sauna

Being sweaty hasn’t traditionally been regarded as a good thing (unless you’re a professional athlete). In fact, we’ve been told to do the exact opposite. Do you remember the ads like I do (OK, these are dating me...)? Want to be confident and secure? Don’t sweat. Want to be successful in your career? Never let them see you sweat. And for us ladies, make sure you’ve got something that’s strong enough for a man, but made for a woman! Now of course, having body odor is not a great thing. But in my…

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The Skinny on Fats

Fats have been widely demonized in the health industry. “Fat makes you fat” is a common belief for many people, though that is truly not the case. Fats are essential for our overall health. They are burned as fuel for our body and are an integral part of our cell membranes. They maintain healthy skin and hair, and can even affect brain functioning in our mood, behavior, and cognition. Given that some fats are absolutely necessary to eat because they cannot be manufactured in the body, this w…

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What Are You Wearing?


Clothing is an essential part of our lives. Whether we choose our outfits based on style or function, quality of material matters. However, quality is not limited to the softness of a particular sweater; rarely do we think about the quality of our clothes in terms of our health. The clothes we wear sit on our skin all day, everyday, so what goes into them matters. With labels like “flame resistant, stain resistant, wrinkle resistant, water repellant or easy care”, we might not be thinkin…

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Staying Hydrated With Pure Clean Water

About 60% of the human body is made up of water, and many of us have learned that drinking water is one of the best things we can do for our bodies. It is not only critical to remember to remember to drink enough of it but it also important to think about where we are getting our water from and what that could mean for our health. This week’s blog post covers everything you need to know about how to keep your body hydrated and healthy.

Not All Water is Equal

One of the best ways to…

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Eating Animals: What to Look for & What to Avoid

You hear nowadays about the growing popularity of vegetarianism, veganism, and plant-based diets. These are great options for both your body and the environment, but many people still want to consume animal products on a regular basis. So if you’re not quite ready to go all the way, here are some tips to make healthier choices.

Avoid Processed Meats

Processed meat has been defined as any meat that has been transformed through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes t…

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Striving for Balance?

Recently I had to take my own advice again. And doing so meant pulling back from some things and paying more attention to others. Life balance is not static – it is a state of constant adjustments. And has this past year been an opportunity to practice that or what?

When I was healing from chronic Lyme disease several years back, I was reminded of this inspiring commencement speech given by the former CEO of Coca Cola, Byran Dyson in 1996. I understood then that in order to save my he…

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Surfing Our Emotions

As much as I meditate, seek to communicate consciously, and strive for balance and wellness in my life, I’m still human and my emotions swallowed me up like a big wave over the past couple of months – tumbling in the churning swirl as I sought to get more solid footing and figure out which way was up.

And I know I’m not alone. Even before the pandemic, in the United States we were having a mental health crisis – with almost half of adults experiencing a mental illness during their lifetime.…

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