Lively Lumen

  Have you tried every new fad diet and quick-fix health trend? Have you found them to lack results and long-term benefits? The latest fads can be enticing but often sound too good to be true — and usually they are. Armed with some solid tools, you can sort through the pseudoscience and fake health news to identify credible solutions for lasting healthy outcomes. To get started, let’s use Moe’s story. Moe was trying to lose weight and was willing to try just about anything. He consulted his friends who told him about a new craze: the witch diet. Apparently, if he added a brew of bat’s wing, eye of newt and frog legs to his meal plan, he was guaranteed to shed the pounds. Why do we fall for fads? The diet sounded ridiculous, but a few things got Moe’s attention: Simplicity:  Moe loved the path of least resistance — we all do. This survival impulse still remains with us from long ago when every spare calorie mattered to stay alive. Because the witch diet sounded so easy and offe...

Grounding, also called earthing, is a technique some people use to connect their physical bodies to the earth's electrical energy. 1   Planet Earth has a negative electric charge. Some scientists theorize that there is a transfer of free electrons to the human body during grounding. This electrical conduction may lead to various physical effects, including pain reduction, changes in immune response, wound healing, effects on inflammation, and possible prevention and treatment of autoimmune diseases and chronic inflammatory conditions. In this article, learn more about grounding, including how to perform grounding exercises and the health benefits of grounding. Grounding Techniques  To many people, the idea of grounding, or earthing, may sound unusual. Or, if you're interested, you may wonder how exactly to ground yourself. There are multiple ways to perform grounding. Grounding exercises include standing or walking barefoot or pressing your bare hands into the grass or dirt. H...

Short term care to provide relief to a person's primary caregiver Respite care offers a respite, or a break, to overworked caregivers. During respite care, an external nurse or aide temporarily helps tend to the person who needs care. While respite care is meant to offer a reprieve for primary caregivers, this temporary assistance can also be refreshing for a person who needs care. They can meet new people or try new activities. Caregiving can be physically and emotionally exhausting. Many caregivers report feeling burnout. Over time, caregivers may need to take a breather to run errands, relax, or fulfill their other responsibilities. When caregivers can take some time to refresh their own mental and physical health, they may be able to take better care of their loved ones. Respite staff serve as mediators between people who need care and primary caregivers. Respite Care Options Caregivers and people who need care can pursue three primary categories of respite care. Any ...