As a trainer, I’m often asked which alcoholic beverages are best from a healthy lifestyle perspective. Red wine (and especially pinot noir) tops the list of healthy alcoholic beverages.

Here’s why:

Drinking red wine may preserve memory and protect the central nervous system. It also prevents clots and blood vessel inflammation—both of which are linked to heart disease and decline of cognitive function.

Overall, red wine drinkers have overall lower body mass indices (BMI’s).  And moderate wine drinkers tend to have narrower waists and less abdominal fat than people who drink hard liquor. (Higher BMI is associated with greater risk for disease).

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The immune system appears to dislike grief. -New York Times

Courtesy of LA Times

Modern evangelist Marianne Williamson was one of the presenters at  LA Times Magazine’s “Conversations on Health & Wellness” at Terranea Resort. The conference was a nice break from my mind, which has been mired in thoughts about mom’s cancer. I was glad to see that Marianne was one of the speakers, since her book, A Return to Love, influenced our coming back together. Whether you’re well or ill, her remarks are worth a listen:

I ran across this article by Martha Beck (O Magazine, June ‘09) while waiting in the hospital with my mom.

It’s by far the most helpful, accurate article on losing weight I’ve read in 5 years as a trainer.

I’ve personally seen clients do these things, so I know they work.

p.s.  Beck also has a book: The Four Day Win, which I’m ordering from Flashlight Worthy asap.

A new HIV vaccine is safe and 31% effective in the more than 16,000 participants in the phase 3 trial, according to the U.S. Army Surgeon General.

September is ovarian cancer month. In this video, actress Kathy Bates discuss her experience with ovarian cancer.

In researching my mom’s cancer, I’m constantly surprised by the number of alternative treatment methodologies. I’m not talking about a nutraceutical approach. Researchers are now openly asking if our quest for a cure actually makes the cancer stronger and more resistant.

Cancer treatment deserves some new lifeblood. From my perspective as a trainer, there’s been precious little (if any) support to my mom about proper nutrition, managing side effects, and the importance of light exercise, even in an immuno-compromised state. And she is receiving the best care in the state where she lives. (Thank God she has health insurance; her brother was not so lucky).

I wonder: what if cancer were managed more like a chronic illness? Maybe our loved ones would have longer lives with fewer bad side effects? Instead of killing cancer cells through chemotherapy, what if we re-educated the body’s own immune system to attack cancer cells? I think Bronson and I ought to buy some stock in this company.

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