Dr. Ann

I consider beans to be the most underutilized superfood.  Here are 7 compelling reasons to include them in your diet every day. Beans have megawatt nutritional power.  They provide a hefty dose of vegetable protein, more fiber and folate than any other food group, a load of potent antioxidant flavonoids, and key minerals including iron, […]

Here are some quick highlights from a number of cool, new studies on the weight loss front: High intensity aerobic exercise is effective for reshaping body contour. (Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, Oct 08).  If you want to “spot” reduce your waistline, high intensity workouts appear to do the trick.  Spinning has definitely […]

Eating high glycemic carbs like white bread, white potatoes, and sweets (“The Great White Hazards” in my lingo), that send blood glucose soaring, appear to disrupt the function of the all-important cells lining our arteries known as endothelial cells.  Endothelial cells, when functioning properly, work like a Teflon coating in our arteries and maintain a […]

One of the most precious gifts the human body can receive is the gift of physical activity – and a totally uplifting new report found that when it comes to boosting your mood, exercise gives for much longer than previously thought.  Compelling and consistent research has documented that moderate intensity aerobic exercise (like a brisk […]

Given our toxic food culture, cultivating self-discipline on the eating front is an invaluable practice. According to an intriguing new study, keeping “some” high-risk, tempting foods in your midst is an effective means to build will power.  Investigators found that study subjects who had been previously tempted by forbidden foods exercised more self-restraint when offered […]

Cancer of the pancreas remains one of the most deadly of all malignancies and a new study provides the most powerful evidence yet, linking grilled or charred red meat with this ominous disease.  After closely following the deaths of 62,000 healthy adults over a nine year period, investigators reported that those with the highest intakes […]

A while back I reported on a clinical trial that found taking supplemental doses of vitamin C unexpectedly blunted some of the beneficial physiological changes that occur in the body as a result of physical activity.  According to a new report in the May 11th edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, […]

A landmark, new report confirms something I have strongly suspected for some time, and should have profound implications for our approach to combating the crushing burden the obesity epidemic continues to place on our society.  Reporting at the European Congress on Obesity (Amsterdam, May 09), scientists determined that the meteoric uptick in our obesity rates […]

When it comes to palatal pleasure and health-boosting performance nuts score a perfect 10, and an exciting new laboratory study provides yet another reason for women to be nuts over nuts.  Scientists reporting at the American Association for Cancer Research, (Denver, Apr 09) found that mice engineered to develop breast cancer who were fed the […]

Did you know that some of the very same pigments (phytochemicals) that give plant foods their deep, rich color can provide “built-in” SPF for your skin? It’s deliciously true and as the summer rapidly approaches, I wanted you to be aware of this little recognized fact.  The very same phytochemicals that are responsible for launching […]

Adding salt to prepared food is a learned behavior primarily triggered by seeing and having ready access to a salt shaker. As a simple strategy to reduce your sodium intake, rid your house completely of salt shakers.  If it’s not there, it is not an option. We are currently consuming 50 percent more salt than […]

As our scientific understanding of the fundamental importance of vitamin D for broad-spectrum health protection has dramatically risen over the past two decades, unfortunately our blood levels have gone in the opposite direction.  Researchers reported in the March issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine that 3 of every 4 Americans have insufficient blood levels […]