A New Patient Gets a New Perspective

A few months ago I saw a new patient and she had a good deal in common with many other new patients I see. Even though she knew that her excess weight was doing her no good, and that it raised her risk of many chronic diseases, like breast cancer, for example, and diabetes and high blood pressure and colon cancer, she was unable to do anything about it. She was also really tired of doctors telling her that she should lose weight. Really, really tired. “Tell me something I don’t know,” she said to me. So I did. Continue reading


Salads To Go

Today we are making a trip to visit our family on the East Coast, a trip we’ve made so many times over the decades. But this time it’s for such an extra-special wonderfully-wonderful reason. By the time you read this we’ll be getting dressed for our niece’s wedding! In point of fact the festivities will have begun on Friday night, and that’s why we headed out on on Friday morning.

I used to go over to the Wellness store at work and buy a bunch of snacks for the road. But I didn’t have time yesterday, and anyway those snacks are starting to get a little less inspiring to me than they used to be. I was going to say they’re getting a little stale, but not in the “sell by” sort of way. So i thought I’d try something new — I packed up two salads in Ball jars early this morning, and when we get hungry we’ll empty them out into a couple of bowls, stir, and dig in! Continue reading


Back to the Basics

Lately I’ve been feeling a desire to return to talking about the basics. The question of how I personally began thinking about wellness, prevention and nutrition is as basic a place to start as any. And while it is very true that my own parents’ commitment to nourishing food, their common sense approach to life, and the fact that they lived their values for almost 45 years on their farm in the New Jersey’s Watchung Mountains set a sure foundation for my interest in fresh food and good health, today’s post is the story of how I made these passions my own. Continue reading


Small Steps

Some time ago, Gene the computer guy showed up at my office for the first time in a while. Right away, I knew something had changed. I said, “Gene, how are you? You’re looking very well!” He responded with an uncharacteristic grin, and answered by telling me one thing all of us know, but few believe (despite numerous confirmatory personal experiences!). I sat up fast when he said, “Diets don’t work.” Continue reading


Whole, Intact Carbohydrates

I’ve been thinking about the fact that carbohydrate virtually never grows in nature without the fiber attached. Think about meadows, gardens, and orchards — all the vegetables, beans, fruit, and grains that grow in these places grow with their fiber matrix intact.

Why is flour that’s been stripped of its fiber and germ called “refined?” What’s refined about flour? If you look up “refined” in the dictionary you discover that to refine is to remove the course impurities. And that got me thinking.

Why would anyone want to imply that the oil-rich germ and fiber-rich bran are coarse impurities? Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Parsley Pesto

I am a diehard waste-not-want-not kind of girl from way back. In the past, I tended to make a lot of surprises from whatever was left in the kitchen, and they could either be great or they could turn out as what my kids used to call “refrigerator soup.”

But every once in a while, I hit the jackpot.  Continue reading


Korean Barbecue Love

Korean Barbecue Love
from Joe Gardewin

Over the past months, as you probably know, our family has been the recipient of an extraordinary amount of generosity and support of all kinds. Today, I am sharing the gift of a post from a friend, Joe, sent to me two weeks ago in hopes that it might lighten my load. It has achieved its intended purpose and for that, and more, I am very grateful. Thank you very, very much, Joe, for your kindness. Continue reading


YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Buddha Bowl

Here’s a really delicious, really simple, really elegant way to be kind to yourself when you’ve had a long day and there are little bits of this and that in the fridge. Seems like there are a lot of days like this lately — which makes it extra important to find easy ways to nourish yourself. The important things to remember here are, first, that you can make this a hundred times and you will never get tired of it because it will never be the same twice, and, second, that steps 5 and 6 are as important as the earlier steps for satisfying both your brain and your appetite. Continue reading


Chemo no. 6

I’ve tried to write this post a thousand different ways, but I’ve deleted every version. Nothing feels adequate to say what I want to say, which is, in part, to recognize the extraordinary strength and bravery of my daughter in law, the resilience and kindness of my son, the endless meals and rides and infinite generosity of family, friends, and neighbors. Recently my son told me that they had just received a special meal from people they don’t know at all, friends of friends who had heard their story (#cancerandababy) and wanted to help. Continue reading


Grand Celebration

Our brand new grandson was born into our family this past week, after which my son-in-law named it “Birthday Week,” not only for the fact of his own birthday and that of his newborn son, but also because we celebrated the first birthday of the infant’s newly promoted big sister! Birthday week!! In celebration of this newly expanded family, the week basically consisted of one wonderful meal after the next, all of which reminded me of a post that I wrote once upon a time about the meals at my parents’ small farm in the Watchung Mountains of New Jersey. The years have passed, and my own parents are gone now, but all our beautiful babies have been named in memory of my mother and father, and that has been a gift of its own. Continue reading