Here's another reason it's so hard to eat well. While people are more driven to avoid pain than they are driven to pursue pleasure, the pain of bad health is not immediately visible. So the pleasure of a eating a piece of cake is stronger than the idea of the…
In an episode of the TED Radio Hour, "The Food We Eat," I learned more about why watching our sugar intake is so important. One of the speakers was Robert Lustig, a professor at the University of California at San Francisco. When you consume fruit, such as an orange, you…
I've changed the way I eat in small, but important, ways once again this year. The changes began with my goal of eating more unprocessed whole grains. At first, I moved from cereal made from processed whole wheat (Grape Nuts, made from whole grain wheat flour) to granola, made from…
A piece I read last year in the New York Times on healthy eating greatly appealed to me. First, I like its title, "Simple Rules for Healthy Eating." It's pretty obvious: I like simple rules. I wrote a book called, "Six Simple Rules for a Better Life" and you are…
As we enter the holiday season, it's a good time to talk about healthy eating. About a year ago, I read a terrific letter to the editor that led me to the Web site of the American Heart Association (AHA). In the letter, which appeared in the Record, a newspaper…
I was at a wellness lecture recently on the subject of diabetes. There are 24 million people in the U.S. with the type of diabetes linked to lifestyle. Overweight and inactivity are known as lifestyle factors because they can be impacted by the choices you make—your lifestyle choices, such as…
According to a report I read in the New York Times, the share of Americans who say they would like to lose weight has fallen recently. “The focus has now been on the health aspect, not the cosmetic aspect,” according to a professor of nutrition interviewed for the article. This…
I recently watched a TED talk about a remarkable study. It’s the longest known study on happiness, tracking more than 700 men over 75 years. The conclusion: happier, healthier, and longer lives was highly correlated with having quality relationships. Some of my takeaways: The number of friends is less important…
Last year, as part of our corporate wellness program, we bought Fitbits for everyone (for anyone who wanted one, the cost was a $5 donation to charity.) I wrote about it in September in my monthly newsletter and received some great feedback, so I want to share it here as…
This is a guest post by Jennifer Shriver Most of us feel we could be healthier eaters, whether it’s prompted by summer coming, holidays ending, or just wanting to better ourselves. The biggest problem a lot of us face is we do it all at once instead of easing into…
More than ever, restaurants are accommodating regarding the dietary needs of their patrons. Gluten-free, dairy-free, vegan, and other options appear on many menus. To paraphrase an old Burger King commercial, the theme at most restaurants these days has become, "Special orders don't upset us." Long before these options began to…
Making time for exercise is a big challenge for many people. Whether it's about exercise or anything else, time management is about making time for your priorities. As I've written before, if someone says they don't have time to exercise, I like to challenge them by explaining it's not that…