If the winter blues are dragging down your spirit and making hibernation an easy option, get your energy back with Andrea Metcalf’s five tips to lift your mood and vitality.

 
Eat a Snack in the Afternoon
Between the hours of 2 and 4 p.m., your energy levels naturally drop due to the rise and fall of the sun and your hormonal response. These circadian rhythms can make you feel tired and hungry. To keep your diet on track and boost your energy, try a snack with protein and carbohydrates, such as an apple with peanut butter or a small yogurt. You’ll find a light snack with less than 200 calories will make a big difference in how you perform and feel throughout the rest of the day.

Take 10 Deep Breaths
By focusing on your breath and visualizing yourself on a beach with a light breeze off the ocean, you will notice a visible increase in energy as you help your body’s cortisol levels drop. In as little as two minutes, you will feel refreshed and relaxed. Other positive health benefits: a decrease in heart rate and lower blood pressure.

Take a Brisk Walk
Walking is a great form of exercise and produces endorphins, which will give you a natural boost. It doesn’t have to be a long walk—just 10 minutes can change your day and attitude!

Tuck and Roll
You probably will want to save this one for your living room floor, as office co-workers may stop and stare. Lie down on the floor, bringing your knees to your chest. Now, gently roll back to shoulder blades and tuck chin to your chest as you roll upward. By gently rolling on your back, you will help increase blood flow to the muscles around your spine and to your internal organs. It’s like a somersault when you were a child, so you might even have some fun.

Take a Nap
A 10- to 20-minute catnap, according to experts, can boost your energy. If you are not sleeping at least six hours per night, you may be sleep deprived, which means hormonal havoc for leptin, gherlin and your cortisol levels. These hormonal imbalances result in sluggish behavior, craving sweets and low energy. Just make sure you set the alarm so you don’t sleep more than 10 to 20 minutes. Experts agree that longer doses of napping can have the opposite effect.

GET AT LEAST SEVEN HOURS OF SLEEP
That’s per night, not week. And men—the needier breed—require eight. Getting by on less can cause metabolic changes that increase your risk for obesity and diabetes. And one recent study from the University of Chicago found that the fewer hours of sleep adults get each night, the more likely they are to have calcium deposits in their arteries.
KNOW YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE
What’s the fastest way to age an artery? Subject it to high blood pressure, which will harden it like a garden hose that’s been left out in the sun. A range of 120/80 to 130/85 mmHg is considered below the hypertension point, but it’s not ideal. In fact, reducing your blood pressure from 130/85 to 115/76 can make your body up to ten years younger. There’s no data to show that using drugs to lower blood pressure offers the full youth effect. So for now, you guessed it: Exercise, lose weight, reduce stress. The good news is, the benefits from physical activity are just about instantaneous.
AVOID SECOND HAND SMOKE
Don’t let people puff away in your space. An hour of passive smoke can cause the same amount of aging as having two to four cigarettes.
WALK 30 MINUTES EVERY DAY
A Harvard study suggests that for every hour you exercise during your life, your longevity increases by two hours. It’s important to get your heart pumping every day—moving regularly is the key to exercise’s anti-aging effect.
EAT FISH THREE TIMES A WEEK
It may not be just the omega-3s in the oil that keep the heart and arteries humming along; a number of animal studies have also indicated that a protein in fish provides a separate boost to cardiovascular health. Eat a variety of low-mercury fish (such as wild salmon, catfish, or tilapia). And if you’re not nuts about seafood, an ounce of walnuts a day will give you a good dose of omega-3s.
TAKE HALF AN ASPIRIN DAILY
Yes, those big studies came out a few years ago saying low-dose aspirin does pretty much zilch to prevent heart attacks and cancer in women, but the evidence is strong for aspirin’s reducing the risk of stroke. If you’re over 40, I recommend half a 325 milligram tablet (or two baby aspirin), with half a glass of warm water both before and after you swallow so that you’re less likely to irritate your stomach.
LIVE WITHIN YOUR MEANS
Feeling out of control financially can affect not only your sleep (see number one) but also your arterial health due to chronic stress. And a bankruptcy can put miles on your body’s odometer.
FLOSS AND BRUSH
Any chronic infection (including gingivitis) stimulates your body to protect against bleeding with an increase in clotting—a recipe for heart attack.

Dr. Mehmet Oz, shares his most effective tips for keeping your heart healthy.

WHEN RADICALS ATTACK
Before we can get to the “anti,” let’s explain the “oxidant” part. Unless you’re a monk living in the Himalayas, eating pure food, breathing pristine air, and thinking Zen thoughts 24/7, you’re constantly being bombarded by negative elements — from pollution to chemicals to UV rays — that damage your cells. Even your own body produces stress hormones and toxic chemical reactions. These toxins weaken the molecules in your cells, causing them to lose an electron — a unit in the cell that carries electrical charges and allows your cells to work together. These electron-deprived molecules, called free radicals, or oxidants, try to make up for their inadequacy by stealing electrons from other molecules; this damages, or oxidizes, those cells and turns them into electron-swiping free radicals too. Call it the invasion of the electron snatchers.

Once a free radical is created, the damage spreads fast. Free radicals in your blood vessels — usually caused by things like deep-fried foods, cigarette smoke, or air pollution — change the structure of the (bad) LDL cholesterol so it becomes more liable to gum up your arteries and cause heart problems. Sunlight and air pollution can create free radicals in your eyes, where they damage retinal or corneal cells, leading to cataracts and blindness, and in skin cells, where they damage cell DNA, raising the risk of skin cancer and accelerating wrinkle formation. And that’s just for starters: “Free radicals can damage any cells that get in their way,” says Jeffrey Blumberg, Ph.D., professor of nutrition and director of the antioxidant lab at Tufts University in Boston.

STOP THEM IN THEIR TRACKS
Thankfully, there’s a nutrient police force that can deal with these delinquents. As their name implies, antioxidants stop the oxidative damage by replacing a molecule’s kidnapped electron without damaging other molecules; this disarms free radicals and turns them back into law-abiding members of cellular society.
Antioxidants do more than rescue cells in distress. Like special ops agents, they’re designed to take on specific enemies: Isothiocyanates, found in broccoli, home in on pollutants like nicotine and smog and help prevent them from causing cancer. Vitamin C blocks the uncontrolled cell division that leads to tumors. Selenium fires up the genes needed to break down carcinogens. Antioxidants are like a million microscopic Jack Bauers on a mission to save your bod from the inside out.

THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN
The same evolutionary process that transformed us from hairy hunchbacks with underbites to smooth-skinned consumers of whitening toothpaste also gave us the ability to fight free radicals on our own. Our bodies make a variety of antioxidants but no matter how much overtime they put in, internally produced antioxidants can’t battle all the free radicals flying around — especially in today’s world of mercury-filled fish and Hummer fumes. So we turn to our food supply. “Our bodies evolved to take advantage of protective substances found in the foods available to us,” Blumberg says.

Selenium: This overachiever isn’t annoying like the teacher’s pet back in high school. The trace mineral does double duty — it acts as an antioxidant itself and speeds up your body’s natural antioxidant-making process. In a study at Cornell University and the University of Arizona of 1,312 patients with skin cancer, those who got 200 micrograms of selenium daily for 10 years reduced their risk of dying from any cancer — not just skin cancer — by 18 percent, compared with those who took a placebo. Shoot for: the DV of 55 micrograms
Best food sources: Brazil nuts (95.8 mcg per nut), snapper (41.6 mcg per 3 ounces), and shrimp (33.7 mcg per 3 ounces)

Vitamin E: The health-conscious side of us appreciates that this antioxidant fights heart disease, boosts immunity, and helps stop cell damage that leads to skin cancer. But let’s face it: We love that this vitamin also keeps the ravages of time from showing up on our face. In a Korean study, mice exposed to ultraviolet sunlight were less likely to wrinkle when they consumed vitamin E (along with a host of other antioxidants). Shoot for: the DV of 15 milligrams
Best food sources: Sunflower seeds (10.3 mg per ounce), hazelnuts (4.3 mg per ounce), and peanut butter (2.9 mg per 2 tablespoons)

Vitamin C: It’s not just for colds anymore. Now it protects your DNA and helps your body use vitamin E more efficiently. Research has shown that C has a talent for protecting blood vessels and reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke. In a six-year study of 5,197 people at the Erasmus Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, those who consumed the highest amounts of vitamin C had the lowest risk of stroke.
Shoot for: at least the DV of 75 milligrams
Best food sources: Papaya (187.9 mg per fruit), bell peppers (119 mg per cup), and broccoli (81.2 mg per cup)

Carotenoids: This pigment helps protect your eyes and skin from sun damage. In a study of 5,836 people in the Netherlands, consumption of beta-carotene — one of many carotenoids — was found to reduce the risk of macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness.
Shoot for: Scientists have no standard goal for carotenoids other than the DV of 2,310 international units (IU) for vitamin A (a form of beta-carotene).
Best food sources: Carrots, butternut squash, and spinach

Isothiocyanates: These antioxidants put cancer-causing enzymes in a headlock. In a study of more than 1,400 people at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, researchers found that people who ate more isothiocyanate-rich foods reduced their risk of bladder cancer by 29 percent.
Shoot for: Scientists have no standard goal for isothiocyanates.
Best food sources: Broccoli, brussels sprouts, and cauliflower

Polyphenols: Raise a glass of pinot noir to polyphenols — they’ve turned our favorite vice into a virtue. Researchers at Columbia University studied 980 people and found that those who drank up to three glasses per day of wine — rich in flavonoids, a polyphenol — were less likely to develop memory-loss problems such as dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. In a test-tube study at the Leeds Dental Institute in the UK, the polyphenols in cocoa reduced the growth of two types of bacteria that can trigger gum disease. Shoot for: Scientists have no standard goal for polyphenols.
Best food sources: Dark chocolate (the higher the cocoa content, the better), red wine, tea, and coffee

Coenzyme Q10: Its nickname sounds like R2D2’s cousin — and CoQ10 is a cell-protecting machine. It’s also been linked with the prevention of migraines, which it may accomplish by guarding brain cells. In a study of 42 migraine patients in Zurich, those who took CoQ10 had half as many headaches over three months as those who took a dummy pill. The enzyme may also help lower blood pressure.
Shoot for: Scientists have no standard for CoQ10.
Best food sources: Lean beef, chicken breast, and fish (all types).

Woman’s Health

This year, let’s make a pact. No more false promises, no more extreme measures, and no more white flags raised. Here are nine key numbers you can easily tweak to make a huge difference in your overall health.

Blood Pressure: 115/75
Hypertension is a cunning thief; left unchallenged, it can steal a decade of quality life. The average American’s blood pressure in middle age is about 130/80, but since the average American dies of heart disease, that number isn’t good enough. Instead, aim for 115/75. Measure your blood pressure monthly at the same time of day with a home monitor or one at a local drugstore.
To lower blood pressure: Exercise hard enough to sweat for at least an hour each week. If you’re used to 30-minute workouts, this means you’ll need to do three, since it takes at least 10 minutes to start sweating.

Resting Heart Rate: 83
Before you get out of bed to commune with the coffeemaker, take your pulse: Put two fingertips on your wrist or carotid artery (in your neck under your jaw) and count the beats per minute. This is your resting heart rate. Anything higher than 83 means you’re at increased risk for a heart attack.
To slow your resting heart rate: The key, ironically, is to make your heart beat faster for an hour per week (to calculate your ideal number of beats per minute while exercising, subtract your age from 220, then multiply the result by 0.8). So, just as you’ll be doing for healthy blood pressure, simply work up a good sweat.

Cholesterol: 2 to 1
When it comes to cholesterol, the total level isn’t as predictive of heart disease as what’s known as the ratio. To explain, cholesterol is carried in the blood by two different lipoproteins: The bad one, LDL (think L for lousy), spews the waxy, fat-like substance in your arteries, gunking them up; the good one, HDL (H for healthy), gathers up cholesterol so it can’t clog. If you have some risk for heart disease (family history, high blood pressure, diabetes, smoking), keep your LDL under 100. Otherwise you’re okay aiming for under 160; better yet, below 130. Ideally, your HDL should be more than 50. Doctors love it when the ratio of LDL to HDL is less than 2 to 1; they’re tolerant if it’s 3 to 1.
To improve your ratio: Include soluble fiber in your diet from sources such as oatmeal, kidney beans, and apples, aiming for 25 grams a day. To spice things up, try a whole grain called quinoa. It contains a nearly perfect balance of proteins, as well as the mineral manganese—low levels of which are associated with hypertension.

Omega-6s to Omega-3s: 4 to 1
Omega-6s and omega-3s are called essential fatty acids for a reason: Their work includes building cell membranes and nerve insulation. But since the body doesn’t produce these fats, you must get them from your diet—and the balance makes all the difference. American drive-through cuisine includes huge amounts of omega-6s (irritating in high levels), yet hardly any omega-3s (particularly beneficial for the heart). Although the optimum ratio is 4 to 1, ours is often 20 to 1, which puts us at increased risk for cardiovascular disease, arthritis, asthma, and some cancers.
To right the omega balance: Eat more fish, seafood, whole grains, beans, nuts, and ground flaxseeds to increase omega-3s. And cut back on processed foods—along with oils made from corn, safflower, cottonseed, and peanuts—to ease off the omega-6s.

Inflammation: 1
If you’ve ever seen an apple slice turn brown 20 minutes after being cut, you can picture what inflammation does to your body: It causes the rusting of tissue. You can gauge your level of inflammation with a blood test that measures C-reactive protein (CRP), which is produced by the liver and is part of the body’s battle response. A healthy level is under 1—meaning you’ve got less than half the chance of heart disease than if your level is greater than 3. A number above 10 suggests you may have another ailment (such as an autoimmune disease) that should be diagnosed.
To reduce CRP: Try to eliminate low-grade irritants like gingivitis (floss daily) and vaginitis (see a doctor, especially if it recurs). Also move toward a Mediterranean-style diet (lots of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains; fat from olive oil; moderate amounts of wine).

Vitamin D: 30
When you’re deficient in vitamin D, you may be at increased risk for heart disease, cancer, multiple sclerosis, and immune disorders, not to mention osteoporosis. To make sure you’re getting enough, take a blood test for vitamin D: Your level should be greater than 30.
To boost vitamin D: If you can’t get 15 minutes of sun exposure daily, take a supplement containing at least 1,000 IU of D3, the most potent form of the vitamin, or chug a tablespoon of cod liver oil every morning.

Waist Size: 32.5
Ideally, your waist should measure less than half your height (do it at the belly button—go ahead and suck in). That means if you’re 5′5″, yours would be less than 32.5 inches. The reason: The omental fat beneath your stomach muscles causes inflammation, which drives many of your body’s other critical numbers in the wrong direction.
To lose inches at your waist: Focus on slicing off 100 calories a day. Since salad dressings sabotage many a good intention, one idea is to make this nutty recipe part of your routine:

1. Mix 1 tablespoon each of walnut (or hazelnut) oil, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar; add salt and pepper to taste.
2. Chop 1 small tomato, 1/4 cup diced onions, and 6 sliced mushrooms.
3. Pour the combo over 1 head of Boston lettuce.
Makes 2 servings, about 150 calories each.

Blood Sugar: 125
The other danger of omental fat is that it can block insulin’s ability to work, which increases blood sugar and puts you at risk for diabetes. Your blood sugar should be less than 100 after an overnight or eight-hour fast and less than 125 if you aren’t fasting.
To lower blood sugar: Try chia seeds, which contain omega-3s and fiber (sprinkle them on yogurt or salads). It’s believed that they form a gelatinous substance in the stomach that helps slow the speed at which sugar is absorbed.

Bone Density: -1
It’s a good idea for all postmenopausal women to get a bone density scan, especially those who are not on hormone replacement therapy, stand taller than 5′7″, or weigh less than 125 pounds. You should also be tested at around age 50 if your mother has had osteoporosis or either of you has had a hip fracture, if you take steroids, or if you drink excessively or smoke. The standard DEXA (dual energy X-ray absorptiometry) scan provides a T score—your bone density compared with that of a healthy young woman: Above -1 is normal; between -1 and -2.5 indicates osteopenia, which may lead to osteoporosis; below -2.5 means you have osteoporosis.
To strengthen your bones: Along with 1,000 IU of vitamin D, take 1,200 milligrams of calcium and 400 milligrams of magnesium (to prevent the constipation that calcium can cause)—half in the morning, half in the evening. Also, start a program of resistance training (using gym equipment, dumbbells, or exercises like pushups and squats) for at least 30 minutes a week.

Dr. Oz

The unfortunate truth is that most diets do not succeed, and it’s easy to blame that fact on a lack of willpower. But restricting food intake runs counter to the body’s natural urges. Our ancestors needed extra calories to survive times of extreme stress (say, a famine), and today, when our stress hormones spike—whether due to job frustration or a fight with our spouse—it’s as if we’re stranded on the tundra of the last ice age.

The good news is that you can outwit your evolutionary biology by implementing these five rules of successful “waist loss” that I developed with Michael Roizen, MD, for our book YOU: On a Diet .

Rule #1: Spoil Your Dinner

Remember the plant from Little Shop of Horrors, with its demands to “Feed me”? The hormone ghrelin is your body’s version of Audrey II, only it gets your attention with stomach growls instead of musical numbers. Once you’ve started eating, it takes about 30 minutes for ghrelin levels to fall and that “full” feeling to kick in. But if you eat a 100-calorie snack (like a handful of nuts) about a half hour before mealtime, your ghrelin levels will already be subsiding by the time you pick up your fork.

Rule #2: Nix Soft Drinks with Meals

Leptin is a hormone that signals the brain that you can stop eating once your body has stored enough energy from food. Yet fructose (a sugar found in soft drinks) interrupts the feedback loop, preventing your brain from getting the message. Quench your thirst with water instead.

Rule #3: Fill Up on Fiber

The ileum is a part of the small bowel that can squeeze, or “brake,” to slow the transit of food through the intestines. When that happens, you get a slow but steady supply of fuel, which keeps you feeling satiated. A high-fiber breakfast triggers this mechanism, because the bowel needs more time to absorb nutrients from fiber. The result: No more 11 a.m. stops at the vending machine.

Rule #4: Eat with Awareness

That means eating at the table, not sprawled across the couch. It also means no zoning out in front of American Idol , checking your BlackBerry, or surfing the Web during meals. Not only will mindful eating increase the satisfaction you get from food but the extra time will allow your ghrelin levels to drop even further as you eat.

Rule #5: Build More Muscle

You may have heard that muscle burns more calories than fat, but did you know that it burns a dozen times more? Aim to walk 10,000 steps a day, and begin a muscle-strengthening program, which will help steel your skeleton as well. Trainer Joel Harper has an excellent 20-minute exercise routine.

Still steamed at your dad for tossing your tadpole down the toilet when you were 10? Miffed at your best friend for spilling the beans?

Whatever’s got you feeling slighted, it might be time to forgive, if not forget. You see, holding onto resentment may cause more than relationship tension. Your heart health suffers, too.

Some injustices are hard to let go of. You’ll have to be the judge of which ones you’re able to move past and which ones you just can’t. But keep in mind that not letting go may do extra damage.

For example, college students’ blood pressures rose when they described a time that a parent or friend deeply hurt or betrayed them. And for the students who were unable to forgive, it took longer for their blood pressures to return to normal.

When your cardiovascular system has trouble stabilizing after stress, be it physical or emotional, that’s bad news for your heart. It could mean high blood pressure or heart disease — or a trip to one of our hospitals’ catheterization laboratories — is in your future.

 No need to make us busier. (We need all the time we can get to write these columns!)So, what to do to keep our free time free (if you don’t care for yourself, at least care for our free time!)?

· First, do whatever it takes for you to stress less.
· Second, get fit. Fit people’s heart rates return to normal more quickly.
· Third, forgive someone. Not only is it good for the heart, people who let go of a grudge may experience less pain, anger, anxiety, and depression than people who are unable to forgive.
·
Forgiving does not mean condoning actions or situations that have caused you distress or pain. It just means resolving your feelings and not letting upsetting experiences affect your emotional and physical health.

Dr. Oz

TAKE MORE RESTROOM BREAKS

There’s a reason it’s called the restroom: It’s the one place—at work or at home—where no one will bother you. If you’re overwhelmed, steal away for a five-minute meditation break. Inhale deeply into your belly and try to focus on your breathing. You’ll emerge calmer, and maybe even more productive. Research shows that meditation can improve your ability to concentrate.

SHOW UP FIVE MINUTES EARLY

Everyone knows the feeling: You’re running late, stuck in traffic, glancing at your watch every 30 seconds in frustration. Give yourself extra time to get wherever you need to go. Being an early bird will kill stress by giving you more control over your day and your commitments.

CHANGE YOUR STRESS EATING

The best stress-quashing foods are made by Mother Nature, not Baskin-Robbins. Berries are naturally rich in vitamin C, which helps fight increased levels of cortisol, a stress hormone. A handful of pistachios can lower your blood pressure, which means less of a spike when you get that next rush of adrenaline.

AND QUIT STRESS DRINKING

Yes, a few cocktails can relax you, but alcohol also prevents your brain from entering stages of deep sleep. And sleep and stress are bound together: Chronic stress can keep you up at night, and a lack of sleep can also lead to further stress. Limit yourself to no more than one drink a night.

 GET YOUR HEART PUMPING

Stress makes your body spew out two hormones: cortisol and adrenaline. These chemicals put your body into fight-or-flight mode, ratcheting up your energy level and causing your heart to pound and your muscles to tense. Exercise gives you an outlet to release some of that tension. A good workout also increases your levels of “feel-good” chemicals called endorphins.

MAKE IT A COMEDY NIGHT

Researchers say that merely anticipating a laugh can jump-start healthy changes in the body by reducing levels of stress hormones, which have been linked to conditions like obesity, heart disease, and memory impairment, to name just a few.

ENJOY THE COMPANY OF FRIENDS

Socializing releases oxytocin, a chemical that can help combat stress hormones and lower your blood pressure. Whether it’s spending time with dog lovers, book club buddies, or siblings—whatever group you like—just knowing you’re not alone can go a long way toward coping with stress.

Dr. Oz

EAT MORE FRESH VEGETABLES

They’re rich in vitamins and nutrients (like E, B6, and folic acid) that protect against brain cell damage. But don’t forget that as soon as you pick a tomato off the vine or pull a carrot out of the ground, its nutrient content starts to decline. So the longer it sits on store shelves (or inside your refrigerator), the less good it’s doing you. Buy the freshest produce you can, or freeze it at the height of freshness for later use.

PLAY MIND GAMES

This is the best way to slow the mental decline that can come with aging. Take up a musical instrument. Try to recall the addresses of the last four places you lived. Renew your local library card—and use it.

SIGN UP FOR DANCE LESSONS

Exercise boosts the brain’s rate of neurogenesis—the generation of new brain cells—throughout your life. To really sharpen your gray matter, pick a workout that stimulates you both mentally and physically. One great example is dance. Moving the body in a coordinated fashion and following along with complex movements in sync with music requires lots of brainpower. Dancing also works your heart, so you’re pumping more blood upstairs.

WEAR A HELMET

Since the brain has the consistency of a hard-boiled egg, bruising it even mildly can have a significant impact on memory.

CHOOSE RED OVER WHITE WINE

Red wine contains a compound called resveratrol, which recent research shows may help prevent the buildup of plaque. Brain plaques are often seen in Alzheimer’s patients, and they cause a breakdown in the communication between neurons.

Dr. Oz

When it comes to eating healthy and losing weight, we’ve been focusing on the wrong set of numbers, says nutritionist Keri Glassman, R.D. This month, Glassman launches a revolutionary way of eating in her new book, The O2 Diet, which is based on the foods that have the highest antioxidant activity levels. This plan will make it super-simple for you to shed pounds, look fabulous, boost your energy, and amp up your brainpower.

 Glassman’s plan is based on the ORAC scale—a scientific value that represents the antioxidant levels of foods. (ORAC stands for oxygen radical absorbance capacity.) Using this scale, she has devised a diet that gets you 30,000 ORAC points a day—10 times the current recommended level of 3,000. It’s those mega ORAC points that scoop up free radicals, the damaging rogue elements in our bodies that contribute to everything from wrinkles and brain fog to cancer and heart disease.

 And you can say good-bye to calorie counting: By focusing on high ORAC scores, you’ll chow down on foods that are healthy and have the right proportion of nutrients, so the extra weight will come off more easily.

 In her book, Glassman explains how certain high-ORAC fruits and vegetables have specific powers. Load up on these antioxidant superstars every time you hit the grocery store—they’ll help you bring out your healthy best in these five ways.

Lose Weight Without Trying

Artichokes

At only 60 calories each, they’re a calorie bargain. Artichokes are also super-high on the ORAC scale—7,900 points— and they contain phytochemicals that may lower cholesterol levels.

Lemon water

Lemon peel contains pectin, a soluble fiber that has been shown to help with weight loss. Add an ounce of lemon juice and some zest to each of your eight daily glasses of water (which will help you feel fuller), and you’ll add 3,200 ORAC points.

Red grapefruit

One study found that people who ate half a grapefruit with each meal lost 3.6 pounds over 12 weeks, while those who drank grapefruit juice three times a day lost 3.3 pounds. The red variety has more of the cancer-protecting antioxidant lycopene. Half a grape-fruit has 1,900 ORAC points.

Make Your Skin Glow

Figs

 While no food can turn back the clock, some can perk up your looks and slow the aging process.
Eating a handful of dried figs increases the amount of antioxidants in your blood for four hours, much longer than many other foods. Two small figs have about 2,700 ORAC points.

Red bell peppers

The unique combination of large amounts of vitamins A, C, and E make red bell peppers a skin superfood. Half a cup adds 600 ORAC points.

Watermelon

This lycopene-rich fruit provides 33 percent more protection against sunburn than other fruits. (You still have to wear sunscreen though!) One cup of this diced melon has 200 ORAC points.

Bolster Your Body

Beans

Certain antioxidants have been shown to fight cancer, boost immunity, and keep bones strong.

Beans are loaded with phytochemicals (including saponins, protease inhibitors, and phytic acid), which may protect cells from damage that potentially causes cancer, reports the American Institute for Cancer Research. Half a cup has 7,800 ORAC points.

Prunes

These wrinkly little dried fruits are rich in vitamin K and a top source of the mineral boron, and we need both for strong bones. A three-prune serving gives you 1,900 ORAC points.

Ward Off Heart Disease

Cherries

Young women tend to be oblivious to heart disease, but that attitude itself is a big risk. How you eat today helps predict how healthy your heart will be 30 years from now.
Researchers at the University of Michigan have found that the anthocyanins in dark cherries reduce belly fat and lower cholesterol and blood sugar; one serving packs 3,500 ORAC points.

Dark chocolate

Rich in flavonoids, chocolate is believed to promote heart health by reducing platelet activation, affecting the relaxation capabilities of blood vessels. One ounce of dark chocolate has 5,900 ORAC points.

Boost Your Brainpower

Blueberries

The neural pathways in our brains are growing and improving all the time. Eat the right foods and you’ll be able to concentrate better, remember more, and feel calmer.
Blueberries may improve memory, cognition, and balance. Researchers believe that blueberries (9,700 ORAC points per one-cup serving) reduce inflammation and can help us overcome the normal effects of brain aging.

Cinnamon

Researchers believe that cinnamon may inhibit certain Alzheimer’s disease cells. One teaspoon of cinnamon adds 7,000 ORAC points.

Plums

These juicy treats decrease anxiety-related behaviors, and researchers think they may protect against depression. One plum adds 4,100 ORAC points to a meal.

They say that you can learn a lot about yourself and life from your own children. I’d say that they’re absolutely right.

Our older son Joshua, now four and a half years old, is sweeter and gentler than we could have wished for. These days, he lives to experience new and exciting things with his family. Things like riding the subway in Toronto for the first time, discovering the magic of helium balloons, and meeting new characters and worlds through trips to our library.

When I watch Joshua in silent slumber, I often think that it wouldn’t be such a bad thing to permanently have my lips sealed in a kiss with one of his softer-than-marshmallow cheeks. Ditto that for his younger brother, of course.

Despite the enormous love that I have for Joshua, there are times when I am short and impatient with him. If, for example, I’ve had a rough day and he and his brother are making it painfully difficult for us to get them ready for bed, I find myself hollering and threatening some form of punishment.

Our younger one tends to shrug off my occasional outbursts of frustration. He’ll even provide objective commentary, saying something like “You angwee at me? Noah angwee at you because… because… because you angwee at me!”

But Joshua, our highly sensitive and gentle son, will often retreat to his mattress, bury his head in his pillow, and remain still. This makes me feel horrible, to see how much my lack of patience has hurt him. I feel terrible for not having more self-control, for once again breaking my vow to never to raise my voice with our boys.

When I take him into my arms, tell him that I’m sorry for yelling, try to explain why I lost my temper, and tell him that I love him more than anything, he often cries. Not with sadness, but with relief. I can almost feel a wave of relief resonate through his little body, restoring peace that comes from knowing that he is still loved more than anything.

I experience something similar with Noah from time to time, when he feels particularly rejected by Margaret or me. I can feel the relief that accompanies his whimpers as I hold him tight. I guess deep down, even rugged little boys are highly sensitive.

Sensing the palpable relief that our boys feel whenever our love for them is reaffirmed in their hearts is all the proof that I need to believe that by nature, one of our greatest emotional needs is to feel accepted and loved.

I believe that the truth for all of us is that rejection hurts. No matter how we respond outwardly to various forms of rejection, inwardly, each rejection creates a new wound that requires time and cares to heal.

When freshly rejected in one of the millions of ways that we can feel rejected by others, I think many of us are conditioned to retaliate. Sometimes, we retaliate by trying to return the hurt. Sometimes, we retaliate by silently attributing rejection to the other person’s lack of maturity or outright idiocy.

Clearly, there are times when we shouldn’t fret for very long, if at all; sometimes, there’s nothing more to contemplate than to realize that someone is engaging in ill-intentioned, toxic behavior, and though in need of help in some form, doesn’t deserve too much of our consideration.

But generally, I think there’s a lot to be gained in thinking about why someone has rejected us, and to avoid vilifying that someone to make ourselves feel better in the moment.

When we vilify someone who doesn’t accept us for any reason, I believe that we dampen our natural instincts to crave and give love. By turning rejection into an us versus them scenario, we walk down a path that leads to us becoming grumpy and paranoid men and women.

Outwardly or silently labeling someone who rejects us as being a jerk might be comforting in the moment, but ultimately, I believe taking on this mindset hardens us and leaves us less willing to give fully to the next person who could be a wonderful, life-long friend.

I have to admit; observing my father over decades has heavily shaped my beliefs on this facet of life. A good man at heart, from as far back as I can remember, my father has been quick to vilify anyone who rejects or offends him in some way. In some cases, I’m sure that he was right to cut ties. But what I see today is a good-hearted man who finds it near impossible to have a truly intimate and lasting friendship because he is unable and perhaps unwilling to deal with rejection without vilifying the other party.

Rejection always hurts, even when we do our best to pretend that it doesn’t. There’s no quick fix for it. The passing of time, thinking about deficiencies that we have that might have contributed to us being rejected, perhaps talking it through with a trusted friend…all of these things can help. And as we heal, if we can avoid covering up our hurt feelings by mentally trashing the person who hurt us, I believe we preserve and even grow our capacity to revere and be revered.

I have our sons to thank for helping me recognize that rejection hurts every time. By embracing this reality and remembering that vilifying others only hurts my potential as a human being, my hope is that over time, I can become better at healing with grace.

Posted By Dr. Ben Kim