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Is This Fish Oil Really Helping My Joints?

I never used to have problems with my joints, but that’s changed in a big way as I’ve grown older. In an effort to help my joints feel better, I’ve been taking fish oil supplements every day. It seems like I’ve always known that fish oil was good for joints in some way, but the other day I caught myself thinking, “Is this stuff really helping?”

I realized that I didn’t know much about fish oil at all, and my lack of knowledge started to make my confidence in the product wane. So I decided to do some research and find out exactly what it is about fish oil that can supposedly make my joints feel better. Here’s what I found out.

There’s Nothing “Fishy” About Fish Oil

Despite my worries that fish oil is just a great big fish tale, I discovered some impressive things about it during my research. I found out that the secret to fish oil’s ability to help aching joints lies within its content of omega-3 fatty acids. Though the name isn’t super appealing, omega-3 fatty acids are pretty powerful for joint health. Here’s how they work.

The omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil contain high levels of these two fatty acids in particular:

  • Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)
  • Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)

According to research, both of these fatty acids are effective at lowering inflammation. It’s their inflammation-curbing properties that make these fatty acids so valuable for people with joint conditions. Many conditions that cause joint pain are due to excess inflammation within the joints.

According to one study (published in the British Journal of Nutrition), DHA and EPA from marine sources (such as fish oil) provide help with the following:

  • Joint pain and swelling
  • The use of joint-related pain medication
  • Morning joint stiffness

These are all benefits I can stand behind! So I’ll continue my daily habit of taking fish oil pills so they can go to work reducing inflammation in my joints.

How Fish Oil Reduces Inflammation

I’m a naturally curious soul, so it wasn’t enough for me to learn that DHA and EPA can reduce inflammation. I wanted to know how they do it. So I decided to dive into the topic a lot more. Here’s what I discovered.

EPA and DHA work in tandem to lower inflammatory molecules in the body (such as C-reactive protein and tumour necrosis factor alpha). They’re a little bit like The Wonder Twins when it comes to protecting our bodies from the negative effects of systemic inflammation.

DHA seems to be more effective at reducing multiple pro-inflammatory proteins, while EPA seems to target primarily one type. But EPA does have the added benefit of boosting immune function regulation. So when you’re looking for a fish oil supplement, look for one that contains both of these important components. Like the old song goes, “some things just go better together and probably always will.”

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What To Look for in a Fish Oil Supplement

As with any nutritional or dietary supplement, fish oil supplements are not all created equal. Here are a few things to look for in a quality supplement:

  • Make sure the supplement you choose contains both EPA and DHA.
  • Look for good purity and authenticity standards.
  • Always check the date on the bottle and don’t use it after the printed date (fish oil goes rancid over time).
  • Look for free fatty acids (FFA), phospholipids (PLs) and triglycerides, and reformed triglycerides (TG and rTG) instead of ethyl esters (EE).

Keeping these things in mind when shopping will help you select a quality fish oil supplement that will give your joints (and your body in general) maximum anti-inflammatory benefits.

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Ranking Salad Dressings From Most Healthy to Least Healthy

There's nothing wrong with wanting to enjoy a variety of salad dressings. These days, you have a lot of options for giving salads a kick of flavor. What are the best healthy salad dressings?

The Healthiest Salad Dressings

These are my favorite dressings, and they won't add to your waistline:

  1. Vinaigrette: These dressings are full of flavor and focus on a few simple ingredients. What I love is the endless variety. You can go for balsamic vinegar, orange juice, apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar — even strawberries! And with basil, cilantro and other herbs, all I can say is “yum.”
  2. Green Goddess: It’s easy to find green goddess dressing made with a base of Greek yogurt. This gives you the creaminess you crave without the fat. Along with probiotics from the yogurt, you’re getting lots of vitamins from olive oil, garlic, lemon juice and green onions.
  3. Greek or Mediterranean Dressings: Think creamy Italian dressing, minus the cream. Many Greek dressings use avocado oil and extra-virgin olive oil for thickness. Both of these oils give you lots of heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidant vitamins.
  4. Sesame Ginger: My kids love Asian-style dressings, and I think they spice up meals at home. Look for real garlic, ginger and rice wine vinegar in the ingredients, and try to keep sugar down with nut butter.
  5. Honey Dijon: Both Dijon mustard and honey make dressings thicker and smoother naturally. If you’re adding a salad to a meat-and-potatoes meal, try this dressing. The reason it's near the bottom is that you have to keep an eye on sugar and calories with store-bought versions.

The Least Healthy Salad Dressings

Basically, anything with the word “creamy” in its name is going to shock you into falling backwards when you look at the fat content and calories. This includes blue cheese, Caesar dressing, thousand island, French and (sigh) everyone’s favorite ranch dressing.

Now the good news. You can find reasonably healthy alternatives to each. Some replace mayo with avocado oil, coconut milk or Greek yogurt. Others go big on flavor from high-quality ingredients (like more blue cheese) to reduce the amount of other ingredients. Herbs and spices such as chipotle, jalapenos, basil, dill, parsley and chives add a boost of flavor all by themselves.

The Benefits of Homemade Salad Dressings

Homemade dressings offer a lot of benefits:

  • You control salt and sugar levels
  • Non-refined, natural oils give you more heart benefits than many store-bought dressings
  • Fresh ingredients provide more vitamins and minerals
  • Homemade dressings offer more flavor with less fat
  • Dressing you make at home doesn’t have any preservatives

That said, as a mom, it’s not always easy to find the time. Don't feel guilty if organic from the store is the best you can do.

A Sensible View of Dressings

I like to take a balanced view of mom-hood and weight loss. Focusing too strictly on every calorie can make healthy eating a chore. Isn’t encouraging your family to eat more salad a good thing?

It keeps you and your kids munching on fresh ingredients: romaine lettuce, arugula, alfalfa sprouts, carrots, tomatoes, yellow peppers and avocados. That's WAY better kids begging for pizza every night because they're tired of plain vinaigrette with every salad.

More salad + healthy dressing options = more omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, folate and more! That’s a win in my book. So, don't punish yourself if you buy (gasp!) the tiniest bottle of (double gasp!) Ranch dressing sometimes.

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5 Reasons Why Fiber Is So Important

I like to think I know the basics of good health. But periodically, I learn some new health fact that catches me by surprise. The importance of fiber is one of those health facts I didn’t really grasp until recently. Sure, I’ve always known fiber is an important part of a healthy diet, but I didn’t realize just how necessary it is for optimal health and digestive function. Here are five reasons why fiber is so important for all of us to consume regularly.

1. Helps Control Blood Sugar

If you struggle to keep your blood sugar under control, eating fiber may help. It’s especially helpful for people with diabetes to consume sufficient soluble fiber to slow down their body’s absorption of sugar. For those of us who don’t have diabetes, eating insoluble fiber may help us avoid developing it.

2. Promotes Normal Bowel Movements

Nobody likes to talk about their bowel movements (unless you’re my over-sharing Aunt Kathy), but how often you go is really important. The consistency of your poop is also really important. If it’s consistently runny, adding some fiber to your diet can give it a little bulk so you’re more regular and can pass your stools more easily.

Whew. Now that we got that topic over with, let’s move on to the next reason why fiber’s so important!

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3. May Decrease the Likelihood of Hemorrhoids

OK, so going from bowel movements to hemorrhoids isn’t exactly a step up. But it’s important to talk about how fiber can potentially help us avoid developing hemorrhoids. That reason alone is good enough for me to increase my daily intake of fiber!

In addition to decreasing your likelihood of getting hemorrhoids, studies show that a high-fiber diet may also lower your risk of developing colorectal cancer. Research is still being done to understand exactly how fiber helps prevent colorectal cancer, but it’s thought that it has something to do with how fiber ferments in the colon.

4. Assists With Healthy Weight Maintenance

It’s generally easy to put weight on, but difficult to take it off (unless you’re someone who can’t seem to gain weight no matter how hard you try). When you’re trying to let go of a few extra pounds, you probably think about exercising, cutting out sugary foods and drinks, and eating healthier. But if you’re neglecting to eat sufficient fiber, you could be making your weight-loss journey more difficult than it needs to be.

High-fiber foods are typically more filling than foods with little to no fiber. That means the more high-fiber foods you eat, the easier it will be for you to manage your appetite and keep your weight in check. Additionally, foods high in fiber typically require more chewing, which means you’re expending more calories to eat them.

5. Reduces the Risk of Some Diseases

One of the most surprising things I have learned about fiber is that it may reduce your risk of developing some diseases. According to studies, there is a link between increased dietary fiber intake and reduced risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease. So if you have a family history of cancer, make sure you add fiber to your daily healthy eating plan!

Though fiber has a lot of great benefits, it’s possible to eat too much of it. If you feel like your fiber intake is clogging you up and messing with your regularity, it may be time to cut back a little bit. The Institute of Medicine recommends that men aged 50 or younger consume 38 grams of fiber daily. Women aged 50 0r younger should aim to consume 25 grams of fiber per day.

Some good sources of fiber include vegetables, seeds, nuts, fruits, whole-grain products and legumes. Figure out how to incorporate these foods into your daily meals and you’ll start reaping the benefits of a high-fiber diet.

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The 5 Healthiest Meal Prep Delivery Services

Food that comes in a package and that is delivered straight to your door via UPS, FedEx, USPS or another postal delivery service cannot be healthy, right? While it seems too good to be true, some meal prep delivery services actually help consumers eat better than if they were to do the grocery shopping on their own. However, the keyword here is “some.”

Like anything in life, not all meal prep delivery services are created equal. A handful standout for their use of wholesome, healthy ingredients, and for their recipes that are as healthy as they are tasty. Check them out below.

Green Chef

As the first meal-kit delivery company to become USDA-Certified Organic, Green Chef is a highly sought-after service for anyone who is interested in leading a more sustainable and responsible lifestyle. More than 90% of the service’s ingredients are organic and, to up its eco-friendly rating, its packaging is made from mostly compostable, recyclable and reusable materials.

Green Chef caters to various dietary preferences, including paleo, plant-based and keto. While you will have to pay more for meals that cater to more complex diets, Green Chef is relatively cheap, starting at just $10.99 per meal.

Fresh N’ Lean

Fresh N’ Lean is a meal-kit delivery service that caters to the meat-eaters of the world. Starting at $75 per week, the subscriptions are a bit steep, but you get a lot of bang for your buck. Each meal is customizable for various dietary preferences, including low-carb, paleo, Keto and even vegan, but you can count on each meal to contain ample amounts of protein. Unlike many meal delivery services, which cater more to convenience than they do health, Fresh N’ Leans ingredients are always fresh, never frozen.

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Fresh Direct

Founded back in 2002, Fresh Direct has had nearly two decades to hone its offerings to appeal to a wide variety of taste and dietary preferences. When ordering, you can narrow down your weekly options based on the cook time, list of ingredients and kit type to find meals that are best suited for your lifestyle. The meals are creative and full of flavor and, most importantly, contain nothing but quality, gourmet ingredients. Meal kits start at $13.

Sunbasket

As a certified organic handler that uses organic ingredients whenever possible and that delivers meals only approved by an in-house dietician, Sunbasket is an increasingly popular option for busy individuals who want whole, nutrient-dense meals in little time. Though Sunbasket has traditional kits with ingredients customers prep and assemble themselves, some of their most popular offerings are their microwaveable meals. These meals come fully prepared and ready to cook in bamboo containers meaning, with this service, you can eat in as little as six minutes.

You can also order breakfast and lunch through the service. Meals start at $10.99.

Urban Remedy

Urban Remedy’s motto is “food is healing.” As such, its selling point is that each of its ingredients was chosen specifically for its healing and anti-inflammatory properties. Though the offerings are limited to just eight meals, the brand claims that all eight meals contain immune-boosting, inflammation-fighting ingredients. The service also offers individual drinks, protein bars and smoothies. Meal plans start at $117 a week.

Despite what the past has led many people to believe, convenient food does not have to mean unhealthy food. Each of the above five meal kit delivery services is a testament to that.

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A New Approach To Healthcare: Lifestyle Medicine

Typically, when people go to the doctor, it is to assess a variety of ailments. Lifestyle medicine goes beyond the ailment detection of medical practices and focuses on sustaining and perpetuating continued health and wellbeing through a more holistic approach.

The 7 Pillars of Lifestyle Medicine

While classified as a holistic approach, the theory of lifestyle medicine is a practice most medical professionals can get behind; the concept of balance in seven core areas of life. Lifestyle medicine focuses on the seven habits for a healthy life, and those habits contribute to reduced risks of chronic conditions.

1. Exercise

Movement or physical activity is vital to lifestyle medicine. A sedentary lifestyle can lead to many complications, including cardiovascular. By practicing at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week, you can find it easier to maintain or control your weight, strengthen muscles and bones, and promote mental wellbeing.

2. Nutrition

The dreaded nutrition pillar can seem problematic. Many people look at nutrition like rocket science, something complex and hard to grasp, but it is not as challenging as it looks. On a fundamental level, making a few minor adjustments to your diet can drastically improve your health. For example, eat out less than twice per week and swap a can of soda for water. Additionally, add more fruits and vegetables to your diet.

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3. Outdoor Activity

The outdoors is nature’s gift to humanity. Spending even 30 minutes outside can increase your well-being. According to lifestyle medicine experts, you should spend a minimum of 120 minutes outside every week. Exposure to the outdoors is proven to reduce stress, limit inflammation, and improve sleep.

4. Sleep

Most adults know they need between seven and eight hours of sleep per night, but few get it. Many things affect your sleep, from noise to stress and diet. Lifestyle medicine highlights sleep as critical to overall health. To get a better night’s rest, consider sleeping in a quiet environment without tech or television. Additionally, avoid eating too late and do not consume caffeine after midday.

5. Emotional Wellbeing

Stress relief is vital to mental and physical health. Anxiety, worry, and fear all lead to problems with sleep, diet, and relationships. Finding a way to deal with stress is necessary and pivotal to lifestyle medicine. Practicing mindfulness is one way to combat the effects of stress.

6. Hydration

Dehydration leads to a variety of health issues: headaches, fatigue, dizziness, etc. While the rule is often stated as eight glasses of water per day, the Mayo Clinic would disagree. According to the clinic, men need a minimum of 15 cups of water per day and women need at least 11.

7. Substance Avoidance

Lifestyle medicine also encourages a substance-free life, meaning no smoking or drugs. Cigarettes, alcohol, and other substances can lead to significant consequences and impaired thinking. Lifestyle medicine is all about clarity and purity.

New Focus Equals New Hope

While people understand the benefits of adopting healthy habits, they often overcomplicate the process, getting bogged down in the details. By restricting your attention to the above seven areas, you can increase your health and mental wellbeing in stages. There is no need to embrace all the habits at once; instead, take on one practice at a time and master it. By working methodically, you limit the potential of becoming overwhelmed, allowing you to embrace the changes.

Do you have any experience with the practice? leave a comment below and keep the conversation going.

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Understanding How Air Quality Can Affect Your Health and Wellbeing

In the fight to remain healthy, people focus primarily on nutrition and exercise — both critical aspects of a healthy lifestyle — but what often flies under the radar of the health-conscious is air quality. Air pollution can lead to many problems, not only environmental, especially among people who are particularly vulnerable, like those with asthma or COPD. Pollutants from vehicle exhaust, industrial emissions, smoke, road dust, and even pollen can make it more challenging for these individuals to breathe, leading to wheezing, coughing, or worse. 

Pollutants can also make their way into the food supply. With a rise in pollution, comes an increased risk of respiratory infections, lung cancer, and heart disease. It is crucial to understand the potential pollution and air quality risks in your environment, so you know best how to protect yourself.

Air Pollution and Outdoor Exposure

The effects of air pollution vary based on location because exposure and air quality vary from place to place, often disproportionately. Minorities and people living in low-income areas are more likely to suffer the consequences of air pollution because housing is often within more industrialized districts, meaning plant and vehicular emissions are in abundance. Proximity is the main contributor to negative health effects. 

Beyond proximity, the time and season, temperature, and weather play a role in pollution and air quality. While fine particles are typically most present in the mornings, high levels of ozone typically occur in the summertime, late afternoon. Unseasonably warm days or when temperatures reach levels above 90 degrees Fahrenheit, unhealthy levels of ozone can accumulate in the air. Finally, weather conditions, like fog, can often trap unhealthy levels of pollution in an area, especially when combined with little to no wind.

Air Pollution and Indoor Exposure

Did you know the air quality inside your home can be two to five times more polluted than the outdoors, sometimes even more? While people tend to discuss pollution as an outdoor issue, most Americans spend more than 90% of their time indoors, meaning the priority should be indoor air quality. Some of the most common indoor pollutants include:

  • Smoke
  • Radon
  • Lead dust
  • Carbon monoxide
  • Mold
  • VOCs
  • Animal dander
  • Pollen
  • Dust mites

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Protecting Your Health

While it can be challenging to avoid air pollutants, especially in an industrialized society, it is not impossible to improve the air quality you breathe. The key is to avoid as much pollution as possible; for example, when stuck in traffic, keep your windows closed and set the ventilation system to recirculate the air in the cabin. You can also avoid vehicle exhaust by choosing a less-traveled route. You should also avoid being around smoke and other sources of airborne pollutants.

If you are concerned about the air quality in your area, you can sign up for alerts. Many states provide air quality updates and warnings, and in most cases, you can find an app or email signup that will tell you when you should avoid outdoor activities and when the city or state is under an ozone advisory.

Air quality plays a vital role in overall health. When the air is heavily polluted, it can lead to increased risks of disease and infection. Do you know of any other tips or techniques to reduce your exposure level, or do you have any other interesting facts you would like to share? Leave a comment below and keep the conversation going.

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Examining the Truth About Wine and Health

Who doesn’t love to sit down after a long day’s work and relax with a good glass of red? It seems like every day there is a new study or article praising wine as the miracle elixir of health. However, for every piece of research praising the sultry libation, there is another discounting the claims. The constant back and forth, like most findings in health, is confusing to the average consumer looking for applicable solutions. Therefore, to ease the burden, this article aims to unravel some of the mysteries surrounding wine and health.

Wine and Burning Fat

Many wine enthusiasts praise and permit their habit as a way to combat weight gain. The argument is often based on the findings of a 2015 Oregon State University study that linked a specific wine acid to weight loss. The wine in question was a rare red wine, and the acid is only produced by the Red Muscadine grape, grown in the southeastern US state of Georgia, mostly. However, while the particular acid from that single grape species can possibly promote weight loss, it is typically only used in sweet wine, negating most weight loss benefits. The research is promising, and with further study might will out broader benefits, but don’t base your entire weight loss journey on a daily glass of wine.

Wine and Heart Health

Another study shows potential promise for heart health. While the European Society of Cardiology conducted a study in 2014 to find a link between wine consumption and the production of good cholesterol, the findings initially seemed discouraging. The study proved no direct correlation between wine consumption and the production of HDL. However, within the study and upon closer inspection of the results, researchers noted that individuals who drank wine and worked out at least twice weekly showed signs of increased HDL and decreased LDL or bad cholesterol. Unfortunately, as testing the correlation of exercise with wine consumption was not the intent of the initial study, more research is needed.

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Wine and Cancer

Like weight loss, more research is needed to determine the cancer-fighting properties of wine. While most wines contain several antioxidants, the primary compound known for its anti-carcinogenic properties is ellagic acid. Unfortunately, EA is not found in most wines because it is only found in red muscadine grapes. A study conducted in the Journal of Cancer Biology and Medicine did discuss EA as a preventative and therapeutic tool against specific forms of cancer. However, because of the limited supply of wines and grapes with EA, it is unclear the overall advantages of wine consumption in the fight against cancer.

Wine and Blood Pressure

If you want a solution to your blood pressure or hypertension woes, do not drink a glass of red wine. While touted as a tool to lower blood pressure for nearly three decades, it is a myth that wine can correct blood pressure problems, at least when containing alcohol. A recent study of the effects of red wine on blood pressure found that non-alcoholic red didi significantly reduce blood pressure levels in men.

The bottom line is that wine can provide some health benefits in moderation, but most of the drink's so-called miracle benefits are myth or without significant merit. If you like wine, drink it in moderation, but if you don't, leave it. Wine is not a miracle cure for weight loss or disease, but it is delicious, at least to this writer.

What are your thoughts on the great wine debate? Leave a comment and keep this conversation going.

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Can a Healthy Gut Really Help With Arthritis, Depression and Irritable Bowel Syndrome?

Do you have problems with inflammation, anxiety or depression? Do you get sick a lot? It turns out that the real solution is to fix your gut, not to take endless pills.

Your Body Has a “Second Brain” — And It’s in Your Gut!

The expression “going with your gut” is more accurate than scientists ever suspected. Your digestive system has a staggering network of over 100 million nerve cells! This “second brain” is called the enteric nervous system (ENS) and it surrounds your entire gastrointestinal tract.

The ENS doesn’t help you play chess or calculate your taxes, but it does play a large role in emotional health. If something makes your digestive system feel bad, scientists believe the ENS triggers mood changes, such as depression, anxiety or irritability.

This is a huge discovery; it explains why so many people who have irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) also have depression. Protecting your gut health may go a long way towards helping you feel happier, and lowering stress may help you avoid digestive problems.

The Key to a Stronger Immune System? That’s Right — Excellent Gut Health!

Have you ever thought of taking probiotics to boost your immune system? That’s exactly what you should be doing, according to many experts.

Healthy gut bacteria can improve immune cells throughout the body, increasing the amount of natural antibodies you have and strengthening mucus membranes that help trap invaders. One study found that Lactobacillus, a type of probiotic found in yogurt, helped reduce the amount of respiratory infections in children by almost 20%!

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The Connection Between a "Leaky Gut" and Inflammation

In a healthy gut, positive microorganisms form a kind of protective wall over the lining of your GI tract. This helps in two big ways: lowering levels of inflammation-causing bacteria and preventing them from getting into your blood stream.

When your gut is out of whack — sometimes called “leaky gut syndrome” — unhealthy bacteria travel places they shouldn’t, provoking your immune system to attack. The problem appears to be even worse for people who have rheumatoid arthritis, gout, psoriatic arthritis and osteoarthritis. The combination makes inflammation much more severe than normal.

The opposite is also true. A balanced gut microbiome is good for fighting inflammation. It can make arthritis less painful and give you back a lot of your flexibility and mobility. And for the rest of us, good digestive health reduces the number of aches and pains we wake up with in the morning.

Your Shopping List for Amazing Gut Health

How can you take good care of your gut microbiome? The secret is to increase the amount of probiotics and prebiotics in your diet.

Probiotics are good bacteria. Probiotics add soldiers directly to your gut’s army of healthy microbes. Greek yogurt, sauerkraut, kimchi and other fermented foods have lots of probiotics. I like to take probiotic supplements, too, especially after finishing any kind of antibiotics.

Prebiotics are plant fibers that help good bacteria grow. They support your intestinal soldiers, promoting good digestion and providing food for hungry microbes. My favorite prebiotics are apples, bananas, leafy greens and whole grains.

A healthy gut helps you fight off harmful bacteria, viruses and allergies. It can help you get sick less often, and make symptoms less severe when you do catch a bug. Probiotics may even make vaccines more effective. Make great gut health a priority!

 

References:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11387176/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4006993/

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/the-brain-gut-connection

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The Human Diet: Fish and Plants

While a diet filled with beef and poultry seems to be the norm in the US and many parts of the world, it is not the traditional omnivore diet. Beef, pork, and poultry products can lead to health issues, while the consumption of fish and plant-based proteins leads to health improvement. There are many reasons to switch from a more carnivorous diet to a pescetarian diet, but below are the most critical.

The Case Against Carnivores

People often make the argument that humans are designed to eat meat. You will indeed find canines in your mouth next to your incisors, and these sharp, pointed teeth are useful for tearing food. However, that is not an indication of a specific type of food, like red or white meat. 

People are not carnivores; they are omnivores. Carnivores typically have claws and several sharp pointed fangs for tearing and ripping flesh from muscle and bone. Meat eaters also have a shorter intestinal tract for quick digestion, and they lack pores for sweating, usually perspiring through the tongue.

As omnivores, the human body evolved to hunt for food during daylight, requiring pores for perspiration. Because the human diet traditionally consisted of fish and plants, the intestinal tract is longer allowing time to absorb and digest plant-based proteins.

A diet rich in fish and plant-based foods - fruits and vegetables - is healthier and more natural to the human system, making the pescetarian diet among the most traditional on the planet. Fish contains minerals and vitamins essential for health, requiring supplementation if you do not eat it. Cutting red meat from your diet does not require the same precaution, suggesting that red meats are not essential to the human diet.

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Eating Fish Rather Than Meat Is Healthier

Unlike other meats, fish does not come into contact with harmful chemicals or pesticides on the journey to your table. It also contains a generous amount of vitamins and minerals that are incredibly beneficial to a person's overall health. For example, most of the iron your body requires can be found in a pescetarian diet, as can the required protein and the addition of omega-3 fatty acids.

Because of the complex combination of vitamins and minerals, fish is considered a powerhouse food, reducing the risks of stroke, osteoporosis, diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease, cardiovascular disease, and some types of cancer. A pescetarian diet's primary benefit is its dependence on the consumption of foods low in fats and oils but high in fiber.

The addition of fish to a primarily vegetarian diet is crucial to avoiding typical problems associated with strict veganism or vegetarianism, like iron deficiency or other forms of anemia. The consumption of fish helps to ensure adequate protein, iron, vitamin, and mineral levels in the diet, promoting well-rounded nutritional health.

Eating Fish Versus Other Meats Benefits the Planet

A study by the Smithsonian Institute concluded the need for grazing areas for livestock farms requires the destruction of a land area equivalent to seven football fields, meaning that meat production is a significant contributor to deforestation. In the US, animal agriculture has led to the destruction of over 260 million acres of forest.

Livestock also contributes to waste and toxic emissions. Animal agriculture is responsible for the production of more than 130 times the excrement produced by the human race.

Are you a meat-eater? Is there anything that will change your mind, making you switch to pescetarianism? Leave a comment below and keep the conversation going.

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5 Reasons You Should Not Use Q-Tips To Clean Your Ears

Otolaryngologists or ear, nose, and throat doctors often advise against the use of Q-tips or cotton swabs for cleaning ears. Despite the advice, many people still use these items to remove excess ear wax or dry up the water in the ear canal after a shower or summer swim. While it seems like a common practice, people do not realize the potential harm they are doing to their ears. If you currently use Q-tips or cotton swabs to clean your ears, consider the following five reasons you should stop.

1. Removes the Waterproofing Layer

Earwax is not some gross bodily excretion. Granted, your body produces more than it needs at times, but it naturally pushes the excess out of the canal, where it can easily be removed with a tissue. One of the primary reasons your body produces earwax is to waterproof the ear canal, preventing water buildup. When you remove too much earwax, water can become trapped in the canal, possibly leading to infections.

2. Removes the Natural Antibiotic

Beyond protecting the ear from excess water or fluid buildups, earwax is a natural antibiotic. The wax has an acidic quality that can help prevent some infections, like swimmer’s ear. By stripping away the wax inside the ear, you open yourself up to potential conditions and problems. Many problems caused by the removal of too much wax can be linked to balance and health issues.

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3. Risk Ear Damage

People often reach for Q-tips and cotton swabs because they seem like the right size for the job. Unfortunately, these items are too small and allow too much access to the ear's sensitive and fragile areas. When you insert the cotton swab into your ear, losing sight of the tip, you are putting the swab too far into your ear. The eardrum is not as far into the canal as you might think, and any contact with this sensitive part of your ear can cause damage.

4. Causes Buildups

The use of cotton swabs can also lead to wax buildups in your ear. When you insert the swab into your ear, you likely force some earwax deeper into the canal. By moving wax back into the ear, you interfere with the wax's natural removal and movement process. Remember, your body will naturally push excess wax out of your ear, and you can remove that excess by draping a tissue over your finger and gently wiping it around the outer ear.

5. Potential Hearing Loss and Balance Problems

The use of Q-Tips can lead to severe damage. Most people will not experience significant trauma, but if the swab is pushed too far into the ear canal, it can puncture the eardrum. Just beneath the eardrum lies several tiny and fragile bones responsible for balance and transporting soundwaves. If the cotton swab is pushed too far into the ear with too much force, it is possible to suffer significant balance problems and hearing loss; though, neither is likely.

Do you use Q-Tips or cotton swabs to clean your ears? Has reading this blog changed your mind about the use of these items? Leave a comment below to contribute to the conversation.