Beans: The High-Protein Food That's Healthy and Cheap

To contact us Click HERE

Another fine article from Real age
Here's why beans always make our best-foods list: They're a healthy, cheap source of protein that'll reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer, lower your blood sugar, and flatten your belly. (Protect your heart with a batch of EatingWell's Smoky Black Bean Soup tonight.)Yep, beans do all that and more. Here are 5 ways beans help your waistline, heart, and blood sugar:

1. Reduce belly fat. A recent study found that beans' soluble fiber chases away deep-down, visceral belly fat -- the toxin-filled kind that threatens your vital organs.
   
2. Lower blood sugar. Beans are low on the glycemic index, which means they're digested slowly, so they stabilize your blood sugar. Translation: Beans reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes. Stabilize blood sugar deliciously with this Very Green Lentil Soup recipe from EatingWell.
   
3. Reduce blood pressure. Beans are rich in artery-friendly minerals and healthy plant protein -- the kind that's better for blood pressure than protein from animals. Substitute the deli meat on your next sandwich with EatingWell's Braised Greens & Cannellini Bean Panini recipe.
   
4. Protect heart health. The soluble fiber in beans also helps reduce blood levels of C-reactive protein, which lowers your risk for heart disease and heart attacks. Try this pasta dish fromEatingWell to help lower your heart disease risk: Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe & Chickpeas.
   
5. Reduce cancer risk. Simply eating beans three times a week helps prevent colon cancer. (You're 33% less likely to develop colon polyps.) Cutting back on red meat can reduce cancer risk, too.

So, what's not to like about beans? Oh, those gas attacks? Ease into eating beans, and take the supplement Beano (available at grocery stores) until your body is used to them. Beano's natural enzymes deflate gas attacks. The elevator crowd will thank you.

Sentry Calming Collar: Easing a Dog's Stress

To contact us Click HERE
When it comes to solving behavioral issues in a dog, there are a few options to assist in achieving better results. Hiring a trainer or behaviorist, tried-and-true tricks and tips, medications, and even herbals are among the most common choices. Sentry Calming Collar is a great option to aid in modifying your dog's undesirable behaviors.

How it works
The Sentry Calming Collar for Dogs emits pheromones, the same ones that puppies experience from their mothers. Just as these pheromones help the little ones adjust to the new world they've entered, dogs of any age naturally respond to these pheromones in much the same way. The collar also contains lavender and chamomile for additional calming effects and a soothing scent.

While wearing the collar alone will probably not resolve your dog's more serious behaviors, it may certainly help improve your prospects for success by using along with proper training and behavioral assessments. There are no drugs with this method of calming your dog, only the pheromones, and the lavender and chamomile scents. This is possibly much safer than using medications, which may very well include unwanted side effects.

Does it work?
We had the opportunity to try this Calming Collar. Our boy Chester was a great subject to test this product on. He tends to hyper, revved-up and/or distracted easily, suffers from storm phobia and a bit of separation anxiety, with the underlying truth of being a fearful dog. Quite a handful, and quite a complex soul to work with in correcting behaviors.

As you can see somewhat from the photo, when you first put the collar on it's a bit messy. Chester wants you to know the white specks are not dandruff - they're flakes from the coating on the collar. A suggestion: when you first attach the collar on your dog, choose an outdoor location if possible. It's only when you first take it out of the package, though.


And it does work as advertised. I didn't expect much of a response from Chester - he can be very stubborn, and his issues run deep. He was indeed calmer. There was a tranquility in our home that we hadn't had in awhile. This, during the hub-bub of the holiday season.

Yes, he wasn't perfect by any means over the last couple of weeks, but he was much more relaxed, slept soundly, and his barking was reduced significantly (both indoors and out). In the past three weeks, we had a wicked rain/snow/high winds storm that normally would have had him freaking out. No wall-climbing this time!

Source: Hippie Peace Freaks

Would I recommend this collar? You bet. Having seen the dramatic change with Chester, and having past experience with cats that were calmed with a pheromone product, I believe this would be an excellent component of a good, complete behavioral training/modification program for your dog. (As always, be sure to check with your veterinarian first if your dog is displaying behavioral changes, and if you choose to try this product.)

This collar would be helpful with new pets, when you first bring them home to strange surroundings. It would be a godsend for many dogs in shelters and rescues, given not only the strange homes/beds they must adjust to, but also the levels of stress they often need to tolerate.

Sentry Calming Collar is a non-narcotic, non-intrusive, 'round-the-clock tool that is effective in reducing stress and anxiety levels.


Special Offer: One lucky reader will win a $50 donation to the 501c3 shelter or rescue of their choice!

We'd love for you to help spread the word about this helpful product. And to thank you for your efforts, we're offering you a chance to win a $50 donation to the 501c3 shelter or rescue of your choice, compliments of DogTime Media. Interested?
Choose one, two, or all three options below:

• Leave a comment below, telling us about your experience with the Sentry Calming Collar, or why you would like to try it.
• Tweet about this blog post, leave the URL in a comment below.
• Blog about this post, leave the URL in a comment below.

Thank you for helping me share about this collar! Happier pets is what we truly care about here. 

Disclaimer: DogTime Media provided us with a Sentry Calming Collar for review; we have not received any compensation for this post. Opinions expressed herein are our own. We're happy to share information about good products that make life better for our pets!

Rockin' It for Homeless Pets

To contact us Click HERE
There is nothing sexier than a man who advocates for the welfare of animals. Except maybe a celebrity, who gives of his time and energy even though he could be off doing whatever rock stars do. Hats off, and big, wet kisses with waggin' tails, to Bret Michaels and his PSA with PetSmart Charities to encourage donations for homeless pets.

Johnathan, 6mo old, looking for a home

We're super-stoked, 'cause some of our very own Almost Home Foundation rescue pups are in this video! Go Bret! And Go, AHF!!



Have a terrific weekend! Enjoy the many blogs in the Saturday Pet Bloggers Blog Hop!

DON'T IGNORE STAGE IV

To contact us Click HERE
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? STAGE IV DOESN'T HAVE TIME TO WAIT.

1. Visit MBCaware.org and Eisai will donate $1 to Metastatic Breast Cancer research.
2. Sign up for MBCaware emails, and Eisai will donate another $1.
3. "Like" the 'METAvivor' page on Facebook and another $1 will be donated...
4. Share an image on Facebook, Eisai will donate another $1.
5. Follow @METAvivor or Tweet with #MBCaware and another $1 is donated!
6. There is an important video about Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) created by METAvivor that is phenomenal. Trigger a $1 donation to MBC research simply by visiting the MBCaware.org website. 
7. Some stats about the Stage IV Community:

CANCER? AIN'T NO GIFT

To contact us Click HERE
My blogging friend Nancy over at the always-insightful Nancy's Point is revisiting the ever-present query of whether or not cancer is a gift. That got me thinking. Is cancer a gift? 

My Big Fat Cancer Adventure began two years ago, when I really did get Cancer for Christmas. But I'm not seeing that shimmer (or is it glimmer?) of warm and fuzzy light at the end of the proverbial cancer tunnel. Every time I round a bend on The Big C Highway, there's a new roadblock in my way, another hurdle to climb over, another hoop to jump through. It is never ending and, as the great Gilda Radner's Roseanne Roseannadanna character famously quipped, "It's always something."

But back to the concept of cancer being a "gift." Is cancer an opportunity to live your life differently? Yup...
... But don't we all have that option, every single day? (Yup.)

Is cancer a wakeup call? Yup. Like stepping into the path of an express train could be considered an eye-opening event, cancer stops us smack in our tracks. Many of us live to tell the tale; many of us do not. All of us are maimed. But am I thankful for the train that is trying to run me over? Nope.

Let's try a different analogy: Does the deer being hunted in the forest think the rifle is a gift? Nope.

(Copyright © CamoGirl_18)

I'm here to tell you that getting diagnosed with cancer is akin to having crosshairs tattooed on your back. You will forever be a target of The Big C. And like the deer, you will try very, very hard to outrun this enemy. You'll attack it with your arsenal of surgery and chemicals and radiation and years of hormone-surpressing pills. You'll fill an emotional moat with your tears. You'll find out all too quickly who your real friends are — and you will take this realization like a bullet to the heart. You'll need a nap every day and be unable to fend off your fears in the darkness of night. You'll experience "scanxiety" any time you have to take any kind of medical test. You'll develop PTSD whenever you walk into a doctor's office (especially at a cancer center) or when you notice a new ache or pain. Of course you'll become an expert on nutrition and additives and the many, many things that are harmful in our environment and you'll try to live a cleaner life. (Good luck with that.) You'll exercise more and eat less. And you'll also pine for the days when you could remember details quickly, concentrate easily, and be motivated in general. You'll curse the necessity of being your own health advocate 24/7, and appreciate your hands-on WedMD degree. You'll wonder how the hell you ever had time to do anything besides go to the doctor and monitor your own health.

Because in the end, it all comes down to this: Cancer is hiding like a hunter in a blind deep within the woods, holding a loaded rifle with its sights set on you and me. 

And that ain't no gift.

Sentry Calming Collar: Easing a Dog's Stress

To contact us Click HERE
When it comes to solving behavioral issues in a dog, there are a few options to assist in achieving better results. Hiring a trainer or behaviorist, tried-and-true tricks and tips, medications, and even herbals are among the most common choices. Sentry Calming Collar is a great option to aid in modifying your dog's undesirable behaviors.

How it works
The Sentry Calming Collar for Dogs emits pheromones, the same ones that puppies experience from their mothers. Just as these pheromones help the little ones adjust to the new world they've entered, dogs of any age naturally respond to these pheromones in much the same way. The collar also contains lavender and chamomile for additional calming effects and a soothing scent.

While wearing the collar alone will probably not resolve your dog's more serious behaviors, it may certainly help improve your prospects for success by using along with proper training and behavioral assessments. There are no drugs with this method of calming your dog, only the pheromones, and the lavender and chamomile scents. This is possibly much safer than using medications, which may very well include unwanted side effects.

Does it work?
We had the opportunity to try this Calming Collar. Our boy Chester was a great subject to test this product on. He tends to hyper, revved-up and/or distracted easily, suffers from storm phobia and a bit of separation anxiety, with the underlying truth of being a fearful dog. Quite a handful, and quite a complex soul to work with in correcting behaviors.

As you can see somewhat from the photo, when you first put the collar on it's a bit messy. Chester wants you to know the white specks are not dandruff - they're flakes from the coating on the collar. A suggestion: when you first attach the collar on your dog, choose an outdoor location if possible. It's only when you first take it out of the package, though.


And it does work as advertised. I didn't expect much of a response from Chester - he can be very stubborn, and his issues run deep. He was indeed calmer. There was a tranquility in our home that we hadn't had in awhile. This, during the hub-bub of the holiday season.

Yes, he wasn't perfect by any means over the last couple of weeks, but he was much more relaxed, slept soundly, and his barking was reduced significantly (both indoors and out). In the past three weeks, we had a wicked rain/snow/high winds storm that normally would have had him freaking out. No wall-climbing this time!

Source: Hippie Peace Freaks

Would I recommend this collar? You bet. Having seen the dramatic change with Chester, and having past experience with cats that were calmed with a pheromone product, I believe this would be an excellent component of a good, complete behavioral training/modification program for your dog. (As always, be sure to check with your veterinarian first if your dog is displaying behavioral changes, and if you choose to try this product.)

This collar would be helpful with new pets, when you first bring them home to strange surroundings. It would be a godsend for many dogs in shelters and rescues, given not only the strange homes/beds they must adjust to, but also the levels of stress they often need to tolerate.

Sentry Calming Collar is a non-narcotic, non-intrusive, 'round-the-clock tool that is effective in reducing stress and anxiety levels.


Special Offer: One lucky reader will win a $50 donation to the 501c3 shelter or rescue of their choice!

We'd love for you to help spread the word about this helpful product. And to thank you for your efforts, we're offering you a chance to win a $50 donation to the 501c3 shelter or rescue of your choice, compliments of DogTime Media. Interested?
Choose one, two, or all three options below:

• Leave a comment below, telling us about your experience with the Sentry Calming Collar, or why you would like to try it.
• Tweet about this blog post, leave the URL in a comment below.
• Blog about this post, leave the URL in a comment below.

Thank you for helping me share about this collar! Happier pets is what we truly care about here. 

Disclaimer: DogTime Media provided us with a Sentry Calming Collar for review; we have not received any compensation for this post. Opinions expressed herein are our own. We're happy to share information about good products that make life better for our pets!

Rockin' It for Homeless Pets

To contact us Click HERE
There is nothing sexier than a man who advocates for the welfare of animals. Except maybe a celebrity, who gives of his time and energy even though he could be off doing whatever rock stars do. Hats off, and big, wet kisses with waggin' tails, to Bret Michaels and his PSA with PetSmart Charities to encourage donations for homeless pets.

Johnathan, 6mo old, looking for a home

We're super-stoked, 'cause some of our very own Almost Home Foundation rescue pups are in this video! Go Bret! And Go, AHF!!



Have a terrific weekend! Enjoy the many blogs in the Saturday Pet Bloggers Blog Hop!

Beans: The High-Protein Food That's Healthy and Cheap

To contact us Click HERE

Another fine article from Real age
Here's why beans always make our best-foods list: They're a healthy, cheap source of protein that'll reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer, lower your blood sugar, and flatten your belly. (Protect your heart with a batch of EatingWell's Smoky Black Bean Soup tonight.)Yep, beans do all that and more. Here are 5 ways beans help your waistline, heart, and blood sugar:

1. Reduce belly fat. A recent study found that beans' soluble fiber chases away deep-down, visceral belly fat -- the toxin-filled kind that threatens your vital organs.
   
2. Lower blood sugar. Beans are low on the glycemic index, which means they're digested slowly, so they stabilize your blood sugar. Translation: Beans reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes. Stabilize blood sugar deliciously with this Very Green Lentil Soup recipe from EatingWell.
   
3. Reduce blood pressure. Beans are rich in artery-friendly minerals and healthy plant protein -- the kind that's better for blood pressure than protein from animals. Substitute the deli meat on your next sandwich with EatingWell's Braised Greens & Cannellini Bean Panini recipe.
   
4. Protect heart health. The soluble fiber in beans also helps reduce blood levels of C-reactive protein, which lowers your risk for heart disease and heart attacks. Try this pasta dish fromEatingWell to help lower your heart disease risk: Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe & Chickpeas.
   
5. Reduce cancer risk. Simply eating beans three times a week helps prevent colon cancer. (You're 33% less likely to develop colon polyps.) Cutting back on red meat can reduce cancer risk, too.

So, what's not to like about beans? Oh, those gas attacks? Ease into eating beans, and take the supplement Beano (available at grocery stores) until your body is used to them. Beano's natural enzymes deflate gas attacks. The elevator crowd will thank you.

DON'T IGNORE STAGE IV

To contact us Click HERE
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? STAGE IV DOESN'T HAVE TIME TO WAIT.

1. Visit MBCaware.org and Eisai will donate $1 to Metastatic Breast Cancer research.
2. Sign up for MBCaware emails, and Eisai will donate another $1.
3. "Like" the 'METAvivor' page on Facebook and another $1 will be donated...
4. Share an image on Facebook, Eisai will donate another $1.
5. Follow @METAvivor or Tweet with #MBCaware and another $1 is donated!
6. There is an important video about Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) created by METAvivor that is phenomenal. Trigger a $1 donation to MBC research simply by visiting the MBCaware.org website. 
7. Some stats about the Stage IV Community:

CANCER? AIN'T NO GIFT

To contact us Click HERE
My blogging friend Nancy over at the always-insightful Nancy's Point is revisiting the ever-present query of whether or not cancer is a gift. That got me thinking. Is cancer a gift? 

My Big Fat Cancer Adventure began two years ago, when I really did get Cancer for Christmas. But I'm not seeing that shimmer (or is it glimmer?) of warm and fuzzy light at the end of the proverbial cancer tunnel. Every time I round a bend on The Big C Highway, there's a new roadblock in my way, another hurdle to climb over, another hoop to jump through. It is never ending and, as the great Gilda Radner's Roseanne Roseannadanna character famously quipped, "It's always something."

But back to the concept of cancer being a "gift." Is cancer an opportunity to live your life differently? Yup...
... But don't we all have that option, every single day? (Yup.)

Is cancer a wakeup call? Yup. Like stepping into the path of an express train could be considered an eye-opening event, cancer stops us smack in our tracks. Many of us live to tell the tale; many of us do not. All of us are maimed. But am I thankful for the train that is trying to run me over? Nope.

Let's try a different analogy: Does the deer being hunted in the forest think the rifle is a gift? Nope.

(Copyright © CamoGirl_18)

I'm here to tell you that getting diagnosed with cancer is akin to having crosshairs tattooed on your back. You will forever be a target of The Big C. And like the deer, you will try very, very hard to outrun this enemy. You'll attack it with your arsenal of surgery and chemicals and radiation and years of hormone-surpressing pills. You'll fill an emotional moat with your tears. You'll find out all too quickly who your real friends are — and you will take this realization like a bullet to the heart. You'll need a nap every day and be unable to fend off your fears in the darkness of night. You'll experience "scanxiety" any time you have to take any kind of medical test. You'll develop PTSD whenever you walk into a doctor's office (especially at a cancer center) or when you notice a new ache or pain. Of course you'll become an expert on nutrition and additives and the many, many things that are harmful in our environment and you'll try to live a cleaner life. (Good luck with that.) You'll exercise more and eat less. And you'll also pine for the days when you could remember details quickly, concentrate easily, and be motivated in general. You'll curse the necessity of being your own health advocate 24/7, and appreciate your hands-on WedMD degree. You'll wonder how the hell you ever had time to do anything besides go to the doctor and monitor your own health.

Because in the end, it all comes down to this: Cancer is hiding like a hunter in a blind deep within the woods, holding a loaded rifle with its sights set on you and me. 

And that ain't no gift.

Rockin' It for Homeless Pets

To contact us Click HERE
There is nothing sexier than a man who advocates for the welfare of animals. Except maybe a celebrity, who gives of his time and energy even though he could be off doing whatever rock stars do. Hats off, and big, wet kisses with waggin' tails, to Bret Michaels and his PSA with PetSmart Charities to encourage donations for homeless pets.

Johnathan, 6mo old, looking for a home

We're super-stoked, 'cause some of our very own Almost Home Foundation rescue pups are in this video! Go Bret! And Go, AHF!!



Have a terrific weekend! Enjoy the many blogs in the Saturday Pet Bloggers Blog Hop!

DON'T IGNORE STAGE IV

To contact us Click HERE
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? STAGE IV DOESN'T HAVE TIME TO WAIT.

1. Visit MBCaware.org and Eisai will donate $1 to Metastatic Breast Cancer research.
2. Sign up for MBCaware emails, and Eisai will donate another $1.
3. "Like" the 'METAvivor' page on Facebook and another $1 will be donated...
4. Share an image on Facebook, Eisai will donate another $1.
5. Follow @METAvivor or Tweet with #MBCaware and another $1 is donated!
6. There is an important video about Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) created by METAvivor that is phenomenal. Trigger a $1 donation to MBC research simply by visiting the MBCaware.org website. 
7. Some stats about the Stage IV Community:

CANCER? AIN'T NO GIFT

To contact us Click HERE
My blogging friend Nancy over at the always-insightful Nancy's Point is revisiting the ever-present query of whether or not cancer is a gift. That got me thinking. Is cancer a gift? 

My Big Fat Cancer Adventure began two years ago, when I really did get Cancer for Christmas. But I'm not seeing that shimmer (or is it glimmer?) of warm and fuzzy light at the end of the proverbial cancer tunnel. Every time I round a bend on The Big C Highway, there's a new roadblock in my way, another hurdle to climb over, another hoop to jump through. It is never ending and, as the great Gilda Radner's Roseanne Roseannadanna character famously quipped, "It's always something."

But back to the concept of cancer being a "gift." Is cancer an opportunity to live your life differently? Yup...
... But don't we all have that option, every single day? (Yup.)

Is cancer a wakeup call? Yup. Like stepping into the path of an express train could be considered an eye-opening event, cancer stops us smack in our tracks. Many of us live to tell the tale; many of us do not. All of us are maimed. But am I thankful for the train that is trying to run me over? Nope.

Let's try a different analogy: Does the deer being hunted in the forest think the rifle is a gift? Nope.

(Copyright © CamoGirl_18)

I'm here to tell you that getting diagnosed with cancer is akin to having crosshairs tattooed on your back. You will forever be a target of The Big C. And like the deer, you will try very, very hard to outrun this enemy. You'll attack it with your arsenal of surgery and chemicals and radiation and years of hormone-surpressing pills. You'll fill an emotional moat with your tears. You'll find out all too quickly who your real friends are — and you will take this realization like a bullet to the heart. You'll need a nap every day and be unable to fend off your fears in the darkness of night. You'll experience "scanxiety" any time you have to take any kind of medical test. You'll develop PTSD whenever you walk into a doctor's office (especially at a cancer center) or when you notice a new ache or pain. Of course you'll become an expert on nutrition and additives and the many, many things that are harmful in our environment and you'll try to live a cleaner life. (Good luck with that.) You'll exercise more and eat less. And you'll also pine for the days when you could remember details quickly, concentrate easily, and be motivated in general. You'll curse the necessity of being your own health advocate 24/7, and appreciate your hands-on WedMD degree. You'll wonder how the hell you ever had time to do anything besides go to the doctor and monitor your own health.

Because in the end, it all comes down to this: Cancer is hiding like a hunter in a blind deep within the woods, holding a loaded rifle with its sights set on you and me. 

And that ain't no gift.

The Farmer's Market is Open!

To contact us Click HERE

Freshly washed butter crunch lettuce. Photo by Angela Tague.

Have you ever shopped in a store where every display seemed to call your name?

Handcrafted beeswax lip balm? Yes, please!
Spinach speckled with local soil? Bring it on!
Glistening jars of crimson berry jams. Yum!

Our local farmer's market opened this morning, which means I can barely get this written between taking bites of my locally grown lunch. Heck, my editors are lucky the market isn't open all day, or I may have missed a few deadlines today!

Since it's early in the season, our local market was plentiful with fresh spring greens, radishes, rhubarb and asparagus.

But, the true find of the day was a head of butter crunch lettuce. The velvety texture, mild flavor and pale color truly means summer is just around the corner. Since this is one of the first lettuces of the season to grow in the midwest, it's always an early garden-season treat.

Is your farmer's market open for business? What local whole foods are you enjoying?

Until Next Time,
Choose Healthy!

Angela Tague
Whole Foods Living

Beans: The High-Protein Food That's Healthy and Cheap

To contact us Click HERE

Another fine article from Real age
Here's why beans always make our best-foods list: They're a healthy, cheap source of protein that'll reduce your risk of heart disease and cancer, lower your blood sugar, and flatten your belly. (Protect your heart with a batch of EatingWell's Smoky Black Bean Soup tonight.)Yep, beans do all that and more. Here are 5 ways beans help your waistline, heart, and blood sugar:

1. Reduce belly fat. A recent study found that beans' soluble fiber chases away deep-down, visceral belly fat -- the toxin-filled kind that threatens your vital organs.
   
2. Lower blood sugar. Beans are low on the glycemic index, which means they're digested slowly, so they stabilize your blood sugar. Translation: Beans reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes. Stabilize blood sugar deliciously with this Very Green Lentil Soup recipe from EatingWell.
   
3. Reduce blood pressure. Beans are rich in artery-friendly minerals and healthy plant protein -- the kind that's better for blood pressure than protein from animals. Substitute the deli meat on your next sandwich with EatingWell's Braised Greens & Cannellini Bean Panini recipe.
   
4. Protect heart health. The soluble fiber in beans also helps reduce blood levels of C-reactive protein, which lowers your risk for heart disease and heart attacks. Try this pasta dish fromEatingWell to help lower your heart disease risk: Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe & Chickpeas.
   
5. Reduce cancer risk. Simply eating beans three times a week helps prevent colon cancer. (You're 33% less likely to develop colon polyps.) Cutting back on red meat can reduce cancer risk, too.

So, what's not to like about beans? Oh, those gas attacks? Ease into eating beans, and take the supplement Beano (available at grocery stores) until your body is used to them. Beano's natural enzymes deflate gas attacks. The elevator crowd will thank you.