Wellness for the rest of us

There is so much written about healthy lifestyles, and we have blogged on this ourselves, in relation to reducing stress, improving diet and sleep and exercising more.  We know what to do – so why don’t we do it? Very simply, our lifestyle and our habits get in the way and I am as guilty of this ...

As we age, the presence of protective bacterial species can be reduced, especially when we are exposed to factors which negatively affect the ratio of the microbial populations in our gut.  For example, many pharmaceuticals can affect our microbiota, so too can reduced exercise.  We may also beco...

Our brain, like all of our organs, deteriorates with age and that deterioration is not linear - the volume of the brain and/or its weight declines with age at a rate of around 5% per decade after age 40, with the actual rate of decline escalating after the age of 70.  It’s also interesting to not...

Communication between our gut and our brain goes two ways: from the central nervous system, in the brain, to the enteric nervous system in the digestive system (and vice versa). This communication happens through millions of nerves, the largest of which is the vagus nerve.  The signaling stimulat...

In summary, here are our potato rules of thumb! Potatoes should be part of a healthy diet, particularly in the boiled form and with their skins left on – they are a good source of nutrients, particularly potassium and energy. Potatoes are best for our health when they are cooked, then cooled so ...

Macrophages are present throughout our bodies and in our major organs.  In the lungs, when air is inhaled for oxygen exchange, toxic substances (eg bacteria, viruses and fungi) may be taken into the air sacs – the aveoli.  The lung macrophages are activated and destroy the bacteria and other toxi...