I’ve had fun. I’ve laughed. I’ve cried. And I’ve been amazed and even gobsmacked as I’ve wandered around cyberspace looking for interesting, entertaining, and bizarre health news to share with Healthbolt readers. I only hope that you all have had as much fun as me…

But you know what they say – all good things must come to an end…eventually.

So, it’s time for me to say goodbye to Healthbolt and follow a new path. A path that focuses more on travel and the environment than health and medicine. I’ll still be around though, dropping in occasionally with a guest post or two. But mostly, I’ll be over at Perceptive Travel, Ecosalon (where previous Healthbolt’er Sara Ost is now editor),  and working on my new project The Green Wine Guide.

Meanwhile, Healthbolt will be left in good hands.

Longstanding B5media blogger Marijke Durning will be the new Healthbolt’er. While she’s not a lefthander (a first for Healthbolt), Marijke offers a new, fresh voice that will keep up the Healthbolt tradition of being ‘not just another health blog.’

So goodbye and farewell. It really is time to go…

…woobly smile, hit the publish button, wave and walk away…

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Environmentally friendly ‘adult toys’ are being taken out of the bedroom and into the living room by a Northwest-based retailer who has launched Earth Erotic Parties.

Aimed at putting a sustainable twist on the more traditional sex toy parties, the Earth Erotic parties will showcase green vibrators, phthalate-free dildos, natural lubricants, recycled whips and all sorts of other ecologically and non toxic adult paraphernalia.

Sounds like a company that’s taking ‘doing it green’ to a whole new level. 

Interested?  Then sneak in and check out this ‘earth erotic party’ video over at Planet Green to  find out more…

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Change your habits, change your life (A Proven Plan for Healthy Living) by Danna Demetre. In this book, Demetere, a lifestyle coach, provides a 40 day guide to how you can make dynamic and lasting changes to your life by taking an ‘inside-out’ approach. Along the way, you will learn how to turn unhealthy thoughts healthy, stay active and maximize your energy by eating right, achieve true rest and regeneration, and discover how a  writing a daily journal can help in the move towards permanent change.

70 Ways to Beat 70 (Keys to a Longer, Healthier Life). I’m nowhere near 70 but the tips in this book can be used at any age. In fact, the earlier you start using these tips the better. You already know all this, but sometimes it doesn’t hurt to take a refresher course on the keys to a longer, healthier lifestyle.

Creating Your Best Life (The Ultimate Life List Guide) by Caroline Adams Miller and Dr Michael B Frisch. Another book by life coaches aimed at helping you get the most from your life. Anyone who loves lists will love this book which looks into the latest scientific research into happiness and the role life lists have in attaining happiness.

So stop procrastinating and start reading. You too can start living healthier now.

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Healing through writing is the theme of Writing Away The Demons: Stories of Creative Coping through Transformative Writing edited by Dr. Sherry Reiter. The book is a collection of stories written by those who took up a pen and paper during their crisis -  be it alcoholism, domestic violence, cancer, and addiction.  Informative, enlightening, and inspiring, each story offers encouragement and insight to readers who might be in similar circumstances.

Deborah King suggests that what you hide can hurt you in Truth Heals, a book that focuses on the relationship between the suppression of truth and how this can later manifest into pain or illness. Using her own personal journey as well as client and celebrity profiles, Deborah offers a roadmap for people wanting to learn how to recognize and release emotional baggage.

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What’s a parent to do? Well, one thing that might help is reading Dr Rob’s Guide to Raising Fit Kids. While he doesn’t have all the answers, his expertise as a physician, coach, and parent allows him to provide a general blueprint on how to raise a healthy child

Dr Rob is actually Dr Robert S Gotlin, Director of Orthopaedic and Sports Rehabilitation in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York. He’s also the team physician for the Harlem Wizards basketball team, a member of the medical team for women’s rugby, U.S. national team, and coaches numerous children’s sports teams. He can also be found Saturday mornings on 1050 ESPN Radio hosting The Dr. Rob Says…Sports and Fitness Show.

Easy to read and understand, his book Dr Rob’s Guide to Raising Fit Kids, provides information for parents on how to choose appropriate sports and equipment for kids as they grow and mature, outlines the characteristics of successful coaches and supportive parents, provides dietary information, and highlights fitness guidelines for children.

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Which is why Andrew J Sherman, in his self-improvement book Road Rules, suggests that we need to ‘Be the Truck. Not the Squirrel.’

Unlike squirrels, trucks are big, powerful, and have a plan, road map, and destination in mind. They, unlike the squirrel, don’t get squashed.

Yes, it sounds a bit extreme, even violent and aggressive. But once you get into the book, you’ll find that there is nothing at all aggressive about Andrew’s approach to life.

In fact, the book simply uses road signs and rules as the way to navigate the road of life.

Road Rules puts a new spin on many of the common road signs we see everyday in our travels

For example…

YIELD
We all need to yield to others more often – to other’s actions, to others thoughts and to other’s beliefs. Be open to their suggestions and alternative pathways.

LANE ENDS MERGE LEFT
Pay careful attention to changes in your roadway of life that are truly inevitable. You may be cruising along in your lane of choice, only to learn that you will be out of the runway sooner than you expected.

SLOW: Children At Play
Is an important message to slow down and watch out for young children, but it is also an important reminder to take your foot off the accelerator long enough to spend time with your children and your family

(from Road Rules, pages 89-94)

Anyone who likes to read self-improvement and motivational books will enjoy Road Rules.  It’s a easy, fun, and creative read with lots of little pointers and tips to get your life on track.

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However, researchers are looking to technology to change this learning pattern and have created virtual patient simulators for residents to practice on before using a scalpel on real patients.

Clinical trials are currently being held at the Stanford University School of Medicine to test the effectiveness of this virtual reality training.

They are integrating data from patient’s pre-op CT scans into a virtual patient simulator. The simulator consists of a endoscopic camera and mannequin head that is attached to a touch-feedback device. As the ‘surgeon’ manipulates the endoscope through the nose of the ‘patient’, he or she can watch what’s happening on the computer screen about the ‘patient’.

The computer is programmed to determine just how much resistance the ‘surgeon’ needs to apply to the endoscope throughout it’s journey through the sinus cavity.

No blood, no gore, and more importantly, no real patient to practice on.

Sounds promising.

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It’s not a glamorous role. Looking the part of everyday telemarketers, the Team Diarrhea or Team D players work in a giant cubicle, asking people questions about their food poisoning symptoms.

But it’s a role that is highly important. By rapidly discovering the source of a food poisoning outbreak, continued exposure can be minimized, thus saving people from severe illness, and possible death.

You can find out more about their role in this interesting Scientific American article.

(image source)

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Soap and water work great but sometimes you just feel the need to use something a little more potent  – like an alcohol based hand sanitizer.

But there’s a lot of controversy surrounding hand sanitizer products. Some people worry about the effectiveness of them. Others are concerned about the chemicals put in them – chemicals such as the endocrine disruptor Triclosan.

Easier, in some ways, to make your own. That way, you exactly what’s in it.

DIY hand sanitizer recipe

In a small bowl, mix ¼ cup each of pure aloe vera gel and grain alcohol with 5 drops of tea tree essential oil. To make it smell less pungent, add 5 drops of your favorite fragrance oil. Using a funnel, pour this blend into a bottle small enough to stash in your purse. (Rinse out an empty tube of makeup or lotion to make use of waste.)

The original recipe came from Ecosalon, but tweaked by Lifehacker in response to comments from ecosalon readers.

(image source)

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But if you plan on following his action plan, be ready to sweat.

Huizenga’s weight loss program focuses on large quantities of jogging daily and a strict balanced eating plan. According to him, the body has to work at 120%  7 days a week in order to lose the fat. To do this, anyone looking to lose weight needs to exercise at least 2 hours a day.

There is no time to rest.

As for the type of exercise, the book focuses primarily on walking and jogging as the two best ways to lose the fat.

It’s a program that has merits but be advised, it’s not suitable for everyone.  Those who seldom exercise or who are morbidly obese will struggle with this program and before commencing it, should check with their own doctor.

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