May 15, 2019 at 10:02AM by CWC Less than 24 hours after Alabama lawmakers voted to ban almost all abortions, Planned Parenthood’s Southeast call center is inundated with hundreds of calls from women in Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. Each and every one is asking a similar question: If Gov. Kay Ivey signs the bill into law today as her Republican colleagues expect, what does that mean for my reproductive health care? In a press call this morning, Staci Fox, CEO of Planned Parenthood Southeast Advocates, stressed that abortion is currently still legal in all 50 states. If the Alabama bill is signed into law, it will take six months to go into effect. Similarly, the “fetal heartbeat” bill that the governor of Georgia signed into law earlier this month won’t go into effect until 2020, reports The New York Times. And both are likely to face immediate legal challenges that would temporarily stop them from going into effect. “It’s important that we continue this cadence of reminding patients in states, especially here in Alabama and here in Georgia, that abortion is still safe, and legal, and accessible—and we are fighting every step of the way to make sure that stays true,” says Fox. You can advocate for abortion rights everywhere without leaving your home state. (This Twitter thread provides suggestions based on your geographical location.) Start by circulating a message championing reproductive rights throughout social media, and to any acquaintances, relatives, or friends you may have in Alabama and Georgia.
Month: May 2019
My sisterhood of traveling therapy-goers strengthens my mental health—not unlike therapy itself
May 15, 2019 at 09:55AM by CWC On an uncharacteristically sunshine-y Tuesday around 12:30 p.m., I ran into a friend from Brooklyn during my lunch break and gave her the skinny on my week. I can’t remember which news bite I delivered with more zeal: how much I loved my new (and first!) therapist, or how much I loved seeing Cher in concert. But, I do remember feeling a distinct sense of community and support upon learning my friend and I go to therapy in the same building. My very first session happened the day before, probably 2 to…24 years later than ideal (but who’s counting?). My mental health reached its low point this past winter, and though I wanted to seek therapy sooner, the idea making that first appointment made me feel overwhelmed, stressed, and very small. Furthermore, being able to foot the bill felt impossible. The one thing I have never felt regarding therapy, though, was shamed—and that’s all thanks to my friends, all of whom offer me mental health support that’s proved to be its own therapy of sorts. From a societal frame, it makes sense. After all, I’m a member of the Therapy Generation (and also Generation Anxiety), and many of my cohorts also gloriously feel little stigma about seeking therapy for mental health support. That mood is different among many of my baby-boomer mom’s friends, who regard therapy as a hush-hush, narcissistic means of fixing something broken. And, TBH, that makes sense, too: Even 20
To Prevent Illness, British Doctors Are Now Prescribing Bike Trips
May 15, 2019 at 08:53AM Ride or die. Continue Reading… Author Emma Loewe | Life by Daily Burn Selected by CWC
Do you know what’s in your supplements? “Tested to Be Trusted” at CVS makes sure you do
May 15, 2019 at 08:26AM by CWC There’s no question that drug stores profit handsomely from the sale of supplements. It’s a $101 billion industry, in fact. But since the Food and Drug Administration’s oversight is limited, the content of each capsule is less certain. On Wednesday, CVS Pharmacy announced the “Tested to be Trusted” program that requires third-party testing of all vitamins and supplements sold at its 9,900 locations and online. The new program aims to confirm the accuracy of ingredients while ensuring products are free of specific harmful contaminants. In a press release, CVS says 1,400 vitamins and supplements from 152 brands underwent testing, and 7 percent failed, prompting the company to pull products from store shelves if manufacturers didn’t make changes to the label. “You have standards. So do we, reads the company’s website. The supplements industry has always been the wild west of wellness. The FDA “regulates dietary supplements under a different set of regulations than those covering ‘conventional’ foods and drug products.” The FDA cracks down misbranding, but it doesn’t actively test for label accuracy or quality control. In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers found nearly 800 supplement products containing active ingredients not listed on the label. While the new program at CVS is encouraging, there has always been a “buyer’s beware” caveat with supplements, leaving it to the consumer to do the research on a company’s testing for product safety and effectiveness. Below, a registered dietitian reveals the
Sunscreen *does* expire—here’s what a derm wants you to know
May 15, 2019 at 07:07AM by CWC By now, the skin-care commandment that says you should be wearing sunscreen every single day is so ingrained in my brain that I practically apply it every morning with my eyes closed. I don’t even think twice about it—I simply grab whatever SPF is nearest to me and swipe it all over my face. But, as I grabbed whatever was leftover from summer 2018, something I forget to pay attention to is the fact that sunscreen can expire. Oops. “Sunscreens are classified as an ‘over-the-counter drug’ (OTC), and because of this, the FDA requires that they have an expiration date,” says Loretta Ciraldo, MD, FAAD, dermatologist and founder of Dr. Loretta Skincare. And that expiration date depends on a couple of factors including the formula and the product packaging, according to Sofia Gracia, director of product development at Supergoop! “[An SPF’s shelf life is dictated by] the formula itself, or how well a product is formulated, stabilized, and how effective its preservative system is; the packaging, including how compatible the materials are with the formula and how well they protect it from the environment during storage and use; and the raw materials—for instance, natural ingredients like oils, butters, and extracts have a shorter shelf life and are also much more sensitive to light and air exposure,” says Gracia. “Sunscreens are classified as an ‘over-the-counter drug’ (OTC), and because of this, the FDA requires that they have an expiration date.” —Dr. Loretta Ciraldo Whichever
Honeymoons have evolved drastically over the centuries—but so have relationships, and it’s all good news
May 15, 2019 at 07:00AM by CWC At a post-wedding brunch I recently attended, reception talk quickly turned to honeymoon talk. The bride and groom weren’t going on theirs right away, and the other couples at my table were trading stories of what they did for their honeymoons—the good, the bad, the stress-inducing. That left me, only a plus-one, half-listening when my boyfriend asked, “Would you want that? Get married and then jump on a plane the next day?” I stopped chewing my bagel and thought, eventually saying, “no,” definitively. I’m always the date, never the bride or even the bridesmaid, so I know very little about honeymoons on a personal level. I’m familiar with a few buzzwords: the minimoon, the buddymoon, and most recently, the solomoon, The New York Times’ attempt to put on its most fetch Gretchen Wieners hat and will a non-thing to be a thing. Beyond that, I’m aware that honeymoons are often luxe, expensive, and, by extension, Instagramable. (WeddingWire’s 2019 Newlywed Report of 18,000 couples estimates the average honeymoon costs $4,500.) And, per rom-coms and sitcoms, I know you’re supposed to return home from one looking sun-kissed and acting smarmy after having spent two weeks boning tropically offscreen. But, really, that’s all I know. So I went way back to the beginning to educate myself. Contrary to popular belief, the term “honeymoon” doesn’t reference the honey mead allegedly gifted to medieval-era brides and grooms—a custom that historian and author of Marriage, a History Stephanie Coontz
32 life lessons from chef and wellness expert Candice Kumai
May 15, 2019 at 03:30AM by CWC After a visit to her ancestral homeland, chef and wellness expert Candice Kumai returned a changed woman. Now, to celebrate her birthday, the Well+Good Council member shares some of the life lessons that have helped her most. Returning from Japan, as the wheels of the plane touched down in my home state of California, things felt different. Life felt different. I felt better. My friends said I sounded different and looked better than ever. I had spent more than a month in Japan to write, develop, fund, shoot, and host an on-camera documentary for a Japanese network. It was a heavy responsibility and a tall, labor-filled order. With my small crew, I stayed in the mountains with monks, meditated in the temples, chased my grandfather’s art with Mom in Kyushu. I wrote among the new cherry blossoms, indulged on ramen, studied matcha with the masters in Uji, went crazy on Japanese beauty in Tokyo and, finally, conducted interviews with six atomic bomb survivors in Nagasaki. Each one was 80-something years young. Talk about perspective. Being vulnerable with the people we respect most is hard. Needless to say, it was impossible to have dry eyes on this trip. I cried with each survivor in Nagasaki. I felt more present in letting go. I’m still reflecting and processing upon what I found… and how it’s made me look at life through a completely different lens. I would not say I live an ordinary life. (Neither
The Surprising Risk Of Believing That Money Makes You Successful
May 15, 2019 at 02:02AM Time to separate net worth from self-worth. Continue Reading… Author Emma Loewe | Life by Daily Burn Selected by CWC
5 essential stretches to take your squats even deeper
May 15, 2019 at 02:00AM by CWC Finding perfect squat form should be the goal of every amateur athlete. After all, squats are a foundational movement of almost every workout routine with a wide variety of modifications for every skill level. Before you step up to a series of #sorefordays variations, a few squat stretches can help you to get comfortable with the original movement. Amanda Bisk, exercise psychologist and yoga teacher, recommends different stretches that make it easier to master your preferred technique. “Squats are one of the most common exercises we do, but often the one we can’t get quite right,” she writes on Instagram. “Whether you feel like you’re falling backward as you sit down, you can’t quite get your glutes to activate, or you suffer from knee pain, these stretches will help improve essential mobility in your ankles and hips.” To better your squat form, start incorporating these simple stretches into your routine. As your mobility improves, so will your ability to get the ultimate booty burn. The best stretches for better squats, according to Amanda Bisk View this post on Instagram A post shared by Amanda Bisk (@amandabisk) on May 14, 2019 at 6:20am PDT //www.instagram.com/embed.js 1. Plantar fascia stretch Not all stretches for squats are created equal. This one targets the arches of your feet since tightness in the area causes loss of mobility in the ankle and discomfort in the calf muscles. Ankle mobility is essential for getting deeper in your
The Two Best Dietary Changes You Can Make To Boost Gut Health
May 15, 2019 at 01:04AM Whether you’re keto or vegan, you can incorporate these two strategies. Continue Reading… Author Samantha Nazareth, M.D. | Life by Daily Burn Selected by CWC