Sunday, November 25, 2012

11/25-Can stress age us?


Thea Singer - Stress Less
Now, more than ever, people are living through some of the greatest stresses. As many as 8 out of 10 Americans are stressed out due to the economy. Out of that 80%, women tend to be more worried than men, in terms of their personal finances, work, housing costs, and job stability. So, what’s the long term affect?
Stress and aging—an anecdotally inexorable link. We’ve all seen friends become symbols of the phenomenon; indeed, we’re all running from the gray hair and sagging jowls, the papery skin and flabby bellies that would qualify us for the role ourselves. In STRESS LESS (for Women): Calm Your Body, Slow Aging, and Rejuvenate the Mind in 5 Simple Steps [Plume; January 2012; ISBN: 978-0-452-29765-4] we learn about the new studies that show that chronic stress may actually gnaw away at our DNA, speeding up the rate at which our cells age by a shocking 10 years or more. The find gave scientific credence to a truth those of us over 25 have known in our bones (and hearts and multiple other organs) for years.
The amount of stress people feel they are under, correlate with how close to the end their cells might be. That means that each of us holds the antidote — the ability to slow that unsightly ripening — in our own hands, or more precisely in our brains and bodies.
But wait, we protest. We’ve tried so hard to be good: We eat right to stay slim and exercise to keep our hearts and muscles strong. What gives?
The truth is, all along we may have been targeting the wrong villains, those we can see—calories, carbs, fat, couch-potato-ness-rather than one that gets under the skin (and radar); Stress.
In STRESS LESS (for Women), we are given the tools to start influencing where we stand on the aging spectrum. We learn how crucial having a sense of control is in reducing stress- and how crucial reducing stress is to slowing the aging process, all the way down to the DNA in our cells. Stress maybe the new biological clock-but we also hold within us the means to slow and even rewind its springs. We have the ability to change how we perceive the world.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Thea Singer has written about health and science for more than three decades. A contributor to More, O, The Oprah Magazine, Natural Health, Boston, and The Nation, her byline has also appeared in newspapers such as The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, and The Boston Herald.  She lives in BrooklineMassachusetts.
“A gem. Beautiful science and practical, helpful, lifechanging information.”
 Chistiane Northrup,M.D., New York Times bestselling author of
Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdon
STRESS LESS (for Women)
THEA SINGER
Plume ▪ On sale January 2012
$16.00 ▪ ISBN: 978-0-452-29765-4

Sunday, November 18, 2012

11/18-Suvir Saran, Top Chef Masters


Viewing the kitchen as both a culinary and spiritual haven, New Delhi-born chef Suvir Saran has nurtured a lifelong passion for the traditional flavors of Indian cooking, which has lead him to become an accomplished chef, cookbook author, educator, and organic farmer.
Saran shares the authentic flavors of Indian home cooking as the Executive Chef at Devi in New York City, earning three stars fromNew York magazine, two stars from The New York Times, and is the only U.S. Indian restaurant to have earned a Michelin star.
A respected culinary authority, Saran is Chairman of Asian Culinary Studies for The Culinary Institute of America, was a speaker for the CIA and Harvard Medical School Osher Institute’s “Healthy Kitchens, Healthy Lives” conference and has participated in culinary festivals around the world.
Renowned for his accessible approach to Indian flavors and techniques, Saran’s cookbooks include “Indian Home Cooking: A Fresh Introduction to Indian Food, with More Than 150 Recipes” (Clarkson Potter, 2004) and “American Masala: 125 New Classics From My Home Kitchen” (Clarkson Potter, 2007). In November 2010, Saran was the only U.S.-based contributor to the largest Indian cookbook ever published, “India Cookbook,” (Phaidon Press, 2010).
When not on the road, Saran and partner Charlie Burd live and care for American Masala Farm, a nineteenth century farm in upstate New York, with their heritage breed animals and pets.
http://www.suvir.com/
For more information about Suvir Saran or Devi please contact Chloe Mata Crane (cmcrane@baltzco.com) or Rachel Wormser (rwormser@baltzco.com) at Baltz & Company, 212.982.8300

Sunday, November 11, 2012

11/11-Resilience: Dealing with the Trauma of Natural disasters including Politics!

Steven M. Southwick, MD
We all respond to stress, trauma, and abuse very differently.  The study of resilience seeks to explain why some people suffer debilitating disabilities such as post traumatic stress disorder while others with the same experience have only mild psychological symptoms that quickly disappear.  In his new book, Resilience; The Science of Mastering Life's Greatest Challenges. , Yale researcher Steven M. Southwickexplore complex genetic, developmental, and environmental factors that can increase the risk of or protect against depression in the face of stress, adversity and trauma.



Sunday, November 4, 2012

11/4-Dr. Barbara Fredrickson and POSITIVITY


THE POWER OF POSITIVITY
How positive are u?  take the test.


Dr. Barbara Fredrickson - Positivity 
Barbara Fredrickson is Kenan Distinguished Professor of Psychology and principal investigator of the Positive Emotions and Psychophysiology Laboratory (a.k.a. PEP Lab) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her research reveals how positive emotions, fleeting as they are, can tip the scales toward a life of flourishing.


Winner of several awards for her research and teaching – including the American Psychological Association’s inaugural Templeton Prize in Positive Psychology and the Society of Experimental Social Psychology’s Career Trajectory Award – Barb created her broaden-and-build theory to describe how positive emotions evolved for our human ancestors and how, today, they vitally shape people’s health and well-being.
Barb’s scientific contributions have influenced scholars and practitioners worldwide, in disciplines ranging from education to business and beyond. Her research has been featured in the New York Times Sunday Magazine, CNN, PBS, U.S. News & World Report, USA Today, Oprah Magazine, and elsewhere. In May 2010, she was invited to brief His Holiness the Dalai Lama on her research.
Barb lives with her husband and two sons in Carrboro, North Carolina, where she continually seeks out new ways to raise her positivity ratio.