It's something we normally don't think about, but things that touch our skin are absorbed into our bodies. They escape the process of swallowing and are transfered directly into our tissues and bloodstream, to join all the other ingredients inside and chemicals inside us.

It goes without saying there's an infinitively long list of things we smear and slather on that would never go into our mouths, but what exactly is allowed in body products that we use? Unfortunately, there's very little regulation of these products. Many consumers may be surprised to learn that the US federal government doesn't require health studies or pre-market testing on personal care products.

I have a friend who I can depend on when I have to lose weight. She is not a weight loss counselor or psychologist or trainer. She is simply someone who  does not like to eat.  And when we spend a week together as we do once a year for our annual hiking trip, I know that I will lose at least 5 pounds simply by eating or not eating the way she does.

Mary Jane ( not her real name) is not anorexic. She is simply very very thin. If you look at her sideways, she looks two dimensional. Her childhood was spent fighting off her grandmother’s insistence that she clean her plate and as she told me, “ when I finally left home, I was determined that no-one would ever tell me that I had to eat what was in front of me.”

Yet another study came out in favor of pistachios (another resent study from researchers at Penn State found that eating pistachios may reduce your body's response to the stresses of everyday life) and that it may offer potential heart health benefits. This is the second one I’ve seen in the last few months. The pistachio industry must be pushing for these studies, but that doesn’t mean they’re not accurate.  The most recent was published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, and found that a 4-week pistachio diet, containing moderate amounts of heart healthy fat, improves risk factors for heart disease with no weight gain. The study, conducted by James N. Cooper M.D., of George Mason University and Michael J. Sheridan, Sc.D., of Inova Fairfax Hospital, found that in people with moderately high cholesterol levels, a daily diet consisting of 15% of calories from pistachios (about two to three ounces or one to two handfuls of kernels) over a four-week period favorably improved some blood lipid levels.  Anyway, this is an interesting study, but keep in mind pistachios have about one ounce of nuts or 47 of them have approximately 170 calories. Eat them sparingly or use them to replace other high calorie high fat foods like brownies.

There are times when I really can’t stand the thought of exercising.  Right now is one of those times.  If any of you have ever felt this way, you’re not alone and there is nothing wrong with you.

This may sound like a completely negative attitude to have towards the activity that is my profession.  However, I’m only human and sometimes the prospect of working out fills me with dread and exercise can be the most unappealing part of my day.