It has been a tough day and you want a reward.

Pizza? No. It will take too many additional miles to burn it off.

Brownies? Garbage food.

Mocha? I am already too hyper.

How about Goji? We have a winner!

Discovered in the Himalaya Mountains some 5000 years ago, Goji fruit is considered one the healthiest substances on the planet. Research has shown Goji to possess antioxidant and anti-microbial qualities, great immune booster,  high in Vitamin C and exceptional for the liver and the spleen. Goji, botanically known as Lycium Barbarum has also been a traditional blood builder and known to strength vision. Historically, it is considered a powerful anti-aging/longevity herb.

A small company called Himalania makes “Chocolate Covered Goji Berries” which can be found at most health stores. It is a 6 oz. bag of the small goji berries covered in dark chocolate. The taste is a blend of slightly bitter and sweet from the dark chocolate mixed with the slightly sour and sweet from the goji berries. This amalgamation of flavors makes it an extremely tasty, healthy snack.

Not often do the words “tasty” and “health” and “snack” fit in the same sentence.

And the winner is. . . .

Coffee!

No, not that kind of palm reading. This one will identify antioxidant levels, not foretell the future.

An innovative company called Pharmanex created a tool called the Biophoton Scanner to measure the carotenoid antioxidant levels in your skin and prove the effectiveness of your supplements in improving your overall antioxidant health. This is a breakthrough testing method to determine a major marker in one’s immunity and aging.

What are Antioxidants and why are they important?

Antioxidants are substances that help the body remove Free Radicals. Free Radicals are highly reactive, short lived molecules that can damage proteins, fats, and even DNA inside of our bodies. Every day our cells get about 75, 000 free radical hits to their DNA. Most of the damage can be corrected by repairing enzymes inside the body, but the damage that can’t be repaired accumulates over time and can add to the problems associated with the aging process. This is where antioxidants come into play. In short, they assist the body in removing them from our system, thus improving immunity, slow the aging process and elevate overall health levels.

The key is taking both the correct ones and more so, the correct amount. Blood tests have been the usual method of testing for levels but cost, time and discomfort are factors that most people have objections about. Enter the Biophoton Scanner. It is simple, safe and accurate. How simple?

Place the palm of your hand in front of the Scanner’s safe, low energy blue laser light and you will obtain an immediate reading of the antioxidant levels in your system. Based on these reading, your supplement regimen will be adjusted accordingly. What would normally take a couple of days or weeks with blood tests, now takes about 30 seconds.

The Biophoton Scanner may not be able to predict winning lottery tickets or new love life, but for overall increased health, it is a useful to improve overall health levels and slow the aging process.

The natural “high” produced by exercise could one day be available in a pill that targets a gene in our brains. The Yale University experts say that experiments on mice could show why regular exercise can help people suffering from depression. Writing in the journal Nature Medicine, they say it could lead to more effective drugs. Mental Health charities in the UK already back exercise programs as a way of lifting depression.

While the link between exercise and improved mood is well known, the reasons behind it are not fully understood. The latest research focuses on an area of the brain called the hippocampus, which is already established as a target for antidepressant drugs. The team developed a test to see which genes in this region were made more active during exercise, and highlighted one called VGF. This gene is linked to a “growth factor” chemical involved in the development of nerve cells. This fitted with their theory that, for depression to lift, changes in the actual structure and links

A little change of pace here for the dog lovers out there.

Has Fifi become more like Cujo? Your lovable little lap dog now acting like a nasty pitbull? The answer may be nutritional.

Deficiencies in the essential fats eicosapentaenoic acid or EPA and especially, docosahexaenoic acid or DHA, a crucial component of brain cell membranes are associated with aggressive behaviors and impulse control problems in human populations. Now, researchers in Italy report pet owners would be well to consider adding these oils to Lassie as well.

Scientists concluded “Our research suggest that low omega 3 fats may adversely impact behavoir in dogs, resulting in greater propenisty toward aggression.”

The results were not surprising to those of us in this field. What was surprising is that first they observed the omega-3 deficiency/aggressive behavior in humans and then in dogs. Normally, it is animal testing followed by human. In any event, after you take your omegas, add one to Fido’s food as well.