Striving4Zen

"At first glance, you might not see East Harlem as the place for fresh thinking about healthy urban living - Go Green East Harlem will change your mind." Manhattan Borough President Scott M. Stringer

I am excited to inform you of a very special project we've created. Integrative Nutrition has teamed up with the Borough of Manhattan to create a cookbook and to offer free health counseling for the people of East Harlem.

The cookbook will showcase 100 recipes (in English and Spanish) provided by restaurants, caterers, farmers' markets and community members of East Harlem. Recipes come from many neighborhood favorites like the Greenmarket's peach-corn salsa, Mo-Bay's collard greens and Rao's famous Lemon Chicken. We have provided recipe comments and an icon system to help readers understand the health benefits of the recipes.

In addition, we will be offering free group counseling. Sessions will meet once a week for 8 weeks at a facility provided by the city.

Labels: cookbook, East Harlem, free radicals, health counseling, healthy cooking, Institute for Integrative Nutrition, recipe

When it comes to helping employees stay fit, few organizations go further than the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in Manhattan. The for-profit school, which trains health counselors, spends nearly $700 a week to provide organic lunches and midafternoon snacks for its 25-person staff.
But the caring efforts go beyond the institute's recent lunch of tilapia with couscous, fennel and Brussels sprouts. The school also provides its team with free weekly chair massages and yoga classes.
"We want our employees to be in good health," says Suzanne Boothby, editorial coordinator for the institute. "I can't say that no one here has ever taken a sick day, but the program helps."
Small businesses in New York City, where health insurance costs are among the highest in the nation, are increasingly turning to wellness and preventative measures to keep their premiums down.
The moves range from sponsoring traditional weight-loss and anti-smoking campaigns to hosting on-site health fairs and relaxation workshops.
"Stress has a long-term impact on employee health and, therefore, a company's bottom line," says Miriam Belov, founder of The Wellness Agenda, a Manhattan company that organizes on-site stress-reduction programs that incorporate approaches like meditation and yoga.

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Labels: health care, innovative, Institute for Integrative Nutrition, wellness

We live in a world of modern nutrition. Today, almost everyone is on one diet or another. People dwell on proteins, carbs, calories, fats, restrictions and lists of good and bad foods. Each day we are hit with a new discovery, proclaiming the health benefits of a certain food or the best way to lose 10 pounds in a week. Diet books are best sellers. News programs feature stories about America's growing health crisis or the new wonder drug.
It wasn't too long ago that humans existed without this media blitz, without expensive medications and without diet gurus telling them what to eat. People simply knew what to eat and how to prepare it. People naturally lived in harmony with the seasons and with their surroundings. They ate what was local and available and what gave them proper nutrients for their lives.
Modern nutrition theories are all missing a huge part of what nutrition is really about: the individual. Most nutrition books tell you what to eat without any reference to age, constitution, gender, size or lifestyle. I take what I like to call a postmodern approach to nutrition by recognizing this bio-individuality. No perfect way of eating works for everybody. The food that works for your unique body, age and lifestyle may make another person gain weight and feel lethargic. Similarly, no perfect way of eating will work for you all the time. You may eat different foods on days when you are working outside than on a relaxing day spent reading. Foods you loved two years ago may not agree with you today.
I invite you to pause for a moment and think about your own needs. Do you know the right fuel for your body today? As the seasons start changing, you can revisit your own routine. Health counselors need to shake it up sometimes too. Have you been partying too much and need to get back to basics? Or maybe you've been too rigid and need to be more experimental. Wherever you are, remember we are each responsible for our own health and happiness. Only you know what works best for your body.

Labels: Institute for Integrative Nutrition, Joshua Rosenthal, Wise Words