Breakfast at Your Desk: Eat Your ... Collagen

I recently read a fascinating post on a health blog about the collagen-rich foods that may do your body--and your skin!--good. Here's a few you can enjoy for breakfast ...

Sara Reistad-Long, a blogger I know over at SvelteGourmand posted something fascinating about collagen in foods recently: "A few years ago I wrote a short piece for Gourmet about 'Collagen Cuisine,'" she writes. "Since collagen is what keeps our skin looking young (it's what facial injectables are made of), the idea here is to eat it. Kind of like that obscure rock band, it's something that's, well, really big in Japan. There, they serve it up in fortified foods (marshmallows seem to be extra popular) as well as elaborately prepared natural sources (mostly pigs' feet). The crazy part is that research suggests this might have some benefit."

10 Tips to Lower Blood Pressure and Reduce Cholesterol - Naturally

1. MANAGE STRESS: Although stress is a normal part of the human experience, it is how we manage stress. Stress and anxiety cause chemicals to be released into your body, raise your blood pressure and cause a reduction of blood flow to your heart. Most people in Stage 1 or 2 of adrenal fatigue typically have elevated blood pressure secondary to increased cortisol and adrenaline. Those with hypertension should always rule out heavy metal toxicity. Excessive stress will elevate LDL cholesterol levels as well.

Winning Formulas to Relax and Manage Stress:

* Prioritize - write down your priorities

* Breathe - Full, deep belly breathing. Start with a minimum of two minutes every day and gradually increase to ten minutes daily.

Breakfast At Your Desk: Have Some Pomegranate Juice This Week!

Do you have some sort of juice every morning at breakfast? There's nothing wrong with our old pal OJ, but pomegranates are in season (and they're so antioxidant-rich!), so why don't we all have a little pom juice? Here's some ideas...

I loved reading Jacqueline's cute post over at Pham Fatale about her mother-in-law's pomegranate-loving ways:

"My mother-in-law is a pomegranate juicing expert," she wrote. "I watch her every day lovingly peeling, seeding and juicing pomegranates for an hour for her husband. She goes through so many pomegranates that the two trees on the property don't produce enough fruit for her. You may wonder why she doesn't just buy commercially prepared pomegranate juice, but once you try it at home you'll know the difference. The commercial varieties (even those with 100% juice) are prepared from concentrate, which definitely affects the flavor. My mother-in-law is actually so fanatical about the flavor of the pomegranates that she takes a knife to the grocery store, buys one, and makes sure it is sweet before buying a lot more."