I wish to take this opportunity to wish all of you a Happy New Year. Two thousand and one has begun. I hope you are well and Staying Healthy. To inspire you for the coming year, I am including below my 10 Tips for Better Health Now, which were my first ever on-line tips from December 1999.

The year 2000 has been very challenging for most everyone I know. Have powerful transformative energies entered your life? Do you feel a need to work on important issues in your life? Yes indeed, it's been very exciting also, yet I find that people are being challenged in terms of their identity and what they want to do with their lives, and also challenged in their relationships. Issues and energies are polarized with two equal forces, shifting balances (like the recent presidential race). This polarity is affecting our emotions, often enhanced as we enter winter, which tends to be a more introspective period for many of us. There also seems to be a polarity in the male/female relations, so this is a great time to look for clarity and healing in our love relationships.

Don't be afraid to feel for real, and go for your dream! Remember also, quality sleep is crucial to staying healthy, recharging your batteries, and having those dreams arise from your depths. And this is the best season for sleeping. Out of the reflection comes the clarity and new inspiration that helps us spiral up the evolutionary ladder of self.

Think about what you wish to enjoy this holiday time; also, envision what corrections and healthier habits you wish to cultivate for your personal health and that of your family. Remember, we teach more by our behaviors than by our words, especially when applied to the youth around us.

See my January Health Tips where I share my 10 Health Resolutions for the New Year. Now everyone believes we have truly entered the New Millennium. Let us stand on the mountain of our true self and see where we've been and where we're going with our own life and our world, and how to fulfill our deepest personal and spiritual needs. And let's make some fun out of 2001.

Prize Offer: I am gathering Health Affirmations for the New Year!

Please send your five Health Resolutions (or Revolutions) to me and my favorite one will win a copy of three of my books. Here are my 10 Tips for Better Health Now! to give you some basics to start from.

10 Ways to Better Health – Now

1. Chew your food well and take time to nourish yourself. Eat a balanced diet of wholesome, natural foods.
2. Drink one to two glasses of good water several times a day; first thing in the morning and about an hour before meals are the best times.
3. Don't Overeat or eat too much food after nightfall, and definitely not much at all within two-three hours before sleep.
4. Exercise regularly, finding a balance of strengthening, stretching and aerobic activities that will help you generate good tone, flexibility and endurance.
5. Sleep well and rest at least 6-8 hours nightly as your body seems to require.
6. Learn to relax and let go of stressful thoughts and frustrating emotions.
7. Work at communicating both your thoughts and your feelings clearly with your friends, co-workers and loved ones.
8. Really try not to say things out of anger when you have differences with another; remember your words can hurt as much as your actions.
9. Keep your attitude UP and try to see the best in your work and your life; if things are not going well, work at improving them.
10. Love Yourself and let love in your life; learn to express the wonderful ways you feel about everyone around you!

Lastly, I'm including a few tips on eating for holidays and parties, taken from The Staying Healthy Shopper's Guide.

Many Blessings from Dr. Elson

Parties, Buffets, and Pot Lucks

The all-you-can-eat buffets and big holiday feasts are some of the biggest food challenges. How much and how many different foods can your stomach hold and still function safely? How do huge meals affect your health? And how will you feel the next day? Unfortunately, our body doesn't function like a snake's; so we can't eat one huge meal and then eat nothing for days. Still, if you do tend to overeat at a party or pot luck­ and I have done that a few too many times in my life--you can limit your food intake beforehand and afterwards.

At a buffet restaurant or pot luck party, it takes strategy to eat a healthy meal. Avoiding excesses is usually our biggest challenge to avoid feeling stuffed, uncomfortable, and full of indigestion. Limit your choices to six or seven, including desserts. Choose tasty and simply made dishes, and limit yourself to only a few tastes of fattening or rich foods. Also, limit your intake of artificial concoctions. For example, choose some green salad, a rice or pasta dish, some vegetables, and focus on one (or a maximum of two) entrees, and one (maybe two) desserts (a taste or two of each is maybe better).

When you are cooking for a pot luck, make something wholesome that you really like and know you can eat. Then you'll have something you'll enjoy, but you can also share with others what tastes good to you. Does your offering tell them something about your personality? Are you sweet and gooey, crunchy and flavorful, or meaty and hardy? And for those of you who are overweight or challenged by allergies or other health issues, try to follow your personal guidelines for foods to avoid.

Dr. Elson's Going-to-a-Party Plan: (How to Prepare for Eating a Big Meal)

• Before the Meal – Before you go out or at least half an hour before you eat: Drink 1-2 glasses of water with: Vitamin C powder (like Emergen-C) or 1,000 mg of C with bioflavonoids and 400-800 IU vitamin E
• Bring Along with You – to take with or right after the meal: Digestive enzymes and acidophilus/probiotics
• If it's Going to be a Long Night, and Your Energy is Low – also take before you go out: Blue-green algae and sublingual vitamin B drops (high in B12)