Over the past few months we’ve been visited twice by Dr. Carol DeFranca, chiropractic orthopedist of Norwell Spine & Sports and clinical director of FirstLine Therapy, whose mission is to provide therapeutic health and wellness services to the community.

Last week Dr. Carol shared some very important tips to help boost your immune system – I’ve included a few highlights from our conversation below. But you should really come and hear Dr. Carol yourself – she’s an amazing wealth of knowledge and offers FREE monthly “living better” seminars @ the South Shore Natural Science Center. Her next seminar, on women’s health issues, is December 1 from 7-8pm at the Science Center.

Let’s talk about staying well this flu season which is really a multi-step process. It’s (hopefully) common knowledge that simple steps like washing your hands often will help prevent the spread of germs and keep you healthy. But it’s also important to remember to get plenty of rest, keep your stress level down and keep up with your exercise regiment.

*Keep your sugars to a minimum since eating or drinking around 8 tbs, roughly 2 cans of soda, can reduce the ability of white blood cells to kill germs by up to 40%! And the immune-suppressing effects of sugar starts less than 30 minutes after ingesting sugar and lasts for up to 5 hours after.

*Limit alcohol intake as alcohol produces a nutrition deficiency, depriving the body of valuable immune-boosting nutrients.

*Load up on immune boosting foods:

- Vitamin C, in amla fruit, lemons, broccoli, orange, kiwi, among others, increases the production of infection-fighting white blood cells and antibodies.

- Prebiotics, in fruits like bananas, vegetables like mushrooms and nuts like almonds, help probiotics thrive when we eat them.

- Probiotics protect your intestinal lining which is important in nutrient absorption and production of vitamins and fatty acids, and help improve whole body immune responses  that kill viruses and bacteria. Probiotics are found in yogurt and fermented milk like kefir.

-My personal favorite Dr. Carol highlighted was tea, in particular green tea, which helps inhibit viral replication and enhances your bodies ability to recognize invading organisms.

There are many immune boosting foods out there like olives, mustard greens, avocado, flax seed, salmon and the list goes on. For more information come and check out one of Dr. Carol’s free seminars where she provides yummy and nutritious foods to help illustrate the connection between food and health.

I’ve managed to make it 37 years without ever writing the word Boobs. But today not only am I writing it, but it’s for a good cause.  This week the virtual view went looking for the best breast resources online. Here’s what we found:

• A Bunch of Outrageous Breast Cancer Survivor stories [aka B.O.O.O.B.S.].  This book, which you can buy on Amazon.com is chock full of amazing survivor stories.

• BreastCancer.Org This nonprofit raises breast cancer awareness. The site contains must know breast cancer information for patients, families, and anyone interested in learning more about breast cancer.

• We also found a lot of survivors needed laughter in their lives, to help them get through it. That suddenly everything turns serious and people stop joking with you. Here’s one survivor who wrote a book about humor & healing. It’s called Not Now I’m Having a No Hair Day. Check it out on Amazon.com.

(more…)

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and we’re exploring this topic on tonight’s show. Though breast cancer rates have fallen in recent years, one in eight women will be diagnosed with the disease this year. Dr. Laura Dominici will talk to us about breast cancer prevention and the latest technology and medical breakthroughs that are available. Dr. Laura is a member of the breast cancer team at the new Dana Farber/Brigham & Women’s Cancer Center in Clinical Affiliation with South Shore Hospital and we’ll learn more about this amazing resource right in our own backyard.

We’ll also talk with The Friends of Mel Foundation and other local charities helping to raise funds to continue breast cancer research. Join us tonight at 8!

Tonight the virtual view heads away from the South Shore and roams freely out into the world wide web. My mission? all that is good for you (including a few things that you probably didn’t want to know…but are still good for you anyway). are our top 5 favorites:

5. Complete Running Network. This blog covers training, injury treatment and prevention, equipment, motivation, racing and more. They’ve created a Running Blog Family, which they claim is the most comprehensive list of running blogs (1037). That’s a lot of blogs!

4. Delish – a great food recipe site that offers a section on Healthy Comfort Food Makeovers.

3. The Real Age Test – we already know our birth age and many of us can guess our mental age (I’m about 8 years old most days)…but do you know your biological age – the age your body really is due to wear and tear (aka “on the inside”)? This quick test will give you the answer. Don’t be shy…go for it. And for those brave souls who do, share it here with your comments (you can keep your number secret).

2. Feline Cat Diet – this amazing cat miracle diet will have you laughing on the floor in stitches.  It’s a joke of course, but one of the funniest things I’ve ever read, especially if you know anything about cats.  Read it and tell us what you think.

1. The Amazing Adventures of Dietgirl: Shauna, a.k.a. Dietgirl, chronicles her own personal journey so that other dieters know they are not alone in the process, and that no matter how difficult or easy an article may make losing weight sound, the journey for each individual is different.

If you know of a great healthy site that you love or laugh about – post it here and share with our audience.

If you have made a lifestyle change towards living healthier, share your story here.  We want to hear about our audience’s successes, challenges, favorite advice, tips and suggestions.  So let her rip!!!!