This simple garnish can be used as a plate decoration, or as part of a fruit and vegetable arrangement. Radishes are easy to find year round, cost very little, are very versatile and look very festive as part of any holiday decoration.  You can make these carvings a few days in advance and store them in a sealed plastic bag in the fridge until ready to display.

For this composition you will need 2-3 radishes, 1 zucchini (or a cucumber), 2 cranberries, a sharp paring knife, and a bowl of icy cold water for soaking the carvings.

Flower # 1: Radish Flat Top Flower. (Steps 1-3 on the picture)

• Choose a big round radish.
• Cut off the top part (green stem) about 5 mm.
• With the knife, chip into checkerboard pattern top, positioning the knife at about 45 degree angle towards the center of each groove.
• Visually divide the radish into 5 petals. Going around the sides of the radish make a slanted cut down, aiming towards the base of the flower to make the first petal. Be careful not to cut all the way through. Make the second petal the same way, also cutting through the first petal (it creates a small petal). Make 5 petals in total. The last cut will also go through petals 1 and 4 simultaneously.
• Place the radish flower into a bowl of ice-cold water to open up the petals a little. It will take about 30 minutes.

Flower # 2: Radish Chrysanthemum Flower. (Steps 4-5 on the picture)

• Choose a big round radish.
• Cut off the root and stem end of the radish.
• Use a knife to make vertical cuts almost down to the stem end. Be careful not to cut all the way through.
• Make the next set of vertical cuts perpendicular to the first.
• Place the radish flower into a bowl of ice-cold water to open up the petals. It will take about 30 minutes.

Flower # 3: Radish Zigzag Flower with Cranberry Center. (Steps 6-8 on the picture)

• Choose a big round radish. It will make 2 flowers.
• Using a knife, cut in a zigzag manner towards the middle of the radish all around, making sure the tip of the knife reaches the middle of the radish, and all the cuts meet up.
• Remove the top. If the halves don’t easily separate, run the knife over the same cuts again, inserting it a little deeper.
• Using the tip of the knife, carve out a hole in the middle big enough for a cranberry.
• Place the radish flower into a bowl of ice-cold water to open up the petals. It will take about 30 minutes.
• Insert a cranberry into the center when ready to garnish.

Zucchini Leaves (makes 2 or 3):

• Choose a zucchini with dark smooth skin.
• Cut it diagonally into sections about 2-2.5 inches long. Then cut each section in half lengthwise. Each section will provide 2 leaf diamond-shaped pieces.
• Hollow out the bulk of the white flesh with the help of a knife.
• Trim each piece to shape it like a leaf.
• On the green side, cut a groove to represent the mid-rib, and then cut diagonal grooves to represent the veins.
• Cut notches around the edges of the leaf.

When ready to display, arrange your carvings on a plate, or in any other arrangement of your choice. Enjoy your food creations!

Most cosmetics, as it happens, fall within the FDA’s legal purview. Back in 1977, legislation on labeling cosmetics took effect. But how effective is that labeling legislation?

Most of us have more or less come to trust ingredients labeling. We’ve gotten thoroughly used to it in the labeling of foods. Most take for granted that, on a cosmetics label, the ingredients will be listed in their order of predominance in the product. We assume that the ingredient listed first is the one present in greatest quantity, the second listed is the one having the second largest percentage, and so on. But it isn’t necessarily so. Read the rest of this entry »

He’s America’s most popular doctor, with millions of “patients” taking his advice via the TV airwaves. We’re talking, of course about Dr. Oz. Well lately, the good doctor is touting yet another magic pill—this time the “Magic Weight Loss Cure for Every Body Type.” Read the rest of this entry »

Hearing the word “osteoporosis” often brings on fear, especially for middle-aged women who’ve lost weight, whether deliberately or otherwise. But it can affect anyone at any age. The usual advice—Take something for it—in this case is calcium. Take calcium supplements and drink milk, they say. Read the rest of this entry »

If people only knew the healing power of laughter and joy, many of our fine doctors would be out of business. -Catherine Ponder

I have a distant memory of a Russian song, with a chorus that goes something like this: According to the research done in Paris, in order to live long, you’ve got to smile a minimum of 17 minutes a day.

Gosh, those lyrics don’t translate well at all, do they? But the concept does. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s widely believed that raw food doesn’t give enough energy. So how much energy do raw foods provide? Food energy is usually expressed in food calories. So, how many calories are in “unprocessed raw foods” such as bananas, carrots, soaked almonds, pistachios, and the like? Read the rest of this entry »

Every household needs a really deep spring cleaning, wouldn’t you say? That same thorough clean-out is the idea behind colon hydrotherapy—a very helpful tool for removing old, accumulated waste and toxins that have been piling up and decaying inside of you for years, resulting in restored colon health and cleanliness, and better overall health.

Colonics—the what and why

Colonics, also known as colon hydrotherapy or colon irrigations, are administered by a trained professional in a clean and private setting. According to the website of the International Association for Colon Hydrotherapy: Read the rest of this entry »

Take a diet. Any diet. Most of us have tried a few in the past. Can you think of one food group that every diet, without exception, recommends? You guessed it—vegetables. Some diets may even prohibit fruit, but you’ll always find vegetables in the mix. And the more, the better.

In the vegetable kingdom, one variety stands out as the most potent health elixir: dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach, kale, chard, lettuce, arugula, mustard and collard greens, dandelion greens, beet leaves, carrot tops, and their cousins. Low in calories, fat-free, high in fiber—no wonder these leafy greens make it into every diet. Read the rest of this entry »

Insulin-Like Growth Factor and Aging

Many bodybuilding websites advise you to combine two hormones—IGF-1 and HGH—in supplement formulas. It’s the kind of advice a fair number of bodybuilders seem to go for—anything to give them the extra edge.

But is that a good idea? Let’s look at what these hormones are. Throughout life, HGH (human growth hormone) comes from the pituitary gland, whence it’s whisked throughout the entire body. The amount of HGH released declines with age. IGF-1 (Insulin-Like Growth Factor) is produced in the liver and works with HGH in an important way. In effect, HGH stimulates the need for growth, stimulating anabolic activity throughout the body, and IGF-1 carries out the growth—especially muscle growth. Indeed, both HGH and IGF-1 prove essential to muscle growth—the bodybuilder’s goal.

But there’s a catch. Lots of scientific data indicate that high levels of HGH and IGF-1 will decidedly age you.

Lower levels of IGF-1 protect against aging and certain types of cancer. When IGF-1 levels are low, new cell production slows allowing the body to concentrate on repairing existing cells. When IGF-1 levels are high, this signals the body to enter a ‘go, go, go’ mode, causing cells to grow and age too fast to be repaired. The result: accelerated aging. Read the rest of this entry »

It is a part of the design of your skin that it has small openings on its surface, called pores, leading into sebaceous glands that secrete oil for skin protection and lubrication. Most skin pores are barely noticeable to the naked eye, and we pay them little attention. Except, that is, when we see them staring back at us in the mirror like so many moon craters. In my late thirties, I used to have this very problem. No more.

What Causes Pores to Enlarge?

While it’s commonly accepted that pore size is genetically determined, several other factors most likely contribute. Hormone imbalance may play a role in excessive oil production, promoting pore enlargement. As skin ages and loses collagen, pores become larger, continually trapping more and more dead skin cells along with oils, which plug and stretch the pores even more—a vicious circle. Enlarged pores almost always go along with an oily skin problem. The odds of having dilated pores are not in your favor if you struggled with acne as a teenager and attacked the problem with your bare hands. Sun damage to the skin can also factor into pores becoming more visible. Read the rest of this entry »