Boosting Kid’s Self-Esteem through Yoga!

by Teresa Anne Power

February is International Self-Esteem Month, and one way to enhance the self-worth of children is through the practice of yoga. Yoga can not only help build a child's esteem and motivation but also their over-all health and well-being.

The National Association for Self-Esteem (NASE) defines self-esteem as "the experience of being capable of meeting life's challenges and being worthy of happiness."  Self-esteem is not about looks or clothing but instead what you think about yourself internally.

Children today are faced with challenges not only from our fast-paced technological society but also from peer pressure, bullying, competition, and demands from school and extra-curricular activities. How children view themselves personally can have a huge impact on their confidence, and in turn how they handle situations such as the above where their self-esteem is tested.

We need to develop in our youth a healthy self-esteem characterized by

• Tolerance
• Respect for others
• Integrity
• Responsibility for their own actions
• Self-motivation and
• Feeling worthy of happiness

Children who have healthy self-esteem trust their own being to be life affirming, constructive, and responsible. Yoga can build self-worth by promoting a positive outlook, reducing anxiety, and focusing the mind to bring clarity and perspective.   

One great posture for kids to try is the Flamingo Pose. This yoga posture helps with focus and concentration, while at the same time building confidence and self-esteem in children as they learn to balance on one leg.

When a child has the foundation of healthy self-esteem, he or she can be better prepared to face the trials and challenges of life with a sense of capability to overcome and work through them.

Teresa Anne Power, avid yoga practitioner for over 30 years, is a leading authority on children's yoga, and the best-selling author of The ABCs of Yoga for Kids. Also available in Spanish, and soon in French and Italian, her book has won multiple awards including, but not limited to, The Mom's Choice Award, Family Choice Award, Living Now Book Award, Moonbeam Children's Book Award, and National Best Books Award. Since, Power has recently released The ABCs of Yoga for Kids 2015 Calendar, and a new interactive yoga DVD, Yoga Adventures with Down Dog.

Power has appeared on both local and national television, and has had articles published in USA Today Magazine, Yogi Times, Violet magazine, and The Palisadian-Post. She currently writes articles about children's health and fitness on Examiner.com.

For the past 10 years, Power has taught young children yoga in schools, yoga studios, and local organizations, helping thousands of kids develop a healthy attitude towards their body. Power has also spoken at numerous libraries, schools, yogastudio, and school conferences. In addition, she volunteers her yoga expertise, and works with Children's Bureau, Pathways, Connections with Children and the Neighborhood Youth Association.  Additionally, Power is a keynote speaker and teaches children's yoga training workshops. A graduate of University of Southern California, she earned her J.D. from Pepperdine University School of Law and has a California Real Estate Broker's License. In 2002, she completed a yoga training program with Indigo Yoga.

She resides in Pacific Palisades, California.

Website: http://www.abcyogaforkids.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-ABCs-of-Yoga-for-Kids

Twitter: https://twitter.com/abcyogaforkids

Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/102676348282263028699/posts

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/TeresaPower

The ABCs of Yoga for Kids is available for purchase at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, The Chopra Center, and many other bookstores and yoga studios.

Opinion: Tennessee Medicaid Expansion’s Bad Priorities

Medicaid Expansion's Bad for State Taxpayers

By Sean Parnell

Sean Parnell

Gov. Bill Haslam proposes to expand Tennessee's Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act. The governor's heart may be in the right place, and he may have persuaded himself that it's better to accept federal funding for the expansion than leave it on the table, but Tennessee's legislators and citizens shouldn't make the same mistake.

On its face, expansion might appear to be a no-brainer. The federal government will pay for all of the expansion cost for the first few years, and 90 percent afterwards. The expansion would undoubtedly help reduce the number of people who are considered uninsured, which is probably a good thing.

But once you get past the pro-expansion talking points, things look far less rosy. In fact, getting on the expansion bandwagon is almost certain to end up in disaster.

Consider the high level of federal funds involved. The federal government normally covers about 65 percent of what Tennessee pays for its Medicaid program. Getting 90 percent covered for people made newly eligible under an expansion is obviously a better deal than that.

That 90 percent share, however, is not carved in stone. In fact, in past budgets both the Republican Congress and President Obama himself have suggested the federal government's share under the expansion should be reduced.

When that happens (and the federal budget deficits that loom in the next couple of years pretty much guarantee it's a matter of when, not if), Tennessee will have to make some pretty terrible choices. The same is true of the 10 percent or more Tennessee will definitely have to come up with once the federal match drops; that money has to come from somewhere.

What kind of choices will Tennessee have to make to fund its share of the expansion, whatever percentage it ends up being? Raising taxes to cover the shortfall is one obvious option. Perhaps the state will impose an income tax – fightin' words for many Tennesseans.

Another option would be to reduce funding for other items in the state budget. Education would be the obvious place to take from, given K–12 and higher education spending currently consume just under half of Tennessee's general funds.

Another option would be to reduce state funding for those currently on Medicaid, primarily poor, single mothers and their children, plus the elderly, and instead protect spending for the expansion population, primarily able-bodied childless men, more than one-third of whom have criminal backgrounds.

This rather cruel choice would make great sense in financial terms, because the way the federal match works, cutting poor women, children, and the elderly loses less funding for the state than cutting childless, able-bodied males. For every $100 the state spends on its traditional Medicaid population, it receives $186 in federal funds, whereas for every $100 it spends on the expansion population, it receives $900. That's a huge incentive for the state to cut funding for low-income mothers, children, and old people.

And although lowering the number of uninsured may seem a good thing, it does little to provide more access to care. Medicaid badly underpays doctors and hospitals, causing many of them to refuse to accept more than a small number of patients covered under the program.

Gov. Haslam should focus his energies on getting real reform for his state's Medicaid program, starting with pushing for block grants that give him and the legislature the flexibility they need to craft solutions that work in Tennessee instead of satisfying the whims of politicians and bureaucrats in Washington, DC.

Sean Parnell (sparnell@heartland.org) is managing editor of Health Care News.

21-Day Tummy Cookbook

The new year is in fill swing and many of us have made our new years sresolutions for a healthier and happier self.  Many of us have already stopped our resolutions.  Now is the best time to start back on your resolution to a healthier and happier you.  21-Day Tummy Diet Cookbook is a simple and easy way to help you as you work on a better you this year.

Belly fat plagues millions of Americans. So do bloating, heartburn and other tummy troubles. It’s no coincidence that these problems often occur together. As Reader's Digest editor-in-chief, New York Times best-selling author and weight loss expert Liz Vaccariello revealed in the 21-Day Tummy diet plan, the same foods that pack on the pounds can also lead to gastrointestinal problems, and the culprits are surprising. Based on the 21-Day Tummy New York Times best-selling diet plan, Vaccariello teamed up again with Kate Scarlata, RD, LDN, to create the 21-Day Tummy Diet Cookbook featuring 150 new quick and easy delicious recipes to help increase and maintain weight loss and keep digestive symptoms in check. 21-Day Tummy Diet Cookbook is available now at www.21daytummy.com and wherever books are sold.  New 21-Day Tummy Diet Cookbook Helps

Trim Tummy Fat and Soothe Digestive Discomfort

Companion Cookbook to New York Times Best-Selling 21 Day Tummy Diet Plan

Features 150 Quick and Easy Recipes

 21-Day Tummy Cookbook is chock full of healthy and tasty recipes to shrink, sooth and satisfy any belly. Most people who suffer from chronic digestive issues assume they either need to eat bland foods or rely on pills to feel better. But the foods that help us both shrink and soothe our stomachs—which the diet calls “Belly Buddies”—include delicious favorites such as Greek yogurt, strawberries, peanut butter, maple syrup, and potatoes. The cookbook’s recipes feature many healthful foods designed to balance gut flora for optimal health and weight loss. The easy-to-use cookbook focuses on carb-light, anti-inflammatory foods scientifically proven to balance gut flora, reduce inflammation, soothe the digestive system and shrink fat cells (“Belly Buddies”), while avoiding pro-inflammatory fats and high-fructose foods (“Belly Bullies”).

 The thousands of Americans who have already discovered 21-Day Tummy will find 21-Day Tummy Diet Cookbook an invaluable companion, helping them maintain and extend their weight loss results—and keep their digestive symptoms in check—with easy recipes they can make at home. For those who haven’t yet experienced the diet, the book includes the basics of the eating plan so they can enjoy the same amazing results as readers of the original book.

 “The 21-Day Tummy Diet Cookbook is filled with tummy-taming recipes that are easy to make and use ingredients that shrink and calm tummies,” said Vaccariello. “Best of all for the busiest among us – most recipes can be prepared in less than 30 minutes, are easy to make, and can be frozen for easy on-the-go meals during a hectic week. But most importantly, they help you stay healthier, happier and feeling your best.”

21-Day Tummy Diet Cookbook includes: 

·         150 Delicious and Easy Recipes that Incorporate Belly Buddies – Tasty, detailed recipes that help shrink and soothe stomachs and cover every type of meal. From breakfast, soups and salads to one-dish mains, sides and desserts, scrumptious recipes include potato, ham and cheddar hash; Italian chicken and escarole soup; roast turkey breast with fresh cranberry relish; crab cakes; shrimp stir-fry; herbed tricolor quinoa; three-citrus coconut macaroons; and chocolate-covered peanut butter cookies.  

 ·         Comprehensive List of Belly Buddies, Shopping Insights, Storage Advice and Cooking Tips – The book details the diet’s Belly Buddies, with spotlights on key foods like kale and quinoa, what to buy at the grocery store – and why – how to store ingredients so they keep longer and basic cooking tips to maximize health and nutritional benefits.   

·         How to Create Your Personal 21-Day Plan – Flexible, simple meal-planning is seamless with detailed sample menus for the three phases of the 21-day plan: flatten first; then soothe and shrink; and balance for long-term benefits and weight management. Plus, the plan includes examples of satisfying snacks and common ingredient substitutions for allergies and personal taste preferences. 

·         Real-Life Success Stories & Advice – Reader’s Digest recruited real men and women who tried out the 21-day plan and cookbook. These tummy testers all lost weight: collectively, they lost 90 pounds in 3 weeks, shed 29 inches from their waists, and reported fewer digestive symptoms and happier tummies. 

·         An Overview of Belly Bully Tests – Guidelines to identify which Belly Bullies are problematic for your system and what you can reintroduce to your diet, so you can continue to enjoy a variety of foods.

 21-Day Tummy Diet Cookbook will show you how to eat in a way that keeps you feeling great 

by Angelene H

Healthy Tips for the Holidays!

Lights on Main Street, Salt Lake City

Starting this week, the holidays will be in full swing. This means a frantic time for millions of Americans with shopping, travel, holiday parties, and family get-togethers. It is also a time in which most Americans gain weight that is called holiday weight creep.

The average American gains between 5 to 10 pounds during the holiday season and very seldom loses it during the rest of the year. Why do we gain so much weight during the holidays? How can people enjoy the holiday treats and parties and not gain the extra weight?

Dr. Keith Kantor, a leading nutritionist and author of the book, The Green Box League of Nutritious Justice, prepared the following list of tips that can help us avoid the dreaded weight creep of the holidays yet still enjoy the parties and treats.

1. Cut down on saturated fat in creamy dressings by mixing in yogurt instead.
2. For a wonderful flavor enhancer, sprinkle roasted vegetables with vinegar or citrus juice. Add it at the last minute so the flavor is at its strongest.
3. Substitute chopped vegetables for some of the bread in your stuffing recipe, this will reduce the amount of carbohydrates in the stuffing therefore reducing the glycemic load.
4. Don’t starve yourself the day of the party so you can fill up on food that evening. If you eat healthy normal meals throughout the day, you’re much less likely to overeat at the party.
5. Remember: The point of holiday gatherings is to celebrate, not to eat. Mingle with friends and loved ones instead of hovering around the buffet table, grab a plate and walk away.
6. Don’t load up at the buffet table. Keep portion sizes small by putting your snacks on a small plate instead of a large one and limiting your trips to the buffet.
7. Prioritize your food choices, if you love sweet potato casserole take a serving of that but skip the stuffing if it is something that you don’t have to have.
8. Present food in various locations all over your home to encourage activities and mingling not just eating.
9. If you are going to drink alcohol alternate the beverages with water, this will keep you hydrated and may curb the increase in appetite from excessive alcohol.  
10. Make sure you include protein and vegetables as your appetizers and throughout the main meal.  The protein from meat and fiber from the vegetables will keep you feeling full and avoid bingeing on excessive sugars and carbohydrates.
11. When choosing cocktails, aim for non-calorie mixers like sparkling water with the juice or limes or lemons, rather than heavily sweetened juices or syrup based mixers.  
12. Remain active throughout the holidays, maintaining lean muscle mass from strength training and cardiovascular activity will help keep your metabolic rate (calories burned at rest) high to offset the extra calories from the holiday treats.

Dr. Keith Kantor

About Dr. Keith Kantor

Dr. Kantor has been an advocate of natural food and healthy living for 27 years.  In 1994 he was appointed CEO of Service Foods, Inc., the largest all natural food company of its kind in the United States.

He has a Master Degree in Nutrition Science and a Master in Business Administration; Ph.D. graduate of Corllins University, Nutritional Science; Doctorate of Science graduate of Corllins University, Naturopathic Medicine.  He also holds undergraduate degrees in Biology and Chemistry.

Dr. Kantor has been married for 37 years to Karen DeFiore Kantor. Karen is a registered nurse and is Director of Nursing for Services Foods, Green Box Foods, Blue Ribbon Foods and Southern Foods At Home. They have two children, Kimberly is the Director of Personal Training for Lifetime Fitness. She is a graduate of the University of Tennessee. Ryan received his undergraduate degree from Clemson University and his Master degree from the University of Georgia. He is currently employed with Bellomy Research in Winston-Salem, North Carolina as a research manager.

For more information go to http://www.drkeithkantor.com/