We love working one on one with you to help figure out solutions to health issues. Using nutrition, botanical medicine, homeopathy & other lifestyle interventions, we aim to get you feeling better and living a life you enjoy. Having recovered from a year being treated for breast and then ovarian cancer, I am everyday grateful for my own health and feelings of well being! We are even training for a triathlon later this month! That said, Paul & I are both back at the office full swing-- come in if you need a tune up; we are also happy for your referrals of friends & family.

One thing we take into consideration with patients is diet; we want our patients to eat healthy food to prevent illness and use food to help when ailments arise. It's the backbone of most every naturopathic prescription. When I sit with a patient and review their current diet, almost everyone can eat more veggies, more salad, more fresh produce. If your produce is grown locally and without chemicals, better yet. But this can be a pricey venture and difficult to sustain.

Enter the world of Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs). We have had the pleasure of being part of a local CSA for the past 2 decades & love everything about it! During the growing season, each week we go to the farm and collect our share of the harvest. Content changes as the season progresses, now in summer we're coming into lush greens, a variety of summer squash and culinary herbs for every palate. The economics of this approach are excellent.

Photo of Next Barn Over CSA this summer, courtesy of Genevieve Higgins

The Next Barn Over where I belong, sent out an FYI on price comparison last week created by Genevieve Higgins, which I reprint. The week's share included:

6 beets with tops

2 heads of lettuce

1 kohlrabi (0.5 lbs)

1 napa cabbage (2.25 lbs)

1 quart strawberries

1 bunch each cilantro, dill, parsley, basil, mint

1.5 lbs summer squash/zucchini

1.75 lbs salad greens

1.75 lbs spinach

2 bunches of braising greens

(kale, collards, chard, broccoli raab)

The price on this haul, when the seasonal share cost is divided by 22 weeks of pick-ups, was approximately $26.

Compare that to the price at Whole Foods (organic options) which would be approximately $68. The price at our local big grocery store, Stop and Shop (conventionally grown) was approximately $53. And I must add, this comparison is without the kohlrabi factored in, because neither Whole Foods nor Stop and Shop carry kohlrabi, a new favorite of mine from the cabbage family. It's also without the numerous bouquets of flowers I picked, because I cannot get enough fresh cut flowers in vases around my home! Being in a vast field of larkspur, snapdragon, strawflower and black eyed susan takes my breath away every time.

CSAs are able to cut out the costs of the "middle man" needed for packing, trucking, and then prepping for retail sales. Increasingly, CSAs are cropping up in all kinds of communities; some CSAs deliver to locations in cities, too, which adds a bit of transport cost but nonetheless offers healthy food choices to our city dwelling friends. You can find a CSA near you on this website: http://www.localharvest.org/csa/

A votre sant�, bon appetit!

Amy Rothenberg ND

Discount on Products from Emerson Ecologics

In an effort to make quality supplements more widely available, we maintain a virtual dispensary through our office. Products we recommend and use are listed, but you now also have access to the full inventory of products sold by Emerson Ecologics. We trust Emerson as they examine sourcing of ingredients contained in the products they carry.

Please click here for more details, to access the Emerson site and to receive your all-the time 15% discount.

Treating Gastrointestinal Complaints

A Case in Point

by Amy Rothenberg ND

When I got to work, I saw on my schedule the name of a patient I'd not seen for a decade. I love when long-ago patients return, and we pick up the thread of our relationship, much like old friends. I am heartened as a doctor to have such relationships built upon open communication, caring, and love.

"After that last remedy you gave me, I felt so good that I really didn't need to come back ... until now," Sally told me. The homeopathic remedy Sepia had done wonders for Sally ten years earlier, alleviating her menopause-related fatigue, depression, and constipation.

Fast forward to our current visit and the reason for it. Sally, now 63, explained: "About six months ago I began to have a sore throat. Well, it was not exactly a sore throat, more of an irritation ... but nothing helped it. I also had this little cough. Thing is, I didn't really feel sick in any overall kind of way at that time ... no tiredness, fever, mucus, or anything else." Over the weeks, however, she also began to experience nausea.

After about a month of these symptoms, Sally visited her conventional medical doctor, who suspected gastro-esophageal reflux (GERD) and prescribed the drug Prilosec� , a proton-pump inhibitor that reduces stomach acid. "I stopped taking it after a week or so, though. It didn't help my symptoms and I did not feel well on it at all, so I didn't see the point," Sally said.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Recipe: Date Nut Balls

For a myriad of reasons, I encourage many of my patients to consume fewer refined sugars. That said, many people have a sweet tooth! This recipe is simple, quick and offers a sweet treat, good for dessert or as an on-the-go snack. It's also packed with lots of protein and good sources of fat. You can make a batch and keep in a sealed container in the freezer; in these summer months, I like to eat frozen!

Click here to read the complete recipe.

Featured recommendation: Peggy O'Mara of Mothering magazine

For many of us coming of age in the 1970s and 1980s and then becoming parents ourselves, there were considerably fewer resources for information and inspiration. One I depended upon came to my mailbox every month: Mothering magazine. The editorials alone, written by publisher & editor (from 1980-2010), Peggy O'Mara, lifted my spirits & informed my own mothering path. And for me, over that same period of time, I began my own evolution as a doctor & teacher. I have long maintained that being a doctor has a huge impact on my parenting and conversely, being a mother influences my skills and efficacy as a doctor. And of course, both inform my writing and teaching. The magazine is no longer published but Peggy O'Mara has her own website, which you, too may well enjoy: http://www.peggyomara.com which focuses on Family, Health & Justice. O'Mara continues to curate meaningful editorial content, useful information and beautiful photography. Check it out!

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In health & vitality,

Amy Rothenberg ND & Paul Herscu ND, MPH

Naturopathic Health Care

www.nhcmed.com

860.763.1225