Five To Thrive | News And Events

The Ultimate Mind-Body-Spirit Medicine

Would you believe there’s a secret that can heal depression, prevent heart disease, and help us live longer?

Even more impressive, it doesn’t come in a bottle or with a hefty price tag. In fact, it’s not in taking something that you’ll find all these health benefits; it’s in giving.

Volunteering, or service, helps not just those being served, but those doing the work as well. Several studies have proven this “goodwill effect,” showing that the act of volunteering and giving has powerful healing benefits.

A 2007 National & Community Service report described a significant body of research demonstrating that volunteers have lower rates of depression, greater functional ability as they age, and even longer lives than non-volunteers. The report also describes several studies that indicate volunteers feel less stressed and happier than those who do not volunteer…

In Karolyn Gazella’s Psychology Today blog, our Five to Thrive co-author shares advice for how to truly understand the healing power of service. Read the full blog here: The Ultimate Mind-Body-Spirit Medicine

The Inflammatory Landscape of Cancer

Integrative Practicioner, an online community for integrative healthcare professionals recently published a new article by Dr. Lise Alschuler.

“Our internal milieu, as complicated and dynamic as it is, strongly determines the fate of mutated cells. If the mutations sustained within a cell are severe enough to overcome its innate suicide mechanism (apoptosis) and are essentially irreparable, the cell will have the opportunity to survive and divide. Its daughter cells will do the same, and with each generation of cell division, cancer becomes an ever-approaching reality.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, cells do not function in isolation. Cells are highly responsive to their environment. Membrane receptors translate the surrounding environment into cascading signals within the cytoplasm. These signals, in turn, direct the activity of the cell’s DNA and messenger RNA. In this way, the environment within which a cell resides directs the fate of the cell itself. Certain bodily states create perpetual and distinct influences on cells. This interface helps to explain why cancer growth is stimulated under tissue conditions of chronic inflammation…”

Read Dr. Alschuler’s complete article here: The Inflammatory Landscape of Cancer.

Insights Into Cancer at the UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center

Dr. Lise Alschuler and Karolyn A. Gazella will be speaking about reducing cancer risk through diet at the Insights Into Cancer program held at the UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center, Tamkin Auditorium B130 at 7 pm tonight (Tuesday March 12th). The program starts at 7 pm with refreshments and an introduction by Anne Coscarelli, PhD. Dr. Mary Hardy will join the authors during the Q&A and the program will end at 9 pm. This presentation is free and open to the public.

Fighting the Cancer Fear Factor

Soon I will celebrate 18 years of being cancer–free, after my ovarian cancer diagnosis at age 33. But even though the cancer is long-gone, the fear it brought with it lingers. Less than three months prior to my diagnosis, my mom died of advanced pancreatic cancer. As I began my battle, memories of her suffering were vivid and frightening.

Recently I had a dry, hacking cough that lasted more than five weeks. Instead of seeing it for the winter cold it was, I worked myself into a state of panic, convinced it was lung cancer.

When I eventually calmed down and let logic prevail, I was left with this question: Why, after all these years, do I continue to go there? I don’t have an answer to that question. All I have is the simple truth. I go there…

In Karolyn Gazella’s Psychology Today blog, our Five to Thrive co-author offers a straightforward, personal and practical look at fighting the cancer fear. Read the full blog here: “Fighting the Cancer Fear”.

Follow First Lady Michelle Obama’s Lead

Last year I wrote a story about poison in our poultry, apples being injected with chemicals to prevent browning, and genetically modified salmon affectionately known as “Frankenfish.” News reports also revealed that McDonald’s adds “pink slime” to their burgers and “meat glue,” a chemical binding agent, is being used by meat purveyors to piece together beef scraps to create what looks like premium cuts.

It’s enough to make you sick. Literally.

When did the food industry become so disconnected from nature’s food supply that it would create these abominations—with utter disregard for their ramifications on our own health? Isn’t it bad enough that grocery stores are littered with foods that contain hidden fats, high sodium, and chemical preservatives that require a biochemical PhD just to pronounce them?

I could continue this rant (which so many of you have heard before), but I’d prefer to give props to the First Lady for taking action…

In Karolyn Gazella’s Psychology Today blog, our Five to Thrive co-author addresses some pressing food industry concerns in an open letter to Michelle Obama. Read the full blog here: “Follow First Lady Michelle Obama’s Lead”.

Go Forth and Thrive After Cancer Telesummit

Our friend and colleague Barbara Musser hosted the Go Forth and Thrive Telesummit, an event all about an ongoing “treatment” plan for you; body, heart, mind and spirit. She has assembled a group of extraordinary experts on the leading edge of all these aspects of living and thriving once cancer touches your life. Thank you again for joining us for the Go Forth and Thrive after Cancer Telesummit. If you missed Dr. Alschuler’s show you can still listen to it. Visit the Cancer Telesummit page.

A New Kind of Cleanse

Instead of searching for a harsh detox diet we suggest the psychological detox—a different kind of cleanse. Karolyn shares her 5-step plan to cleanse your emotional, mental, and spiritual health in “The Healing Factor”, her Psychology Today blog.

“Maybe it’s shopping for champagne and indulging on butter-rich hors d’oeuvres that makes everyone start talking about cleanses this time of year.

In the past, I’d be doing the same: Looking up cocktail recipes one day while searching for purging herbs the other. Not this year.

It’s not that I’m forgoing the cleanse altogether, just that I’m giving it a makeover. This year, instead of focusing on detoxifying my body, I’m going to work on making room for goodness in my mind, my life, and my relationships.

I’ve called my plan the CREAM cleanse—not only because that’s the acronym, but also because it represents rising to the top. And that’s just what I hope to do this year: To be even healthier and happier by continuously and gently cleansing my emotional, mental, and spiritual health.”

Read the full blog entry here: “A New Kind of Cleanse”.

Write a Letter This Holiday Season

Never underestimate the healing power of words. Karolyn shares a personal story about the power of the pen in her Psychology Today blog: “The Healing Factor”.

“I had a publishing company with my mom and my sister. After we experienced our first business crisis, my mom wrote me a letter—not a typed letter, a handwritten note from her heart. That letter was a turning point in my young career. She had never written me a letter before and I have never shared the letter with anyone and have only briefly mentioned it to a few close friends. I’d like to share some of it with you with the hope that it will inspire you just as it has done for me…”

Read the full blog entry here: “Write a Letter This Holiday Season”.

The Healing Power of Hope

Can being hopeful help us heal? Karolyn answers this question with her latest post in “The Healing Factor”, her blog on Psychology Today.

“Recently I interviewed Mark Pettus, MD, who is the author of It’s All in Your Head: Change Your Mind, Change Your Health. We talked about how we can “train the brain to be addicted to health”—I love the way he phrases that. Through diet, lifestyle and dietary supplements we can help influence the brain’s biologic response…”

Read the full blog entry here: “The Healing Power of Hope”.

Dr. Lise Alschuler Speaks On Swanson Health Talk Radio

“Dr. Lise Alschuler, a board-certified Naturopathic Oncologist, comes on the show to discuss her recently completed book for cancer survivors and those with the disease that focuses on how to thrive despite the condition. Five to Thrive: Your Cutting-Edge Cancer Prevention Plan shows how people can influence the way the cells behave to create an internal environment that moves them away from disease. It utilizes five key pathways – Immune, Inflammation, Hormones, Insulin Resistance, and Digestion/Detoxification – to affect change for vibrant health.”

Listen to Segment 1.

Listen to Segment 2.

You can directly download these radio interviews and play them on your computer or mp3 player!