Dr. Kushner
As we look forward to welcoming in a new year, improving one’s health, weight and lifestyle are on many of our to-do lists. With a new year come thoughts of a new and better you. But how do you get started? Though each person has his or her own issues to tackle and goals to…
It’s that time of year again when holiday gift giving is on all of our minds. For this year’s list of healthy living gift ideas, I decided to share some favorites that have helped my wife and I live more healthfully – and can help you too. To make our list, the item had to either have improved our eating habits or physical and mental health –…
Whether you have in internal drive to lose weight to improve self-confidence or feel better, or you are encouraged to lose weight by your health care provider to improve your diabetes or hypertension, sustained motivation is a key factor for long-term success. However, it’s not uncommon for motivation to wax and wane at different points…
Though many people may be familiar with advocating for their child, an elderly parent or a cause they care deeply about, they may be less familiar with self-advocacy – or advocating for themselves. Certainly, you’ve heard about self-care or spending time taking care of yourself. Self-advocacy takes this one step further where you are more…
Strict diet rules are hard to follow for long periods of time. Examples may include banning all carbs from your diet or never allowing yourself to enjoy treat-type foods ever again. Because losing weight and getting healthier are really important to you, you may challenge yourself to follow these rules in hopes that this time…
I always ask my new patients how they came to see me. More often than not, they say they asked their primary care provider for help to lose weight. Your primary care provider (PCP) may not be an expert in weight management, but he or she is likely to be an expert in knowing about…
Whether it’s the foods on your kitchen counters, eye-level in the fridge or in bowls on a cocktail table, we know that tempting food cues in your environment can lead to overeating. Too often, patients tell me they have no willpower and don’t understand why they can’t say no to all the tempting foods around…
We all know we sit too much – at our desks, in our cars and on the couch. A new study, published in the American Journal of Physiology, Endocrinology and Metabolism, sheds light on how taking short movement breaks every 30 minutes, can improve some metabolic parameters by lowering fasting blood sugar levels. Though the…
When I set out to develop an assessment tool for people struggling with excess weight and the clinicians who treat them, I wanted to develop a tool that was quick to complete and easy to use. This tool had to also address how to help people pinpoint which lifestyle habits they need to change to…
Self-monitoring is one of the most important behavioral strategies for improving the healthfulness of your lifestyle. If, for example, you want to lower your blood pressure, you may purchase a blood pressure monitor so you can self-monitor at home. Reaching a health goal is easier to accomplish if you measure it on a regular basis.…
