SwansonVitamins Weblog

A Celadrin Rebellion in the Nursing Home

I work for Swanson Health Products because I get excited about the natural health industry. I believe in supplements--at least the ones I take--and their potential to improve health. Yet, I have to confess, even I'm amazed at how good a few of them really do work. I have another story for you about my dad. If you're a softy for the concept of good triumphing over bad, and an impossibly happy ending, then please keep reading. I promise not to get too mushy or sentimental.

Lately I act more like a parent to my 87-year old dad than the rebellious child who caused untold grief for him during the early 70s. That feisty spirit of my teenage years is now working on his behalf, though, as I recently fought yet another battle for him against the conventional medical authorities (see my blog post from February 11, 2008). Last month dad moved into a full-care nursing facility. I felt like his mom taking him to the first day of school when he checked in on October 9th. I filled out paperwork with him, took him to all his "classes" like Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Singing and Computer Bowling. I ate in the "lunchroom" with him and I met all his "teachers," the aides and nurses who look after him each day. By evening he assured me that he liked his new home, and he was going to be ok. Music to my ears!

I felt good about the facility and staff, too. His caseworker is a genuine sweetheart! Still, I've seen one too many exposes about nursing homes on 20/20 to assume that I didn't have to visit regularly--daily, to begin with--and get involved in his care. Ten days after his arrival, he greeted me in a wheel chair as he excitedly pulled up the left leg of his pants to reveal a puffy knee that looked like it belonged to an elephant. 

"What on earth happened to you?" I asked.

 "Nothing," was his answer. "But I can't walk. My knee is so bad I can't move it. They have to use a 'crane' to get me out of bed, which doesn't feel so good, either."

I talked to the nurse who had no idea what happened to him. My guess was that he twisted it during the night and had no recollection of it. Whatever happened, he needed some relief. The staff didn't seem too concerned, but said that a doctor could possibly x-ray it sometime that week. Whatever! In the meantime, I had just the thing to help. I drove home and got my Celadrin cream, which always works great for the tendonitis in my right thumb. At least the cetyl myristoleate in it would cause any inflamed cells to settle down a bit. As I unscrewed the jar and started to apply it to his swollen knee, the nurse walked by and caught sight of me.

"What are you doing?"

I explained the cream and my plan.

"You can't do that. Everything has to be approved by his doctor."

"Well, this isn't a prescription. It's just a topical cream sold through a health food store," I assured her, or so I thought. 

"Doesn't matter. Give that to me and I'll call his doctor to get approval," she said, taking the jar from the palm of my hand.

"Ok. I'll just wait here and as soon as you hear back, let me know." I was anticipating maybe an hour tops.

"He might not return my call until tomorrow," the nurse informed me.

"What does my dad do in the meantime?" I asked.

"Does it hurt, Warren?" the nurse inquired in a rather condescending baby voice.

"You know it does. I've been complaining about it all day! It hurts like he**!"

"We'll get an x-ray this week and see what's causing it, Warren. You just hang on."

I looked at my dad, whose eyes clearly said "Help me!"

"He needs that cream," I insisted.

"I don't know what that cream is. And even if the doctor approves it, we wouldn't know where to get it," the nurse challenged.

Uh, I brought it in. Obviously, I could get it.

"It's from the company where I work. I can get as much as he wants. Honestly, we should try this stuff now. He needs something. And this will work. I'm sure it will. Seriously, I'm not leaving until he gets some help!!"

Boy, "I'm not leaving" seemed to be magical words. Obviously the nurse wanted me gone, so she threw the cream at me and said, "I don't know you have this, and I've neer seen you using it. Do whatever you want, but know that you're violating the policies of this facility."

I again looked at my dad, whose eyes were actually twinkling now as he said, "Let's do it." I imagined how much fun we would have had together if he was actually my peer instead of my dad back in the 70s. We're really two of a kind. Renegades!

As soon as the nurse shut his door, I pulled up his pants leg and rubbed a generous amount of the cream on his knee. Then I went back to work at Swanson. My brother visited him later that afternoon and reported to me that dad was up and walking like nothing was ever wrong with his leg. I don't know which was the bigger miracle...dad walking so soon or the nurse letting me use the cream. Reluctantly, she did get approval for it from his doctor, and now my dad insists that the aides give him a backrub with Celadrin every night before he goes to bed. The aides love the cream because they get less resistance from my dad when they try to dress him and take him to activities.

Oh, this is ironic...the nursing home just called while I was writing this to tell me that I have to stop by the nurse's station when I bring in beer for my dad. They had to get a doctor's approval for that, too, and he can only have one per day. Apparently we were a little too rowdy in his room during Lawrence Welk Sunday night. Looks like I'd better bring in a beer for the nurse, too.

Secure a Bright Future Through Your Liver

To the ancient Babylonians, livers were like tarot cards or tea leaves. Priests who specialized in divination read the livers of sacrificial sheep to foretell the future of this 7th century BC superpower. Neither the Babylonians or the bizarre practice survived to our day, and fortunately, the latter has nothing to do with the headline of this post, just in case you were wondering. No, I've been thinking a lot about the importance of an efficient liver lately, not a clairvoyant one. All the same, I realize my future health will likely depend on it.

It all started with a recent article detailing how our planet's oceans are woefully overfished. I had no idea that 75% of the world fisheries are fully exploited, overexploited, or depleted! This incredible statement came from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Quite naively, I viewed the ocean's bounty as infinite. Not so. Not so, at all! One example is a region off the Atlantic coast of Canada called the Grand Banks. This area was once regarded as an inexhaustible source of cod (apparently, I'm not the only Pollyanna out there), but with the introduction of giant factory-freezer trawlers in 1951, which could process 4 tons of fish per hour, its population of cod has been reduced by a shocking 98.9%! The article largely blames the crisis on national governments--all of them--because each one is waiting for the other one to take the lead in imposing legislation to curtail fishing.

I hate to admit it, but as I closed the magazine, my sentiments turned rather selfish. What about my fish oil?! I depend on it as the best source of Omega-3 fatty acids! Am I going to get old and creaky and depressed and senile?  I'll be sick all the time! With high blood pressure, and high cholesterol, and...I'm going to develop ugly scales all over my legs, and age ten years overnight! A bit exaggerated, perhaps, but yeah, I really do depend on it for just about everything health related. I have to accept the reality that there just might not be any more fish oil to be had in the near future, though.

Hoarding and stockpiling is too ugly and greedy to seriously consider. I have a different plan. Most of us realize that there are also plant sources of Omega-3 essential fatty acids. Flaxseeds, chia seeds, and walnuts are all potent sources of a particular Omega-3 EFA known as alpha linolenic acid, or ALA. The reason nutritional experts tout fish oil is that it offers two other important Omega-3 EFAs known as DHA and EPA. When fish eat plants in the water, their livers convert ALA to DHA and EPA. When we eat a piece of grilled salmon, we're consuming preformed amounts of DHA and EPA right from the fish. No conversion is necessary. Nevertheless, our livers can convert the ALA in plant sources to DHA and EPA--they just have to be in good shape to do so. Nutritionists say the problem is that we live in such a toxic environment and we eat such toxic, processed foods, that our livers are overtaxed. Compromised livers may not be able to do the conversion. That's why potent liver detoxifiers may be the answer to the impending fish oil dilemma. If we can keep our livers clean and working efficiently, enzymes secreted by them will get the job done. The best liver detoxifier, at least known to date, is an extract of milk thistle standardized for 80% silymarin. Other aids are N-acetyl cysteine, which helps the body make the liver's own preferred antioxidant--glutathione, dandelion, black radish, lecithin, artichoke, wasabi and chlorella. We have many excellent products for liver health on our website.

I'll continue to take fish oil daily. But I'll also continue to take milk thistle, which I've been using for over a year. Curiously, I just noticed today that a fatty tumor (called a lipoma) about the size of a shelled pistachio on my left middle finger has completely disappeared. I've had this thing for over 25 years, and I kid you not, it's gone! The book Healthy Healing sets out two possibilities: the Omega 3 fatty acids in fish oil have helped metabolize the fat, or the milk thistle has decongested the liver so it could metabolize the fat. I guess it doesn't really matter how it happened--it just did! And I'm certainly not about to cut open a sheep's liver to find the answer, either.  

Ellen DeGeneres and Her Law of Animal Attraction

Ellen DeGeneres knows a thing or two about animal attraction. Long before stand-up comedy, TV and Portia, Ellen was passionate about pets, including birds, a chipmunk and a dog named Happy. In Modern Dog Magazine, she tells of the time she brought a sparrow back to life with mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Still a child, she and her dad were visiting a car dealership when a bird flew into the showroom window and dropped to the ground.  While onlookers gawked to see what had made the loud thud, Ellen rushed to rescue it. And she did! The dazed bird shook a bit and flew away. She also revived a hummingbird that drowned, and has dozens of other bird-saving stories. With such heroic devotion to animal creatures, who better to be part-owner and spokesperson for Halo, Purely for Pets than Ellen DeGeneres? In her letter to fellow pet lovers on the Halo website, she explains how she learned about the company and why she felt compelled to own it. She definitely wants everyone to know about the excellent products Halo provides, since her #1 law regarding animals is that they deserve to be the healthiest they can be. Humans have a responsibility to practice this principle and let it guide all their relationships with animals. Look for more of Ellen and her partnership with Halo, Purely for Pets in an upcoming issue of People magazine.

Personally, I've never been mouth to beak with a bird, but I've been called crazy by more than a few people for my animal antics. My husband is sure I'll meet my waterloo by some canine I trusted while out walking Lily, our terrier. There are a lot of dogs in our neighborhood, including a few Rottweilers and German shepherds. As an ex-soldier in the 101st Airborne, he carries a knife "just in case," while I carry a baggie filled with buffalo jerky. I haven't met a dog yet that doesn't wag his tail and greet us with a friendly and slobbery "hello" when he sees us coming. Lily absolutely devours the Halo Liv-a-Littles treats, available in chicken, salmon, lamb and beef flavor on the Swanson website! It's the wrong reward for teaching her the "gentle" command, though, because she gets too excited to have that much control. On the other hand, Perry my finicky feline, will only eat two things--Natural Balance wet catfood and Iams dry food. I've tried the Halo products and he won't eat them. He doesn't like fried chicken, canned Starkist tuna, or grilled buffalo, either. If I believed in reincarnation, I'd suspect Perry was really Morris the cat from the 9 Lives commercials. At least he doesn't beg for food at the table. The only other thing he likes is coconut oil, which I gladly give him to prevent hairballs. It works like a charm--he never coughs them up like my other cats did.

When it comes to the topic of animal care, I'm with Ellen all the way. Check out Halo, Purely for Pets, and start every day by saying "Halo" to all your four-legged friends.

Tend & Mend with Plant Power

Physical therapy. Psychotherapy. Speech therapy. Shock Therapy. The word "therapy" often calls to mind the idea of hard work; a kind of health treatment that requires a person to go beyond his or her comfort level in order to get well. In the world of therapies, however, there is at least one type that breaks the mold. While many therapies temporarily increase stress in a person's life, this one instantly de-stresses the body and mind in the most pleasurable of ways. It's known to millions as aromatherapy.

Aromatherapy is my kind of health program--something that offers relief through the sense of smell. It accomplishes what eating-for-comfort only attempts to do. While the latter often ends up burdening the body even further, plants used in aromatherapy have the potential to heal us on many different levels. Anyone who has stepped down into a warm bath sprinkled with several drops of lavender essential oil knows exactly what I'm talking about. When you feel like you're spring-loaded and ready to pop, lavender's power to calm frazzled nerves seems near-miraculous. Besides soothing the savage beast in all of us, lavender imparts a fresh, clean feeling to the user ("lavender" comes from the Latin word "lavare"--to wash), plus it is a pleasant-smelling disinfectant for all kinds of cuts and scrapes. Ever burn your forehead when straightening bangs with a flat iron? Smooth a few drops of lavender essential oil across the reddened skin. Not only will it minimize the pain, but the skin will heal without leaving a mark. Lavender is one of only two essential oils that can safely be applied to skin neat, which means undiluted. (The other one is tea tree oil.) Most should be mixed with a carrier oil like almond or jojoba before applying to the skin. If lavender were a celebrity, it would surely be Meryl Streep for its unprecedented versatility. I rely on lavender like Toula's dad used Windex in My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

Here are a few other favorites from my medicine cabinet:

Rosemary--Its fresh, green and cerebral qualities really wake me up in the morning. One whiff and my whole body feels uplifted. It also helps strengthen nerves and soothe tired muscles. Rosemary is excellent when inhaled in a morning bath or shower (which reminds me to order some tomorrow). Celebrity counterpart: Gwynneth Paltrow

Ylang ylang--This exotic flower is a bit heady for some people, but it lends a delicious, sensual note when used with lemon and sandalwood in a massage oil. I particularly like it for softening and rejuvenating the skin. It also stimulates the part of the brain that releases endorphins. Celebrity counterpart: Angelina Jolie

Peppermint--Who doesn't love refreshing, exhilarating peppermint? It's bursting with freshness! I mix 50 drops of peppermint essential oil in a 4-ounce spray bottle filled with distilled water and mist my body when I'm feeling hot, exhausted and completely worn out. Celebrity counterpart: Meg Ryan

Lemon--The citrusy scent from the rind of the lemon is liquid sunshine--happy, radiant and bright. Corporations in Japan use lemon oil to induce clear thinking in their employees. It's also a disinfectant and balances oily skin. Clears the air of stale smoke when mixed with cedar. Celebrity counterpart: Kate Hudson

Sweet Orange--A surprising and versatile aroma. Even though orange is a fresh, lively scent, the essential oil is relaxing to our psyche.  It also soothes rough, calloused skin and helps rejuvenate agng skin. Sweet orange is especially good for calming anxiety and nervousness. Celebrity counterpart: Annette Bening

Clove--Sweet, spicy, and very exotic. Clove is a lingering scent that you won't easily forget. It's terrific mixed with sweet orange and patchouli. I use a mixture of these 3 essential oils in a diffuser or in a carrier of walnut oil to polish woodwork in my home. It smells heavenly! Celebrity counterpart: Halle Berry

Patchouli--Woody, earthy, smoky--you either love it or hate it; there's no inbetween. Patchouli is the classic scent of the 60's counter culture. Highly regarded as an aphrodisiac, this thick resin from the mint family is serious about healing wounds and infections, too. Celebrity counterpart: Madonna 

I was thrilled when we decided to carry essential oils at Swanson. My employee order is getting larger and longer. Still, I figure I'm coming out ahead. Psychotherapists get upwards of $100 an hour. All I have to do is take a bath, and I feel good as new. Well, at the very least I smell herbaly, which isn't too bad either.

Supplements for a Hard-Pressed Economy

Today I discovered that I have been more affected by the current financial crisis than I realized. As I got out of the bathtub, I absent-mindedly reached in the Q-Tip caddy only to discover it was empty. Normally, this situation wouldn't throw me into a panic. My reaction was out of character today, though. I ran into the bedroom, wet footprints tracking across the laminate floor, to pull my suitcase out of the closet. "There must be a few stashed in a baggie somewhere," I thought to myself. I wasn't going to spend even five cents more than I had to at the grocery store. Whew! There amidst an assortment of plastic bags and expired boarding passes was a baggie with at least three dozen cotton swabs. I'd be set until payday, at least.

So what has prompted this miserly behavior? Aside from the evening news, which lately is spookier than any Anne Rice novel, I received notices from not one, but two credit card companies that the interest rates on my cards were being raised due to no fault of the cardholder. I asked my friend Melissa, an officer at one of the nation's largest financial institutions, what's up with that. She said it's a common practice right now, as smaller banks are struggling to stay afloat. They're grasping for money anywhere they can. A client from my part-time health counseling practice, who works for a smaller bank in Illinois, added further facts when she confirmed reports that banks don't even want to lend to each other. Her bank was told last night that it won't be able to borrow as much money until the current situation turns around.

This morning I contemplated where else I could cut back. Books and magazines? Absolutely. Skin care products? Hmmm...not yet.  Supplements? I take a lot of them, but...Here's how I reason on that subject. In hard times you need supplements and organic foods more than ever. Stress is the big health buster. It takes an enormous toll on the immune system. And what am I going to do if I'm sick and can't work? Or my my brain is frazzled and I can't think clearly? Life is becoming more stressful with each passing day, to be sure. On top of that, my 87-year old father, whom you met several blog posts back, has his own set of woes, financial and otherwise. Consequently, he's coming to live with my husband and me, at least temporarily. No, I'm not giving up chorella, krill oil, probiotics and the other nine supplements that I take regularly. My husband concurred. In fact, he's thinking about increasing his salmon oil dosage because it significantly helps his back pain, which is exacerbated in times like these.

A while back, I posted a list of 7 things to help keep your immune system strong. Briefly they are: cut back on sugar, eat more garlic, get adequate sleep, reduce stress in your life, exercise more, wash your hands often and take krill oil. At that time, I commented that five of them were a part of my regular routine, but I struggled with eating too much sugar and not exercising. As I comtemplated the same list today, it struck me that my habits have completely changed! I've practically cut sugar entirely from my diet, and I'm finding exercise to be essential for working off built-up stress. On the other hand, lately I haven't been preparing enough meals to eat much garlic, I'm no longer sleeping a full 7 hours, I'm adding stress to my life by the hour, and I wouldn't even think of paying for the essential oil towelettes that I once kept in my purse to clean my hands. I do still take krill oil, however. I'm hoping this complete reversal of habits may somehow be a metaphor for what the economy can do. One can dream...

The Easy, Pleasurable Way to Detoxify

Have you have ever started a detoxification regimen and actually finished it? The kind in which you don't eat real food for days and drink only distilled water mixed with fresh-squeezed lemons and maybe a little maple syrup? If you nodded your head "yes," please know that I am in awe of you! What you accomplished was superhuman, at least in my opinion. I've tried the aforementioned regimen, otherwise known as "The Master Cleanse," on more than one occasion, and my story has a different ending than yours. Oh, I begin the day with rousing optimism, envisioning a leaner, healthier me in just 3 to 7 days. The cheerleading lasts no more than four hours--tops, though. By 10:00 a.m. it has ebbed into "I'll stick with this torture if it's the last thing I do," as I imagine the pleasure of sipping a cup of aromatic coffee from Starbuck's. Murphy's Law guarantees a lunch invitation that day, but sheer stubbornness forces me to say "no," despite stabbing pangs of hunger. By mid-afternoon an ever increasing headache invades my body, severely sapping my motivation, and by 8:00 p.m. I'm so tired, owly and in pain that the iron will rusts out completely. I usually end up ripping into a loaf of bread and smearing it with butter--organic, of course--just before bed, feeling like a failure once again.

Imagine my excitement when I saw a photo of a woman soaking in a tub with the caption "A 30-minute sole (so-LAY) bath has the cleansing effect of a three-day fast" from page 168 of the book Water & Salt: The Essence of Life. If you're like me and can't endure more than 12 hours of a fast, you'll have to buy this book by Dr. Barbara Hendel! It's full of fascinating information about the health benefits of Himalayan Crystal Salt on the human body. Yet another post and I'm about to mention again the guru-of-gurus--David Wolfe. (Well, no one can accuse me of being fickle.) David Wolfe oozes good health. His skin is brighter and clearer than I thought possible without airbrushing. He's a walking testimonial to whatever he's doing. So, the fact that he likes Himalayan Crystal Salt, too, citing Dr. Hendel and the book I just mentioned on his own website, sealed this regimen as reliable, from my vantage point, anyway. Her book details how to prepare the sole bath and why it works, but I'll outline the abbreviated version in 7 super-simple steps:

1. Pour two pounds of Himalayan Crystal Salt, either the granulated version or the large crystal stones, into an empty, plugged bathtub

2. Cover them with warm water

3. Let the salt dissolve in the water for half an hour

4. Fill the tub with warm water no hotter than 98.6 degrees F

5. Immerse yourself in the water and relax for 30 minutes. Ahhh...

6. Dry off. Do not put lotion or any other topical preparation on the skin immediately following the bath

7. Relax for at least another 30 minutes or go to bed

Does it work? Ask anyone who's tried it, like our email customer care agent Crystal, and you'll most definitely get an impassioned nod of the head. Crystal said it not only works, but you'll be very tired after the bath. Aside from the relaxing aspect of it, minerals in the salt pull toxins from the body through osmosis into the bath water, and the process takes a lot out of the body--quite literally. Her advice? Do not skip step #7. Try the sole bath on a Friday night and rest the entire weekend, if possible, to regain strength.

I'm still in awe of anyone who makes it through "The Master Cleanse." But unless their skin looks like David Wolfe's, I won't ever be tempted to try it again. Not when I can go to bed at night feeling detoxified and successful.

Energy that Lasts All Day--and All Night

I fell asleep at my desk last Thursday afternoon. I don't mean a brief nod of the head or a three-minute catnap. I mean fast asleep with dream sequences that I can still remember. I awoke 20 minutes later with a crick in my neck, which I counted as just penance for my impropriety. Honestly, I've never done that before--ever. Not at work. But last Thursday was a different story. I'd been awake for over 34 hours straight, and I couldn't fight my lack of sleep any longer.

It's not my habit to stay up late at night. In fact, I love sleep. On particularly hectic days, I'll count the hours with celebratory anticipation before I'm back in my Sleep Number bed--set at a constant 55--made up with fresh cotton sheets. However, I did something the day before that changed the course of history (at least mine) for the next 24 hours...

Maggie is our Director of Marketing Research. The first thing you'll notice upon meeting her is the wispy Sharon Stone haircut she's worn for several years. It visibly portrays two of her more enviable qualities--a confident, quick mind and something I've noticed a lot of lately--boundless energy! Over the last few months she has showed unyielding discipline regarding her diet and workout routine, and her reward is noticeable weight loss, physical prowess (she recently completed the biking portion of a triathlon with her sister and mother!) and newfound energy. So when she offered to make her not-so-secret recipe for me last Wednesday afternoon, I enthusiastically accepted. Maggie mixes a serving of our Swanson Whey Protein Powder with approximately 6 ounces of chocolate milk, chocolate Slim-Fast or other chocolate meal-replacement drink, blending it into a creamy consistency to get all the lumps out, then pouring it over ice to thoroughly chill it. I tricked myself into thinking this was dessert, it was that good! Needless to say, I drank every last drop. About an hour later, she stopped by my desk to see what I thought of it. I commented that I felt revived, and we both agreed that perhaps my blood sugar had been low.

That evening I was positively "on" at the meeting I attend every Wednesday, chatting up a storm with friends and contributing numerous comments during the meeting. This was unusual behavior for me. Normally, my plug has been pulled by 8:30 pm and I'm completely deflated by 9:00. When 11:30 rolled around and I wasn't a bit tired, I realized there may be a problem. I propped myself up in bed and flipped through home decorating magazines, hoping that I'd be asleep within a half hour. Midnight came and went. Still not even a yawn. I turned off the lights anyway and laid in bed with my eyes wide open, composing website copy in my head. This went on for several hours, and by 3:00 am I decided to get up and clean the kitchen. Then I turned on my computer and deleted months of emails out of my inbox. At 7:00 am I got ready for work, struck with the realization that I had not slept even a wink the entire night.

The first thing I did when I arrived at work was google "insomnia, whey powder." After reading a few posts on the message boards, I realized that the reason I couldn't sleep may be due to an amino acid in whey powder called L-Glutamine. Interestingly, L-Glutamine can both cause insomnia and be used to treat it. Once again, I was reminded about bioindividuality. The way one person reacts to a supplement may not prove true for everyone. 

Nevertheless, this incident has intrigued me about the power of whey powder and L-Glutamine. If I can get the dosage right, this little chocolate drink could really enhance my quality of life. I plan to experiment with it, gradually adding whey powder to my morning fruit/veggie smoothie. My hope is that if I take it early enough in the day, I can make it through Jay Leno's monologue before I turn in for the night. Just like the good ol' days.

Swansonvitamins.com Goes Under the Knife; Looking Better than Ever

Cars are overhauled. Roads are repaired. Furniture is refinished. Noses are straightened. And with each of these improvements comes a considerable amount of blood, sweat, tears--and sometimes even pain. Websites are no different. They get upgraded. As many of you well know, swansonvitamins.com recently underwent this type of rejuvenation. Be assured that your shopping experience is destined to be better than ever just as soon as the remaining kinks are smoothed out--promise.

Of all the new features on the site, the revamped item detail pages are perhaps the most obvious. As we've been accumulating many customer ratings and reviews over the months, we knew we'd have to redesign these pages sooner or later in order to help you locate them. When a product contains many ingredients (like SWL001 Longevital), the supplement facts box is unavoidably l-o-n-g. Consequently, the reviews were not readily apparent because shoppers had to scroll beyond the supplement facts box to find them. So we borrowed an idea from our contemporaries, and set up an information box with tabs. Now shoppers can choose what they want to read about first--a description of the product, the details of it such as the supplement facts, or the customer reviews. Down the road, we can easily add tabs if we decide to expand information about a product.

We're also including more payment options to be rolled out within the coming weeks (you requested Paypal!), and streamlined the shopping bag and checkout process to be in line with e-commerce best practices. You'll find the promotion code field in the shopping bag where you've seen it on many other shopping sites, as well as at the top of each page--old habits die hard. The shopping bag tally is visible from any page in the upper right corner. Also, notice the URLs--that long string of numbers, letters, and symbols in the address field on each page. They're shorter--much shorter. Thousands of pages were completely rewritten to enable search engines to crawl them more efficiently; plus, they just look a whole lot better when you cut and paste them into an email or blog.

We truly regret that a few of you have experienced the "stitches and bruises" that resulted from the new upgrade. Just as I imagine those who have had a face lift are hesitant to make their debut in public too early, we were somewhat reluctant to switch over to the new platform. Despite thousands of test orders being placed on the development site, we realized some issues wouldn't be discovered until the site was actually up and running in realtime, and unfortunately, a few of our customers would be impacted. For anyone experiencing this sort of trouble, we tremendously appreciate your patience. MIS and our web marketing staff have already resolved many of the problems you contacted customer care about, and they're diligently working on the rest, even as I blog. My cube is right next to the MIS office so I know this to be true. Even though I smell pizza coming from it every now and then, the techs are still in there conferring with each other and furiously pounding away on their keyboards.

To millions of shoppers, swansonvitamins.com simply looks refreshed, like something's new and different, yet hard to pinpoint. Even though the upgrade appears to be as subtle as Uma Thurman's nose job, the mammoth efforts required behind the scenes to get it there made it a project more on the scale of Joan Rivers' face lifts. And because of this fact, the web team unanimously decided the next time our website goes under the knife, we're definitely notifying friends and family (you!) in advance.  This was major surgery!

Summer's Media Darling; plus Download Health Books for Free!

Grocery stores strategically place dozens of different magazines at the beginning of their checkout lines for one good reason--me, and the millions of shoppers just like me who can't resist stealing a glimpse of Kelly Ripa without make-up while we wait for a price check on paper towel. Come mid-August, though, you'll see more than undernourished actresses and celebrity babies. You'll read about Swanson Health Products, no less!! Right there next to the sugarless gum and TV Guide. Seems that the September issue of Prevention magazine will include a story on supplements that fight pain and promote joint health. We were selected as a source for several of them, including Swanson Aquamin, a calcium and trace mineral supplement from red algae. The feature will also appear on the Prevention website, so when it's published, we'll be sure to share it with you.

Earlier this summer, Swanson Health Products was also noticeably displayed in a segment airing on The 700 Club, a television program of the Christian Broadcasting Network seen daily by over one million viewers throughout the country. The story discussed the use of green tea and L-Theanine supplements for calming stress and ADHD, even in children. Dr. Michael Lyons of Vancouver, BC, has studied the supplement in boys, and noticed a significant difference in their levels of anxiety and ability to focus with 200 mg taken two or three times daily. For anyone interested, here's the story and video.

There's more. Yesterday I received my Raw Foods Gourmet newsletter inviting readers to check out a website that offers downloadable summaries of popular health books completely free! The newsletter reasoned that in order to maintain health you have to learn about health, yet who has the time to read everything there is to know? Hmmm...so far, I'm with her. I clicked through to the recommended site, and sure enough...currently there are three book summaries available for download. Coming soon will be The Sunfood Diet Success System from my favorite health advocate in the whole wide world--wanna take a guess? Yeah, David Wolfe. I think my husband is so sick of hearing his name that he might ban me from speaking it in the house. (So I'll just blog about him at work, instead. he! he! he!) The thing that saves me is the fact that Ronald is fascinated with him, too. Anyway...You'll receive three summaries each month at no cost just for registering on the site. It turns out the offer is sponsored by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, who I also greatly respect and admire. If you provide the names of three friends who may be interested in this service, you can download his book Natural Appetite Suppressants for Safe, Effective Weight Loss. Without hesitation I gave up Crystal, Tammy and Dori for this free book, knowing they would ultimately profit, too. I was expecting maybe a ten to twelve page document, and instead I received 113 pages of valuable, well-written information. After work I stopped at Kinko's to get the pages spirally-bound for easier reading. Then I shelved Gall: Lakota War Chief that night to read this practical advice for weight loss. I thought I was already asleep and dreaming, though, as I flipped through the tome. Leaping off the page in big bold letters were the words "Swanson Health Products." Huh? Did something from work get stuck in the pile of papers and inadvertently bound into the book? Nope. It's for real. Mike Adams favorably discusses Swanson's C-120X for carbohydrate control on page 45 of the book. Now one thing I've discovered about Mike Adams over the years. The man can't be bought. People have tried, but his ethics won't permit it. His appraisal of a product is an honest one, much to the delight or the chagrin of manufacturers and retailers everywhere. (Please, please, please don't change!) The last thing I read from him was an unflattering (to put it mildly) review of Zrii, a new Ayurvedic juice supplement endorsed by the legendary Deepak Chopra. So to see us in his book kind of flabbergasted me. Not that I don't think C-120X is a good supplement. I do; in fact, I wrote about it on this very blog ("It's Carbohydrates vs. Fats: Will C-120X KO Alli" June 14, 2007). But I just didn't figure on a company I work for in Fargo, ND showing up so prominently in Mike Adams' book. Cool.

With all the ridiculous press about the "horrors" of natural supplements (oh, brother!), what a treat to read a few positive accounts--and rather personal ones at that! Now I kind of know how Angelina Jolie must feel, minus the six kids, millions of dollars and drop-dead gorgeous looks, that is.

Tighten Your Skin Without Loosening the Purse Strings

A funny thing happened on the way to work today. My husband walked me out to the car, and as we stood to chat about what we'd make for dinner tonight, I felt him rubbing underneath my chin with the side of his index finger. Instinctively this made me uptight and a little suspicious. What was he looking for? Had he found a pesky, stiff hair that didn't belong there? I got right to the point. "Are you playing with my double chin?" He laughed. "You don't have a double chin," he replied without missing a beat, as would any sharp-witted husband who looked forward to having a nice day. He continued, "No, I was noticing how smooth and firm your skin is. How come it's like that?" Then he started feeling his own chin. "I think my skin is saggy, and I was just wondering what you do to get your chin and the rest of your face so...well, young-looking. You don't even have crow's feet--not even a toe." Wow! This was either the most unctuous show of diplomacy I'd ever seen, or he was sincerely paying me a compliment--and a really nice one, at that.

As I drove off to Swanson's, I thought about his question. Apparently, years of targeted supplements to help build collagen are paying off. The truth is, I've noticed it, too. Not on my chin so much, but around my hips and other places that aren't readily exposed to the world. While I definitely have inches to lose, the skin covering those inches looks pretty darn good, especially for someone in her 50s! I decided I'd blog about the experience today because Ronald and I aren't the only two people interested in firm skin. I was reminded from my TotalBeauty email this morning that the collective globe spends billions of dollars on creams and potions and exercises and cosmetic surgical procedures to tighten up. So if Swanson supplements can save you the $1000+ you'd shell out for a single Thermage session, I'm here to tell you what I know!

As with every facet of health, there is no one big secret to wellness. Rather, health is like a giant tapestry, and every positive thing we do for ourselves is represented by one of the thousands of threads stitched together to form a work of beauty. Still, I know that key supplements have significantly contributed to the resiliency, texture and tautness of my skin. Since I've been taking them, I've seen a visible difference. I've said it before, and I'll loudly proclaim it again: dermatologist-to-the-stars, Dr. N. V. Perricone, knows his subject. Several years ago he identified DMAE, ascorbyl palmitate, alpha lipoic acid and benfotiamine as 4 supplements that help keep skin firm, even reversing signs of aging once they've begun. After reading his books, I decided I'd be remiss if I didn't try them, especially since I work for a supplement company. Now that I've been taking all four of them regularly for about two years, I'm impressed with the results, to say the least. Not only has the skin on my face firmed up, but my thighs, stomach and arms have too. The Swanson System for Rejuvenated Skin was created based on Dr. Perricone's success with these four supplements, and at only $25.96 for the entire kit, I highly recommend it as a "must-have" for anyone desiring firmer, more youthful skin. Follow the directions for use as outlined in the included booklet, which differ slightly from those on the individual supplement labels.

Recently I've also added MSM powder to my daily routine--and lots of it!! I throw a heaping scoop, which is the equivalent of about 10 grams, into my morning fruit smoothie. This form of sulfur is helpful for increasing the elasticity in joints and muscles. What it does for them, it does for collagen in the skin, too. I figure that as I'm s-l-o-w-l-y losing weight, I want to give my skin every advantage so it can retain its resiliency rather than hang loosely as the pounds disappear.  David Wolfe (raw foods guru that I quote all the time because he's...well, in a word...brilliant) says experience with MSM has shown that it works best when taken in small quantities initially (1/4 to 1/2 tablespoon twice per day--this is small according to him..ha!), and then it should be built up to one, two and even three tablespoons, twice each day. It mixes well in pure water, but as stated above, I toss it in my smoothie. I still only use it once a day, though. I'm gettin' there...

Tomorrow I'll make a smoothie for Ronald, too. Not only will it help firm up his chin, but it will distract him from mine. One of these times he's going to find that pesky, stiff hair.