Yes, there are more ways to reach your wellness goals. Here are a few approaches worth considering.

My husband is a coffee addict, but I am caffeine sensitive. What can we eat and drink?

Let’s not beat around the bush. Caffeine is a powerful substance. And in many ways it is considered a drug. So, don’t wonder why your husband can’t start the day without his first cup of coffee. Chances are he may be addicted to caffeine.

The caffeine stars are chocolate, coffee and cola. Acting directly on the central nervous system, it brings about an immediate lift to the mood and thinking. What it does is to release stored sugar from the liver, which explains the instant “high.”

These are the benefits. But is there a downside? Yes.

So, be aware and listen up.

When the body releases stored sugar, there is stress on the endocrine system. If you don’t watch it, this could lead to adrenal exhaustion. The result: hypoglycemia.

A caffeine overload can be easily eliminated. Worse, it is stored in the body’s fat tissue.

Coffee can cause gastrointestinal disorders because it is acidic.

For your husband

Limit caffeine-rich drinks to three cups a day.

Eat a full meal or snack before consuming a cup of coffee, tea.

Drink old-fashioned coffee rather than decaf. The trichloroethylene used for removing caffeine has been suspected as a cause of cancer in test animals. Other manufacturers switched to methylene chloride which is safer, but is still under study.

Try substitutes like vitamin-water, fruit sodas.

Make herbal teas like ginger, malunggay (moringa), apple, guava, mint, lavender, etc.

Boost the system with B1, inositol, biotin, zinc, potassium, iron, calcium, vitamin K and niacin.

For you:

Avoid green and black teas, as their caffeine content is high.

Avoid chocolates, coffee and cola.

Exercise.

Drink lots of water.

If you must have that craving, have a little cup of coffee only on a full stomach.

Tell yourself that all things can be taken in moderation. But if you have a sensitivity to a substance like caffeine, you could also have an allergy to it.

Take white tea, one that has been only air-dried and slightly oxidized. Minimally processed, its caffeine content is low. It contains anthocyanins (antioxidant pigments) that reduces inflammation in the body and protects against cancer and tumor growth.

I used to have a good complexion in my 20s. But now in my 40s I noticed unsightly, dark spots on my face. Are there any new and effective treatments to make them vanish?

First of all, the skin, being the largest organ of the human body, is your defense against pollution. Thus, any visible signs of aging will be immediately seen on the skin. Add stress, the passage of time and poor nutrition, and your skin gets compromised. As with any regimen, it must start from within, or no lasting results are guaranteed.

Hyperpigmentation is expected as one grows older. But it can be minimized. This is the result of sun exposure, and is associated with estrogen and progesterone. It is especially common in pregnant women, women who are taking birth control pills (oral contraceptives) and women taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) during menopause.

Sun exposure is also a strong risk factor for melasma. The condition is particularly common in tropical climates.

Inner work

Eliminate high glycemic foods that may cause sudden spikes in blood sugar or glucose levels. Understand that when you eat sweets, the silent damage to skin follows: higher blood sugar increases insulin which causes glycation (binding of sugar molecules to proteins), which then creates free radicals that speed up inflammation.

Reduce white starches and refined carbohydrates in the diet.

Increase vegetable and fruit intake.

Supplement with the universal antioxidant alpha lipoic acid, which is 400 times more potent that vitamin C and E combined.

Increase vitamin intake.

Take carnosine, a naturally occurring dipeptide which can be found in high concentrations in muscle tissue and brains. It has a powerful effect on the brain-beauty connection.

Benfotramine, developed in Japan, is a variant of vitamin B1, which is now an exciting nutritional defense for the skin. It blocks inflammation and inflammation and the damage caused by high blood sugar levels.

External treatments

Biomelasma treatment is the new age approach surpassing tretinoin, kojic acid and tropical steroid creams. With 54 active ingredients from France and Switzerland, it includes powerful peptins to repair the connective tissues where excessive melanin is secreted. Moreover, its apple stem cells rejuvenate skin cells while allowing new skin cells to form.

This advanced medicine treatment is given topically, using no lasers or harmful chemicals. Given in four treatments every three weeks, it successfully inhibits the activity tyrosinase, thus reducing the activity of melanin.

According to Dr. Roe de la Fuente and Blair Ong, RN of Pretty Looks, a popular skin and beauty clinic in Ortigas Center, the biomelasma treatment has been effective in restoring the complexion of women who suffer from hyperpigmentation. (Call 6877505.)

Affirm today: “I take charge of my life”

Love and light!