John Douillard's LifeSpa | Ayurveda + Natural Health
Ancient Wisdom meets Modern ScienceAyurveda + Natural Health News
Average Reading Time: 2 minutes and 12 seconds Science continues to confirm our need to live in harmony with nature’s clock, called the circadian rhythms. Circadian rhythm exhibits a 24-hour variation in the body and behavior, such as hormone levels, metabolism, gene expression, sleep and wakefulness, and appetite. (1) Disruption of circadian rhythm has been
Average Reading Time: 2 minutes and 14 seconds Did your mother ever tell you that all your worrying and stress would make you old before your time? Well, new research has proved her right. Excessive worry has been shown to shorten the telomeres on the chromosomes that are linked to aging. De-stressing through meditation and
Average Reading Time: 2 minutes and 21 seconds In my free podcast on pain, “Say Goodbye to Aches & Pains,” I discussed many strategies to help resolve pain, from herbs to help increase blood flow, break down scar tissue, build up and increase muscular elasticity, as well as specific exercises and stretches to address the
Average Reading Time: 2 minutes and 19 seconds Researchers have been fascinated by the power of the vagus nerve for centuries. The “wandering vagus nerve” ventures from the brain into the abdomen, touching and feed-backing information to the brain from just about every organ in the body. The claim to fame of the vagus nerve
Average Reading Time: 5 minutes and 32 seconds The holidays are not always full of joy and good tidings! While we all have the best intentions, often the holidays are a reminder of old emotional traumas or the memories of loved ones who are no longer around. In addition, the holidays often bring a ton
Average Reading Time: 6 minutes and 8 seconds With modern science supporting the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda, the phrase “going back to the future” has never been more accurate. This is reflected in every article I write here at LifeSpa. With the ancient teachings of Ayurveda, I get to predict where the new science is
Average Reading Time: 2 minutes and 46 seconds According to Ayurveda, November is the first month of winter, and the cause for a dramatic shift in diet and behavior. Winter and its dietary prescription of more proteins and fats to rebuild the body and mind while insulating us from the cold winter months will last
Average Reading Time: 2 minutes and 49 seconds In my experience, I have found that occasional sleeplessness can happen for many reasons – for instance, sometimes it can be related to blood sugar imbalances. Sometimes, ironically, your body doesn’t have enough energy to muster up enough sedation to actually put you to sleep. Sometimes, the
Average Reading Time: 6 minutes and 8 seconds In this article, I describe the effect of the mind and its emotions on our health from an Ayurvedic perspective, with a focus on the koshas (which translates from Sanskrit as “sheaths”). (1) The koshas are described in the Vedic tradition as the layers of human consciousness
Average Reading Time: 3 minutes and 17 seconds Slow, deep, abdominal and nose breathing (nasal breathing) has been shown to activate the parasympathetic nervous system (famously known for the “rest and digest” relaxation response), which is responsible for bodily restoration and rejuvenation. New studies are linking deep breathing to numerous and profound health benefits. (2)
Average Reading Time: 5 minutes and 1 second In 2009, Elizabeth Blackburn won the Nobel Prize for her discovery of the protective caps on chromosomes called, “telomeres.” Every time a cell divides, these protective caps wear down, and over time, the telomeres shorten. As the telomeres shorten, the cells start to malfunction and lose their
Average Reading Time: 6 minutes and 7 seconds Everyone experiences fatigue – this is a natural response to overexertion or stress. But for many people in our culture, the unabating experience of fatigue affects their life in a negative and pervasive way. For example, according to one study, fatigue affects more than one-third of people
