FitSugar

Review: Hall Naturals Cough Drops With Honey

FitSugar — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 15:00:00 PST

I came down with a bad cold over the holidays, that targeted my throat and left me with out a voice for three days. I think my young daughters loved having a mom the could barely speak, but that is an issue to take up with my fellow sugar mamas over at lilsugar. Unfortunately, my sore throat coincided with my ski trip. When I was able to, I drank lots of tea with honey but needed cough drops to keep me going on the slopes.

Intrigued by the the "vapor action" of added menthol combined a soothing honey center found in Mountain Berry Naturals by Halls, I picked up a bag to try. Honey is a natural humectant, meaning it helps retain moisture, and it is also considered a natural cough suppressant.

To see what I thought of these drops

read more. The berry flavor and the menthol battle for dominance when the cough drop hits your tongue. Luckily the berry flavor wins, though tinged with mild herb flavoring. These cough drops did not taste like candy, which meant my daughters stopped pestering me for them. The honey center allowed the soothing effect to linger after the lozenge completely gone. They did help my cough and soothe my throat. They were not as tasty as a Ricola cough drop, but they didn't taste overly sweet or fruity like other kinds of throat lozenges by Halls. As for the word "natural" in the name. All the ingredients looks familiar except MCT oil, which stand for oil medium-chain triglycerides. I have no idea what that is doing in a cough drop. Here is a list of ingredients: Active ingredient -Menthol 2.5 mg, inactive ingredients - citric acid, cottonseed oil, elderberry juice, flavors, ginger, glucose syrup, glycerin, honey, lemon grass, MCT oil, sage, soy lecithin, sucrose, water, white thyme. Even with the mysterious MCT oil, I would buy Naturals cough drops again. A bag of 20 retails for $1.99.

5 Healthy Reasons to Eat Valentine's Day Chocolate

Leta Shy — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:07:13 PST

It's almost Valentine's Day, and that may mean you've got chocolate on your mind. Though you may be fearing the amount of calories in those heart-shaped boxes, there are many reasons to love Valentine's Day sweet treats. In fact, here are five healthy reasons to eat dark chocolate.

It helps you exercise longer: A recent study found that eating a tiny amount of dark chocolate before a workout helps fight fatigue, which means you can go that much further during your workout. The amount that worked in the study was tiny - just half a square, but if it's good quality chocolate, a small square will go a long way.
It's stress-relieving: And not just when you're PMSing. A study found that when highly stressed participants ate an ounce and a half of dark chocolate (the equivalent of a Hershey's bar) a day for two weeks, the level of stress hormones in their bodies, dropped significantly. While eating a candy bar a day can contribute to a whole new set of stresses if you're watching your weight, it's nice to know that dark chocolate has a measurable effect on stress levels.

Read on for three more reasons to eat dark chocolate.

Grey's Anatomy Rundown, "Dark Was the Night"

Diana Nguyen — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 23:50:22 PST

It's a critical time for our favorite doctors this week on Grey's Anatomy, as more than one cast member faces a life-threatening situation. In the last episode we left Henry coughing up blood, and this week his fate is in the hands of Seattle Grace's finest, but you may be surprised to find out who performs Henry's surgery. Meanwhile, Callie and Jackson's careers are on the line, as Teddy tries to save their patient after post-surgery complications.

After several weeks of waiting, Meredith and Derek finally get word about Zola, and sadly, it looks like the results are not in their favor. However, this story line is completely overshadowed by all the heartbreaking events that lead to more than one surprising death. It's a tear-jerking, emotional roller coaster of an episode that left me at the edge of my seat. Were you along for the ride? Let's break it down!

Sneezy, Stuffy, Runny: Natural Cold Remedies to Do Before Bed

Jenny Sugar — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:27:03 PDT

If if you eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, get enough sleep, and wash your hands a bazillion times a day, you can still find yourself reaching for the tissues and cough drops. Luckily cold symptoms don't last too long, but here are some ways to get relief from your ails without popping pills or swallowing gross liquid.

Heat and Water
Before slipping into bed, take a hot shower. Make sure the bathroom door is closed and the fan switched off so you can breathe in as much steam as possible. Take a washcloth, run it under the hot water, place it on your face and gently massage your sinuses to loosen up mucus. If you have a neti pot, use that in the shower to drain your nasal passages. If you're weirded out by flushing warm salt water through your nose, use an over-the-counter saline spray.

Keep reading to learn three other natural ways to get cold relief before hitting the hay.

How to Breathe When Running

Heather Dale — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 14:57:35 PDT

Ever wonder why some days you feel like an energizer bunny and can keep running and running, while other days your legs feel like lead and you have zero stamina? Certainly the amount of sleep you got the night before, stress levels, and diet play a role in how you perform during your runs, but how you regulate your breath during your jogging session also effects your energy levels. Here's how to power your muscles with fresh oxygen on each stride.

Learn to breathe deeply: Your lungs are just a bit smaller than your ribcage, but we all tend to use just the top third of the lung. One reason being that, like all muscles, the intercostals, which run between the ribs, can get tight and inflexible, limiting the expansiveness of your lungs. When you take a deep breath, you are expanding the lungs, pressing down the diaphragm, and causing your abdomen to expand as your lungs fill with air. Learning to breathe this way helps you take in lots of oxygen while running, preventing dizziness and nausea. With a little training and some stretching you can breathe to your full potential to increase your endurance. Cross-training with noncardio workouts like yoga and Pilates can also help you learn to breathe from your diaphragm. Here are some tips for how to conquer diaphragmatic breathing.

Here's what else you can do to control your breathing during runs.

Achoo! 5 Helpful Items For Surviving Cold and Flu Season

LilSugar — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 10:02:56 PDT

There's nothing worse than a cranky tot who can't fall asleep because he's so congested he can't breathe! As temperatures drop and fallen leaves blanket the sidewalks, mamas start to prepare for runny noses, nasty coughs, and sky-high fevers. Check out these five must-have items to help your kiddo - and mom! - survive the cold and flu season.

Kidsline Ultrasonic Cool Mist Monkey Humidifier ($40): Help baby breathe better during naptime or bedtime with a humidifier. This monkey-shaped mist spout makes the contraption less scary for tots!
Graco Nasal Clear Nasal Aspirator ($20): You'll render your little one's nose "boogie-free" in a matter of seconds with this gadget, and that's pretty awesome - because mamas know that using a standard nasal aspirator is a two-person job.
Ayr Baby's Saline Nose Spray/Drops ($3): Use a saline solution to loosen mucus before using a nasal aspirator or having your tot blow his nose.
Graco 1 Second Ear Thermometer ($17): Getting babies to hold still while mama takes their temperature isn't easy. A digital ear thermometer lets you do it in the blink of an eye!
Boogie Wipes ($4): Sore, red noses are a thing of the past, ever since these gentle saline wipes hit the market. They offer quick, gentle, effective relief of stuck-on "boogies" - and they smell so good, mama just might end up using them for herself.

DrSugar: So Many Reasons to Quit Smoking

DrSugar — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 09:30:49 PST

DrSugar is in the house! This week she's schooling us on the benefits of giving up the smokes.

OK readers, today we are going to discuss cigarette smoking and the short and long-term benefits of quitting. Recently, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has proposed the placement of graphic images on cigarette packaging in hopes to deter people from smoking. Many of the those who commented on the FitSugar article regarding this recent news story seem to think that the graphic images will most likely not deter people from smoking. However, the health risks associated with cigarette smoking are serious and can be life-shortening and life-threatening. If one does decide to quit smoking, there are many benefits for both the short and long-term. To learn more about the benefits of quitting smoking, keep reading

DrSugar Answers: Running and Getting Over a Cold

DrSugar — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 05:50:07 PDT

DrSugar is in the house! She's here to answer your health-related questions, and this week she's discussing training after a cold.

Dear DrSugar,
I'm training for my first half marathon. I'm getting rid of a lingering cold but I'm still trying to keep up with my training so I don't fall behind but it has been difficult. I can't run without my heart racing and having to stop after a minute or so even though before the cold I could run 4 miles without stopping. Should I just not run until I'm well or should I try and run/walk the distances that I'm supposed to be doing?
-Wanting to Run

The topic of whether or not one should exercise when sick is an important subject to discuss, as with Fall and Winter fast approaching, some of you may encounter this dilemma and wonder what you should do. To read more about exercising when sick, keep reading!

Make Your Own Eucalyptus Steam Room (and Cure a Cough)

FitSugar — Wed, 12 May 2010 08:00:07 PDT

Whenever I have a bad cough - take the last EIGHT days for instance - I'll take a hot shower for some temporary relief. The warmth of the heat coupled with the steam helps moisturize my dry and irritated throat and helps loosen the phlegm in my chest. Because the cold I have this week is especially brutal, my friends have been offering me all sorts of remedies, like these Aura Cacia eucalyptus shower tabs ($6). You put one of these tabs on the shower floor with you and as the hot water dissolves it, your bathroom becomes turns into a eucalyptus steam room. Besides eucalyptus, there are also peppermint and lavender tabs available.

This whole process is pretty similar to making a steam bowl with essential oils, except that you get a lot more of it at once. And because eucalyptus is a natural decongestant, taking a shower with one of these tabs really helps clear up my sinuses and loosen up my cough. My only gripe is that they are ultimately pretty pricey, and don't last an incredibly long during a shower. I think I might experiment with this concept by putting a few drops of eucalyptus oil on the shower floor, or hanging a bundle of fresh eucalyptus in the shower.

Five Ways the Healthcare Reform Bill Will Help Kids

babysugar — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 04:00:02 PDT

The headlines were glaring – almost nine percent of US children are living without health insurance, fearing every cold, cough, or earache they encountered each year. With the House of Representatives’ passage of the Senate’s bill, those 8.7 million tots can rest a bit easier.

As the healthcare reform debate dies down, the country’s youngest citizens are one of the biggest beneficiaries of the new bill. Here are five ways the new legislation will help children.

Beginning this year, insurance companies will be prohibited from denying coverage to children with pre-existing health conditions.
Also beginning this year, insurance companies will no longer place lifetime caps on policies, or drop a patient if he gets sick.
Insurance companies will be required to pay for preventive services, including medical procedures as vaccines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control.
For parents of older kids, you will now be able to keep them on your insurance until they are 26-years-old.
The Children's Health Insurance Program, which helps lower-income families, will be maintained in its current condition, even by states that are looking to cut costs.