by Cindy Gilberg

The young male goldfinch flies along in the open cautiously, keeping an eye out for the neighborhood cooper’s hawk, as he seeks the safe haven of a group of shrubs or small trees. His keen eyes are fine-tuned to also spot food, but in this neighborhood there is very little in the way […]

NEW EXHIBITS

Through August 18
TRADITION
Works inspired by Jewish culture; Gallery at Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar; for info, visit www.art-stl.com/gallery.

Through September 7
BAM! POW! ZAP!
Comic art and illustrations; Foundry Art Centre, 520 N. Main in St. Charles; for info, call 636-255-0270 or visit www.foundryartcentre.org.

August 3-September 16
URBAN WANDERERS
Works by local artists inspired by stray dogs and cats, opening […]

Art Is In The Eye Of The Beholder

Michelle “Mike” Ochonicky, Arts Editor

I get a lot of submissions for things to include in my ARTful Living column. Between issues, my email inbox fills up and is generally overflowing. (I’m sure trees rejoice now that we have become a paperless society!). So, I sort through all those […]

With Cathy Burkemper

Natural Relief From Insects and Which is the best form of calcium?

Q: I spend a lot of time outdoors in my garden and I just keep getting bitten up by mosquitoes and chiggers. I don’t want to use insect repellant because I feel they are not good for you. I’ve tried some of the natural […]

By Rebecca Maynard Patient Care Advocate

For most of my life I thought I ate pretty clean. I ate according to the food pyramid; made sure I washed my fruits and veggies, and only occasionally allowed myself to entertain my Rolo & Cherry Coke addiction. For the most part, I was a steak and potato kind of […]

by Dr. Doug Pernikoff, DVM

August is a common time for families to attempt a final vacation prior to the coming school season. People call our clinic asking about boarding references again and again. It is important to educate pet owners to their options in caring for animals while they are gone.

One first option that I […]

The House Wants You to Eat in the Dark and Pay the Bill

by Kathleen Logan Smith, Executive Director; Missouri Coalition For The Environment

In this column, we’ve been learning more about the U.S. Farm Bill, the package of legislation that impacts our food system- what is grown, how it’s grown, and how much it costs us. […]

by Simon Yu, MD

July 2000, JAMA (Journal of American Medical Association) published shocking data that stated a total of 225,000 deaths per year occur from iatrogenic (doctor induced or treated) causes. This constitutes the third leading cause of death in the United States after deaths from heart disease and cancer.

Even more shocking data was published […]

by Leah O’Donnell, Healthy Planet Lifestyles Editor

Southern hospitality is alive and well in Huntsville, Alabama. My family set out for this incredible destination and visited the US Space & Rocket Center. Huntsville is a great place to go on a family vacation or to stay a few nights in route to a southern beach destination. […]

by Jean Ponzi

I float on a noodle in a country lake
On a big pink tube of fossil fuel
Compressed from bodies of Earthling neighbors
When this land lay under forgotten seas
I bob (just an extra) in a pageant of droplets
Advancing, receding with no intermission
Flowing or locked into ice-crystal patterns
Always glistening under a star
Ablaze with energy more than […]

A Gathering Place Wellness Education CTR

A Gathering Place Massage School teaches massage therapy and healing modalities from the heart! With our small class sizes, we become like family. Having fun while learning is a key to helping our students prepare and Pass the National Board Exam. Our National Board Exam pass ratio for 2010 – […]

St. Louis Allergy Specialist, Dr. Manoj Warrier, on the expert panel for the study. 

A nationwide study demonstrates the connection and prevalence of child food  allergies and the surrounding environment in which a child lives; urban, suburban and rural.

Of the nearly 40,000 families surveyed, results showed that the share of children with food allergies  was 9.8 […]

by Teresa Garden, DVM

One of the most common questions I am asked as a veterinarian is “What is the best way to keep my pet healthy?” My answer, probably different from most veterinarians, is feed your pet a natural, well-balanced diet. Good nutrition is the base of the pyramid that optimal health is built upon. […]

story & photo by Linda Wiggen Kraft

Smell is the most direct experience of all sensual pleasures. Olfactory cells link directly to our brains in the areas of memory and emotion. Smelling garden fragrances can be a healthy life enhancing experience, or it can bring a stew of toxic chemicals into your body and bloodstream when […]

Through August 19
Lantern Festival: Art by Day, Magic by Night” at Missouri Botanical Garden
Elaborate, illuminated works of art from China will take center stage this summer at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis. “Lantern Festival: Art by Day, Magic by Night” showcases Chinese culture, traditions and symbolism through larger-than-life, detailed scenes crafted from colorful […]

by Dr. Joseph F. Unger, Jr. DC., F.I.C.S.

Fully loaded in her dock, the old steamship was going nowhere fast. She was ready to haul precious cargo to its destination with many people counting on these goods being delivered in a timely fashion. The captain dispatched every engineer at his disposal to troubleshoot the problem.  No […]

by Kari Hartel, RD, LD
Program Coordinator, Cooking Matters, Operation Food Search

August is “Family Meals Month” and we all know how important it is for families to share meals together. Enjoying home-cooked meals with families has been proven to have enormous benefits in physical, mental, behavioral, social and educational development in children, and families who eat […]

Join the Missouri Botanical Garden in celebrating the culture and traditions of Japan when the 36th annual Japanese Festival returns to St. Louis! From traditional music to martial arts, sumo to sushi, bon odori dancing to bonsai displays and thunderous taiko drumming to Tea House Island tours, the three-day Labor Day weekend is filled with […]

Dogs and cats may not just provide your family with love and constant companionship — they could also have a powerful effect on the health of children early in life, according to a small new study.

New research in the journal Pediatrics shows that children who live in a home with a pet during their first […]

Urban Farming, Lanterns and Our Next Expo

Everyone is talking about urban farming these days and with good reason. Whether it’s creating neighborhood gardens in the “food deserts” of our inner cities, or the modest suburban vegetable garden, “home-grown” has benefits beyond measure. I figure there must be some farmer in my genealogy because I love […]

Engineer, Marine Biologists, and Esthetician Join Forces to Launch Kvell Cosmetics, LLC

Entity has exclusive right to distribute algae-based skincare line, Oceanwell, in U.S.

Established in March 2012, St. Louis-based Kvell Cosmetics, LLC announces its full operability as the exclusive U.S. distributor of algae-based skincare line, Oceanwell. The Oceanwell product line is created by biotechnology firm, oceanBASIS, […]

Do Your Share For Cleaner Air

Article courtesy of the St. Louis Regional Clean Air Partnership

As we head into the final weeks of a summer that has already delivered a 10-day streak of triple-digit heat and a string of poor air quality days, the St. Louis Regional Clean Air Partnership is reminding residents that their voluntary efforts […]

by Steve Lawler

Great things are happening within the St. Louis Interfaith Green Community. People who care about sustainability and environmental responsibility because of their spiritual or religious identity are engaging with public policy issues, composting, solar power, recycling, greening their buildings, urban gardening and more. Temples, ashrams, mosques, religious communities and orders, synagogues, churches and […]

by Paul MacFarlane and Bill Grivna

You’ve probably seen people practicing T’ai Chi on TV, in a movie, or even locally, in a park or at the botanical garden. You know it’s a slow moving, graceful exercise that is supposed to be beneficial. You may have heard that at advanced levels it is a formidable martial […]

Balancing For A More Stress-Free Life

 with Christine Kniffen, MSW, LCSW,  Therapist & Relationship Coach

Self-improvement is an extremely broad concept that provides many opportunities and presents numerous areas in which to inject change. As I have worked with clients through the years I have frequently heard that all too common complaint regarding stress. In my humble […]

Thousands of St. Louis area residents have been finding new friends in old books at the YMCA Bookfair for 33 years, and that tradition continues August 17-22, 2012 at the Kennedy Recreation Complex.

Started in 1978 by a group of dedicated Y volunteers, the YMCA Bookfair has grown into a massive, six-day event for book lovers. […]