1. Produce Section: Choose fresh, whole organic produce whenever possible. Vegetables and fruits from all parts of the color spectrum should make up most of your grocery items.
2. Jarred/Packaged Foods: Choose no- or low-sodium jarred and packaged foods. Also be sure no sweeteners, real or artificial have been added.
3. Grains, Breads, Cereals And Legumes: Choose products made of whole, intact grains, not white or whole wheat-flour products. The higher the fiber grams on the nutrition facts label, the better. Stock up on healthy, inexpensive staples like dried beans andlentils.
4. Dairy, Refrigerator Case And Frozen Foods: Avoid anything with carrageenan (which may be irritating to the digestive tract), choose organic, full fat, hormone-free dairy products without added sugar. Choose frozen foods that are organic. Avoid frozen meals that are high in sodium, and instead opt for healthier protein sources such as frozen edamame, omega-3 enriched eggs and fresh organic tofu.
5. Meat/Seafood/Fish: Choose fresh or frozen to widen your selection, and focus on seafood. When buying salmon, always opt for wild-caught Alaskan varieties.
6. Healthy Fats: Choose unsalted or low-salt varieties of nuts and seeds that are raw or dry roasted (store seeds in the freezer for freshness) and when it comes to oils always choose a high quality extra virgin olive oil or organic, cold-expeller-pressed canola oil for cooking and baking

These recommendations are from Dr. Andrew Weil’s website for his anti-inflammatory diet.

Go to this youtube link to watch an interview with Dr. Weil – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYmb0DYRQKQ

Dr. Weil’s Food Pyramid – https://www.drweil.com/diet-nutrition/anti-inflammatory-diet-pyramid/anti-inflammatory-diet-a-weil-food-pyramid/

In addition, Dr. Weil’s restaurant, True Food, has now opened in The Woodlands, Texas – https://www.truefoodkitchen.com/thewoodlands

Dr. Birken offers Max Pulse testing, a scanning device that is a useful tool in assisting health-care practitioners, technicians, and individuals in the early detection of cardiovascular related issues. The test will also help assess nutraceutical and/or pharmaceutical needs. Through periodic screenings and lifestyle changes (exercise, diet, and supplementation etc.), one is able to monitor the effectiveness of these changes and how they relate to the person’s cardiovascular, autonomic, and overall health status.

Click to watch a video on Max Pulse – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=go7tpCm72qU

For more information about Max Pulse testing, call 281-419-3231 or email at info@drbirken.com

1. Loving-kindness meditation
With the many types of meditation to try, there should be one to suit most individuals.
Loving-kindness meditation is also known as Metta meditation. Its goal is to cultivate an attitude of love and kindness toward everything, even a person’s enemies and sources of stress.
2. Body scan or progressive relaxation
Progressive relaxation, sometimes called body scan meditation, is meditation that encourages people to scan their bodies for areas of tension. The goal is to notice tension and to allow it to release.
3. Mindfulness meditation
Mindfulness is a form of meditation that urges practitioners to remain aware and present in the moment.
Rather than dwelling on the past or dreading the future, mindfulness encourages awareness of a person’s existing surroundings. Crucial to this is a lack of judgment. So, rather than reflecting on the annoyance of a long wait, a practitioner will simply note the wait without judgment.
4. Breath awareness meditation
Breath awareness is a type of mindful meditation that encourages mindful breathing.
Practitioners breathe slowly and deeply, counting their breaths or otherwise focusing on their breaths. The goal is to focus only on breathing and to ignore other thoughts that enter the mind.
5. Kundalini yoga
Kundalini yoga is a physically active form of meditation that blends movements with deep breathing and mantras. People usually learn from a teacher or do a class. However, someone can learn the poses and mantras at home.
Similarly to other forms of yoga, kundalini yoga can improve physical strength and reduce pain. It may also improve mental health by reducing anxiety and depression.
6. Zen meditation
Zen meditation, sometimes called Zazen is a form of meditation that can be part of Buddhist practice. Many Zen practitioners study under a teacher because this kind of meditation involves specific steps and postures.
7. Transcendental meditation
Transcendental meditation is a spiritual form of meditation where practitioners remain seated and breathe slowly. The goal is to transcend or rise above the person’s current state of being.
During a meditation session, practitioners focus on a mantra or a repeated word or series of words. A teacher determines the mantra based on a complex set of factors, sometimes including the year the practitioner was born, and the year the teacher was trained.

Dr. Birken recommends the following phone apps for mindfulness meditation:
1. 10% Happier
2. Insight Timer
3. Stop, Breath, and Think
4. Welzen
5. Headspace
6. Calm – this is Dr. Birken’s “go to” daily meditation app