Are you looking for solid guidelines for staying healthy and happy at every age? Tune in for tips on nutrition, herbs and lifestyle habits for women, as well as specifics on mood, menopause and weight management. Dr. Tori Hudson is a naturopathic physician, professor and women’s clinic medical director.

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Dr. Hudson’s top suggestions for women’s health include:

• Research supports at least 3.5 hours per week of aerobic exercise (as well as some strength training) to benefit bone, heart, immune, and joint health.
• Vitamin D supplementation, eating whole fresh foods, drinking filtered water and minimizing exposure to environmental toxins are important.
• Beyond a daily multivitamin, focus on essential fatty acids (fish oil supplements), probiotics, B vitamins, calcium, and numerous antioxidants.
• Women with regular menstrual cycles may need extra iron.
• For children and up though teenage years, as well as later in life (70s+) calcium is important.

There are natural ways to help with anxiety and depression:

• First evaluate how to stabilize relationships, home life, career, finances, and spirituality.
• Some helpful natural compounds for anxiety include the amino acid L-theanine, the nutrient GABA, and an herb called kava.
• For mild to moderate depression, St. John’s Wort is still is the #1 most important plant that’s been researched. Tryptophan and SAMe can also improve serotonin levels.

Menopause symptoms can be supported through the following:

• Black cohosh is the #1 most researched plant for menopause symptoms. There have been more than 100 studies over the last 25 years on an array of menopause symptoms including hot flashes.
• Studies on St. John’s Wort for menopause symptoms show that a combination of black cohosh and St. John’s Wort are more helpful than just black cohosh alone.