P H O TO : JU P ITER IMAGES
HEALTH
b e t t e r
h e a l t h y h o m e
PLANTS THAT
CLEAN THE AIR
You could lock yourself
in a bubble to deal w ith
allergies. O r you could
fill y o u r hom e w ith
plants. Decades o f
research shows th a t
houseplants act as
natural filte rs and can
greatly reduce allergens
in yo u r home. Some o f
the best plants include:
■ Bamboo palm
■ Rubber plant
■ Spider plant
■ English ivy
■ Boston fern
■ Peace lily
■ Corn plant
f r e e b i e
M IN D Y O U R M E D S
Ever find yourself staring at the bottom o f a pill
bottle only to realize you forg ot to refill your
prescription? Those days could be over thanks to
a helpful new Web site called
m ym edschedule.com .
The free site sends you reminders, via text message
o r e-mail, to refill your medications. It can also
rem ind when to take your medicine if you have a
complex dosing schedule. One other great feature:
You can make and print o ut a personalized medica-
tion chart that you can bring w ith you to your next
doctor visit.
home remedy
Here's a tip that may help the sneeze-prone
men in your life: If they sport facial hair, suggest that they wash it
carefully with soap and water right before bed and again about
midday. Some research shows that facial hair can act as a reservoir
for allergens such as pollen, aggravating symptoms.
I rjead on the Internet that
drinking cold w ater can lead to
poor digestion. Is that true?
We’ve seen that one too. The claim is that cold water
lowers the temperature of food in your stomach,
making it harder to digest, and that water dilutes
digestive enzymes, making them less effective. Both
claims are bunk, says Dr. Siamak Tabib, an attending
physician in the division of gastroenterology at Cedars-
Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Water warms to
body temperature within a minute and maybe as
quickly as
3 0
seconds after being ingested, he says.
Nor does water act to dilute the digestive chemicals in
your stomach. In fact, the opposite is true. “You need
water to help food move through your body as it’s
being digested,” Tabib says. “Without enough water,
you’re more likely to suffer from constipation.” ®
— D O U G D O N A L D S O N
Now with even
more delicious ways
to stay on track.
New! Chocolatey Pretzel
Honey Nut
Strawberry
®, TM. © 2009 Kellogg NA Co.
BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS SEPTEMBER 2009 2 6 5
