Many women have some anxiety about perimenopause, but knowledge is power. As a holistic OB/GYN, author of the book The Hormone Fix, and a physician who is passionate about helping women restore balance to their bodies and feel their best, it’s my job to make sure you know exactly what’s going on with your hormones during this time. So far, medicine has failed to find safe, effective solutions to the hormone fluctuations that can make our lives more difficult during this time....

I’d heard whisperings that beet juice was becoming a go-to for enhancing performance and speeding up muscle recovery, but I brushed them off like crumbs on my shirt—especially the recovery claims. How could something as basic as juice do anything to repair my muscles (or even make me feel better) after a workout? The way I saw it, and still see it, is that nothing other than time and protein can truly repair your muscles....

There’s no question that we need some major help in the sleep department. But is melatonin really the best option, and is it even safe for nightly use? Here’s why physicians and sleep experts caution against taking melatonin nightly and how they recommend improving your sleep instead. People who use bright lights or technology at night, or who need to stay awake during the evenings for work or travel, might find that their melatonin levels are out of whack, causing them to feel wide-awake when they should be asleep....

When it comes to color, a shade of brown is optimal. To determine if the size and shape of your poop are ideal, you can consult the science-based scale and gold standard for monitoring the stool spectrum: the Bristol Stool Chart. (Of course, this requires you to actually look before you flush). This stool scale breaks forms down into seven different types of poop: While they can be startling, nutrient-related color changes in our stool (like red stool appearing after a beet salad or black stool when taking iron supplements) are considered normal....

According to Yulia Van Doren, author of Crystals: The Modern Guide to Crystal Healing and founder of Goldirocks, moldavite “hands-down” has tons of mystique attached to it. “These small chunks of space glass are renowned for having extremely intense vibes, as well as an uncanny ability to mysteriously disappear and reappear at will,” she notes. As far as the lore around it, Leavy notes there’s a theory that moldavite may be the stone that was embedded in the Holy Grail....

“I’d love that,” she said. “But most of all, I’d love some fresh orange juice.” A few minutes later, he returned and handed her the soup. “Thanks, Jason,” she said. “But what I really want is the orange juice.” Jason’s smile turned into a frown, and then he looked angry. “Well, I’m sorry,” he said, angrily. “I forgot. Look, it’s just never enough for you, is it?” Kim left the interaction feeling frustrated and disappointed, while Jason felt unfairly criticized and unappreciated....

This means that you need to turn that sucker around and read its ingredients list to get a sense of what’s really in it. Many conventional detergents contain chemicals that can linger on clothes and aggravate your skin. (Here’s your guide to the ones to avoid.) If these chemicals don’t completely biodegrade, they can also contribute to water pollution. To name names, research shows that certain surfactants—compounds that help detergents remove dirt from the surface of clothing—in particular can pose a threat to aquatic life2....