I’m a board-certified gynecologist who practices functional medicine, but I’m also a regular gal—a busy working mom, constant chauffeur for my daughters, devoted wife, and spiritual seeker. I know that good food needs to be easy and convenient, or it’s unlikely to happen. Making wise food choices used to be a daily challenge for me—but it got easier with practice and once I started to see food preparation as a sadhana, or spiritual practice....

We spoke with experts to help break down the benefits of beta-glucans, the science behind these unique plant fibers, and how you can get more of it in your diet. Most grain-based beta-glucans are soluble fibers, which means they dissolve in water and are typically fermentable (i.e., prebiotic) in your digestive tract. Beta-glucans from bacteria, fungi, and yeast are typically insoluble in water. More importantly, as a 2019 review in Molecules details, beta-glucans are a unique family of fibers that are biologically active1, a characteristic that plays a role in their potent health benefits....

Supported by The Human Genome Project (1990-2003)—an international research effort to determine the DNA sequence of the entire human genome—researchers began to better understand human nutrition at the molecular level of gene expression. Within the last three decades, nutrigenomics research has advanced the interest of personalized nutrition therapy, while confirming that food conveys powerful information used by the body. And it plays an instrumental relationship in our genes, too. Similarly, nutrigenetics is a personalized nutrition2 domain that examines the different phenotypic responses to diet (such as glucose levels, weight, or plasma cholesterol) depending on an individual’s genetic composition, dietary intake, and health outcomes....

Our mental state always has an effect on our partner, children, and anyone else living in our household. When you and your partner both have depression, it’s incredibly important for you to have super-clear boundaries. Each person in the relationship has to take responsibility for their own mental health by cultivating self-awareness, California therapist Kim Egel tells mbg. “Depression shows up differently for each of us, and having awareness as to how your depression presents will help you communicate its effects with more flow and ease to your partner,” Egel says....

“Because she is brimming with creative energy, the Queen of Wands is a welcome addition to any tarot reading, whether she appears in an upright or reversed position,” Goodchild says. Upright, this card encourages you to take risks and chances to better your personal circumstances, she explains, noting that no matter what challenges or obstacles you face, you will have the resources and confidence to see yourself through to the other side....

From when you should be taking your B vitamin complex to reap the benefits to the particularities of how you should be taking this vitamin, here’s everything you need to know. Some vitamins are water-soluble, while others are fat-soluble (i.e., vitamins A, D, E, and K). B vitamins are water-soluble by nature. So you might assume that you’ll reap the most benefits taking your B complex on an empty stomach with a wonderfully hydrating glass of water, right?...

Now, given how much immunity has been a topic of conversation over the past two years, it only makes sense that you might be considering zinc supplements. Zinc is available in certain foods like oysters, red meat, poultry, fortified breakfast cereals, beans, nuts, whole grains, and dairy products. That said, there is a zinc dietary gap, particularly for vegetarians and vegans. As mbg vice president of scientific affairs Ashley Jordan Ferira, Ph....