Jennifer Lovejoy, PhD, Executive Director, Weight & Nutrition Services:   The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at NIH recently funded four new Centers of Excellence, including one at the University of California, San Francisco to study mindfulness meditation and mindful eating in a program to treat obesity and metabolic syndrome. In recent years, considerable research has focused on the health benefits of mindfulness.  Not to be confused with any kind of reli... [More]

Beth Shepard, MS, Exercise Physiologist, Contributing Writer:   Like many people, you may wonder how much exercise you really need to make a difference in your health. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services recently published the first-ever Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, making a strong, evidence-based statement about the value of physical activity and the amount required for health benefits. The Guidelines recommend 2.5 hours a week of moderate exercise, or 1... [More]

Erin Thompson, Marketing Manager:   The heart of Free & Clear’s mission has always been to address chronic disease through health behavior change. As a national leader in tobacco cessation, our goal for the last 20 years has been to help employers build a healthier, more productive and cost-effective workforce by teaching individuals how to overcome addiction to tobacco use. As the number one cause of preventable death and disease, tobacco cessation has been an obvious battle to f... [More]