tummy tamer bottled water: busted! seven easy ways to boost your

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bottled water: busted!
When you pay top dollar for name-brand water bottles, you bank on
getting what you pay for: the cleanest water around. Save your money,
says the Environmental Working Group, which recently released less-thanpure grades for 173 products, including some of the most popular water
bottle brands like Aquafina and Dasani. The rankings were based on the
information that these companies provided—or withheld—from consumers
(e.g. where and how is the water purified? Do tests show contaminants in
the water?). It turns out that 18 percent of manufacturers fail to disclose
the source of their water, and 32 percent don’t offer any information
about their purification process. Props to brands, including Gerber Pure
Purified Water and Nestlé Pure Life Purified Water—they ranked highest
on the list. Nevertheless, the report concluded that the best way to get
the purest water is—wait for it—to filter your very own tap water. We’ll sip
to that! —V.P.
tummy tamer
April is IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) Awareness Month and, according to the International Foundation for Gastrointestinal Disorders,
between 25 and 45 million Americans suffer from the condition. Even
if you haven’t been diagnosed with IBS, there’s a good chance you
experience poor digestion—like 95 million other Americans out there.
Get your belly aches under control with our newest obsession:
Happy Belly Bags, founded by food intolerance-sufferer Sarah
Rothrock, who was sick of getting gourmet gifts that panged her
stomach. The eco-friendly goody bags are filled with all-natural, allergy-free products, from gluten-free pancake mix to vegan energy bars to organic
brown rice spaghetti—all of which are free of nuts, wheat and dairy. Our favorite variety, hands-down, is the AKA bag, approved by celebrity nutritionist
Ashley Koff, RD. It’s jam packed with delicious foods (Wild Planet canned salmon, Nutiva Organic Hemp Seeds), supplements (New Chapter Wholemega and Berry Greens), snacks (Pure Bars, Better Than Roasted Raw Almond Butter), teas (Traditional Medicinals) and more. Available in sizes small,
medium and large ($91.99–$321.99; happybellybags.com). —A.A.
seven easy ways to boost your energy
When fitness star Denise Austin polled visitors to her website about what
sapped their energy most, she got thousands of emails. Working (and
commuting) long hours, taking care of kids and running a household were
common vitality-sappers. “I also saw that if they made small changes in their
routines, they could fight back against fatigue,” says Austin, author of Get
Energy! Empower Your Body, Love Your Life. Here, some of her best, most doable tips for boosting your physical, mental and emotional energy levels:
Stretch away fatigue. “Stretching enhances blood circulation,
which brings fresh oxygen and nutrient rich blood to your muscles and
brain and loosens tight muscles,” says Austin.
Straighten up. “When you slouch or slump, you reduce the space in
your chest cavity, which means you take shallow breaths instead of full,
deep, oxygen-rich breaths.” Austin points out. Pilates-perfect posture
means more oxygen—and energy—for your whole body.
Eat rev-you-up foods. “Carbs are your body’s preferred source of
fuel, which makes them the best foods to boost your energy levels,” she
says. Energize with complex carbs, such as beans, brown rice, brightly
colored fruits (berries, oranges, tomatoes), oatmeal and popcorn.
Get to bed. Not only do you need eight hours of sleep every night,
but “It’s better for your body to go to sleep and wake early (from, say,
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10 p.m. to 6 a.m.), than
late (say, 1 a.m. to 9 a.m.),”
explains Austin. “The reason:
your body’s functions, including
temperature, secretion of
hormones, digestion and other
restorative processes, follow a
24-hour cycle that’s linked to its
exposure to natural light.”
Go natural. “Several recent
studies published in the Journal
of Environmental Psychology
concluded that exposure to
nature (like a daily walk) is
associated with feelings of
greater vitality, alertness and
energy,” Austin reports.
Put on the laugh track. “Numerous studies have shown that
laughter produces a chemical reaction that instantly boosts mood,
reduces pain and eases stress,” she says.
—Anne Marie O’Connor