Manuka Honey Skin Saver

This moisturizing DIY skin salve is full of some usual suspects -- cocoa butter, shea butter, and almond oil -- but it also contains something special: manuka honey. Apply it to your face, hands, or hair as an overnight moisturizer or use it as a spot treatment for dry and irritated skin.

5 Ways to Prevent Colds and Flu

Echinacea purpurea

When it comes to flu shots, the risks do not outweigh the benefits for most people. Fortunately, there are other strategies to prevent infection and stay healthy during cold and flu season. It's certainly important to minimize our exposure to viruses, but it's equally important to foster a strong immune system, so our bodies can fight off the germs that do breach our barriers. After all, everyone is exposed to cold and flu viruses, but not everyone gets sick.

6 Strategies to Make 2015 Your Healthiest Year Yet

Recently I enjoyed reading Atul Gawande's book, Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End. It eloquently raises an issue that most physicians shy away from: The fact that we can't cure everyone. Some patients die. Eventually, we all die. So what matters most is how we live. And while a cure isn't always possible, healing always is. Everyone can heal on some level, physically or emotionally or both. Make 2015 your best year yet with these six strategies to help you heal.