The Top 10 Healthiest Countries in the World

Hello again! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

(For those who are new subscribers this month: the last issue of the month is a longer, magazine-style newsletter. All other Wednesdays, you will receive a shorter, “Weekly Heart-Health News” letter.)

In this issue, you’ll find advice on how to practice mindful eating—especially important during the busy holiday season!—plus, 30 exercises you can do at your desk, a new section on Global Health News (with a list of the top 10 healthiest countries in the world!), and more.

Also, I’ll be doing a special drawing and cookbook giveaway for my Premium subscribers in December, so if you’d like to upgrade to Premium, consider doing so by Dec. 1 in order to be included in the drawing!

To your health,

Yasmine

Heart-Health News You Can Use

This is important at any time of the year, but especially so during the holidays, amidst the hustle and bustle and gatherings that often involve food—a lot of it:

In other news … just as personal training and health coaching can be beneficial for the body, so, too, can personal coaching be helpful for the mind, as shown by this study:

Have a desk job and find it difficult to stay active? Here are some ideas for exercises you can do in your office or at your desk:

AI in Medicine

AI is such a hot topic nowadays, in every field—and with good reason. So I’ll be highlighting some of the most important developments and medical AI news in each newsletter.

Here are some predictions for 2024:

Global Health News

This newsletter now has readers from around the world—thank you all!—so I’ll be featuring a new section on global health in your monthly e-zine.

As this first article demonstrates, it’s not just American youth who are suffering from a mental health crisis:

However, Australia (and New Zealand) actually makes the list of the top 10 healthiest countries in the world, according to Conde Nast Traveler:

Test Your Knowledge

True or False: You can’t use extra-virgin olive oil for cooking, only for dressing. (Answer at bottom of newsletter.)

A. True

B. False

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Answer to the “Test Your Knowledge” Quiz:

B. False.

There is a myth out there that you can’t use extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) for regular cooking—sauteing, baking, even frying—because its smoke point isn’t high enough. But you can do all those things (as I do nearly every day) with a high-quality EVOO. Just look for one with a high smoke point or that says it can be used for cooking or baking. Here’s the one I use for everyday cooking and baking (even light frying for vegetables like eggplant):

And here are a couple that I use only for dressing salads, soups, or finishing dishes, because they are a little pricier and, accordingly, have a more complex flavor profile that I don’t want to hide in the cooking process: Organic Fair Trade Nabali Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Desert Miracle Moroccan Olive Oil.

I could go on about olive oil for ages, because my paternal grandfather was an olive farmer and salesman, but we’ll leave it at this for now to get you started! ;-)

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