Integrative Nutrition: The education that changed everything

I'm not one for nostalgia, but admit I felt some last night. I was at the Integrative Nutrition fall gathering in New York City. It was here that hundreds of sharply-dressed holistic health counselors came together, to reconnect, munch on carrot sticks, and introduce others to this world-class education.

You see it was at this school, three years ago, that my life changed. I came into the school a lost soul. I didn't know much about what I wanted to do with the education. All that I was certain about was I wanted to quit my job - a corporate marketing gig that was lucrative, but left me unfulfilled.

I had flown in from San Francisco months before enrolling to attend one of the school's orientation sessions. I heard about Integrative Nutrition from a friend and thought it was worth checking out. Little did I know I'd be signing up before the end of orientation. I had grown interested in natural foods and holistic health in the Bay Area, and there was something about the school that 'clicked' with me. And after a year of searching for my next act, I knew this would be it.

The signs were all there. I had met Dr Andrew Weil at a conference on holistic health in British Columbia months before the orientation. It was literally the first time in my life where I liked every single person in the room (good luck finding that in the corporate world). And guess who would be teaching at Integrative Nutrition? Yes, Andrew Weil himself, as well as Deepak Chopra, Paul Pitchford and a host of others I admired.

But perhaps the biggest draw for me, was the founder of the school, Joshua Rosenthal. To this day he remains one of the most inspiring people in my life - a visionary who 'gets it.'

I was reminded of this last night, when I stood listening to Joshua's remarks. He spoke about a recent visit to Bonobo's, a raw foods cafe in Midtown. It was there he was served by two individuals, one natively from Bosnia and the other Croatia - two countries that were recently engaged in a civil war. Thousands of miles from their homeland, these two were able to come together over warm coconut chai and raw nutmeat patties. And it was no coincidence. They believe the world would be far more peaceful if we ate differently - as modern factory farming and industrialized meat production have lead to aggressive behavior. It was remarks and stories like this that drew me to the school - beliefs that cannot be proven by science, but still need to be heard. I knew we were dealing with more than food here.

Joshua likes to say that Integrative Nutrition is not only a school, but also a movement. I've seen countless graduates go out and do amazing things with the education. Some have written books, others have created natural food products (like an agave-sweetned ketchup, flax crackers, or energy bars). Most though go out and become holistic health professionals or complement their existing health-related work. Regardless, everyone leaves with an amazing experience - either improving their own health or finding a new career that energizes them. Some lucky individuals manage to do both!

I could really go on singing the praises of this school. However, I must stop. (I think I've exceeded my 300-word blogging limit.) If you think you might be interested in learning more about Integrative Nutrition, I'd be happy to answer any and all questions. Either post a comment here or email me.

If you are interested in enrolling, Integrative Nutrition is offering a $500 scholarship. Just mention my name when you enroll.

Why settle for mockolate, when you can have chocolate?

Attention: this is real chocolate. Hershey's, our legendary American chocolate maker, it seems is no longer in the business of selling the real stuff.

Last week, the Today show reported that Hershey's decided to switch the formulation of many of its products. Out is the cocoa butter, arguably what gives chocolate its definitive taste, with lower-cost vegetable oil. The result is a product that many claim is inferior, unless you are one of those people who likes white chocolate.

Instead of joining the chorus of naysayers. I'd like to point out there are still lots of great 'real' chocolate on the market today. And when I say real, I'm talking about the dark stuff, 68% cacao or higher. With these products you should notice "chocolate liquor" "cacao" or "cocoa" as the first ingredient. It should not be sugar.

I'm a big fan of the products made by Equal Exchange and Divine. These companies are purists, and use only organic, fair-trade cacao. You won't find any hydrogenated oils or high fructose corn syrup here.

And what about the saturated fat you might say? Well, according to Dr. Andrew Weil, "Cocoa butter, the fat in chocolate, turns out not to be so bad. Although it is a saturated fat, the body turns it into monounsaturated fat, processing it like olive oil."

So have you forgotten about your Whatchamacallit yet? I recommend Equal Exchange's Dark Chocolate with Pure Cocoa Nibs (pictured).