We recently kicked off the Health Leadership Awards with mother and school food champion Allison Carmen.

At IIN we are blessed to have a community filled with exceptional mothers who are dedicated to changing the lives of their family and the world.

That’s why this week, we honor and celebrate Smokin’ Hot Mom Nina Manolson, whose outstanding work as a Health Coach empowers all of us to “feel good in our skin.”

Turning Risk into Reward

I enrolled at IIN after a genetic test determined I was at high risk for Breast Cancer. After a lifetime of struggling with my weight and criticizing myself in the mirror, I was faced with the preciousness of my body and how I could no longer afford to be at war with myself. I stepped up my self-care and, in the process, realized that my passion lay in helping women reclaim their body and ending the struggle between food and self-image for future generations.

An Integrative Community

Having previously worked as a therapist, yoga teacher and bodyworker, I came to IIN seeking a connection between what I knew about mental health, spiritual health, bodies and nutrition.

I am thrilled, proud and honored to present the very first Health Leadership Award to an outstanding graduate who has been a leader in the school food movement, a health educator, and role model for her children and her community:  Allison Carmen.

When I first met Allison, she was a young woman in her twenties, highly educated and a successful lawyer for a large New York City firm. As one of the thirty students in Integrative Nutrition’s very first class, she demonstrated an exceptional desire to understand the transformational effects that nutrition can have on our lives.

With curiosity and intelligence, Allison has continued to analyze and put into practice the ideas and energy she gained from that program. Her most recent project, The Book of Maybe is inspired by her time at IIN, as well as her experience as a business consultant and coach.

Early Adapter

Overworked, stressed and exhausted from her successful career in corporate America, Allison was seeking a way to heal herself and others. She recognized the possibility of holistic principles long before they had entered the mainstream.

Integrative Nutrition is proud to announce we are partnering with the Jamie Oliver Foundation to inspire a day of action to mark a commitment to food education worldwide. 

The first-ever Food Revolution Day is a global day of action to inspire, educate, and empower people everywhere to stand up for real food. Thousands of people worldwide will participate in events to raise awareness on preventing diet-related diseases, and to arm people with the knowledge and tools to make healthier food choices.

Integrative Nutrition students and graduates are organizing grass roots efforts around health and wellness to celebrate Food Revolution Day, in communities, at schools and businesses.

Every year as Earth Day approaches, conscientious Mother Earth lovers all over the world begin to look at their total impact on the environment. Pledges are made to stop using plastic bags and water bottles, people ride their bikes and carpool to work, and some give up meat for at least one day a week. These are all admirable vows to protect the environment and we applaud and encourage them.

What about changing your eating habits so that they’re more sustainable, too?

Here are 3 easy steps to get your green on every meal.

1.  Eat leafy greens. 

OK, so the first step to greening your diet isn’t exactly the eco tip you were expecting, but we can’t stop talking about leafy greens around here. Just add a plentiful supply of dark leafy greens vegetables to supersize your healthy diet. Try kale, an excellent source of vitamin K – it reduces inflammation, boosts cardiovascular function, and aids in overall body detox. Then try collard greens. Much like kale, collard greens have off-the-charts levels of vitamin K.

Addictions and prescriptions top the headlines this week as Deepak Chopra discusses digital dependency and Celebrity Chef Paula Deen makes an announcement that has everyone taking sides. The CEO of Stoneyfield Yogurt steps down to fight GMOs, and IIN teacher Dr. David Katz offers real-world nutrition guidance for a society surrounded by potato chips.

Find all that and more right here in the IINsiders Digest.  

Welcome to the IINsider's digest! We gather all the hottest nutrition topics from around the web in one place so you can easily digest. This weeks highlights include, Integrative Nutrition teachers in the news. Dr. Mark Hyman as one of Dr. Oz's Fantastic Four, Michael Jacobson shines a light on trans fats, and Dr. David Katz reviews the best diets of 2011. The Washington Post asks, "Who owns Yoga?" Canadians support a ban on junk food ads aimed at kids and Mark Bittman looks at why we're eating less meat. 

Did you know that meditation and sex offer the same effects on the brain? And as it turns out, those effects are pretty good!

A fascinating article in Scientific American titled The Neurobiology of Bliss--Sacred and Profane reported on a study that suggests that the brain reacts the same way to meditation as it does to sex. Both dissolve our sense of self-awareness, separating ourselves from our ego. 

In the article, lead researcher Gemma O'Brien, explains that people meditating and having an orgasm both experience "diminution of self-awareness," "alterations in bodily perception" and "decreased sense of pain."

“Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence” - Aristotle

Happiness: elusive for some, natural for others; it is the primary goal of all humans and animals.

A recent article in Men's Health magazine suggests that where you live is an indication of how happy you are. Honolulu, Hawaii, as it turns out, is where the happiest people live. For those of us who struggle through the long winters of the Northeast, this isn't surprising news. But if a tropical area with oceans and beaches is the key to happiness, how did Boston, Manchester, and Fargo end up with high happiness grades?

Miss the hot news items this week? Don't worry, we collected them for you in bite-sized pieces you can easily digest.

In this issue:

• Starbucks to serve juice
• Cooking class for the kids
• Blood, Bones, & Butter Diet
• Sharing: Tips for counselors
• C-Sections on the rise in UK
• Super-sized link to social status
  

Did you miss the news bites this week? Don't worry, we collected the hottest topics right here in one place for you to easily digest. 

In this week's digest:

• Raw food health benefits
• Commuting and your health
• USDA Dietary Guidelines: not so good?
• Couple nearly split over holistic healing
• Healthy Diets: US News ranks them
• Loneliness and the effects on your health
• Processed foods: the weird ingredients
• Farm Bill needs nutrititious approach