Congratulations! Our healthy living community, advocates and enthusiasts have all played a vital part in advancing the natural living and alternative medicine movement, and it’s time to celebrate and be grateful for the growth in awareness and the expansion of services and products. Take a moment to think back: just 10 years ago, families like mine had to drive 40 miles to purchase organic produce; the few alternative medical providers in our area practiced in relative obscurity; and we certainly never would have thought to send our acupuncture bill to the insurance company! 

Even though this beautiful, peaceful coastal area has always been the perfect place to unwind and reconnect with nature, people often enjoyed it with fried foods and sweet tea.

These days, local families are making better choices—requesting cleaner food options, participating in simple and inspired living activities, and turning out for beach cleanups and “Save the Turtles” events. We’ve come a long way.

Let’s begin the New Year with an eye-opening look at the vast number of affordable insurance programs that are popping up across the country and even cover complementary care (page 30). Under these plans, doctors are able to spend quality time with their patients and provide alternative therapies while also receiving reasonable reimbursement for their services.

A perfect accompaniment to that feature article is our local spotlight on the Boot Campaign, a nonprofit that helps military veterans access comprehensive, state-of-the-art health assessments and treatment—including complementary therapies—so they can fully recover from the mental and physical wounds of war. Turn to page 31 to see how you can help.

In “Effective, Affordable Medicine” (page 28), writer Julia Schopick discusses the dangerous side effects of many pharmaceuticals and the alternative medicines that are proving to be efficacious but less risky and expensive. Intrigued by her findings, we reached out to local doctor Richard Adelman, MD, who describes how he’s reducing obesity and managing diabetes in his patients through the use of a natural hormone activator (page 26). Another local practitioner, Dr. Sheila Mohammed, has forged a similar path on the alternative medicine frontier, using stem cell therapy to lessen the need for invasive surgery to treat joint injuries and pain (page 33). And if your New Year’s resolution includes a detox plan, don’t miss “Plant Power” (page 27), which explains the science behind the use of essential oils to reduce the body’s ever-increasing toxic load (page 27).

We are beyond excited to bring the world of green and healthy living to Northwest Florida with the Emerald Coast Holistic Health Expo, which will be held March 11 and 12 at the Emerald Coast Convention Center and Ross Marler Park. The expo is an amazing opportunity for providers to come together to let people see and experience the plethora of alternative and natural products and services available in our community (page 13).

Both days of the expo, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Natural Awakenings will host the Push Challenge in Ross Marler Park. We encourage local groups, gyms and businesses to form teams and register. There will be several competitions, with teams matched by general age and skill level. The cost is $25 per participant, or $15 for kids, with all funds going to the Boot Campaign’s ReBOOT program.

Hope to see you there!

Scott and Daralyn Chase