The Today Show had a very interesting segment on 12 supplements to avoid.

Take note of the “Blue Man”

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Does chocolate cure stress? Recent research suggests this is so. The antioxidants in dark chocolate help reduce stress as well as help fight disease. Here are some recommendations as to how much chocolate one should eat to reduce stress.

Of course, if you eat chocolate to reduce stress, you’ll need to make adjustments in your diet to compensate for the extra calories.

Want automatic video updates?  Subscribe to my Youtube channel

Stress and Your Hair from Tracey Marks on Vimeo.

See what work overload can do to your appearance.

Understanding what balance truly means is the first step toward creating a balanced lifestyle. Life balance doesn’t necessarily mean giving equal amounts of time or attention to each part of your life. That’s the big myth!

Life balance is about knowing when to give a little more effort, when it’s time to call it quits, and when everything feels just right.

These six tips will help you strike a better balance in life:

1. Make time for you. Realize that you’re important and valuable. Taking care of your happiness (and sanity) is an essential part of creating a balanced life. Even if for just two hours each week, put everyone else’s needs aside and focus on you!

• Take a candlelit bubble bath while having a glass of wine and catching up on your favorite Hollywood gossip. Or, maybe just take your dog to the park on a sunny afternoon. Do whatever helps you unwind and enter a mindset of total relaxation.

2. Strive for a healthy lifestyle. Both exercise and a conscious diet are necessary in order to remain healthy and happy. Set aside 30-minutes each week to exercise. Your workout can be anything under the sun, as long as it keeps you active.

• If eating healthy is a challenge, avoid bringing unhealthy food into your home. You can’t be tempted if it isn’t around the house. Not only will it keep your heart healthy and your waistline under control, it’ll promote healthy eating habits in your children.

3. Leave work in the office. There’s a reason you have a work schedule: your employer is only willing to pay you for a specific amount of time each day. Do your family a favor and leave work at work. Avoid overworking yourself if there isn’t a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

• If you find that there aren’t enough hours in the workday to maintain your responsibilities, find a way to strengthen your productivity while at the office. If this proves to be fruitless, explain your situation to your employer. He may be willing to pay you for an extra hour each day or lessen your workload.

4. Make time for love. Rekindle the romance by making thoughtful gestures. Bring home a candle in her favorite scent, send roses to the workplace, or maybe even hire a maid so your wife can spend more time doing the things she loves. Spend quality, uninterrupted time with your spouse.

• Simply watching TV together isn’t enough. Send the kids over to grandma’s house for a weekend and plan a romantic getaway. If you’re on a budget, plan a romantic camping trip. Nothing says romance like 2-days in the wild.

5. Live within your means. If your finances are causing you stress, it’s time to reassess your budget. Make budget cuts in order to proactively work towards achieving your financial goals.

• Eliminate obvious splurges, such as cable television upgrades and pricey cell phone plans. Cut down on your energy bill by turning down the thermostat and doing laundry less frequently or during non-peak hours.

• As a final resort, you may need to sell your home or downgrade to a cheaper rental. Sure, it’s nice to have granite countertops and sprawling acreage, but can you go without? You sure can. Live within your means and feel the relief it brings!

6. Socialize. Hanging out with friends allows you to unwind and have a few laughs. Make it a point to meet up with friends at least once each month. Go out to dinner or host a get together in your home.

• If your spouse is jealous, double dating is a great opportunity to include him in your social life.

Leading an unbalanced lifestyle is one of the leading causes of stress for professionals. Inability to cope with stress can cause numerous health problems, such as weight gain, migraines and even heart complications. Fortunately, you can be the exception. You can ward off health problems by nipping stress in the bud.

You are now empowered, equipped, and ready to create balance in your life! Practice these strategies each day and, one day soon, you’ll feel the harmony of a balanced life.

However, the good news is that there are some great strategies you can use to make maintaining your home simpler, less time-consuming, and easier to handle.

Take Care of Cleaning Each Day

Cleaning a home can be a never-ending chore, but the pride and satisfaction you’ll feel is well worth the effort. You can make cleaning a lot more enjoyable if you don’t try to do it all in one day. For example, clean your bedroom on Monday, your bathroom on Tuesday, and your living room on Wednesday. Pick whatever schedule works for you.

If you do small cleaning tasks each day, you won’t get overwhelmed, and you won’t spend all day trying to clean your entire house.

There’s another big benefit, too: When you clean frequently, dust and dirt can’t build up, so cleaning stays quick and easy. Even deep-cleaning is easier when things are already fairly clean.

There are a few other ways to make cleaning better, faster, easier, and more enjoyable, too, like:

• Keep cleaning products in the rooms you use them most.
• Use a schedule instead of only cleaning when you feel like it.
• Put things away immediately when you’re done with them.
• Make use of appliances like a dishwasher instead of doing dishes yourself.
• Use self-cleaning appliances like ovens or automatic shower cleaners.

You can also listen to music or your favorite TV show in the background, put on a funny movie, dance with the broom, sing, or do anything else that makes you smile while you clean.

Rewarding yourself after cleaning with a hot bath, a good book, or something else that brings you joy helps make things easier, too. Simplify as much as possible to make cleaning faster and you’ll be enjoying your reward before you know it!

Avoid Clutter

One of the reasons some people have such trouble cleaning, cooking, and getting everything done in their home is because they have too much stuff to work around. There are books, toys, knickknacks, and all types of things everywhere, so there’s hardly room to do anything!

By putting things away when you’re done with them, you can avoid this situation. If you’ve already got the clutter, block off time to put it away. Simplify your tasks by establishing convenient places for the things you want to keep.

If you don’t need it, use it, or love it, it should leave your life. Yard sales and thrift stores are great ways to get rid of the clutter in your life.

Know When to Hire a Professional

Another great way to simplify your life is to know when something isn’t very simple. If it’s too complicated for you to handle, get a professional to do it.

The same is true for things you don’t have time for. Some people pay others to clean for them, or even to cook. If you can’t afford this luxury, that’s fine, but be sure to get professionals for the big jobs, like plumbing and wiring.

If it’s dangerous, expensive, or could cause damage to your home, hire a professional. It’s much safer that way, and it’ll make your life simpler because you won’t have to tackle the problem.

By keeping clutter at bay, cleaning as you go, and getting professionals for big or complicated jobs, you’ll be well on your way to a simpler life. Living more simply can mean lower stress levels and better health, too, and those are things you can’t afford to compromise on!