August 24, 2012

Eating to Wellness: Recipes and Insider Menu Tips For People in Recovery

One forgotten aspect of wellness in a rehabilitation facility is the food that is served to people detoxifying from a myriad of chemical compounds.

Often times these patients are nutrient starved and have no idea how to eat for optimal health and best results for recovery.  When destructive behaviors take over, the body suffers from lack of sleep and proper diet. This is why alcoholics and drug addicts who are not sober look so haggard and old before their time.

Cliffside Malibu,  a luxury treatment facility nestled in the Malibu Hills, distinguishes itself from other facilities by the quality of their staff, including a special Chef who creates remarkable organic and varied menus for all their patients, from meat eaters to vegans, all of whom have starved themselves of nutrients in large part because of their varied substance abuse.

Chef Esmael A. Paniza, known affectionately as “Mangi,” was hired by Cliffside Malibu‘s CEO and Founder, Richard Taite, for his exceptional ability to create a variety of cuisines to help their patients heal and rebuild their bodies.

“The nickname ‘Mangi’ was given to me by my late godfather. Little did I know that this name means ‘eat’,” quips Chef Mangi, whose background in the The Art Institute culinary arts program earned him the “Highest Achievement Award” and High Honors at his culinary arts’ school graduation.

“I love what I do. I think love is the best ingredient of all that you can put in any cooking,” says Chef Mangi.

Did you know that in order to fully recover from chemical dependency, you need to restore the nutrients your body has been robbed of while using drugs or alcohol? The Cliffside Malibu menu planning revolves around the guests’ dietary preferences, Kosher, vegan, vegetarian, macrobiotic, and also tailors it with what’s in season.
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August 20, 2012

Binge Drinking College Students Report Being Happier

The negative effects of binge drinking are well-known, which makes the findings of new research released today linking binge drinking and reported happiness in college students troubling to many health experts.

The survey of 1,595 undergraduate students revealed binge drinking students report being happier than their non-binge drinking peers. The results were released this morning at the Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association in Denver.

Specifically, the survey revealed that happiness was directly related to “status” — with wealthy, white, male, heterosexual and/or Greek-affiliated students being happier than “lower status” students.

However, in “lower status” students — in other words, less wealthy, female, non-white, homosexual, and/or non-Greek affiliated students — those who binge drink report levels of social satisfaction that are comparable to their high status counterparts.

Binge drinking is defined as consuming more than four drinks per session for females and consuming more than five drinks per session for males.

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August 15, 2012

Increased Access Puts Physicians at Risk for Addiction

Trends, both positive and negative, can tell us a great deal about the world around us. Robert Waldman, MD, head of the detox program at the Cliffside Malibu treatment center in Los Angeles, says that where physicians and addictions are concerned, the trend is a negative one.

According to Waldman, in the past many states had active diversion programs whereby a physician might voluntarily seek private and properly monitored treatment administered by a state agency with the right to do so. More recently, many states have eliminated those programs, and physicians are no longer feeling that encouragement, Waldman says.

“And so, I suspect, though I don’t have facts to share, that unfortunately this action is going to send professionals back under cover,” he says. “In the past I’ve treated podiatrists, surgeons and medical doctors who had voluntarily presented for treatment, but I haven’t seen any in quite some time.”

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