I just read an unfortunate, though not surprising, statistic that 58 percent of Americans reported they were struggling in their lives, in some form, at the end 2008. This May, Mental Health Month, we want you to explore how to not only keep your body healthy—but also your mind. It can be something as simple as eating a hearty breakfast, exercising daily, or setting aside time just for you that can banish a bad mood or squelch stress. Getting a good night’s rest can even contribute to overall mental health and happiness (a recent study linked lack of sleep with suicidal thoughts), and paying attention to your nutritional needs—think loading up on omega-3s—can improve long-term brain function. So this month, remember your mind, body, and soul. And stay tuned for our top tips for maintaining mental health in 2009.

Melatonin is a fantastic sleep aid, and I’ve used it occasionally to help reset circadian rhythms after staying up too late too many nights in a row (hello motherhood!). But this week, about to embark on a week-long trip to Rome, I wanted to find out the best way to take melatonin to counter the effects of hurtling through space and landing in a completely different eating … I mean time zone. more

Hard to believe, but May marks Delicious Living’s 25th anniversary! Yes, we’ve been bringing healthy, delicious food to people interested in good health for a long time now … way before anyone really knew what to do with tofu or how to pronounce quinoa (it’s KEEN-wah) … and that means a lot of fantastic recipes over the years. To celebrate this 25th anniversary, we’ve collected 25 of the best DL recipes from our prodigious recipe archive and put them in a downloadable, FREE cookbook. Look for it soon at deliciouslivingmag.com/cookbook, and feast again on favorites like Crostini with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto, or Chicken Breasts with Brandied Cherry Chocolate Sauce. And then let us know which of your favorites we might have left out! I know there are many more we could have chosen, such as Smoked Trout and Grapefruit Salad or Braised Eggplant with Almond Cream Sauce … But never fear: We’ll be doing more cookbooks like this, so send us your favorites for the next time.

Who doesn’t love chocolate, especially if it’s free? Seeds of Change, a certified organic heirloom seeds and organic foods company founded in 1989, is celebrating Earth Day by throwing a Change Tastes Good Contest. Tell them what you’re doing to help save the Earth, and you’ll be entered to win a free 365-day supply of their new organic chocolates! Until July 31, 2009, send in a video, photos, or written story; they’ll post the best ones on their Facebook and YouTube sites, and the grand prize winner will be featured on their website AND get a year’s worth of chocolate love. In the meantime, pick up one of their new organic chocolate bars; 1 percent of their net sales goes to support organic, sustainable farming, so you’ll be doing good even as you indulge. (I’m hankering for the Dark Chocolate with Coconut version right about now.)

Hate all the preapproved credit-card junk mail you get week after week? In our April 2009 issue, we ran a story on how to reduce packaging waste and included 7 quick tips. This list provided a phone number for opting out of automatically mailed, preapproved credit card offers, which account for some of the 100 billion pieces of junk mail that Americans receive every year. However, readers have alerted us that the number provided in the story, 888.567.8688, is an automated system that asks for personal information, including your social security number. Is this safe? more

Every year when Earth Day rolls around, authorities tell us to turn our lights off for a few hours during the day. This year, they’re telling us to turn our phones on.

Go Organic! for Earth Day is a national collaboration between the Organic Trade Association, the Earth Day Network, and MusicMatters. These companies have joined forces to create a free new iPhone application to get us thinking about an organic and sustainable lifestyle. Customized for each owner based on zip code, the application alerts users about local Earth Day festivities like tree planting events, offers organic lifestyle tips and presents coupons for leading organic brands.

When you download the app, put the tips into action and make our world a little greener.

Want more green apps?  Check out Locavore and find out what food is in season and locate farmers’ markets. And don’t miss GreenSpot, which pulls articles from reliable sources on organic farming, renewable energy, green transportation and more.

As Earth Day approaches, think about the simple, everyday steps that can help the environment: Trade plastic or paper bags for reusable ones, switch to compact fluorescent bulbs, bike to work, or avoid certain types of food. And while Washington ongoings may seem above your head and/or you don’t want to wrap your head around them, also take this opportunity to read up on what’s happening with energy and climate control beyond your local five-day forecast. Here are the latest White House initiatives—but even if you stop reading here (I trust you won’t!), take action from home. more

Whole Foods has announced that starting in May, its stores will feature paper bags certified as responsible by the Forest Stewardship Council. This means that paper used to make the bags may be sourced from postconsumer recycled fiber or from forests certified by the FSC for quality forest management. Essentially, this is a step toward greater accountability in that the FSC process allows bags to be tracked — from sourcing to processing to distribution. The upshot is that we, the customers, can rely on the fact that the bag is sourced, produced, and used in the most responsible way possible. Previously, Whole Foods offered bags that were 100 percent recycled, including 60 percent postindustrial and 40 percent postconsumer waste. It banned plastic from its stores last year, a move the company says keeps 150 million bags from being trashed. Of course, the best way to reduce your impact? Bring your own reusable bag.

According to the USDA, Americans eat more than 100 pounds of sugar — that’s per person — every year. What you may not know is that a lot of it comes from processed foods that have sugar added to easily and cheaply make it more palatable. That includes sugar added to things like spaghetti sauce, salad dressings, yogurt, bread, and frozen foods. So if you want to lose weight and cut down on sugar’s dubious effects on your body, read the label, and avoid foods that have sugar listed as one of the top three ingredients or with sugar aliases mentioned throughout the list. Dietitian and author Elizabeth Somer provides this helpful list of other names for sugar (there are even more names for sugar, but this is a start): more

Who wants to eat a bitter lawn interloper? Before yesterday I would have said, “Not me!” but some adventurous spirit (or desperation?) overtook me in the produce aisle. The dark-green, vibrant dandelion leaves were right there between the spinach and the arugula. (I have a strong weakness for arugula, so it would have been pretty easy to skip right over.) Maybe it was how fresh and crisp they looked. Or maybe it was my body’s way of saying, “Hey, you need these nutrients!” Dandelion greens are chock full of vitamins A and K, as well as vitamin C and calcium. Whatever the impetus, I walked out of the store with the spiky, shiny green shoots sticking out the top of my bag. I hadn’t even considered how to eat them. more