Boundless energy awaits anyone willing to trade their cigs, drugs, or lattés for the healthier alternatives prescribed in Natural Highs. According to authors Hyla Cass, M.D., and Patrick Holford, the first step toward bliss is eating right. In their lean yet satisfying nutrition chapter, they advocate a fairly even ratio of complex carbohydrates, proteins, and fats; plenty of water; high-potency multivitamins; and minerals. After establishing this balanced diet, those seeking to "get high" or "chill out" can select from a menu of natural supplements and substances: various stress busters, energizers, and mood enhancers that research shows can mimic--or surpass--the appealing effects of stimulants like caffeine, sugar, and nicotine or sedatives like dope, alcohol, and tranquilizers. Best of all, these good vibrations allegedly come without the typical letdowns or addictions. Historical tidbits, ample charts and diagrams, scientific data, and case studies from the authors' practices create a compelling argument for natural alternatives, including kava, ginseng, choline, and DMAE. Helpful sidebars outline the positive effects, cautions (rarely any), and recommended dosages associated with each item. Cass and Holford also delve into uplifting lifestyle enhancements like meditation, massage, dance, and sexual chemistry. Lots of reference material rounds out this guide to healthy--and legal--mood magic. --Liane Thomas

FROM OUR EDITORS

This provocative book asserts that what many people seek from the "highs" offered by illicit drugs, as well as everyday stimulants like caffeine, is actually a feeling of optimum alertness, connectedness, and freedom from stress -- and that this state can be achieved naturally. According to authors Dr. Hyla Cass and Patrick Holford, it's all a matter of balancing brain chemistry through diet, the use of herbs and supplements, and some lifestyle changes. The nutritional and lifestyle recommendations may not be groundbreaking -- the authors advocate omega-3 fatty acids and yoga, among other things -- but the extensive treatment given to supplements, from SAMe to tryptophan, makes this an important addition to any bookshelf. It offers an insightful look at brain chemistry, the ways in which people try to alter it -- both naturally and artificially -- and what readers can do to optimize it without the risks of chemical substances.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

We all need a boost now and then. Sometimes just a cup of coffee or tea will do the trick. Maybe a candy bar or a soda to get over the afternoon slump. Or perhaps a cocktail or a cigarette to help relax at the end of the day.

And there are other "little helpers"-both legal and illegal-which millions of Americans rely on for feel-good purposes. Whether we're talking Prozac or pot, cigarettes or Sominex, we automatically reach for chemical crutches to calm us down or lift us up, energize us or help us get to sleep.

Unfortunately, all of them-from the French roast to the pharmaceuticals-have side effects. They don't begin to touch the underlying problems that are making us feel bad to begin with. And some can be addictive, setting us up for a an emotional roller coaster; we feel great one minute, then we crash and burn, plummeting into the black hole of withdrawal symptoms of fatigue, stress, and depression.

Fortunately, there is a new way to get the highs we need-naturally. In their groundbreaking new book, Natural Highs: Supplements, Nutrition, and Mind/Body Techniques to Help You Feel Good All the Time psychiatrist Hyla Cass and nutritional expert Patrick Holford offer a breakthrough program-based on nutrition supplements, herbs, and simple mind/body therapies-that will energize, relax, de-stress, and sharpen our mental focus without wreaking havoc on our minds and bodies.

Cass and Holford outline a perfect "brain food" diet, based on extensive research in the areas of nutrition, psychology, and brain chemistry:

* Hangover-free alternatives to relaxing with a beer, martini, or a glass of wine
* Natural, non-addictive ways to get the same energy kick that we get from coffee, tea, or cigarettes * Safe, natural, and effective alternatives to Prozac and Valium with no side effects
* Nourishing foods that can replenish and restore our brains and to counteract the depleting effects of stress or substance abuse
* Natural nutrients to help take us to higher states of awareness and connection, without the side effects of drugs
* Natural substances that can help us escape addictions-some of which we may not even realize we have.

With questionnaires, tips, and A-Z lists, Natural Highs also explores other feel-good strategies like breathing, meditation, exercise, deep sleep, positive thinking, sex, aromatherapy, and more.

Getting high has never been so healthy, non-addictive, and easy-as easy as picking up this book and taking a quick trip to the supermarket or health food store. Isn't it time we all started feeling good-and staying that way? Author Biography: Hyla Cass, M.D. is Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine. A prominent psychiatrist and expert on nutritional medicine, she is a frequently sought-after lecturer and consultant. She is the author of St. John's Wort: Nature's Blues Buster, Kava: Nature's Answer to Stress and Insomnia, and All About Herbs. Her website is cassmd.com.

Patrick Holford is the United Kingdom's leading nutritionist and founder of The Institute of Optimum Nutrition in London, the largest training school in the UK for nutrition consultants. He is the author of many books, including The Optimum Nutrition Bible and The Optimum Nutrition Cookbook. His website is patrickholford.com.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING

All human beings want to be happy and indeed deserve to be happy. Countless numbers of people seek refuge in stimulants, depressants, drugs (legal and illegal), alcohol, coffee, sugar, dope, ecstasy, and others. If nature can offer us sound, safe, legal antidotes to the poisoning of the human spirit, then there can be no more important work in the twenty-first century than researching and exploring these resources.  — Sting

Natural Highs may be one of the most important books you'll ever read. (Joan Borysenko, Ph.D., author of Inner Peace for Busy People and Minding the Body, Mending the Mind)  — Joan Borysenko

Natural Highs is pioneering, both in its breadth of intelligent information and in its compassionate concern for the reader. (Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness)  — Sharon Salzberg

Readers searching for more natural alternatives to psychiatric medicine will find the full range of options available in this book. (Daniel G. Amen, M.D., author of Change Your Brain, Change Your Life, Healing ADD, and Healing the Hardware of the Soul)  — Daniel G. Amen

Jack Canfield

Natural Highs offers ground-breaking evidence that the ability to feel good all the time - naturally, without artificial chemicals - is easily within our grasp. This provocative book will soon have you reassessing your daily routine and implementing healthy, powerful changes that will affect your mood, energy and happiness in no time.  — co-author of the best selling Chicken Soup for the Soul series

Gay Hendricks

Here's a book that should be on everyone's shelf. A valuable contribution to the art and science of feeling good, it also sheds new light on the value of connection and how to achieve it.  — author of Achieving Vibrance and Conscious Loving

Joan Borysenko