Creatine for Women

Liz has been using our new micronized creatine for Women by True Grace for a while now and suggested that I write about it because she has been so happy with it. Liz has been using creatine for a while in different forms to help with muscle and bone health but also brain function. Interestingly, creatine has become one of the most popular supplements for perimenopausal and menopausal women.

In the past, creatine was best known for its use by bodybuilders and people working on gaining muscle, but it's actually become quite popular for people over 50, especially women, due to new research for everyone as we age. 

For women specifically as we get older and the amount of estrogen our bodies have decreases, muscle loss also goes hand in hand with that which affects strength as well as our bone health. Creatine, especially when paired with weight-bearing exercise, helps to maintain muscle and increase strength, also positively impacting bone health. 

Creatine is also beneficial for brain function because it helps to support mental performance and energy to the brain by supplying it with ATP (an energy molecule produced in the body that gives energy to our cells).

Basically, if you are doing exercises to gain muscle, at any age, creatine can be helpful to make those workouts more productive and help the body to build and repair muscle tissue.

Liz has taken a bunch of different creatines and some of them are more gritty than others. We brought this one in specifically because it uses micronized creatine, which is creatine powder that is much smaller than regular creatine so it mixes very easily and completely and doesn't get gritty. This has quickly become her favorite just because of how easy it is to take and that there is no leftover powder after she shakes it up, she says she doesn't even know it's in there (which wasn't the case with other brands).

I know a lot of people don't love powders, but certain things like creatine or collagen you need to take a fair amount of it to really make a difference so a powder is the easiest way to do that rather than taking handfuls of pills. 

Stop in and see us for more information or if you have any questions! We will be sampling this creatine, magnesium powders, magnesium lotions,  collagen, superfoods, green drinks and more at our Women's Wellness Event on Saturday, September 19th from 11-3, so don't miss it! It's a great way to sample a variety of great, women focused products before buying.

Back to School Sampling List - August 22nd

Be sure to stop by our sampling day this Saturday, August 22nd, from 11-3, we'll be sampling over 40 different things! This event is geared towards kid friendly foods, but everyone is welcome (since we're sampling a ton of great, delicious foods)! We'll also be sampling a variety of different kid's chewable supplements so they can see how they taste before you buy anything. See our full sampling list below, and be sure to stop by, we're at 7228 W. College Drive in Palos Heights!

Back to School Sampling List:

• Orgain Organic Nutrition Ready to Drink Plant Protein Shake – Vanilla Bean & Chocolate

• Lifeway Organic Kefir Lactose Free Mixed Berry

• Three Wishes Marshmallow Grain-Free Cereal

• Three Wishes Fruity Grain-Free Cereal

• Nature’s Path EnviroKidz Organic Rhino Rolls Cinnamon Bun Cereal (GF)

• Nature’s Path EnviroKidz Organic Chocolate Chimps Chocolate Cereal (GF)

• Olipop Orange Squeeze Low Sugar Soda

• Olipop Strawberry Vanilla Low Sugar Soda

• The Good Crisp Company Classic Original Potato Crisps

• The Good Crisp Company White Cheddar Potato Crisps

• The Good Crisp Company Sour Cream and Onion Potato Crisps

• BonBon Sweet Wild Strawberry Gummy Fish

• Bon Bon Pippi Longstocking Gummy Gold Coins

• YumEarth Organic Chewys

• YumEarth Organic Giggles

• Drizzilicious French Toast Bites

• Chao Chocolatier Firecracker Bar

• Fancypants Chocolate Cookies (regular and gluten free)

• Simple Mills Sweet Mmms Cocoa Blast (GF)

• Sweetleaf Water Drops in Water - Raspberry Lemonade and Strawberry Kiwi

• Made Good Organic Crispy Squares (GF)

• Kerrygold Blarney Cheese

• Organic Valley Raw Jack Style Semi-Soft Cheese

• Organic Valley Raw Mild Cheddar Cheese

• Back to Nature Crispy Wheat Crackers

• Annie’s Organic Cheddar Bunnies Original

• Ice Cream for Bears Churro-Y Burrow Cinnamon French Ice Cream

• Ice Cream for Bears Chocturnal Triple Chocolate French Ice Cream

Kid's Supplements to Sample:

• Nordic Naturals Kid's Calm

• Nordic Naturals Kids Probiotic

• Natural Organics Kid's Probiotic

• Natural Organic Animal Parade Vitamin

• Life Seasons Kids/Teens Chewables

• Zhou Elderberry Gummies

We will also have representatives from Mary Ruths and Carlson to sample their kid's supplements!

There will also be a whole table of raffles of kid friendly gift baskets, so be sure to stop in for this free event!

Pass Health Foods is at 7228 W. College Drive in Palos Heights and we're celebrating 31 years as a women owned small business!

We have many more fun events scheduled for the rest of the year, so see our full 2026 event list here:

2026 Events

Beets and Heart Health

Beets are one of the most researched vegetables for heart and blood vessel health. The benefits come mostly from their high natural nitrate content.

When you eat beets, your body converts the natural nitrates into nitric oxide, which helps to relax blood vessels and helps arteries to widen, improving blood flow.

Research has also shown that eating beets or drinking beet juice can help with lowering blood pressure. It lowers blood pressure because it widens the arteries which helps with blood flow. When arteries are wider it reduces the resistance needed to push blood through the body, lowering blood pressure.

Think of it like a garden hose. If you have a wide garden hose it's able to get a lot of water through even with low water pressure. If you have a narrow hose it needs a lot of pressure to get the same amount of water through as the wider garden hose.

We have a lot of great beet supplements at the store in juices, powders, capsules, or gummies. If you like the taste of beets we also have some delicious pickled beets by the brand Bubbies.

Beets are also great for exercise performance since they help with increasing blood flow. Beets and the nitric oxide they produce can help oxygen to get to the muscles more when exercising which can help with reducing fatigue. Research has to also shown that beets can help with increasing endurance when exercising as well as increasing muscle power. For exercise benefits it's usually recommended to take a beet supplement or drink beet juice 2 to 3 hours before exercising to see the greatest benefit.

Stop in for more information or if you have any questions! We’re at 7228 W. College Drive in Palos Heights and have a kind and knowledgeable staff to help with your individual needs.

Educational Seminars at Pass Health Foods

We will be hosting an educational series beginning in September of 2026 at Pass Health Foods. Pre-registration is required since there is a limit of 20 participants for the events.

To register, please call the store at 708-448-9114 or stop in the store. There is a registration fee of $10 to hold your spot, but at the event, each person will receive a gift card for $15 to use at the store.

2026 Educational Series

Tuesday, September 22nd at 6pm:

Digestive Health and Overcoming Digestive Issues Naturally

Tuesday, November 10th at 6pm:

Natural Immune Boosters and How to Stay Healthy Over the Winter

Tuesday, January 12th at 6pm:

Getting Healthy and Staying Healthy for the New Year

Stay tuned for more information! Please let us know if you ever have any suggestions of topics to cover in the future! ❤️

Meso-Zeaxanthin for Eyes

We've just gotten in a new eye supplement that we particularly recommend by Nature's Fusion that is a good source of meso-zeaxanthin. Meso-zeaxanthin is an extremely important supplement for the eyes, though it's been very difficult to find lately.

Some of you may remember, we had Jarrow's Macula PF as our recommended meso-zeaxanthin supplement, but it was discontinued. Then we brought in Nordic Naturals Blue Light Eye Defense, but that also now is on a long term out of stock list, so hopefully the third time's a charm with this new Nature's Fusion Lutein and Zeaxanthin supplement. One pill of this new supplement has 20 mg of lutein, 12 mg of zeaxanthin, of which 10 mg is meso-zeaxanthin, which is a great potency.

We definitely recommend it because meso-zeaxanthin since it is a targeted ingredient that is extremely important for eye health (actually all three ingredients are). It’s much easier to prevent a problem like macular degeneration than to solve a problem that’s already begun.

Lutein is most concentrated in the outer part of the macula, zeaxanthin is concentrated closer to the center, but meso-zeaxanthin is concentrated at the very center of the macula known as the fovea, which is what's needed for sharp focus at the center of our vision, reading especially.

Macular degeneration is the most common cause of vision loss and blindness in people over 65. Lutein, zeaxanthin, and meso-zeaxanthin help to prevent that and protect the eyes. I'd say it's a good idea for everyone, but especially for people who already have vision problems.

Stop it and see us for more information, it's also a great value since a 2-month supply is $19.99.

We'd also recommend taking it with a little food in your stomach for best absorption.

Stop in and see us at 7228 W. College Drive in Palos Heights for more information.

Natural Sunburn Relief

Our Sovereign Silver First Aid Gel is truly a miracle for sunburn. Obviously the best thing is to not get sunburned in the first place by putting on and reapplying sunscreen, but things happen.

If you came to the Wine Tasting this past month you may have noticed the Tori was looking pretty sunburned. We told her she needed to use the First Aid Gel and it made a huge difference, by the next day her sunburn was basically gone.

Also this past month, my daughter went with a friend to the pool and came back sunburned (even though I told her over and over that she needed to reapply her sunscreen). She used the First Aid Gel and it made a huge difference in taking the redness and pain out of the sunburn, it works fast- literally overnight.

It's also great for rashes and skin irritation, primarily helping by reducing inflammation in the skin and calming things down and actually healing the damage. Aloe is great too, but this First Aid Gel by Sovereign Silver is honestly miraculous. We definitely recommend giving it a try!

Wine, Cheese, and Chocolate Pairings for our Organic Summer Wine Tasting

Our Organic Summer Wine Tasting is on Saturday, June 13th from 12-3! We will have a large selection of organic wines to sample from around the world for free at this fun event.

See our full sampling list below:

Wine and Cheese Pairings

• Neleman Vineyards Organic Sauvignon Blanc Macabeo - Marinated Organic Valley Mozzarella with Organic Italian Herbs

• Natural Origins Organic Sauvignon Blanc - Sartori Garlic & Herb BellaVitano

• Domini Del Leone Organic Veneto Rosso IGT - Sartori Tomato Basil BellaVitano

• Finca El Molar Organic Bobal 2024 - Kerrygold Aged Cheddar

• Frey Organic Pinot Noir - Kerrygold Dubliner Cheese

• Domaine Bousquet Organic Reserve Chardonnay 2023 - Kerrygold Blarney Cheese

• Christina Organic Orange - Organic Valley Raw Jack Cheese

• Christina Organic Rosé - Organic Valley Raw Mild Cheddar

Wine and Chocolate Pairings

• Pizzolato Organic Italian Spumante Brut Rosé - Endangered Species Raspberry Filled Dark Chocolate

• Pizzolato Organic Moscato Sparkling Wine - Endangered Species Caramel Milk Chocolate

• Domini Del Leone Organic Prosecco DOC Frizzante Col Fondo - Endangered Species Cherries & Dark  Chocolate

Gourmet charcuterie pairings:

• Olive and Za’atar Maine Crisps with Stonewall Kitchen Red Pepper Jelly and Kerrygold Butter

•  Mary's Gone Crackers SuperSeed Jalapeno Crackers with Organic Valley Cream Cheese and Divinia Carmelized Onion Jam

• Back to Nature Pink Himalayan Salt Flatbread Crackers with Organic Valley Cream Cheese with Divina Diced Cornichons

• Valley Lahvosh Star Lavosh Crackers with Cream Cheese with Davina Calibrian Chili Garlic Spread

• Plus, Divina Castelvetrano Olives! 

There's no charge for this event, so be sure to stop by since it should be really fun (and delicious)!

Why Organic Matters for Wines

All of the wines we carry at Pass Health Foods are from organic grapes.  Many people don't realize, but wine grapes are one of the most heavily chemically sprayed crops, so by choosing organic wines you're reducing your pesticide exposure (and making a better choice for the environment). 

Also, we have labeled all of our wines if they are made with no added sulfites, or with low sulfites.  Sulfites are preservatives in wine.  Some people have found that they can have reactions to sulfites, the most common of which are headaches or their skin getting red, and often feel better when they drink wines that don't have added sulfites. 

We also mark our wines by which are vegan.  Some winemakers use animal products in the winemaking process, usually in the fining process.  Winemakers often use egg whites, isinglass (an ingredient from fish bladders), gelatin, or casein to bind to particulates or sediment in the wines.  Our wines will have tags next to all our vegan wines, which is the vast majority (the ones where we can't find a conclusive answer if they use animal products we treat as non-vegan wines). 

We actually have the most comprehensive organic wine section of anywhere nearby, so stop in to see our selection and mark your calendars for our Free Organic Summer Wine Tasting on June 13th from 12-3!

Stop by and see us at 7228 W. College Drive in Palos Heights, we’re open 7 days a week!

We have our big wine tasting events twice a year- once in June and again in December, though we have fun events each month, see our Events page for more info!

Our Favorite Magnesium Supplement

I wanted to write about one of our favorite magnesium supplements that both Liz and I (Caroyn) take daily- Magnesium Breakthrough by Bioptimizers. We think it's the best overall magnesium  because it combines seven different well absorbed forms of magnesium to give you a 500mg dose in just two capsules.   

Different forms of magnesium can have slightly different benefits and we also feel like minerals in a combined variety of forms are absorbed really well.

These are the seven different forms of magnesium that are all a part of the Magnesium Breakthrough formula: 

Magnesium Bisglycinate
Supports relaxation and calming neurotransmitters, helps promote a balanced stress response and better sleep quality. 

Magnesium Citrate
Supports metabolic health and energy production, helps with digestion and maintaining regular bowel function. 

Magnesium Malate
Supports cellular energy production (ATP) and muscle function, helps reduce fatigue. 

Magnesium Taurate
Beneficial for cardiovascular health and nervous system balance, may help promote calm mood and resiliance to stress. 

Magnesium Orotate
Supports cardiovascular function and cellular regeneration, associated with endurance and heart health. 

Magnesium Chelate
Highly bioavailable form that supports overall absorption and utilization across multiple tissues. 

Sucrosomial Magnesium
A unique form of magnesium designed for enhanced absorption and bioavailability, helps deliver magnesium efficiently into cells.

Most Americans, especially women, do not get enough magnesium in their diets.

These are some possible side effects of signs that you may not be getting enough magnesium:

Early or Comon Symptoms of Low Magnesium:

• fatigue or low energy

• muscle cramps, tightness, or twitching (especially legs/eyelids)

• trouble sleeping or poor sleep quality

• headaches or migraines

• feeling anxious, irritable, or “on edge"

• brain fog or difficulty concentrating

Moderate signs (ongoing low intake):

• restless legs or nighttime muscle discomfort

• increased sensitivity to stress

• constipation

• PMS symptoms (cramps, mood swings)

• heart palpitations or irregular heartbeat feeling

• weakness or reduced exercise recovery

More Serious Deficiency (less common, but important):

• muscle spasms or more severe cramping

• abnormal heart rhythms

• high blood pressure

Magnesium is needed for over 300 different processes in the body (and it's really important for bone health and calcium absorption as well), so we definitely recommend it as part of your daily regimen, and we recommend taking it before bed so it can help with sleep. Stop by the store if you have any questions so we can help you further!


Also, during  May, our Magnesium Breakthrough one month supply will be on sale for 20% off, it's a good time to stock up since it's a great supplement that we rarely have on sale.

Stop in and see us at 7228 W. College Drive in Palos Heights, we have a kind and knowledgeable staff to help with your individual needs.

We now have fresh, pasture raised eggs from Kakadoodle!!

We are so excited to announce that we are now carrying pasture raised, fresh eggs from Kakadoodle at the store! Kakadoodle is a local family business that has delicious, fresh eggs. They focus on regenerative organic practices with happy, pasture raised chickens. 

We've tried their eggs and they are wonderful (I feel like you can really taste the difference). Stop by the store to pick some up! They are $8.99 a dozen, which is a premium price, but it's also supporting small, family farms that actually care for their animals.

Below is a picture of the family behind Kakadoodle. We are really happy to be a part of their mission of supporting small family farms with good environmental and animal welfare practices.

 They even have a cute YouTube channel!

Stop in and see us to pick some up at 7228 W. College Drive in Palos Heights!

Our Favorite Life Seasons Products [Staff Recommendations]

We wanted to write about the brand Life Seasons and our personal recommendations with the brand.  They are one of our top recommended brands because of the potency of their formulas.  They have condition specific formulas, with impressive dosages of each of the ingredients. There are many blends that have a lot of advertising, but when you look at the strength of the actual ingredients they contain, it’s often not enough to make a real difference, unlike Life Seasons.  They have well researched ingredients that do really work.

Here are a few of our favorites with our personal recommendations: 

Tori – Life Season’s Anxie-T

“I’ve been taking it on and off for 10 years for severe anxiety and it works right away.  I take one every day and then take another one if I’m having a bad day (the serving size is two capsules).  I feel like within an hour I feel better, and I’d really recommend it for panic attacks and severe stress load.”

Ale – Life Season’s New GLP-1 Support

“This is a brand new product- I got it from our rep at a training.  It’s meant to work like a natural form of GLP-1. I like it because I feel like it’s helping with gradual weight loss- I feel like since taking it I’m not snacking all the time, my clothes fit better, and overall, I just feel better.  I take two in the morning and then two before dinner.”

Liz – Life Season’s Clari-T

“I’ve been taking it for a few months- I started taking it because I was having trouble with brain fog and sometimes I felt like I had words on the tip of my tongue but couldn’t get them out.  It is by far, I believe, the best brain supplement we have.  I take two a day in the morning and it’s really helped!”

Carolyn – Life Season’s Rest ZZZ

“I always have trouble sleeping.  I switched to using Life Season’s Rest ZZZ because it has good ingredients, and I really like it!  I feel like it helps me to fall asleep easier and stay asleep.  I definitely recommend it!

All of the formulas above will be on sale during April for 25% off, so it’s a great time to try them!

Stop in and see us at 7228 W. College Drive in Palos Heights for more information, we’re always happy to help!