Community News
Book Club: The Whole30

The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom. Melissa and Dallas Hartwig’s critically-acclaimed Whole30 program has helped thousands of people transform how they think about their food, bodies, and lives. Their approach leads to effortless weight loss and better health—along with stunning improvements in sleep quality, energy levels, mood, and self-esteem. The Whole30 offers a step-by-step plan to break unhealthy habits, reduce cravings, improve digestion, and strengthen your immune system.

www.whole30.com

Clean Eating: Naked Energy Bites

These chocolatey treats contain no refined sugars, and are loaded with protein and fibre for a quick snack that really packs a punch!

INGREDIENTS:

2/3 cup date puree
1/3 cup water
1 3/4 cup Rolled Naked Oats
1/3 cup peanut butter
3 tbsp coconut oil
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup almonds
1/4 cup hemp hearts
2 tbsp chia seeds
3 tbsp cocoa
3 tbsp each oats, coconut, and hemp hearts

DIRECTIONS:

Combine in mixing bowl.
Roll dough into balls, and roll in extra coconut, hemp and/or oats to cover the outside and make them look oh-so-pretty.
Keep in fridge for 20 minutes to harden…or just eat them on the spot.

www.adagioacres.com

Book Club: Furiously Happy   

A Funny Book About Horrible Things

Jenny Lawson, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author, explores her lifelong battle with mental illness. A hysterical, ridiculous book about crippling depression and anxiety? That sounds like a terrible idea. But terrible ideas are what Jenny does best. Furiously happy is a book about embracing everything that makes us who we are – the beautiful and the flawed – and then using it to find joy in fantastic and outrageous ways. Maybe crazy isn’t so bad after all!

Jenny Lawson, www.thebloggess.com

Clean Eating: Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Cauliflower is a great low-carb substitute for crusts, breads, and more! Here’s the cauliflower pizza crust recipe everyone is buzzing about!

Ingredients:

1 head cauliflower

½ cup shredded mozzarella

1/4 cup grated parmesan

½ tsp dried oregano

½ tsp kosher salt

¼ tsp garlic powder

2 eggs lightly beaten

Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Break cauliflower into florets and pulse in food processor until fine. Steam cauliflower and drain well. In a bowl, combine with all ingredients. Transfer to baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Add your favorite pizza toppings and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Family Endorsement 

Care At Home Pharmacy is the epitome of what is needed today to help seniors remain in the comfort of their home and have quality care come to them. My parents have greatly benefited from “visiting pharmacist” Yolanda Yeung’s involvement. She initially developed a medical profile for each of them and made recommendations to their doctor regarding medication changes. She pays weekly visits to my parents’ home to monitor their progress and well-being and readily provides their prescriptions and any other pharmaceutical needs as recommended by their doctor. I am my parents’ primary caregiver but do not live in the city so Yolanda and I communicate by email. She also regularly communicates and collaborates with the doctor and nursing service involved with my parents’ care. It just doesn’t get any better than that in my view!

Daughter – Lorna, www.careathomepharmacy.ca

Heart Health Goals

We just had Heart Health Month, did you add some exercise? Change your diet? That soda pop tax is coming…we all can do these things, but whether it be our routines, everyday lives being too busy, too stressful, we just cannot find that ‘healthy, me time’. Walk more, stand more, try some yoga, reduce processed foods…Fit Bit anyone? Those fancy step counters can give you a lot of information about your heart health. But if you would just like to get on the treadmill more or walk the dog, this is how you know you’re working at a good pace: take the number 220, minus your age, gives you your relative max heart rate. 75% of that is a heart rate that you will begin to burn more calories, take your pulse over 10 secs, multiply by 6 and compare!

Chris Bisignan, www.yourphysio.com

Why a Diabetes Educator? 

Diabetes is a complex disease that affects many organs in the body. More than 50% of people who are newly diagnosed have signs of irreversible long-term complications: vision loss, kidney damage, nerve pain, erectile dysfunction, loss of sensation in hands and feet and gastrointestinal complaints. A Diabetes Educator has special training to assist those who are diagnosed with pre-diabetes, the newly diagnosed, and people with longstanding diabetes to self-manage. A Diabetes Educator is equipped with skills and knowledge to identify barriers to optimal blood sugar control that are different for each person and tailor a plan to suit each person’s needs in one-on-one and step-by-step fashion. After a few sessions you will be confident to self-manage and achieve your blood sugar targets. People say they feel better and have more energy even with marginal improvement of blood sugar control. Delay the progression of diabetes complications, not diabetes education!

Mathilda Prinsloo, B Pharm CGP CDE, www.seniorcarepractice.com

Ask your Dentist

Should you leave your dentures out at night?  Simple answer is yes.  If you cannot bear to go to bed toothless, then you must be ten times more careful to keep your dentures absolutely clean.  Brush dentures with soap or a denture cleaning paste.  Regular toothpaste is too abrasive for denture acrylic and will cause premature wear.  Brush over a sink full of water; that way, if you drop the denture, it will go splash instead of crack.  Brush your gums where they are in contact with the denture.  If they are sore or bleed then you must leave the dentures out overnight.  Soak the dentures in a cup of water with a couple of tablespoons of household bleach at least once or twice a week.  This will not harm the denture.  It will kill bacteria and spores and remove stubborn stains.  If your gums are sore or bleed for any length of time, please go and see your dentist.  You can always get new dentures; new gums are more of a challenge.

Dr. George Cadigan, www.exclusivelydentures.ca

10-Point Risk Assessment 

When do you know it’s time to get a medical alert system in your home? Take this short assessment to find out! If you answer “yes” to most of these, maybe it’s time to consider one!  Are you over the age of 55? Do you live alone? Do you lead an active lifestyle? Do you use a cane, walker or devices to assist you in walking? In the past year, have you fallen or been at risk of falling inside or outside the home? Do you take daily medication? Have you been hospitalized in the past 3 years? Do you sometimes feel weak or dizzy? In the past 12 months, have you been concerned about falling in the home? Is it important for you to continue living independently? With a medical alert unit, you can have peace of mind knowing that at any time, 24 hours a day 7 days a week, help is available at the push of a button.

www.lifeassure.com

Acupuncture for Menopause

Many menopausal women complain that “hot flash” is too mild a word for an experience that they say is more like jumping into a fire. Hot flashes can include feelings of intense heat, profuse sweating and rapid heartbeat. Fortunately, a new study suggests that acupuncture may help to reduce the severity and frequency of hot flashes with regular treatments. The most effective treatment for hot flashes is hormone therapy – the use of medication that contains estrogen or progesterone. However, such treatment can increase the risk of other health conditions, including stroke, heart disease and cancer. Many women also experience unwanted side effects from hormone therapy. This is why Acupuncture works so well as an alternative treatment. If you’re a woman experiencing painful hot flashes, give acupuncture a try!

Ling Zhao,  Registered Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner (R.TCM.P.) (CTCMA); C.M.D., Dr.Ac (CMAAC), Registered Massage Therapist (MTAM)

Get Even With Your Bra! 

For a woman who receives a breast cancer diagnosis, many things may go through their minds. If a mastectomy or a lumpectomy is required, there are alternatives to reconstruction. If reconstruction is not immediate, for the interim, there are options. A breast form or breast prosthesis can provide a balanced silhouette for all women. If a lumpectomy is required and your breasts are slightly uneven, or even a cup size different, Amoena partial shapers provide balance and confidence. The Amoena partial shapers are soft and natural looking, no one will know that you are wearing a partial breast form. They are made with Comfort+ technology, which allows you to stay warm or cool depending on your own temperature. Amoena partial forms and full breast forms are easy to wear, they simply slip into your bra to provide a smooth and symmetrical shape. Get even today!

Tara Torchia-Wells, www.theunexpectedgift.ca