Did you know that certain food cravings are associated with a nutrient deficiency? Craving salt equals a lack of trace minerals, craving sweets indicates a chromium deficiency, chocolate cravings mean a lack of magnesium, craving dairy and cheese indicates an essential fatty acids deficiency, and a red meat craving means you need iron and/or B12. When your body is lacking essential nutrients, it can lead to chemical imbalances which alter the pH of your tissues. Ignoring the reasons behind your cravings won’t change them and will not improve your overall health. Nutritional testing and precisely formulated nutraceuticals are the best way to find out what nutrients you are lacking, give your body what it really needs, and handle those unwanted cravings for good.
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Get a Medication Review
Taking your medication properly is one of the most effective ways to manage chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol. Up to 25% of Canadians are admitted to the hospital annually because they don’t take their medications as prescribed. Schedule a Medication Review with your Pharmacist to discuss how to take your medications and for how long, understand if your medications are working properly, manage potential side effects and help you stay on track. Get the most from your medications with a Medication Review.
Avoid Holiday Denture Issues
For many, the holiday season is an exciting time filled with wonder, great food, and plenty of chatting and laughing. Those people obviously don’t have denture problems. Worrying about your dentures falling out while talking to loved ones or waiting anxiously for the meal to end because your gums are too sore and you can’t chew another bite certainly takes the magic out of the holiday season! If you find yourself with ill-fitting dentures, contact your denturist today to get some relief before holiday parties and gatherings begin. Then you can focus on enjoying yourself and not on problem dentures!
Handling The Holidays
Whatever holiday you celebrate this season, even if you’re surrounded by family and friends, it can be stressful. Making sure that your body and mind can handle stress is the best gift that you can give yourself. One of the best ways to improve your overall health and stress-handling ability is through Bioenergetics. Bioenergetics uses computerized testing and treatment to effectively determine and treat any imbalance or weakness in the body that is preventing you from achieving both optimal stress management and improved health. This holiday season, make sure that stress isn’t an unwanted gift that you can’t give back.
Get Relief with Acupuncture
Did you know that acupuncture may help relieve symptoms related to various health conditions? Some examples are: 1) Nausea – acupuncture has been shown to help with nausea related to chemotherapy treatment, motion sickness, morning sickness in pregnancy, or postoperative nausea. 2) Headaches and migraines – acupuncture can help people with chronic headaches rely less on medication and make fewer trips to the doctor. 3) Allergies – acupuncture may help to improve allergy symptoms such as rhinitis. 4) Pregnancy, labour, and postpartum health – acupuncture can help with pain, morning sickness, and mood disorders during and after pregnancy.
Get Social to Ward off Holiday Loneliness
During the holidays, it can be easy to feel lonely if you don’t have a big family or group of friends. Loneliness is NOT about the number of connections but the quality. Here are some great ways to improve the quality of your connections: 1. Write letters of gratitude to your closest friends or colleagues. 2. Engage in a random act of kindness daily. Buy the next person in line at the coffee shop or drive through their order, randomly compliment strangers, or donate to a charity where you can drop off that gift and see the reaction. It will create a connection and make you and the other person feel great!
Calculating a Drink
One standard drink is 12 oz. of beer, (5% alcohol), 5 oz. of wine, (12% alcohol), 1.5 oz. of (40% alcohol). Research states, that it takes “one hour to metabolize one drink” of alcohol. So you would calculate # of drinks x 60 min. per drink. Only time can reduce your blood alcohol level. When your BAC registers .08 you will have trouble controlling the speed of your vehicle, difficulty processing information and reasoning, experience reduced coordination and ability to track objects, difficulty steering, 11 times more likely to cause a crash compared to a sober driver.
Common Alcohol Myths
“A few cups of coffee will sober me up.” Only time allows the liver to metabolize alcohol 1 drink = 1 hour per drink. “I will just sleep for a couple of hours and then leave.” People often miscalculate how much they have drank over a given evening– returning home over the .08 limit. “I drive better when I have had a few drinks.” Peripheral vision is affected, (most accidents happen while crossing intersections). Depth perception – is also affected, judging distance at a stop light, (how far away is the other car), or running a red light.
Impaired Driving – Know Your Limit
“Driving under the Influence” (DUI), is the term used in Canada since 1921, to describe the criminal offense of operating a motor vehicle, while the person’s ability is impaired by alcohol or drugs.” If your BAC registers .08 or you have a blood test result that exceeds .08, it is punishable under the Criminal Code in Manitoba. “Driving While Impaired” includes: Swerving, weaving; jerky, sudden movements, failure to follow traffic signs and signals, tail-gaiting, or mishandling of vehicle equipment. Women are more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol due to differences in metabolism.
Health Alert
New guidelines published by the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse (CCSA), has drastically reduced what is considered low-risk drinking on the number of drinks consumed each week, and the increased risk of alcohol related health issues: Previous guidelines indicated 10 drinks a week for women and 15 for men. The new proposed guidelines now indicate that more than 6 drinks a week for men and 3 for women, leads to increased risk of a host of health issues. The new proposed guidelines suggest that the health risks become “increasingly high” when someone has six or more drinks per week.
A Time of Celebration
The holidays are a time of many social and family events, gatherings, and opportunities for many to celebrate with family and friends. When hosting an event or gathering, it is important to ensure that there are alternatives for those who do not choose to, or cannot drink alcohol beverages due to health reasons. There are some wonderful alternative recipes for mocktails, smoothies and protein shakes. As a potential host or guest, it is important that you are aware of a) New low risk drinking guidelines, b) Impaired Driving Laws.
