We all recognize the importance of a good night’s sleep – but what about those long waking hours? Is our monophasic sleep pattern ideal?
Forget the extra jolt of caffeine: new research suggests a nap a day can keep ‘brain fog’ at bay!
Students are known to stay up all night cramming for exams. However, [...]
Posts under ‘Women's Health’
Day-dreaming To Boost Brain Power
Mercury: Not Only In Fish
Most individuals strive to lead a healthy lifestyle. Keeping abreast of environmental issues is key in our quest to limit toxins in our day-to-day lives.
We have often heard that mercury can be found in dental fillings and some vaccines. We also know it may be present in fish, such as tuna and swordfish. It may, [...]
Reduce Your Stress, Increase Your Fertility
Both men and women face fertility issues. A couple’s ability to conceive has long been recognized as being affected by stress levels, with anxiety about not getting pregnant leading to additional stress. Indeed, couples who adopt are sometimes surprised to discover an unexpected pregnancy, once the stress of not conceiving has diminished.
A recent October 2009 [...]
Swine flu & Seasonal Flu Shots
An interesting article about the impact of seasonal flu shots with regard to the H1N1 virus:
Sep. 29, 2009: A “perplexing” Canadian study linking H1N1 to seasonal flu shots is throwing national influenza plans into disarray and testing public faith in the government agencies responsible for protecting the nation’s health. Distributed for peer review last week, [...]
Breastfeeding Across Cultures
I recently read an interesting article focusing on breastfeeding on demand, comparing rituals in the West with those of other cultures. It was quite remarkable to note considerable cultural differences.
Several decades ago, breastfeeding in North America was on the decline. Many new mothers automatically swapped breast milk for formula. Women who chose to breastfeed may [...]
Shake! Shake! Shake!
It has long been accepted that high salt consumption and heart disease are correlated. Many individuals are careful to maintain their sodium levels at relatively low levels: avoiding the salt shaker at home … but are they keeping track of salt in packaged foods?
While health consciousness is certainly on the rise in Canada, you may [...]
Phthalates & Pregnancy
What are phthalates?
Phthalates are a group of chemicals that may be found in products such as: personal care products, perfumes, coating of time-release medications, gelling agents, lubricants, liquid soap, shampoos, nail polish, hair spray, cosmetics, and potentially infant lotion/powder/shampoo. These chemicals may also be found in construction material, vinyl, flooring and food packaging.
Phthalates [...]
MS & Breastfeeding
It is well known and accepted that infants derive numerous health benefits from breastfeeding. Not only is breastmilk considered a perfect food for infants, it also affords babies with passive immunity from their mothers.
A recent study has shown that infants are not the only ones who benefit from breastfeeding. Mothers too can experience improvements in [...]
Breast-feeding: Increasing Milk Supply
A birth of a child is an exciting time. It may also be a time of elevated stress. Some mothers may discover they do not have adequate supplies of breast milk to meet their babies’ daily needs.
Naturopathic medicine can be helpful in these instances: there is much support available through the use of herbs, acupuncture [...]
Getting An Early Start
When a woman discovers she is pregnant, she will generally take steps to improve her diet and consider ways to optimize her health. These measures include restricting or eliminating alcohol and caffeine consumption, increasing folic acid intake, as well as obtaining sufficient sleep, physical activity, and nutrition.
While there is much health information available to newly [...]