Tag: immune system

Post-Viral Fatigue, “Long-haulers”, and Acupuncture

Post-viral fatigueRespiratory viruses don’t cause chronic fatigue. Or at least that was the prevailing conventional wisdom before this pandemic and subsequent research that identifies somewhere between 10 and 60% of people with lingering symptoms 6 or more months following COVID-19 infection. We call this “Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2” (PASC). For the millions of people diagnosed with “Chronic Fatigue Syndrome”, “Fibromyalgia”, or even “Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome” (POTS) – all of unknown cause – the mainstream recognition of post-viral causes of fatigue might be accompanied by a sense of relief and hope: “Is this the cause of my symptoms too?”

Continue reading

Your Personal Risk of Illness from COVID-19

COVID-19 riskI’ve been watching some great webinars presented by the Institute of Functional Medicine, that summarize current research about COVID-19. The science is piling up to support what many of us know to be true for other infections: our lifestyle habits play a key role in risk of developing severe illness, and we have more control over our risk than commonly acknowledged.

 

Here are some research highlights that might surprise you:

Continue reading

Acupuncture Helps Immunity

Acupuncture immune systemThe principles of acupuncture used to treat and prevent disease are recorded in the Huangdi Neijing (given the title The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Medicine), written in about 2600BC. These ancient principles can be applied in a modern scientific context: when the immune system is strong, the viruses, bacteria and other pathogens can’t harm your body; when pathogens damage your body, the immune system must be deficient. 

Continue reading

COVID-19 and your Immune System

COVID-19 Immune SystemHow Much Pressure is your Immune System Under Right Now?

With back-to-school upon us and the threat of another COVID-19 wave, I’m seeing many people perusing the internet for supplements and vitamins guaranteed to boost their immune system and keep them safe… All the while knowing that nothing is guaranteed and our vulnerability can not be resolved with a pill. Let’s discuss some measures you can take that will make a difference.

Continue reading

COVID-19: What Are We Missing?

COVID and Immune SystemWhen I sit with a patient who has complex symptoms, especially if they’ve worked with other skilled practitioners with no obvious success, I ask myself: “What piece of the puzzle is still hiding?” “What am I unable to see clearly?” Answers often lie in exploring the illness from a completely different or old-world perspective, such as the more interconnected concept of yin and yang that contrasts with traditional Western linear approaches. We can apply the same concept of balance to this pandemic too, with eye-opening results that I hope we can all take comfort in.

Continue reading

Lyme Disease: Defining the Controversy, Part I

Lyme Disease ControversyWhat is Lyme Disease? This question seems simple enough, and perhaps for the people who successfully recover on their own or with an antibiotic, the answer is simple. But for the 5% to 20% of individuals who develop persistent, debilitating symptoms for months to years after the initial infection, the definition is anything but simple. Depending on the circle you run in, the illness is called Chronic Immune Dysfunction (CID), Multi-Systemic Infectious Disease Syndrome (MSIDS), Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome (PTLDS), Chronic Lyme Disease, Persistent Lyme Disease, or it plain just doesn’t exist.

Continue reading

Why Fever is Crucial

Treat a FeverA few years ago, on completing an intense months-long pharmacology course, I was shocked to learn that keeping a baby’s fever down with ibuprofen (Advil) or acetaminophen (Tylenol) will NOT prevent febrile seizures. While parents are now more widely aware of this myth, patients and practitioners still seem generally unaware of the possibility that blocking a low-grade fever could be harmful.

Continue reading

COVID-19 Message To Our Clients

Kingston Integrated Healthcare

To our clients, your family members, and our community,

 

It’s here. And we’re here to help.

Our health facility will remain open over the coming weeks, but we ask that you take Public Health guidelines seriously and do not visit our clinic if you have any reason to suspect that you may be carrying the COVID-19 (“corona”) virus. This includes:

  • If you feel unwell and have symptoms such as dry cough, shortness of breath, or fever
  • If you’ve traveled out of the country in the previous 2 weeks

Public Health advises that all individuals who fit these guidelines stay at home (self-isolate) and call Telehealth Ontario (1-866-797-0000) or their local public health facility (613-549-1232).

We’re suspending late cancellation fees for the upcoming 3 weeks and want to be sure you know that all of our Naturopathic Doctors, Holistic Nutritionists, and Clinical Pharmacist offer online and telephone consultations. (Please call or email us directly to schedule this kind of appointment.)

This isn’t about “feeding the fear”. It’s about necessary sacrifice to protect our public healthcare system so that vulnerable people have the medical attention they need. Pandemics spread exponentially, meaning that even though only a few cases are currently reported, these few cases can become hundreds or more within hours, which could overwhelm our hospitals. We need to blunt the curve and ensure a slower spread so that the few people who do need care, can access it.

Our immune systems are built to address viruses such as these and certainly the far majority of people experience only mild symptoms, if any at all. Many of our patients are already familiar with ways of supporting optimal immune function – please read our past blog for more ideas (more to come!) or give us a call for more support.

 

Dr. Sonya Nobbe, ND, Clinic Director

Boosting your Immunity in a Time of Virus Anxiety to Stay Healthy

Immune system supportYou cannot turn on the radio or open social media these days without seeing something about the global spread of infections and viruses.  Whether it is the COVID-19, seasonal influenza or the rapid spread of Lyme disease year on year, one thing is for certain: our immune systems have never been more critical to our good health.  And more under siege.

Helping our patients recover from complex chronic infections has taught us a great deal about the power and fragility of the human immune system. We’ve learned to respect a virus’s incredible capacity to circumvent our body’s well-constructed defences (acquired over billions of years of evolution).   We’ve also learned to source natural ingredients that support our immune system in ways that pharmaceutical science has yet to replicate and make accessible.

Continue reading

NEWSLETTER

Sign-up for our monthly newsletter for updates, unique health information, and workshops worth sharing!

* indicates required

We respectfully acknowledge that Kingston Integrated Healthcare is situated on ancestral Anishinaabe and Haudenosaunee Territory. Since time immemorial they have cared for these lands and waters, and we are grateful. We recognize that a healthy environment is essential to the wellbeing of all people and all life.


© Kingston Integrated Healthcare. All rights reserved.