Author: KIHC

Thinking Outside the Box: Holiday Gift Giving

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Newsletters.

Dr. Christina Vlahopoulos, ND

The Holiday Season is quickly coming and not only is the goose getting fat, but so are the wallets of all the giant retailors across this country. Over the last few years, I have noticed that gift giving and all the hustle and bustle that surrounds it, has become more stressful than it needs to be. Somewhere along the way, we forget why we are purchasing that small item as a gesture of gratitude and instead fight over the last toy in the store. So, as with anything, age has brought me more wisdom about how I show my gratitude to those I care about, especially at this time of the year. In sharing these ideas, and other Holiday gift giving suggestions, my hope is that it might inspire you to think a little differently about how you show your gratitude this Holiday Season.

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4th annual Healthy Food Drive

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Programs and Events, Uncategorized.

Food insecurity affects 8% of Canadians. Making a donation to the local food bank is a simple way to support our neighbours, while we encourage policy makers to create more long-term strategies for the health of our community.

Dr. Christina is coordinating our 4th annual Healthy Food Drive and we’re excited to offer everyone who makes a food or money donation, the chance to win one of many generous prizes offered by these local businesses:

$50 gift certificate for Greenlee’s Quality Meats, (one of my favourite local butchers for free-range local meat and eggs)

1 of 2 $25 gift certificates from our neighbour, Nutrition House

$40 gift certificate from Sigrid’s Natural Foods out on Days Road

Guest Article: Diabetes and Exercise

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Newsletters.

Andrea Myers, Co-Owner Compass Fitness

We all know that exercise and physical activity is a crucial part of a healthy long life. This couldn’t be more true than for people living with diabetes. As rates of type II diabetes continue to increase, physical activity continues to be a fundamental form of therapy for people who are diabetic and pre-diabetic.
Despite the increasing amount of evidence that shows the benefits of exercise, this form of prevention and treatment continues to be underused and priority is often given to medication and diet. Although a lack of knowledge of the benefits of exercise or lack of motivation contributes to this underuse, often a lack of clear guidelines is also an important factor. In this article we will discuss why exercise is so important for people living with diabetes as well as some guidelines on how to introduce exercise into your lifestyle and how to do so safely by making rewarding and long-term lifestyle changes.

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“Good bacteria” critical for Digestive Health

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Newsletters.

~ Dr. Sonya Nobbe, ND

Many of us would like to believe that our bodies are clean and sterile, but the truth is that we are made up of 10 times more bacteria than body cells. These bacteria manage our immune system, digest our food, and keep the ‘bad’ guys in-check. These friendly bacteria are not only crucial for our quality of life, but they keep us alive. When we change our balanced digestive environment, such as with acute use of antibiotics or chronic use of acid blocking medication like Nexium and Prevacid, susceptibility to damaging species like C. difficile and H. pylori increases, our risk for mineral deficiencies and associated diseases like osteoporosis increases, and our immune system function declines.

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The Energy of Digestion

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Newsletters.

Carol Belanger, BA, RM, BHS

Tension, worry, mental fatigue, stress and physical ailments are all taxing on the digestive system. These depleting circumstances use the energy stores in our body, leaving less energy for digestion. Digestion requires a fair amount of energy to process food. Vegetables and fruit have digestive enzymes in them and require less energy to digest. Processed food and cooked food has fewer or no enzymes and require the most amount of energy to digest.

We have a finite amount of energy to use each day if we are not actively replenishing it. That means that in addition to digestion, any of the jobs performed by our body are using energy and are limited in effectiveness if our energy level is low – whether we are healing a chronic or acute pain or ailment, detoxifying, using brainpower, etc.

However, we don’t actually have a finite amount of energy to use each day. If that sounds contradictory,

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Folic Acid Supplementation – Are you taking the right one?

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Newsletters.

Please view our entire June e-newsletter, Kids and Teens and their unique health needs, here.

Dr. Christina Vlahopoulos, ND

Many women who are trying to become pregnant know the importance of folic acid supplementation in the prevention of Neural Tube Defects (NTD). Government agencies have mandated that certain foods be fortified with this essential vitamin to further protect against this condition. Furthermore, it is advised by the Public Health Agency of Canada that all women planning on becoming pregnant should take 0.4mg of Folic Acid daily 3 months pre-pregnancy and for the first three months of pregnancy.

However, recent research is demonstrating that some people cannot fully use or metabolize folic acid. Even if a woman is supplementing with folic acid she may only be utilizing part of the supplement and not folic acid to its fullest extent.

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Non-toxic Sunscreen for Kids

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Newsletters.

Please view our entire June e-newsletter, Kids and Teens and their unique health needs, here.

Dr. Sonya Nobbe, ND

For years we’ve been taught that sunburns cause skin cancer and that sunscreens are protective. Did you know though that many agencies are now arguing that there is actually very little scientific evidence to prove that sunscreen prevents skin cancer, and that many ingredients in these products are quite harmful themselves? Though this may be very true, it’s most important to consider that a lack of evidence doesn’t prove ineffectiveness so that, simply put, it appears we simply lack the evidence to make an easy informed decision one way or the other. So what’s a parent to do?

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Pediatric Naturopathic Medicine

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Newsletters.

Please view our entire June e-newsletter on Kids and Teens, here.

Dr. Sonya Nobbe, ND

Children are not born as the “clean slate” we once thought of them as. Our environment is over-burdened with toxic chemicals and babies are exposed to many of these while still in mom’s tummy. Even breast milk, which is the healthiest food for a newborn child, can be laden with fat-soluble toxins from mom’s body. The good news is that children are generally quite resilient and they often respond very well to healthcare approaches that promote healthy functioning of the entire body. This differs from some approaches that address uncomfortable symptoms by suppressing normal body processes, sometimes until a child “grows out of” their particular concern.

Many complementary and integrative medicines, such as Naturopathic Medicine, Osteopathy, and advanced forms of Reiki, treat conditions by identifying and treating where or how the body is having difficulty fixing itself. By gently supporting the body’s natural ability to heal, much of the guesswork in medicine is removed and optimal health, (rather than simply the absence of disease), is possible.

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Babies and Energetic Touch

Written by KIHC on . Posted in Blog, Newsletters.

Please view our entire June e-newsletter on Kids and Teens, here.

Carol Belanger, BA, RM, BHS

Babies appreciate contact to a great degree. From time of conception, they exist in a comforting world of contact. They are both stimulated and soothed by their growing sense of touch and by their other senses as well. From my experience with babies in utero, they respond wonderfully to energy work through enhanced energetic touch. This continues after they are born too.

It can be sensory overload for a newborn or young infant in our busy, stimulating, steady-paced world. This presents an environment of a lot of input for them. Resting helps restore their sensory calm and soothing, but infants may need this calming and soothing even before a rest happens.

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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.

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