Up to 50% of the black-legged ticks in the KFL&A region carry Borrelia, the bacteria associated with Lyme disease.1 Ticks also carry an incredible number of other infections – many of which we’re just starting to understand. Treat every tick bite with immune-supportive measures and know when to request antibiotics from your doctor. Review these updated 2023 guidelines and reach out if you’re uncertain or need additional support.
We’d like to extend our congratulations to Dr. Naghmeh Mirhosseini ND on her recently published review on Multiple Myeloma, in Current Oncology!
Multiple Myeloma (MM) is a cancer that starts in plasma cells, which are a type of white blood cell that makes antibodies to help our body fight infection. These plasma cells are found mainly in bone marrow, which is the soft, spongy tissue inside most bones where many types of blood cells are made. Cancer forms when abnormal plasma cells begin to divide uncontrollably and make more abnormal plasma cells. This makes it hard for other blood cells in the bone marrow to develop and work normally, which might cause anemia and fatigue because there are fewer red blood cells.
The myeloma cells (cancer cells) make a substance that leads to bone damage and high levels of calcium in the blood. Myeloma cells also make abnormal proteins that can affect other organs such as the kidneys. Patients usually come with bone pain and osteoporosis, recurrent infections, anemia and fatigue, headache, kidney dysfunction and hypercalcemia.
MM is an incurable cancer and is usually treated with a combination of a proteasome inhibitor, an immunomodulatory agent, and dexamethasone. This combination is associated with a median progression-free survival of 41 months. Our recently published scoping review has shown that Vitamin D deficiency is very prevalent among these patients. Vitamin D supplementation and obtaining a consistent level of vitamin D in the blood might increase survival rate and quality of life, as well as reduce disease progression. So, vitamin D deficiency screening and proper supplementation is highly recommend for the patients diagnosed with MM.
Mirhosseini N, Psihogios A, McLaren MD, Seely D. Vitamin D and Multiple Myeloma: A Scoping Review. Curr Oncol. 2023 Mar 11;30(3):3263-3276. doi: 10.3390/curroncol30030248. PMID: 36975461; PMCID: PMC10047650.
I have women come to see me from 40 to 70 years of age asking about Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). Yet, hormones are not the right solution for every woman and not appropriate for all ages. Though every case must be treated individually (e.g. by exploring family history, personal history, and blood work results), there are some general guidelines for initiating HRT.
I have many women arrive at my office asking me to test their hormones in menopause. I often tell them that though I think blood work is a good idea, they may be surprised to learn that hormones aren’t on the top of my list. If a woman is menopausal, meaning it has been a full year without her period, then I can guess with good accuracy what her serum (blood) hormones are currently. Her estradiol (estrogen) and progesterone will both be low and her FSH and LH will be high. In complex hormone cases (e.g. endometriosis, PCOS, early menopause), I will sometimes order a comprehensive urine hormone test to get an overview of a woman’s hormone picture. This test is called a DUTCH test and is a topic for another article, but for most women it is fairly predictable where their reproductive hormones are at in menopause. Let’s break down these hormones for a better understanding.
Great news! We are adding Friday evening functional movement classes with Pam Ferner, E-RYT® 200, RYT® 500, YACEP® , Certified Yoga Tune Up® Instructor, MSEd.
Refresh your connection between breath, body, and mind with this accessible yoga class. We’ll explore movement in a supportive practice that will help you stretch, strengthen and de-stress.
This is a small class designed for those of us who are returning to in-person yoga, returning to yoga, and new to yoga. We’ll explore, unwind and have fun.
Classes will incorporate the use of Yoga Tune Up® self-massage tools to help relieve specific muscle tension. These and other props will be supplied. Please bring your own yoga mat.
Have you heard of Oxfam’s Stamp Out Hunger program? They’ve raised half-a-million dollars for international programs that address gender equality, rural health, and so much more!
We’re supporting this program for the month of March!
Bring in your used stamps and envelopes or old stamp collections and we’ll send them to Oxfam! (The collection box is in our waiting room.) Or if you’re a collector, take a look at their online auctions.
We have one space that recently opened up and our manual therapists could really use some help! This unique position is suitable for an experienced Registered Massage Therapist who:
Eastern and old-world medical approaches that existed for thousands of years before our Western conventional model, teach us that every part of our mind, body, and spirit, is connected to all other parts. Our body works like an ecosystem: Pull on one string and the others react.
Integrative and holistic practitioners sometimes struggle to convey this simple principle. It can be difficult for some people to accept: Why are we treating kidney function to address bone health? Or digestive health to address skin concerns? When it comes to mental health concerns, the interconnectedness can seem even more foreign, but overlooking it can have devastating consequences.
Research has identified some simple, common blood test results that correspond to a person’s risk of dying by suicide. This news might be shocking at first, but understandable when we really come to embrace holistic health.
Cancer diagnosis can change the course of one’s life due to the huge uncertainties brought about by the course of the disease, the treatment, the prognosis, as well as debilitating complications of treatment. Consequently, patients might experience difficulties in many important areas, such as their social relationships, personal and professional performance, and their mental health.
By 
By 
