Preventing the Spread of Infectious Disease IS IN YOUR HANDS. The single most effective way to prevent the spread of infectious disease, including COVID-19, is to wash your hands often and well. At work, promoting good hygiene, aside from having people stay home when they’re sick, is your best defense. Scrub for 20 seconds, lathering the front, back, fingertips, behind the nails, and between your fingers. To be proactive, skip handshakes and use a tissue or cloth to open door handles. Promote good hand hygiene at work with downloadable posters on resources.

“Tea and toast syndrome” refers to malnutrition in seniors when a lack of desire or inability to prepare and/or eat proper meals results in them relying on simpler meals like tea and toast. Seniors who skip meals almost daily, have gained/lost more than 10 pounds in the past six months, take medications, have dental issues, or have a disability can be at risk for malnutrition. Some common signs to watch for include unexplained weight loss, fatigue, memory issues, digestive issues, a weak immune system, muscle weakness, and anemia. There are support services available to help seniors eat well and regularly!

When buying a big-ticket item, we don’t hesitate to buy extended warranty to protect that purchase. But we often hesitate about spending money to protect our family, their future, and our children’s education. If you’re the main breadwinner, what will your family do should anything happen to you? A life insurance policy is a way to replace that loss of income. Nothing will ever replace you, but the insurance will provide your loved ones with a sense of security and allow them to carry on as best they can. That is the warranty that should be top of the list.

Did you know that chewing is the first step in the digestion process? Chewing your food properly and thoroughly helps create more surface area for your digestive enzymes to break down your food into useable parts for your body to function, re-build tissue, and fuel your body and your brain. If you suffer from bloating or heaviness, or feel sleepy after meals, an easy way to help your stomach feel better is to slow down while eating, by thoroughly chewing and avoiding distractions such as smartphones and TVs. Take time to enjoy your food and feel better by doing so!

A professor of mine once said, “To end well, is to live well”. This is so true. Whether the ending is through death and our subsequent grieving, or through circumstances, choosing to end well is important. With every ending, there are losses AND gains. Acknowledge them, speak about them out loud, and engage in some kind of ritual to mark the change. Honour yourself, your experience, and any others involved. Not everyone experiences endings the same way, so do what feels right. Endings are inevitable; avoiding them is optional (and not good for your mental health).

Acupuncture is part of an ancient Traditional Chinese medical system that aims to restore order and balance to the body. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), acupuncture can be used for a variety of issues such as digestive, emotional, menstrual, respiratory, fertility, neurological, musculoskeletal and addiction. In recent years, several clinical studies have proven that acupuncture is effective for people who do not want to take medication, have allergies/sensitivities to medications or have intolerable side effects to medication. The benefits of acupuncture include: enhanced mental clarity and energy, stress reduction, immune stimulation, pain control and improved circulation.

Spring and summer are typical times for allergies to trees, grasses, pollens, and dust to manifest increased symptoms. Simply rinsing nasal passages and eyes with a normal saline solution several times a day is a quick way to reduce symptoms before they become worse. Use of allergy medications (sprays and tablets) can help reduce symptoms further. There are many people who suffer from allergy-like symptoms who do not have the typical immunoglobulin response on testing. These sensitivities and intolerances still need to be identified and treated in order to obtain long-term symptom relief and allow the immune and detoxification systems to work properly.

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury is commonly seen in sports such as soccer, rugby, and skiing. Although many individuals initially recover well, the ongoing instability often prevents return to sports and leads to further knee injury, and the risk of developing future osteoarthritis becomes increased. Bracing is rarely sufficient. Surgical reconstruction performed early, within 3-6 weeks, helps to minimize the risk of further injury. ACL surgery should be treated as an urgent matter: assessment, diagnosis, and surgery can usually be completed within a few weeks. The athlete, elite, or weekend-warrior can then start early rehabilitation to maximize the benefits of the knee reconstruction.