Have you ever stepped out of the shower, grabbed a freshly cleaned towel only to be overwhelmed by a stale odor that just doesn’t smell fresh? That odor you’re smelling in your towels and washing machine? It’s mold. Fabrics can sour if you leave them wet in the washing machine. Add to that, a buildup of fabric softener can cause towels to be horribly smelly. Fabric softener doesn’t allow the fibers to rinse cleanly, and that detergent and softener build up. Your skin is exceptionally permeable; it quickly absorbs outside substances directly into the bloodstream. Additionally, any time you smell this moldy odor, you’re also breathing it in. Mold toxicity can lead to a host of health issues. Don’t ignore the signs of an unhealthy laundry routine. There is an easy way to treat washing machine and laundry mold so that it’s eliminated for good. Detergents and hot water will not treat the problem, but pureWash Pro does, every time you wash.

Kevin Shale, Low Environmental Impact Technologies, www.leit.ca

March brings the promise of Spring. A season of awakening, trees budding, flowers starting to bloom and definitely a lightness and brightness to our days. As well, thoughts of spring cleaning and getting everything aired out. Sometimes our budgets can also benefit from a good ‘cleaning’. Has your income or expenses changed with the new year? Are there new goals on the horizon that you need to be setting money aside for? Have you slipped back into old habits of spending? Taking time to review the numbers enables us to make sure they are realistic. It arms us with figures that are closer to fact than fiction. You can also review how you keep track of your spending, if perhaps there is an app or computer program that would be helpful, they are just a few clicks away on the internet.

Doris Minervini, www.abakhan.com

Avena Original Herb Cocktail Colon Cleanse and whole body detox. With an estimated 98% of all disease originating in the colon, our best line of defense against disease is through the regular and daily elimination of harmful toxins. Some symptoms of a toxic colon: headaches, gas, low back pain, foul breath, body odor, constipation, diarrhea, weight challenges, weakened immunity, lack of energy, depression, mood swings, psoriasis, and eczema. Avena’s Herb Cocktail works in 3 stages inside the bowel to promote complete restoration. Forming into a gel, it absorbs undigested foods and toxins from your entire body trapping and eliminating them. It effectively breaks down impacted waste on intestinal walls, even mucoid plaque. Using the natural pressure of the gel, it encourages and exercises peristaltic action, helping to restore the healthy movement of your intestines. 100% Natural Ingredients. Many have eliminated their health challenges through colon cleansing.

Louis Hoolaeff HR HC ACS, www.leadingedgehealth.org

Worrying is an understandable response to life stress – we get anxious that things won’t work out, and so we start thinking about the situation. We can be trying to solve things, or to prevent bad events from happening; or we find it hard to stop rehearsing terrible stories in our heads! Worrying can become a troublesome habit. Other signs of anxiety include poor sleep, having trouble with concentration, being extra jumpy or watchful, or getting easily upset. Anxiety can also show up as physical discomfort or even panic. Exercise can help. But sometimes we need to talk to someone, to feel heard and to get a new, non-judgmental perspective on things. A counsellor can provide a safe place to figure it out – whether you need calming techniques, to change your habits of mind, or to get help making other changes in your life.

Mary Munro MA, MC, www.marymunro.ca

Hypnotherapy is a different experience for each individual because we have varying degrees of suggestibility. We all fall somewhere between 1 to 100 on the suggestibility scale. Those who score between 1 to 49 on the scale are emotional or indirect suggestibles. The traits of an indirect suggestible are that they think first and act later, more likely to be introverts, speak literally, understand inferentially, can be analytical, and respond to inferred suggestions while in hypnosis. On the other end of the scale are physical or direct suggestibles whose score is between 50 to 100. The traits of a direct suggestible are that they act first and think later, more likely to be extroverts, speak inferentially, understands literally, and responds to direct suggestions while in hypnosis (perfect stage hypnosis volunteers). Visit my website and fill out the Communications Assessment and I will reply with your score.

Scott Metcalf CHt, RCCH. A Beautiful Mind Hypnotherapy, www.abeautifulmindhypnotherapy.com

Do you hear noise in your ears that other people can’t hear? Annoying sounds, like ringing, buzzing, whistling, whooshing or hissing? If so, you are not alone. Over 3 million Canadians suffer from tinnitus – a condition characterized by sounds that originate from within, rather than from without, your ears. Tinnitus takes on many forms: The most common “gardenvariety” type produces soft-to-loud ringing, humming or rushing-water sounds. Tonal Tinnitus causes a constant chiming sound, like a musical note played over and over again. Pulsatile Tinnitus produces sound that pulsates in time with ones heartbeat. Mixed Tinnitus causes multiple noises to be heard simultaneously. Objective Tinnitus is extremely rare, and produces noise heard not only by the affected individual, but by others as well!

Jeff Germain, www.islandbeltone.com

Spring is in the air! Along with all the lovely tree, grass and weed pollens! Allergies are incredibly common in our pets, especially here on the coast, and can be divided into four known categories; Contact, Flea, Food and Inhalant. When discussing inhalant allergies, we can’t forget mold or mildew, and of course our favourite tiny cosmopolitan pyroglyphid, the dust mite! Unfortunately, the clinical signs of all allergic reactions are commonly shared, and in cases tend to overlap, but each type can manifest its own unique characteristics. The most common type of allergy in our region, next to flea contact dermatitis, is the inhalant type, also called ‘atopy’. For reasons obvious to the seasonally suffering human, allergies are just as misery-inducing in our pets. Itchy, raw and irritated skin, watering eyes, nasal discharge, and congestion make up but a few symptoms that should inspire a visit to your veterinarian.

Happy Paws Pet Food, www.happypaws.ca