Community News
Keep Your Home Healthy this Winter

“Close the door, you are letting in the cold air”. Our homes are built to be energy efficient and we diligently seal any cracks that may be allowing cold drafts into the house. Unfortunately, this also seals off our home from fresh air. In turn this increases the concentration of VOCs from the use of cleaning products, traditional air fresheners and scented personal products. To keep your air healthy, try unscented products, add certain indoor plants and open windows when seasonally possible. There are also a growing number of natural, scent-free air fresheners that absorb both odours and chemicals.

Self-Improvement Tips for Better Health

With the beginning of a new year, we may be asking ourselves things like; What were the highlights of the past year? What did we learn? How can we improve? Many people like to set goals for self-improvement in January. Here are some tips that may help get your own planning underway: Identify the “Why” – It’s often easy to know what healthy habits you want to incorporate into your life, but identifying the reason will often be the secret ingredient to success. Stick with it – A London study followed 96 subjects who were trying to make a change and found that on average it took participants 66 days to make a behaviour a habit. Incorporate the 3 R’s Pattern – REMIND ourselves why we are trying to create a healthy habit, establish a regular ROUTINE that develops that habit and REWARD ourselves along the way for our successes.
Tammy Toor, City of Nanaimo, Nanaimo.ca

Book Club:

The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact
by Chip Heath, Dan Heath
Many of the defining moments in our lives are the result of accident or luck—but why would we leave our most meaningful, memorable moments to chance when we can create them? The Power of Moments shows us how to be the author of richer experiences.

3-Ingredient Almond Butter Cookies

These flour-less almond butter cookies are SO good, and made with only 3 ingredients (1 cup almond butter, 6 Tbsp raw sugar, and 1 large egg)! Preheat the oven to 350°F and spray two nonstick baking sheets lightly with cooking spray. In a medium bowl, mix the almond butter, sugar, and egg until well combined. Spoon 1 level tablespoon of the mixture about 1 inch apart onto baking sheets. Flatten the mounds with the tines of a fork, making a crosshatch pattern on the cookies. Bake until golden around the edges, about 10 minutes.
SkinnyTaste.com

Don’t Be the Water Filter!

Disinfecting our drinking water for more than a century with chlorine ensured it was free of the microorganisms that can cause serious diseases, such as typhoid fever. To this day, chlorine remains the most commonly used drinking water disinfectant. However, chlorine has been shown to promote a generation of free radicals within the body. Drinking tap water has been linked to bladder, breast and bowel cancer; and long-term effects of drinking, bathing, and swimming in chlorinated water has been shown to cause malignant melanoma. According to Dr. Rona, M.D., chlorinated water destroys most of the intestinal flora–friendly bacteria that help not only with the digestion of food, but with the production of vitamins B12 and K. Chlorinated water has been shown to destroy vitamin E and polyunsaturated fatty acids. All of these factors have been shown to result in skin irritations, including eczema, acne, and rashes. TotalWaterCleaners.com

How Often Should I Get a Facial?

The skin is like a factory or conveyor belt, delivering new skin cells to the surface every 21-30 days, which is the full lifecycle of skin cell growth and exfoliation. A facial helps that process along. The treatment will keep your skin clean, clear, and toned. Having one every four weeks helps you maintain that beautiful glow all month long by cleansing your skin and freeing it of toxins, which stimulates the exfoliation process. This deep exfoliation is necessary for skin to appear more toned and youthful-looking. It also allows the products to penetrate into the skin.
Chris Laidlaw, DMK Skincare, DMKskincare.ca

A Puppy for Christmas!

A new pet can be a wonderful holiday gift, but it can also be a challenging surprise. There’s no denying the comfort and joy of a puppy in the house, but a new pet means a whole lot of responsibility that one should always consider beforehand. Also, remember that these little ones have just left their ‘mommy’, so try to keep the Christmas excitement on the quieter side, with lots of time for extra cuddles with puppy! It is important to be prepared for the financial and personal commitments of raising a puppy to become a happy and healthy member of your family, and the rewards are endless!
Happy Paws Pet Food, HappyPaws.ca

Happy Paws Pet Food, www.happypaws.ca

The Best Intention

December is simply a difficult month! Balancing negative stresses and positive happiness may seem impossible. One way to help yourself get through it is to pay special attention to your INTENTIONS; the thoughts you have before you act on them. During the first week of December, say aloud as often as you can, “I intend to experience some joy and laughter each day of this month”, and then VISUALIZE yourself laughing and feeling happy. You have increased the chances of this being YOUR REALITY by up to 75% more. Season’s Greetings!
Barbara Gilmore; bgilmorecounselling.com

Dentures for Comfort

Uncomfortable dentures are a thing of the past. Their lightweight, comfortable counterparts are practically invisible, and completely eliminate the unsightly metal clasps. In fact, flexible partial dentures are fabricated without the use of a metal frame – made instead from a strong, durable plastic that snaps securely and comfortably into place around existing natural teeth and gums. The plastic used is so strong that the partial made from it can be very thin, eliminating that heavy, bulky feeling that makes wearing partials so unpleasant. Flexible partial dentures are a quality, premium product that offer the benefits of superior esthetics, comfort, function, and bio-compatibility.
J. Lane Janke, DD, FCAD, James Bay Denturists, JBSdenturists.com

Comfort for the patient and the caregiver

I sat in the hallway playing music softly on guitar in between the birth and delivery unit and the special care nursery. Occasionally I stood up with the guitar and moved closer to one unit or the other, so that the nurse’s station was within earshot of the music, but not too close that I’d be at all in the way. I stayed for about an hour at a time, playing and singing. I was careful to create only a background soundscape that did not disturb the concentration of either the staff or the patients. One day the supervisor in the special care nursery invited me to come in; She explained that the music seemed to have a calming effect on the staff and on the parents of the preemies, which in turn was excellent for the preemies. When I returned to the hallway a little while later, staff from the birth and delivery unit mentioned that they’d missed hearing the music in my absence and wished to have it more often. They said that it made it easier and more pleasant for them to perform their tasks and they had found themselves humming quietly while they worked and smiling more than usual. Nejama Ferstman, MTA Certified Music Therapist, ShiriMusicTherapy.ca

Gifts to Give Yourself

Christmas is the season of giving, of not only gifts, but also our time and energy. If we are not careful, we can quickly find ourselves overwhelmed by all the hustle and bustle of the season. To help you stay grounded and grateful, and truly make the most of each day, consider giving yourself the following gifts: presence, silence, and self-compassion. Presence will help you focus on the moment and keep your mind from wandering. Silence is essential for recharging your batteries and reflecting on all for which you are grateful. Self-compassion will help comfort you when the reality of the season does not match the idealized version you wish to be true.