Heard of Keto? The standard North American diet contains excessive amounts of protein and carbohydrates, neither of which is good for your health, because this eventually causes you to develop insulin and leptin resistance. As a result, you gain excess weight, develop inflammation, and become prone to cellular damage. A ketogenic (keto) diet is a dietary approach that focuses on minimal carbohydrates, moderate amounts of protein, and high healthy fat consumption — the three keys to achieving nutritional ketosis. There are many reasons why you should try a ketogenic diet. It can be very beneficial for people suffering from chronic conditions, or for people who would simply like to be healthier than their current state. You’ll be excited to know that a ketogenic diet can help with the following: weight loss, anti-inflammation, lowered risk of cancer, increased muscle mass, lowered insulin levels, and decreased appetite.
Community News
New Couples and Money
New Couples and Money
You’ve just moved in with your current love or maybe you’ve just got engaged. This is a happy, exciting time in your life. The two of you may have discussed where to go on a honeymoon, whether or not to have children, how many or where your dream house will be. But have you had a conversation with each other with regard to your finances? Everything listed above costs money and both of you need to be honest with each other regarding your finances in order to have those things.
As you begin a new, permanent relationship, it is time to set your financial goals as a couple and to be honest about your money values.
Here are things you need to discuss.
- How are you going to manage your day to day expenses? Some couples close their individual accounts and open a joint bank account. All their money gets deposited and withdrawn by either person from this bank account. It sounds like the most convenient way to handle expenses but for some it can cause problems. Who is depositing the money and who is withdrawing the money? And for what reason? This strategy works the best for couples who both manage their money well. So before you decide how you are going to handle your banking, it would be wise to write up a monthly budget then decide who will be responsible for paying for what. Some couples maintain separate banking for their entire relationship. Each is responsible for paying some of the joint bills. For example, one pays for the groceries and the other pays the rent. Some couples use a hybrid of both methods in which each maintain a separate bank account and pay their own individual expenses but both deposit a set amount to a joint bank account and joint expenses are paid from it. But how much should each contribute to the joint bank account? Some couples each deposit the same amount of money, for example, $2000 per month. Other couples each contribute a percentage of their income. Once you have come to an agreement, talk about what will happen if one spouse’s income is reduced because of, a job loss, reduced hours or maternity leave?
- What is your net worth? This is a list of your current assets and liabilities. An asset is an item that you could sell and receive money for. For most of us this means real estate, cash in our bank accounts, RRSP’s and vehicles. Liabilities are your debts. Ideally your assets should be higher than your liabilities. If so, you have a positive net worth. As you get older your net worth should increase. How do each of your net worth statements compare? Are you both in agreement concerning your net worth goals? This is important because your net worth can determine when you will be able to buy that dream home, afford to have children or when you can retire.
- What are your short and long term goals? This is important to establish early in a relationship because you may discover you have radically different financial goals. If one of you is happy to rent forever and basically spend every dime on travelling or entertainment, but the other spouse wants to save up for a house and early retirement – the relationship will be challenged. You need to be honest with yourself and each other as to what is important to you and where you see yourself financially in 5, 10 or 20 years. If your goals differ, determine if you are both willing to compromise. Staying in a committed relationship is hard work and can be stressful. When your goals and dreams are aligned you can look forward to long term happiness and peace in the household.
Brian Denysuik is a local credit counsellor and registered insolvency counsellor at Creditaid who has been in the financial services industry for over 35 years.
The Dangers of Stress
Stress, also known as worrying and anxiety, causes or contributes to 85% of all your illnesses. Stress leads to heart attacks, diabetes, high blood pressure, headaches, cancer, depression – basically anything. Today, more than any other time in history, we live in a stressful environment. Your brain cannot tell the difference between whether you are being attacked by a bear or just worrying over something that is not a physical danger. Once stressed, you enter into survival mode and your body produces cortisol for the fight or flight, and your metabolism and body functions change to preserve energy. This makes it very difficult to lose weight. Stress also makes it difficult to think clearly, as you become focused on the problem and not on the solution, which causes a revolving thought pattern. How healthy would we be if we could just learn to control stress or eliminate it altogether?
Sherry Wilkinson, WinnipegHypnotherapy.com
Ditch the Fast Food
Is your weekday schedule so busy that stops at fast food joints are necessary? Having trouble sticking to a healthy diet? You might want to give meal prep a try! Make healthy food quickly and easily. Plan the meals for the week after getting everyone’s input. Shop accordingly. Pick one day a week as a cooking day. On cooking day, get out all the ingredients required. Elicit the help of your spouse and kids assembling, peeling, chopping, etc. Assemble, cook, and store in meal-size portions. Make double batches. Don’t like leftovers? No problem! Freeze half for a future week. Cook up a big batch of rice or quinoa, a savoury sauce, and chop veggies for a quick stir fry (add protein-rich canned beans, cashews, tofu, or sesame seeds later). Planning ahead can make homemade weekday meals faster than takeout.
Darlene Porter, Know Thyself as Soul Foundation (nonprofit group offering free meditation) KnowThyselfAsSoul.org
Summer Needs Aloe Vera!
Aloe Vera is well known for its healing properties when it comes to sunburns, but that is only the beginning. Our aloe vera is organically grown and is quickly absorbed into your skin – it penetrates as far as 7 layers into the dermis to assist your body in healing itself from the inside out. Use our 100% stabilized aloe vera gelly to sooth any burn or heat rash, speed up the healing of skin abrasions, calm the itch of bug bites, and many more other applications. Aloe vera is an absolute musthave for any first aid kit. Contact Kim to find out more about this amazing product and what it can do for you and your loved ones.
Kim Krooden, AloeLifestyle.ca
Allergies & Bio-Resonance
The bio-resonance method has become well-known for its ability to treat allergies swiftly and effectively. Word of its obvious success has rapidly spread amongst clients, and consequently, many allergy sufferers are seeking out the practices of bio-resonance therapists. This is certainly attributable to the fact that the number of people suffering from allergies has been steadily increasing for years. This includes allergies to food, animals, pollen, fragrances, and various toxic substances. A bio-resonance therapist will search for the allergens triggering your symptoms and then work to alleviate those symptoms using frequency therapy. Bio-resonance therapy is completely painless and non-invasive.
Dennis Ludwig, [email protected]
Protecting Ears in Water
Many people are seen each year at medical facilities due to ear infections or other ear-related issues from swimming and bathing. The prevention of water entering the ear canal, whether from swimming or showering, is an important consideration. Oto Hearing Products produces floatable Swim Molds, which can prevent infections or other problems before they start, such as hearing loss at a later stage. By sealing the entrance to the ear canal, waterproof earplugs keep water out of the sensitive region inside the ear canal. Swim Molds are ideal for water sports, recreational swimming, daily showering, and individuals who suffer from chronic ear infections. Oto’s Swim Molds are manufactured from a soft, 100% floatable silicone, which is comfortable to wear and provides a tight seal to make sure no water enters the ear. Swim Molds are available in eleven fluorescent colours, as well as two to three colour swirls.
Lisa Reid Audiology, LisaReid.ca
How Athletes Benefit from Floating
Floating isn’t amazing because athletes and celebrities do it; athletes and celebrities float because it’s amazing. Simple, natural and effective: Floating is a performance-enhancing experience for everyone. Tom Brady, Steph Curry, Wayne Rooney, Carl Lewis, and Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman are just a few athletes who have been vocal about their love of floating. Physically, floating reduces muscle tension, pain, inflammation and blood pressure. But it has a host of psychological benefits as well that help athletes perform at their best. Sports psychologist for the Seattle Seahawks, Mike Gervais, regularly uses meditation and mindfulness to help players make the most of their performance. Floating is being implemented into professional training regimens all over the world because of its ability to improve both physical and mental performance. By reducing stress and recovery time, as well as providing an extremely relaxing environment, flotation therapy provides undeniable advantages to both high-level athletes and recreational exercisers.
FluidFloat.com
Types of Muscle Tendon Injuries
We can sustain different types of injuries to a muscle tendon, and each one could change how you treat it. It is important to differentiate what is actually happening with each type. A strain signifies that someone has pulled their tendon too far, and some of its fibres have torn. A strain can be a 1st, 2nd, or 3rd degree tear. Generally, a 1st degree strain implies less than half the tendon is torn, a 2nd degree is over half torn, and a 3rd degree denotes full rupture. Tendinitis refers to inflammation occurring at the affected site, usually stemming from repetitive stress or loading of the tendon, over a long period of time. Subsequently, someone can suffer from a tendinosis. This is where the tendon has been put under stress for a much longer period of time with tendinitis, but now the tendon has less inflammation and has chronic degeneration.
Heath Vermette, CAT(C), SouthSherbrook.com
Why an Organic Mattress?
Many bed manufacturers add fire-retardant chemicals and dustmite deterrents that are toxic to humans. There is also the issue of off-gassing of polyurethane memory foam mattresses, which involves the mattress releasing volatile organic compounds into the air, affecting the quality of the air you breathe every night, which may pose health risks. In the past, you didn’t have to bother with organic beds because they were already organic; we, however, have built a society where most beds are not, and thereby pose health risks for ourselves. Up to a third or more of your life could be spent in bed! One of the most important factors in staying healthy is the quality of the environments in which we spend significant amounts of time, and so ensuring that your bed provides deep and restful sleep without detracting from your overall health is of paramount importance.
Aviva Natural Health Solutions, AvivaHealth.com
Black Seed Oil
Black seed (Nigella sativa) is the new preferred therapeutic oil prized for its immune-boosting and antibacterial benefits to reduce respiratory, viral, and digestive ailments. This oil has been used medicinally in Middle Eastern cultures for millennia. Anecdotally, it’s been said to “cure everything except for death!” And the research is starting to back that up. Studies show that this versatile oil can regulate the immune system, benefit blood sugar, and has anti-cancer activity (Butt et al, 2010). Even though it’s known for its medicinal power, it can be used in cooking and food preparation. Look for a coldpressed black seed oil and for a synergistic blend, use oregano oil and black seed oil together. Look for a combination with vitamins A and D added to give your immune system the best tools to beat the bugs!
Cassie Irwin, Enerex.ca
