Today, heart disease and stroke take one life every 7 minutes and 90% of Canadians have at least one risk factor. Cardiovascular disease is caused by controllable and non-controllable risk factors. Controllable risk factors would include smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise, obesity. Non-controllable risk factors being age, gender and heredity. Signs and symptoms of a heart attack include squeezing chest pain, problems breathing, and pale or bluish skin. It is important to know that not everyone will experience chest pain during a heart attack. Women (and some men), people with diabetes and the elderly can experience what we call “soft signs” which can include mild, unfocused chest discomfort, tiredness, gastric discomfort and flu-like symptoms. It is strongly recommended to attend a First Aid, CPR and AED certification course to be able to properly identify and attend to emergency situations should they arise.

Yvonne Harder, www.eastmansafety.ca

1. Parabens: Widely used as low-cost synthetic preservatives. They have been linked to cancer, and having an estrogenic effect.

2. Phthalates: Very toxic ingredients that aid in skincare absorption. Classified as “probable human carcinogens” by the EPA.

3. Petrochemicals: Many household cleaning products are loaded with petrochemicals, and this is linked to the rise in cancer and other diseases.

4. Cosmetic Fragrance: Artificial fragrances are made from petroleum which can cause skin irritations.

5. Sodium Lauryl/Laureth Sulfate: The second most concentrated ingredient in shampoos and soaps. Also used in car wash detergents. In sufficient amounts, SLS is capable of changing the information in your genetic makeup. Read your labels – the FDA requires that label ingredients are listed in the order of highest concentrations – meaning that the highest level of ingredients are listed first.