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Things to Avoid When Trying to Lose Weight
If you’re overweight and/or want to get into better shape, then weight loss can be a positive goal to set. By losing weight and continuing to maintain a healthy weight, you’re decreasing your risk of illness, such as heart disease (including the risk of heart attack or stroke), diabetes, as well as high blood pressure and high cholesterol. In fact, losing as little as 5% of your body weight can significantly reduce cholesterol levels. That being said, it’s important to make the way in which you are losing your weight is done so in a healthy way. Too often will people turn to things like fad diets or look for…
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COVID-19: Where Does British Columbia Go from Here?
If the numbers are any indicator (and judging by the new models that were recently released by the Ministry of Health this week), then all are pointing toward British Columbia continuing to flatten the COVID-19 curve, which is great news. As our Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Bonnie Henry, stated in a recent briefing, our province is at “the end of the beginning of this pandemic.” That being said, this in no way, shape or form means that we can go back to how we were in December or January, before certain measures went into place (such as physical distancing and decreasing the number of people allowed to congregate in groups.)…
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Chest Pain: Is it a Heart Attack?
Chest pain can feel different for anyone who experiences it. The pain may be dull and persistent, or it can grab you and be severe. Nonetheless, regardless of how severe the pain is, having any kind of chest discomfort can be a startling and downright scary thing for someone to experience, especially if it comes on suddenly. While the most common thought that people have when they suffer from chest pain is that they’re having a heart attack, there are a few other explanations and potential medical conditions that can also cause chest pain and mimic that of a heart attack, while not actually being related to the health of…
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Why Home Cooking is Important
Eating healthy is an important part of our everyday lives. When done in combination with physical activity, together, these two things can help reduce your risk of developing chronic (and oftentimes serious) illnesses, such as diabetes, heart disease, and cancer; while also helping you lose weight and/or maintain a healthy weight. However, because so many of us live such busy lives, there are times where it may be difficult to make healthy, nutritious meal choices and you will instead find yourself opting for foods that are quick and easy – such as fast food or packaged/processed “junk” foods (i.e. potato chips, cookies, etc.) While it’s okay to treat yourself in…
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Is There Such Thing As Too Much Exercise?
Getting regular exercise is an important part of staying healthy. Benefits of physical activity include calorie burning, which can help you lose weight and maintain a healthy body weight, and also can help prevent and manage an array of other health conditions including but not limited to diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, arthritis, as well as your risk of falls and injuries that can occur as a result (such as sprains and bone fractures/breaks.) Exercise can also stimulate the chemicals in your brain which can help improve cognitive function as well as decrease feelings of stress and anxiety, leaving you feeling happier; as well as improve your energy level…
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How What You Eat Affects Your Health
Having a healthy diet isn’t just about weight loss – it’s also about improving your overall health and wellbeing, and ultimately allowing you to have an improved quality of life – because the more unhealthy foods you eat, the less nutrients your body is getting, and therefore the more unhealthy you will be, which ultimately increases your risk of developing potentially serious illnesses later on in life (such as heart disease and diabetes, for example.) Having a healthy, nutrient-rich diet is important because those nutrients are what enable our cells to perform indispensable functions – including immune function, the formation and repair of tissues, nerve impulses, and metabolism. One of…
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Mental Health and Your Diet
We all need to eat healthy in order to be healthy. While certain illnesses and diseases can strike anyone at any time, it is proven that the healthier you eat, the less likely you are to develop certain things like diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, weight gain, etcetera. Eating a healthy, well-balanced diet can also have significant benefits on the brain, including the mood – meaning what we eat doesn’t just affect our physical health, but it can also affect our mental health, too – which is something the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health touched upon last year. Because our diet is one of the things that we…
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How to Work off That Extra Holiday Weight
Christmas is over, leftovers have been eaten, and those sweet baked goods are nowhere in sight. Now begins working off any weight you may have put on due to overindulgence in all of those extra (but admittedly delicious) calories over the holidays – and while many people have weight loss atop their list of New Year’s resolutions for 2020, often opting to wait until January 1st or 2nd to get the ball rolling on their new fitness goals – others like to get a head start, hitting the gym as soon as boxing day arrives, as well as trying to come up with a healthy diet plan. In this article,…
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Premature Births
An estimated 15 million babies are born premature each year worldwide; and in Canada, it is estimated that there are as many as 390,000 preterm births. When a baby is born preterm, this means that they are born at less than 37 weeks of gestation. Thanks to new technology, the latest research and new medical discoveries being made, the survival rate of premature babies has increased exponentially. However, that’s not to say that being born preterm isn’t still without risks – as there are many complications that can arise as a result both at birth and even later in life as the child develops into their teenage and adult years.…
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Preparing for Common Medical Procedures
Taking care of your health is important, and sometimes part of taking care of your health also means needing to have some not-so-comfortable medical procedures done; and while much of the unpleasantry associated with many of these tests is usually only temporary, that doesn’t make them any less nerve wrecking. The good thing, however, is that there are certain things you can do in effort to help get yourself through it. The most common type of tests people go for is blood work. This can either be done as part of a routine (yearly) exam, or if can be done to test for other abnormalities with your health if you…