All posts by Sushma Shah

Staying Healthy And Positive Naturally

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Naturopathic medicine is all about prevention and optimizing health as opposed to palliating / suppressing your immune function or health to achieve the desired outcome of a symptom.

What this means is if you had a cold (generally you shouldn’t if you were seeing a naturopathic doctor), but if you did, your naturopath would focus on strengthening your immune function as opposed to giving you various that would suppress the general reaction of the body.

They would also give natural remedies, such as homeopathic remedies or natural botanicals that would help alleviate your symptoms relatively quickly. Talking from personal experience, the recovery time is much shorter when you treat your body with natural remedies when it comes to colds and coughs, especially if you have been keeping your body healthy.

How does one stay positive naturally?

Quite often due to natural or external factors, we go through times when we feel very low, sad or depressed. If you are one of those people and find it hard to stay positive or focused, talk to your naturopath, who will ideally investigate what is causing this sadness or depression. They can test you for chemical / neurotransmitter imbalance, nutrient deficiencies and hormonal imbalances that could be responsible for your mood imbalance and then treat you with natural remedies, which do not cause the undesired side effects that antidepressants and mood enhancers would.

And the chances of reoccurrence are greatly reduced because you have treated the root of the problem, as opposed to just ignoring the root and putting a band-aid on the problem. Naturopathic medicine can also give you tools to manage your stress and stay positive.

By: Sushma Shah, Naturopathic Doctor, at the Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Health Quality Versus Food Quantity

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When it comes to feeding a family, we quite often we tend to shop for quantity as opposed to the quality of the food. And in these times, we cannot help but to be more money conscious, but is that really health conscious?  The next time you go grocery shopping, read the labels of the foods you are buying and compare these to the cheaper version.

More than likely, the cheaper version will have MORE CALORIES and more additives / preservatives in them. So if you are one of those people who is looking to loose weight by making a conscious effort of what you eat, buy good quality grocery which may not be as much in QUANTITY, but more in QUALITY of food. This will certainly help you feel better about the number and type of calories you put in your body.

By: Sushma Shah, Naturopathic Doctor, at the Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Naturopathic Resolutions For 2009

Healthy Me,

Happy New Year Everyone!!!

I hope this year is filled with lots of health and joy for all. Here are some naturopathic resolutions for this upcoming year to keep you healthy and happy (body, mind and spirit):

1. Exercise more often – Easier said than done, I know, especially with the winter months, its hard to get to the gym and work those muscles. May I remind you though, its even more important and beneficial to get some form of exercise in the winter months, especially for those people who suffer from the seasonal affective disorder.

Everyone knows about the benefits of exercise on the body and heart, exercising is also great for mood and for feeling better overall. So try to get at least 40 – 50 minutes/ day, 4-5 times a week of moderate exercise – such as biking, swimming, elliptical training or brisk walking.

2. Sleep more – The amount and quality of sleep affects every aspect of our waking life –  concentration, memory, mood, energy, skin, immune system function, performance in general, hormones, you name it! Deep sleep helps to replenish and rejuvenate the body.

It is true that as we age we need less sleep, however, majority of the people barely get the required 7 -8 hours of sleep a day. So this year, aim for at least 8 hours a night. Early to bed, early to rise, makes one healthy, wealthy and wise!

3. Drink more water – Quite often people are confused about how much water their body really needs. The general rule of thumb here is 1/2 your body weight ( in Lbs) in ounces – so if you were 150 lbs, your body would need at least 75 ounces or approximately 9.25 glasses of water to detoxify your body of toxins and keep you hydrated, among other things.

4. Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables – Brightly colored vegetables and fruits are packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that will keep you healthy and “young” looking, so the next time to reach out for that cookie, go for an apple or pear instead. Try to pack a variety of cut up vegetables for snacking for you and the family.

5. Nurture your inner self – Most people I know barely have a few minutes to themselves in a day. Its important to nurture one’s inner self in order to make yourself complete. You may have many achievements and accomplishments externally but do these really nurture your soul?

This year why not try something selfish just for yourself … maybe a massage that you have been putting off or a Reiki energy healing session, how about trying some Yoga or Meditation? Enroll yourself in that class you have wanted to go to for so long.

6. Adopt a pet – Pets are loving and kind and keep on giving unconditionally. They are wonderful beings to come home to. Check your local shelter if you have been thinking about having one.

7. Spend more time friends and family – This goes without saying and is self explanatory, right? Life is short and times spent and memories made with loved one are precious, so take advantage of the times you have with your loved ones, and remember where is the time to hate and bicker, when there is so little time to love.

Let bygones be bygones and love wholeheartedly, without reservation.

Well folks, this is it for the naturopathic resolutions for this year. Please remember to have fun and enjoy. Have a safe and happy 2009!

By: Sushma Shah, Naturopathic Doctor, at the Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Natural Treatments For Coughs, Runny Nose And Congestion

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Here is a list of naturopathic / natural treatments that are sure to help the family recover faster from any colds and flu:

1. Quick congestion reliever – ½ tsp of honey (Manuka honey if available), with ?1/4 lemon and turmeric + ginger powder- dissolve in mouth slowly.

2. Steamy Bath – Fill the bathtub with warm water and add a couple of drops of the essential oils. Then sit in the bathtub for 15 minutes. Great for opening up those clogged and congested nostrils, and its quite relaxing!

3. Onion, garlic and honey syrup – One of my favorites.  A great alternative to store bought cough syrups and it’s safe for everyone to use! – take 1 large onion and three garlic cloves; chop them and cover them with honey. Warm them in a covered pot for about 40 minutes at low heat. Then store it in a glass bottle in the refrigerator. Take about ½ to 1 tsp. every 15 – 30 minutes until the cough is better.

4. Avoid mucus forming foods – No dairy products, bananas or melons until the cough has resolved.

5. Drink plenty of fluids – To keep the body hydrated drink lots of water, chicken broths, and vegetable broths.

6. Steam cleaning – Give your child steam with essential oils – either in a bathtub or using boiling water. Sit with them for 10 or 15 minutes. For older children, use a facial steamer or pot of hot water (carefully!). The steam will help loosen the nose and chest congestion, and help your child cough it up or blow it out. Do this steam-cleaning every morning and before bed, as well as during the day if possible.

7. Sleep upright – If possible, allow your child to sleep in a slightly upright position. This allows for easier breathing during sleep.

8. Nose hose – For older children, it is crucial to have them blow their nose several times during a steam cleaning, as well as frequently throughout the day. Getting out all the junk will help prevent this from turning into a bacterial infection. An alternative to steaming is to use nasal homeopathic decongestant spray to loosen up the nasal congestion before blowing it out. For infants too young to blow their nose, you can suction them out using a blue rubber bulb syringe.

9. Hot steam vaporizer – Use a hot steam vaporizer in the bedroom at night (not a cool mist humidifier). This warm, humid environment can help keep noses and chests clear at night. Be sure to air the room out well during the day because mold can start to grow in the room due to the warmth and humidity.

10. Eucalyptus and lavender oil – Add only one drop of each of these to a facial steamer, pot of hot water or some vaporizers. They can help clear up the congestion faster and work great as antibacterial and antiviral.

11. Vapor rubs on the chest – Occasionally, these can cause wheezing because the vapors may be too strong for some children, but overall they will work well. It is safe to try, but do observe your child to make sure it doesn’t cause wheezing.

12. Drink twice as much liquid – This will help to thin secretions and prevent dehydration.

By: Sushma Shah, Naturopathic Doctor, at the Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Natural Treatments For Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

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Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) occurs when material from the stomach or small intestine repeatedly enters the oesophagus. Some individuals have GERD for many years. Complications, such as serious damage to the oesophagus, respiratory diseases, and ear, nose, and throat conditions can occur, but are more likely with older people. In clinic, i have seen various patients – young and old, suffering from GERD / ACID REFLUX, and the only symptom they exhibit is a feeling of choking with whatever dry food they eat, and are quite often misdiagnosed as this is not a common symptom for GERD.

Signs and Symptoms:

  • Heartburn—a burning sensation in the chest, throat, neck, or back—is the primary symptom of GERD.
  • Regurgitation? difficulty or pain with swallowing
  • A full sensation in the neck
  • Belching
  • Chest pain (similar to angina)
  • Laryngitis
  • Chronic cough
  • Wheezing
  • Hoarseness
  • Sore throat
  • Bad breath

What Causes It?

GERD has many possible causes: spicy foods, tomato-based foods, citrus fruits, fatty foods, chocolate, coffee, alcohol, and certain medication, overeating, burping intentionally, wearing tight-fitting clothes, bending over frequently, lying down soon after eating, smoking and physical condition (particularly being overweight).? The effectiveness of the valve at the bottom of your oesophagus in preventing material from your stomach from entering the oesophagus. Certain medical conditions.

Natural Treatment Options

  • Avoiding food, drinks, and medications that can cause GERD
  • Modifying your lifestyle as needed – decreasing the amount of stress you
  • May have plays a significant role in improving GERD symptoms
  • Raising the head of your bed about six inches
  • Taking antacids and other medication to relieve symptoms as needed
  • In rare instances, your healthcare provider may recommend surgery.
  • Changes in your diet can help decrease the irritation of GERD. Herbs may be very effective at healing esophagitis.

Nutrition

(PLEASE TALK TO YOUR NATUROPATH BEFORE TRYING ANY NATURAL SUPPLEMENTS)

Papaya juice may help if you have heartburn.? Avoiding sweets, oils, fats, and especially caffeine can be very beneficial. Simple diets – with whole foods and vegetables (cooked) that are easily digested would significant help with the symptoms of GERD.

Anyone, including infants, children, and pregnant women, can have GERD.

By: Sushma Shah, Toronto Naturopathic Doctor, at Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Facial Rejuvenation Using Acupuncture

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If you are looking for a safe, effective, natural way to look and feel younger, try Facial Rejuvenation / Cosmetic Acupuncture.

Acupuncture provides a safe and alternative approach to reduce the signs of aging, along with improving health and energy status. In our clinic, women and men who have had facial acupuncture experienced a better state of being – more relaxed, refreshed and feeling and looking rejuvenated after the first session!!!

A facial rejuvenation using cosmetic acupuncture can improve muscle tone of the neck and the face, while addressing underlying imbalances that may have contributed to the process of aging. Acupuncture also helps to “lift” sagging jowls and chins, by strengthening and stimulating the circulation of “QI” or energy within the energy pathways on the face.

Facial acupuncture is great for anyone who may want to:

– Minimize the look of deep wrinkles,

– Minimize or eliminate fine lines around eyes and lips,

– Reduce sagging jowls and improve the look of doubled over chins

– Reduce redness or the inflammation on face with rosacea

– Improve the look of the skin by fading deep cystic acne and pimple scars

– Fade age spots, sun spots, liver spots

– Lift sagging skin, puffy or droopy eyelids and lift the eyes

– Improve collagen production

– Reduce frown / expression lines

– Even-out facial colour and tone

– Have a more youthful appearance

But it doesn’t end there; cosmetic acupuncture is also great for body enhancement like breast enlargement and reduction.  It also provides a safe and effective way to help reduce weight and decrease the amount of cellulite deposition in the body, sounds to good to be true, it is.

So the next time you are think about surgery or injections for the face, give cosmetic acupuncture a try, you wont be disappointed!

By: Sushma Shah, Toronto Naturopathic Doctor, at Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Controlling Allergies At Home

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The most effective treatment for allergies is to reduce your exposure, especially at home. There are several ways to do this = clean up your environment. If you have skin allergies or any allergy symptoms, you can get relief by removing allergens from your environment. By cleaning up your environment, you can reduce dust, dust mites, chemical and environmental pollutants in your environment that cause symptoms.

Controlling allergies in the bedroom

• Encase pillows, comforters, mattresses, and box springs in zippered, allergen impermeable, dust proof casings. Avoid purchasing foam rubber pillows and mattresses as they are more likely to harbor molds.

• Wash blankets, sheets, pillowcases, and mattress pads every other week in hot water (130 degrees F+). Hot water kills dust mites. Cold or warm water does not. Throughout the House (Especially the Bedroom)

• If you have wall-to-wall carpeting in your bedroom, remove it if possible. In addition to being the single most chemically-treated household item, carpeting acts a host for a multitude of allergic agents. If this is not possible to remove wall-to-wall carpeting from your bedroom, periodically apply a solution of tannic acid to inactivate allergy-causing dust products that routinely emanate from carpeting.

• If you have a forced air heating system in your home, cover the air vents in your bedroom with air filters to clean the air at the point of entry. If you have a central air heating and/or cooling system, install an electrostatic filter to clean air before it is distributed throughout your house.

• Avoid using heavy curtains and / or Venetian blinds to cover bedroom windows. If possible, purchase window shades. Shades are less likely to accumulate irritants than curtains or blinds. If you use curtains in your bedroom, launder them frequently. If you use blinds, clean them often.

• If possible, purchase hardwood furniture instead of upholstered furniture. Soft furnishings are more likely to collect and harbor dust and other allergens than hardwood furnishings. If you purchase upholstered furniture, buy only furniture covered in leather or cloth and constructed with an additional allergen barrier.

• Install a high quality HEPA / charcoal air cleaner to remove airborne allergen particles, molds, animal dander and pollutants. The filter of the air cleaner should be sized to the room dimensions and the air cleaner should process four to six air exchanges per hour. Air cleaners should not be placed directly on carpeting as their exhaust may blow dust and other contaminants harbored in the carpeting into the air.

• Control heat and humidity with an air-conditioner. Use a dehumidifier to reduce moisture. Heat and humidity stimulate dust mite and mold growth. While dust mites reproduce rapidly in environments of 75% – 80% humidity, they cannot live in environments of less than 50% humidity.

A humidity level of 40% or less will eliminate dust mites. Use a gauge to monitor humidity levels in your home. Avoid over humidification of the air in the winter. If using a humidifier, change the water and clean the humidifier frequently to prevent mold growth.

By: Sushma Shah, Toronto Naturopathic Doctor, at Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Natural Treatments For Treating Eczema In The Winter

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As the winter rolls around slowly, most eczema sufferers may experience skin flare ups due to the fluctuating temperatures outdoors and indoors. Skin usually loses moisture, feels much drier and ends up getting itchy making eczema much worse in the winter.

Here are some naturopathic treatments that may help in keeping the skin supple and eczema free for the winter and all year long.

– Keep your water intake steady. With the summer temperatures dropping steadily, most people tend not to drink as much water. Keep a bottle next to your desk and make sure you drink at least 1/2 your body weight in ounces. If drinking plain water is difficult, to some herbal teas instead – camomile (or chamomile), birch, dandelion, stinging nettle would be god choices.

– Try to avoid foods that are high in saturated fats and hydrogenated vegetable oils – such as fried foods, animal fats and heat processed vegetable oils. Try to use cold pressed oils such as olive oil, which have the structure of the oils intact and are beneficial for your skin, hormones and overall health.

– Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which have a diuretic effect on the body, causing the body and skin to lose fluids and essential minerals.

– Eat a balanced diet with lots of fruits, vegetables, grains, seeds and nuts. Eat good quality proteins from vegetable sources. However, make sure that you are not sensitive to any of the above – get tested for sensitivities, as food sensitivities can cause serious eczema flare-ups.

– Have lots of yellow and orange vegetables which are high in beta-carotene – a precursor of Vitamin A, which strengthens and protects skin tissue.

– Do not drink soft drinks and try to reduce your consumption of sugar and junk foods.

– Eat foods that are high in sulfur – such garlic, onions, eggs and asparagus. These foods keep the skin smooth and youthful.

– DO NOT SMOKE AND AVOID SECOND HAND SMOKE. Smoking constricts the tiny capillaries that nourish the skin, and in so doing deprives the skin of oxygen and nutrients.

– Use a humidifier to humidify your environment, especially in the winter.

– Try to bathe with mild to warm water, and avoid using very hot water. Also try to exfoliate your skin using a loofah sponge at least twice a week. Moisturize after showering with products that contain Vitamin E, which attract water to the skin to hold in moisture.

By: Sushma Shah, Toronto Naturopathic Doctor, at Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Treating Insomnia / Restless Sleep Related To Stress

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Quite often we have people at our naturopathic clinic who come in to be treated for insomnia or restless sleep.

What causes sudden insomnia and restless sleep?

Stress is a huge factor for most people. Especially for those individuals who tend to take work stress home, have a hard time managing stress, and tend to internalize it. In doing so, when they try to get to sleep, all the thoughts that weren’t dealt with during the day, come up at night and disturb the individual sleep – where they might have a very active and restless mind and cant stop thinking when they should have been sleeping.

A simple solution to this would be to try and journal all your thoughts before bedtime in your library or study area or any area away from the bedroom.

You could also try some form of deep breathing or mediation before bedtime to help you calm your mind and body down. Physical exercise during the day is also great for stress relief. Acupuncture and relaxation is what we found to be the most effective, along with certain supplements for sleeping ailments that are stress related.

A deficiency in certain key nutrients may also cause restlessness during sleeping hours, talk to your naturopath about perhaps checking your nutrient status, especially if you are using stimulants such as coffee to get you through the day.  You might also want to get your cortisol levels checked (a key hormone that allows the body to adapt to stress), especially if you are getting a second wind at night or are rather alert when you wake up in the middle of the night. Usually saliva hormone testing is the best way to check the cortisol levels. Talk to our Toronto naturopath to see if this would be applicable in your case.

By: Sushma Shah, Toronto Naturopathic Doctor, at Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.

Caring For Your Sensitive Skin Naturally

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Sensitive skin especially needs a gentle touch. Try to avoid using any harsh products with strong chemicals, use the purest natural products you can find on the market, cleanse your skin with lukewarm water as using hot water may dry out the skin quicker, and apply toners or moisturizers as protection that are made from gentle floral essences and minerals.

Here is a simple recipe to make a creamy scrub for dry and delicate skin:

  • 1/2 cup of rolled oats (powdered)
  • 1 1/2 tbsp. of almonds
  • 1 drop of rose essential oil
  • 1 tbsp. of heavy cream
  • 1 tbsp. of honey

Finely grind up the almonds and the oats in separate batches in a coffee grinder / blender. Mix the batches together and store in a covered container until you are ready to use them.

Add one drop of rose essential oil to scent the blend, if you like. To use it, combine one tablespoon of scrub mixture with one tablespoon of heavy cream and honey. Dampen your face with warm water, and massage the cream gently on to your skin with your fingertips.

Rinse well with warm water. Try to do this at least once a week. This will leave your skin feeling fresh and soft.

By: Sushma Shah, Toronto Naturopathic Doctor, at Nature’s Intentions Naturopathic Clinic.