By Dr. Samantha Ristimaki, BSc, ND of Balance Wellness Center

You may try to eat right and exercise, but if you are like most people, your lifestyle leaves a lot to be desired.  Fortunately, supplements can fill some of the nutritional gaps and help you function optimally.  But, the sheer number of products available can be overwhelming and you may wonder “Where do I begin?”

Before running to your local drug store or hitting the vitamin isle during your next trip to Costco think twice about the quality of what you are buying. 

Did you know?

Companies are not required to list the ingredients if they aren’t added at the time the product is packaged into the final dosage form!  

Companies hire vitamin manufacturers to make pills for them that they package with their own labeling.  What you won’t see on the label are any potentially allergenic filler, binder or lubricant.  Your label could read 400IU of vitamin D but actually be 0.1% vitamin D diluted in a base of Dicalcium Phosphate, Lactose, Acacia, BHT, Sodium Benzoate and Scorbic Acid because it was cheaper than using pure vitamin D.

Other ingredients are often added during the final stage of packaging that may be hypoallergenic.

 Look on the label for a list of “other ingredients” that may not be good for you such as:

Lactose – may cause bloating and diarrhea

         Magnesium Stearate – lubricant made of fat that can affect absorption

         Sodium Lauryl Sulfate – chemical added as a solubilizing agent

         Yellow #5 Lake (tartrazine) – coloring

         Propylene glycol – a plasticizer

Lubricants used in product production can affect the absorption of the nutrient.

Look for stearic acid, magnesium stearate, and calcium stearate on the label.  They are often layered over the nutrient to enable the tableting and encapsulating machines to run more smoothly – good for the machine but bad for you! 

Before You Buy

Health food stores usually stock higher quality brands but be conscious that a sales person is most likely not the best person to advise you on what you need to take.  You may want to consider consulting a professional to figure out what you need before loading up on loads of expensive supplements.  Many products compete against each other for absorption and it’s important to figure out what works best for you.

By Dr. Samantha Ristimaki, BSc, ND of Balance Wellness Center

Fat has been thought of as bad for over 30 years and the root of our culture’s problems with obesity.  It is true that excess fat consumption is linked with obesity, heart disease and high cholesterol but fat free isn’t the answer.  The type of fat you choose makes a big difference!

Healthy fats are essential to good health

The human body uses essential fats as key building blocks for cells in the body.

Brain – Fats compose 60% of the brain!  They act as building blocks for neurons and are essential to brain functions including learning, memory retention and moods.  

Heart – Fats help to keep the heart beating at a regular rhythm.  The heart also uses fat as its main fuel.

Nerves – Fat building blocks surround nerve cells acting as insulators and protection for nerves.   Without it, nervous impulses do not travel properly.

Lungs – High concentrations of fat are found in a fluid called surfactant.  It lines the lungs and helps to keep them from collapsing. 

Digestion – Vitamins A, D, E and K can only be absorbed if they are taken with fat.  Dietary fat also slows the digestion of carbohydrates which prevents rapid spikes in blood sugar and provides more time for the body to break down food and absorb nutrients.

Immune System – healthy fats can help ease inflammation and help your immune system stay healthy.

Choose wisely

Transaturated fats   – THE WORST

Heating fat causes hydrogenation of fats which creates trans fats.  Vegetable oils that are typically used in foods are partially hydrogenated to help preserve the food.  This is great for the shelf life of your cookie, cracker, candy or baked good but not so good for you.  Not only does it increase your LDL but it also reduces your HDL (“good”) cholesterol!

Monounsaturated – HEALTHY

Olive oil, canola oil, peanut oil

These plant oils are liquid at room temperature and are associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease.

Polyunsaturated – HEALTHY

Corn oil, soybean oil, flaxseed oil, walnut oil, fish oil…and many more

This broad category of fats includes numerous fats that are all liquid at room temperature.   Essential fats that the body cannot form on its own are also found in this category so it’s important to include them in your diet.

Saturated – GOOD & BAD

Meat fat, butter, coconut oil, palm oil

These fats are solid at room temperature.  Most come from animal fat and they are associated with an increased risk of LDL (“Bad”) cholesterol.

Become fat savvy

Include olive oil, flax oil and fish oil as part of a healthy diet

Read the labels and be sure to avoid foods that are high in trans fats and check the ingredients for oils that are “partially hydrogenated”

Avoid fried foods especially when eating out to avoid saturated and trans fats

Choose lean cuts of meat

Butter or margarine?  Skip both and try using olive oil

Keep polyunsaturated fats cold.  Heating oils like flax will produce trans fats

Don’t go no fat…choose good fat!

By Dr. Samantha Ristimaki, BSc, ND of Balance Wellness Center

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in women over 50 in Canada.  The problem is that the damage begins between the age of 25 and 45 so now’s the time to start thinking about your heart.

You may not be aware that arteries are damaged until you have a heart attack.  The blood vessels act as a highway for the transport of nutrients and oxygen and the removal of waste within the body.  Without clear highways, problems begin to arise.  Blood vessels can become lined with plaque that reduces blood flow.  Insufficient blood flow to the heart can cause angina or a heart attack while lack of blood flow to the brain results in a stroke. 

 Women often mistake a heart attack for indigestion

Symptoms of a heart attack can be very subtle in women.  Instead of sharp stabbing pain that radiates down the arm, women can experience squeezing or burning pain.  This may be accompanied by fatigue, shortness of breath, clammy skin or nausea.  Often, women mistake these warning signs as indigestion and delay seeking medical attention.  The longer treatment is delayed, the more damage is done. 

Symptoms of heart disease in women:

Fatigue with exertion

Weakness or dizziness

Shortness of breath

Sleep disturbances or waking at night with shortness of breath

Needing to sit or stand to be comfortable

Indigestion

Anxiety

Aching, tightness or pressure in the chest that may worsen with activity

Think about Prevention:

Learn about your heart health.  Most women know exactly how much they weight but do you know your blood pressure or cholesterol levels.  Go for a yearly physical and be sure your heart is in check.

Cut back on the Java.  Women who drink 4 cups of coffee per day almost double their risk of heart attack.

Skip the sweets. The more sugar you eat, the more insulin your body produces and the more LDL (bad) cholesterol your liver produces. 

Maintain a healthy weight and exercise one hour per day.  The heart is a muscle and it needs to stay in shape too!

Take time to relax, meditate and laugh.  Depression is correlated as a major risk factor for heart disease.  Stress can also contribute to high blood pressure and poor lifestyle habits.

Drink more water.  2-3 litres of water daily will help to prevent constriction of blood vessels associated with dehydration.  It also helps to flush out excess sodium that is associated with water retention and higher blood pressure.

Finding her Passion:

Growing up in Aurora, Ontario, Jackie Mirkopoulos always knew she had a passion for health and wellness.  Beginning her journey at York University Jackie completed a five year Honours degree in Kinesiology. Jackie says she knew her very first day of University that she was one day going to run her own health and wellness centre.

 She had found her passion and wanted to share her expertise with others. As she puts it, “another thing that has always motivated me to start my own business was to be able to share my passion about a healthy lifestyle with a large number of people in a very direct, hands on, one-on-one, personal way”.

Her Story:

After completing her degree Jackie wanted to take her passion and knowledge to the next level, she enrolled in the Sutherland-Chan Massage Therapy Teaching School and Clinic, receiving her RMT designation.

 ”After spending 6 years of post secondary schooling, I was ready to take all the knowledge and the skills I had learned and apply it to the working world”.

Being very clear on her dream of owning her own clinic, Jackie decided to dive right in and start her own registered message therapy business. “I knew it was going to be hard to become established at another clinic, build clientele and then one day have to move on and leave them behind. I wasted no time and started, by word of mouth, working out of my house and offering house call services for massage”- her client base grew quicker than she could imagine.

Making it Happen:

As luck would have it, Jackie’s father had some office space become available, “it was perfect… It was four walls, and a cement floor. The perfect empty canvas for what I had always dreamed about since my first day in university”.

Off to the drawing board, Jackie worked tirelessly brining her vision to life, after many building permits, lots of construction and help from her mom decorating; Hands On You Therapeutic Clinic was born.

Jackie’s vision to build a community that embraces health as a means to achieving a balanced lifestyle now had a home.

Her Mission Statement:

“To empower clients as partners in their optimal health and well-being by providing education and implementation of strategies for health promotion, injury prevention and restoration of health, through a variety of complementary or alternative approaches”

The Challenge:

Jackie admits that she is a therapist first and a business person second, “My biggest learning curve has definitely been the business side of things, accounting, marketing, managing, basically all the things that I overlooked when I was studying kinesiology cause I thought…when am I ever going to use this stuff”…well what a wake up call!

That said, she is up for the challenge, working hard and learning to be a strong business woman, Jackie plans to achieve her goals one day at a time.

Hopes for the future: 

Jackie’s hope for her business “is that it becomes not only a successful clinic but a place in its community that people know, trust, and believe in. I want to ensure the services we offer never plateau, and are always fresh and new. We are not just another clinic…we’re a one of a kind place, with one of a kind service!”

 Her advice to you:

“Go for it, do it now. Don’t be scared to ask for help and use resources around you. The only thing stopping you is yourself”.

“Don’t think that you need to start big. It can be very small and work its way up naturally to something on a bigger scale. I would like to share my favourite quote from Michael Jordan:

“I’ve missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

There is nothing wrong with trying something, especially if it’s something that you are passionate about. The thing is, when you are passionate about something… that’s when your chances of success are greatest. But don’t be afraid to fall down on the way, as long as you get back up.”

To find out more about Jackie and her clinic Hand on You Therapeutic Clinic you can visit her website: http://www.handsonyou.ca/