Veggnog!

Eggnog Made Healthy

Want to know how to convert the classic yet rich and sugary eggnog into a healthy holiday treat?  Check out Veggnog (Vegan Eggnog) brought to you by the Healthy Hotties, a group of Toronto-based holistic nutritionists. Brilliant!

Sharks: Why They're Not Health Products

Alternatives to Shark Oil

Shark liver oil has been used for centuries by fishermen as a general tonic and folk remedy. Shark oils do contain many of the beneficial compounds that are also found in cold water fish, such as omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins A and D, which are important for optimal immune function. However, I do not consider shark oils to be appropriate substances for use in a health context.  As a naturopathic doctor I have never, and never will, recommend the intake of shark products to any of my patients. The risks are simply too great.

Why take such a stand on the shark-as-medicine issue? The naturopathic doctor's oath includes to "First, do no harm" and to "preserve the health of our planet for ourselves and future generations".  This means that the medicines I prescribe must be ecologically friendly.  Many of the world's sharks have come under survival pressures due to human activities - from intense demand for their fins for shark fin soup, or their cartilage for the mythological anti-cancer effects, to tragic bycatch losses whereby sharks are unintentionally caught in nets set for other species like tuna (a whole other issue), to spills and disasters, shark populations are particularly vulnerable to human follies because their slow rates of growth and reproduction and predator status makes them fewer in numbers relative to the "prey" species. Sharks are needed as predators to keep prey species healthy. Incidentally, dozens of "prey" species are also eaten by humans, so in helping sharks we would be helping ourselves maintain access to sustainable, healthy fish stocks (J. Sabau, Wake Shark & Ocean Educator 2009). A World Fishing & Aquaculture article published today noted that one third of Europe's shark species are currently considered threatened and the European Parliament has called for stronger policies against shark fin-removal on board ships.

Medicinal Properties of Shark Products Available From Alternative, Less Toxic Sources

Green Energy Drink

It's Kale Season!

So you know this wonderful green leafy veggie is good for you. What to do with it?  Here is a quick, delicious green drink that even the kids might enjoy!  (I admit, my inspiration from this one comes directly from a veggie drink by Dr. Oz....but this is a much simpler and I believe, tastier version). Enjoy with breakfast or as an antioxidant-rich afternoon pick-me-up.

Ingredients:

2-3 fresh kale leaves, washed, chopped, stalks/stems removed

1/2 apple*, washed, skin on, chopped (*honeycrisp variety works well due to its lovely sweetness)
Juice of 1/2 a lemon

1 cup water

Directions:

Blend all ingredients on high until smooth. Enjoy immediately - drink in the green energy!
Total Prep Time:
5 minutes

Looking for a few more kale recipes? Check out these suggestions from Brookfield farm: http://www.brookfieldfarm.org/kale.htm

Probiotic Dosing

How Much Probiotic Should I Take?

The number of colony-forming-units (CFU), species/strains, and frequency of taking your probiotics should be based on the individual needs and health history of each person. As a general preventive dose, 2 to 10 billion CFU of a mixed strain probiotic is likely a good place to start for children over 1 year of age. There are special probiotics for infants up to 1 year. For adults, 8 to 20 billion CFU is a good daily preventive dose.  

Treatment doses and strains, e.g. for post-antibiotic complications, parasitic infections, immune system dysfunction, urinary tract infections and yeast infections (candidiasis), should be determined in consultation with your health care practitioner. Based on an ever-growing body of medical research, your practitioner can also guide you in the use of specific probiotic strains for particular health effects.

Special Uses for Probiotics

What Should I Take Probiotics For?

There are many different uses of probiotics, a.k.a. "friendly bacteria". They can be taken preventively all year round to ward off food poisoning-type infections, coughs and colds, to improve digestion and assimilation of nutrients, and to aid the detoxification of excess hormones and other toxins from the body. A 2009 randomized, controlled study showed that children who took probiotics twice daily had significantly decreased fevers, coughs and runny noses. 

Probiotics are also important for helping to prevent complications in pregnancy; this may be in part due to prevention of group B strep and urinary tract infections, which can bring about pre-term labor. 

Probiotics with Antibiotics

Probiotics should definitely be taken during and after antibiotics to prevent antibiotic-induced diarrhea and opportunistic yeast and Clostridium difficile infections. Probiotics do not interfere with the efficacy of antibiotics in killing the infective germs, but should be taken as far apart in time from antibiotics to preserve their survival. This is because antibiotics are non-specific: they kill the infective or "bad" bacteria as well as the good guys.

Probiotics for Travel

When traveling or camping in a new area, you may have low natural resistance to the microbial life in that environment and in the food and water you consume. When probiotics are in good supply in your gut with supplemental extras on the go, you'll be in better shape to have a trip uncomplicated by traveler's diarrhea.

Probiotic Prevention

Should I be Taking Probiotics?


Great question! and one I field often in my practice.  Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that normally colonize the human gastrointestinal system - in particular the colon or large intestine. In the gut, probiotics, such as Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium lactis, help to prevent and treat a variety of conditions through several mechanisms:

Rolaids Recall

December 10, 2010

Health Canada has issued an urgent recall advisory for certain Rolaids products due to contamination with metal and wood particles. See the full article here.