You Vs. Winter: Beat the Winter Blues with Vitamin D

How often do you hear “It’s winter” as an excuse?

“I’m sick because it’s winter.”

“I’m not motivated to go out tonight because it’s winter and it’s freezing.”

The combination of cold, wet, ice, snow, and lack of sunlight seems to be responsible for making people sick, sleepy, depressed, and unmotivated. Sometimes it is even held accountable for breaking bones.

We see the effects of winter all around us on a day-to-day basis. There are more sick-days taken. People gain weight. The number of hipbone fractures significantly increases in the winter months. Nobody goes out anymore. There is even a condition called SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), which is essentially a medical disease name for what we all call “the winter blues.”

It’s easy to recognize all these hardships and many of us simply accept it. We place the blame on winter. We resign to the idea that there’s nothing we can do about it except battle through until spring. With the return of spring, it’ll bring our motivation, inspiration, desire to socialize, and even restore our health.

It is obvious that our environment plays a significant role in determining our health, as we see by how we hold winter responsible for these health concerns. However, the health of our body is not only determined by external environmental stressors (or lack there of), but also by our bodies ability to weather these stressors.

Like winter, Vitamin D is also linked to all these health concerns.

Long known only as the body’s catalyst for proper absorption of calcium, thus playing a role in osteoporosis (a cause of hipbone fractures), recent research shows its link to the immune, nervous, and endocrine systems as well. Inadequate Vitamin D levels has been linked to heart disease, cancer, musculoskeletal pain, depression and seasonal affective disorder, diabetes, asthma, obesity, lowered immunity, rheumatoid arthritis, among many others.

 So what does Vitamin D have to do with winter?

Vitamin D, also dubbed as the “Sunshine Vitamin”, is mainly obtained from exposure of our skin to the sun. However, in northern latitudes such as in Canada, people are at a higher risk for Vitamin D deficiency due to the lack of sunlight during the winter months.

Aside from a lack of sunlight, Vitamin D levels in our body is also depend on our skin tone, dietary sources, absorption in the digestive tract, aging, genetic susceptibility, breastfeeding, and medication interactions. This is where we can take charge and make up for winter’s lack of sunlight.

To aid your body to maintain adequate amounts of Vitamin D, ensure that your overall health is at its best. This is vital to allow for proper absorption. After optimizing your health, you can then begin to look at other sources. Your diet should include foods high in Vitamin D and Vitamin D supplementation can be considered.

One of the most common and best sources of Vitamin D is fatty fish such as herring and salmon. Others include dairy, egg yolks, and mushrooms. 

When looking for Vitamin D supplementation, it is important to ensure that the appropriate form of Vitamin D is used: Vitamin D3.

Vitamin D3 is often derived from animal fat, so for vegans and vegetarians, it is important to know that it is also possible to get Vitamin D3 from sheepskin oil which is collected during shearing.

Excess Vitamin D is toxic so before supplementation, be sure to consult with a naturopathic doctor or another healthcare professional. They can determine if you are deficient, if supplementation is appropriate, and if so, the course of supplementation that is best suited to you.

While vitamin D deficiency is a preventable disease and treatment for deficiency is affordable, safe, and simple, it has been estimated to be one of the most common medical conditions in the world. As Vitamin D deficiency is linked to number maladies, I would recommend that individuals  get their levels checked to reduce risk factors for disease and to help you achieve your best possible health.


Dr. Cristina, Naturopathic Doctor at The Health Loft

----

References

Banderia, F., Griz, L., Dreyer, P., Eufrazino, C., Bandeira, C., & Freese, E. (2006). Vitamin D deficiency: a global perspective. Arquivos Brasileiros de Endocrinologia & Metabologia. 50(4), 640-6.

Holick, MF., & Chen, TC. (2008). Vitamin D deficiency; a worldwide problem with health consequences. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 87(4), 1080S-6S.

Holick, MF.  (2004). Sunlight and vitamin D for bone health and prevention of autoimmune diseases, cancers, and cardiovascular disease. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 80(6), 1678S-88S.

Introducing Phil, our newest Registered Massage Therapist

I am pleased to announce our newest team member - Phil Campbell, RMT.  He will be holding hours Fridays 2pm - 8pm and Saturdays 10am - 4pm at The Health Loft.

Many of our clients have been asking for more availability on Saturdays and the ability to have 2 simulataneous massages.  With Phil on board, we can now offer this to you.  

A little about Phil:

Phil loves sports, especially ice hockey, but a low back injury curtailed his professional aspirations. He understands first-hand how crippling sport-specific injuries can be. Phil’s rehabilitative experience with massage led him to make a career change to become a Registered Massage Therapist.

Phil has dedicated his career to helping others live a life that is as pain-free as possible.

He discovered first-hand that the only thing that managed his pain naturally was massage and strengthening exercises. Phil strives, via massage therapy, to gradually get people off of pain medication for musculoskeletal complaints.

Phil graduated at the top of his class from Royal Canadian College of Massage Therapy in Toronto, a 2200 hour course with a minimum of 150 hours of hands on patient care, and 40 hours of outreach treatments.  For Phil, this included events such as heat wave and ice wave therapy, as well as raising money for neuroblastoma.

Phil started his career at Gotstyle: The Menswear Store, now calls The Health Loft home. He looks forward to taking additional courses to add depth and knowledge to his profession- he is always striving to be the best in his field and providing the highest quality client care. He specializes in sports-specific massages, as well as headache management.

In his spare time, Phil enjoys traveling, cooking, music, hockey and mixed martial arts.

Phil’s health philosophy is simple:

“Encouraging people to live a healthy and happy life is what it is all about."

To book a massage with Phil, please click the link below:

Touchdown! :: The NFL and Chiropractic

When you witness a crushing tackle during a game of Monday Night Football, you probably wonder how these guys can continually to get up and play the rest of the game, let alone keep playing week after week! Besides simply being big and strong, one way most players in the National Football League (NFL) stay competitive is through chiropractic treatment.

The sport chiropractors at The Health Loft are trained in sport-specific techniques, such as Functional Anatomic Palpation, and Functional Range Release which focuses on joint movement and muscle function for peak performance. Back pain affects approximately 75% of professional athletes every year, with possibly an even a greater percentage of football players.  This is why NFL players require chiropractic care for their aches and pains.

To determine the use of chiropractic in the NFL, a questionnaire was sent to the head athletic trainers of every team in the league. The questions related to frequency and type of treatment used to treat injured players. 


Of the two-thirds of all trainers who responded, the results indicate a strong use of chiropractic:

•               45% of the NFL trainers had personally seen a chiropractor;

•               77% of trainers had referred players to a chiropractor; and

•               31% of NFL teams had an official chiropractor on their staff.

The trainers surveyed in this study in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics predominantly referred players to chiropractors for low back pain, neck injury, and headaches. 


With professional sports organizations and their athletes embracing chiropractic, I hope this will encourage the general public will seek out this natural, safe alternative to drugs and surgery.  I often come across new patients who are scared of chiropractic, and this can be frustrating as a doctor to try and dispel some of the myths that exist about Chiropractic and Chiropractors.  We are the original "health nuts", a name aptly coined by the medical profession when chiropractors in the 1950's were encouraging their patients to exercise, do Yoga, eat healthy, nutritious foods and get chiropractic treatments as a primary approach to Health care.  Remember, this was during a time when cigarettes were considered a benign hobby!! Today, our original message of health doesn't seem so crazy, right?!  In fact, more and more medical doctors are seeing the value of this organic approach to health.


Professional athletes, because of the competitive nature of their jobs, are usually on the cutting edge of new technologies, and effective methods of care to optimize performance.  The usage of chiropractic in the NFL is a testament to the efficacy of Chiropractic in the prevention and rehabilitation of injuries.


Be Healthy.
Dr. Stephanie

Reference:
Stump JL, Redwood D. The use and role of sport chiropractors in the National Football League: A short report. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 2002:25(3), p. e2.

Your Chiropractor’s Role in Pregnancy

Pregnancy can be one of the most exciting experiences for a women to go through, but it also comes with a lot of questions and concerns about what is best for both mother and baby.

As a Chiropractor who specializes in women’s health and perinatal care, I have the pleasure of working with many expectant mothers.  One thing that always surprises me is how little is known about the benefits of Chiropractic care throughout pregnancy.  With that said, I’d like to explain in a little more detail why regular visits to your Chiropractor are an important part of prenatal care. 

There are three main reasons why Chiropractic care is so important for moms-to-be...

• It improves comfort for the mother
• It also improves comfort for the baby, and
•  It prepares the body for a safer and faster birth

Okay let’s start with an obvious one -  Pregnancy Pain:

A large percentage of pregnant women experience pain at some point throughout their pregnancy .  It’s no surprise that with such rapid growth, comes significant change to the body’s mechanics. 

As a women’s abdomen grows her center of gravity actually shifts forward putting more strain on the back and hip musculature.  Increases in weight also increase the pressure on the ankles, knees and hip joints.  Because these changes happen so quickly the body doesn’t always have enough time to adapt before the muscles and joints get overused and injured.  

To make matters worse , during pregnancy our body secretes a hormone called Relaxin, which increases the elasticity of our ligaments.  Now relaxin is really important because it allows the pelvis to widen in preparation for birth, but at the same time the relaxin is circulating throughout our entire body, so all of our ligament are a little more flexible and our muscles have to work harder to support our joints.  

What’s important to understand is that there are certain things we don’t want to do while our baby is developing.  Similar to drinking alcohol and smoking during pregnancy, taking pain medication is also not recommended, because it poses a risk to the developing baby.  So mothers-to-be need to look for a more natural approach to relieve their symptoms.  

This is where Chiropractors comes into play – Chiropractic care is a safe and proven form of treatment for pregnant women with low back muscle and joint pain.  The techniques used are gentle and can actually be beneficially for the baby.  

Here’s why...

The developing baby is snugly growing inside the mother’s uterus.  The uterus is suspended by two ligaments that attach to the pelvic bones –these are called the ‘round ligaments’.   If there is any misalignment in the pelvis then it causes tension in one of the round ligaments.  This can actually cause torsion in the uterus and give the baby less room to grow and move around.  As the end of pregnancy approaches, this lack of space can prevent the baby from getting into the optimal head down position in time for labour, thus resulting in pregnancy complications: like a posterior position or breech presentation.  These complication slow down labour and can lead to physically and emotionally traumatic events such as the administration of pitocin, an epidural, a painful episiotomy, or the use of a vacuum, forceps or even a c-section to get the baby out.     

Another complication that results with intrauterine constraints is Torticollis, which is an imbalance in neck musculature.  With torticollis, muscles get so short and tight on one side that the baby keeps their head turned in one direction.  If the muscles remain short then a flat spot will eventually develop on one side of the baby’s head from sleeping on the same side all the time.    Eliminating intrauterine constraints will allow the developing baby adequate room to move their head while important musculature is developing. 

Lastly, research shows that women who undergo regular Chiropractic care during their pregnancy, on average, have a decrease in labour time.  Your Chiropractor will provide weekly treatments even if you are symptom free in order to eliminate stresses and imbalances in the spine.  This will allow optimal blood and nerve flow to the uterus and other pelvic structures so that they are strong and responsive during labour.  The balance in the pelvis will also allow the baby to get into the optimal birthing position, because even the slightest shift in position can slow down labour and make it more difficult for the baby to fit through the pelvic cavity. 

So remember, Chiropractic care works to rebalance the joints, muscles and ligaments of the body so that they function optimally during pregnancy and labour.  This provides comfort for the mother, provides more room and comfort for the baby to grow, and prepares the body for a fast and uncomplicated labour. 

It’s true- Chiropractic care during pregnancy has been proven to reduce labour times.

There are also recommendations that your Chiropractor can make to take some stress off of those overused joints.  Specific exercise can be prescribed that will benefit the mother, baby and get the body ready for the labour process. 

Best wishes to all expecting parents and please feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding pregnancy and Chiropractic care.

Take care,

Dr. Lara

DrLara@TheHealthLoft.ca