Actively preventing heart disease is preferable to treating it! P revention is a less stressful, and less invasive method of staying healthy. ... however prevention may be a moot point, as heart disease is a chronic disease, meaning that while it can be treated, it cannot be cured, similar to diabetes. Once you are afflicted with heart disease, it will become a lifelong condition to manage. ... so we speak of prevention in terms of the CVD affects or symptoms, and actively reducing their affects on our health and vitality.   What is Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)? It is a general term for a series of conditions and symptoms within the body which cause changes within the cardiovascular system. They cause insufficiencies in blood, oxygen and nutrient transfer. CVD may include: Coronary heart disease includes atherosclerosis or arteriolosclerosis where the arteries are negatively affected while leading to blockages, to chest pain, to heart attacks (MI's...

S o, we have ALL been told to drink more water, increase your fluids, hydrate! ...well, on the same token, those of us who have kidney issues or diabetes or heart issues (with diuretics) or congestive heart issues or bladder issues need to watch how much and when we drink water. What is one to do? How important is water? To begin, here is what water is responsible for doing in the body: helps to control body temperature aids the digestive process process energy and nutrients to tissues in the body aids healing aids detoxification for regular bowels and urination cushions organs and joints muscle needs hydration for bulk and function skin health brain health What gets in the way of good hydration? Laxatives Diuretics M uscle atrophy (sarcopenia) Reduced food intake Incontinence Poor memory and cognition Lack of movement Various medications Alcohol Overall health and wellbeing is significantly impacted by hydration levels.  Water contains elect...

Polypharmacy poses a risk for Falls, Mobility and GI tract disturbances What is it? Poly pharmacy is the regular co-prescription of multiple drugs These can include anti-depressants, benzodiazepines (anti-anxiety, anti-seizure, sleep disorders), pain medications, diuretics, heart medications and anticoagulants. Quick Facts The use of 4 or more drugs co-prescribed can pose a risk for increased falls and severity of falls. ( Dhalwani, N.N., Fahami, R., Sathanapally, H., Seidu, S., Davies, M.J., & Khunti, K. 2017. Association between polypharmacy and falls in older adults: a longitudinal study from England, British Medical Journal , 7) Risks of damage such as hip fractures is 23 times higher. ( Lai, S.W., Liao, K.F., Muo, C.H., Liu, C.S., & Sung, F.C. 2012. Polypharmacy correlates with increased risk for hip fracture in the elderly: a population-based study, Medicine , 85 (5):295-9. )  When a new drug complication is mistaken as a new medical problem and an...

Similar to the health complications associated with muscle loss ... FALLING for older adults, is the most common reason for hospitalization and later immobility! Why Do Falls occur? Falls most often occur in and around the home , or during your activities of daily living.   There are a huge number of factors that contribute to an unexpected fall.   Fall risk factors include: Intrinsic Factors (specific to each person): Age-related changes in physical function, chronic disease (i.e. diabetes or dementia or arthritis), adverse reactions to prescribed medications (or polypharmacy), being dehydrated, having a bad sleep, etc. Extrinsic Factors (specific to one’s immediate environment): Type of flooring in your home, uneven or damaged walkways, clutter, moving objects, weather related conditions (i.e. ice or slush) Situational Factors (Related to the activity being performed): Rushing to get out of the house or to the washroom, using unsafe methods of retr...

Unfortunately much of what are told to do ( which appears to be the easiest things ) is ineffective for preventing or reversing Sarcopenia. Things like: -no resistance chair exercises -walking -light swimming or group aquafit -light weight circuit training The above has health value, just not for treating muscle loss (sarcopenia). Now that we know ...             WHAT do we do ? First we need to further understand more about muscle loss: With age changes in skeletal muscle fiber type and size occur with a decrease of Type 2 (fast twitch) and fat tissue infiltration into the muscle (Walston, 2012) After the age of 30, adults begin to lose 3-8% of their muscle mass every decade which results in a loss of muscle strength and power in addition to reduced mass (English & Paddon-Jones, 2012). Up to 50% of muscle mass can be lost by the 8 th decade (Walston, 2012) Muscle weakness is: ...consistently reported as an independent ri...

Muscle loss occurs naturally with the aging, however its the speed of decline and amount that is very preventable.   Much like bone, your muscle density and strength gradually decrease over time. This is called primary sarcopenia . In our experience, most people do not realize... this does not need to happen!  Particularly in the extremes that it does, AND... it is an underlying cause of many diseases and conditions!  It is a WIN - WIN situation i f treated ...there is MUCH a person can do to prevent this.  What are the causes of Sarcopenia? o    Increased inflammation (visceral fat) that amplifies the rate of muscle wasting o    Decreased physical activity and inadequate protein/calorie intake   o    Hormonal changes resulting in decreased hormones that are needed for muscle growth (testosterone, estrogen, growth hormone) o    Age related molecular changes o    Dec...

What is a person “to do” while living with Parkinson’s’? Understandably, there are now more medications for the management of *symptoms, but what about the ‘aging senior’ that is labelled with this disease… Do not become the disease!   This is difficult while managing everyday. Why not take some progressive action? But what action? Two important, successful treatments that provides numerous benefits to the PD senior are: 1)       WBPA – Whole Body Periodic Acceleration therapy 2)       Exercise Prescription/Therapy WBPA (or Exer-rest) has been shown to aid persons with PD.   WBPA increases vasodilation through an increase in eNOS (nitric oxide) into the blood stream.   This NO helps facilitate neuro-relaxation through specific neurotransmitters excitation. This has the effect of reducing fatigue, enhancing motor performance, recovery and overall mental awarene...