okanagan health & wellness magazine spring 2014

Spring 2014C

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Low GlycemicA Simple Approach to

Healthy Eating P. 14

Learn all about Water in the Okanagan, from Conservation to Hydration.P. 17

Whole BodyCryotherapyFor BetterHealthP. 8

MAGAZINE wellnessOkanagan Health &OHW Magazine

Walk this WayPole walking turns a simple stroll into a total-body workout

P. 26

TOMMY EUROPEFitness

www.ohwmagazine.com Spring ‘14 - Okanagan Health & Wellness Magazine 3

NATURAL HEALTH8 Whole Body Cryotherapy for Better Health There is only one North America location for this relatively new therapy, and it’s right here in the Okanagan.

10 Low Dose Allergen TherapyIf you suffer from allergies, here’s an alternative to the conventional allergy shots.

12 XenoestrogensThese estrogen mimicking chemicals can wreak havoc on our hormonal balance – and they’re in many of our everyday products.

NUTRITION13 Keeping It Real at the Grocery StoreYou’ll have a much better shopping experience if you stick with this advice.

14 Low Glycemic – A Simple Approach to Healthy EatingThe good, the bad and the ugly of the carb world, and how to sort them all out.

16 Celebrate Food!Chard has high nutritional value, so grab a bunch and try out this delicious recipe.

WATER FEATURE17 Our Valley, Our Water, Our ChoicesWater conservation is a responsibility we all share, and doing a few small things can add up to a big difference.

Spring 2014 Volume 2 Issue 2

contentsOur Valley, Our Water, Our Choices

18 Water-Wise Gardening: Save Money and Help the EnvironmentThe Seven Principles of Xeriscape show how you can produce a lush environment even in our dry valley.

20 The Benefits of Staying HydratedFive good reasons to make sure you drink enough fluids.

22 Living WaterScientists have discovered a fourth phase of water that is expected to have profound effects on our health.

24 De-Mystifying Bottled WaterHealth Canada provides answers to some frequently asked questions about bottled water.

25 Home Water Treatment SystemsIf you want to treat your water but are confused by all the options, this overview is sure to help.

FITNESS26 Walk this WayPole walking is becoming increasingly popular, and when you consider that it uses over 90 percent of your muscles, it’s easy to see why.

SENIORS HEALTH28 Healthy Aging. Part Two: What Does It Actually Look Like?It’s no secret that we’re living longer than previous generations. So how do we ensure that we can continue to thrive as we age?

WELLNESS30 Good GriefIf you or someone you know is grieving, help is close at hand.

31 Catching Some ZZZsTen tips to help you take control of your sleep habits.

32 Ready, Set, Get Organized!Make your organizing goals a reality with advice from a professional.

34 When Back Pain Is a Pain in the NeckDon’t let back limitations interfere with your enjoyment of life. Consider – or reconsider – chiropractic.

35 The Spirit of LaughterEnjoy the psychological and physiological benefits of laughter for a happier, healthier life.

36 Changing the World, One Garden Plot at a TimeGetting involved with a community garden can warm your heart, expand your mind and positively impact society.

37 Blazing a TrailCatch the vision for a spectacular multiuse trail between Vernon and Kelowna.

IN EVERY ISSUE:7 Your Questions Answered

38 Community Events

17

4 Spring ‘14 - Okanagan Health & Wellness Magazine www.ohwmagazine.com

Stay Connected withOHW Magazine

From the OHW TeamOHW MagazineOkanagan’s Own Health & Wellness

Magazine

PUBLISHERLMR PUBLISHING

Leanne [email protected]

EDITORDianne Fowlie

[email protected]

ADVERTISING SALESMelissa Spooner

[email protected]

Glenn Bond250.309.2611

[email protected]

Lisa Dumas250.540.7280

[email protected]

Leanne Christie250.503.7472

[email protected]

OHW Magazinepublished four times a year.

All rights reserved. No part of OHW Magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the expressed written consent of the publisher. The publisher reserves the right to accept or reject any editorial or advertising material. The views expressed in OHW Magazine are those of the respective contributors and not necessarily those of the publisher or staff. Although all reasonable attempts are made to ensure accuracy, the publisher does not assume any liability for errors or omissions anywhere in the publication or on the website. OHW Magazine reserves the rights to ads produced for advertisers. Publication Agreement #42490022

Okanagan Health & Wellness Magazine is owned and operated by LMR Publishing. Return undeliverable to LMR Publishing, 5816 Tern Place, Vernon, BC V1H 1R2. Phone: 250.503.7472Email: [email protected]: www.ohwmagazine.com

Subscription: For your free copy send your mailing address to [email protected] or visit the website at www.ohwmagazine.com

Printed by: Print Advantage, Richmond, BCCover: Sheri Simson pole walks along the waterfront in Kelowna, BC

Welcome to our spring issue! It feels like no time at all since we were ushering in the new year, with many of us making resolutions to improve our health. No matter where you are on your own journey, we’re here to support and encourage you with a mix of relevant and inspiring articles.

As you turn the pages, you’ll soon notice that water is a common theme. Here in the Okanagan, we are blessed with beautiful lakes, but that doesn’t mean that we have a limitless supply of water to meet our needs. “Our Valley, Our Water, Our Choices” offers water conservation advice we can all follow. One suggestion is to exercise our green thumb using plants that need little or no water; if you like that idea, you’ll enjoy learning about xeriscaping in “Water-Wise Gardening.”

If you’ve resolved to pay more attention to your fluid intake, check out “The Benefits of Staying Hydrated” and then increase your H2O knowledge through “Living Water,” “De-Mystifying Bottled Water” and “Home Water Treatment Systems.”

In addition, we’ve packed this issue with an assortment of topics that we believe will offer something for everyone. And of course, our regularly featured Q&A, delicious recipe and upcoming community events are all here.

One change you may notice is the omission of a feature on pet health.

There’s good reason for that! Pets of every size, shape and colour are a big part of many readers’ lives, and we came to realize that we had enough material to fill a publication all by itself. So, in May, watch for our inaugural pet magazine. This annual issue will be devoted entirely to the health and wellness of pets, and we feel sure it will be a popular addition to our lineup.

As we settle into our second year, our OHW team continues to evolve. Last issue, we said farewell to editor Maureen McEwan as she prepared for new adventures in Edmonton, and introduced you to our new editor, Dianne Fowlie. This issue, we’re pleased to welcome another new colleague, Glenn Bond, who has joined our marketing team to work alongside Melissa Spooner. An accomplished endurance athlete, Glenn owns and operates Glenn Bond Events, which includes XC SKI CAMPS and the Okanagan Trestles Tour. Glenn is very personable and he is looking forward to working with the team and our contacts.

Speaking of contacts, we hope you’ll check out our Contributors page and learn more about the local experts who have generously contributed to this issue. In addition, please remember to support our advertisers, who help make OHW Magazine possible. We thank you and they thank you.

We hope you enjoy this issue, and as always, we welcome your comments! n

ohwmagazine.com

Leanne ChristieOwner/Publisher

Dianne FowlieEditor

Melissa SpoonerAdvertising Sales

Glenn BondAdvertising Sales


Contributors

Letters to the EditorHello Dianne,I saw on your Facebook page that you’d be featuring water in your magazine, so perhaps you can help. The water in my home water cooler has recently developed a bad taste. What is the best way to clean the cooler?

Susy Derkach, Vernon, BC

Cleaning Your Water Cooler

That’s a very good question, Susy! Here’s a thorough cleaning method recommended by Health Canada.Note: Clean your bottled water cooler before every bottle change.

Reservoir1. Unplug cord from electrical outlet of cooler.2. Remove empty bottle (carboy).3. Drain water from stainless steel reservoir(s) through faucet(s).4. Prepare a disinfecting solution by adding 15 mL (1Tbsp) unscented household bleach to 4.5 L (1 gallon) of water. (Some companies suggest using one part vinegar to three parts water to clean the reservoir of scale before cleaning with bleach. Other disinfecting solutions may also be suitable. Check with your water cooler supplier/manual.)5. Pour bleach or other disinfection solution into reservoir.6. Wash reservoir thoroughly with bleach solution and let stand for not less than two minutes (to be effective) and not more than five minutes (to prevent corrosion).

7. Drain bleach or disinfection solution from reservoir through faucet(s).

8. Rinse reservoir thoroughly with clean tap water, draining water through faucets, to remove traces of the bleach/disinfection solution.

Drip Tray (located under faucets)1. Lift off drip tray.2. Remove screen and wash both tray and screen in mild

detergent.3. Rinse well in clean tap water and replace on cooler.

Replacing Bottle: Note: Protective gloves should never replace proper hand washing and hygiene.1. Wash hands with soap and warm water before handling.

If you choose to use clean protective gloves (e.g., latex), discard or disinfect after each use and prior to reuse.

2. Wipe top and neck of new bottle with paper towel dipped in unscented household bleach solution of 15 mL (1 Tbsp) bleach to 4.5 L (1 gallon) water. You may also use rubbing alcohol, but it must evaporate completely before you place the bottle in the cooler.

3. Remove cap from new bottle without touching surface of opening to avoid any contamination.

4. Place new bottle on cooler.

Roger Drinkwater, BSc (Hons), PhD, RYT, has used his specialized skills in the discovery and development of new pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and health services for the medical industry and general community. He resides in Vernon, is CEO of Vital Waters Inc., Kelowna (www.vitalwaters.ca) and co-owner, manager, yoga instructor and yoga therapy consultant at Inner Light Yoga and Wellness in Vernon.

Karen Bouchard has been involved with grief support work with New Hope for Widow/ers in the Okanagan for the past 10 years. For information on New Hope’s 17th annual retreat, May 2-3, 2014, leave a message at 250-545-6004 or email [email protected].

Bryn Bentham, BSc, ND, is a naturopathic physician practising at Spokes Clinic in Summerland. His practice has a focus in allergy, autoimmunity and integrative oncology. Dr. Bentham is husband to Chelsi and father to Jude and baby Fiona. If he’s not at work or home, you may see him fishing in any body of water he can find. For more information, visit www.spokesclinic.com.

Paul Bradshaw is a kinesiologist at Sparkling Hill Resort & KurSpa. He is the lead Whole Body Cryotherapy practitioner and also specializes in injury rehabilitation and prevention and healthy weight loss. Paul is also a certified Kinesio Tape practitioner and passionate golfer and snowboarder.

Carole Fawcett, RPC, C. Ht., is a Registered Professional Counsellor, a Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist (certified also as a Hypnotist and Master Hypnotist), and freelance writer. Carole is also registered with BC Crime Victims Assistance and lives in Vernon with her dog Chloe, who has also been hypnotized. Carole can be reached at www.amindfulconnection.com.

KyLee Fournier, a certified sports nutritional consultant living in Kelowna, specializes in plant-based nutrition. KyLee is the founder of www.VegBelly.com, a site that interviews leaders in the vegetarian and vegan community. To contact KyLee, go to www.kyleefournier.com or email [email protected].

Christine Hatfield, BScH, MD, is an obstetrician/gynecologist and the medical director of North Okanagan Women’s Health in Vernon. Extensive training in functional and anti-aging medicine has made her an expert in natural hormone balancing, medical weight loss and women’s wellness. For more information, visit www.nowhealth.ca or call 250-542-4490.


Contributors

Bob McCoubrey is a retired organic tree fruit grower living in Lake Country, BC. For the last 10 years, he has been active in building community gardens throughout the Central Okanagan. Contact Bob by emailing [email protected].

Julie Melanson owns MelanPR, which organizes and promotes events for non-profit and corporate functions. Providing media coverage for international events in skiing and mountain biking, Julie has married her company’s work with her passions. She leads an active lifestyle, having raced her bike in New Zealand and Canada for many years. You can reach her at [email protected].

Raina Dawn Lutz is a current member of the CSNN’s Alumni Association as well as the Canadian Association of Holistic Nutrition Professionals (CAHN-Pro). She offers workshops, consultations, meal plans and grocery store tours and specializes in fermented products and fermentation education. Visit www.LutzNutrition.ca.

Christine Kishor is the owner of Everything Organized in Kelowna, one of six franchises in Canada’s largest professional organization company. Everything Organized specializes in downsizing, estate liquidation, hoarding and chronic disorganization as well as seniors transitions. For more information, visit www.everythingorganized.net.

Gareth R. Jones, PhD, CSEP-CEP, is an assistant professor within the School of Health and Exercise Sciences at UBCO. His research focuses on the contribution of exercise toward promoting healthy aging, including those living with chronic disease, disability and frailty. Gareth is also a Certified Exercise Physiologist and an avid cross-country skier who loves the cold.

Del Muzzillo is the founding director of the SENICA Project, which explores healthy aging and a more humane, natural and integrated approach to caring for our elders. He is also the events director for Whole Foods Market in Penticton. Del has more than 32 years of experience in the health, wellness and human potential fields. He can be reached by email at [email protected].

Richard Pelletier is the owner-operator of Clear Water Solutions Inc., specializing in water treatment from home water softeners to commercial-size water equipment for dairy farms. Richard has been providing water treatment service in the Okanagan for 10 years. See more at www.watersoftenervernon.com.

Do you have an idea for a story?

Are you a health professional interested in submitting an article for OHW Magazine?

If so contact us at [email protected]

Sally Stewart, PhD (Nutrition, Exercise Physiology, Health Promotion), CSEP Certified Exercise Physiologist, Academic Affiliate of Dietitians of Canada, is an instructor in Health and Exercise Sciences at UBCO. She is also the director of the Nutrition Education Centre on campus. She is keen to help people make smart choices based on sound scientific research to facilitate long-term health and vibrant lives.

Gwen Steele, a life-long Kelowna gardener, is co-founder and executive director of the Okanagan Xeriscape Association. Gwen is passionate about xeriscaping as a way to restore and preserve natural systems and to bring peace and good health to individuals. See more at http://okanaganxeriscape.org.

Anna Warwick Sears, PhD, is the executive director of the Okanagan Basin Water Board, a local government agency focused on collaborative water resource management in the arid interior of BC. Dr. Sears has a background in population biology and watershed planning, earning her PhD in population biology at the University of California, Davis. For more information, go to www.obwb.ca.

Bonnie Penner is a public speaker whose main mission is to educate people about the effects of xenoestrogens and how to eliminate these potentially harmful chemicals from their lives. Her company, Zero Xeno, is based in Kelowna. For more information, visit www.zeroxeno.com.

Sheri Simson is a health and fitness ambassador and entrepreneur who speaks, coaches and writes about taking responsibility for your own health. When she lost over 45 pounds through pole walking, she started Keenfit –The Pole Walking Company. Please visit www.keenfit.com.


Your Questions Answered

I’m planning to retire in 10 to 15 years. Should I worry about my finances if I get a major illness?

Won’t my provincial health coverage pay for all my medical needs?

Local experts answer our readers’ questions...

Q I like to use extra virgin olive oil but there are so many choices. How can I know I’m buying high quality oil and what are the health benefits?

Q

Too many of us underestimate the out-of-pocket health costs and overestimate what government or

employer coverage provides. A recent survey showed that, for example, 46 percent of Canadians don’t expect to pay out-of-pocket for prescription drugs and 47 percent don’t expect to pay for a retirement home residence.1 Provincial health coverage doesn’t cover all health costs and when you face a serious health issue it could mean additional expenses and potential loss of income. Consider these survey results: 40 percent of respondents reported facing financial hardship after a serious health event. What’s more, 53 percent of 45- to 54-year-olds reported they were struggling to make ends meet after a major health incident.2

The reality is, we’re living longer and health care costs are rising, so it’s important to plan now for your future health care needs and expenses. As part of your financial plan, consider including health insurance solutions that will help protect the money you’ve saved. The younger and healthier you are, the more affordable insurance will be. Talk to an advisor about building a plan that meets your needs and goals. An advisor can show you how the right mix of life, health and wealth solutions can help you build your savings, protect your family and retire with confidence.

1 Sun Life Financial, Canadian Health IndexTM, 2013.2 Sun Life Financial, Canadian Health IndexTM, 2013.

Randy Wilson* is a Sun Life Financial advisor based out of Vernon, BC. He has been providing protection and investment solutions for over 13 years in the Okanagan. To book an appointment, call Randy at 778-475-5558.

*Mutual funds offered by Sun Life Financial Investment Services (Canada) Inc.

Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is the juice of the olive fruit. There are over 700 different kinds of olives which make thousands of different kinds of oil.

The most widespread way EVOO is made today is the continuous method, where the olives enter the mill at one end and oil comes out the other. The olives are crushed by hammer mill and the paste is pumped to a malaxer where it is warmed and mixed until the oil begins to separate. The resulting paste is pumped to a centrifuge where the solids are separated from the liquids and then the oil is separated from the water in a final centrifugal process.

When choosing EVOO, the single most important thing to watch for is the crush date. It is always healthier and more flavourful when consumed close to its crush date. In addition to freshness, other important considerations are the oil’s chemistry and flavour characteristics. Try to find a store where you can taste the oils before buying. Much like wine, each EVOO will have its own distinct flavour characteristics such as fruitiness, bitterness and pungency (pepperiness).When selecting a bottled oil, prefer dark glass over clear, purchase an amount you will use within four to six months, and store it in a dark place at room temperature. Heat, air and light are the enemy!

Fresh, high quality EVOO has many health benefits. It is known to contain potent antioxidants due to high phenolic compounds (polyphenols) as well as being primarily a monounsaturated fat. Studies have shown that consumption of EVOO has been associated with decreased production of LDL cholesterol, reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and Alzheimer’s, as well as fighting off free radicals and controlling inflammation.

The International Olive Council (IOC) standards are by no means stringent enough to guarantee the production of good quality EVOO. Recently, the Ultra Premium (UP) standard was created to distinguish the highest quality extra virgin olive oils in the world. This new standard has raised the bar in all areas of production such as the quality of the fruit, elapsed time between harvest and crush, and storage and transportation.

Ray Morin and Janet Cody are the owners of Olive Us Oil and Vinegar Tasting Room in Vernon, BC. Ray, Janet and their family have lived in Vernon since 2001 and are excited to offer premium quality olive oils, balsamics, sea salts, pastas and other artisan products to the beautiful North Okanagan. They welcome you to drop by the store and taste the possibilities or book your own private event!3003A 30th Avenue, Vernon, BC 250-260-2880 www.oliveusoils.com


Natural Health

Whole body cryotherapy (WBC) is a relatively new alternative therapy for

rheumatologic and neurologic health conditions. In addition, athletes have used this whole body cryotherapy to treat musculoskeletal injuries and to assist with recovery from athletic activities. The full WBC experience requires exposure to very low temperatures – “colder than anyplace on earth” (-110° C) – for short periods (three minutes) twice a day over the course of five to ten days. A growing body of scientific evidence suggests that WBC may help calm pain, reduce inflammation, boost immunity and alleviate depressive symptoms. Although WBC has been used successfully for over 30 years in rehabilitation hospitals throughout Europe and Asia, we still have much to learn about its therapeutic effects.

How does it work? One theory behind WBC is that it causes the nervous system to reboot itself.

The extreme environment of the cold sauna causes blood vessels to constrict and the nerves close to the skin surface to rapidly discharge electrical impulses up the spinal cord to the brain for higher processing. This gross stimulation inhibits established chronic pain neural pathways, resulting

in pain desensitization. The inhibition of the pain–reflex response also helps to reduce inflammation associated with tissue injuries and disease. Think of it like an ice-pack for your entire body.

Who might benefit from WBC? To

date, the clinical research evaluating WBC has centred on persons with rheumatological disorders such as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Both are very different health conditions, although both can be excruciatingly painful. Participants in these studies reported reduced levels

of pain and improved functional performance (e.g., walking) following a course of WBC treatment. Although the disease condition itself was not alleviated, the physical limitations associated with chronic pain were lessened, so much so that participants were pain free for six to eight weeks after receiving WBC. The reduction in pain continued for several weeks after the therapeutic WBC exposure. This pain relief, although temporary, can buy an individual some valuable time to sustain a higher quality

of life and prevent further physical deconditioning.

There is also some research evidence to suggest that WBC may improve other health conditions, including multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, tendonitis,

The thought of sitting in an ice chamber may give you the shivers, but scientific evidence points to significant benefits.

By Gareth R. Jones, PhD, CSEP-CEP; Paul Bradshaw, Kinesiologist

Whole Body Cryotherapy for Better Health


Natural Healthskin disorders and depression. However, there is not yet enough research to substantiate if WBC provides a therapeutic benefit for persons living with these health conditions.

Athletes may benefit from WBC as a means to assist with recovery during periods of intense training or following competitions. Research has demonstrated that WBC might help to prevent muscle damage during intense training, allowing athletes to train harder more often. Post-competition, WBC may assist athletes in their recovery, returning them to a rested homeostatic state earlier than conventional methods. Although the health and fitness benefits associated with WBC seem to be positive, more quality research is needed to fully understand how this alternative treatment works and who will benefit most. Is it safe? A rigorous health-screening protocol, established during more than three decades of clinical use, ensures that individuals can safely experience WBC. Exposure is limited to three minutes, long enough to enjoy therapeutic benefit

but short enough to prevent tissue damage. Following WBC, individuals are encouraged to rest, allowing their body temperature to normalize slowly and of its own accord. Blood pressure and heart rate are carefully monitored throughout the recovery period. Two treatments per day are suggested over the course of

five to ten days; however, the frequency of visits will be individually dependent.

What happens during a treatment? Before entering the WBC unit, participants sign a waiver, provide a full health history and have their resting heart rate and blood pressure taken. Participants wear only a bathing suit, socks and shoes, insulated gloves, thermal headband and a facemask to maximize exposure to these frigid temperatures. WBC consists of a three-chamber walk-through: the first (-15° C) and second (-50° C) chambers serve only to reduce the air temperature and humidity before entering the therapeutic ice chamber (-110° C). For safety, an attendant

cont’d on page 10


Natural Healthcont’d from page 9accompanies participants throughout the treatment.

What does it feel like? Inside the cold sauna the body cools rapidly and the skin begins to tingle, much like going from snow to a hot tub. The tingling sensation will intensify as participants’ bodies continue to cool. Participants are encouraged to relax and move their bodies slowly while Caribbean rhythms play in the background. Unlike traditional ice bath treatments, there is no pain or numbness associated with WBC. After three minutes, participants exit the cold sauna feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. Shivering is rare, as the core temperature remains largely unaffected. After a WBC treatment, participants rest for 45 minutes to allow the body to return naturally to normal temperature without the help of external heat sources. Usually participants wait for about four hours between treatments, allowing the body to fully regenerate.

Regular users of the cold sauna swear by its therapeutic effects:

“Being a physically active person, my life revolves around being able to do things. After completing 20 treatments I have a very significant reduction in the aches and pain associated with arthritis. Actually I began to notice an improvement after my 10th treatment in this sequence and it just got better as I went along. I just feel better in the things I do – and now off to golf! -Jim P.

“I have had moderate osteoarthritis in both knees for more than 10 years. I was dependent on Celebrex for four years to be able to walk. The drugs were damaging my kidneys so I tried the cold sauna as an alternative. I have had over 40 treatments over the last two years and I have been amazed how much it has helped. I can now ski and hike without any drugs. I now make a regular trip to Sparkling Hill for a few days three times a year. It has also helped with hip and back pain that used to bother me a lot. I highly recommend it!” -Rob G.

These individuals and many others are a testament to the potential health benefit of this therapeutic treatment. The only Whole Body Cryotherapy unit in North America is located in the heart of the Okanagan at the spectacular Sparkling Hill Resort & KurSpa. n

Low Dose Allergen Therapy

Allergies, asthma, eczema? LDA may be worth a shot.

By Bryn Bentham, BSc, ND

The snow is already melting and the plant life that makes the Okanagan such a beautiful

place to live will soon begin to come alive. Shortly thereafter, these delightful plants and grasses will start pumping out pollens that leave many of our Okanagan residents reaching for their antihistamines or, in extreme cases, a shotgun.

These common problems are the result of an inappropriate immune response toward certain inhalant and food allergens. Up until now, the naturopathic treatment of these conditions included identifying and avoiding certain triggers. While this approach often produces excellent results, food avoidance is often unsustainable and giving away your favourite pet is not an option.

The same inappropriate immune activity is responsible for other common conditions like asthma, eczema, chronic hives (urticaria), anaphylactic peanut allergies and even autoimmunity. Fortunately, a therapy exists that directly targets the underlying cause of these conditions – low dose allergen therapy (LDA).

What is LDA?LDA is a method of immunotherapy

enhanced by a minute dose of the enzyme beta glucuronidase. The beta glucuronidase activates extremely minuscule doses of various allergens that, when injected into the skin, stimulate the production of T-regulatory cells. T-regulatory cells are the component of the immune system that can “switch off” the erroneous responses of other immune cells that cause patients to be ill by misidentifying normal substances in the body to be allergens. This has implications in allergy as well as autoimmunity.

How is this different from conventional allergy shots (SCIT, or subcutaneous immunotherapy)?

First of all, for the nerds out there (like me), they differ in how they work. SCIT changes the type of immune molecule that your body produces to the allergen (from IgE to IgG4, which is non-inflammatory). LDA works by altering the T helper cells’ response that causes allergy in the first place.

Other than that, the major difference is how the therapy is administered. LDA has several advantages over conventional allergy shots.

LDA: • No testing is required ahead

of time (the allergy serum is compounded to include the spectrum of inhalant allergens, for example)

• There are far fewer shots (they’re administered once every two months up front, and less often after that)

• It is much safer (in hundreds of thousands of injections, there have been no reported cases of anaphylaxis from treatment)

• Responses are usually seen much sooner (often within days)

• We can treat other immunological problems as well (food allergy/sensitivity, multiple chemical sensitivity, and autoimmunity)

SCIT (conventional allergy shots): • SCIT is administered twice a

week for months, then twice a month for months, then monthly for years

• There is a rare but real risk of death from the therapy (anaphylaxis) which has resulted in its removal from the market in the UK unless done in a hospital setting


Natural Health

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• Injections are given one allergy at a time• It is not applicable for food allergy

That sounds like a lot of benefits over SCIT. Are there drawbacks?

The main drawback with LDA is that patients need to be on a rather bland diet for three days around the time of the injections (the day before, day of, and day after).

So you treat without even needing to test?Correct. The allergy serum is compounded in groups: inhalants, foods and chemicals. This is helpful because it works by desensitizing us to a host of things in our environment, and it takes into account the problem of cross-reactivity between pollens and foods. Cross-reactivity is an important concept to consider because some foods, including celery, melons, peaches and tomatoes, have protein sequences that are similar to grass pollens. In these instances, exposure to these foods can make pollen allergies worse. The LDA mixes are compounded with these cross-reactivities in mind.

If someone has seasonal allergies, we desensitize them for inhaled allergens as a group. If they have food allergies or non-IgE–mediated food sensitivities, we know we need to treat them for foods as well. For example, take someone with seasonal allergies, asthma, and eczema. Eczema and asthma are certainly exacerbated by food allergy/sensitivity, though convention seems slow to catch on to this. In this case, we’d treat for both foods and inhalants.

Is it safe?A long-term study from 1993 to 2000 examined LDA in

10,372 patients and administered over 175,000 injections. No incidence of fatality or serious side effects occurred – even in the treatment of anaphylactic food allergies.Does it work?

From the study mentioned above, for perennial asthma, 75 percent of people responded well, food intolerance 74 percent, seasonal allergies 74 percent, eczema about 80 percent and chronic urticaria/angioedema 78 percent.

What other conditions can LDA help?Beyond those mentioned above, the scientist in me gets

the most excited about the treatment of autoimmune disease and I believe this is a very promising area of research. In a nutshell, we’re learning more and more about why people develop autoimmune disease: a concept called molecular mimicry (google strep and psoriasis; ankylosing spondylitis and klebsiella as examples). When our body develops an immune reaction against certain bacteria (for example, strep), there are proteins in the bacteria that look very similar to ours. As a result, the immune activity intended for the strep ends up attacking the innocent bystander – us. By desensitizing people to these bacterial antigens, we may be able to target the cause of these conditions rather than just medicating the symptoms.

Crohn’s, ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis and lupus are additional examples of conditions that this therapy has greatly helped to treat. n


Natural Health

Xenoestrogens: What Are They and

Why Should We Care?

By Bonnie Penner

Awareness of these problematic chemicals is the first step toward

change.

Xenoestrogens are chemicals that mimic estrogen in your body. Xeno means foreign, so the term xenoestrogen simply means estrogen that comes from a foreign

source. Xenoestrogens are also referred to by many other names, including the following:

• Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (EDCs)• Hormone Disrupting Chemicals• Hormone Disruptors• Xenobiotics• Fake Estrogens• Estrogen Mimicking Chemicals

Xenoestrogens wreak havoc on your hormonal balance and potentially create a myriad of problems. Recent research indicates that xenoestrogens are affecting the world we live in, from male alligators unable to reproduce to parabens linked to breast cancer in women. Xenoestrogen chemicals can also suppress hormones in your thyroid, causing fatigue and muscle and joint pain. Additionally, endocrine disrupting chemicals may cause endometriosis, fibrocystic breast disease, ovarian cysts, migraines, severe PMS, uterine cysts, infertility, increased breast and uterine cancer, reduced testosterone in males and even behavioural changes.

Most personal care products like shampoo, hair spray, lotions and perfumes are riddled with xenoestrogens that come in the form of phthalates, parabens and petroleum chemicals. These fake estrogens are added to help smooth the skin and cause scents to be long lasting. Unfortunately, these products may also come packaged in BPA or BPS plastic containers that may leach estrogenic chemicals. Many household cleaning products, especially products that contain antibacterial ingredients like Triclosan, are tainted with multiple estrogenic chemicals.

The Zero Xeno Movement aims to raise awareness about harmful xenoestrogens found in products the average person uses every day. Individuals who join this movement are becoming aware of where harmful estrogen mimicking chemicals are hidden and are in the process of switching to products that are more natural. Zero Xeno’s mission is to educate consumers how to make informed choices and help them avoid endocrine disrupting chemicals. We focus on teaching people how to read ingredients and check labels so that they can identify products that may harm their health. By limiting our exposure to xenoestrogens, we can achieve a xenoestrogen-free world! n

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Nutrition

Keeping It Real at the Grocery Store

By Raina Dawn Lutz

How many of you went to the grocery store in the last few days? Do you go every other

day or do a BIG shop once a week?Does the grocery store stress you

out, or are you able to fly through it with a clear mind, having a defined list of what you want and automatically blocking out what you don’t want?

Often, when we first start our health journey, this task of shopping can be overwhelming. So many choices, so many influences; maybe we came from work after a long day and we’re tired, but we’re trying to do well reading the labels, not necessarily understanding what they mean. The whole thing can be a frustrating nightmare – leading to frozen dinners or café take-out as a “please get me out of here” tactic!

Sometimes it can take longer to do a high quality, good grocery shop, if you are concerned enough to read each item and refer to lists of things you shouldn’t buy. What you really needed was someone to tell you what to buy in the first place so that you could just phase out all the other junk. We tend to do better when we learn what we should eat, rather than what we can’t eat. A deprivation mindset never sets anyone up for success.

When it comes to food in our grocery stores, we can blame the fancy marketing techniques and slick packaging with nice colours and promises of nutrients and goodness. It’s all created to make you feel something, in order to sell it to you. Before the

1930s, there was no such thing as a “chain supermarket.” This style of living is relatively new to humans. Huge corporations are now controlling our food choices, compared to local farmers or our families’ gardens, farms and root cellars from back in the good ol’ days. The big problem with that is that a good percentage of our fancy,

modern packaged foods are actually not nutritious. Most contain too many chemicals that our body cannot even recognize as food, let alone process properly to have an up-to-speed, functioning body. So our Modern Food Chain is actually not modern at all, it’s sending us backwards in life! We aren’t getting more modern, more smart – we’re getting sicker!

You want to get back to basic food that will nourish your family and give them vibrant health. Isn’t that what we all want – a simple life and a healthy body?

Thankfully, many grocers are now adding a lot more organic options to their shelves due to customer demand and pressure from many organizations for healthier choices. Once you become familiar with the layout of

the store, you will find your shopping becomes much easier, and as you find the foods that you like, you will be able to get through your shopping in next to no time.

We want to avoid vegetable oils, trans-fats, artificial colours and flavours (Green No 3, etc.), artificial sweeteners such as Aspartame,

monosodium glutamate (MSG), high fructose corn syrup, and of course, any unpronounceable chemicals. You may have heard the phrase “If you can’t pronounce it, you shouldn’t eat it.” That’s a good rule.

Then, of course, if you’re concerned with the lack of research on genetically modified foods for humans, it’ s best to avoid anything with corn, canola, soybeans, cottonseed and sugar beets. Only CERTIFIED organic foods and of course fresh

local food can be virtually guaranteed non-GMO, but eating packaged foods makes the GMO intake risk much higher.

We do better if we stick to filling our carts in the produce aisle, with some canned or frozen (beans, fruits or vegetables for convenience; but fresh is always preferred), as well as wholesome organic meats, grains such as brown rice and oats, and natural sweeteners like real, raw honey or pure maple syrup.

Holistic nutrition is meant to educate the public, not scare them. It can be simple – eat real food.

The fewer ingredients in your food, the better it is for you. A whole foods diet is the absolutely best way to go. Always think minimally processed, real, whole foods. n

With the confusion of so many choices, our best bet is to go back to the basics – minimally processed, whole foods.


Nutrition

Don’t we wish! Healthy eating can be a challenge for many reasons but probably the biggest might be that we are bombarded by so much information about

nutrition. We try to eat healthy, but this article said to do that, and this person said to do this. What are we supposed to believe?

We all know the importance of eating well for energy, healthy weight and optimal health, along with many other factors that contribute to our overall wellbeing. That is what this magazine is all about. My goal is to help educate you about practical and scientific nutrition information that you can incorporate into your life so you DO find healthy eating simple. . . or at least a bit easier! Knowledge of blood sugar (glucose) levels and the glycemic index (GI) can help simplify eating and food choice.

When we eat and digest our food, it is broken down into smaller nutrients to be absorbed into the blood and then distributed to cells. The nutrients providing energy are carbohydrates (mostly from grains and fruits and vegetables), fats (mostly from nuts, seeds, dairy, meats, oils) and protein (mostly from dairy/alternatives, meat, nuts, seeds, grain). Carbohydrates are broken down into glucose molecules (also often referred to as “sugar” molecules); protein to amino acids and fats to fatty acids. These are what are absorbed into the body. So after we eat foods rich in carbohydrates, for example, our blood levels of glucose rise. How much and how fast depends on the amount and type of carbohydrate eaten.

When blood glucose levels rise quickly and become high (a high glycemic response), we feel momentarily energetic

By Sally Stewart, PhD, CSEP

Low Glycemic – A Simple Approach to Healthy Eating

Carbohydrates provide fuel for the body, yet not all carbs are the same. Don’t worry – with a bit of knowledge, choosing the “right”

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Nutritionand the body overreacts by quickly trying to get rid of all that glucose by moving it into the cells using the hormone insulin. This results in very low blood glucose levels, so now we feel tired, cranky and hungry again. What often happens is we then choose a quick snack such as a bagel or candy bar, the very type of food (high-sugar foods, juice, white bread products, rice, potatoes, etc.) that causes the high glycemic response! So up and down we go. If we continue this pattern, weight gain, insulin resistance and diabetes may result. What we need are foods that cause a low glycemic response.

Foods have been tested and compared to a scale out of 100 with glucose or sugar being identified as having a score of close to 100 (the highest glycemic response). Foods that are considered low glycemic index are those scoring less than 55. Low GI foods are whole grains, higher in fibre, higher protein foods such as dairy, lean meats, nuts and seeds, and healthy fats. These foods are digested more slowly, resulting in a more even supply of blood glucose; so there is no need for the body to overreact with insulin. The result: longer sustained energy with no crashes, better mood, weight maintenance.

Focus on choosing low GI foods most of the time (typically foods in their most natural state). By having meals and snacks with at least two food groups (veggies/fruits, whole grains, dairy or alternatives, meats/nuts/seeds/beans/lentils), you are likely to have a low GI load because you have combined carbohydrates with fats and/or protein. Also, while “on the go” it is a good choice to grab a nutritionally balanced, low glycemic energy bar to help manage your blood sugar through the day and provide sustained energy and the nutrients your body needs. We don’t want to eliminate or severely reduce carbohydrates as they provide a variety of key nutrients, and they are our FUEL for our brain and MUSCLES! So choose low GI ones and/or combine them with a healthy protein and fat.

You may have found the physiology lesson a bit complex but I hope you found the main message for healthy eating, energy and optimal weight to be simple: Choose low GI foods. n

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Nutrition

It is stunning as you turn the calendar from February to March – suddenly you just know that spring is right around the corner. Not only does March indicate the

start of spring, it is also Nutrition Month, and that is worth celebrating!

I like to celebrate food by cooking with an ingredient that is new to me. Have you ever walked through the produce section and asked yourself, “What is that? And what on earth would I do with that?”

Chard strikes me as one of those vegetables. With its colourful leaves and woody stalks, it can be a bit of a

challenge for some to know what to do with it. As with most green leafy vegetables, chard is FULL of key nutrients that will allow you to get out and enjoy these great spring days! Not only is it high in fibre (our goal is to get 25 to 30 grams of fibre per day) but it is high in vitamin K, vitamin A and magnesium – in fact, across the board, chard has an excellent ranking on a vitamin and mineral profile. And how easy is it to cook with? So VERY easy!

The best way to think of chard is to compare it to spinach with a slightly bitter taste. It can be overwhelming all on its own, but mix it in with your favourite salad greens and you’ll be adding some great texture. And don’t throw out the stalks, because you can eat them too!

Try this:• Wash the chard well to remove any dirt • Strip off the leafy parts and chop up the stems

coarsely • Heat up chopped garlic with olive oil• Add the chopped stems and cover the pan until the

stems become limp • Add the leaves and cover to steam until the leaves

begin to wilt • At this time I also like to add red pepper for some

vibrant colour• Serve over pasta or brown rice with grated Parmesan,

add feta cheese and hummus, and season with salt and fresh pepper

Voilà! A quick and easy new favourite recipe!

So next time you are staring at what might resemble some sort of alien plant, take the challenge and celebrate something new, knowing you are getting valuable nutrients. Happy Spring! n

Celebrate Food!

Spring is about all things new, so why not join the party and try a new food? We have just the recipe to get you started.

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Water Feature

Our Valley, Our Water, Our ChoicesTaking a little extra care means a healthy watershed.

By Anna Warwick Sears, PhD

Making healthy choices for our lakes and streams is like making healthy choices for our

bodies. It’s what we do every day that matters the most. The Okanagan is blessed with warm sun and clear blue lakes, like a young person is blessed with energy, strength and beauty. But we make natural systems more fragile by filling our waters with pollution or forcing them to work harder and harder to support more human needs. Eating junk food and pushing ourselves too hard with work weakens our own immune systems. Why should watersheds be different?

Since living in a healthy environment provides nourishment for body and mind, it’s good to cultivate awareness about our water habits: what is most important, and why. Water conservation is one of the simplest, most direct ways we can contribute to the health of our lakes – but where and how we conserve makes a big difference.

Let’s start indoors. Your partner is brushing his or her teeth with the water on. Your teenager is taking their daily 30-minute shower. Somehow you haven’t quite got around to fixing the running toilet in the guest suite. Drip by drip, the waste adds up. To arrive at your faucet, the water starts its day in a lake, stream or deep underground. It’s pumped to a treatment plant, cleaned and disinfected, then pumped and pressurized to arrive on demand, at pennies a glass.

When the water runs down the drain, it’s pumped to another treatment plant, filtered, disinfected and polished again, then reused. In some parts of the valley, this recycled water is used for irrigation; in other areas, it goes back to a lake or stream. The beauty of this system is that, when properly treated, almost no water is actually lost. When you cut back on water use indoors, you are reducing energy use (all that pumping and polishing!) and reducing your water bill.

Now let’s go outdoors. The beauty of the Okanagan is the beauty of an oasis – a dramatic contrast between the sunny, golden hills dotted with pine and sagebrush, and the blue lakes. Over the last century, we’ve increased this contrast by planting borders of green lawns and colourful flowers – English gardens in a dry landscape. Even though we only water our gardens for a few months of the year, the average person uses three or four times as much water outside than inside. And what’s more, our lawns and flowers breathe that water up and out into the clouds, away from our lakes and streams.

“But doesn’t it just come down as rain again, once it evaporates?” you might ask. One reason we have such lovely summers is that much of the water evaporating from our lakes, trees and grass blows away to rain in other parts of B.C. In hot and dry years both our lawns and the mountains lose even more water to the air. When this


Water Featurehappens, farmers and fish can end up competing for water with our cedar hedges.

So what’s the answer? The truth is we have enough water in this dry valley, in all but the worst drought years, to support all the things we love while keeping our watersheds, and by extension, ourselves, in good health. We all just need to learn how to use the water with the care it deserves. When we make our water go as far as possible, especially outdoors, we all win.

For several years, Okanagan WaterWise, with community partners up and down the valley, has been running a campaign called “Make Water Work.” The idea is to make every drop count. Use only what you need, and there will be more for all the other things we love – like wine and apples, glittering streams, silvery fish and cattail rushes with nesting birds. The campaign runs Okanagan-wide, because if you waste water in one part of the watershed it’s lost for other needs downstream.

There are too many ideas to list here, but the best are found at MakeWaterWork.ca and

OkWaterWise.ca. For example, if you’re watering your lawn and garden, do it at night or early in the morning to prevent evaporation and so it has time to seep down to the roots where it can give the most benefit. Do you have a boggy patch in your yard? It’s possible it is a natural wetland, but more likely a broken irrigation pipe pouring water day and night.

Another secret is to nourish and build the soil you are growing in. Deep, rich loam holds and then gently releases water, filled with minerals and

nutrients, to feed your plants without waste. Flowers are bigger and brighter, and grass is thick and lush, when you care for the soil. If you grow vegetables in rich soil, you and your family will grow stronger and healthier too.

The most beautiful water savings are from xeriscaping, gardens planted with flowers and grasses that need little or no water once established. They say that one of the beauty secrets of French women is to work with their natural gifts – to play up their own distinctive look instead of conforming to a single physical ideal. In a

similar fashion, xeriscaping plays to the natural beauty of our sunny valley, and, for the watershed, is a healthier alternative to grass.

The Okanagan has only one water: streams, lakes, well water, water for drinking and for irrigation. It comes from one connected source: the rain and snow that fall within our narrow valley. If you love these waters, and what they give us in health and beauty, know that we all contribute to their well-being. n

Reducing landscape water use makes good sense. Landscape irrigation is increasingly costly,

and water rates are rising to pay for expensive new infrastructure needed to meet more stringent water quality requirements.

Okanagan Lake gives the impression of a bountiful water supply. However, this arid region receives only 25 to 40 centimetres of annual precipitation.

There is a misconception that all irrigation water sinks into the ground and eventually back into the lake. In reality, much of it evaporates, leaving the valley to fall in the Kootenays. We are left with a finite amount of water to use without permanently depleting the lake.

According to the 2010 Okanagan Water Supply and Demand Study,

7 percent of all water used in the valley is for indoor residential use, while 24 percent goes to outdoor residential irrigation (www.obwb.ca/wsd/key-findings/water-use). Much

Water-Wise Gardening: Save Money and Help the Environment

By Gwen Steele

With a little creativity, we can conserve water and still exercise

our green thumb.


of this irrigation keeps lawns and cedar hedges alive and green. By following the Principles of Xeriscape, we can reduce landscape water use by 30 percent to 100 percent, depending on design and the plants used.

Xeriscape, from the Greek xeros, meaning ‘dry’, is gardening with the natural conditions of the local environment to create a landscape that needs little or no supplemental water. The Seven Principles of Xeriscape give clear guidelines for creating a successful water-saving landscape. They are Planning and Design, Soil Preparation, Practical Turf Areas, Efficient Irrigation, Appropriate Plant Selection, Mulching and Timely Maintenance.

During ever-increasing watering restrictions, gardeners who have adopted the Principles of Xeriscape will see their gardens thrive compared to conventional landscapes.

Xeriscapes can:• Be beautiful. Contrary to common

perceptions of xeriscape as a mass of rocks with cactus or struggling plants, a xeriscape can be created in almost any landscape style, including a lush English country garden.

• Add property value. A well-designed xeriscape can enhance property values by creating an inviting and beautiful landscape that is easy to maintain.

• Save money. Over a 20-year period, a lush, well-designed and maintained xeriscape can cost as little as 30 percent of the cost of maintaining a conventional lawn-based landscape. Less money is spent on water, pesticides, fertilizers and replacement of dead plants.

• Save time. There is less time spent watering, trimming, weeding and mowing.

• Create healthier landscapes. Plants in a xeriscape are grouped by water needs and planted in their ideal conditions so they thrive, making them much less vulnerable to pests and diseases.

• Eliminate the need for chemical fertilizers by using organic-type mulches such as compost and manure. These mulches fertilize plants at a slow, even rate throughout the growing season and build up the soil. Mulch retains moisture and drastically reduces weeding.

• Protect human health. Eliminating the use of chemicals protects human health and that of the environment and keeps toxic chemicals out of drinking water.

• Grow food. Replacing water-thirsty lawns with food gardens is a popular trend. Good soil, efficient irrigation and covering bare soil with mulch ensures a good harvest and effective use of water.

Suggestions for being water-wise in existing landscapes:

• Get immediate water savings by mulching all bare ground with a five-centimetre layer of compost or manure.

• Avoid rock mulch. It intensifies heat and is hard to weed.

• Improve existing lawns by applying a three-centimetre layer of mulch in spring, eliminating the need for chemical fertilizers which encourage faster growth, increasing water needs and mowing.

• Check irrigation systems for leaks and adjust for the weather and the

seasons. • Water less often. Observe how

this affects the plants. • Reduce evaporation. Avoid

watering during the day. • Avoid creating runoff. Don’t water

hard surfaces such as roads and sidewalks.

The Okanagan Xeriscape Association (OXA) website (www.okanaganxeriscape.org) includes a summary of the Seven Principles of Xeriscape; a searchable plant database of 400 plant listings with 23 search categories; a landscape assessment tool; resource lists of books, websites and demonstration gardens; class and event information; and a photo gallery.

OXA’s unH2O Xeriscape Demonstration Garden in Kelowna has over 80 species in five theme gardens. It is an ever-changing, colourful, lush landscape from March to November. Seasonal garden photos and a pamphlet with plant list are on the website.

The Principles of Xeriscape are an excellent guide to successful gardening. By working with Mother Nature rather than fighting against her, you can create beautiful, sustainable landscapes which conserve water, eliminate chemical use, create habitat for birds and butterflies and provide enjoyment for humans. n

Water Feature

Above: June 2012: vibrant, long-blooming perennials: Gaillardia ‘Burgundy’, Salvia ‘Caradonna’, and Achillea ‘Moonshine’ in the Butterfly Garden at the unH2O Xeriscape Demonstration Garden,

4075 Gordon Drive, Kelowna. Below left: May 2013 in the Rock Garden at the unH2O Garden: Allium karataviense, and hens and chicks (Sempervivum). Photo credits: Gwen Steele


Water Feature

Water is one of the elements essential to our wellbeing. Our bodies consist of anywhere from 50 to 70 percent water depending on sex, age and

body type, so staying hydrated is vitally important for overall health. It’s easy to forget that large amounts of water are lost daily through simple body functions like breathing, going to the washroom and evaporation on our skin. It’s important to be conscious of these things so we can take steps to avoid dehydration. Common symptoms include headaches, dark yellow urine, sluggishness and even bad breath.

Still not motivated to drink more H2O? Here are five reasons to stay hydrated:1. Body Maintenance: Water is used for a number

of bodily functions including digestion, absorption, circulation, creation of saliva, transportation of nutrients and maintenance of body temperature. Keeping the body well hydrated is like getting an oil change and fluid

top-up for your car – by doing so you’re increasing the long-term health of your vehicle. Kidney stones can be one of the many unpleasant and painful side effects to chronic dehydration, as stones are less likely to form with diluted urine. So drink up!

2. Feel Energized: When our bodies are not adequately hydrated, it also affects us on a cellular level. If the cells that maintain fluid balance are “dried up,” muscle fatigue can result. If you are physically active and dehydrated, you may encounter weakened muscle performance and be more susceptible to injury. So if you want to be at your peak performance while hitting the treadmill or taking a stroll with some friends, drink some water and get your sweat on!

3. Keep Moving: Bowel movements, that is. Not everyone’s favourite topic, but that doesn’t mean it’s not something worth mentioning. If your body is feeling like it needs extra fluid, your colon will pull water from your stools. With adequate hydration, your body is better at keeping things moving down the gastrointestinal tract, preventing that “backed up” feeling.

4. Glowing Skin: Our skin acts as a protective barrier not only for keeping things out but also to keep things in, like moisture. Water may not exactly be the fountain of youth, but skimping out on H2O can cause the skin to look more dry and wrinkled. So ward off those unnecessary lines and plump up those skin cells by staying hydrated.

5. Control Calories: Wander any beverage aisle in most grocery stores and you’ll find some new brightly designed, probably sweetened drink touting that it’s the answer to everything your body needs. Save your wallet some grief and remember the original health drink: water! Water is wonderfully designed to be one of the body’s essential tools and it’s naturally calorie free. You can cut out hundreds of empty calories each day by simply swapping that tall glass of something for a refreshing drink of water. Dehydration can also sometimes be confused for hunger, leading to unnecessary snacking on easy-to-reach junk food. I like to recommend that when you feel like snacking, have a glass of water and wait 20 minutes to see if you still feel hungry.

Now that we’ve covered some of the health benefits, you may be wondering how much you should drink.

The Benefits of Staying Hydrated

Reasons to pay attention to your fluid intake – and easy ways to do it!

By KyLee Fournier

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Water Feature

The average adult should drink a minimum of eight glasses a day, which will help replenish the 2.5 litres of fluid the body loses daily through breathing, sweating and urination. For most of us, drinking eight glasses of water a day isn’t all that appealing. To help those who are water-shy kick start their healthy hydration, here are some great foods to increase your fluid intake with some added flavours and nutrients.

Watermelon: This yummy fruit consists of 92 percent water, and includes benefits like vitamin C and vitamin A. It can be enjoyed in more ways than one. Try adding it to a fresh salad or in salsa; blend it up with some ice for a refreshing drink; and of course, it’s delicious on its own.

Strawberries and other berries: Berries are easy to find, so why not take advantage and enjoy these fruits that are rich in antioxidants and vitamin C? The possibilities are endless when it comes to different ways to incorporate berries into your diet. For example, how about pairing some blueberries with yogurt for an afternoon parfait?

Grapefruit: This juicy citrus fruit is 90 percent water. Not only are grapefruits hydrating; they are also rich in vitamin C, vitamin A and antioxidants. Research suggests this low-calorie fruit can even shrink the waistline, which is an added bonus before summer arrives. Try adding some wedges to a plain old salad, or just peel and enjoy.

Bell Peppers: These colourful peppers are 92 percent water, but still manage to be loaded with nutrients including vitamin C, beta-carotene and folic acid. Sliced peppers with some hummus can be an enjoyable, healthy snack.

Of course, I still recommend drinking water! If the thought of drinking a glass of water still doesn’t sound appealing, there are many ways to turn “regular” water into a delicious and healthy drink. For example, in a four-litre jar you can make a big batch of cold green or herbal tea; throw in some fresh mint or raspberries or squeeze in fresh lemon juice, add ice cubes, and you have a great refreshing drink. To your health! n

For the first time, scientific research is providing new insights into water’s energy

characteristics and their importance to all biochemical events that contribute to the living state.

Research has discovered a fourth phase of water, a negatively charged, alkaline boundary layer of water that exists at the surface of all molecules.

This fourth phase of water, called EZ water or living water, is expected to have profound effects on your health.

Water is deeply essential to every aspect of life on our planet. We accept without question its critical role in sustaining life, but we may overlook many of the fundamental and often confusing details of water’s physics, chemistry and biology.

From our biological perspective, we understand that we are about two-thirds by volume water. At the atomic level, however, and because of the very small size of the H2O water molecule, more than 99 percent of the molecules in our body are water. Thus, we are water, and virtually every other molecule in our body is surrounded by and in constant contact with water molecules.

Water’s potential to influence every

chemical and biochemical reaction and every function in our body is extraordinary. Science is now unravelling this potential, led over the last decade by the work of Gerard Pollack, Professor of Bioengineering at the University of Washington in the United States.

Dr. Pollack and his associates have discovered what they call EZ water, or exclusion zone water. EZ water is a collection of water molecules that exist at the boundary surface of every object. Your organs are surrounded by EZ water, as are all of your cells. EZ water fills the inside of every cell and it covers the surface of all other molecules in the body. EZ water has physical and chemical properties that are quite different from water that exists in the three phases that we typically recognize – solid (ice), liquid and vapour. EZ water is described as living water – a fourth phase of water that has many different functions and applications. The probable role of EZ water in generating and supporting most biological and biochemical functions could have a profound effect on your health.

Research has shown that EZ water is highly structured into sheets of molecules stacked layer

By Roger Drinkwater, BSc (Hons), PhD, RYT

Living WaterWhat is it, and why is it so important to our health?

cont’d from page 20


Water Feature upon layer on top of each other. The molecular interactions between the hydrogen and oxygen atoms in these sheets effectively generate water with a molecular structure of H3O2 rather than the H2O that we see in regular water. This EZ water is also negatively charged and has an alkaline pH. These are key features of natural environmental water that has historically been attributed with health-giving properties. EZ water is now believed to generate the negative charge that exists in every living cell and to maintain the alkaline pH that is essential for the correct functioning of most biochemical processes in our body.

It is now considered vitally important to our health to maintain adequate quantities of EZ water in the body. That raises the critical question: how is EZ water generated? Dr. Pollack and his colleagues discovered that EZ water is generated and maintained through the input of energy from sources such as light, physical movement and sound. Electromagnetic light energy in the form of visible light, ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths and infrared light have been shown to generate EZ water. At infrared light wavelengths of around 270 nanometres, EZ water actually absorbs the energy provided by the light. The more infrared light at 270 nanometres that is present, the more EZ water is generated.

EZ water also appears to be quite stable. This means it can hold its physical structure and chemical properties for some time. Water samples from the river Ganges and from the Lourdes in France have been measured, showing spikes in the 270-nanometre region, suggesting these “holy waters” contain high amounts of EZ water. According to Dr. Pollack, there’s compelling evidence that EZ water is indeed lifesaving. The energy character of EZ water helps to explain why light-based treatments such as infrared sauna, laser therapy and light therapy have distinct health benefits. And indeed, why exposure to sunlight simply makes you feel good!There are many other biological benefits of EZ water, according to Dr. Pollack. For example, blood flow in microcapillaries close to the surface of the skin is believed to be driven in large part by the presence of EZ water on the inside surface of the capillaries and on the surface of the red blood cells. The EZ water at

these boundaries generates an ionic charge that may well drive the blood cells through the capillaries. While research continues in this area, it is possible that blood flow through your capillaries is automatically enhanced by exposure to light and other energy sources.

Dr. Pollack says that the negative ionic balance of the body and negative charge supported by an internal alkaline (OH-) environment rather than an acidic (H+) environment are crucial for good health. Consuming alkaline-based foods and water, exposing the body to sunlight and grounding to the (negative-charged) earth are all ways that we can increase the quantity of EZ water in the body.

Much literature has been written on the health benefits of an alkaline food diet. The consumption of raw, vegetable (alkaline) based foods as opposed to highly processed carbohydrate and protein (acid) based foods is generally considered essential for the prevention of many chronic disorders and diseases. Contrary to this is the debate as to whether alkaline water has a similar health benefit. The discovery of EZ water and the associated research by Dr. Pollack now highlights the importance of having high-quality, mineralized alkaline water in your diet.

Drinking alkaline water, and in particular stable alkaline water treated with light and acoustic energy to increase its EZ content, is highly likely to support the correct (healthy) biochemical and physiological functioning of the body.

Not all drinking water is the same! Much of the domestic tap water and commercial bottled water available in the market place is effectively “lifeless.” That is, it is acidic and lacks the energy component of EZ water. Naturally alkaline spring waters and alkaline waters that are purposefully manufactured to have a high EZ content are most likely to generate and support a healthy body function.

We have always understood that we must drink adequate quantities of clean water every day in order to simply stay alive. We now understand that drinking alkaline water with a high EZ content is going to do more than merely sustain life – it is going to help generate and support the level of health and wellness that we expect and cherish. n


Water Feature

While many of us grew up drinking water from the tap (or even the garden hose!), bottled water and water dispensers have become a common commodity.

Despite the controversy surrounding this development, the fact remains that today’s on-the-go consumers continue to drive the demand for bottled water. According to one research marketing company, retail sales of bottled water are projected to reach 2.5 billion litres by 2017.

Here are some answers to frequently asked questions, courtesy of Health Canada.

1. Is bottled water safer than tap water?Quality standards for bottled water and tap water are

similar. Both bottled water and municipally distributed tap water that meet or exceed their required health and safety standards are considered safe.

2. What types of bottled water are there?Currently, two categories of bottled water are defined in

the Food and Drug Regulations. The first, spring or mineral water, originates from an underground source which is not part of a community water supply and is fit for human consumption at its point of origin. Mineral water generally contains a larger amount of dissolved mineral salts than spring water. Spring or mineral water must not be subjected to any treatment that would modify the original composition of the water. It may be treated by the addition of carbon dioxide for carbonation, fluoride for the prevention of dental caries, and ozone for disinfection during the bottling process. Ozone is also effective in removing objectionable odours and flavours because it breaks down into oxygen, improving taste and other qualities.

Bottled water not labelled as spring or mineral water may be from any source and can be treated to make it fit for human consumption or to modify its original composition. The label of these bottled waters must show how they have been treated; for example, water treated by distillation must be labelled “distilled water” and water with added carbon dioxide labelled “carbonated water.” Water treated by a method other than distillation to reduce its dissolved mineral content to less than 10 parts per million must be identified as “demineralized water.”

3. Is it true that plastic used in water bottles can release Bisphenol A into the water?

Most plastic bottles used in the sale of bottled water in Canada are made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET or PETE) or polyethylene (PE), which does not contain Bisphenol A (BPA). Large jugs (18 L bottles) and some sport bottles can be made of polycarbonate plastic (PC) which may contain small amounts of BPA. With polycarbonate

water bottles, minute quantities of BPA can potentially leach out into the water or food, exposing consumers to small amounts of BPA through their normal daily diet.

The plastic containers used for bottled water are regulated as food packaging materials. The Food Directorate of Health Canada has concluded that the dietary exposure to BPA from food packaging sources, including PC water bottles, does not pose a health risk to consumers.

4. Is it safe to reuse the bottles that water is sold in by filling them with tap water?

Health Canada does not recommend the reuse of single-use bottles because the reuse poses a potential microbiological risk if not cleaned properly. Studies have found that, depending on the source of the water used and the general hygiene of the user, the growth of bacteria in the bottle can vary from negligible to potentially hazardous. Health Canada suggests using wide-necked bottles that can be thoroughly washed with hot soapy water between uses.

Frequently, the concerns have focused on claims that polyethylene terephthalate (PET or PETE) plastic used in single-use water bottles breaks down when used repeatedly, releasing cancer-causing chemicals. Health Canada has seen no scientific evidence to suggest that reusing PET bottles will contribute harmful levels of chemicals and toxins.

5. How should bottled water be stored?Store out of direct sunlight in a clean, cool, dry environment. Once water bottles have been opened, Health Canada recommends you consume the contents and refrigerate any leftovers. Dispense the 18 L carboys of bottled water through a refrigerated water cooler that is kept clean to avoid contamination. For single-use bottled water (except 18L carboys):

• Do not refill old bottles.• Do not share bottles.• Clean the bottle top or cap before drinking or pouring

from them.• Keep the opened bottle clean and preferably

refrigerated as the water, cap and cap liner can all support bacterial growth that may originate from the mouth or the environment. n

By Dianne Fowlie

You want to drink bottled water but you’re not sure which type to choose. Read on for an overview of the basics.

De-Mystifying Bottled Water


Water Feature

Today, a wide variety of water treatment systems is available to solve most home water

problems. Once you’ve identified the contaminants you want to reduce or eliminate, you can determine which technology, or combination of technologies, is best suited to your situation. Here is an overview of the most common home water treatment systems.

Activated Carbon FiltersA convenient and effective

means of removing offensive tastes and odours, carbon filters also eliminate a wide range of organic materials and residual chlorine as well as many hazardous contaminants, including certain pesticides. Carbon block filters can also reduce lead and treat for the biological contaminants Cryptosporidium and Giardia. Activated carbon comes in two forms, granulated and solid block; each has its own removal capabilities so it is important to choose the right form for your specific needs. Activated carbon is used in the following systems:

Undercounter units: These systems contain more activated carbon than either the pour-through, faucet-mounted or countertop models. They are designed to be installed in-line, generally under the sink. They are installed on the cold water line and some units include a bypass to separate cooking and drinking water from other uses.

Whole-house: In some cases, all water in the house may need to be treated by activated carbon filtration. If so, a high-volume unit may be installed at the point of entry in the house.

Portable filters: You can find activated carbon filters in portable units suitable for camping as well as in sports bottles perfect for use during a workout.

Reverse Osmosis (RO)Reverse osmosis is a highly

effective technology for reducing a

wide range of both health-related and aesthetic contaminants. RO systems work by pressuring water up against a semi-permeable membrane that stops contaminants from passing but allows clean water to get through. These systems offer a comprehensive means of eliminating more than 90 percent of potentially harmful contaminants

in home drinking water, including Cryptosporidium and Giardia.

Most RO systems are compact units installed under your sink. (In some cases, they can also be installed on the countertop.) A typical system is comprised of one or more pre-filters, a reverse osmosis module, a post-filter and a pressurized holding tank.

Water Softening“Hardness” in water is caused by the

presence of calcium and magnesium, which lessen the effectiveness of soaps and detergents and can produce scale in pipes, hot water tanks and appliances. Hard water is most commonly treated with an ion exchange water softener. These softeners replace the calcium and magnesium in the water with sodium or potassium chloride, neither of which has the negative effects associated with hardness.

These point-of-entry systems consist of a brine tank that holds the sodium or potassium chloride and a

softener tank that contains the resins that remove hardness.

DistillationThe distillation process provides

water that is up to 98 percent free of impurities and is effective in removing biological contaminants such as Cryptosporidium and Giardia.

Distillation works by heating water until it turns into steam – leaving behind contaminants – and then condensing the vapour back into clean, clear water.

The most common type of household distiller is a basic single-effect distiller. Simple in design, most single-effect distillers are relatively compact countertop or stand-alone units for use in the kitchen.

Ultraviolet SystemsThese systems use ultraviolet

lights to disinfect water. Water passes through a flow chamber where UV rays, which destroy bacteria and inactivate many viruses, are admitted and

absorbed into the water stream. UV systems are often combined with other technologies to provide complete water solutions.

UV technology is available in point-of-entry systems treating all water entering the house as well as point-of-use units treating drinking water only.

OzonationOzone generators produce small

quantities of ozone gas, which is a very strong oxidizing agent and is effective in killing bacteria with even brief exposure times. Ozone is also effective in oxidizing organic matter, iron and manganese. Ozone generators are generally used in conjunction with other technologies for complete water treatment solutions.

In the past, ozonation was used primarily in point-of-entry systems to treat all water entering the house. Now, new countertop units are available to treat drinking water only. nSource: Water Quality Association Fact Sheet, An Overview of Home Water Treatment Technologies, 2000.

By Richard Pelletier

Home Water Treatment SystemsA guide to finding the right system for your needs.


Fitness

You may have seen them out there – people with what look like ski poles in their hands,

striding down our lake’s boardwalks and the city sidewalks or trails – and wondered, “Why are these people willing to look so funny?”

Well, they aren’t doing it to look silly. People walk this way, using specially designed walking poles and a different type of walking technique, because they’ve discovered the northern European fitness secret of pole walking! This activity originated in Finland as a cross-training exercise to keep the Olympic cross-country ski team fit in their off-season. It’s important to note that cross-country skiers are among the most fit athletes in the world, ranking highest in endurance, flexibility, strength and cardio.

More than 80 percent of the

households in Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Germany regularly practise pole walking, which is referred to there as Nordic walking. Actually, as of 2008, the number of pole walkers in the streets of all northern European countries has surpassed the number of joggers you’ll see. So even though it may seem new, different and perhaps even odd to us here in North America, pole walking has been more than commonplace in those European countries for over 30 years.

Still, does that mean if a 90-year-old Swede is to jump off a bridge, so should we? No, but if millions of people are reaping amazing health benefits continuing over many years – past what you’d call a fad – then maybe we should take heed.

I discovered pole walking over 10 years ago after my mother-in-law (in Denmark) gave me a pair. I didn’t know

too much about this form of exercise or even how to use walking poles. But finding the time or energy to exercise was something I was always struggling with back then. When I started using the walking poles, I couldn’t get over the upper body toning and the added exhilaration I felt. To my amazement, six months later I had lost 30 pounds! After this happened to me, I started researching how and why just adding walking poles to a routine walk can make such an astounding difference in your health.

Holding poles in your hands naturally forces you to stand taller. We are often guilty of slouching, one of the main causes of chronic pain issues in our backs, shoulders and necks. As well, slouching compresses the chest and causes shallow breathing, preventing proper oxygen and blood flow to the heart, lungs and brain. Walking

Walk this Way…More than a passing fad, pole walking turns a simple stroll into a total-body workout.By Sheri Simson


Fitness

Basic Pole Walking Tips

Walking with poles is fun, easy and exhilarating, no matter

what your age or fitness level!

TIP 1: Your poles should always be angled back.

In order that your poles be ready and in the correct position to help propel and move you forward, your poles should never hit the ground in front of your feet. You want your hands in a handshake position so that the poles naturally angle back (a minimum of 20 percent). When walking, the foot of your front pole should hit the ground approximately 25 to 30 centimetres (10 to 12 inches) behind the heel of your front foot.

TIP 2: Always walk opposite-leg-to-hand.

When we walk without poles, we walk opposite-leg-to-hand quite naturally. It’s what helps us move forward in alignment and keeps us balanced, so it should be no different when we walk with poles.Rule of thumb: Your leading pole-arm and your front foot should always hit the ground at the same time.

TIP 3: Don’t think. Don’t think. Don’t think!

The first step is generally the hardest, so remind yourself that walking is something we already do without thinking. Think only about your first step (and maybe your second). The key is to just relax, trust yourself and count on the Rule of Three.

Rule of Three: You are going to catch on:

1. After three steps 2. In three kilometres 3. After three times out

Just remember to let your body do what it does naturally, relax and, most important of all, have fun!

effortlessly with poles naturally aligns the spine and supports you as you contract and engage all your central-body core muscles. Over time this will not only help you to sit, stand and walk taller but you’ll start to breathe deeper and healthier when walking without poles!

Using walking poles makes you a four-legged animal, which in turn increases your efficiency factor. Climbing and descending hills becomes a lot easier and is often the reason poles are commonly used when hiking mountainous or hilly terrain. But I challenge hikers to continue the pole advantage by taking walking poles to their neighbourhoods or city streets, helping them to ramp up the benefits of every step. When we walk without poles, we use less than 50 percent of our major muscles, meaning that in effect your upper body is going for a ride. Yes, swinging your arms will increase your cardio, but it won’t build muscle because we need resistance to do that and there is no resistance in air. Studies have calculated that when you use walking poles you engage, through the resistance of your own body weight as you propel yourself forward, over 90 percent of your major muscles! You can’t help but move faster and with less effort when your whole body is working in unison. In addition, plate-tests have calculated a 26 percent disbursement of our weight off our lower body when we use poles, a welcome fact for those who have back, hip, knee, ankle or feet challenges.

The seemingly unbelievable list of

benefits doesn’t end there. In studies conducted at the Cooper Institute in Dallas, Texas, comparison of regular walkers to pole walkers brought forth phenomenal results. Pole walkers not only increased their cardio (by a minimum of 20 percent) and calorie burn (by between 22 percent and 48 percent), but they did it with less effort. Regardless of the gained benefits, everyone in the study felt it was easier to walk with the poles than to walk without them.

Now, I don’t know about you, but who doesn’t like the idea of doing

less and getting more, turning a simple walk around the block into an efficient, aerobic, total-body workout!

If all this doesn’t shift you to the pole side and get you excited about everything that pole walking can do for you, here’s something else to consider. To get the same cardio benefit as a 30-minute pole walk, you’d have to walk 50 minutes without poles, and actually you are still not done because in that 50 minutes without the poles you did nothing with your upper body; so now you have to add more time to do

some sit-ups, push-ups and dumbbells. However, when you are pole walking, you are doing the equivalent of sit-ups, push-ups and dumbbells with every step, giving you double the benefits in nearly half the time!

So, next time you see those people out there with their sticks, instead of asking why, ask why not! n

Sheri Simson demonstrates proper pole walking technique.


Seniors Health

In the past article (Fall 2013 issue) we looked at steps we can take that can improve our odds of aging well,

sometime in the future, when we get there.

If you are 60 or older, that sometime has arrived. And this also applies to your parents. Now.

So what does “exceptional aging” look like?

When I refer to “healthy aging” and “exceptional aging,” I am talking about thriving and evolving right until the very end.

Let’s look at some examples.Some years ago, I worked with

a woman in Northern California named Charlotte Selver. She came to America in 1937 where she became instrumental in the birthing of the human potential movement. She developed a practice known as “Sensory Awareness” and taught this all over the world for over 70 years.

She lived on an estate, poised on a knife-edged ridge above the Pacific Ocean. One day I encountered her out on the patio and she announced to me that she had decided that soon she would embark on her “final” overseas teaching tour. She had just celebrated her 100th birthday!

In fact, she continued to teach until just days before her death, at home, with her students and friends, at the age of 102!

Ever heard of Sister Madonna Buder? She is also known as the “Iron Nun”! Why? Because, at age 79 Sister Madonna became the oldest woman to ever complete an Ironman competition. At age 83 she is still competing.

She began triathlon training at age 48 at the behest of Father John, who told her that it was a good way to balance “mind, body, and spirit.” She completed her first Ironman distance at age 55, and hasn’t looked back, completing not just a few but dozens

of gruelling Ironman competitions over the past 34 years.

How about a 90-year-old tap dancer named Bonnie Buchner who was performing on the CBS show “Live to Dance”?

Japan’s best-selling poet began writing at age 92. Celebrating her 100th birthday, she said, “I work hard to improve every day.” Imagine that. How many of us seek to improve every day even though we have many years still ahead of us?

Octavio Orduno, a native of Long Beach, California, does a daily bicycle ride, at age 103.

Saburo Shoochi runs a daycare centre in Japan for mentally disabled children, at age 98!

These are but a few of the hundreds of thousands of examples of healthy aging throughout the world.

Each story is unique. No two cases are the same. But there appear to be some very common factors that are shared by almost every one of them:

• They all have a low BMI (body mass index).

• They all are mentally active. That is, they are all lifelong learners.

• They all are physically active.• They all are non-smokers.• They all have avoided or delayed

serious illness.• They all are passionate about

their work.• They all have supportive social

relationships.• They all have a positive mental

outlook.• They all have a positive physical

outlook.• They all have a spiritual practice. • They all have a calling for service

to others.• They all lack the sense of urgency

that often plagues the rest of us.I will add two other factors that I

have seen with most elders who are aging very well:

• They have a connection with nature (and often spend time in nature on a daily basis).

• They eat real, wholesome, natural food most of the time.

There you have it. Not rocket science. In fact, isn’t this the way that we should all be living our lives right now?

Compare that to your own life. Compare that to your parents’ lives.

Healthy aging is obviously very good for the elders concerned. But it is also very good for their families. It is good for our communities. It takes a huge burden off the government and the healthcare system. And it is good for our society in general.

Healthy aging is our birthright. Exceptional aging is possible. n

Healthy Aging. Part Two: What Does It Actually Look Like?

It’s no secret that we’re living longer, but did you know that aging well is good not just for the individual but for the community and society in general?

By Del Muzzillo

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Wellness

It has been said that the only two things certain in life are death and taxes. We try to avoid the subject of mortality, our own or

others’. Whether from illness, accident, suicide or homicide, inevitably a loved one in our family or circle of friends will die. We try to use words like “loss,” “passed away,” or “went home” to soften the blow. But nothing can change the reality of death and its effect on those who are left to mourn.

Expressing grief is healthy, but not everyone grieves in the same way. Some people grieve in silence and isolation; others cannot stand to be alone. One person may cry uncontrollably while another feels unable to shed a tear. Friends and family look on helplessly, not wanting to say or do the wrong thing. Grief is intensely personal.

There are many ways to help yourself or someone close heal from the pain of grief and loss. Taking care of your physical health through eating well and exercising is essential. Sharing the feelings of sadness, devastation,

anger and despair is also necessary. Medical or mental health practitioners may be helpful in extreme cases of complicated grief. Trusted advisors can assist with legal or financial issues.

Seek out support from those who have experienced grief. Hospice programs can be a vital resource in coping with loss. In the Okanagan, New Hope for Widow/ers and their Families offers monthly support groups and an annual retreat for those whose spouse has died within recent years. For information on New Hope’s 17th annual retreat, May 2-3, 2014, leave a message at 250-545-6004 or email [email protected].

Above all, be gentle with yourself. There is no timeline for recovery from grief and no deadline when it must be finished. Sharing the letter below with well-meaning friends and family may help them to understand some of your needs.

Grief Explained to Friends and Family: A letter shared from the heart of a grieving widow, Rhonda S.

I have experienced a loss that is devastating to me. It will take time, perhaps years, for me to work through the grief I feel because of this loss.

I will cry more than usual for some time. My tears are not a sign of weakness or a lack of hope or faith. They are the symbols of the depth of my loss and the sign that I am recovering.

I may become angry without seeming to have a reason for it. My emotions are heightened by the stress of grief. Please be forgiving if I seem irrational at times.

I need your understanding and your presence more than anything else. If you don’t know what to say, just touch me or give me a hug to let me know you care. Please don’t wait for me to call you. I am often too tired to think of reaching out for the help I need.

Don’t allow me to withdraw from you. I need you more than ever during the next year.

Pray for me only if your prayer is not an order for me to make you feel better. My faith does not excuse me from the grief process.

If you have an experience of loss that seems anything like mine, please share it with me. You will not make me feel worse.

This loss is the worst thing that could happen to me. But I will get through it and I will live again. I will not always feel as I do now. I will laugh again.

Thank you for caring about me. Your concern is a gift I treasure. n

Good Grief

By Karen Bouchard

Expressing grief is healthy – and intensely personal.

1Only advisors who hold CFP (Certified Financial Planner), CH.F.C (Chartered Financial Consultant), F.Pl. (Financial Planner in Quebec), or equivalent designations are certified as financial planners. Mutual funds offered by Sun Life Financial Investment Services (Canada) Inc. Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada is a member of the Sun Life Financial group of companies. © Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada, 2014.


Wellness

A good night’s sleep is essential for health and optimal brain function. But the evidence suggests Canadians are not getting enough sleep: one in three suffers from

sleeplessness while one in 10 experience chronic insomnia. Women are twice as likely to report sleep disturbance as men. Millions of Canadians rely on prescription drugs to help them sleep.

So why is it so hard for us to hit the hay, sleep well and wake up feeling refreshed? It seems there is no one cause, but work/relationship stress, pain and illness, racing minds and worry about the effects of not sleeping are dominant factors. Hormonal imbalances that occur with the menstrual cycle or at menopause can also contribute to interrupted sleep (think hot flashes and night sweats).

Our love for technology may also be keeping us awake: research suggests that exposure to the artificial light emitted from televisions, smart phones and computers, especially in the hours before bed, suppresses our production of melatonin, the hormone that keeps us asleep.

Along the same lines, lack of exposure to natural light may be equally harmful. Artificial light delays our biological sleep time by up to two hours and causes us to wake almost two hours before we should.

Sleep problems have been linked to poor quality of life and chronic illness.

Whatever the cause, lack of sleep can negatively influence our health. We have internal clocks; when they are not in sync, it impacts our physiology. Insufficient sleep has been linked to high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, obesity, adrenal fatigue, Alzheimer’s disease and fibromyalgia. Researchers have found higher levels of inflammation among patients with poor sleep patterns, which may increase the risk of chronic diseases such as arthritis, diabetes and cancer.Falling asleep may seem like an impossible dream

when you’re awake at 3 a.m., but good sleep is more under your control than you might think. Adopting healthy sleep habits can make the difference between restlessness and restful slumber. Here are my top 10 tips for making the sleep of your dreams a nightly reality:1. Keep a Consistent Sleep Schedule

Going to bed and waking up at the same time each day will train your body to sleep. Stick to the same routine, even if you did not sleep well the night before. And keep the same schedule on the weekends. When possible, go outside during the day to get exposure to natural light – this will help reset your internal clock.2. Establish a Bedtime Routine

Take some time to consciously relax and settle down about one hour before bed. Reading, meditation, writing in a journal or taking a warm bath are good pre-bed activities. Avoid arguments or making difficult decisions before bed as these can wind you up.3. Turn Off Your Electronics

Try to avoid using your computer, smart phone or watching TV after 8 p.m. and keep these devices out of the bedroom completely. 4. Make Your Bedroom Sleep-Ready

Our brains need total darkness to get sound sleep. Use heavy curtains, blackout shades, or an eye mask to block

Catching Some ZZZs

By Christine Hatfield, BScH, MD

If you’re having trouble getting a good night’s rest, these tips may be what you need to make the sleep of your dreams a reality.

Can lack of sleep make you fat? Research suggests that inadequate sleep may be linked to obesity. Lack of sleep can increase hunger and impair glucose metabolism. Getting fewer than 6.5 hours of sleep per night has been correlated with higher body fat among women. Sleep time was particularly linked to body fat: those who wake up at the same time each morning had lower body fat while those staying up late had more. Being a night owl may cause more harm than good!


Wellness

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Have you ever watched your child blow bubbles in the backyard? You can see the bubbles, you enjoy them, but you can’t hang onto them for long before

they burst. Organizing is a little bit like bubble watching...you enjoy it, but it doesn’t take long to have your bubble disappear before your eyes!

In 2010, the Professional Organizers in Canada (POC) advised that over 80 percent of Canadians reported feeling disorganized, with the most challenging areas being home, workplace and time management. Additionally, with 34 percent of Canadians admitting they had no idea how to become organized, it certainly makes it challenging to achieve that ultimate aim. However, with a little advice from the experts, your 2014 goals can come true. You just need to set a few simple rules and keep following them.1. List goals and priorities

Write a list of 10 organizing goals on a piece of paper, and then determine priority. For example, you may want to organize your kitchen, dining room and family room. The trick is to break down each area into bite-size chunks. In the kitchen you would write down upper cabinets, lower cabinets, drawers, pantry and so on. Human nature is such that if a task becomes too overwhelming, a person may give up entirely.

2. Make a “bite-size” planOnce your list is complete, choose one day a week and determine a start date, time and duration to work on your organizing project (we recommend no longer than a three-hour period to start). One note of caution: BE REALISTIC. An amateur runner should not wake up one day and decide to run a marathon. Organizing is no different; set realistic goals with a realistic timetable and you have exponentially increased your success.

3. Gather what you need to do the jobThe night before organizing day, gather the following:• Garbage Bags (for garbage) • Recycling Bags (for recycling)• Clear Yard Bags (for donations)• Cardboard Boxes & Packing Tape to seal (for

donations)• Storage Tubs (for storage) • Laundry Baskets (for easily moving items where

they belong)• Black Sharpie & Painter’s Tape (for temporary

labelling without damaging surfaces) • Labeller (for labelling boxes and bins)• Ice Cream Pail/Mop Bucket & Cloths (for wiping

items and cleaning completed areas)

Ten steps to reaching your organizing goals

Ready, Set, Get Organized!

By Christine Kishor

light. Cell phones and alarm clocks should be several feet away from your head. Keep the temperature comfortably cool – between 60°F and 70°F – and the room well ventilated. And make sure your bedroom is equipped with a comfortable mattress and pillows (remember that most mattresses wear out after ten years). Also, if a pet regularly wakes you during the night, you may want to consider keeping it out of your bedroom. Restrict your bedroom for sleep and sex – no work, no reading, no TV.5. Watch the Coffee and Skip the Nightcap

Avoid caffeine after 4 p.m. (or remove it completely if you have a serious sleep issue). While alcohol may make you fall asleep easier, it will wake you later as your liver metabolizes it. 6. Can’t Sleep? Get Up!

Struggling to fall sleep just leads to frustration. If you’re not asleep after 20 minutes, get out of bed, go to another room, and do something relaxing, like deep breathing, reading or listening to music until you are tired enough to sleep. This same rule applies if you wake up in the middle of the night.7. Don’t Fall into the Nap Trap

Many people make naps a regular part of their day. However, for those who find falling asleep or staying asleep through the night problematic, afternoon napping may be one of the culprits. This is because late-day naps decrease sleep drive. If you must nap, it’s better to keep it short and before 5 p.m.8. Lighten Up on Evening Meals

Finish dinner several hours before bedtime and avoid heavy, spicy and sugary foods. If you get hungry at night, snack on foods that have been shown to help with sleep, such as warm milk, bananas or almonds.9. Exercise Early

Exercise helps promote restful sleep if it is done several hours before you go to bed. Too close to bedtime can make you more awake because you have released the stress hormone cortisol. Yoga has been shown to improve sleep at any time of day, especially if you are postmenopausal.10. Get Medical Help

Not all sleep problems are so easily treated and could signify the presence of a sleep disorder such as apnea, restless legs syndrome, narcolepsy, or another clinical sleep problem. If your sleep difficulties don’t improve through good sleep hygiene, you may want to consult your physician or a sleep specialist. n


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• De-clutter Tip: Items that are in a tightly tied bag or sealed box are more likely to be donated and not taken back out.

4. Focus on the taskTurn off your cell phone and house line to avoid distractions.Ask yourself the following questions:

• When is the last time I used this item? (If not used in one year, dispose or give away)

• Do I have a duplicate of this item? (Which item is multipurpose)

• Do I need this item? (Need vs. Want)• Does this item fit? (Will I ever realistically be a size 6

again? or Will it fit in this space?)5. Keep moving

• Do something with the item in your hand. KEEP ~ DISCARD ~ GIVE AWAY. It’s really that simple!

• Go through the area top to bottom, left to right, completely emptying the space.

• Once empty, use your solution to clean the space.• Reorganize it the best you can, organizing like items

together.6. Decrease volume

• Remember that the key is to DECREASE volume...not just reorganize it.

• A clutter-free space is a beautiful and functional space.7. Complete one area at a time

• Do not move on to another area until the first one is complete.

• Keep bins in the area you are working to avoid walking around and getting sidetracked AND exhausted!

• Again, when walking through the doorway of a room, start on the top left and work your way down and to the right.

8. Enlist help• Enlist the help of your family (this includes partners)

and give tasks that are age appropriate. • Your children will likely be more organized as adults if

you teach them skills while young.• Ask a friend to swap organizing dates with you. One

week you do a couple of hours at your house, the next week at their house.

9. Make systems and plan upkeep• After the clutter is gone, think of ideas to keep the area

organized – otherwise known in the organizing world as “systems.”

• This is where calling in a professional organizer can be handy!

• Do a “10-minute tidy” each night before bedtime. • Use baskets placed by each family member’s door

and if you find articles that belong to them, place in their basket for them to put away.

• A good way to hold them to it is NO TV or electronics until all items are put back in their place!

10. Reward yourself!• Reward yourself for hard work completed.

This may be a bubble bath, a leisurely walk, lunch with a friend, a pampering spa service or a yummy treat!

• Make sure to celebrate your success no matter how small! n

Wellness


With the excitement of the approaching warmer weather and longer days, there will

also be a shift to spring activities like gardening and golf. Will you be ready?

A recent study showed that an overwhelming 88 percent of all adult Canadians rated back pain as an important public health issue. Here are some other statistics from that study:

• 64 percent had back pain in the last year – 29 percent for one month or more; 16 percent had constant back pain

• 56 percent had to limit physical activity; 33 percent had to spend less time with family and friends

• 40 percent had problems concentrating ; 24 percent experienced clinical depression

With these kinds of statistics, isn’t it time to try something new? Albert Einstein once said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

Perhaps consider these statistics from that same study:

• Only 50 percent had visited a chiropractor for back pain in the last two years

• Of those who did seek chiropractic care, 92 percent said they were satisfied

The premise of chiropractic is very simple: the nerve system controls the function of the body (from Gray’s Anatomy, a standard medical reference book). Therefore, interference of the spine and nerves will negatively affect the body’s ability to function. Here’s something to think about: Remember Christopher Reeve – Superman? He fell off a horse and hurt his neck. As a result, he was quadriplegic, and could not breathe on his own. His main injury was not to the legs, arms or lungs…it was his neck! This is an extreme example of what happens when the nerve system is interfered with, but I’m sure you get the point.

Since 1895, chiropractic care has focused on removing interference to the nerves, allowing the body to function properly. However, as our knowledge of human anatomy and physiology grows, the methods chiropractors use to clear such nerve interference also grow. Activator Methods is one such example.

Activator Methods has been involved in chiropractic clinical research and

development since 1967. Instead of manual manipulation of the spine and extremities, the Activator practitioner uses reflex tests to determine where to, and where not to, do the adjustments. When it is determined to be appropriate, the Doctor of Chiropractic uses an Activator Adjusting Instrument™ to move the bones back into alignment, restore proper bone movement and release the nerves, allowing them to function properly once again. Activator Methods is also involved in post-graduate training, which is required yearly to maintain a “proficiency rating” (certification) in the Activator Methods Chiropractic Technique. More information is available from www.activator.com.

If you are having a limitation in your life because of back pain, perhaps the problem is not the back itself. As Albert Einstein once said, you cannot solve a problem with the same level of thinking that created the problem in the first place (paraphrased, of course). Perhaps consider, or even reconsider, chiropractic. With a 92 percent satisfaction rating, what do you have to lose, besides the pain? n

By Wayne M. Terai, BSc, DC, CLT

When Back Pain Is a Pain in the NeckIs your troublesome back spoiling your enjoyment of life? Dr. Terai suggests the problem may not be your back at all.

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There were over 70 belly-laughing souls at the People Place in Vernon, BC, in mid-January, coming together to learn and experience the benefits of laughter. When

they laughed in unison, their happy waves of heartfelt joy filled every molecule in the room.

Worried looks might have entered the room at the start of the session, but happy, relaxed, tension-free smiIes went home at the end of the evening. I suspect laughter exercises were tried and explained to others and the wave of joy was passed on.

The residents of Hofu, Japan, have been celebrating laughter since the Kamakura period (1185-1333). It is called “Waraiko” and roughly translated means “laughing your way to heaven.” History indicates that Japanese farmers started the ritual as a way to cope. Apparently, laughter was recognized as an excellent way to relieve stress as far back as 800 years ago.

Our stress levels have become physiologically and psychologically exhausting as we try to combine the increasing demands of work and home. We are filled with worry, doubt and fear when we watch the nightly news, our immune systems already compromised from the stressors of the workday. When we get sick we reach for the chemical cure, when in fact, it would be of benefit to look inward to see what is off balance.

We do not laugh as much as we did in the 1950s, plus we have lost the ability to relax and to let our minds focus on calming activities. We may have heard about children laughing 300 to 400 times a day and by the time we are adults, we laugh maybe 10 to 12 times a day. In the 1950s we used to laugh approximately 20 minutes a day, and now it’s only about 6 minutes a day. What happened between then and now? Ask yourself, “Am I a member of the terminally serious club?”Scientists have helped us realize that laughter is one of the best stress relievers because it is reflective of our attitude toward life. Laughter is aerobic and has a positive effect on the cardiovascular and respiratory systems. It also stimulates the cerebral cortex, the largest part of the brain, and the frontal lobe (the part involved with social emotional responses) becomes very active.

Research conducted by Dr. Lee Berk of Loma Linda University in California has proven that not only is the immune system boosted, but natural killer cells, which fight certain types of cancer, are increased when we laugh. Research at the University of Maryland School of Medicine showed that laughter helps with the dilation of blood vessels, specifically the cardiovascular system. The workplace that encourages employees to laugh when they feel stressed will be a healthier and happier environment and will be more productive as a result. It could be that fewer sick days are taken as well.

Dr. Annette Goodheart used laughter in her psychology practice starting in the 1970s. Along with Norman Cousins (author, Anatomy of an Illness), she was one of the first to recognize the benefits of laughing. Laughter is very

contagious and can also be an emotional release. It can help to create homeostasis in your body and that is a good thing.

Laughter feels good. The bonus is that whether you are laughing because you have been stimulated to laugh (with jokes) or because you are simulating laughter (faking), the mind/body doesn’t know the difference and the fake laughter becomes real. The physiological and psychological benefits are the same. As Dr. Goodheart says, “Fake it till you make it.”

Now we know why comedians live a long time. Both George Burns and Bob Hope attributed their long lives to laughter. Remember what comic and pianist Victor Borge once said: “Laughter is the shortest distance between two people.”

So, if you are in a high-stress situation, try to increase how often you laugh every day, and keep a clown nose on hand for those moments where humour or a laugh would help to release tension.

To achieve homeostasis in your body, make sure to exercise, meditate or do hypnosis and like the residents of Hofu, Japan, “laugh your way to heaven.” If you laugh daily, you may create your own heaven here on earth. n

By Carole Fawcett, RPC, C. Ht.

Amid the sometimes hectic pace of our modern lives, good old-fashioned laughter remains one of the best stress busters.

The Spirit of LaughterWellness


Wellness

Growing your own vegetables may seem personal, but it can also lead to social,

environmental and economic change in your community. While the aromas, flavours and nutritional values of fresh, affordable and readily available produce will give you and your family a happy feeling in your bellies, getting involved in a community garden can warm your heart and expand your mind as you make new friends, learn new skills and reduce your carbon footprint.

The Central Okanagan Community Garden Society (COCG) builds and operates 510 garden plots in 15

locations scattered across the Central Okanagan from Peachland to Oyama. COCG is a volunteer-run organization, with only one part-time, paid employee and 15 volunteer coordinators – one for each garden.

You will find garden sites on municipal land, in churchyards or on private land, typically containing 20 to 50 plots, each approximately three metres by six metres. Most plots have wooden frames surrounding them to delineate the gardeners’ space and to contain the wood chips on the pathways. Topsoil might be brought in if the soil is poor or if a parking lot is being re-purposed, but often the native soil is just fine, needing only a dressing of worm castings to ensure the gardeners have a successful first season of growing and harvesting the fruits (and vegetables) of their labours.

Synthetic pesticides and fertilizers are not permitted, and gardeners are encouraged to mulch their plots, using compost they make themselves from the weeds they pull (always before the weeds go to seed) and the plant material cleared from the gardens after the harvest is complete. The mulch stays on the soil year round, to protect and replenish the soil. Experienced gardeners and farmers often come in to give seminars on vegetable growing.

COCG runs a barrier-free operation, accepting anyone and everyone as a gardener, and striving for physical accessibility. Raised beds accommodate gardeners who cannot get up and down so easily. On the rare occasion when a plot is not claimed for a season, it will be offered to those on wait lists at other gardens, or may be planted and tended for local food banks. Each garden provides water, hoses and a shed full of garden tools, all for the affordable annual fee of $20 plus $5 for a shed key.

While the dedicated few who started COCG in 2002 only wanted to help people who didn’t have places to grow food where they lived, it soon became clear that there were unintended consequences, meeting the social, environmental and economic needs of gardeners and the broader society in which they lived.

One gardener, early in COCG’s existence, recounted how her garden plot had changed her life. When asked to explain, she described how her computer-based job, run from her basement, kept her indoors and isolated from her community. Her plot not only provided cheap, fresh, flavourful and healthy food, but it introduced her to new friends, fresh air and exercise, all unavailable on her computer.

The societal benefits from community gardening may not be so obvious, but socially well-adjusted citizens contribute to functioning communities, and healthy citizens help to keep healthcare costs down. Many sites attracted anti-social behaviour before the gardens were established, but local residents often report that creating a community garden has cleaned up the neighbourhood, likely because people frequent the garden at all hours of the day, working on their plots, talking to their neighbours and keeping an eye on things in the area.

In these days of concern about financial strain and climate change, feeding your family healthy food from your garden plot will have a positive impact on your budget, your social life and your carbon footprint. It is never too late to change the food you eat and where it comes from. Contact COCG or one of the community gardens listed on this page and become the change you want to see. n

Looking for a Community Garden in your area?

• Armstrong: Rea Smith 250-546-3354

• Central Okanagan: www.centralokanagancommunitygardens.com

• Enderby: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Enderby-Community-Garden/580244555365399

• Naramata: http://www.mynaramata.com/show27s/_Naramata_Community_Garden_Society

• Oliver: http://olivercommunitygarden.wordpress.com

• Penticton: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Penticton-Community-Garden-Society/303992029669861

• Rose Valley: [email protected]

• Salmon Arm (Ida Vista Community Garden): John McLeod [email protected]

• Vernon: Wendy Aasen [email protected]

Changing the World, One Garden Plot at a TimeIf you’re attracted to the idea of having a place to grow your own food, you may be surprised to learn that community gardens are about so much more.

By Bob McCoubrey


Wellness

“When people ask us why we are doing this, we tell them it’s purely selfish. We want to be able to ride our bikes from Vernon to Kelowna, along

the water, with scenic views and free of traffic.”In the summer of 2013, a group of active Okanagan

residents, including Brad Clements, Melissa Spooner, Julie Melanson, Sean Cameron and Ricardo Smith, formed the Okanagan Rail Trail Society.

Their vision is for a multiuse trail along what is now the rail line between Vernon and Kelowna. The Society would like 30,000 others to share this vision. It’s an ambitious goal to gather the support of so many, but they believe it’s needed to catch the attention of those who can ultimately make the decision.

On July 3, 2013, Kelowna Pacific Railway (KPR), who operated the railway between Kamloops and Kelowna, filed for bankruptcy protection and ceased to operate. The engines, cars and tracks went silent, causing the businesses that rely on the railway to find other means of transportation. Then on August 28 the railway, which was being leased, was returned to CN.

In early December, after an investment of close to $20 million to upgrade the tracks, the northern section of the railway began operation again, leaving the southern section from Vernon to Kelowna idle. Starting at the northern tip of Kalamalka Lake, this spectacular section of railway travels south along the shoreline to Oyama. Crossing to the eastern shore of Wood Lake, it continues south through Lake Country and into Kelowna, ending at Okanagan Lake near the cultural district. “We couldn’t ask for a better corridor for a community pathway,” Clements explains. “Not only is it beautiful, it connects four municipalities, the airport, UBCO, the north campus of Okanagan College, 23 parks and 22 points of interest.”

However, the future of this magnificent linear property is uncertain.

If an operator can determine a way to make it viable, the corridor can remain as an active rail line. But the relatively low traffic and the high cost to upgrade the tracks make this outcome, while possible, unlikely.

If a railway is not viable, then another option is for government (federal, provincial, municipal, or a combination of them) to purchase the railway and turn the property into a community path. Protecting the corridor by this means would not only provide economic (tourism), environmental (protecting shorelines and green spaces), lifestyle (alternative transportation corridor) and health benefits (a

beautiful place to ride, walk, etc.), it would protect the linear corridor for future transportation modes.

A third possibility is development. The route, along lakeshores and through the inner city, has a high real estate value, and there is a strong desire by many to turn this amazing corridor into a series of real estate and development deals.

Clements believes that we can protect the corridor from development and save it for everyone to enjoy in the event the railway is not feasible. “Everyone we talk to believes it is the right thing to do. We just need to get that message out.” He encourages everyone to visit www.okanaganrailtrail.ca. With just two clicks, you can send your message of support and help them reach 30,000.

“We can make this happen. We just have to let everyone know this is what we want to happen.” n

Blazing a TrailThe Okanagan Rail Trail Society shares its vision of a multiuse trail for all to enjoy.

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March 21-23: Spring Loaded Telemark Festival 2014, Silver Star Mountain. A tele-skier’s dream weekend. Call 250-558-6019 for more information.

March 28-30: 9th Annual Showdown Throwdown Hoedown, Silver Star Mountain. Fully sanctioned freestyle and snowboard event. Call 250-558-6019 for more information.

March 30: Hoodoo Adventures & Ramada Penticton 3rd Annual Elevator Race. Ascend 6000’ of elevation in less than 60K as a solo or in a team. Paddle, road ride, run/snowshoe, mountain bike, Nordic and downhill ski from Penticton, BC, to Apex Mountain Resort. For more information call 250-490-6084.

April 6: Okanagan College Half Marathon, Kelowna. Register at www.interiorrunningassociation.com.

April 13: Oliver 10K Wine Capital of Canada. Go to www.interiorrunningassociation.com for information.

April 13: Peachland Half Marathon and 10K Run or Walk. Register at www.peachland.ca.

April 26-May 4: Unplug and Play Week in Vernon. For more information, visit www.northokanaganoptimistclub.org.

April 28: The Wild Soles Trail Running Series at Little Mountain in Salmon Arm. Visit www.facebook.com/WildSolesTrailRunning for more information, or contact Amy at [email protected] or 250-832-7846.

May 4: 15th Annual Cycling for Independence event. Ride the 12 km, 20 km or 50 km route. For more details, visit http://ilvernon.ca.

May 4: MS Walk at Stuart Park in Kelowna, and at Adidas Sportsplex in Penticton. For information, email [email protected].

May 4:The North Face Dirty Feet Kal Park 50. Run 8 km, 25 km or 50 km. Register at www.dirtyfeet.ca.

May 5: Hike for Hospice at Polson Park in Vernon. For more details, visit www.nohs.ca.

May 5: The Wild Soles Trail Running Series at South Canoe. Visit www.facebook.com/WildSolesTrailRunning for more information, or contact Amy at [email protected] or 250-832-7846.

May 10: Barley Mill Pub Bare Bones Duathlon in Penticton. 5 km run, 32 km cycle, 5 km run. Visit www.pentictontriathlonclub.com for information.

May 11: Blossom 10 Miler, Naramata. Go to www.interiorrunningassociation.com for information.

May 12: The Wild Soles Trail Running Series at Park Hill, Salmon Arm. Visit www.facebook.com/WildSolesTrailRunning for more information, or contact Amy at [email protected] or 250-832-7846.

May 15-19: The Meadowlark Nature Festival features more than 90 events and tours throughout the Okanagan Valley. Visit www.meadowlarkfestival.bc.ca for more information.

May 16-18: The 11th Word On The Lake Festival for Writers, Salmon Arm. Sessions will include both skill development workshops and open forums with presenters based on questions and answers in an intimate setting. Phone: 250-832-3028 or email [email protected].

May 18: The Peach City Runfest in Peachland features the 16th running of the half-marathon and the 8th running of the 10K. Call 250-490-3334 or see www.peachcityrunfest.com for information.

May 23-25: 2014 Half Corked Marathon in Oliver and Osoyoos. More details at www.oliverosoyoos.com/halfcorked.

May 25: The Okanagan Shuswap Century Ride takes place at 9 a.m. sharp, starting and finishing at Memorial Park in Armstrong. Visit www.oscr.ca for more details.

May 31: Capital One Race for Kids hosted by the Okanagan Boys & Girls Clubs, Kelowna. Sign up online at www.raceforkids.ca.

June 1: The North Face Dirty Feet Trail Run, Kelowna. Run 5 km, 10 km or 21 km. Register at www.dirtyfeet.ca.

June 1: Persona Oliver Half Iron Triathlon. Visit www.outbackevents.ca for information.

June 7-8: Relay for Life from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. at various Okanagan locations. Visit www.relaybc.ca for more information.

June 15: Beat the Train Team Triathlon. For details go to www.salmonarmtriathlon.ca.

June 15: Father’s Day Kids’ Fishing Derby, Marine Park, Salmon Arm. Contact Roger at 250-832-5440 or email [email protected].

If you’d like to submit an event for our listing, please email us at:[email protected]

For a complete event listing, visit us at ohwmagazine.com

Upcoming community events

March is... Endometriosis Awareness Month‘Help Fight Liver Disease’ Month

Multiple System Atrophy Awareness Month

National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month

National Kidney MonthNational Nutrition Month

National Social Work MonthPharmacist Awareness Month

Red Cross Month

April is... Daffodil Days: Cancer Awareness

Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Awareness Month

Parkinson’s Awareness Month

May is... Celiac Awareness Month

Cystic Fibrosis MonthFood Allergy Awareness MonthFoot Health Awareness Month

Hepatitis Awareness MonthHuntington’s Disease Awareness Month

MedicAlert MonthMultiple Sclerosis Awareness Month

National Hemochromatosis Awareness Month

National Physiotherapy MonthSpeech and Hearing Awareness

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okanagan health & wellness magazine spring 2014

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