Sleep improvement tip 3:

There are ways you can improve your sleep naturally.  This is post three of three of my favourite tips: Natural light:  Having exposure to natural sunlight during the day triggers hormones and chemical messengers in your brain responsible for keeping your body clock working well.  15-20 minutes of sunshine not only helps improve your sleep…

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What Should You Eat When You’re Sick? Here’s the Truth

When you’re sick, your appetite might disappear, and advice from friends and family can get confusing: “Feed a fever, starve a cold,” “Don’t drink anything cold,” “Chicken soup cures everything!” Let’s clear the confusion and talk about what your body actually needs during illness — based on science and a little common sense. MYTH #1:…

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What exercise is best?

There are 3 types of exercise that offer amazing health benefits and I would encourage you to include each type of exercise at least once a week if you want to improve your overall fitness and health. Cardio: Anything that raises your heart rate, gets you breathing fast and makes you sweat is cardio training:…

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Sleep improvement tip 2: environment

There are ways you can improve your sleep naturally.  This is post two of three of my favourite tips: Environment:  Your bedroom should be a space reserved for sleeping.  Your brain should associate that space with sleep rather than watching TV, working, checking e-mails or social media.  Keep your bedroom at a comfortable (cooler) temperature. …

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Watch to learn how lifestyle changes can improve and even reverse PCOS

Watch and learn from a case study on how lifestyle changes can improve and even reverse Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS). Case studies shared are for education and illustrative purposes. They are a combination of several patients’ journeys. To protect the privacy of the patients, the names have been changed and some of the events and…

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Sleep improvement tip 1: routine!

There are ways you can improve your sleep naturally.  This is post one of three of my favourite tips: Routine:  Your body responds to the natural day-night cycle of the Earth and it is important to have a sleep-wake routine that is stable so that the hormones and neurotransmitters responsible for sleep follow a natural…

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How did you sleep last night?

If you woke up this morning and felt like you should go back to bed, either you did not get enough sleep, or your sleep quality is poor. You might want to keep a sleep journal for a while to see how you could improve on your sleep habits. What is a Sleep Journal? A…

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Lifestyle medicine is backed by science

It’s time to bust a myth about lifestyle medicine. Many people think that because the interventions that I prescribe often are lifestyle modifications, dealing with nutrition or exercise or sleep improvements, that what I am practicing is not real medicine.   Lifestyle medicine goes to the root cause of the disease or the medical condition,…

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Choose your ‘hard’

A lady brought her daughter to see me… The child was having major behavioural issues at school. Distracting other kids, misbehaving, generally causing mayhem. The Mom sat in my office looking desperate and powerless while her child was ripping the place to shreds… Scratching in my drawers, scribbling on my wall, tearing pages out of…

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Unpacking exercise

‘Doc, what exercise should I be doing?’ ‘Doc, do I really HAVE to go to the gym? I hate it!’ ‘Doc, my friend told me I should run… is it the right exercise for me?’ My patients often ask me for advice on exercise. It really depends on your personal goals, preferences and physical health.…

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Get a good night’s sleep to improve your health

You know how it feels when you haven’t slept well. But did you know that getting a good night’s sleep is one of the most important things you can do to improve your health? Lack of sleep leads to some potentially serious health complications: High blood pressure Narrowing of the arteries Increased risk of heart…

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Aren’t all doctors trained in lifestyle related conditions?

A question I get often from my patients who come to see me because I am a lifestyle medicine practitioner, is aren’t all doctors trained in lifestyle related conditions? And the truth is, yes, all doctors are trained. To understand conditions like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, gout, osteoarthritis, type two diabetes, all doctors have…

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You Think You Need To Detox?

Quick reminder: Your body ALREADY detoxes itself. You don’t need juice cleanses or detox teas! The detox industry is a billion-dollar business built on fear rather than proper scientific research. Guess what? Your liver, kidneys, and gut detox for you… 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! Instead of expensive “detox” gimmicks, support your…

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Focus on Strengths

This month, I will be sharing practical strategies used in Positive Psychology that you can use to feel happier and more enthusiastic for life. Today we will look at focusing on strengths! Most of us are conditioned to work on our weaknesses. If my handwriting is untidy, the natural assumption is that I should spend…

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Is Lifestyle Medicine Real Medicine?

There is a misconception that lifestyle medicine is not real medicine. Now, I’d like to make this very clear when a doctor like me specializes in lifestyle medicine we go through rigorous postgraduate level training in all the aspects of healthy living, nutrition, physical activity, sleep, science, psychology, social connectedness, unhealthy substance exposure and managing…

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Do You Really Have To Eat 5 Fruits & Vegetables a Day?

Why have we been told to eat 5 servings of vegetables and fruit per day? Where does this recommendation come from?   Well, studies have shown that 5 servings of vegetables/fruit per day is the MINIMUM amount we need to cause a statistical reduction in cardiovascular disease risk (that is risk of heart attack or…

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Fats: T’s & C’s

Do you understand Fat Metabolism? For a long time scientists believed that eating fat caused many health problems. Now, we know better! Eating healthy fat is essential for optimal health. Fat is important for healthy nerve cells, normal hormone balance, glowing skin and metabolism of fat-soluble vitamins (D, A, K and E). There are different…

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