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Author Archive for: eridpath

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Struggling with Sleep? Try This Helpful Tool

Proper sleep is vital to our mental and physical health, and lack of sleep can negatively affect productivity and function.  If you suffer from poor sleep, know that you are not alone.  Statistics Canada estimates that approximately 3.5 million Canadians struggle with sleep.  There are many ways to get help and in all of these, tracking your sleep is an important tool.  Use our free printable Two-Part Weekly Sleep Diary to help you track and identify what helps and what hinders your sleep habits.  Simply print and fill in your diaries before bed each night and when you wake up each morning.

Also check out our video Improving Sleep to learn some solutions from Occupational Therapists that can help.

For more helpful tools and checklists please visit our Printable Resources page.

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Top Ways to Make Every Day Earth Day!

Saturday, April 22nd, is Earth Day! A day to celebrate the planet that facilitates our survival. With continuing climate change, extreme weather events and heavy pollution, becoming environmentally conscientious has never been more important. Remember that even small changes to your lifestyle and habits can make a difference in protecting our precious planet.  No alternative facts here!

Check out the following simple suggestions to make a positive impact each and every day:

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Spring Cleaning 101

It’s Spring and for many of us that means “spring cleaning” time!  Spring cleaning is a great chance to deep clean some of the things you don’t do on a weekly or monthly basis.  Download our free printable Spring Cleaning Checklist for a list of those items we may often overlook to ensure you get a deep clean this spring, leaving you feeling fresh and ready for the beautiful season ahead.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For additional helpful tools and checklists please visit our Printable Resources Page.

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Spring Has Sprung – Get Active!

Studies show that kids across the globe are becoming less active “couch potatoes” as early as age 7.  In the following from CBC News learn more about this growing problem and the recommended guidelines for daily activity.

CBC News:  Children’s physical activity starts declining at age 7, U.K. study indicates

How can we put a stop to this growing problem?

We challenge you  to spend active time together as a family!  Now that Spring Has Sprung, try some of these fun family activities to boost the health of your children and yourself.    

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The Healthy Menu Choices Act – Will This Trim your Waistline?

Julie Entwistle, MBA, BHSc (OT), BSc (Health / Gerontology)

Here is some rocket science: being obese is a well-known contributor to poor health.  The secret to not being or becoming obese?  If you are obese, it is “move more and eat less”. If you aren’t, it is “keep moving and eat well”.  I was at the gym today and heard someone make a great comment “just show up and do something”.  Is it that simple?

In the interest of public health, Ontario has a new law effective January 1, 2017:  the Healthy Menu Choices Act.  In this, all food-service chains with 20 or more locations in must now post calorie information on menus for the food and drink items they sell.  Further, as of January 1, 2018, all menus must post the following statement:

Adults and youth (ages 13 and older) need an average of 2,000 calories a day, and children (ages 4 to 12) need an average of 1,500 calories a day. However, individual needs vary (1).

So, will this help continue to the better health of Ontarians?  People are complicated and behaviors ingrained, so do we know if having more information about calories will contribute to different choices? 

First, let’s define a calorie – it is actually “the energy needed to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water through 1 °C (now usually defined as 4.1868 joules).”  Huh?  So why does that matter?  Because in nutrition calories refer to energy consumption through eating and drinking, and energy usage through physical activity.  For example, an apple may have 80 calories, while a 1 mile walk might use up about 100 calories.  Our body uses calories as our energy source to breath, digest, circulate our blood, etc.  So, these are important and we get them from foods and beverages (2).  But knowing how many calories one person needs to maintain their weight and be at optimal health will depend on several factors including metabolism, level of activity during the day, age, and even genetics.  I need way less calories as a middle-aged active woman than the 12,000 calories per day consumed by Michael Phelps when he is training for the Olympics. 

So, to the common consumer that knows little about nutrition, but is interested in trying to eat well, will the calorie information on menus help?  Well, the math will be simple.  If the sign says I need an average of 2000 calories per day, and my Big Mac, Biggie Coke and fries is 1200 calories, I will consciously know that I have 800 left (for weight maintenance).  But when I go home, will I check labels, pull out a scale, and put together my remaining meals to not exceed 800?  Probably not because the common consumer does not tend to behave that way because if they did, we would not have an obesity problem in the first place.  However, for the educated consumer things might be different.  Personally, having fitness, health and body composition goals, I have already changed my food choices at fast food places because the calories in what I really wanted was starring me in the face, making me feel guilty already.  And I was still able to enjoy what I did order, recognizing that another element of health is “consistently making good choices” when most of the options out there (for convenience food anyway) are poor.  So I felt good (emotionally) making a better choice.  But when dealing with people and behavior, it is much more complicated than simple math.

It is also important to look at the stages of change when considering whether having transparent information about calories will actually lead to people making better decisions.  There are five stages of change – precontemplation, contemplation, preparation for action, action and maintenance (3).  Described briefly, in the first stage people don’t know they have a problem and the behaviors are risky and potentially life-threatening (like stress-eating, overeating and becoming obese).  In the second stage the person identifies they have a problem, or there are signs of the problem worsening (the number on the scale, bloodwork results, Diabetes starting etc).  In Preparation for Action, the person is ready to make a change and is seeking information and guidance.  This is when someone might start to understand what a calorie is, and how that relates to them.  In Action, the person starts actively changing.  This is where I see the Healthy Menu Choices Act being helpful.  It will provide people the information they need to make choices that are better than others, as part of their “action” towards improved health.  The Healthy Menu Choices Act will also be helpful in the last stage of Maintenance as people can use the calorie information to make choices that align with their desire to maintain the gains they have made, or to be healthily mindful in selecting foods.

From a health perspective, I think that the more information people can have about the choices they are making, the better.  Even if they don’t yet understand it, or choose not to use it, or it does not result in behavior change, it is there when they are ready for “Action”.  From a business perspective, restaurants and establishments might want to review their menus and look at the balance between their healthy and not-healthy choices.  Further, they will also want to look at how orders change with this new act.  If people stop ordering the White Chocolate Crème Frappuccino (at 510 calories) and instead sales of Iced Skinny Flavored Lattes (at 80 calories) soar, your consumers are telling you something.

Honestly, I am all for a nice bucket of poutine once a year, but beyond that I will pick the healthy options on a menu, if these exist.  If they don’t, I will go elsewhere.  It is that simple.  So I appreciate the added information the Healthy Menu Choices Act provides, and will use the calorie information in my meal decision making.

Resources:

(1)   https://www.ontario.ca/page/calories-menus

(2)   http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/263028.php

(3)   http://www.activebeat.com/your-health/women/the-5-stages-of-behavioral-change/5/

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Dining Out? Check the Calorie Count

If you’ve recently dined out, or even purchased a coffee in a drive-through, you may have noticed that calorie information is now posted beside each item on the menu.  As of January 1st restaurants with 20 or more locations are now required to provide this information directly on their menus.  While this information may be helpful, many are wondering:  will this change how we eat?  Learn more about how this change is already affecting behaviour in the following from CBC News.

CBC News:  How calorie counts on chain restaurant menus ‘can have a lasting impact’

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PTSD and Occupational Therapy

Julie Entwistle, MBA, BHSc (OT), BSc (Health / Gerontology)

From when I was a teen I have been highly sensitive to movies, news stories, songs or videos that involve violence (particularly against women).  In fact, I avoid movies and shows in general (beyond thoughtless sitcoms or socially interesting reality TV), fearing that I will see (or hear) a bothersome scene.  If my screening process fails and I catch something disturbing, I have problems sleeping for days as the images or sounds replay in my mind.   In talking to my friend about this, she asked me a pointed question:  Do you think you have PTSD?

Her question was referring to her knowledge of my experience as a teenager in 1991:  My former elementary classmate Leslie Mahaffy and later Kristen French were both abducted, tortured, sexually assaulted and murdered by the notorious Paul Bernardo and his wife Carla Homolka.  Kristen’s body was found near my community.  Not long after, Nina de Villier was abducted and murdered after leaving for a run from the tennis club where I played and her brother was my double’s partner.  I was part of the search party for Nina in the days of her disappearance and following these tragedies my mother became involved in an organization developed by Nina’s mother Prescilla called “Canadians Against Violence” (CAVEAT).  Over the next few years I assisted with the organization at times, meeting many people whose lives were horribly impacted by the tragic loss of a daughter or sister, or who were victimized, stalked and threatened (some ongoing) by men.  Now, as a mother of four girls, I recognize that these experiences still foundationally impact how I parent and I try to not let my fears about the safety of my girls restrict them from experiencing the important milestones of growing up.

Whether I have friend-diagnosed PTSD or not, according to the Canadian Mental Health Association, PTSD is a mental illness. It involves exposure to trauma involving death or the threat of death, serious injury, or sexual violence.  In general, the traumatic event involves real or threatened physical harm to the self or to others, and causes intense fear, hopelessness, and/or horror. Emotional impairment results due to anxiety, depression, recurrent flashbacks, difficulty sleeping and concentrating, and feelings of guilt of having survived when others may not have (Stats Canada).  In the military, one in six are reported to experience PTSD as a result of their service (Learn more from the Globe and Mail).

Occupational therapy, a profession vested in helping people to function safely and independently in their life-roles, is often one of the many health care providers that can assist people to overcome the symptoms associated with PTSD.  Problems like anxiety, depression, flashbacks, difficultly sleeping and concentrating, and overcoming feelings of guilt can be tackled through: cognitive and / or behavioral strategies aimed at increasing activity participation slowly over time; by identifying, recording and sharing thoughts and feelings; and through engagement in healing-focused activities.  Occupational therapists break down life tasks into smaller and manageable chunks to grade the successful return to meaningful roles.  Over time, previously challenging tasks become easier as we help people master the roadblocks that are preventing their successful engagement in function.

However, with something as significant as PTSD, it will be the collaboration of multiple professionals helping the client to overcome their challenges that will have the most impact.  Medical doctors, social work, psychology, psychotherapy, even massage, art or yoga therapy can help to provide a holistic approach to helping people move beyond these often crippling experiences.  If you have PTSD and this is impacting your ability to do the things you need or want to do, please seek the help of professionals.

As for me, I don’t currently have the goal of wanting to return to watching movies and shows riddled with violence, rape and murder.  I personally don’t find that entertaining and actually wonder why other people do.  I am not sure I will ever understand, PTSD or not, why people derive pleasure watching (even if simulated) images of people’s horrible mistreatment.  So, I will stay in my bubble for now enjoying Modern Family, Survivor and The Amazing Race.  However, if my past does start to impact my ability to parent my girls, participate in activities I would otherwise enjoy, or snags my engagement in any other necessary or important area of my life, I will surely reach out for help.