Changing websites is more complicated than I expected! Hello Wix subscribers! While it might not be obvious to you, I have had multiple ways to contact people who are interested in seeing what I write about health and the environment. Unfortunately, I haven't been so great at managing these lists (although I'm learning!), and this has resulted in multiple messages for some. To make it worse, I've recently switched to a different web host (from Wix site to Wordpress) because Wix's free level that I've been using for 6 years will no longer allow me to post images on my blogs (and it's so much mo ..read more

One small act at a time! I read stories about young people who are working hard to counter pollution and slow damage to our climate, and it’s wonderful to think the next generation is motivated to make a significant difference to their own future. Students at a local school made some colourful signs asking beachgoers not to litter and to pick up after their pets. But we still need more education, for young and old alike. Signs aren’t enough. Two days ago, I went to the beach near our home in the morning with our visiting grandchildren. I was surprised to see 2 tents pitched next to the beach e ..read more

Do you feel uncomfortable discussing personal health issues with your doctor, pharmacist, or other health professional? It’s an issue that can result in not getting the care or advice that you need to have an ideal healthy and happy life, and one that’s led to changes in pharmacy designs to provide space allowing for more privacy for sensitive discussions. I remember the first pharmacy I worked in... We had one counter for everything: dropping off and picking up prescriptions, asking questions, and even paying telephone and hydro bills. You can imagine that there could be quite a potential aud ..read more

Being lonely can affect your health. A “review of reviews” that analyzed 132 reports published between 1980 and 2021 showed a 27% increase in mortality in those who were “socially disconnected”. And it isn’t just about feeling bad. Being lonely is a form of stress that is as risky as smoking half a pack of cigarettes a day, being physically inactive, or having high cholesterol. Loneliness is associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety, and premature death. While the trend toward more social isolation had been growing for many years, the socia ..read more

OK... I made that up. But don't you think there should be a month set aside to help people learn about menopause? Knowledge can be medicine. Women fare better when they know what to expect and what they can do about it... and the men we spend time with can be more empathetic if they understand what's happening to us! I suppose if you haven't been through menopause and don't know anything about it, you might not think it's that important... But it can be a miserable experience when symptoms get out of control. If you're informed, you'll recognize the signs the "Change" is starting and will know ..read more

A look at Canada's new Low Risk Alcohol Guidelines... So, have you been reading about the new Canadian Low Risk Drinking Guidelines too? The Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction (CCSA) is telling us that any more than 2 drinks a week increases our risk of various diseases, with an emphasis on cancer – the disease many of us fear most – and that risk “increases radically” for each drink that is added beyond 7 drinks a week. This is quite a change from the previous guidelines that determined 1 to 2 drinks a day were low risk and up to 3 per occasion was considered moderate consumption ..read more

The avoidable underlying problem of many chronic diseases , Infographic credit: BreatheWellBeing.in What if you could lower your risk of a slew chronic diseases, like heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and inflammatory diseases, just by making some changes to your diet and lifestyle... giving yourself extra healthy years to enjoy life? Would you do it? Would it be worth the effort? New research suggests reversing “insulin resistance”, through improvements in diet and adding some exercise, could prevent many diseases from developing and even reverse some at early stages. And if you make these ch ..read more

Well, I’m still reading about COVID... but I think too many of us are “up to here” with anything COVID these days. We should be paying attention to the news telling us that, as predicted, COVID cases—and deaths—are increasing this fall. In fact, the company my daughter works for is closing their Montreal office and requiring all employees to work from home because of COVID. That’s making me pay attention! Stats in Quebec show It’s mainly one of the newer variants, BA-5, that’s driving their current surge, but other new versions are being closely watched. So, it’s still a good idea to grab a m ..read more

Our home was attacked by a giant dragon over the weekend. She circled our house for hours, shaking it and roaring to let us know how strong a monster she was. She threw buckets of water at our windows, and knocked down trees and power poles with her thrashing tail. She blew the sea 3 meters higher than normal with her hot breath. Her name was Fiona. But, like the house the 3rd little pig built, our house was constructed strong and high. The weather wizards told us Fiona the dragon was coming so we had days to prepare to fight back. Anything that could move was put away or tied down. We had ex ..read more

"The mind is like a parachute—it only works if it’s open”. Anthony J. D’Angelo. I’m what you’d call a “lifelong learner”. But, you know, recently I almost feel like it might be time to stop reading health research—I’ve been finding so many articles and books that question beliefs I’ve held throughout my pharmacist career! But I always try to keep an open mind and it’s led me down some interesting rabbit-holes of research. One thing we need to remember about science is that it constantly advances. Accepted practices (like using leeches as a treatment in the days of Hippocrates and Galen) event ..read more