Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Is the Flu, the REAL Flu?

In a CBS news study 3-17% of flu like symptoms are influenza
Viruses and bacteria cause the other 83-97%

The cause of Colds and Flu are viruses. These viruses trigger your cold and flu symptoms but are NOT the real cause of the illness. So what is the REAL CAUSE?
The underlying cause of catching colds and flu is a Vitamin D deficiency and an impaired immune system. I hear you. We live in the tropics, we get plenty of sunshine (Vitamin D), how is this possible?
Firstly let's start with a weakened immune system;
  • Vitamin D deficiency
  • Eating too much sugar and grains
  • Too little restorative sleep
  • Too little exercise
  • Not managing emotional stress
If you feel the signs of flu and cold coming on, it is Not the time to eat sugar, processed foods and artificial sweeteners. Sugar depresses the Immune system, instead we need to wind it up to combat any infections. At the first sign of a Cold or Flu try some of these immune building strategies:
  • Wash your hands often
  • Drink plenty of pure water, get more sleep and do regular gentle exercise
  • Eat coconuts and cook with coconut oil
  • Mushrooms especially Reishi, Maitake and Shiitake contain Beta glucans and are immune enhancers and anti-viral agents
  • Herbs and spices such as turmeric, oregano, cinnamon and cloves are powerful anti-oxidants
  • Long term emotional stressors can be aided by Vitamin B complex and extra Magnesium
  • Olive leaf extract used by ancient Mediterranean cultures, builds a healthier immune system
  • Vitamin C is a potent anti-oxidant, together with Zinc reduce cold & flu symptoms even quicker especially recurrent colds and flu. Combinations with Vitamin A and E multiplies the positive effects
  • Other immune boosting herbs are: Echinacea, Andrographis, Astragalus and Elder
  • Mucus busting foods such as: Horseradish, Chilli and Wasabi
Let's get back to the Sunlight Vitamin D. This amazing vitamin affects 200 to 300 Antimicrobial peptides in your body to kill bacteria, virus and fungi. As you know, direct sun exposure is the best source, however did you know that Vitamin D is only formed on the skin that has enough natural oil on its surface and if it stays on the skin long enough after sun exposure.
Chlorine from swimming pools, baths and showers strip away natural oil, as does soap. So after washing with and chlorinated water, apply unrefined coconut oil to your skin. This allows natural ois to start building up on the surface. It may take between 24-48 hours for vitamin D to be formed after sun exposure.

Other factors affecting Vitamin D absorption:
  • Lack of sunshine
  • Air pollution
  • The colour of your skin: Darker skin has more melanin and competes for Ultra violet B rays in the skin
  • Temperature: Warmer temperatures result in greater Vitamin D
  • Your body composition: Fat tissue sops up Vitamin D from the skin and afects bioavailability
  • Age: Older people have lower levels of precursors in the skin that convert UVB into Vitamin D
  • Health conditions such as; Coeliac Disease, Chronic pancreatitis, Crohn's and Cystic Fibrosis mean less absorption of Vitamin D in the gut from food sources
  • The health your liver and kidneys: liver disease, kidney disease, no gall bladder, or in fact anything that reduces normal bile flow affects Vitamin D metabolism
  • Consumption of unnatural fats and oils: best to stick to cold pressed oils in glass bottles
When people come down with colds and flu, there is usually a combination of contributing factors. So before your immune system crashes from poor food and life style choices, tweak your diet, choose your favourite supportive supplements that will allow you to sail through the cold and flu season, free from encountering stormy waters.

References:
Balch PA Prescription for Nutritional healing New York: Penguin Group 2010
Hechtman L. Clinical Naturopathic Medicine Sydney: Churchill Livingstone 2012

Written by: Kathleen Faile Naturopath - Calanna Pharmacy Atherton

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Kids this is for you! - MARCH 2015

IT'S COMPETITION TIME HERE AT CALANNA PHARMACY!

For your chance to WIN a Crayola Art Pack,
head into your closest participating Calanna Pharmacy between 31st March - 19th April
and pick up your colouring in page, colour it and bring it back to the same store!

It's time for colour, imagination & fun! 




Monday, March 2, 2015

Sleep Apnea - MARCH 2015

Snoring, tossing, turning, waking in the morning tired or with a headache may mean more than just an ordinary night’s sleep – especially if it happens frequently.

Sleep Apnea is a condition that is generally caused by an obstruction of the airways. This obstruction can lead to blockage of the airways causing you to actually stop breathing for a period of time and reducing oxygen levels to your brain causing suffers to “wake up” during the night at times gasping for breath. For chronic sleep apnea suffers, this can happen dozens if not hundreds of times per night – it’s no wonder people with undiagnosed sleep apnea can be tired and irritable during the day, nod off and suffer many other health problems including high blood pressure.
It is estimated at least 25% of men aged 55 years and over and 9% of women in the same age group suffer from the condition and 80% of cases will go undetected. The incidence of sleep apnea is growing significantly with obesity rates on the rise. If left undetected, sleep apnea can lead to a number of very serious health problems including high blood pressure (which can lead to heart damage, heart attack, stroke and diabetes.
The good thing is – you can do something about it! And it’s not that hard!

How can I find out if I have sleep apnea?
Talk to your GP or pharmacist if you have any of the following symptoms including:-

    • Snoring
    • Restless Sleep
    • Tiredness during the day
    • High blood pressure
These are some of the more classical symptoms of sleep apnea and not an exhaustive list. People that have any of the above symptoms may not necessarily have sleep apnea.
Diagnosing Sleep apnea has come along way in the last few years and testing is as simple as… sleeping. That is right, there are a number of simple overnight sleep tests available now which you can do in the comfort of your own home.

How do I get tested?
If your GP is concerned you may have sleep apnea then testing is the only way to find out for sure. Testing involves wearing a device overnight that monitors a range of factors including your blood oxygen levels, heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, and brain impulses during the night. The test will determine whether, during the night, your breathing stops at any point (and how often). This will provide valuable insight into whether you have sleep apnea or not and what treatment might be most beneficial.

How is Sleep apnea  treated?
Again, there has been huge advances in sleep apnea treatments over the last 5 years. Diagnosed sleep apnea is generally treated using Continuous Positive Airway Pressure therapy or CPAP for short. Similar to the inset picture, CPAP is delivered by a machine and through a mask that you wear over your nose and or mouth. This machine delivers pressurised air which helps open your airways keeping them clear during sleep. Treatment is painless, quiet, and easy and generally produces dramatic results in a short period of time.

Where do I go for help?

  • Start with your GP or Pharmacist
  • Calanna Pharmacy Woree have a fully equipped sleep testing and CPAP clinic which can take you through the process of a sleep test, diagnosis by a Thoracic specialist, explanation of the results, recommended treatment and the full array of the latest CPAP equipment, masks and spare parts. Most importantly, the Woree clinic has a range of masks and machines that you can trial on a short term basis to ensure you are getting the equipment that suits you best and you are most comfortable with.
In many cases sleep tests are bulk billed by Medicare if a referral from your GP is provided.



“Have you had your Inner Health Plus today?”
  • Aids in the maintenance of a normal healthy gastrointestinal system and digestive function.
  • If you have been taking a course of antibiotics a probiotic such as Inner Health Plus may assist in maintaining the balance of good bacteria.
  • Inner Health Plus may be useful for the symptoms of bloating, gas or flatulence.
  • Aids in maintaining a normal healthy immune system
  • Helps improve general wellbeing







Having a little trouble getting to sleep?
Nature’s Own Complete Sleep Advanced is a unique blend of  Lactium, an ingredient scientifically researched for stress, and

herbs used in traditional systems of medicine (Hops and Ziziphus) for use during peak times of stress and insomnia.
Benefits are:
  • Works to help calm a racing mind
  • Helps you fall asleep, stay asleep & wake refreshed
  • Helps alleviate stress, a common cause of insomnia & sleeplessness





Essential Fatty Acids - MARCH 2015

Essential fatty acids (EFA’s) are substances our body needs because we do not produce them internally - so we have to get them through our diet. These are the omega 6 fatty acids and the omega 3 fatty acids.

When the two families of EFAs were discovered in 1923, they were called "vitamin F", but in 1929 they were classified as fats rather than vitamins. Several recent studies have shown that the diet of our ancestors was lower in calories, higher in fibre and rich in fruits, vegetables, lean meat, and fish. The resulting diet was not only lower in total fats, but it also contained equal amounts of the essential fatty acids, omega-6 and omega-3, roughly speaking a 1 to 1 ratio.
In today’s Western diet, this ratio is about 15 to 1! And that is a problem. These two types of fatty acids have opposing functions in the body, and their balance is important for normal function and development, including gene expression and cell-to-cell communication.

The omega-6 fatty acids promote inflammatory processes, necessary for our immune system and for repairing the body. The omega-3’s are both anti-inflammatory and essential for the normal functional development of the retina and brain, particularly in premature infants.

Excessive amounts of omega-6 fatty acids and a very high omega-6 to omega-3 ratio in the diet promotes inflammation pathways. While this is necessary in the short term - such as repairing damaged tissue - it is a disaster in the long term; in other words, chronic inflammation.

Many diseases are based in a chronic inflammation background. For instance, Cardiovascular Disease (once understood as a disease of fatty accumulation on the blood vessel walls) is now regarded as an inflammatory disease. The blood vessels walls are very smooth, obviously to resist the adhesion of passing blood cells. A fatty coating on the blood vessels, however, allows white blood cells, whose role is to produce inflammation, to adhere  to the artery walls.
The anti-inflammatory effect of the omega-3’s, (and a good omega 6 to 3 ratio) combined with their ability to scavenge free radicals, gives rise to a range of health benefits within the cardiovascular system. Through increasing good fat metabolism - they clean arteries and lower blood pressure - by stabilizing the membrane of the heart, and reducing ventricular fibrillation.

Illnesses like Asthma, Allergy and eczema are all caused by an imbalance in the immune system, which leads to inflammation in the lungs or skin.

In autoimmune diseases - the immune system targets and attacks particular body parts. For example, in Rheumatoid Arthritis, the joints are targeted and become inflamed, resulting in pain, swelling and stiffness. A daily dose of 6.7 – 7 grams per day helps joint pain and stiffness by suppressing inflammation in the spinal cord. Increased levels of omega-3s and a low omega-6/omega-3 ratio is a safe and nutritious way to decrease inflammation in these instances.
Because omega-6s are already over represented in the average diet, and also due to the anti-inflammatory properties of omega-3s, most  EFA products are based around the omega-3s.
The vegetarian products are generally sourced from the seeds of plants such as flax and chia. The advantage of these is that they are probably a cleaner source, and don’t involve any harm to animals. However, they are not as effective as the marine forms of omega 3’s.

Marine oils, such as those derived from fish and krill, already contain the omega-3s, so no conversion necessary.
But which ones to use? The following is a rough guide to nutrients to improve fat metabolism:

1.        High total cholesterol, LDLs and triglycerides: Fish Oils (plus Bioflavonoids (Rutin, Hesperidin and  Quercitin) and Vitamin E.                                                                                                
2.        Low HDLs  and high LDLs                                      - Fish and Krill Oil
3.        Raised Triglycerides and low HDLs                      - Fish Oil (EPA/DHA)

Generally speaking, the Vitamins E, C and B Complex, plus Choline, Methionine, Inositol and Taurine will also help to promote healthy fat metabolism.

Besides those mentioned above, dietary sources of the EFA’s are pumpkin and sunflower seeds, walnuts and canola, soy and olive oils. These foods are high in calories because of their fat content. Eating them makes the body switch to fat burning cellular metabolism – this burns fats for energy, provides sustained energy and hence reduces food cravings.
Carbohydrate foods do the opposite. They increase the use of carbohydrate burning pathways in the body’s cells. But because these foods are lower in calories, this energy is used more quickly. Since the carbohydrate burning machinery has been switched on, sugar cravings result.

So increasing the omega 3s tends to be a good idea all round.

Written by: Miguel Trapaga | B.HSc; M.App.Sc

Sunday, March 1, 2015

Words of Wisdom - MARCH 2015

Hello Members,

Chris Widener believes that Leadership is a mixture of Character and Skills. They each go hand in hand – and neither can be discounted or relied upon.

By Character he means – humility, empathy, service, loyalty and so on. By skills he means the necessary knowledge and aptitude to carry out the roles required. We have seen from the election results over the past two years - that people seem to be looking for someone to solve their personal problems and vote for someone they believe they can trust to help them.

It is not my intention to judge nor am I qualified to determine the level of anyone’s character or skills. However, we need to assume that that the leaders that have been replaced or lost elections did or do have a good skills base. They are well educated, achieved much in their respective careers.

So – perhaps – it is more to do with Character. But is it the lack of their Character or is the lack of our own. Are we changing leaders because – they are not solving our problems? Or giving us what we believe we are entitled to?

In one of Michael Parkinson’s interviews it was stated that: “We are not really entitled to anything – but we can earn anything we want to have as long as we have a purpose (why), a vision (how) and are prepared to work hard and  persevere until we achieve the goal (what).

The more affluent we have become as a nation – although there is more poverty, more broken        families, more homelessness – the less we are grateful for what we have – food, home, friends, family, water, air, roads, planes – and the less we see these as privileges – rather than entitlements.
To be a leader with a balance of Character and Skills – a leader who wants to  improve and serve other people – we need to work on ourselves - our habits, our daily routines, our associations, our lifestyle, our health, our philosophy (mindset).

To be the leader we need to be as individuals – we need a big WHY? We need to know our purpose. We need the WHY to keep going through the good and bad times. We need to know HOW this will feel in the future. We will need to know WHAT skills and knowledge we need to acquire.
Don’t wait for the political wind to provide your entitlements. Go out and determine your own destiny starting with the WHY?

Take Care, Mario