winter 2013/2014
Tim Yearington and the Medicine
Wheel
Volunteering Abroad Allergy-Free Cooking Greening Your Home
2 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Stella Luna Gelato Café was awarded...
Trip Advisor’s 2013 Ontario’s Top 5 Desserts!
Let Us Get Fresh With You!
Visit any farmer’s market or café in Italy throughout the cooler months and you’ll find an eager barista ready to squeeze up a fresh batch of orange juice while you wait. Whist we can’t recreate the ambiance of enjoying a glass of “spremuta” overlooking the Tiber River in Rome, we can provide you with a little glass of sunshine, freshly squeezed right in front of your eyes ... Roman style! Drop by and see our newest toy ... “the mother-of-all-juicers”! Packing a healthy punch of vitamin C, it’s almost as fun to watch as it is to taste. Seasonal Gelato Cakes
We have begun taking orders for Seasonal Gelato Cakes. Make sure you order ahead as we’re sending everyone home for the holidays early this year so we’ll be closed from December 23 through December 26. The last day to pick up an elegant ribbon wrapped holiday jewel is December 22. Whatever your holiday celebration, we sincerely wish you good health, a chance to rest, time to spend with family and friends, the ability to reflect on the year past, to count your blessings and welcome the year ahead. Thank you for your continued support, encouragement and patronage. Warmly, The Giuliani Family and the entire Stella Luna Staff
Take a Roman Holiday at Stella Luna Gelato Café 1103 Bank Street, Ottawa • 613 523 1116 • www.slgelato.com Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 3
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w i n t e r 2 013 / 2 014
WHAT’S INSIDE
9 Family Meals Made Easy Rushed? Two moms have cooked up a book full of easy, healthy recipes
18
16 The Cookbook Book Club Come taste-test some recipes with this club of foodies 18 Championing Climate Change: A Family Affair A local family “greens” their home, cutting costs in the process 23 Fit for Winter Indoor fitness to complement your outdoor sports
23
32 Tamir: Standing Tall in Our Community An inclusive organization helps developmentally challenged adults in our city 36 Tim Yearington and the Medicine Wheel The Native teachings of the wheel inspires this man’s life 42 The Psychology of Cancer Psychotherapy benefits patients and their families
47
47 Lending a Helping Hand…Abroad Health professionals volunteer their services abroad and you can, too 56 Nutrition or Poison: Eating Well Allergy-Free Foods can be a minefield of allergens; two “chefs” to the rescue
56
67 From the Kitchen to Skin Care, Naturally! Open your pantry and fridge doors to create natural products made by you! 70 Advertisers’ Alphabetical Index
Enter to win weekly treats! See contest details on page 31. Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 5
E dito r ’ S C o r ne r
Serving the greater Ottawa area since 2007
winter 2013/2014 publisher
Judy Field EDITOR
Kinneret Globerman CONTRIBUTorS
Michael Calvert Peggy Edwards Heather Garrod copy eDITOR
McE Galbreath DESIGN
Sandy Lynch PHOTOGRAPHER
Jamie Kronick writerS
Patrick Darvasi Kinneret Globerman Nicola Maule Suzanne Nussey Kate Pocock Barb Wilson Social media
Debra Huron
W
inter’s here and, while there are so many great winter sports to engage in, we’ve devoted this issue to things you can do indoors. You’ll be surprised at the choice of indoor alternatives to staying fit. Wicked winter days are perfect for hunkering down with a good book or three. Cookbooks are especially fun to read, because there’s nothing like food to warm your cockles. If you have food allergies of any kind, there are cookbooks out there geared just for you. If you like experimenting in the kitchen, why not join a cookbook club that tries out different recipes from a myriad of books? And if you’re a busy, dizzy family, you’ll want to read about how two moms produced a cookbook geared to making easy and healthy family recipes. And while you’re hunkering, batten down the winter hatches and use the long winter months to “greenify” your home. A local family shares their tips on how they did just that…and saved lots of money in the process. The healing arts is a fascinating topic. And so many abound, with various cultures having their own. Local resident Tim Yearington has mined his Native roots to discover the powers of the Aboriginal medicine wheel. Complex in theory, it is actually quite simple to apply. And there’s more. We’ve chocked the magazine full of informative articles. So pull up a chair, get a cuppa, and enjoy this issue of Healthwise Ottawa. Have a safe and cosy winter. Kinneret Globerman
Healthwise Ottawa is published seasonally by Healthwise Publications Inc. and is printed by Dollco The LoweMartin Group in Ottawa.
CONTACT US
Tim Yearington has incorporated the medicine wheel into his daily life. Read all about it on page 36.
Editorial Comments healthwiseottawamag@rogers.com Advertising Enquiries 613-858-4804 or healthwiseottawa.ads@rogers.com www.healthwiseottawa.com @HealthwiseOtt
Cover P hoto
Jamie Kronick
All rights reserved. Reproduction of content in any form is strictly prohibited without the prior written consent of the publisher. The information provided in this publication is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for the advice of a qualified and licensed health care provider. The views expressed herein are those of the writers and advertisers, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Healthwise Publications Inc. Occasionally, Healthwise Ottawa receives unsolicited material for publication. Healthwise Publications Inc. may edit, use, or publish such material in whole or in part without compensation to the writer, unless otherwise prearranged.
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Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 7
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Family Meals
Made Easy
Photo: Maya Visnyei
By Nicola Maule
F
ood is one of the constants in our lives. We shop for it, cook it, eat it. And the choices of what we can buy and how we cook are endless and often overwhelming. Some people have time and energy to spend preparing gourmet meals. Most families, though, are constantly on the run, juggling work, chores, and their children’s after-school activities. Healthy, home-cooked meals are not being made often enough. Serving frozen dinners and processed food was not what co-workers Laura Keogh and Ceri Marsh wanted to feed their children when they simultaneously became new mothers. They were both on maternity leave from their jobs at FASHION magazine and
were looking for inspiration on how to feed their bundles of joy with tasty and healthy meals, three times a day. But they were also concerned about other parents trying to feed their kids in a fast-paced society in which childhood obesity is on the rise. Their first endeavour to help other families with similar challenges was the creation of a blog called the Sweet Potato Chronicles (www.sweetpotatochronicles.com) launched in 2010. The blog has become a one-stopshop for family-friendly recipes, tips on how to feed picky eaters, and nutrition advice. The next logical step was to create a cookbook with tried-and-true healthy, family friendly recipes made with fresh ingredients within 45 minutes — the Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 9
time it takes to heat a store-bought frozen lasagna. In 2013, How to Feed a Family was published.
meal,” says Marsh. “Children learn the art of conversation, the importance of table manners — which goes a long way when taking the kids to a restaurant or to grandma’s house for dinner. It also provides an opportunity to enjoy and appreciate the food that has been lovingly prepared. However, the family sit-down meal does not always have to be dinner. It can be breakfast or perhaps a weekend lunch.”
“We are not trained chefs but felt we could create a practical cookbook that encouraged children and parents to cook together,” says Keogh. “We have indicated the recipes that are kid-cooking friendly. We have found that when children are preparing meals, they are learning how to cook in a healthy way and there is a better chance that they will actually eat it! Also, their self-esteem is boosted, as they are proud of their creation.”
Another challenge many families have is trying to properly feed a picky eater with food from all four food groups. Says Marsh: “We don’t like to label kids as ‘picky eaters’ because children’s taste buds are constantly changing. We should keep introducing them to a variety of different foods and not let kids give the excuse that they are ‘picky’ and therefore cannot try new things.” However, the cookbook does have a recipe for Zucchini Brownies for those wanting to sneak a few veggies into their kids’ sweets.
One of the most common complaints that Keogh and Marsh hear from parents is the disappearance of family sit-down dinners due to frantic lives chauffeuring children to extracurricular activities. “There are many benefits of sitting down to a family
Photo: Maya Visnyei
Everyone has a go-to meal that they can do with their eyes shut. This cookbook contains the go-to meals of many of the authors’ friends and colleagues. Keogh says she now has some new go-to meals, like the Herbed Chicken Tray Bake. The recipe says to marinate chicken pieces and potatoes, zucchini and onions in a lemon, oil, garlic, and spice mixture. Then, you scatter all of that on a tray, bake it in the oven, and sprinkle it with cherry tomatoes. The best part about this recipe is there is only one dish to wash!
Laura Keogh (left) and Ceri Marsh, creators of kid-cooking friendly recipes 10 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
“My favourite recipe in the cookbook is Shakshuka,” says Marsh. “Shakshuka is one of those dishes that is claimed by many nationalities — Tunisian, Libyan, Israeli. It is poached eggs with a zesty tomato sauce, sprinkled with feta and spices. Not only is it fun to say, but it is easy to make and kids
It is obvious that the authors of How to Feed a Family have a passion for healthy food and want to share it with others. The cookbook is well laid out, with easy-to-follow instructions and vivid, mouth-watering photos. There are recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, many twists on old favourites, and the everyday ingredients keep the recipes from being intimidating. “This cookbook is not just for families but a great resource for students away at college for the first time,” says Keogh. “Even my mother has become interested in cooking again.” So the next time your kids whine that they’re hungry and ask what’s for dinner, you don’t have to be sarcastic and tell them it’s pig’s tail stew…and get the hairy eyeball in response. Instead, you can say “Herbed Chicken Tray Bake, want to help me make it?” and hopefully you’ll get a very big smile and an enthusiastic kitchen helper! And now that we have you salivating — and maybe even itching to make a couple of tasty, easy-to-prepare dishes — turn the page. Try your hand at the Herbed Chicken Tray Bake and the Shakshuka that we’ve reproduced from the book with permission from the publisher. HWO Nicola Maule is a writer who loves meeting new people and helping them network in her hometown of Ottawa. A partner in the communications and events management firm Connection360 (www.connection360.ca), she is always looking to bring new and exciting events to Ottawa.
H
ow to Feed a Family [Random House Canada, ISBN 978-0449-01573-5] can be found online or in bookstores. The book was featured at the Cookbook Book Club at Chapters Rideau in October 2013. Several recipes were taste-tested and the club gave the book a thumbs up! Turn to page 16 for more on the Cookbook Book Club.
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services
love it.” Sounds like a gourmet version of the North American comfort meal of scrambled eggs with ketchup.
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Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 11
from How to Feed a Family*
Herbed Chicken Tray Bake
D
on’t you always check in with other parents to see what they’re having for dinner? It’s one of the things hanging over us all — damned dinner needs to be made again — so I do a survey of what everyone else is making to get my own juices flowing. One afternoon I asked a friend, and this dish was her answer. Well, not exactly. This is the SPC version of a dish she quickly rattled off to me, in between interruptions from our children and before she had to run off. That’s the other thing about parents, we never get to finish a conversation. So, since I likely didn’t get the chance to say it at the time, thank you, Gina. Laura Keogh Prep time: 20 minutes Total time: 1 hour Makes:
4-6 servings
¼ cup (60 ml) olive oil Juice of 1 lemon 3 Tbsp (45 ml) chopped
fresh oregano
Salt and pepper 4 chicken wings 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs 3-4 lb (1.5-1.8 kg) red potatoes, halved 1 yellow zucchini, chopped 1 green zucchini, chopped 1 red onion, quartered 6 cloves garlic, peeled 32 cherry tomatoes, on or off the vine *With permission from the publisher
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Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Spray a large rimmed baking tray with cooking spray. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, lemon juice, oregano and salt and pepper to taste. In a medium bowl, toss the chicken with half the dressing. You can allow the chicken to marinate in the refrigerator for more intense flavour (anywhere from 1 to 3 hours) but it’s also great if you use it right away. In a separate large bowl, coat the potatoes, zucchinis and onion with the remaining half of the dressing. Scatter the vegetables and garlic on the prepared baking tray. Arrange the chicken on the tray as well. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Take out the baking tray and scatter the cherry tomatoes across the top of the vegetables. Return to oven and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Plate appropriate portions for family members (make mine big, please) from the tray and serve immediately.
Photos: Maya Visnyei
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 13
14 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
from How to Feed a Family*
Shakshuka
S
hakshuka is the kind of recipe that starts fights in the comments section of food blogs. It’s Tunisian. No, it’s Libyan! It’s absolutely Israeli. Never add feta. My mother always uses feta! So, apologies in advance. I’m quite sure my version of this zesty tomato sauce topped with poached eggs is not traditional. But it is so delicious, it takes about half an hour to make and I bet you have all the ingredients in your kitchen right now. My kids love it and not just because it’s fun to say. But it’s really fun to say. Shakshuka! Ceri Marsh
Prep time: 5 minutes Total time: 30-35 minutes Makes:
4 servings
2 Tbsp (30 ml) olive oil 1 onion, diced quite fine 3 or 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 tsp (5 ml) paprika ½ tsp (2 ml) ground cumin Chili flakes (optional) 1 can (28 oz/796 ml) whole tomatoes 1 Tbsp (15 ml) tomato paste Salt and pepper 6 eggs ¼ cup (60 ml) crumbled feta Handful of chopped basil or parsley
Heat the olive oil in a large, high-sided frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and let them become really soft and begin to brown. Now add the paprika, cumin and a pinch of chili flakes and stir. Let the spices cook for about 3 minutes. Pour the tomatoes and the tomato paste in there and use a potato masher to gently break them up. Allow the sauce to simmer away for about 20 minutes, until it becomes quite thick. Taste and add salt and pepper accordingly. Use the back of a wooden spoon to spread the sauce evenly across the frying pan. Now gently crack the eggs over the tomato sauce. I usually place five in a circle around the pan and one in the center. Cook them for 6 or 7 minutes. You can cover it all for the last minute if you like the tops of your eggs quite set. Crumble the feta and basil or parsley overtop. Shimmy a big serving spoon under each egg to scoop them out of the pan. Serve with crusty bread and some steamed vegetables.
*With permission from the publisher
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 15
The
Cookbook Book Club By Nicola Maule
A
llana Harriman enjoys giving informed cookbook recommendations to her customers. The Customer Experience Manager-Lifestyle at Chapters Rideau in downtown Ottawa was inspired to start the Cookbook Book Club as a way to try some of the mouth-watering recipes from the cookbooks in the store. How to Feed a Family was the club’s featured cookbook in October. Approximately 15 people of all ages enjoyed a lively discussion and taste-tested some of the book’s delicious recipes. The potluck meal included the Breakfast Cookie, Piña Colada Muffins, Zucchini Brownies, Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup with Grilled Cheese Croutons, Kitchen Sink Granola Bars, and the Mini Ham and Pepper Quiche.
Held on the last Sunday of each month, the Cookbook Book Club allows participants to try many recipes at one sitting, discuss what worked and what didn’t, and encourages people to add new recipes to their repertoire. Of course, making new foodie friends is an added bonus. The club’s January 2014 cookbook selection is Home Made Winter by Yvette van Boven. Inspired by van Boven’s childhood in Ireland and her frequent trips to France, it features simple recipes of classic dishes that will warm your heart. Start a new tradition in 2014! Come out to the next Cookbook Book Club and try some new recipes from the latest cookbooks HWO on offer.
Date for next meeting: January 26, 2014 Time: 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Location: Second floor, Chapters Rideau (Rideau St. at Sussex Dr.) Admission: A dish to share from the Home Made Winter cookbook For more information or to register for the Cookbook Book Club, visit: www.facebook.com/ChaptersRideau.
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eat
DRINK
BE & MERRY
Ottawa Farmers’ Market More than 100 vendors of locally-grown & locally-made food, and arts & crafts.
Christmas MARKETS Saturday & Sunday December 14 & 15 and December 21 & 22 Ernst & Young Centre 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM Free Admission . Pay Parking www.OttawaFarmersMarket. ca Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 17
Championing Climate Change: A Family Affair By Michael Calvert
This is Part 1 of a two-part series on how we can all cut our greenhouse gas emissions and save money at the same time. Healthwise Ottawa profiles an Ottawa family that is doing just that! Even if we employ only a few of their suggestions, we’ ll be making a difference in the atmosphere…and in our pocketbooks. “According to a new UN report, the global warming outlook is much worse than originally predicted…which is pretty bad, since they originally predicted it would destroy the planet.” — Jay Leno, comedian
C
limate change is certainly not funny; it is the biggest challenge of our generation. We should all be taking it very seriously. Even the doubters have to agree that, over the past few hundred years, human activities have contributed significantly to climate change by adding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to the atmosphere and causing the earth’s surface temperature to rise. In Ottawa, it is estimated that about 57 per cent of our contribution to the GHG problem is from energy we use in buildings, with another 34 per cent coming from transportation.
One family in Old Ottawa East is setting a great example for all of us. The McKenzies began a long-term plan in 2008 to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and have already made dramatic progress.
In the 1990s, a common mantra was “Think globally…act locally.” Today, this is more important than ever. But where do we start?
And we can, too. What follows is Scott McKenzie’s easy-to-understand, threestep process.
The McKenzies live in a fairly standard Ottawa home. Built in 2002, it is a threebedroom, two-story R-2000 house, with 1,900 square feet on two levels. Because the house was already fairly energy efficient, their accomplishments are even more amazing. Over a five-year period, this enterprising family has already reduced their greenhouse gas emissions by about 50 per cent.
Photos: Jamie Kronick
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Step 1: Reduce energy consumption and save money
We can actually reduce our energy consumption by some 25 per cent by not spending any money (although we might want to spend a bit so that we generate savings immediately). The McKenzies’ lighting amounts to 15 per cent of their electrical consumption. The fix is easy. They replaced inefficient incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs and super-efficient LED lights, and are saving an estimated $200 per year. If we replace the bulbs as they burn out, there is really no added cost. The McKenzies decided to replace all their frequently used bulbs immediately and even removed the refrigerator bulb.
Electronic devices accounted for about 15 per cent of their home electrical power usage and was the next easy target. Scott McKenzie discovered that the family’s stereo and computer equipment used power even when they were turned off. Crazy but true! The McKenzies now use power bars for their electronics. And when his desktop computer died, Scott purchased a more energy-efficient laptop model. Refrigerators and freezers use about 11 per cent of the electricity in a typical Ontario home. The McKenzies’ fridge was an energyefficient model, but the family had a chest freezer that used about $42 worth of power each year. The McKenzies used up the frozen food, unplugged the freezer...and haven’t given it a second thought.
Meet the family (left to right): Keely, Kieryn, Scott, and Taya in front of their energyefficient home Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 19
A clothes dryer uses a lot of energy, so the McKenzies began hanging all their clothes to dry — outdoors in nice weather and indoors at other times. As it turns out, adding some moisture to the air in our houses is actually another way to reduce our heating costs. There are lots of other “lifestyle” changes we can make. Our vehicles account for about one-third of our GHG emissions! Slowing down and driving a little less is one way of reducing GHG. Taking local vacations rather than flying halfway around the world can help too. Even how we eat can make a difference. Buying local food when we can reduces emissions. Eating less meat also helps. The McKenzie family was able to reduce their GHG emissions by 26 per cent and save $3,000 per year while they were at it — a truly amazing accomplishment! We can follow their lead, try some (or all!) of the ways ourselves, and conceivably reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 25 per cent… and save some money while we’re at it.
Scott and Keely enjoy the fruits of their labour in their “greener” home 20 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Step 2: Make an investment to reduce energy consumption by half
The easiest thing we can all do is ensure that the power we buy is producing the least GHGs possible. This was the first thing the McKenzies did. They signed up to purchase power from Bullfrog Power. For the average Ontario home, it will cost less than $2 per day to ensure that both the electricity and natural gas are 100 per cent green. (For details, go to www.bullfrogpower.com.) Because the McKenzies live in an R-2000 home, it already has many of the features the rest of us don’t have. Sealing leaks and installing more insulation and energyefficient doors and windows may be necessary for the rest of us. Purchasing a high-efficiency furnace and a fuel-efficient car are also good investments. Scott recommends a ten-year plan to make the investment feasible. Sometimes we have to spend money to save money. Recognizing this, the McKenzie family made two significant investments:
They installed two innovative solar air heating units. Smaller in area than a sheet of plywood, the panels were placed on the outside wall of their house facing southwest. They draw air from the home into the bottom of the unit, where it is heated and then blown back into the house from the top. The McKenzies found that on sunny February days these units maintained the temperature of the house, with the furnace turned off. The cost was a little over $3,000. The McKenzies also added a solar hot water system to the roof of their home — probably the most effective way to reduce emissions. In July and August, it reduced the McKenzies’ water heating costs by an amazing 97 per cent. Throughout the year, we can expect a solar hot water system to provide about 60 per cent of our hot water requirements. It will cost us anywhere from $6,000 to $10,000, with a possible reduction in expenditure through government incentives. The McKenzies also replaced their existing energy-guzzling hot water tank with an efficient on-demand water heater, conserving even more energy. Scott McKenzie estimates that the payback for their solar air and water-heating systems will be realized in about 10 years. Following implementation of steps 1 and 2 of their plan, the McKenzie family has already reduced their greenhouse gas emissions by about 50 per cent. But they aren’t stopping there! HWO Stay tuned for Step 3 of the family’s energysaving plan in Healthwise Ottawa’s spring/ summer 2014 issue, out in April. While they claim not to be perfect, the McKenzies try, where they can, to lessen the ecological load
of consumption. We’ ll tell you how their additional lifestyle changes can result in a total 80 per cent reduction in their GHG emissions! Michael Calvert is an Ottawa eco-preneur and founder and co-chair of Ottawa Local Motives, an organization that helps promote local small businesses.
Save Your Energy! The McKenzies have. You can, too. Here’s how: ✔ Turn down your heat in the winter to 19°C in the day and 16°C at night, and heat your house from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m. when electricity costs less. ✔ Do cold water washes and put in some low-flow shower heads and faucets to reduce hot water consumption. ✔ Turn down your hot water heater. ✔ Change your workplace or residence. Scott’s wife started working downtown and walking to work instead of driving to Kanata. ✔ Reduce the amount of prepared food you buy. ✔ Take a flying vacation every other year instead of every year. ✔ Stop using a gas snow blower and a gas lawn mower — the McKenzies use a push mower instead.
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 21
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D O N ’ T H I B E R N AT E. R U N. N E V E R
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22 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Fit for Winter S NOW. It’s a four-letter word that conjures up thoughts of the frolicking fun of so many winter sports — skiing, snowboarding, skating, snowshoeing, running...and the list goes on. But the sun sets early and the streets can be slippery and cold. That’s when indoor winter fitness can offer rewarding opportunities to stay in shape, have fun, and complement your outdoor sports activities. Our writer Patrick Darvasi shares three unique exercise programs you can explore and enjoy, no matter what your level of fitness or ability may be. Each program is out-ofthe-ordinary and considered low impact, which minimizes the risk of injury. Whether you engage in isometric poses with a bamboo barre, pedal through a two-hour imaginary journey, or gracefully gyrate through rhythmic spirals and circular forms, you can actively use your body this winter to improve your quality of life.
© Alexeysmirnov | Dreamstime.com
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 23
Step Up to the T
raditional barre workouts use dance studio handrails that are either attached at waist height to a wall or that rest on a free-standing support structure. Ottawa’s Kashani Thomas has created an innovative alternative called “bamboo barre.” Instead of using a fixed horizontal barre, Thomas’ routine uses vertically held bamboo rods, which allow participants to stand taller and focus more on balance. “The role of the bamboo is to…support…poses that put you off balance, as a tool to correct posture, and to attach the resistance bands to do exercises commonly performed using free weights,” explains Thomas. The workout lasts 60 minutes and integrates a variety of isometric movements drawn from yoga, Pilates, and ballet. It is designed for people of all ages and fitness levels, as each pose can be modified to meet the individual’s appropriate level of challenge. “Participants will find themselves in familiar poses like lunges, squats, pliés, push-ups, and more, following a set of rhythmic choreography in each pose,” says Thomas.
24 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
The bamboo barre workout begins with a 15-minute warm-up and engages the entire body from head to toe, with an added focus above the waist. Participants use resistance bands to exercise the shoulders, triceps, biceps, and upper back. “We then move on to sections that focus separately on thighs, glutes, and core, with a grand finale tying everything together,” says Thomas. Because it’s a low-impact routine, there’s no strain on the joints; it’s an effective way to stay fit without the significant risk of getting hurt. For people normally involved in highimpact activities or sports, the bamboo barre workout offers physical training that is challenging and that can also help prevent injuries. “This workout will help people participate in activities during and after winter, with increased…balance, strength, and flexibility,” says Thomas. “The first run after the snow melts puts a lot of runners into physiotherapy clinics with pulled hamstrings, twisted ankles, and aggravated hip flexors. Bamboo barre classes use many exercises prescribed by physiotherapists to prevent injuries like these from happening. Participants can transition into doing the summer activities
Barre they love, while feeling confident and trusting their body’s ability.” For those interested in participating in classes and doing the workout at home, the bamboo barre can be replaced by a broom or mop stick. You will also need a yoga mat, water bottle, and a small towel. Regardless of where you do the workout, comfortable clothes for stretching and perspiring are highly recommended. Finally, Thomas encourages people to do the workout barefoot, as it helps to develop more balance and strength.
Thomas runs her bamboo barre classes at locations across the city, including Dovercourt Recreation Centre, at 411 Dovercourt Avenue, on Tuesday evenings at 7:15 p.m. Check www. dovercourt.org/flyers-and-schedules/ for online registration. For more information on this innovative workout, consult Thomas’ website at www.bamboobarre.com. HWO
Photo: Sekou and Abdi Imaging
“There is something in this class for everyone,” Thomas asserts. “Whether it is a competitive marathon runner looking to
complement their training with a lowimpact strength and stretch workout, a person who works at a desk looking to improve her deteriorating posture, or a new mom looking to reform her postbaby body, bamboo barre is a workout that has benefits of improved posture, increased flexibility, better balance, and overall body toning.”
Kashani Thomas gets physical with her bamboo barre Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 25
Take a Spin! S
pinning® has been a popular form of indoor cycling since the mid ‘90s when South African athlete Jonathan Goldberg began commercially distributing his “spinning” stationary bikes and program from his California-based company. Nowadays, spinning classes are offered in health clubs, studios, and recreation centres around the world.
Why is spinning so popular? Why is its extended version, endurance spinning, worth knowing about? “It’s a great full-body exercise that is high-intensity cardio [and] low impact on the joints,” explains Victor Di Rienzo, coowner of Ottawa’s Inner Soul Yoga & Cycle. “It can also be a more efficient stress reliever [than] most types of exercise. The workout is intensive, and it is a class where you can meet people and socialize.” For those of you unfamiliar with it, endurance spinning classes last two hours instead of the regular 40 to 60 minutes of a spinning class. Just like its shorter version, endurance spinning is led by a motivating instructor who guides participants through a visualized cycling journey, accompanied by back-toback upbeat songs. As the music plays, cyclists go through a variety of stages, sometimes standing and increasing the resistance of the stationary bike; at other times sitting for regular pedaling, fast sprints, or cool-down. The changes in body position, pedal rate,
26 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
and level of resistance mimic an outdoor bike ride in the hills. Participants are encouraged to push themselves while listening to their bodies; they can stop adding resistance if they feel tired or need a break. “At the end of every song, we take all the resistance off the bikes, [spend] a moment to drink water, and have a quick rest,” says Di Rienzo. “At the one-hour mark, I lead everyone in a full body stretch before heading into the second half.” Spinning is ideal for participants of all ages and fitness levels. It is simply a matter of working to your capacity and resting when needed. Endurance spinning, however, is especially recommended for people who want to lose weight or tone their bodies through an intense cardio workout, with minimum strain on their joints. In fact, light weights can be added to the front of the bikes allowing for arm, back, and shoulder exercises to be integrated into the workout. The indoor cycling routine builds strong leg muscles and helps tone the upper body and core, explains Di Rienzo. “With proper guidance of holding hand positions and posture, those who have general lower back pain can benefit by strengthening their back muscles, and those with any recurring knee problems are able to get a great workout without the pain that running or
jogging can bring on.” This may also be an exercise solution for those who suffer from arthritis. Cycling is clearly not ideal in Ottawa’s subzero, snowy, winter weather. Endurance spinning offers the chance to go for a long indoor bike ride boosted by a motivating instructor, energetic music, and fellow cyclists for company. The physical benefits can also extend beyond winter. For example, Di Rienzo suggests that spinning can assist runners in their year-round leg muscle development, as a pedal stroke requires more muscle power than a running stride. “So, if you ride regularly, you will…potentially increase leg strength.” To prepare for a spinning or endurance spinning class, cyclists should wear a good pair of running shoes or spinning shoes (which have stiffer and thicker soles with SPD cleats at the bottom). A towel, comfortable clothes, and plenty of water are also recommended. Some participants like to use a bike seat cushion or bike shorts with built-in cushioning for added comfort. With the challenging weather of crisp winter days upon us, spinning provides an ideal way to continue (or introduce!) aerobic activity throughout the season. You’ll find more information on endurance spinning and other indoor cycling classes at HWO www.innersoul.ca.
Photo: Judy Field
Victor Di Rienzo: Focused on endurance spinning Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 27
Gyro Into Shape J
uliu Horvath’s dance career as a principal dancer with the Houston Ballet came to an abrupt end in the 1970s due to a ruptured Achilles tendon and spinal injuries. Too injured to practice yoga or even stretch, he was motivated to develop a movement system that would eventually heal his body. In the early 1980s, he introduced his dancer friends to his new regimen “Yoga for Dancers.” Demand for his classes grew, and the name of his regimen was eventually changed to the Gyrokinesis® method — a refined version of “Yoga for Dancers,” suitable for young and old. A separate method — Gyrotonic® — came later, using special equipment designed and built by Horvath to meet the needs of people of all ages and abilities. Cindy Vervaeke, founder of Personal Pilates Ottawa, was introduced to Gyrokinesis five years ago. Upon completing a basic Gyrokinesis class, she immediately recognized that the spinal movement that it promoted was exactly what she needed. “Despite years of Pilates training, I struggled with ongoing back issues and chronically tight hip muscles and joints.” Gyrotonic, which she had heard of years earlier, drew her in as well and, in the past five years, she has completed the required instructor training for both. Vervaeke now offers both Gyrokinesis and Gyrotonic classes in her studio. Although the two forms of exercise actively engage the spine and draw from yoga, Tai Chi, Pilates, swimming, and dance, they are 28 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
different from one another. “Gyrokinesis uses a stool and a mat and can be done in a small group setting,” explains Vervaeke. “Gyrotonic is done one-on-one and uses equipment, mainly a pulley tower, and involves resistance with each movement.” And while the benefits are similar, Gyrotonic requires some refined muscle work due to the weights employed. In Vervaeke’s 60-minute Gyrokinesis classes, clients spend about 35 minutes on a stool and go through a series of repetitive fluid movements that get the spine involved in every possible way. Core stability is required, so participants learn how to keep their core firm while breathing and moving. “People who spend every day in an office usually stop using the spine. Gyrokinesis helps to lengthen spine muscles and to develop strength where muscles may have atrophied. It’s very good for posture.” Upon finishing the stool segment of the workout, participants move to the mat. Here, they follow a sequence of exercises to take the spine through various ranges of body movements. “While the mat work can be more challenging for some, anyone can get on the stool and move,” says Vervaeke. Her clientele is varied; she has worked with people with Parkinson disease and multiple sclerosis, professional dancers and dance instructors, and her eldest client is in her late eighties. Vervaeke’s Gyrotonic class — also a 60-minute session — focuses on each part of the body; the option exists to concentrate on certain areas. Participants use an original Juliu Horvath pulley tower. The exercises are
Cindy Vervaeke goes through a routine on the Gyrotonic
done from a bench, using the tower’s pulley system for stretching and strengthening. There are two upward-facing steel discs attached to one end of the bench, with enough space for a body to go in-between. Each has a handle for rotation and they are used for stretching sequences that get the arms, spine, and torso fully involved in repeated circular motions. “There’s an abdominal series using the tower for resistance and there’s also a hamstring series,” explains Vervaeke. “People sweat a lot. It’s a full-body sweat. But the focus is on mobilizing all of the joints, and on lengthening and stretching. There’s also a heavy emphasis on breathing.” Both Gyrotonic and Gyrokinesis can be practised by anyone, regardless of age or
Photo: Charlene Burnside Photography
body weight. The exercises strengthen muscles, increase the functional capacity of the spine, improve the flow of energy through the body, and improve core stability and posture. Furthermore, Gyrokinesis stimulates the body’s internal organs, and Gyrotonic strengthens the connective tissues in and around the joints. Comfortable clothing is required for each. Yoga clothes are generally worn for Gyrotonic and it is done barefoot. Why not try both Gyro methods this winter? Both forms of exercise can bring greater satisfaction from activities and sports in general, including dance, gymnastics, swimming, cycling, running, golf, horseback riding, and others. For more information, visit www.personalpilatesottawa.com. HWO Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 29
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Simply look through the ads in this issue to answer the following questions, and email your entry to healthwiseottawa@rogers.com by January 20, 2014. Indicate “Reader's Contest” in the subject line. Please include your name, mailing address, and telephone number (your information is kept strictly confidential; we do not share mailing lists). Note: One entry per person please. The selected winner will be contacted by phone or email. Good luck!
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Was awarded Trip Advisor’s 2013 Ontario’s top 5 desserts? Offers 3 teacher trainings in 2014? Has a BCB test that could change your life? Carries the Isotherm Winter Run Collection? Believes strongly in the principles of healthy child development? Shares a gluten-free cookie recipe in this issue? Holds a candlelit gong class at 6:30 p.m. on Sundays? Features winter well-being with ECCO? Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 31
Tamir: Standing Tall in By Peggy Edwards
“T
amir” — the Hebrew word that means “to stand tall” — is an apt name for an Ottawa-based, non-profit organization deeply rooted in the community. Apt because Tamir helps enable people with developmental disabilities realize their potential by providing them with opportunities for personal growth, helping them live independently, and involving them in the community. Nurturing and showcasing their many talents and abilities is central to the agency’s raison d’etre.
camp program available in the summer and during March break.
Tamir offers residential services — which include group home living, a respite care program, and supported independent living — and outreach services for people living on their own. Day services include an employment support program, and a recreation and life skills program. While most participants are adults, children with developmental disabilities can participate in Keshet for Kids — a day
In 2010, Tamir celebrated its 25th anniversary with a production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat — a joyous performance that garnered a standing ovation, numerous curtain calls, and left the audience clamoring for a follow-up production.
32 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Visual and performing arts are an integral part of Tamir’s programming. Sometimes a student becomes a teacher. Artist Michael Hinchcliffe is one: he is now a facilitator in Tamir’s program, demonstrating what is possible and inspiring others to pursue their dreams. “I love art,” says Hinchcliffe. “It takes my worries away. I like to be even more than a painter. I like to be teaching art.”
What’s next is a new show exclusively performed by adults with developmental
Our Community disabilities. True Colours portrays what it is like to live with developmental disabilities: the challenges, heartaches, accomplishments, and passions of Tamir participants. Told in a cabaret style, it incorporates a live band, dance, the Tamir choir, and video footage. True Colours breaks down stereotypes and enables people to see and value the important contributions that people with developmental disabilities make to their families and communities. The director and cast are fine-tuning the production in preparation for upcoming performances in high schools and community venues (watch a trailer for True Colours at www.vimeo.com/68413945). “We’re good,” says Debbie Wasserman, a participant in the show, “so we may even go to other cities.” Wasserman credits Tamir with helping her learn to live independently after her parents died. She routinely participates in volunteer work and is talking with her job coach about finding
some paid work. “People can be rude,” says Wasserman. “Just because I’m slow doesn’t mean I’m stupid; I just learn in different ways. I am kind and loving. We deserve respect and love back. Everybody needs to smile and laugh more. It’s contagious!” Tamir is an inclusive organization, working at any one time with some 100 persons with developmental disabilities and their families. The Judaic Outreach program — which includes holiday celebrations, outings, Judaic studies, and a student volunteer program — is dedicated to celebrating Jewish life by bringing Tamir into the community and the community into Tamir. However, most programs serve the community at large. In keeping with the diversity of the Ottawa population, many non-Jewish participants come from other parts of the world, including Asia, Somalia, India, and Vietnam. “Multiculturalism enriches our programs and our participants’ lives,” says executive director Mark Palmer. Photos: Courtesy of Tamir
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 33
Family members have been the lifeblood a remarkable organization of participants of Tamir. They have served as leaders and families, and a highly dedicated corps and partners in planning and delivering of volunteers and staff. Penso says that (and even evaluating) Tamir’s services. her involvement remains meaningful and In 1980, founding president Lily Penso personally helpful. “I have learned that no began planning the first residential one person can do it alone, but that one program in Ottawa to serve individuals person can make a difference.” with developmental disabilities in a Jewish environment. Her son Michael was in Mark Palmer has been with Tamir for 23 his early 20s and needed to learn to live years. He has seen the positive effect the independently and be with his peers. “In agency has had in the lives of families, especially those who do those days, young adults not have the resources and with intellectual challenges “I have learned capabilities to advocate and were usually hidden at home care for their children with or placed in institutions,” that no one special needs. “We have seen says Penso. “We knew there person can do some dramatic turnarounds, had to be a better way.” such as an abused girl who it alone, but In 1985, Tamir opened came to live with us; [she] that one person was able to continue in its first group home on Tweedsmuir Avenue to three school, became a volunteer in can make residents. It was not until an early childhood education a difference.” 1991 that the agency started program, and was able to to receive funding from the return to living happily with Ministry of Community and her mother.” Another young Social Services to grow residential programs man who had Asperger syndrome got into and offer services to the community at trouble with the law. Tamir worked with large. Michael, who is now 52, is still living him and his parents to help him develop in a Tamir residence with three housemates, trust and life skills. He is now studying and participating in a variety of programs, computer programming at Algonquin including meaningful employment and College, assisted by a Tamir support person. learning programs. Palmer suggests six ingredients that What started as a dream for a few Ottawa contribute to Tamir’s recipe for progress and families over 30 years ago has grown into success: the passion factor — a deep sense
34 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
of purpose and enthusiasm for what Tamir does; good governance; the meaningful involvement of families, participants, and volunteers; training and support of staff that lead to high performance; ongoing support from partners and sponsors in the community; and having lots of fun. “We will continue to advocate for support for people with developmental disabilities,” he says. “They are among the most vulnerable in our community and yet contribute so much to our society when given opportunities HWO to live as full citizens.” Peggy Edwards is a health promotion writer and consultant living in Old Ottawa South.
What is a Developmental Disability? A developmental disability is a diverse group of lifelong conditions attributed to mental and/or physical impairments. Three of the most common examples are autism, cerebral palsy, and Down syndrome. While each person is unique, developmental disabilities generally cause individuals challenges in certain areas of life because of difficulties with language, mobility, learning, and independent living.
How Can I Get Involved? ✔ M ake a donation to Tamir’s Friendship Campaign, purchase tribute cards, or attend a fundraising event. ✔ Offer a volunteer or work option for a Tamir participant. ✔ B ecome a corporate sponsor of Tamir programs or activities. ✔ S upport a home by becoming a Tamir Business Buddy and donating goods and services to help Tamir offset the cost of property maintenance. ✔ Donate items for Tamir residents; movie passes, tickets to music or sporting events, and gift cards are greatly appreciated. ✔ Volunteer your time at one of Tamir’s programs. To learn more about Tamir’s programs, visit www.tamir.ca.
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 35
Tim Yearington and the
Medicine Wheel By Kinneret Globerman
I
n March of 2014, the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre will host a oneday public conference on the power of the medicine wheel. Four Aboriginal healers will come together as presenters and, when they do, Westboro resident Tim Yearington will be among them. The stone medicine wheel he constructed along the Ottawa River bike path this past summer caught the attention of a passerby and soon after the Royal Ottawa came calling. “We decided to invite Tim here to talk about the medicine wheel because I was aware that it is an important concept in many Aboriginal traditions, related to finding one’s way,” says Kelley Raab Mayo, a chaplain who works in the Centre’s spiritual and cultural health section. “The idea is to have Tim present the teachings to mental health practitioners for use in their work with Aboriginal clients, and they might also use it in their own lives.” Yearington, 48, discovered the teachings of the medicine wheel later on in life. The former illustrator and wilderness guide always knew he’d been adopted, and began exploring his own Native heritage and Algonquin ways of healing when he was in his early thirties.
36 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Discovering the way of the wheel and mining its mysteries helped him through a difficult time. And changed his life. “When I started to learn about it at a deeper level, I started to use it in my own life to fix my emotional state,” he says. “I got stuck in my head a lot.” So, as therapy, Yearington started building medicine wheels out of stone…on the land, in places familiar to him from his work as a wilderness guide. The wheel has become integral to the way he lives his life. He now takes people on earth walks and medicine walks to Turtle Rock, just west of Ottawa, to teach them about the medicine wheel and how it can help them in their own lives. At the core of the wheel’s premise is that we’re the creator of our own lives, of everything that we do. “So we’re also the creator of our wellbeing and our health,” explains Yearington. “Not that it’s that easy, but at least if you’re aware of this, you have something to work with. We get off-centre to the point that we can’t remember how to get back. The medicine wheel is a simple tool that helps us get back to our centre. It sounds complex, but it’s very simple.”
Photos: Jamie Kronick
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 37
suppose that you’re stuck in one direction: north, the mental realm — your head. You’re worried about something and it’s eating away at you. Using the wheel as your compass, you see that the opposite direction on the wheel is south, the physical realm. So, you literally get physical: you take the dog out for a walk, you go for a run. You get back to balance by doing the opposite of what you’re feeling.
The complexity lies in the interpretation of the wheel’s symbolism. A circle, the wheel contains four quadrants representing the four directions of east, south, west, and north that correspond with the colours yellow, red, black, and white. Each direction and colour has metaphoric meanings attributed to them. The four colours represent various concepts (for example, yellow signifies lightness; black, darkness) and the four root races of mankind (yellow/Asian, red/Aboriginal, black/African, white/Caucasian), while the four directions represent various states of being (east/ emotional, west/spiritual, south/physical, north/mental). You can go even deeper into the symbolism of each element on the medicine wheel and what they represent on a personal level when you apply its teachings to your own life. But simply put, the medicine wheel is a visual aid that you can use as a personal compass to help you see where your imbalance lies. And because the goal is to bring you back to your centre, it is up to you to interpret the teachings to figure out how. For example, let’s
38 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
“Everybody has those four parts of our being: the emotional, the physical, the spiritual, the mental,” explains Yearington. “But the way we each relate to those four parts of our being is completely different. That’s why it’s so strong. The medicine wheel is a very simple tool that illustrates, in a very basic and obvious way, the four parts of our self.”
A graphic rendering of the medicine wheel
Once people make themselves conscious of the wheel and its directions and meanings, they can then take responsibility for themselves, says Yearington. “This means they can stop making excuses for themselves and do something about the way they are being or the way they’re feeling.”
In the one-day conference at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre, Yearington will explain the basics of the medicine wheel, build one with stones he’ll bring to the session, and offer his teachings on how health practitioners can use it in their work. Even though it’s an Aboriginal concept, he says, the medicine wheel can be embraced by any religious denomination or race. In fact, the United Church of Canada has already adopted the four colours of the wheel into its crest. Yearington hopes to present the deeper teachings of the medicine wheel’s colours to its members. Yearington also intends to approach Aboriginal studies programs at Canadian universities to propose integrating the traditional knowledge of the medicine wheel teachings into their programs. And he’s already pitched The Medicine Wheel Project, an art workshop idea geared to Grades 4 to 12, locally to the Ottawa Catholic School Board and OttawaCarleton District School Board. “When I realized how powerful and simple it was, I thought people needed to know about this knowledge that’s been around for thousands of years,” says Yearington. “The implications that the medicine wheel teachings have for human beings everywhere is huge. Because at the root level of everything, it’s all about creating balance in our centre, in our heart, in our very spirit. And another way to say balance is harmony. And another way to say harmony is peace. “I believe in this so much. Everything we need is already inside us. The real beauty and the real magic and the real power of the medicine wheel happens when you make it HWO personal. You make it about you.”
In 2010, Borealis Press (together with Yearington and financial assistance from the Government of Canada) published That Native Thing: Exploring the Medicine Wheel, with text and illustrations by Tim Yearington. The book is available at Chapters and through the publisher. Learn about it and more by visiting www.timyearington.com.
If you want to learn more about the medicine wheel, come to the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre’s oneday conference in March. Turn the page to find out more.
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 39
The Medicine Wheel: Healing in Aboriginal Culture T his one-day public conference takes place on March 21, 2014 at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The medicine wheel teaches us that harmony, balance, and respect for all parts of our being are needed to sustain whole health. According to Tim Yearington, in learning to balance our parts of being, we come to see that we, ourselves, are the very healers we seek in life. Yearington will share traditional Aboriginal teachings at the conference, together with three other elders. Each
elder will lead a session on one of the four directions that are essential elements of the wheel. Yearington will lead the discussion about the south, the physical realm, because it is a direction he connects with deeply.
The conference will, he says, provide an opportunity to “speak about the power of the human spirit, and the place where our spirit exists on the medicine wheel.” For more information on the conference and registration details, email or phone Lucie Moore at lucie.moore@theroyal.ca or 613-722-6521, ext. 6570.
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A groundbreaking film illustrating the power of educating girls to change the world.
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
International Human Rights Day A fundraiser for girls’ education in Latin America, the Caribbean and in Ottawa Organized by the Guatemala Stove Project and ACCESO International Hosted by Lucy van Oldenbarneveld (CBC News Ottawa)
Library & Archives Canada
395 Wellington St, Ottawa Doors open at 6 pm, Screening at 6:45 pm Speakers, Craft Sale, Light Refreshments Tickets $20 for adults and $10 for students For tickets and more information: Liz: GSPOttawaLiz@gmail.com or 613-723-5107 Christine: info@accesointernational.ca or 613-831-9158 Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 41
The
Psychology of By Barb Wilson In the fall issue of Healthwise Ottawa, we explored the power of food and its ability to fuel, comfort, and heal us. We profiled Kylie Delfino, clinical nutritionist at the Ottawa Integrative Cancer Centre (OICC), and how her focus on whole foods helps patients balance their nutritional needs. In this issue, we feature an OICC psychotherapist who believes in the power of psychotherapy as another tool in supporting cancer patients and their families during a challenging journey.
T
here are probably few more daunting words to hear than “you have cancer.” And while this diagnosis can turn a patient’s world upside down, health care professionals, both traditional and holistic, try to assure patients that no one needs to face the challenge of this disease alone and uninformed. Enter the OICC at the corner of Bayswater and Somerset in Hintonburg. The Centre’s philosophy is to offer patients a “whole person” approach to treatment through exercise, nutrition, acupuncture, physiotherapy, and other naturopathic therapies. Working alongside conventional medical professionals, the OICC staff provide a level of care that extends beyond treating the physical aspects of cancer. Jennifer Turner is a registered psychotherapist at the OICC, with a master’s degree in counselling psychology and an undergraduate degree in sociology. She is certified with Health Coaching Australia
and the National Association of Professional Cancer Coaches, and has participated in the Gawler Foundation’s Living With Cancer program in Australia. She understands that cancer patients experience a myriad of emotions that run the gamut from hope and denial to fear and resentment. Coping with the extreme physical and emotional demands of the disease can leave patients and their families bewildered and bereft. Psychotherapy can help — because it helps to talk about it. “[It] creates a therapeutic relationship that helps people address personal difficulties,” says Turner. “It allows individuals, couples, families, and groups to talk openly and confidentially with the support of a trained therapist.” How Exactly Is It Beneficial? Psychotherapy provides people who are often very distressed, alienated, and feeling powerless with the opportunity to learn how Photos: Dwayne Brown Studio
42 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Cancer
Psychotherapist Jennifer Turner (right) helping a patient through her cancer journey Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 43
to reduce distress, process fear and grief, and live authentically at each stage of illness and healing. Cancer patients are often very worried and preoccupied about the impact of their illness on their families and loved ones.
and people who will walk with you when it gets tough.”
Turner recalls a patient of hers who described the role of psychotherapy and cancer as helping her learn to live in the “spaces” between diagnosis and treatment, and between treatments and scans. “It was insightful that, while these are traumatic and sometimes devastating events, in-between there can be life, love, meaning, community,
Navigating Through the Stages
At the OICC, individual counselling sessions provide one-on-one personal and private time to deal with often unspoken Says Turner: “It’s important to recognize fears and concerns. “Cancer patients often that psychotherapy provides much-needed find great comfort in being able to speak support for their caregivers, as well. freely about what their life and death means Individual sessions provide patients and to them — without protecting everyone around them,” says caregivers with a chance Turner. “Loved ones to express their fears and Cancer often creates also benefit from the challenges without having to chaos in people’s lives, opportunity to explore protect their loved ones.” and find peace with their Many of Turner’s patients and psychotherapy gives role, and how to love and have metastatic cancer — a them a chance to figure care for someone with potentially life-threatening cancer without feeling out a way forward. diagnosis that can be the need to rescue especially distressing. Their them.” Supportive care, struggles are particular: “They are often torn she concludes, is fundamentally about between trying to stay alive and trying to respect and courage — courage to walk deal with the fear of death, in a culture that with clients and to be present for the full doesn’t really provide many opportunities range of their experiences. to openly discuss these matters,” explains Turner. “Patients often tell me there is really In addition to individual counselling, the no one for them to talk to — families and OICC group sessions provide people with friends want them to stay positive, and the opportunity to find support through many doctors are focused more on the common experience. Attendees are often clinical aspects of the disease, and find it inspired and encouraged by each other, challenging to make time to deal with the which can help them feel less alienated in their struggles. more existential aspects of cancer.”
44 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
The OICC also offers a cancer navigation service designed to help patients and their families understand the next steps that occur at any stage of living with cancer. A navigator can help patients and families understand the range of issues that need to be addressed, and to feel less alone and confused. The
service helps patients familiarize themselves with conventional, complementary, and alternate care options, and what each means relative to each patient’s own definition of health. Cancer navigation can also assist people in understanding the “cancer system” — how to advocate for themselves and how to make the most advantageous decisions within that system. Both patients and their caregivers can get help with a myriad of issues, such as decision-making regarding one’s health care, improving communication between conventional and integrative health care providers so that patients can make informed choices, understanding second opinions in the health care system, as well as what palliative care is and why it is offered to patients. The service also highlights other resources in the community such as the Maplesoft Centre, the Hospice at Maycourt, the Élisabeth Bruyère Hospital, and the Community Care Access Centre. The OICC Expands The OICC is launching three new psychotherapy groups to provide help to patients and others. One will be for newly diagnosed cancer patients. This group aims to help new patients deal with their distress, find a community of other patients who understand their challenges, and help empower those with cancer to play an active role in their own healing. A second group will offer caregiver support by helping caregivers deal with the challenges of caring for a loved one with cancer.
Psychotherapist Jennifer Turner
The third psychotherapy group is for metastatic cancer patients, and focuses on providing a place of support with other people who understand how challenging it can be to move through life with this reality. Underlying Turner’s work is the premise that, regardless of the stage of their disease, patients — as well as their families and caregivers — can find support and empowerment through a range of programs and services offered by the OICC. No one need be alone. “Cancer often creates chaos in people’s lives, and psychotherapy gives them a chance to take a deep breath and figure out a way forward, acknowledging the physical and emotional losses inherent in a cancer diagnosis and treatment, while still respecting the individual’s unique HWO experiences and needs.”
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 45
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Lending a Helping Hand… Abroad
HAITI
By Kate Pocock
R
iding along bone-jarring roads to a clinic, being stuck in an ambulance in the midst of an angry street protest, or hearing roosters as your morning wake-up call seem far from the daily lives of most Canadian doctors, dentists, or optometrists. Yet three Ottawa health care professionals can claim to have had these experiences from volunteering in Haiti, Uganda, Honduras, Costa Rica…and beyond. In relating their tales of health care combined with travel, it’s clear that the personal rewards these medical professionals get from their volunteering travels are far richer than any monetary ones. What’s more, anyone with the will and a skill — be it unpacking boxes, fixing spark plugs, or reading eye charts — can follow in their footsteps. (These professionals will attest to it.) Once you’ve read about their experiences, you might want to consider embarking on your own interesting and lifechanging adventure.
KENYA
UGANDA Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 47
Dr. Jo Hauser Public Health Physician “T
en years ago, after retiring from Health Canada, I was seeking adventure,” says Jo Hauser, an Ottawa physician who lives in Old Ottawa South and has worked in the public health field for 25 years. Adventure for Hauser, however, meant “doing things I’ve never done before, where the outcome is unknown.” Certainly, his first trip to northwestern Uganda to work in the refugee camps in a mobile health unit with Medical Teams International (a Christian-based group headquartered in Portland, Oregon) fit that description. His arrival in Uganda in 2007 on a hot, humid night was a bit of a shock. He was transported to a modest guest house, surrounded by double-locked steel gates. Guards with rifles patrolled outside. “It was to protect us,” he says, “yet people were living outside the gates in squalid conditions. It was remarkable.” Despite this introduction, Hauser has returned to Uganda three times, getting to know the country better with each visit and appreciating the culture, the natural beauty, and the exuberance of daily life. While the work has sometimes been difficult, the services often non-existent, and the days long, with hundreds of people lining up for medical help, Hauser has learned a lot, including the fact that the Ugandans do some things better than Canadians. For instance, a patient’s medical
48 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Dr. Jo Hauser sets up shop in his nylon tent
records are kept in one book, a gradeschool copybook, that the patient carries from clinic to clinic (unlike in Canada, where medical records are “disjointed” and stored in the offices of each doctor). Hauser also appreciates practising oldfashioned medical care without numerous investigations. “I would sometimes think,
‘Do we really need all these fancy tests?’” says Hauser. “Yes, blood tests may confirm what we know already, but they are not going to change anything.” He has also found that, despite the lack of medical equipment and services, people in Uganda are happy. The refugee camp was a lively community. Hauser remembers one particular day when kids had wrapped string around plastic sheeting to make a soccer ball. “The parents were chatting and laughing. The kids were running around. The place was alive,” he recalls, unlike our own neighbourhoods where you may not see people for days, or even weeks. And although he saw hundreds of patients each day, he rarely saw the chronic diseases we suffer in North America, such as stroke, cancer, heart attack, or angina. “It certainly
appears that a simple diet of grains, with limited meat or fish, is good for you,” he remarks. Hauser is not particularly religious, but he enjoyed the Ugandan hymns and prayers. “During the entire four hours and fifteen minutes it took to drive from Kampala to the city of Lira, my driver played a tape of hymns performed by an African choir. Our mechanic, who sat in the back, often sang along.” This kind of music and prayer provided a sense of peacefulness. Nevertheless, there were things that certainly tested him and his abilities, like the overwhelming heat, the long days, and the same daily lunch: two boiled eggs, one banana, one chapatti, with warm Coke or Fanta to wash it down. Over a period of Photos: Courtesy of Dr. Jo Hauser
A Ugandan hospital where overcrowding and lack of beds is the norm Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 49
several years, he saw people afflicted with leprosy; in Honduras, broken legs not set properly; in Haiti, during the terrible cholera outbreak, there were few beds for the sick, with patients lying on wooden floors. In Uganda, there was the constant threat of rebels who might kidnap boys for soldiers. And all the hospitals were overcrowded to the point where mothers slept on the floor under the cots of their sick babies (paying attention to that one child rather than the five or six running around at home). During these times, he wondered about just how much use he could be in a country where clean water and safe transportation were not guaranteed. The African doctors, in particular, reassured him that he and his colleagues were providing necessary and useful services.
“We were giving them some legitimacy,” Hauser explains. “I was learning from them about the tropical diseases, but they were also learning from us.” They did save lives. And even more importantly, “I learned that I was delivering more than health care,” Hauser says. “I was delivering hope.” The experience also confirmed to Hauser that public health is vitally important. Just one well, producing clean water, can save more lives than all the antimalaria pills and antibiotics that a doctor can dispense. His advice about lending a Canadian hand? Keep details of your time in a diary or via a blog, as a record of your trip. Hauser has in fact turned his Ugandan diary into a compelling book with wonderful photos (see sidebar). “This kind of experience does affect you and makes you see the world differently,” he says. “Here in Canada, water is drinkable when it comes out of the tap. The electricity works. Life is very easy.”
Soccer — with a homemade ball made from plastic sheeting wrapped in string
50 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Dr. Shawn Charland Optometrist
eye chart, so they used a “Tumbling E” chart where the letter E pointed in different directions. “We would ask them to show us with a finger which way each of the E’s was pointing,” said Charland. It was simple yet effective.
Dr. Charland and his Spanish transliterations
W
hen Shawn Charland was still a student at the University of Waterloo, he and some friends saw an I CARE International poster on a wall in the optometry building. “We contacted this group and, within two-and-a-half weeks, we were in this little town three hours north of Mexico City, drinking fermented cactus juice and bonding with the community. It was pretty impulsive.” No kidding! When they woke up, they heard roosters crowing and people ringing church bells, and they looked out onto cactus and rolling hills. “It was like something right out of a spaghetti western,” laughs Charland. And yet, although the optometry students had only one year of schooling, they could read a prescription, assist with eye examinations, and help fit people with glasses to improve their eyesight. In fact, they helped people of all ages. Those who couldn’t read or write had trouble with the
Since that first foray abroad, Charland, who splits his time between offices in Westboro and Alta Vista, has worked in Bolivia, Kenya, and even in the jungles of Nicaragua. “Because many patients couldn’t read, they broadcast our visit over the radio, and people started walking out of the jungle to see us,” he says. Weaving through the mountains in an airplane and landing on dirt landing strips in a jungle might indeed sound like a Photos: Courtesy of Dr. Shawn Charland
Admiring a son’s new eyeglasses (Nicaragua) Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 51
scene from a movie, but the work that the optometrist and his colleagues performed on these missions was not all Indiana Jones. Yes, they treated serious eye injuries, often from machetes (as many people worked in the fields and there were accidents), but they also conducted examinations and fitted people with glasses — some for the first time. Most memorable: a young boy in Kenya who could at last read the letters on the blackboard. And even more touching: a Mexican father who saw his children for the first time. Charland says that anyone can help to welcome people, dig through boxes of glasses, test people on an eye chart. “Even if you don’t have medical training or exact skills, there’s always something that can be taught. With only half an hour of training, people can be immensely helpful.” Charland also appreciates the local food and drink: in Bolivia, BBQ alpaca and llama stews; in Nicaragua, BBQ chicken with mangoes. And the coffee? “It was ridiculous how good it was!” Like Hauser, Charland was overwhelmed to see that, despite the hardships suffered in these countries, the people were generally
Eye exam with Dr. Charland — a family affair 52 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
A Nicaraguan child sports new eyeglasses
happy. It was humbling and forced him to think about what’s really important in life — and what true happiness is. “It’s a sense of family,” he says, “and a sense of community.” And it puts our own modern world in perspective. “I always come home appreciating our health care, our schools,” says Charland. “Sometimes we forget the things we do have. Yes, you might have to wait in emergency for hours, but you didn’t have to walk six hours to get there. “When I’ve just ridden my bike through a pothole on Sunnyside [avenue], I’m no longer that upset about it,” he laughs. “Hey, I have a bike and there is a road to ride on.” If you are thinking of joining a volunteer team, Charland’s advice is to “be flexible, be patient. Know that it won’t be easy. Yes, it will be different, but it’s that difference that makes it enjoyable.” And remember to pack “a good sense of humour, because something ridiculous will happen and you have to laugh it off.” Says Charland: “When you’re a tourist, you’re paying and taking. But volunteering is unique because you’re giving something back. I can think of no better way to connect with a different culture and a people.”
Dr. Ian McConnachie Pediatric Dentist
improvised. Using a modified needle attached to her adjacent incisors, he cut off the roots, filled the chambers, and repositioned two crowns into the sockets. It wasn’t ideal, but the patient left with a smile and her teeth stabilized for years to come.
Dr. McConnachie and Houda Mankal during “office hours” (Haiti)
W
hen Ian McConnachie and two dental hygienists from his office in Nepean signed up for a volunteer week in Haiti in 2010, the pediatric dentist knew it would be a challenge. After all, the majority of citizens in this Caribbean country have little access to dental care. “They don’t have toothbrushes available and limited availability of toothpaste,” he says. But even after 38 years of experience as a dentist (including presidency of the Ontario Dental Association) and previous volunteer work in Ecuador, McConnachie didn’t expect the challenges to begin with his very first patient. The pretty young woman he examined in Haiti had suffered trauma to her mouth and her two incisor teeth hung down dramatically. Through a translator, she made it clear that she completely rejected the idea of extraction. So McConnachie
Creativity and quick thinking were the norm for the rest of this trip — and future ones. Earlier this year, when McConnachie arrived again in Haiti with a team of 16 people, they found just two dusty old dental chairs waiting for them. With a bit of duct tape and plastic garbage bags, the chairs were made comfortable and serviceable. No stools? A concrete block up on a chair worked as makeshift seats. As for working stations, old metal frames of bunk beds were turned onto their sides and topped with plywood. The team was set to go! Other challenges presented themselves too, both technical and psychological. During McConnachie’s first trip, on the first morning: no electricity and mild panic. It turned out the generator had not yet been turned on. Phew. “The utterly sweet sound of the compressor and vacuum was as good as a Beethoven symphony or a Bruce Springsteen concert.” And then there was the anxiety of kids who had never before seen a dentist. With a bit of forethought, one of McConnachie’s dental hygienists had made bracelets for the kids; the bracelets were handed out to the children when they were seen by the dental team. All of the kids wore those bracelets with pride. The staff had also brought with Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 53
them a treat box full of colouring books and crayons, just like the box in their Ottawa office. By the end of the clinic week, they had examined and helped over 500 people. “So much of what we do in child dentistry is communication,” says McConnachie. “And some of our work abroad is hugs and body language.” Along with dental equipment this year, he and his team carried a dozen soccer balls, hand pumps, shoes, and jerseys in acknowledgement of the country’s love of sport. “It was really neat,” says the dentist. “At the school after we arrived, we pulled it all out and a couple of our translators started doing footwork and bouncing the balls all over the place. The kids were in awe watching the whole thing. It was one of the few pleasures for the kids down there.” And a pleasure too for the pediatric dentist and his group of volunteers. Anyone with a desire can certainly volunteer to become part of a team. Reggie, a firefighter from Alberta for example,
was taking pictures and seating patients. A fellow from California took care of the sterilization team and made sure equipment was working. Those with language skills can be translators. McConnachie has taken five volunteer trips now, and hopes to get back to Haiti and to other locations such as Guatemala. “It’s fun and anybody who does it will tell you that you get far more out of it than you put into it,” he says. Although the logistics were challenging at times, McConnachie appreciated having an entire team of 16 volunteers with him this past year, helping each other understand what’s important and working collaboratively. “It’s exhausting, but it’s energizing at the same time.” As for others who want to lend their skills? “You have to go with an open mind,” says McConnachie. “You may think you have Plan A and Plan B in place, but in Haiti, for example, by the end of the week we were working on Plan J or Plan K,” he says with a smile. Photos: Courtesy of Dr. Ian McConnachie
Dental team (from left to right): Dr. Ian McConnachie, Houda Mankal, and Donna Paquette with Haitian children 54 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Although it might appear to some that a person helping out in a poor country is like the mythical Hans Brinker, holding his finger in the dike, McConnachie disagrees. “No small act is without value and improvement is possible,” he says. “And the volunteers gain immeasurably. You’ll be so thankful for what we have in Canada. Every time I turn on the tap and have running water, I think about it.” And something else that he’s learned: “Canadians are pretty damn good at this sort of thing. As a country, we have a lot to be proud of and we need to make people aware of what we can do.” HWO
Happiness is a clean set of teeth
Resources for Global Volunteering
A
s Richard Heinzl, founder of the Canadian chapter of Doctors Without Borders, says about volunteering for medical assistance travel: “It wakes you up and teaches you to see the world a little differently.” How do you find organizations where you can help? If you are intrigued about working in another country, research possible organizations on the Internet and contact them. Churches can often recommend volunteer organizations. Some, like Doctors Without Borders, require lengthy stays. With other groups, you can offer your services for as little as a week. Here are a few recommended by the health professionals profiled in this article: ➤ I CARE International (www.icareinternational.org) based outside of Chicago, Illinois ➤ K indness in Action (www.kindnessinaction.ca) based in St. Paul, Alberta ➤ Mission of Hope (www.mohhaiti.org) based in Fort Myers, Florida, and Titanyen,
Haiti. The orphanage in Titanyen was built by McConnachie’s friend, colleague, and mentor, Canadian dentist Dr. Jack Cottrell and his wife Michelle in collaboration with Feed the Children Canada and members of the Canadian dental industry. ➤ Medical Teams International (www.medicalteams.org) based in Portland, Oregon, with satellite offices in the U.S. ➤ Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)/Doctors Without Borders (www.msf.ca) based in Toronto and Montreal ➤ Remote Area Medical Canada (www.ramv.ca) based in Ottawa
And look at Resilience in the Face of Brutality by Dr. Jo Hauser (HealthNet Press, 2007), available for free download for readers of Healthwise Ottawa at www.lulu.com/ content/675626. This e-book about Hauser’s experience in Uganda, illustrated with wonderful photographs, is a powerful read for anyone thinking about volunteering. Dedicated to the children of northern Uganda, it covers everything from political and medical situations to shopping for pillows in a crowded market. Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 55
Nutrition or Poison:
Eating Well By Suzanne Nussey
T
he link between what you eat and how you feel was made thousands of years ago by Hippocrates, considered by many to be the father of modern medicine. He noted that one person’s food was another’s poison: What we eat can have a profound effect on our health.
Shirley Plant, Ottawa author of Finally…Food I Can Eat, and Laurie Sadowski, author of The AllergyFree Cook series, discovered this relationship between diet and health the hard way. They both became very ill before finding their paths to healing foods.
Photos: © Dreamstime.com
56 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Allergy-Free Plant — who was diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome, celiac disease, and fibromyalgia 25 years ago — never considered the link between her illnesses and what she was eating until a neighbour suggested allergy testing, something even her physician had failed to recommend. When she did get tested by Dr. John Molot, a pioneer in the field of environmental medicine practising here in Ottawa, Plant discovered that she would have to eliminate dairy, wheat, yeast, eggs, corn, pork, tomatoes, apples, and chicken from her diet. This presented a challenge, she says. “I was raised on meat and potatoes and sugary homemade desserts. I didn’t like rice, beans, anything green, [meaning] vegetables, back then.” Already exhausted by her illnesses, Plant tried eating non-allergenic foods. And she would eat them over and over again — until she got tired of that! Although feeling much better when she first omitted high-allergen foods, she began to regress after six months. “What I know now was that I’d simply replaced a lot of foods with one single food, and [then] I developed intolerances to that. I also wasn’t eating enough protein and was still eating way too much sugar.”
Plant had trouble finding a cookbook with recipes for food she could eat, and it took a lot of energy to keep trying a recipe again and again until it worked for her. “After a few years of eating the same dry rice cakes and muffins, I decided to develop some of my own recipes by substituting foods that I could eat into my favourite recipes. Before I knew it, I had recipes that were easy to make, tasted good, and were within the confines of my allergies.” Because Plant’s illnesses, including celiac disease, were undiagnosed for so long, it’s still “a roller coaster ride” with her health. “It takes time to repair the gut,” she explains, “and with an autoimmune illness like mine, sometimes the smallest amount of stress can send you into a tailspin. Taking care of my body is a full-time job. But if I hadn’t changed my diet, I think I would still be bedridden or worse.” Plant now leads an active professional life and is on a mission to share her discoveries with others who suffer from similar food intolerances. She wants to spare them from going through the same struggles she did. Sharing information to create a better quality of life for everyone who suffers from food allergies has become her raison d’être. Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 57
To that end, Plant has developed expertise and a reputation in dietary design, customized recipes, and menu-planning. She provides tips on where to purchase products and how to convert favourite recipes; she assists in pantry evaluation and shopping. She also develops personalized menus that take into account health information provided by physicians and dieticians, as well as preferences and lifestyle demands. Plant’s message reaches a wide audience as she contributes to news programs, websites, magazines, and organizations focused on food allergies. Cookbook author Laurie Sadowski shares some of the frustrations and victories that Plant experienced in her search for delicious alternatives to high-allergen foods. Like most people with celiac disease, Sadowski never felt quite right, even though she was an active youngster who played sports, biked and rollerbladed, and grew up in a healthy household with a family that shared activities and ate nutritiously. In high school, she was hit with a terrible bout of mononucleosis that left her feeling lethargic and unwell. “My doctor chalked it up to being a lazy teenager,” she recalls. In her second year of university, Sadowski’s health began to decline drastically. Her array of symptoms was confusing: she experienced gastrointestinal discomfort, numbness and weakness in her legs, and waking from naps feeling paralyzed. The research she undertook led her to learn how to eat healthier: whole grains, omega-3s, and good fats became part of her diet. “I also learned that I couldn’t eat two bowls of Golden Grahams for dinner, drink a glass of juice after a run, and that cheese isn’t a food group.” Despite eliminating unhealthy foods from her diet, Sadowski continued to experience 58 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
gastrointestinal symptoms. She suspected she might be lactose intolerant. Although she cut out most dairy, her weight kept dropping and her symptoms continued. “Eating was difficult, leaving me in constant pain. I was so dehydrated that just talking was a challenge. I was napping constantly, and my mind was in a constant brain fog. I had no idea what was going on.” After visiting yet another doctor who suggested that Sadowski was trying to lose weight (“you know how kids are”), she found “an amazing internal medicine doctor” and began a series of tests that included a liver biopsy, endoscopy, and others. She was eventually diagnosed with celiac disease. Halfway through her fourth year of university, Sadowski moved home, where her parents created a gluten-free haven for her. She eventually figured out that, not only was gluten causing her symptoms, but the milk protein casein was wreaking havoc on both her brain and her body. “I cut it out immediately, hoping it would help. I soon learned if I did eat it, it became difficult to breathe, and I would be loaded down with brain fog.” When she eliminated all dairy and casein, as well as gluten, Sadowski finally began to mend. And while recovering, she made a decision.“[I] decided I never wanted to go without food that I wanted. I was going to bake everything, make everything, and figure out alternatives to everything. “I began baking and cooking constantly, which led me to start sharing my ideas. The real inspiration began when I posted my first bread recipe on a popular food site. The feedback was inspiring and motivated me to self-publish a cookbook called Mission in the Kitchen, filled with gluten-free, casein-free, whole foods-based cuisine.” Since regaining her health, Sadowski has written several cookbooks, as well as a regular
The Healthy Choice. For You. For Life.
Organic Produce & Groceries | Vegetarian & Vegan Foods | Gluten Free Alternatives | Natural Baby Products | Vitamins and Supplements | Natural Body Care
Gluten Free Pumpkin Cookies Submitted by Darika Friesen
¾ cup coconut oil or unsalted butter ½-¾ cup coconut sugar, sucanat or light brown sugar 1 teaspoon pure vanilla 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon ¼ teaspoon each ground cloves, ground ginger, sea salt 1 egg 1 cup cooked pumpkin 1 cup sweet sorghum flour ½ cup brown rice flour ½ cup buckwheat flour 1 teaspoon non-aluminum baking powder 2 teaspoons guar gum or xanthan gum ½ cup nuts and raisins
1. Preheat oven to 375°F. 2. Melt coconut oil or butter in a saucepan. Add sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and salt. Mix together well. 3. Beat egg. Add to oil, sugar, and spice mixture. 4. Add pumpkin, and mix well. 5. Sift flours, baking powder and guar gum or xanthum gum together. Add to liquid mixture. 6. Fold in nuts and raisins. 7. Drop on to greased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Makes 18 cookies Note: These cookies freeze well.
1487 Richmond Road • Ottawa • 613-726-9200 rainbowfoods.ca
Hours: Mon-Fri 8-8 Sat-Sun 9-7
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 59
monthly food column for her local paper. She has qualified as a topfour finalist in a national cooking competition, started running again, has become a certified personal trainer, completed two university degrees in music, and developed recipes for various companies and local businesses. Needless to say, the brain fog and the wonky legs are history! Plant and Sadowski have advice to share for people who suspect they have celiac disease or food allergies and intolerances, and for those who experience symptoms their doctors can’t pin down. Plant’s Finally…Food I Can Eat discusses the difference between food allergies and intolerances, and describes a variety of tests people with food intolerances can take — such as the individual challenge feeding test (sometimes called the Pulse Test), the standard scratch or prick test, sublingual provocative testing, vega or electrodermal testing, and applied kinesiology or muscle strength testing. Many allergic reactions to food — hives, swelling of the mouth and throat, rapid breathing, and other symptoms — are fairly well-known and easily recognized. However, according to Ottawa naturopath Dr. Don Warren, food intolerances may be indicated by “anything from digestive complaints to stomach pain, headaches, mood disturbances, foggy thinking, asthma, arthralgias (joint inflammation), lowered energy, mood changes, and, in children, learning disabilities. Almost any chronic set of symptoms may or may not be affected by food intolerances.” Both Plant and Sadowski recommend proper and thorough testing, whatever one’s symptoms. Sadowski also cautions those who suspect they are celiac to avoid going 60 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
gluten-free before being tested, as this will skew test results. Once high-allergen foods have been identified, changing your diet can be an overwhelming task, especially if you’re already feeling unwell. Plant and Sadowski agree that, in addition to the supportive services of good doctors and friends who do not make you feel “different” or “sick,” people with food allergies need to enlist the help of family and friends in shopping and preparing non-allergenic food. And if you have a job or are in school, Sadowski suggests “having honest talks with your employer or professors [or teachers]. Encourage people to ask questions. Individuals have to be their own advocate and explain that celiac disease isn’t a lifestyle choice. We can make it easier for other people in our lives by providing them [with] knowledge about cross-contamination, and by bringing our own food to their houses for holidays, gatherings, etc.” Nutrition or poison? For Laurie Sadowski and Shirley Plant, food no longer threatens their well-being. They have discovered that the right food supports their health and informs their vocations to help others who struggle with celiac disease and HWO food allergies.
A Winter Meal That’s Allergen-Free
H
aving food allergies doesn’t have to take all the pleasure out of eating. In fact, you won’t feel deprived at all with these recipes from cookbook authors Shirley Plant and Laurie Sadowski (see recipes on page 62). Whether you’re allergic to gluten or nightshades, dairy or nuts, yeast or sugar and more, you’ll find these recipes safe and satisfying.
Finally...Food I Can Eat [General Store Publishing House, ISBN 978-1-897113-56-1] by local cookbook author Shirley Plant can be purchased from Chapters/Indigo and other bookstores, or online at www.amazon.com, and at Rainbow Foods (1487 Richmond Road) and Natural Food Pantry’s three locations (see www.naturalfoodpantry.ca). Visit Plant’s website: www.deliciousalternatives.com, where you’ll find allergy-free recipes, tips, advice, and lots of healthy meal ideas for people with food allergies or food intolerances.
Laurie Sadowski, the Allergy-Free cookbook author, has been busy in the kitchen with an everexpanding cookbook series dedicated to glutenfree, vegan baking. With two books published in the last two years — The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Bread and The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Cakes and Cookies — Sadowski’s third book The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Pies and Desserts will be released in the spring of 2014. To learn more about Sadowski’s cookbooks and to follow her recipe blog, see www.lauriesadowski.com. The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Bread [Book Publishing Company, ISBN 978-1-57067-262-0] and The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Cakes and Cookies [Book Publishing Company, ISBN 978-1-57067-291-0].
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 61
featured winter soup
Millet Vegetable Soup *
(Yields 12 cups)
Photo: Vanessa Ronksley
INGREDIENTS
INSTRUCTIONS
Olive oil 1 medium red onion, diced 1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed ½ cup shredded cabbage 4 carrots, sliced ½ turnip, peeled and diced 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 cup millet, rinsed 6 to 7 cups water or vegetable stock 2 teaspoons basil 1 teaspoon celery seed 1 teaspoon pepper 1½ teaspoons sea salt 3 bay leaves 1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
In a large soup pot, add olive oil and sauté onion over medium heat. Let the onions sweat for about 2 minutes. Add squash, cabbage, carrots, turnip, garlic and a touch more oil and stir frequently. Sauté the vegetables for a few minutes; this will bring out their flavour. Add millet (always rinse millet to remove dirt and dust) and stir for 30 seconds. Add water or vegetable stock, and all seasonings and bay leaves, bring to a boil, and then let simmer for 30 minutes. Remove bay leaves, add in parsley, and enjoy.
Did You Know? Millet is full of nutrients and easy to digest. Millet is gluten-free and is a great grain to use to thicken soups, stews, and casseroles. *Adapted from Millet Vegetable Soup from Finally...Food I Can Eat!
62 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
featured winter breaD
AppleThyme Cornbread
*
(Makes 9 servings)
Photo: Laurie Sadowski
INGREDIENTS
INSTRUCTIONS
1¼ cups coarse-ground cornmeal ¾ cup sorghum flour ¼ cup arrowroot starch 1 tablespoon baking powder 1½ teaspoons xanthan gum ½ teaspoon fine sea salt 1½ cups unsweetened non-dairy milk ¼ cup pure maple syrup 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons loosely packed finely chopped thyme 2 large sweet-tart baking apples, such as Mutsu, cut into thin half-moons
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly oil a 9-inch square, glass baking dish. Put the cornmeal, sorghum flour, arrowroot starch, baking powder, xanthan gum, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Put the non-dairy milk, maple syrup, and oil in a small bowl. Whisk to combine. Pour the liquid into the flour mixture. Stir until just mixed. Mix in the thyme. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Smooth the top. Layer the apple slices on top, slightly overlapping, until the whole top is covered. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the bread comes out clean. Let cool at least 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy warm.
*Adapted from Maple-Kissed Cornbread from The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Bread
An everyday cornbread gets a twist of flavour when you add fresh thyme leaves, pure maple syrup, and sweet-tart apples.
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 63
featured winter dinner
Baked Beans
*
(Yields 10 cups)
Photo: Vanessa Ronksley
INGREDIENTS
INSTRUCTIONS
2 cups white navy beans 2 cups pinto beans 2 medium onions, finely chopped 1½ teaspoons sea salt 2 teaspoons lemon juice 2 teaspoons dry mustard 2 tablespoons maple syrup ½ cup olive oil 1 cup organic apple juice or cider 1½ teaspoons thyme ½ teaspoon black pepper 2½ teaspoons summer savory ½ to 1 teaspoon sage
Soak beans overnight and rinse well, a couple of times, during soaking. This will help eliminate the gaseous enzymes in the beans that cause flatulence.
Did You Know? A pot full of beans is a pot full of nutrition! Rich in protein, calcium, phosphorous, and iron, beans make a great meal.
*Adapted from Baked Beans from Finally...Food I Can Eat!
64 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Put the beans in a pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Let the beans simmer with the lid on for at least one hour or until the beans are soft. Sauté onions in some olive oil with a pinch of sage and summer savory until onions are nicely brown. Place drained cooked beans, onions and all other ingredients into a large casserole dish and stir well. Cover and bake for at least 90 minutes at 325°F, until beans are brown and creamy. Stir the beans and make sure there is enough liquid in the dish during baking time. If the bean mixture gets a bit dry, add in some more apple juice or cider.
featured winter dessert
Orange Spice Cookies *
(Makes 18 cookies)
INGREDIENTS ¾ cup unrefined cane sugar ½ cup coconut oil, softened ¼ cup pure maple syrup 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1¼ cups sorghum flour ¼ cup quinoa flour ¼ cup tapioca flour ¾ teaspoon baking soda ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum ½ teaspoon fine sea salt ½ teaspoon ground cardamom ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon ¼ teaspoon ground ginger ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
INSTRUCTIONS Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Photo: Laurie Sadowski
Put the sugar, coconut oil, maple syrup, orange juice, and vanilla extract in a stand mixer or large bowl. Using the stand mixer or a hand mixer, beat on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Put the sorghum flour, quinoa flour, tapioca flour, baking soda, xanthan gum, salt, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the orange zest and mix well. Turn the mixer to low speed. Gradually add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture, beating to form a soft dough. For each cookie, scoop out 1 rounded tablespoon of dough and drop it onto the lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, leaving about 2 inches between cookies for spreading. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges are firm and golden brown. Let cool on the sheet for 4 minutes. Carefully remove the cookies and put them on a cooling rack to cool completely.
* Reprinted from The Allergy-Free Cook Bakes Cakes and Cookies, with permission from Book Publishing Company
Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 65
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66 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
From the Kitchen to Skin Care, Naturally! By Heather Garrod
T
aking care of your body naturally doesn’t just mean being aware of what you put into it. It’s also what you put on it that counts. Skin — the body’s largest organ — is responsible for absorbing nutrients, as well as releasing waste products. It is our first defense against the external world, so it only makes sense to give it the best possible care. And it doesn’t have to be expensive. You might be surprised to find some wonderful skin care ingredients in your very own kitchen. Yogourt is a good example. This amazing product is alkaline in nature, so applying it to the skin can help with conditions like acne and eczema (use a plain, organic yogourt without added flavours or sugar). The naturally occurring probiotics in yogourt are a real boon to the skin, as well as the gut. You can use yogourt as a spot treatment for acne by applying a small amount to the affected area and letting it tighten; then remove
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it gently with warm water. For a complete facial mask, add 1 tablespoon of glutenfree ground oats to thicken the blend, half a mashed avocado, 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, and 1 tablespoon of honey. Why honey? Read on! Honey is a great spot treatment for blemishes. It is antibacterial in nature, so is a very gentle way to address acne inflammation. It’s best to stay clear of alcohol-based treatments because they can dry the skin and cause it to produce more oil, setting up a vicious cycle. Honey, on the other hand, is a humectant, which means it draws moisture to the skin. And because of its amazing drawing ability, is also useful for drawing stingers out of the skin after a bee sting, or in any circumstance where an infection is setting in under the skin. Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 67
What else can you use from your kitchen? Fruits and vegetables! Bananas are well known for their potassium, beneficial as a face mask because they have antibacterial properties and help to exfoliate. Rich in vitamin C and antioxidants, bananas are also good to leave on your face to nourish and protect it. Avocados are easily absorbed into most skin types, smoothing and soothing to the dermis and packed with nutrients like vitamins A, C, E, and the antioxidant beta carotene. Try this: Step 1 — Eat an avocado or banana, reserving a tablespoon or so for the mask. Step 2 — Blend the leftovers into a paste and massage it generously over your face. You can add yogourt or oatmeal to the blend, as well. Step 3 — Leave it on the face for 10 to 15 minutes and then rinse it off with warm water or remove with a facecloth. The results? Smooth and soft skin!
Photos: Heather Garrod
68 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
Apple cider vinegar is another household skin remedy. Among other things, it contains malic acid, which gives it its antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral properties. It restores the skin’s acid mantle, which helps protect it from infection. It will also remove shampoo residue, tone the scalp, and leave your hair feeling silky soft. And it is fantastic as an after-sunburn remedy. It even helps tighten and firm the skin.
The antiviral properties of the vinegar also suggest that it can be effective for warts. The recommended treatment is to apply undiluted vinegar with a cotton ball to the affected area and leave it there as long as possible (a good overnight treatment). Then, continue this protocol for as long as necessary. To use it as a hair rinse, dilute 50/50 in water and gently pour the combination through your hair, massaging it into your scalp and taking special care not to get it near your eyes. Rinse and comb out. As a facial toner, dilute one part to three parts water and gently clean your face with a facecloth or spritz the liquid onto your skin and let it dry, again avoiding the eyes. Oatmeal has been used as a skin care product for centuries. This ingredient is soothing — great for dry, irritated skin and as a gentle exfoliant. You can use a coffee grinder to mill the oats into a fine powder, leaving a little grit. Try this easy shower treatment: Take the ground oats with you and make a wet paste of equal parts oatmeal and water with running water. Gently rub the paste in a circular motion over your entire face. Rinse and pat dry.
or diaper rash. To use oatmeal in the bath, add it to your bathwater and soak, but make sure to use a cheesecloth or muslin bag to keep the oatmeal from clogging your bathtub drain! There are many other ingredients you can find in the kitchen and use on your body; these are just a few examples. Remember that although an ingredient is natural, you can have a reaction to it. Food allergies may preclude you using certain ingredients. For example, gluten allergies may mean you should not use oatmeal if there is a chance it has been cross-contaminated. Life is great when it’s simple. And the easier things are to do, and the more natural, the more cost-effective generally, and the more we are inclined to do them. Enjoy the feeling of caring for your skin easily, naturally, and economically…and revel in HWO the radiant results!
Oatmeal has a long tradition of being used to ease the itch and soreness of chicken pox
Heather Garrod is a certified aromatherapist and owner of Planet Botanix at 301 Bank Street, which provides natural solutions in a complicated world.
Go Skin Deep Naturally! Here are some resources for natural ingredients that you may find useful: › w ww.davidsuzuki.org/publications/downloads/2010/homemade-cosmeticingredients.pdf › w ww.ewg.org/skindeep/ › w ww.webmd.com/beauty/skin/beyond-first-blush-an-upclose-look-at-naturalskin-care-products
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ADVERTISERS’ alphabeticAl INDEx Bastien-Prizant Optometrists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Bikram Yoga Ottawa www.bikramottawa.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Bushtukah www.bushtukah.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
CWG Footcare Inc. www.cwgfootcare.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
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Prana Shanti Yoga Centre
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Rainbow Natural Foods www.rainbowfoods.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Rama Lotus Yoga Centre
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NutriChem Compounding Pharmacy & Clinic
Stella Luna Gelato Café www.slgelato.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
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Strawberry Blonde Bakery www.strawberryblondebakery.com . . . . . 61
OK Cycle & Adventure Tours www.okcycletours.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
The Pantry Vegetarian Restaurant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Ottawa Farmers’ Market
Watson’s Pharmacy & Compounding Centre
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www.watsonspharma.com . . . . . Back Cover
O
ttawa resident Craig Piche is the lucky winner of the Reader’s Contest in the fall 2013 issue of Healthwise Ottawa. Craig and his family will certainly enjoy the eight weekly fruit and vegetable baskets delivered to their door from Ottawa Organics & Natural Foods.
See page 31 in this issue for a chance to win tasty treats from Strawberry Blonde Bakery — you just might be a lucky winner, too! 70 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Winter 2013/2014
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www.oicc.ca Winter 2013/2014 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 71
Watson’s& PhaRmacy “We’ll take good care of you” Scott Watson, Pharmacist and Owner BPharm, MSc, 20 years of experience
Scott Watson
Family-owned Watson’s offers an integrative, holistic approach to your health, combining the best of traditional medicines and complementary therapies. Watson’s can even formulate customized medicines to meet your specific needs in its in-store compounding lab. For quality dispensary services, organic products, nutritional supplements, and health advice, visit us at one of our two Ottawa locations. Visit us online to learn more about in-store health seminars or to watch Scott discuss more than 30 health topics on “Ask the Expert” on CTV.
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