Protect Your Precious Hands
Every winter our hands take a beating. It only takes a of couple weeks of exposure to chilly temperatures and wheeling through salty, sandy slush for our hands and nails to become dry, cracked and brittle. Sometimes even the warmest, water-proof gloves/mittens and deeply intensifying moisturizers aren’t enough to protect our precious appendages from the harsh elements. To help keep your skin and nails strong from the inside make sure to include plenty of the following nutrien
Spice Up Your Life & Boost Your Immune System
The immune system is a complex collection of cells, organs and systems found throughout the body. This dynamic system is responsible for protecting your body against infection and disease. It is well documented that people with a spinal cord injury (SCI) have compromised immune systems and are at increased risk of bacterial and viral infections. Furthermore, studies show that people with quadriplegia or complete SCI’s tend to have greater immune suppression than people with p
Give Peas a Chance!
A highly nutritious food we rarely hear about anymore is the green pea, but this wasn’t always the case. Once upon a time, about 10 000 years ago, green peas (often mistaken as a vegetable; they are in fact a legume) helped develop agricultural societies as they were one of the first cultivated crops. 5000 years later our Egyptian ancestors worshipped this valuable food source so much they buried them with Pharos to take with them into the afterlife. Rome’s first cookbook cel
Spread a little love
Most of the clients I work with are looking for healthy, fast, and easy to prepare foods that address the secondary complications associated with their SCI. I guarantee that this black bean spread not only does all that but you’ll love it! Simple to prepare in under 5 minutes, this non-cook “Love Bean Spread” recipe will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days and can be served as a variety of meals, side dishes or snacks throughout the day. Spread it on whole grain toast for bre
Ovaries Over Ice
Shortly after my last article Testicles & Toast was published, a partner (whose identity shall remain anonymous) contacted me proposing that I balance the genital scales of justice by doing a similar article on a female friendly fruit. Well no objections counsellor, with all things being fair and equal, here it is. Exhibit A: The Pomegranate Fruiting plants and humans both have reproductive organs called ovaries. When pomegranates are cross-sectioned (or cross examined) they
Drink Your Way to Better Health!
With the brisk weather here it can be daunting to think about drinking 8 glasses of water everyday. Today's thirst-quenching beverage Kombucha will make this easier - while providing you with additional health benefits! This refreshing, fermented, naturally carbonated, mildly sweet ancient Chinese tea has multiple health and energy boosting benefits for people with SCI. Kombucha is rich in enzymes (enzymes breakdown food) so it helps to support our compromised digestive syste
Hemorrhoids: How to Prevent this Pain in the Butt!
Hemorrhoids, swollen veins around the anus and in the rectum, are more prevalent among the SCI population than the general population. It is believed that this higher incidence is due to several factors such as chronic constipation (which intensifies pressure and may weaken the veins in the rectal area), prolonged sitting, straining, irritation through repeated digital stimulation and/or use of suppositories or enemas. A major sign of hemorrhoids in individuals with SCI is bl
Healthful Weight Gain
The majority of people with SCI (60%) are overweight and often struggling with ways to rid themselves of their added pounds. However, there are many individuals with SCI that are underweight and struggle with trying to pack the pounds on. While this might not seem like such a dreadful problem to have, being too thin with a SCI has some serious health risks- namely pressure sores. People with SCI who are underweight have twice the risk of developing pressure sores than those w
Don't Neglect Your Gallbladder!
People rarely give their gallbladder much thought until they have a problem with it, however, those of us with SCI should be giving this little pear-shaped organ a lot of thought and care long before that. People with SCI have an increased prevalence of cholelithiasis, the formation of gallstones. Studies indicate that the risk of developing gallstones is three to six times higher compared to able-bodied individuals belonging to similar demographic groups. In fact, the risk i
Weight Loss: More is Less
Say what? Over 60% of people with SCI are overweight and this increase in weight is strongly correlated with the development of other health conditions such as, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. When most of us think about losing weight and unwanted fat, we think less is more: less calories, fewer meals and smaller portion sizes. While healthy weight loss is indeed about eating the right kinds of foods and in the right amounts, it’s also greatly affected by the balance and