parenting

Parenting Expert Alyson Schafer this week live on TheHealthHub

This Week on TheHealthHub

Alyson Schafer

parenting

Alyson Schafer is a therapist, TV personality, author, columnist, spokesperson, educator and consultant. She is one of Canada’s most notable parenting experts and serves as the resident expert on national outlets such as: The Marilyn Denis Show, HuffingtonPost Parents Canada and CBC radio.

An internationally acclaimed parenting expert, Alyson empowers families by sharing her principles, rules and tools for raising happy and healthy kids. Her style is fast, witty, warm and encouraging. Alyson delivers her deep insights in ways that today’s busy parents can easily understand and apply immediately.

Alyson promotes a firm but friendly “democratic parenting” style and offers practical solutions backed by extensive research. Armed with years of research, clinical and field experience, Alyson can provide a new, positive understanding of your current family dynamic with actionable solutions that will give you the hope and confidence needed to transform your family.

Alyson is the bestselling author of Breaking The Good Mom Myth and Honey, I Wrecked The Kids and her latest, Ain’t Misbehavin’ which have been translated into Russion, Korean, Bulgarian and Chinese.  She is an international speaker including the inaugural TEDxKids in Brussels.

Our show will cover topics such as:

  • Affective Approaches to modifying your child’s behaviour
  • How to raise confident children
  • Tips for making time for family time

 Listen live or catch the podcast on iTunes!

 


Every Tuesday from 11am -12pm I host The Health Hub, an interactive, forward thinking talk show on Radio Maria Canada.   Call, tweet or email your questions as together we explore health issues that are relevant to you from new and innovative points of view.

TheHealthHub is now on iTunes!

Subscribe and don’t miss a single episode!

 

 


Follow us on Social Media

 


How To Listen Live

Visit our website and learn how to listen live to our show each week.
http://www.radiomaria.ca/how-to-listen

Here’s how to connect with us:
Email: thh@radiomaria.ca

Twitter: @radiomariaCAN

Twitter: @cathy_biase

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheHealthHubRadioMaria/


Let us know!

If you have a health topic that you would like us to discuss or are a health care specialist who wants to be a guest on our show let us know!

Here is our email.  We would love to hear from you!
thh@radiomaria.ca

 

This Week on TheHealthHub…Back to School Basics with Meredith Deasley

Every Tuesday from 11am -12pm I host The Health Hub, an interactive, forward thinking talk show on Radio Maria Canada.   Call, tweet or email your questions as together we explore health issues that are relevant to you from new and innovative points of view.

This Week on TheHealthHub…

Meredith Deasley started her company “The Resourceful Mother” in 2002, specializing in nutrition for families. Meredith is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist, a Registered Nutritional Consulting Practitioner and is a Life Coach with the International Coach Federation (ICF).

In 2010, Meredith published her breakout book, “The Resourceful Mother’s Secrets to Healthy Kids”  followed by “The Resourceful Mother’s Secrets to Emotional Health” in 2014. Her work is read in over 120 countries and 2400 cities.

Meredith has helped hundreds of families solve their physical and emotional health challenges through individual consultations. She conducts nutrition and emotional health seminars and teaches at the Canadian School of Natural Nutrition. In the past 15 years Meredith has been interviewed on numerous radio and television shows and been written about in newspapers and magazines.

 


Follow us on Social Media

 

 


TheHealthHub is now on SoundCloud!

Follow us and don’t miss a single episode!


How To Listen

Visit our website and learn how to listen to our show each week.
http://www.radiomaria.ca/how-to-listen

Here’s how to connect with us:
Email: thh@radiomaria.ca

Twitter: @radiomariaCAN

Twitter: @cathy_biase

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheHealthHubRadioMaria/


Let us know!

If you have a health topic that you would like us to discuss or are a health care specialist who wants to be a guest on our show let us know!

Here is our email.  We would love to hear from you!
thh@radiomaria.com

5 Ways to Help Avoid Constipation

Constipation is not only uncomfortable it is also unhealthy. Defecation, bowel movements, pooping or whatever else you might want to call it, eliminating toxins and waste regularly from our body is vital for good health. Optimally we should be pooping at least once a day. When the infrequency of a bowel movement hits the 3-day mark this is considered constipation. At this point any bowel movements are often dry and hard and very hard to pass.

Quite simply we poop to eliminate what our body doesn’t want and the inability to poop can cause short-term issues like bloating and abdominal pain while chronic constipation can lead to hemorrhoids, anal fissures and rectal prolapse. Further to this, if our bowels are not cleared, our colon can become a breeding ground for bacteria that can have the effect of weakening our immune system.

Understanding now the importance of ‘being regular’, here are 5 tips to help avoid constipation.

1. Poop properly!

If you are not in to squatting to poop, as most westerners are not, then elevate your feet to position all of your parts in to the ideal pooping position. In our household we have just invested in Squatty Potties to help us ease our passages. Another factor of a good poop is to take your time when the moment arrives. Stress can inhibit what your body needs to get done so when nature calls, don’t rush the process.

 

2. Keep Yourself Well Hydrated

drinkwater

Water helps to keep our intestinal tract in good physical shape and aids in digestion and the passage of the food we eat. As a guideline, drink 6-8 glasses of water each day.

 

 

 

 

3. Ensure Adequate Fibre in your Diet  

I encourage 30-40 grams of fibre a day. There are 2 kinds of fibre that we need in our diet to form stools and move them along. Soluble fibre, which dissolves in water and creates bulk and insoluble fibre that doesn’t dissolve but instead acts as a mover and a shaker to pass stool through the colon.

4. Exercise

As we move, so does the food that we ingest. Exercising helps to move the food that we eat through our intestinal tract. As food moves through our intestines water is absorbed back in to the body. The slower the pace then the dryer the stool. This can contribute to constipation. Walk, run, jog whatever!  Just make exercise a part of your routine.

 5. Remove Foods that You are Sensitive to from your Diet

This can be a hard one to get a hold of but it is extremely important. Food sensitivities can contribute to constipation. If you experience things like bloating, fatigue or pain after you eat something this is a good sign that you may be intolerant to it. Keeping a food journal is a great tool to hone in on foods that may not be ideal for you. If you suspect intolerance, remove that food from your diet.

I have had great success with implementing the FODMAP diet for clients who suffer from constipation. The FODMAP diet eliminates various foods containing short chain carbohydrates and sugar alcohols to help calm symptoms of IBS.

FODMAP

Diet and lifestyle adjustments can go a long way in preventing and alleviating constipation and implementing the above tips can help make bathroom trips a happy and regular event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5 Tips To Help You Get A Good Night’s Sleep

Consistently getting a good night’s sleep is essential for your good health on so many levels.  For instance sleep is essential for:

  • Healing and repairing your heart, blood vessels, cells and tissues
  • Detoxification
  • Weight management
  • Blood sugar management
  • Immune strengthing
  • Brain health and memory function

But what exactly is a good night’s sleep?  Well, it’s a combination of adequate duration coupled with experiencing the 4 phases of quality sleep.  According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, sleep is experienced in 4 phases ending with Rapid Eye Movement (REM) and the stages repeat in order every 90-110 minutes as follows:

Stages 1 and 2 are a progression from light sleep through to a gradual slowing of brain waves. In Stage 3 we enter a deeper sleep. If we are awakened during this phase we may feel quite disoriented. Stage 4 is the REM phase. In this final stage our breathing quickens and our eyes move beneath our eyelids. This is our deepest stage of sleep where we can get our most powerful dreams.

So knowing the importance and the characteristics of a good night’s sleep, the question becomes how do we go about achieving it?  As they say there are many ways to skin a cat but here are my top 5 recommendations:

  1. Create a bedtime routine.  This will send a signal to your body that rest is coming and then those lovely sleepy time hormones will kick in.  For example, turn the lights down, brush your teeth and get in to your jammies at the same time each night.
  2. Turn all electronics off 1/2 hour before bedtime and keep them out of the bedroom.  This will allow your brain to settle down for the night.
  3. Sleep in a cool, dark room.
  4. Do not eat right before bedtime.  You want your body to be in repair mode not digestion mode.
  5. Once you are in bed do some deep breathing to slow everything down.  I always recommend Dr. Weil’s 4-7-8 technique.  Breathe in for 4.  Hold for 7.  Breathe out for 8. Repeat this a few times.

Start working these tips in to your nightly routine and let your good sleep get to work!