8 reasons to eat more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

Don't wait until you're older to up your fibre intake. Eat it every day to help lower your risk of heart disease, regulate blood sugar and keep your colon happy

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It’s an easy way to eat healthier

Often, increasing your fibre intake is as simple as switching to a higher-fibre version of something you already eat. You can also increase fibre content by adding berries to muffins and pancakes; adding a couple of spoonfuls of wheat bran to yogurt or lower-fibre cereals; replacing mayonnaise with hummus; eating potatoes with the skins on; snacking on seeds and nuts; eating whole fruits rather than drinking their juice; adding lentils, peas or beans to pasta sauces; and switching to whole-wheat pasta and brown rice.

Related:
• 6 ways to sneak more fibre into your diet
• The 5 vegetables that are highest in fibre
• 10 ways to get more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

Don't wait until you're older to up your fibre intake. Eat it every day to help lower your risk of heart disease, regulate blood sugar and keep your colon happy

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Reduce risk of heart disease

Soluble fibre helps control blood sugar levels and reduces blood cholesterol, which helps lower the risk of heart disease. Some soluble fibres offer “fermentability”; they’re digested by healthful bacteria in the large intestine, which helps maintain colon health. You can get soluble fibre by eating certain fruits and veggies, grains, legumes, and psyllium. Eat a variety of foods to get the most benefits.

8 reasons to eat more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

Don't wait until you're older to up your fibre intake. Eat it every day to help lower your risk of heart disease, regulate blood sugar and keep your colon happy

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Prevent colon cancer

Often called “roughage” or “bulk,” insoluble fibre promotes bowel regularity, whisks the waste out of your system faster, and helps prevent colon cancer.  You can find it in whole-wheat bread, wheat bran, green beans and dark-green leafy vegetables, edible skins of fruit and root veggies, and seeds and nuts.

8 reasons to eat more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

Don't wait until you're older to up your fibre intake. Eat it every day to help lower your risk of heart disease, regulate blood sugar and keep your colon happy

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Fight disease

Fibre is associated with lowering blood cholesterol and decreasing the risk of heart disease, diabetes, obesity and certain types of cancer.  Start enjoying the benefits by giving your breakfast a healthy boost of fibre: add a spoonful of wheat bran or ground flax seed to your cereal or yogurt.

8 reasons to eat more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

Don't wait until you're older to up your fibre intake. Eat it every day to help lower your risk of heart disease, regulate blood sugar and keep your colon happy

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Consume less calories

Fibre-rich foods are often lower in calories than foods that have little or no fibre, says Brown, making them a great choice for anyone who's trying to lose weight (or avoid gaining). Take advantage of this fact when dining at a restaurant—choose whole-grain breads, wraps, pizza crusts and pasta, when possible, or order a fibre-rich salad.

8 reasons to eat more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

Don't wait until you're older to up your fibre intake. Eat it every day to help lower your risk of heart disease, regulate blood sugar and keep your colon happy

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Feel full longer

Complex carbs, such as fibre, break down slowly. Fibre-rich foods take longer to digest, so they stay in your stomach longer, which keeps you feeling full and discourages overeating. Brown recommends some simple strategies to boost fibre intake: Choose whole-grain and whole-wheat products instead of those made from white flour; enjoy fresh fruit instead of drinking juice; and add barley, beans, peas or lentils to casseroles and soups.

8 reasons to eat more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

Don't wait until you're older to up your fibre intake. Eat it every day to help lower your risk of heart disease, regulate blood sugar and keep your colon happy

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Get full faster

Fibre is thirsty like a sponge—it can soak up many times its own weight in water. “[Fibre] absorbs water in your mouth and passing into your stomach. A high-fibre food swells up in your stomach and fills you up faster,” explains Natalie Brown, a registered dietitian in White Rock, B.C.

8 reasons to eat more fibre

8 reasons to eat more fibre

Don't wait until you're older to up your fibre intake. Eat it every day to help lower your risk of heart disease, regulate blood sugar and keep your colon happy

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Cut down obesity risk

High-fibre foods often require more munching time. This slows down your eating, which allows your brain to register feelings of fullness. According to the Heart & Stroke Foundation, studies show that women who consume more dietary fibre are half as likely to be obese as those who consume less.

9 stomach pains you should never ignore

9 stomach pains you should never ignore

Don't just ignore a sudden pain in your stomach. Here's how to know when it could be something more than a cramp

Description: A burning sensation just below the breastbone, particularly after a large meal
Possible causes: Heartburn(reflux)
What to do: Take over-the-counter antacids and avoid large greasy meals. If pain persists for several weeks, see your doctor.

Description: Pain around and below your navel accompanied by gas
Possible causes: Constipation or flatulence
What to do: Take an over-the-counter laxative or anti-gas medication. If pain persists for more than two weeks, see your doctor.

Description: Sudden pain around your navel; may be accompanied by nausea, fever, vomiting, loss of appetite, pressure to have a bowel movement or stiffening of the abdominal muscles
Possible causes: Appendicitis
What to do: Go to the hospital. Appendicitis must be treated quickly or the appendix will rupture and leak infected fluid into other parts of the abdomen. Stiffening of abdominal muscles is a sign that infection is starting to spread.

Description: Sudden pain in the right side of your abdomen that may radiate to other parts of your abdomen or back
Possible causes: Gallstones or gall bladder inflammation
What to do: If pain persists or worsens after eating greasy foods, see your doctor.

Description: Sudden pain below your navel that radiates to either side of your navel
Possible causes: A colon disorder, a urinary tract infection or pelvic inflammatory disease
What to do: If pain continues to worsen, call your doctor, who may order diagnostic tests or advise you to go to the emergency department.

• What to eat if you have Crohn’s disease or colitis
• How to decrease your stomach cancer risk
• The foods to eat for a healthy gut

Description: Sudden sharp pain near your lower ribs that radiates down your groin
Possible causes: Kidney stones or, if accompanied by fever, a kidney or bladder infection
What to do: Increase your water intake and call your doctor. Most kidney stones eventually pass on their own, although in rare cases surgery is necessary. If you also have a fever, call your doctor.

Description: Sudden pain and tenderness in your lower left abdomen may be accompanied by fever, nausea or vomiting
Possible causes: Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis or diverticulitis
What to do: See your doctor, who may recommend a colonoscopy. Long-term treatment may be required.

Description: Sudden pain accompanied by bloody diarrhoea, blood in the stool or vomiting blood
Possible causes: A blockage in the bowel, a perforated appendix or bleeding from the bowel
What to do: These are symptoms of internal bleeding; go straight to the nearest hospital.

Description: Mild pain or discomfort that comes on slowly and continues or recurs for weeks or months, sometimes accompanied by diarrhoea, constipation, bloating or flatulence
Possible causes: A chronic ailment such as lactose intolerance, irritable bowel syndrome, ulcers, food intolerance, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis or coeliac disease
What to do: See your doctor, who may refer you to a gastroenterologist for follow-up.

Description: Sudden abdominal pain in an older person especially one who smokes or has high blood pressure; may be accompanied by lightheadedness
Possible causes: Abdominal aortic aneurysm
What to do: The widening of the aorta can cause fatal bleeding. Go to the emergency department immediately.

Homemade arthritis remedies: The truth about what works

Homemade arthritis remedies: The truth about what works

Treat your arthritis pain effectively by ensuring the treatment you're trying actually works. Find out which homemade arthritis remedies actually work, and which ones are too good to be true

By Lisa Bendall

What do hot peppers, green tea and gin-soaked raisins have in common? They’re all natural remedies for the pain and swelling of arthritis… at least, that’s what many people would swear to if you asked them.

Arthritis is common, affecting one in six Canadians. They’re not all seniors, either: Sixty percent of people with arthritis are under the age of 65. For those dealing daily with this disease, it can be a challenge to find relief. That’s why they turn to a try-anything approach.

“The most prevalent symptom of arthritis, the thing that shows up first and is the most aggravating, is pain,” says Dr. David Hart, professor of medicine at the University of Calgary and scientific director of The Arthritis Society. When it comes to experimenting with home remedies, he says, folks are often open-minded. “People think, if it helps me, great, and if it doesn’t, fine.”

The trouble with many of these treatments, though, is that while there may be convincing testimonials out there—celebrity athlete wears ionized metal bracelet and claims his arthritis pain disappears—there isn’t always the science to back them up.And sometimes just believing something will help you is enough to convince you it’s making a difference. “It’s not that the disease gets better, it’s that the symptoms decrease. The placebo effect can affect pain perception,” Dr. Hart says. (In the case of the ionized bracelet, a Mayo Clinic study discredited any effect it has on arthritis pain.)

One treatment doesn't fit all

Another challenge is that everyone’s disease is different. What works for some people may have absolutely no effect on others. Injections of hyaluronic acid, a lubricant, have been shown in a recent Swiss study to cause uncomfortable side effects without offering much help. Yet there’s a small number of people whose arthritis temporarily improves after the injections.

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The same for glucosamine with chondroitin sulfate, as research funded by the U.S. National Institutes for Health has demonstrated. While this supplement combo didn’t help most people with osteoarthritis, there was significant pain relief in a subgroup.“We’re so heterogeneous, it makes it hard to do a study,” says Dr. Hart.

Science can and does show promise for certain remedies, like the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oils. The University of Dundee in Scotland reported that people with rheumatoid arthritis who took a daily cod liver oil supplement instead of a placebo were able to reduce their anti-inflammatory medications. But Dr. Hart points out that subjects in a study like this would probably realize they’re taking cod liver oil (“Your skin, your sweat smells like fish oil”). So it’s difficult to do a true double-blind study, in which neither the test subjects nor the researchers initially know who’s getting a placebo.

Even when a supplement truly works, that’s no guarantee that the capsules you buy at your local health store have been produced with the strength required to have an effect. “In many cases, there’s no standardization as to the potency of a particular concoction. The formulation can vary from one supplier to the next,” Dr. Hart says. While there is evidence that capsaicin cream (with hot pepper extract) may provide a limited amount of relief from arthritis pain, for instance, products differ in their concentration of the substance.

But you can probably put on the kettle with confidence. Several encouraging studies show links between green tea and a reduction in the inflammation of rheumatoid arthritis. But raisins soaked in gin? There’s only weak evidence that juniper (used in gin) may have an anti-inflammatory effect. So there isn’t enough strong science yet to send you to the liquor store.

Help to ease symptoms

How about other non-pharmaceutical remedies? It’s proven that weight loss will help with arthritis symptoms. “For every 10 pounds that you weigh, it puts another 40 pounds of loading on your knee,” says Dr. Hart. “Some people on waiting lists for joint replacements can go home, lose 40 pounds and their knees won’t hurt anymore.” Plusactivities that improve your sleep, like yoga and meditation, can help cut your chronic pain.

“Taking drugs isn’t necessarily the only option out there,” says Dr. Hart. “But you may have to do a variety of things. It’s not like there’s one magic bullet out there. You want to be in a position to do what’s best for you.”

Why is hormone replacement therapy so controversial?

Why is hormone replacement therapy so controversial?

The debate continues over whether synthetic or bioidentical hormones are better for treating symptoms of menopause. Medical doctor Susan Biali helps clarify the controversy

By Dr. Susan Biali

“What do you think about bio­identical hormones?” asked a woman in her 50s who had come as a “walk-in” to the clinic where I practise. “The gynecologist my family doctor referred me to told me that they’re unproven and it’s better to go with traditional hormone replacement. I’m scared to do that, though.”

During my medical training I had learned the basics of women’s hormonal health. I knew how to ask about or listen for symptoms of menopause, confirm the “diagnosis,” and administer standard doses of synthetichormone replacement therapy (HRT). Then, in 2002, after I had been practising for two years, came the results of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI). This large study examining synthetic estrogen and progestin commonly used in HRT was suspended when subjects experienced an increased risk of breast cancer, cardiac events, strokes and blood clots. Deeply shaken, I hesitated to start any woman on synthetic HRT, other than to relieve the most debilitating hot flashes. I echoed the new position of leading experts in the field, cautioning women to limit use of HRT to no more than five years at most.

The reasoning behind HRT in general is straightforward. At any time from our early 30s into our late 40s, women enter perimenopause. During this time, progesterone levels drop and estrogen levels dominate. Since progesterone helps us sleep and keeps us calm, the imbalance creates symptoms such as sleeplessness and anxiety.

Later, as we enter menopause, our ovaries stop producing estrogen and we face low levels of both crucial hormones. Estrogen alone has more than 400 functions: Among other things, it regulates body temperature, maintains memory, boosts our mood and keeps our skin young. If it’s missing, we experience hot flashes, memory lapses and “brain fog,” moodiness and more rapidly aging skin.

HRT aims to replace these dwindling hormones, thereby relieving symptoms and protecting our general health. Synthetic HRT consists of estrogens made partially from the urine of pregnant horses, and progestins, which are quite different structurally from our own progesterone. Bioidentical HRT consists of hormones extracted from plant sources such as yams and soy; they are structurally identical to our own hormones.Proponents of bio­identical HRT state that the problem with synthetic hormones is that they are too different from our own; they stimulate additional “unnecessary” hormone receptors and fail to replace some of the critical functions of our natural hormones, creating potentially serious side effects.

• 3 symptoms of menopause and how to cope
• Which menopause treatment is right for you?
• Is HRT safe?

When I first heard about bioidentical HRT, it sounded great, but I worried it hadn’t been rigorously evaluated. Leaders in women’s health, such as the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada, maintain a similarly skeptical position. Yet some of the best physicians I know have started practices that focus on bioidenticals and women’s midlife health.

A study published in 2009 in Postgraduate Medicine reviewed the available evidence and concluded that bioidentical hormones are associated with lower risks and are more efficacious than their synthetic and animal-derived counterparts.

So why the controversy?

After the frightening results of the WHI, it’s understandable that leading groups in the field want more proof from studies on large groups of women before endorsing this new era in hormones. They also say urine and saliva testing done by many bioidentical practitioners—to determine a woman’s level of hormones, among other things—isn’t accurate. Yet many practitioners swear by them, saying their patients get excellent results and fewer side effects from bioidenticals than from synthetic HRT.

There is one thing both sides agree on. The amount of distress you’ll experience in perimenopause or menopause is hugely tied to your general health. Stress hormones mess with our other hormones, and stressed-out women, as well as those with unhealthy eating habits, have a harder time with hormonal transitions.

So, as we wait for more research to give the final word on this topic, remember to take care of yourself—you can never go wrong with that.

The weirdest health trends around the world

The weirdest health trends around the world

You won’t believe these strange global diet and health trends actually exist

By Katharine Watts

Japan: Weight loss sunglasses

Sunglasses aren’t just for protecting your eyes from the sun anymore—at least not in Japan, where dieters use blue-tinted sunglasses to make food look dull. Apparently, blue isn’t an appetizing colour, so when you look at food, you won’t want to eat it. If you’re worried about stress-induced eating, fear not. Blue is also a calming colour—so naturally the sunglasses will prevent that too. I can’t say for sure these wouldn’t work, but I’m willing to bet if I smelled fresh-baked cookies, I’d probably overlook the blue tinge in favour of satiating my grumbling tummy.

Does disease run in your family?

Does disease run in your family?

Find out your family’s genealogy to help prevent and treat disease

By Jackie Middleton

Your sparkling blue eyes and thick chestnut locks aren’t the only traits passed down through genes. Stroke, arthritis, asthma, diabetes, Alzheimer’s and depression can run in families, too. Knowing your family’s medical history could provide the key to a long, healthy life. 

According to Lynn Jorde, chair of the department of human genetics at the University of Utah, certain diseases tend to cluster in families, so knowing the particular illnesses lurking in your family’s past can help keep you and your family healthy today. “This knowledge can help alert a physician that you may need special monitoring or certain tests. We know that if you have a close relative with coronary artery disease, or common cancers like breast, colon or prostate, this doubles your risk of having the same thing.” 

When it comes to the use of genealogy for medical purposes, the United States is ahead of Canada. American health experts say the creation of a family health chart, or “pedigree,” lets you become proactive about reducing your own health risks. “The power behind a family health history is that you can identify problems earlier—when they’re more likely to be treated, cured or prevented,” says Jenny Johnson, a media and education coordinator at the Utah Department of Health who helped develop an online resource for creating health pedigrees called the Family Health History Toolkit (you can find it at here). 

Unlocking your family’s health secrets may seem daunting, but it’s actually easy (as long as you know who your birth parents are). Here’s how:

Start with three generations

“The three closest generations are usually going to have the most impact on someone’s risk,” says Kiley Johnson, a certified genetic counsellor at the Mayo Clinic’s department of genetics in Minnesota. “Create a three-generation chart including your siblings, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents.” That may be all you need to see if there’s a pattern of a specific disorder or disease.

Note your own health history

Write down any major illnesses, diseases and surgeries that you’ve had. Be sure to include your age and the dates when these events began or occurred. Next, add lifestyle habits. Do you smoke? Are you overweight? Do you exercise? Do you get enough servings of fruit and vegetables daily, and eat according to Canada’s Food Guide? “You’re looking not just at the genetic component, but at lifestyle and environmental components,” says Suzanne O’Neill, associate director of Northwestern University’s graduate program in genetic counselling. Lifestyle habits along with environmental factors (such as workplace exposure to pesticides, and air pollution where you and your family members live) can impact health and are worth noting.

Speak with your parents

The next step is to discuss your project with your parents—but don’t be surprised if they’re hesitant. “Some families don’t like to talk about health history if there’s been a death, or certain cancers,” says Jenny Johnson. If your family is shy about discussing health issues, the Family Health History Toolkit is a great place to start. It contains interesting methods to get the conversation rolling, such as creating a family history book for a new grandchild (click on Fun Ideas). Once your parents are comfortable, pull out a pen and paper, or turn on your smartphone’s voice recording app, and start asking questions (see “Questions to Ask,” below). 

If your parents are no longer living, ask your uncles and aunts. Most families have a storyteller in their midst. If not, refer to the certified copy of your parents’ death registration (completed by the funeral director) or medical certificate of death (completed by the nurse or doctor at the time of death) as opposed to a regular death certificate, which won’t feature an actual cause. If you don’t have these documents, as the next of kin you can purchase a copy from your province or territory’s vital statistics agency (see “Where to Get More Information”). With a copy of your parents’ death record, you can order Canadian-based death registrations for your grandparents, too.

Be resourceful

Each country has its own access and privacy laws regarding the release of vital statistics, so if your grandparents lived in another country, you may have to do some extra digging. Cyndi’s List contains many web links to genealogy sources around the world. 

If you were adopted, you can create a partial health history of your own illnesses and lifestyle habits. Adoptees should also contact the agency that handled their adoption. You might be surprised by the information available. Laws frequently change, says O’Neill, so information that wasn’t accessible years ago might be obtainable today.

Get organized

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Arrange your genealogy information into one digital document. There are several free online tools that make organization easy, including:

• a printable family health history form 
• a printable automated health pedigree from the United States’ Surgeon General

You now have a wealth of health information. Do certain diseases repeat from generation to generation, or are there ailments that affect only one relative? To learn what this information means for you, take a copy to your doctor. “Health pedigrees give doctors a head start as to what conditions to look out for,” says O’Neill. Your GP will decide whether your findings warrant a referral to a genetic counsellor, who determines whether you’re at risk for certain diseases. Genetic testing is often recommended if these conditions appear in a pedigree:

• Close family members have an early onset (before age 50) of an inheritable disease. 
• The same health issue is present in more than one close relative; for example, your grandmother and sister both had cervical cancer. 
• There’s an illness that crosses genders, such as breast cancer in a male family member. 
• Certain combinations of health issues appear; for example, your family has both breast and ovarian cancer, or heart disease and diabetes. 

Genetic tests are virtually pain-free. A simple blood test or non-invasive buccal swab (a cotton swab rubbed on the inside of your cheek) will be taken at a lab, where a technician will examine the sample’s chromosomes, DNA or proteins for potential problems. When your results are complete, the genetic counsellor will have confirmation of any inherited health risks. At that point you will either be given the all-clear, or additional tests and monitoring specifically related to your condition will be discussed with you. Researching your family’s medical history puts a new life-saving spin on genealogy—and the life it might save could be your own. 

Working out too hard

The worst celeb health habits

We may envy their good looks, fame and fortune, but that doesn’t mean we should take health advice from celebs—especially the ones with these bad habits

By Katharine Watts

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Working out too hard

To shed baby weight, Kate Hudson dedicated hours to exercise. “I devoted six hours a day to a vigorous workout regime,” she told Star magazine. “I would do 45 or 55 minutes of cardio then an hour of Pilates or yoga, three times a day.”

For her roll as a ballet dancer in Black Swan, Mila Kunis told MTV she had to dance 5 hours a day, every day (the only exception being her birthday) with her ballet instructor, Alexandra Blacker.

“I went in there, started working with her for seven days a week, five hours a day and was put on a 1,200-calorie diet for a total of five or six months," she said.  "She never gave me a break. She was 20 and she kicked my ass."

While exercise is an important part of a healthy lifestyle, moderation is key—and spending five or six hours working out definitely isn’t moderate, especially when combined with a low-calorie diet. 

Related:
• How to lose baby weight like a celebrity
• The shocking secrets behind celebrity fitness
• 5 Hollywood skin secrets

Not getting enough rest

The worst celeb health habits

We may envy their good looks, fame and fortune, but that doesn’t mean we should take health advice from celebs—especially the ones with these bad habits

By Katharine Watts

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Not getting enough rest

We may think celebs have it easy, but judging by the number of them who’ve been hospitalized for exhaustion, it looks like we might be wrong. After her breakup with Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore was hospitalized for that very reason. She was just the latest in a long line of celebs, including Lindsay Lohan, Selena Gomez and Dave Chapelle, who’ve had prescribed hospital stays for fatigue.