Reflections of the past year and EXCITED for 2015!

I recently had some time to reflect back on the past year - I've been hearing from several people that they felt 2014 was a real time of change, growth and learning, and I must say the same was true for myself. Both professionally and personally I felt that 2014 was a real stepping stone towards a more focused, self-actualized life...perhaps some of this is just age and life experience!
I had the chance to sharpen my skills in several areas and also to appreciate what I do and see the huge impact that it can have on patients, friends and my own family.
Surprisingly, I had some real fulfillment in certain unexpected areas - for example, some of my most rewarding cases this year were treating chronically constipated children! There's nothing better than seeing the relief in a parent that has had to witness an uncomfortable child for weeks/months on end, not to mention the change in the child! Many of these children started to exhibit very negative behavior around bathroom visits, so being able to reverse their fear, stomach pain and general comfort was very rewarding (not to mention knowing that we reversed the potential for life-long digestive complaints and lowered the risk for chronic disease and illness).
My other area of real fulfillment was helping several of my fertility patients achieve healthy pregnancies. Being a mother myself, and knowing that it does not come easily to many women makes this an area of extreme satisfaction - there's nothing greater than witnessing the miracle of pregnancy and birth, and also being able to meet the babies once they are born! I hope to continue working with women to improve fertility using specific nutrition, acupuncture and lifestyle interventions (and of course working with the babies to set them up for great health)!
I have to say however that life is still very much pulling me in the direction of 'prevention', which means working with people to make small interventions that result in big changes. Specifically nutrition and general fitness. I seem to be working more and more with moms, as they try to find balance and restore their own health (and that of their family's) after life, work, stress and obligations get in the way! They are often look for weight-loss, fitness ideas, menu planning and and increase in energy levels. I find it extremely rewarding working in this area because I notice that moms are often the cornerstone of health in the family - they are the ones scheduling medical and dental appointments, menu planning and grocery shopping. Moms have such a huge capacity to change the health of the entire family, which also seems to trickle down into the extended family (their own parents, siblings etc). I will continue reaching out to this amazing population of women, and am in the process of creating an exciting new program for them that should be ready for this spring (stay tuned:)
I'm also very excited and honored to be part of the Life Watchers course at the Goodness Me store that recently opened...I really think it's going to change lives in Barrie, and from the traffic that the store is getting it seems like Barrie was in need of a store like this! Can't wait to meet all the new patients and students that are motivated to make some amazing new changes in their lives! I hope you are as pumped and motivated for 2015 as I am - may you all embrace
the adventures that await you, and when life gives you lemons, make some lemonade (with a pinch of cayenne and maple syrup)!

Dr. Anna Falkowski HBSc, ND
Naturopathic Doctor, Clinic Director
info@vitalityforlife.ca
www.vitalityforlife.ca
Twitter: @NaturoDoctor
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Why I don't recommend consuming an abundance of fruit!

When I ask my patients how their veggie intake is, I often get the response ''I don't get a lot of veggies in my diet but don't worry I eat a lot fruit''. The requirement for fruit in the diet is still a huge misconception! I realize that the food pyramid still puts vegetables and fruits together on the chart, but let's clear this all up right now.
Although fruit (can) be a part of a healthy diet for (active) individuals (particularly around workouts), fruit is full of an undesirable sugar called 'fructose''.

What is fructose? Fructose is a sugar found primarily in fruits and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) - a sweetener found in pop, candy and commercially prepared baked goods. Unlike glucose (which can be used as energy by the bodies cells in tissues such as the muscles, brain AND liver, fructose can ONLY be metabolized by the liver (because it requires an enzyme called fructokinase, which is only found in the liver, to turn it into glycogen, which can be used by the body as energy).
Fructose also does not cause insulin to be released, and therefore does not stimulate the release of the hormone LEPTIN (your satiety hormone which tells the body you've had 'enough') - leading to cravings and an overall increase in caloric intake! Not great for weight-loss! Fructose seems to be more 'lipogenic' than glucose (or ''fat-producing'') for these reasons - once the liver stores of glycogen are full (which doesn't take very long due to it's small capacity for storage), the rest turns into fat. For these reasons, there is concern for high intakes of dietary fructose (not only from processed sources, but also from FRUIT!).

My recommendation? Limit your fruit intake to one serving in your smoothie (one cup of berries or 1/2 banana) or if you are active, you can have a serving pre and post workout (because it will be used by the body as energy, not stored as fat).
I also recommend offering different snack choices to children - we often go to fruit because they like the sweetness and it gets them to eat, but we need to switch it up and offer them healthier choices like proteins and health fats (see my power balls recipe for a quick snack idea). I hope that clears up some of the misconception about fruit, and I hope that it gets you reaching for a different snack option during the day!

Dr. Anna Falkowski HBSc, ND
Naturopathic Doctor, Clinic Director
info@vitalityforlife.ca
www.vitalityforlife.ca
Twitter: @NaturoDoctor
We're On Facebook!