Naturopathic Approaches

Naturopathic Approaches and Management of Heat Exhaustion and Heat Stroke

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Tired Woman Sweating After RunningWhen spring and summer come around, most individuals enjoy being outside. However, with the temperatures on the rise, many could potentially develop heat exhaustion or heat stroke if they are not careful. This blog is meant to provide you with preventative measures, signs and symptoms to look out for, and what you can do if you or another individual experiences heat exhaustion or heat stroke.

Prevention

Ultimately, it is more beneficial to prevent heat exhaustion and heat stroke in the first place. The following is a list of things that you can do to prevent both:

  • Dress weather appropriate – not too warmly and lighter in colour
  • Wear a hat if you will be spending a significant amount of time in the sun
  • Avoid activities in the late afternoon when the sun is at the highest point in the sky
  • Perform activities in the shade when possible
  • Keep hydrated – make sure to have a drink of water every 15 – 20 minutes
  • Avoid excessive amounts of caffeine and alcohol

Signs and Symptoms

Heat exhaustion and heat stroke are quite different in their presentation and severity. Heat exhaustion is the lesser in regards to severity when compared to heat stroke. Heat exhaustion presents with the following:

  • Headache
  • Dizziness and Confusion
  • Loss of Appetite
  • Feeling Nauseous
  • Sweating
  • Pale clammy skin
  • Muscle Cramps
  • Fast and Weak Pulse
  • Shallow Breathing

Heat stroke on the other hand is slightly more severe:

  • Headache
  • Dizziness and Discomfort
  • Restlessness and Confusion
  • Hot, Flushed, and Dry Skin
  • Low Level of Response or Consciousness
  • Full and Strong Pulse
  • Body Temperature Above 40 degrees Celsius

Management

How you might manage either situation is very similar, but in the case of heat stroke, it is best to call Emergency Medical Services (EMS) for help in order to better aid this individual. Otherwise, the following recommendations could be made for both in most cases:

  • Get to a cooler place (eg. in the shade)
  • Have the individual lay down with their legs raised
  • Rehydrate the individual with cool water
  • Recommend that the individual seek Health Care regardless of how quickly they recover
  • If their condition gets worse, call EMS

In addition to the above recommendations, for heat stroke, it is wise to cool the individual down with cool clothes being applied to the body and a fan being placed near them. It is necessary to bring their core body temperature down to around 38 degrees Celsius.

Naturopathic Additional Tips

In addition to the above management, some additional measures could be applied AFTER the above management is followed:

  • Coconut water or aloe vera juice can be used to help rehydrate
  • Glonoinum homeopathic can be used to aid with symptoms from heat stroke
  • China homeopathic can be used for extreme fluid loss resulting in heat stroke
  • Applying an peppermint essential oil to the feet and cooling clothes to help lower body temperature
  • Applying an onion to the feet to help lower body temperature
  • Contrast showers daily to help prevent lack of acclimatization
  • Seek naturopathic care regularly to help your body be in the best shape it can be

Have you benefitted from reading this blog? Know someone that would benefit as well? Share, Like, Comment, or Tweet this article, and let me know what you think.

Some of the information provided above may not be appropriate for everyone, please consult with your doctor before trying any of the above. If you are interested in Naturopathic Medicine and wanting a different approach to your health care needs, contact Elisha Cook via the contact portion of this website.

 

Source: http://www.sja.org.uk/sja/first-aid-advice/hot-and-cold-conditions/heatstroke.aspx

Stress – How to Cope

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Grunge image of a stressed overworked man studyingAs mid-term exam season approaches, and school is well under way, many individuals may feel stressed or worn – out. Even the wear of every – day life can wear on you and cause you to feel over – whelmed. As a result, I thought it might be beneficial to discuss stress and what your naturopathic doctor can do to help.

What is Stress?

According to Webster’s Dictionary, Stress can be defined as, “a state of mental tension and worry caused by problems in your life, work, etc.; something that causes strong feelings of worry or anxiety; a physical force or pressure”. I think it goes without saying that all of us have experienced stress in our lives, and what we perceive as stressful, might not be so stressful to another, and vice versa. We all respond to and cope with our stresses differently as well. Some of us try to adopt healthy coping habits, others not so healthy. It is my hope that I can provide you with some ideas as to how to cope effectively with your stress.

Naturopathic Treatments that may help

There are many different things that can be done to help someone to cope with stress. In short, all of the different modalities (tools that we use) that we practice can be beneficial for helping to relax and cope with stressful situations. All of the treatment options might be useful to help you to cope with stress depending on your specific case and needs: Acupuncture, Massage, Naturopathic Manipulation, Hydrotherapy (i.e. sauna treatments, peet baths, constitutional hydrotherapy treatments), Counselling, Nutrients, Botanical Medicine, Lifestyle Counselling, and Homeopathy. Each individual is different, and so there is no one treatment that would be good for everyone. So, as mentioned above, a treatment route would be chosen based on your specific, individual needs.

Ways to deal with stress at home:

No one answer provides a suitable option for everyone and their coping needs. As a result, I have provided examples below of healthy ways to cope with stress:

  • Journaling
  • Listening to Music
  • Breathing
  • Exercise
  • Talking to others
  • Meditating
  • Praying
  • Give yourself time for you – do something that brings you joy

The next time you are feeling stressed, and need to find a healthier way to cope with your stress, take the time to explore these options and find what works best for you.

What not to do

As forshadowed above, there are some coping mechanisms that are less than ideal when trying to cope with stress. Below I have provided a few examples of unhealthy coping mechanisms:

  • Binge eating
  • Drinking
  • Avoidance
  • Gambling excessively
  • Smoking
  • Using elicit drugs
  • Isolating yourself from others who can help

Have you benefitted from reading this blog? Know someone that would benefit as well? Share, Like, Comment, or Tweet this article, and let me know what you think.

Some of the information provided above may not be appropriate for everyone, please consult with your doctor before trying any of the above. If you are interested in Naturopathic Medicine and wanting a different approach to your health care needs, please book an appointment with Elisha Cook at the RSNC (416-498-9763) today and let me help you achieve your health goals.

Spring: The Season of Detox Part 2 – Six Ways to Detox Everyday

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Head shower while running waterLast week I presented what a detox was. I received quite a bit of interest in detox’s, so I decided to give my viewers some easy ways to encourage the detoxification process in your own home. I would advise my readers to use caution, as the detoxification process can cause headaches along with other symptoms, do to the elimination of toxins. As always, please consult with your Health Care Provider before trying any of the following:

1.      Lemon in hot water

Start your day off by having a hot glass of water with lemon in it. Not only is this good for making you feel full but it also helps stimulate the liver (the detox center) to “clean up” your system.

2.      Exercise

Among the many health benefits that exercise can provide, it can also provide a way to detoxify our bodies. Exercise does so by promoting sweat, which is one of the ways our body removes wastes and toxins from the body.

3.      Dry Skin Brushing

Dry skin brushing is a method of stimulating the skin through an external stimulus such as a brush or cloth. By brushing away the dead skin, it allows the skin to “breathe” easier, thereby detoxifying it. For more information on how to perform dry skin brushing (as well as cautions to be aware of), refer to my Handout page at https://www.plattsvilledoctor.ca.

4.      Alternating Hot and Cold Shower

Alternating hot and cold showers are a simple addition to your morning or nightly routine. It simply involves alternating hot and cold water for therapeutic benefit (refer to my Handout page at https://www.plattsvilledoctor.ca to find detailed instructions). By alternating hot with cold, it shocks your immune and circulatory system into working. By doing this, it causes toxins to be removed from the body. Along with this benefit, it can also stimulate brain function, help with digestion, and increase metabolism.

5.      Eat more fruits and veggies

Fruits and vegetables have many nutrients, vitamins and minerals that are beneficial to health. Along with their nutritional value, they can also improve digestion. By improving “transit time” (i.e. helping you go to the washroom/defecate), they help your body to detox as going #2 is another way our body detoxifies.

6.      Castor Oil Packs to Abdomen

Finally, applying castor oil packs to the abdomen is a great way to encourage your body to detoxify. Though they can be messy, castor oil packs decrease inflammation and increase circulation, particularly in the liver is placed over it. This causes the liver to function properly and makes it better able to eliminate toxins. To learn more about how to perform a castor oil pack and the cautions associated with it, refer to my Handouts page at https://www.plattsvilledoctor.ca.

Some of the information provided above may not be appropriate for everyone, please consult with your doctor before trying any of the above. If you are interested in Naturopathic Medicine and wanting a different approach to your health care needs, please book an appointment with Elisha Cook at the RSNC today and let me help you achieve your health goals.

What is Naturopathic Medicine?

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Alternative Medicine Symbol - The Green AsklepianRecently, there has been a lot of hype in the media about Naturopathic Medicine and Naturopathic Doctors (NDs). Some good and some bad remarks, but hype non-the-less. Many skewed views exist regarding what NDs actually do. Many think that NDs are overly glorified “Witch Doctors”; others might view NDs similar to General Practitioners, but just using herbs instead of pharmaceuticals; and many think that homeopathic doctors and NDs are one in the same. It is my hope that I can “clear the air” and hopefully bring some justice to what NDs actually do.

Naturopathic Medicine aims at treating the root cause of disease, and not just merely the symptoms. Unfortunately, medicine sometimes looks at an individual merely as a broken arm, rather than looking at the person with that broken arm. NDs propose to try and look at the individual as a whole, and not merely their parts, and attempt to cure disease through this framework and looking for the cause of disease. A ND might, for example, look at the patient’s living conditions, nutritional status, safety, work conditions, etc., in attempt to discover what caused the broken bone and how could it be prevented in the future. As a result, each individual is treated as just that, an individual. One treatment might not work for another simply because everyone is different, and the cause of disease can be completely different for two individuals even with the “same” condition. For example, two individuals could present with headaches, but one person might get headaches due to muscle tension, while another might get them due to caffeine withdrawal. Though both of these individuals might have similar presentations, treating their headaches with the same treatment may not result in a cure for both.

Part of a NDs approach to care involves incorporating the principles of Naturopathic Medicine into ones care. The principles of Naturopathic Medicine are: First do no harm, treat the cause of disease, teach healthy living and preventative medicine, heal the whole person, emphasize prevention, and support the healing power of the body. NDs strive to incorporate all of these principles into each patient case in order to treat disease, support the health of the individual, and prevent future disease. A state of balance and harmony is sought after in the body, and thus achieved through this approach to care, as well as through the use of Naturopathic Medicine’s various modalities. The modalities are used to support the patient’s own healing capabilities, and consist of: Botanical Medicine, Clinical Nutrition, Hydrotherapy, Homeopathy, Physical Medicine (including massage and naturopathic manipulation), Primary Care, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Acupuncture, and Lifestyle Counselling. Despite what some believe, the practice of naturopathic modalities is not merely based on “gut instinct” or tradition, but is based on Evidence Based Medicine and Traditionally practices that have been tested and used for centuries.

It is my hope that being part of this profession will allow me to be part of the movement of our future health care that involves addressing disease before it presents, treating the whole person, managing disease with few side effects, and improving overall quality of life.