I’m often asked whether losing weight would help a particular problem. For example, “If I lost a few kilos, would it help my back pain?”.
I think that if someone is overweight, then losing a few kilos is a good idea anyway, as there are so many general health benefits to maintaining a healthy weight.
But I wasn’t really sure if it would help a particular injury. What I mean by that is I think if you have back pain, you should try to fix your back. If you just lose weight, …

Yes they can. And according to the latest research, they do it as effectively as medications.
This is great news for people like me who love a sneaky disco nap. And it’s great news for any of you taking blood pressure medication. After all, who wouldn’t love to be taking less medications!
In a 2019 article on the website MedicalNewsToday, 212 people were studied. These were not the healthiest people – average age of 62, plenty of smokers and people with type 2 diabetes. Yet even with these complicating factors, the study found …

Mine are certainly getting worse! And it turns out I’m not alone. A recent story on abc.net.au broke it all down, and the timing could not be better with silly season is about to kick off.
Apparently there are a number of reasons our hangovers feel more severe as we age, and why it takes longer to get over a big night.
A couple of key takeaways form the article:

Older people tend to have more inflammation throughout their body than younger people, Professor Scholey said. Add the inflammatory effects of alcohol and its by-products …

I was sent an article last week by a Nutritionist I know (she’s an amazing Nutritionist, if you’re looking for one!) which talked about the link between migraine headaches and certain vitamin deficiencies. According to the article, “A high percentage of children, teens and young adults with migraines appear to have mild deficiencies in vitamin D, riboflavin and coenzyme Q10 — a vitamin-like substance found in every cell of the body that is used to produce energy for cell growth and maintenance.”
Now, to me, this is a bit of a …

I love Salt n Pepa so much.
Anyway, in this post I wanted to talk about sleep. I had a cold a couple of weeks ago and even though it was pretty mild, I couldn’t shake it because I kept having interrupted sleep. I have also seen a few people recently who have been having problems with sleep, and jaw clenching, and migraines, so it’s been on my mind.
As you know we work next door to a great clinic with a few Naturopaths and Nutritionists. I went and had a chat …

Yes, gold. The same gold that might currently be adorning your wrist has been found to be an effective anti-inflammatory. Is there nothing it can’t do?
The first question I had was “who ate their Rolex to discover this?”. The second question was “how much will a packet of gold nurofen’s cost?” The third was “WHO ATE THEIR ROLEX!?!” I mean, how on earth did they discover that gold works as an anti-inflammatory?
Well, the answer to that lies in the length of time medications are effective. Scientists were trying to work …

I was recently sent an article which I thought I would share with you. The article outlines 30 different exercises for the different parts of your back, and includes video demonstrations by a 2 time Olympian. The videos are clear and concise and the exercises are exactly the same as I give out myself.
I love that there are exercises for mobility, strength, core, and some yoga moves and a bit of foam rolling in there as well. We all need a combination of mobility, strength and stability, so this outline …

I get asked this question a lot. And until recently, I thought it made a bit of difference, but if you had good strength and sufficient joint mobility carrying a few extra kilos probably wouldn’t be that big a deal. For your joints at least. Being overweight is associated with all kinds of other health problems, so maintaining a healthy weight is in your best interested regardless.
But now we know exactly how much pressure your joints take on when you take on extra weight. According to a study of overweight …

Researchers have finally been able to show what happens in utero when pregnant women sleep on their side compared to sleep on their backs. And what they found is that it is better to sleep on your side. According to an article on essentialbaby.com.au, scans revealed the following:
“prior work has established that maternal sleeping position – specifically sleeping on the back – is associated with increased risk of stillbirth”
“It is known, however, that sleeping on the left side of the body increases the amount of blood and nutrients that reach the placenta and the baby.”
“when a …

Did you catch the latest article on Neurosciencenews.com? If not, you’re in luck, because I did! In the article, a summary of research was outlined which showed the benefits of microbreaks for students and adults alike.
According to the study, it was shown that taking a break and doing a series of brief exercises led to:

An improved ability to focus attention
An improved ability to retain information, and
Improvements in overall learning ability.

To read more, see below.
New research from a team of scientists at McMaster University suggests that brief exercise breaks during lectures …