Here is a video I made a few years back that I never released, but it's the perfect time for it, as the weather in the video mirrors almost exactly what we're enjoying here in the Pacific Northwest. This video features an excellent assortment of tips and suggestions by one of my old teachers, master gardener, and herbalist, Elaine Stevens. Enjoy! … [Read more...]
Sep 24, 2014
Let them eat salt!
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If you have been keeping abreast of the news lately, you might have come across a news story that highlighted a recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), which found that salt consumption wasn’t associated with an increase in systolic blood pressure in either men or women, after controlling for factors like age (1). Given that health authorities have been saying for years that salt increases the risk of hypertension, these recent findings are another wrench in works for low-salt proponents. This is not to say that very high salt consumption is safe. There is good evidence that reducing salt intake from 9-12 g per day, in large part from eating junk food and prepackaged foods, to less than 7 g per day, does promote a significant fall in systolic blood pressure (2). The problem is getting a handle on what exactly this means, particularly when these same changes seem to have no effect on lipid levels, and the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease is at … [Read more...]
Aug 28, 2014
Q&A with Todd Caldecott
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What circumstances led you to your current health and wellness mission? After I left home in 1987 when I was 18 years old, working in the film and television industry as an actor, I came to the conclusion that I needed to learn how to cook. It was in teaching myself how to cook that I realized I was actually learning how to take care of myself. Early on in my career I was working with an actor named Michael Ironside, who introduced me to a book called Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. For those who haven't read it, the book serves as a bibliography of some of the world's most profound spiritual teachings, and in my free time I began to research these writings, and soon became fascinated with East Asian philosophy and books like the Tao Te Ching. This led to an interest in Chinese medicine and macrobiotics, and I began to explore the meaning of these concepts in my diet. Even as a teenager I loved to go down to the bustling markets of Vancouver's Chinatown and wander … [Read more...]
Aug 25, 2014
How to get rid of rosacea
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Rosacea is a common skin disorder that manifests as a red spotty rash typically found on the face, including the forehead, chin, nose and cheeks, but can also affect other regions of the body such as the eyes, chest and back. Sometimes referred to as the "adult acne", rosacea is more common during middle age and is three times more likely to affect women. Although a specific cause has not yet been elucidated, rosacea has been linked to a variety of factors including chronic infection, poor digestion, improper diet, medication side-effects, and lifestyle factors. Chronic cases of rosacea often manifest as small bumps and pustules along with a generalized increase in local redness, often accompanied by red eyes, as well as burning or stinging sensations. If left untreated, chronic rosacea can lead to telangiectasia (dilation of superficial blood vessels on the face) as well as rhinophyma, in which the nose gradually becomes bulbous and red from chronic inflammation. There is also … [Read more...]
Jun 10, 2014
Horse medicine: good medicine
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I have always liked horses, even though I wouldn't consider myself a horse person: a feat which in modern times requires not just a great love for these majestic beasts, but an equally large wallet for their feed and care. Personally, I prefer dogs for their relative low maintenance and portability, but I am always happy to make friends with horse owners, just so I can hang out with my equine buddies. My first real experience with a horse was as a young man at the age of 19, when I had been hired as an actor to play the lead in a half-hour CBC family special, called "One Boy, One Wolf, One Summer", co-starring a character actor named Michael Ironside. The show was just about as sappy and awful as the title suggests, but it was one of my first gigs as a young actor, and decked out in cowboy gear, I was meant to look like I could actually ride a horse and shoot a gun. I was taught to ride horses by Danny Virtue, a long time industry insider; not just to how to ride a horse, but also how … [Read more...]
