fl1admin, Author at Vitality Therapy

Eating to help reduce anxiety

We can all feel anxious from time to time. While individuals with anxiety disorders require therapy and/or medication, for individuals with milder cases of anxiety changed to your diet may help. 1. Omega-3 Increase your intake of omega-3 fatty acids found in oily fish. Omega-3 acids protect you against inflammation and have been show to improve your overall mood and ability to cope with stress. Click here for more information. This study shows a 20% reduction in anxiety levels amongst medical students taking omega-3. While this study shows how omega-3 acts as an anti-depressant. 2. Drink chamomile tea. See studies for evidence of how it helps with anxiety. 3. Eat dark chocolate. There's actually a chemical reason called anandamide, a neurotransmitter produced in your brain that temporarily blocks feelings of pain and depression. It's a derivative of the Sanskrit word "bliss," and one of the great things about chocolate is that it not only produces this compound, it also contains other chemicals that prolong the "feel-good" aspects of anandamide. In addition there is a scientific study which shows that it helps you feel calm - so eat dark chocolate without feeling guilty! See scientific study for evidence. 4. Protein snacks. If like me you are the king of person who needs snacks between meals, then choose a high protein snack like an organic egg, cheese or macadamia nuts as these will stabilise your blood sugar level which means your energy levels don't slump and your mood doesn't either. 5. Eat bananas. Bananas contain dopamine, a natural reward chemical that boosts your mood. They're also rich in B vitamins, including vitamin B6, which help soothe your nervous system, and magnesium, another nutrient associated with positive mood.

The low down on natural sugars – part 1

We all want to reduce the amount of sugar we eat, and and there are loads of alternative "natural" sugars to pick from. When I go to the supermarket and read labels I am bombarded with terms like

fructose
whole can sugar
barley malt syrup
agave

and the list goes on. So which is the best? First its worth remembering there is no defintion of what is "natural" or regulation around how the term "natural" is used. So basically anything can be termed "natural". So how do you decide what is the best alternative to sugar and what are the ones to avoid? Firstly where ever possible rely on the natural sweetness of foods themselves rather than using sugar or artificial sweetners. When cooking or preparing food consider adding

carrots
raisins
beetroot
dates
figs
roast parsnips
bananas

as natural sweetners. Over the next two weeks I will give my thumbs up or thumbs down to a variety of "natural" sugars.

What is good standing posture?

We all know we need to maintain good posture, but what exactly is good standing posture? Good standing posture When standing, keep these tips in mind:

Keep your shoulders back and relaxed.
Pull in your abdomen.
Keep your feet about hip distance apart.
Balance your weight evenly on both feet.
Let your hands hang naturally at your sides.

Try not to tilt your head forward, backward or sideways, and make sure your knees are relaxed — not locked.

Take the wall test

To test your standing posture, take the wall test. Stand with your head, shoulder blades and buttocks touching a wall, and have your heels about 2 to 4 inches (about 5 to 10 centimeters) away from the wall. Reach back and slide your hand behind the curve in your lower back, with your palm flat against the wall. Ideally, you'll feel about one hand's thickness of space between your back and the wall. If there's too much space, tighten your abdominal muscles to flatten the curve in your back. If there's too little space, arch your back so that your hand fits comfortably behind you. Walk away from the wall while maintaining this posture. Keep it up throughout your daily activities.

Check out your reflection

To see if you're keeping your shoulders straight, stand in front of a mirror. Aim to keep your shoulders square and relaxed.

It all adds up

Although good posture should be natural, you might feel wooden or stiff at first if you've forgotten the sensation of standing up straight. The key is to practice good posture all the time. Remember its never to late to start practicing good posture.

More Mindfulness Exercises

In my previous post, How to be mindful, I described a mindful breathing exercise. Now I want to share with you more mindfulness exercises. 1. Mindful Observation Choose a natural object, plant, flower or cloud in the sky. Simply focus solely on it for a minute or two. Visually explore it and allow yourself to be consumed by its presence. 2. Mindful Listening Listen to a piece of music you have never heard before. You could re-turn your radio to a new station or download a new track to your ipod. The idea is to listen, to become fully entwined within the composition without preconception or judgement of the genre, artist, lyrics or instrumentation. 3. Mindful Appreciation The point of this exercise is to simply give thanks and appreciate the seemingly insignificant things in life; the things that support your existence but rarely get a second thought in our desire for bigger and better things. All you have to do is notice 5 things in your daily life that go unappreciated. Once you have your 5 things, then consider

the benefit they bring to your life and the lives of others
what life would be like without these things

With regular practice of mindfulness services, rather than being on autopilot, we keep our mind rooted in the present moment and deal with life's challenges in a clear-minded & calm way.

Are maternal levels of Vitamin D linked to Autism?

Autumn babies are more likely to suffer from learning difficulties. This is probably because their mothers levels of Vitamin D were at their lowest when they were conceived researches believe. In fact, there could be around 11% fewer cases of autism, dyslexia and other learning problems if mother's levels of Vitamin D were higher according to researchers from the University of Glasgow. In an analysis of more that 800,000 Scottish school children during 2006 - 2011, they discovered that 8.9% of children conceived between January and March when vitamin D levels are most likely at their lowest - had learning difficulties compared with 7.6% of children conceived between July and September. While the researchers can't be certain, they believe maternal levels of vitamin D are the most plausible explanation, especially as the first three months after conception are vital for brain development - and other studies have shown just how important vitamin D is to the process. This research has created a change in public health policy, and all pregnant women are now advised to take Vitamin D supplements. Reference

DF Mackay, GCS Smith, A Cooper et al, 2016, Month of Conception and Learning Disabilities: A Record-Linkage Study of 801,592 Children, American Journal of Epidemiology, Vol 184, Issue 7 pages 485-93

See >> http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/184/7/485.abstract

Why do we sometimes recommend longer treatments?

In my last blog article, I explained the benefits including scientific evidence from a 15 minute Seated Acupressure Massage. So if 15 minutes has all these benefits, why do we offer 30 minute treatments and why do we sometimes recommend them? Quite simply, its based on experience. I find that some clients start to notice their neck & shoulder loosing mobility and their level of muscular tension increasing but they are too busy to book in. Frequently we find that people leave it 3 weeks before they book in or sometimes up to a month, by which time the knots have multiplied and grown!!! The 15 minute treatment is designed to nip things in the bud, before the tension gets chronic. However I appreciate that my clients have very busy lifestyles so this isn't always possible so we offer longer treatments. Finally, some people get home from work and instantly switch off while other people take a while. This different rate of response is what we as therapists see when we treat people, so we recognise when your muscles are releasing really slowly. Indeed over the years some of my clients have commented on how it took a long time for their right/left shoulder to relax. In cases where your muscles are releasing very slowly we often suggest you book a longer treatment.

How do you look after your bones if you are dairy free?

We all know our bones need calcium and normally we get this from diary. But more and more people are going dairy free for a variety of reasons including following specific diets. The UK's National Osteoporosis Society surveyed 2,000 adults found that one in five of those aged between 18 - 25 had cut diary from their diets. As a result they could be putting their bone health at risk and could end up with osteoporosis in older age, the society has warned. But diary isn't necessary for achieving bone health, says Viva the animal rights group. Instead,

weight bearing exercise such as walking
climbing stairs
dancing

is the best way followed by these foods:

dark green leafy vegatables
- broccoli
- kale
- spring greens
- cabbage
- pak choi
dried fruits
nuts
seeds
pulses

It is also important to remember that vitamin D, the sunshine vitamin, helps us abosb calcium better.

Difference Between Sports and Deep Tissue Massage

Seated Acupressure Neck & Shoulder massage is a short focused massage to release tension in the Neck & Shoulders
Choose Sports massage over deep tissue massage when you go to the gym with a specific sporting goal in mind, i.e. you are going for more than just generally keeping fit. Or you are really focused on your sport including actively taking part in competitions or you are keen to improve your performance or your training is solely focused on your sport and you do not cross train.

	Sports Massage	Deep Tissue Massage
Incorporates Deep Pressure	Yes	Yes
Similar massage stokes	Yes	Yes
Releases muscle tension, pain, physical stress and stiffness while restoring flexibility	Yes	Yes
Able to resolve common injuries and woes for inactive, desk bound people	Yes	Yes
Incorporates a custom blend of oils and hot stones to relieve tension and anxiety	No	Yes
Athlete orientated including - Focus on improving athletic performance - Incorporates stretching - Assessing injury risk - Rehabilitation after injury	Yes	No
Knowledge of sport - Able to deliver specific pre-exercise treatment for any given sport - Able to deliver specific post-exercise treatment for any given sport - Able to deliver specific treatment during intense training for any given sport	Yes	No

Is Reiki recognised by doctors?

Reiki is a form of healing and healing is recognised by the NHS as a complementary therapy. Healers have been employed by the Leeds Hospital Oncology Unit and the London UCH Haematology Unit for a number of years. One of the healers at London UCH, Angie Buxton-King has her own website and has written a book, “The NHS Healer: How My Son’s Life Inspired a Healing Journey” about her experiences. Her book is available from Amazon.

Are you excessively tired?

Fatigue and depleted energy could be addressed with weekly Swedish or Thai massages according to researchers at Teeside and Leeds Universities . One in 5 people experience excessive tiredness at any given time, while one in 10 people have chronic fatigue (Royal College of Psychiatrists, 2018). They invited 20 participants with fatigue and/or depleted energy to receive trestments with a massage therapist. The participants all agreed to commit to a six-week study and complete diaries describing how they felt after their treatments. The participants were split into two groups and half of them received three 45-minute sweedish massage treatments and then three Thai massages in weeks 4 ot 6. The treatment order was reversed for the other ten participants. The results showed that both Swedish and Thai massage relieved symptoms of fatigue or depleted energy by

reducing stress
promoting relaxation
relieving pain
improving energy

Swedish massage was more effective than Thai massage in improving sleep, promoting relaxation and de-stressing. Thai massage was more energising, rejuvenating and motivating and had longer lasting benefits than Swedish massage. Note: Vitality Therapy offer relaxing massage (which is our term for Swedish Massage) at Barclays in London. Reference https://www.bodyworkmovementtherapies.com/article/S1360-8592(17)30238-3/abstract?code=yjbmt-site

About fl1admin

Eating to help reduce anxiety

The low down on natural sugars – part 1

What is good standing posture?

Take the wall test

Check out your reflection

It all adds up

More Mindfulness Exercises

Are maternal levels of Vitamin D linked to Autism?

Why do we sometimes recommend longer treatments?

How do you look after your bones if you are dairy free?

Difference Between Sports and Deep Tissue Massage

Is Reiki recognised by doctors?

Are you excessively tired?

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