Barbara Parisotto: Taking you in a Healthy Direction

With a new year comes a new resolution. And while some of us might resolve to exercise more, take up a new hobby or become more organized, the one vow that we all have in common is to adopt healthier eating habits.

After a long, indulgent season of turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie, we should venture into spring with lighter hearts and thinner waistlines. “Spring marks a new beginning,” says Barbara Parisotto, registered dietitian. “It’s a great time to cleanse our bodies of toxins and that starts with improving how we eat.”

Of course, with the tempting confections and deep-fried delights that call our name on the drive home, down the aisles of the grocery store, and even from our own pantry doors, this feat is not always easy. If you need that little push to get started, Read more

Let go with Moksha Yoga

The Holidays can be a stressful time of year, for many reasons, so an invigorating but relaxing hot yoga class can be just the thing to smooth out some of that anxiety and tension. What many people don’t realize is that hot yoga is also an excellent full-body workout that improves posture, tones muscles and builds immunity.

The recent popularity of yoga may make it seem like simply the latest in a long line of passing trends. However, this combination of discipline for the mind, body and spirit has been around for thousands of years. That is a lot longer than spinning classes or the South Beach Diet, so the ancient combination of meditation and physical exercise must be doing something right. Of the many varieties of yoga, the one that is heating up in Toronto is Read more

A Boost of Immunity

After months of monitoring, the World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed that swine flu is the first global flu pandemic since 1968. Since April of this year, H1N1 (swine flu), has spread globally to 74 countries across the world. With almost 30,000 people infected and 141 deaths, there are grave reasons why we all need to concern ourselves with our immunity. As pharmaceutical companies gear up to concoct vaccines that could take months to hit the market, boosting your body’s resistance to infection may be your best bet to avert the flu. Read more

An Uncertain Tomorrow: Our Toxic Reality

Humankind’s precarious future depends on what we’re doing to our bodies today.

After watching a recent CBC documentary called “The Disappearing Male,” I was shocked to discover not just what we’ve done to our planet, but what we’re doing to ourselves – and it’s affecting our very survival. It seems global warming isn’t our only worst enemy. Believe it or not, humankind is just beginning to discover a new threat, and it’s found in everyday products like canned goods, shampoos, baby bottles, and in our air and water. Some 90,000 man-made chemicals have been developed in the last 60 years, and now they’re slowly being linked to a major decline in male births. In the last 30 years alone, three million fewer baby boys have been born. This emerging issue, which few people have heard about, prompted me to ask some serious questions. Read more