Areas commonly helped with nutrition include:
- Digestive complaints, such as irritable bowel syndrome ( IBS ), indigestion, constipation & bloating , GERD (acid reflux)
- Skin disorders, including acne, psoriasis & eczema, dry skin , a skin rash
- Hormonal imbalances, including PMS, PCOS & infertility
- Cardiovascular problems, such as high cholesterol & blood pressure
- Nervous system disorders, such as depression, anxiety, insomnia and resultant stress.
- Weight loss & weight management, using safe & effective ways to put an end to yo yo diets and reaching and maintaining your ideal healthy weight
- Allergies & intolerances including hay fever
- Crohns, colitis
- ADD, ADHD
- PMS, Menopause
- Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
- Migrains
- Eating disorders including anorexia and bulimia
- Increasing energy levels & dealing with modern stressful lifestyles
- Optimising your diet for a healthy pregnancy
- Choosing the right foods for your children
- Optimising vegetarian & vegan diets
Depression and diet
Are you suffering worry, fear, sadness, sleeplessness, tiredness, weakness, loss of interest or concentration? It may be depression. Have you been diagnosed as clinically depressed or anxious and you can’t seem to get out of that downward spiral.
Are you experiencing any of these symptoms?
Do you feel downhearted, blue and sad?
Do you feel worse in the morning?
Do you have crying spells, or feel like it?
Do you have trouble falling asleep, or sleeping through the night?
Is your appetite poor?
Are you losing weight without trying?
Do you feel unattractive and unlovable?
Do you prefer to be alone?
Do you feel fearful?
Are you often tired and irritable?
Is it an effort to do the things you used to do?
Are you restless and unable to keep still?
Do you feel hopeless about the future?
Do you find it difficult to make decisions?
Do you feel less enjoyment from activities that once gave you pleasure?
If so you may be experiencing depression. Depression is usually linked to, or triggered by something stressful, such as a death, loss of a job, or break up of a relationship. I can also be hormonal disturbances as well. If you don’t feel good about yourself and don’t have someone supportive to listen to you, that can be a major cause of depression. For this reason I recommend counselling as well as nutritional and homeopathic approaches. Please refer to my counselling or homeopathic section for more information in that area. There are a number of nutritional imbalances that can make you prone to depression. These are:
• Essential fats –do you need more Omega’s?
• Your homocysteine level – is it too high, corrected with B vitamins?
• Serotonin levels – do they need boosting with amino acids?
• Blood sugar balance – is yours within the healthy range?
• Chromium – are you getting enough?
We all know that eating balanced meals and getting our vitamins is essential to maintaining optimal physical health. But when you’re anxious, moody or depressed, you probably don’t look to balance your diet or take a multivitamin to decrease your symptoms. Let me help you regain your emotional health and get your life back on track.
EMOTIONAL EATING AND EATING DISORDERS
Health on Earth is a special, caring place that helps in the treatment of people suffering from anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, compulsive overeating, emotional eating and associated eating disorders. Through a combination of teaching life skills required for recovery from eating disorders and body image disturbances: i.e., anger and stress management, assertive communication, body awareness, cognitive distortions and behavioural patterns that contribute to the dysfunctional relationship with food and body, Health On Earth can help you overcome your eating issues. Let me help you.
If you struggle with food and weight, but don’t think you have an eating disorder read the following symptoms and see if you fall into any of these patterns:
Compulsive Over-Eating Signs & Symptoms
- Binge eating large quantities of food
- Constant grazing of food throughout the day, often secretive eating
- Obsessive type thoughts of food, meals, and the desire to lose weight
- Continued weight gain over time
- Sometimes obsessive with the scale or weighing oneself
- Inability to remain on a healthy meal plan without binging episodes
- Failed attempts to lose weight through various weight-loss diets, or
- Programs.
- Marked decrease in self-esteem or self-confident
- Possible mood swings
- Increased feelings of hopelessness or despair
- A feeling of not controlling eating compulsions
- Self loathing may be present
- There is often a sense of “calm” which accompanies binging
Excess weight, resulting from binge eating, can cause many health problems:
- Strain on the heart
- Increase in blood pressure
- Difficulty breathing
- Stress on joints, particularly knees
- Increased risk of diabetes
- Fatigue and decreased energy levels
- Changes in metabolism
- Too much weight carried can cause premature death
- Episodes of binge eating large quantities of food followed by purging
- Some abuse syrup of Ipecac for inducing vomiting
- Purging may be by vomiting, use and abuse of laxatives or diuretics
- Excessive exercise
- The binge-purge cycle is most often a secretive event
- Increasing isolation for purpose of binging and purging
- Obsessive thoughts of food, calories, weight, binging and purging
- Often periods of restricting food accompany the plan to binge & purge
- Decrease in the enjoyment of activities
- Increase in mood swings
- Self esteem and self confidence falls
- Feelings of helplessness and hopelessness
- Feelings of being alone with an out-of-control secret problem
- Intense fears of becoming fat and feeling fat
- Body distortion or seeing oneself as fat even if not
- Denial that there is a problem
- Generally individual is at or around normal weight
- Habit of chewing food and spitting it out
- There often is a “high” and sense of relief following purging behaviour
Bulimia Signs & Symptoms
Bulimia causes many health problems:
- Possible hair loss
- For women, loss of menses
- Stomach and digestive problems
- Dental problems
- Electrolyte imbalances, low potassium
- Physical dependency on laxatives
- Possible irreversible damage to intestines
- Internal bleeding from purging
- Possible dehydration
- Heart complications
- There can always be the potential of serious complications resulting in illness and death
- Denial that there is any problem
- Dramatic weight loss in short period
- Exaggerated and intense fears of becoming overweight
- Preoccupation with calories, food and weight
- Restricting food for prolonged periods
- Inability to stop dieting even when below normal weight
- Distorted body image or seeing oneself as fat
- Constant weighing of oneself throughout the day
- Increased isolation from family or friends
- Isolative behaviour concerning food and exercise.
- May stop eating in front of others
- Increased prolonged periods of exercise to burn calories
- Increased dishonesty with self/ others over eating and exercise habits
- Frequent arguments with others regarding eating habits
- Increased mood swings
- Self esteem and confidence levels drop
- Possible loss of hair from head
- Increased body hair as thermal insulator for body’s decreasing ability
- to stay warm
- Loss of the ability to enjoy friends or activities
- Strong feelings of being in control of oneself
- Possible feelings of self-loathing
Anorexia Signs & Symptoms
Anorexia causes many health problems:
- Changes in metabolism
- Chronically chilly or cold
- For women, loss of menses
- Drop in blood pressure
- Dizziness and weakness from malnutrition
- Body begins feeding itself off muscle tissue and storing fat
- Heart complications
- Vitamin and Mineral deficiencies
- If untreated, Anorexia can cause premature death from starvation
Come to my clinic, relax and talk to me in a comfortable private atmosphere, let me listen to you and help you work through your problems.