Dave Morton and Sonja adcock Go the Distance!

Transcription

fall 2011
Dave Morton
and
Sonja Adcock
Go the Distance!
Orienteering | L• O •V• E That Green Door | Dog Days
Fall 2011
WHAT’S INSIDE
6
36
54
2 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA Fall 2011
Fall 2011 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 3
F all 2 011 E dito r ’ S C o r ne r
WHAT’S INSIDE
Serving the greater Ottawa area since 2007
fall 2011
publisher
Judy Field
EDITOR
Kinneret Globerman
CONTRIBUTORS
Lis Angus
Liz Bradley
Jake Cole
Linda Cruz
Lynda Hall
Debra Huron
Dan Plouffe
JC Sulzenko
Kylie Taggart
Bill Van Iterson
Dr. Joel Lee Villeneuve
Barb Wilson
DESIGN
Sandy Lynch
PHOTOGRAPHERS
Howard Sandler Photography
Kronick Photography
6An Apple a Day the Barkley Way
This family business puts “organic” back into apples
W
ell, the dog days of summer may be over, but if you’re
a canine owner, it’s always a dog day. For those of you
with a pooch and naturopathically inclined, we’ve got the
poop for you.
In fact, going “natural” might as well be this issue’s theme.
Whether it’s toddlers doing what comes naturally in
a yoga class for wee ones, the Barkleys with their
organic apple farm, alternative and holistic cancer
treatments, or Ron Farmer of The Green Door and his
naturally healthy restaurant menu, you’ll find a variety of
stories this season that laud going natural.
And how about going natural in nature? Make it a family affair
with orienteering. It’s an engaging sport that kids of all ages
(including big kids like Mom and Dad) enjoy. Or put on those
runners and take to the road. That’s what Dave Morton and
Sonja Adcock did a few years ago, for different reasons, and they
haven’t looked back. They just keep on running, and running...
and running! Read their inspiring story. It will motivate you
to get out and just do it.
10How Do You Like Them apples?
All of the reasons to eat them
12 Orienteering: A Family Affair
12
17 What My Grandma Means to Say
A multigenerational approach to dementia
20 42.195 km is Just Half the Journey!
Running is their passion
26 Walking the Distance
Edie's tribute for Medals4Mettle
29 The World is a Village — in Barrhaven
One teacher’s focus on social awareness
32
32 L • O •V • E That Green Door
A vegetarian mainstay built with love
We at Healthwise Ottawa wish you a healthy fall, “naturally.”
Don’t forget to pack those apples!
36 Surviving Cancer...and Thriving
The Maplesoft Centre can help
Kinneret Globerman
proofreader
Eileen Ornstein
56
Healthwise Ottawa is published seasonally
by Healthwise Publications Inc. and is
printed in Ottawa by Dollco Printing.
Dave Morton and Sonja Adcock:
Runners who go the distance.
The story is featured on page 20.
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40 Cancer Treatment — Is There a Better Way?
An unconventional route goes mainstream
Cover P hoto
Kronick Photography
ENTER TO
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43 Beat Cancer Before It Starts
A new and informative presentation from
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46 Reader's Contest
48 Going to the Dogs:
A Look at Canine Life in Ottawa
56 Diapers and Downward Dog:
Yoga for Youngsters
Adults do it. So can kids!
62 Advertisers’ Alphabetical Index
An Apple a Day
the Barkley Way
E
By Lynda Hall
astern Ontario has an impressive
apple history — with the fruit that is,
not the computer.
she dug and planted alongside her boyfriend.
“Do you think I’ll ever actually get to eat any
of these?” she wondered at the time.
In 1811, John McIntosh discovered a new
cultivar of apple tree on his property near
Dundela, Ontario, just north of Morrisburg.
The sapling produced small to medium-sized
apples, with shades of red and green skin
over a tart white flesh. He of course named
it “McIntosh.” Two centuries later, McIntosh
are still best-sellers, along with their offspring
the Spartan, Empire, and Cortland apples.
The couple married in 1986 but didn’t settle
down on the Barkley land until 2004. The
decision to uproot their family of five from
downtown Ottawa to the country wasn’t
easy, but Bill and Delia agree that, for their
kids, it was the right decision. (Sons Solomon,
Liam, and Denzil were between the ages of
nine and 13 at the time.)
These and many other varieties are grown
locally and can be purchased at farmers’
markets in Ottawa and surrounding towns.
One of the vendors, Barkley’s Apple Orchard,
is located a mere nine kilometres from the
birthplace of the McIntosh. I went to visit
the orchard this past spring, when the trees
were in full blossom, to learn more about the
art of growing apples.
Back in 1981, 22-year-old Bill Barkley
returned from college to his family property,
with a diploma in forestry and a girlfriend
named Delia whom he’d met while in Wawa
working as a firefighter. He had the notion to
plant some apple trees and start an orchard
on what was then a non-productive farm.
Planting an orchard requires long-term
planning and patience. It takes 20 years
for fruit trees to come into full production,
something Delia — a biology graduate —
was well aware of at the time. It was therefore
not unreasonable for her to muse aloud as
knowing when you don’t need to use either
is even better. “Bill goes out and looks for
insects, and has been doing this enough years
that he knows the cycles,” explains Delia.
With a solid knowledge of organic
agricultural practices, the Barkleys are able
to avoid most of the non-organic chemicals
used so prolifically in fruit production.
However, they haven’t been able to avoid
using all of them.
The real challenge to producing organically
grown apples in Eastern Ontario is the hot
humid climate. This is a perfect environment
for the development of scab — a fungal disease
that leaves dull black or grey-brown lesions on
the surface of the fruit. The disease doesn’t
render the fruit inedible, but it does make it
less marketable in terms of its appearance.
While most orchards will use a fungicidal
spray throughout the growing season to
combat scab, the Barkleys limit its use to
three times in the spring — at least three
months before the fruit is harvested for
eating. They have chosen to market these
apples as “low spray.” When asked if this adds
confusion in the marketplace, Bill extols the
merit of direct sales, and the opportunity it
gives him to explain his growing methods to
his customers.
“People who we sell to know who we are. They
ask a lot of questions because they want to be
informed, and we welcome it,” says Bill.
“It’s really good to raise kids on a farm,” says
Bill. “They know where food comes from. It’s
completely different from what you learn in
the city.” Delia agrees, adding that farming
has taught her children patience and how to
deal with the inevitable failures that come
with the vagaries of farming.
In addition to farming, both Bill and Delia
are trained organic certification inspectors.
They tour throughout Ontario and Quebec,
verifying that organic standards are upheld in
the production of everything from certified
organic grains to certified organic beef.
In their own orchard, the Barkleys employ a
mix of organic pest management tactics —
dormant oil to smother mites and Surround (a
clay-based spray) to repel soft-bodied insects —
and keep the ground vegetation around the
trees mowed instead of relying on herbicides.
Avoiding the use of insecticides is an
important distinction between Barkley’s
apples and most others grown in the region.
Using organic alternatives is one option, but
Photos: kronickphotography.com
Bill and Delia Barkley: Serious about apples
varieties — are produced organically, and
would qualify for organic certification.
But as there are currently only 15 trees in
production, it isn’t practical to incur the
expense of certification at this time.
In addition to their “low spray” orchard,
the Barkleys have been planting a separate
orchard of trees developed specifically for
scab resistance. The apples coming from these
trees — Liberty, Macfree, and Nova Mac
The Barkleys intentionally avoid using the
label “organic” to describe these apples or any
of the pies, jellies, chutnies, vinegars, cider,
apple butter, and syrup they make from them.
As organic inspectors, they are sensitive to
the potential dilution of the term “organic”
when used without the third-party approval
that comes with certification. Instead, they
describe the apples grown in this smaller
orchard as “no spray.”
Although they would prefer to have only
organic apples in production, and there is
sufficient demand for certified organic apples
to support the expansion of their newer
orchard, the Barkleys haven’t committed to
planting more trees.
“Everyone thinks farmers always want to
expand. I just want to be as big as it’s fun for
me,” says Bill.
Apples and
More…
Before I left them last spring, I wanted to
know which of their 14 apple varieties was
their favourite. Cortland was Bill’s choice.
Russet was Delia’s. “Sweet, solid; like a
golden gem,” was Delia’s description. “We
only grow a few and they come out late, so
they are precious.”
Barkley’s Apple Orchard sells apples,
strawberries, vegetables, honey, baking,
and preserves from their farm store near
Morrisburg. Email [email protected]
for times and directions. Or visit them
at the Ottawa Farmers’ Market at
Lansdowne Park.
If you venture down to the Ottawa Farmers’
Market at Lansdowne Park, you can find the
Barkleys and their sons behind a table full of
apples. But you may not find those precious
Russets. “Last year was the first time we sold
them,” says Delia. “That’s because, for once,
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there were more than I could eat!” Their products are also sold at Herb
& Spice (1310 Wellington Street), and
used in the fine foods made and sold
by The Red Apron (564 Gladstone
Avenue); Life of Pie (1095 Bank
Street); and Zen Kitchen (634 Somerset
Street West).
How Do You Like Them APPLES?
By Dr. Joel Lee Villeneuve, N.D.
T
he water looks smooth as silk as you
relax in your Adirondack chair with
that book you haven’t had time to
finish. The kids aren’t up yet and you’re not
ready for breakfast, but you’re hungry, so a
handful of trail mix and a crisp crunchy apple
do the trick. After flipping the last page,
you can now hear the dog being let out. You
savour the last bite of your apple, then head
into the house to make dessert for tonight —
a simple, naturally sweet, granola apple crisp.
Now, what other fruit can take you from
morning to night? And which is so versatile,
it can make its appearance at breakfast in a
fresh fruit salad or appear at a black tie event
in a flan?
Apples can be used as a snack, in salads,
soups, or dessert. Not only that. They pack a
lot of punch…and it may just be that an apple
a day does actually keep the doctor away.
Apples contain large amounts of catechins
and phytochemicals called flavonoids that
work as antioxidants to protect the cells
in your body from free-radical damage.
Nutritionally, they are a good source of
Vitamin C and fibre. They are easy on the
waistline, being low in the glycemic index
and only about 80 calories.
The combination of good nutrition, low
calories, and the abundance of antioxidants
is the reason why apples are one of the
“super foods.” Want to know the top eight
reasons why you should include an apple a
day in your diet? Read on!
R eason #1: Asthma Preventative
Research shows that children born to women
who eat a lot of apples during pregnancy have
lower rates of asthma than children whose
mothers ate fewer apples.
need for insulin and may help in the
management of diabetes.
R eason #2: Alzheimer’s Protection
R eason #7: Heart Health
A study on mice at Cornell University
found that the flavonoid quercetin in apples
may protect brain cells from the kind
of free-radical damage that may lead to
Alzheimer’s disease.
R eason #3: Blood Sugar Regulation
The quercetin and other flavonoids in apples
can regulate blood sugar by inhibiting
such carbohydrate-digesting enzymes as
alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase, thus
slowing down carbohydrate digestion. The
polyphenols found in apples also help the
body release more insulin to move sugar from
the blood into the cells, creating a better
blood sugar balance.
R eason #4: Bone Protection
French researchers found that a flavonoid
called phlorizin found only in apples may
protect post-menopausal women from
osteoporosis and may also increase bone
density. Boron, another ingredient in apples,
also strengthens bones.
R eason #5: Cancer Protection
People who eat apples every day may be at
a lower risk for developing certain types of
cancer, including mouth, throat, esophageal,
colon, lung, liver, and breast cancer. The
flavonoids in apples, especially quercetin, have
been shown to slow the growth of cancerous
cells in laboratory studies. The colourful skins
of apples contain the largest concentrations
of some of these phytochemicals.
R eason #6: Diabetes Management
The pectin in apples supplies galacturonic
acid to the body, which lowers the body’s
The pectin and flavonoids in apples may help
lower LDL (“bad”) cholesterol. Research
shows that people who eat two apples per day
may lower their cholesterol by as much as 16
per cent. In another study, post-menopausal
women who had the highest levels of
flavonoids in their blood were least likely
to die from cardiovascular disease. Apples
were among the individual f lavonoid-rich
foods that showed a significant correlation.
R eason #8: Weight Loss
Apples are nutrient dense without many
calories, so they can help you maintain a
healthy weight while satisfying your sweet
tooth. A Brazilian study found that women
who ate three apples or pears per day lost more
weight while dieting than women who did
not eat fruit while dieting.
With all these reasons for eating an apple
a day, the national average is only once a
week for individuals! Why not change that
and boost your health and your family’s at
the same time?
This week, try leaving apples out in a bowl
for everyone to grab. And dig out those apple
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crisp recipes while you’re at it.
© Edith Frincu | Dreamstime.com
Dr. Joel is a naturopathic doctor with over 20 years working in the natural
health care industry as a practitioner, researcher, innovator, community
leader, and media spokesperson. Her specialties include weight, hormones,
sensitivities, and allergies. You can see Dr. Joel on revIvelife on Rogers TV —
see http://revivelife.tv/.
Orienteering: A Family Affair
By Dan Plouffe
L
ooking to add a twist to your family fall-hiking excursions?
Ever tried orienteering? You’d be hard-pressed to find a sport
quite like it that marries physical and mental challenges.
Not to mention a sport that’s more inclusive to competitors of all
ages and abilities.
Just ask Ottawa’s first family of
orienteering, the Kemps. Randy Kemp,
president of the Ottawa Orienteering
Club, picks out his family’s 2004
trip to the Canadian championships
in Yukon as the moment he knew
his clan was unquestionably hooked
for life.
orienteering championships this past
summer in Poland, has taken the pursuit
furthest, moving to France to train with their
national team, while studying in her second
language at university.
Sweden that attracts around 20,000 people
annually. “Ninety-five and up is the oldest
age category and there’s under-10. Absolutely
everybody goes out in the woods and
enjoys themselves.”
While Emily sits at one extreme as an elite
international athlete, there was a time when
she was just like the vast majority of Ottawa
Orienteering Club members who are out to
enjoy the fun of a unique family activity.
Not exactly sure what these folks are so
crazy about? That’s common among most
newcomers to the Ottawa Orienteering
Club: They may have tried something similar
to the sport in the past but don’t completely
understand what’s involved.
“It’s standard in the orienteering community
that even at big races, like the junior world’s,
there’s always a series of spectator races
as well,” notes the club’s publicity director
Jeff Teutsch, highlighting a festival in
Participants begin with just two tools: a
compass, and a detailed map of a given
area, generally in the wilderness, that shows
controls (or check points) that they must
“We took my mother up to the
Yukon and she actually competed in
Whitehorse at 74 years old,” recounts
Kemp, who has four kids all involved
in orienteering, along with wife Judy.
“Here I had my kids competing, I
was competing, and I got my mother
to compete. That shows the diversity
that the sport offers. It was just such
an incredible adventure.”
Photo: Wil Smith
Randy Kemp: Orienteering — “an incredible adventure”
The Kemps have jumped hard into
the competitive track of the sport
that asks participants to weave their
way through the woods as quickly
as possible in search of flag check
points along the course. They’ve
travelled from coast-to-coast-tocoast in Canada for events, visiting
the rest of the globe for some of
the world’s biggest competitions.
Nineteen-year-old Emily Kemp, who
placed 13th at the world junior
only spectators, whereas with this one, we can get
involved and watch them at the same time, so we
get the best of both aspects.”
“Young kids love going around and looking for
things — sort of the aspect of the treasure hunt,”
explains Teutsch, a recent Carleton University
aerospace engineering grad who started orienteering
as a baby strapped to his dad’s back. “They run up
to the [check point] flag, they punch in, and they
say, ‘Come on, where’s the next one? Where’s the
next one?’”
Many clubs use the slogan “Why just run?” Teutsch
adds, noting it’s an apt summary for the activity that
provides a great health benefit, with its physical and
mental challenges in an outdoor setting.
Photo: MaryJo Childs
Navigating a maze at orienteering camp held in association with the 2010 Canadian Orienteering
Championship at Mooney’s Bay
find throughout the course. Using their
compass to line up features on the ground
with the path they choose to take along the
way, it’s the competitor’s goal to make it
through the course as fast as possible.
The Ottawa Orienteering Club occasionally
hosts specific clinics for beginners, and their
weekly events in the spring and fall are
usually on Sundays in Gatineau Park. (An upto-date schedule — which also features tips,
guides, links, and sample maps for novices —
is available on their website at ottawaoc.ca.)
“They’re quite supportive of new members,”
says Peter Williamson, whose family joined
the club in May 2010. “You can always get
advice, whether it’s before the race looking at
the maps and trying to figure out what the
symbols mean, or to help you try to figure
out what went wrong at the end. They’re
all friendly and helpful. Everyone’s also
easygoing and has the same kind of interest
in the outdoors.”
With Eric, 14, Megan, 12, and Krista, 10, the
Williamson family also participates in soccer,
dance, downhill skiing, and paddling, but
they’ve found orienteering offers something
different — not the least of which is
the low cost of the volunteer-driven sport
(a club membership is around $20, and
entry fees are capped at $20 per family for
club competitions).
Another big attraction to orienteering for
the Williamsons was that the sport easily
accommodates different ages. Families
with young kids can do it as a team, less
challenging courses are available for preteens
who are ready to go out on their own or with a
friend, while the more experienced can tackle
intermediate or advanced treks.
“There aren’t very many sports where you
can bring out a friend who’s never done it
before and just do it,” adds Anita Williamson,
Peter’s wife. “For a number of sports or
activities the kids are involved in, we’re
“You can run it, you can walk it, you can hike it as a
family,” says Teutsch, whose club keeps active yearround with Ski-O in the wintertime, one of many
orienteering variations. “We’re very flexible. It’s a
very close-knit community, but, at the same time,
very friendly and very open to everyone who wants
to come out and try it.
“And everyone who tries it seems to get sucked
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into it.”
For more information on orienteering,
visit the Ottawa Orienteering Club website
at ottawaoc.ca.
Photo: Stefan Bergstrom
What My Grandma Means to Say:
A Story about Families Living
with Alzheimer’s
192 Main Street, Ottawa, (613) 238-1881
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Illustration: Gary Frederick
By JC Sulzenko
I
f anyone had told me that for three years
I would focus on how Alzheimer’s disease
in families affects children, I would have
thought that prediction far-fetched. Yet that
is exactly what happened.
It all began with a colleague’s anecdote
about a visit with her mother, who had been
living with Alzheimer’s for many years. One
day, after months without any two-way
communication, her mother recognized my
friend. They talked together as they always
had. My friend, filled with wonder, called
her sister as soon as she came home, but by
the time her sister reached their mother, the
moments of clarity had passed.
That incident affected me deeply. Almost a
year later, during a flight over Manitoba, I
began to write what I thought would turn into
a story for children about a boy’s experience
with his grandmother and with Alzheimer’s.
Imagine my surprise when what emerged
was not a narrative at all but a dialogue. The
characters seemed to wish to tell their story
themselves. They pushed me out of the way.
Happily, I stepped aside. The result: What My
Grandma Means to Say is my one-act, tenminute play for children in Grades 4 to 6, and
their families, about eleven-year-old Jake’s
visit with his grandmother.
After five books of poetry and stories for
children, now I had a play! Whatever was I
going to do with it? What transpired was, as
Jake might say, awesome!
I read the play aloud to professionals in
health care and in education. I brought it to
families in which someone was living with
Open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.- 6 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Alzheimer’s. I tested and fine-tuned the
script with students in local schools. Every
occasion confirmed how effective the play was
in setting the scene for a positive discussion
about dementia and how to support someone
living with it.
Why write for children about a disease
that affects people so much later in life?
Alzheimer’s affects more than the person
living with the disease. It impacts their
entire family. Many families find it hard to
speak about what is happening to someone
about whom they care.
Children, in such situations, are often
drawn into the role of caregivers; they need
a chance to find their place in what is going
on in their families. The play enables children
(and families) to focus on Jake and his
experiences. That distance makes asking
questions and discussing what is going
on somewhat easier than talking
about someone close.
about dementia are low among those who
will increasingly be called upon to carry the
economic and human burdens that come with
such illnesses.
With the play in hand, I gained wonderful
community partners in The Glebe Centre
(www.glebecentre.ca) and in the Alzheimer
Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County
(ASORC) (www.alzheimer-ottawa-rc.org).
Together, we created a Discussion Guide
for teachers and community groups to
complement the play. (ASORC now offers
What My Grandma Means to Say in its school
education programs.)
The play premiered with a professional cast
at the 2009 Ottawa International Writers
Festival, and has been performed many times
in area schools and libraries since then. After
such presentations, students, families, and
teachers asked
me for the
Alzheimer’s disease affects 13,000
people in our region alone. Its growing
presence in the lives of individuals
and their families has been called a
“rising tide.” Yet, knowledge levels
Over last winter, I thought a lot about
Jake and wondered what life had
been like in his family before and after that
unexpected moment with his grandma, which
is at the heart of the play. I wondered how to
tell the story, when I had been rejected as a
narrator before.
Jake rescued me. Though grateful for my
interest, he made it clear he’d rather tell his
story himself. Once again, I stepped back
and let him.
The forty-eight page adaptation of What My
Grandma Means to Say, illustrated beautifully
by Ottawa’s Gary Frederick and published by
General Store Publishing House (www.gsph.
com), was launched in May at the Ottawa
International Writers Festival. On behalf of
the festival, I presented What My Grandma
Means to Say to over 1,000 elementary schoolaged children who responded with thoughtful
questions in freewheeling discussions.
My aim — Jake’s aim — is to show children
(and I quote him) “what happened to me, my
mom and my grandma. That way, if you ever
find yourself in a situation like mine, maybe
you’ll understand better what’s going on and
what you can do about it.”
Where to Get the
Play or the Book
This story of Jake and his family has a
multigenerational appeal: it embraces the
The Book
The Play
Available at $12.95 from:
Collected Works Bookstore
Kaleidoscope Kids’ Books
Mother Tongue Books
www.gsph.com 1 (800) 465-6072
Chapters/Amazon (on-line)
The Ottawa Public Library
For information on presentations
in schools, go to
www.alzheimer-ottawa-rc.org or call
(613) 523-4004.
For information on presentations by
JC Sulzenko, go to
www.jcsulzenko.com.
book. What book? All I knew about Jake, his
grandma, and his mother was in the play.
sandwich generation, their children, and
their elders. It allows them to grow their
understanding about Alzheimer’s and related
dementias, and to build their strengths
and strategies for supporting each other and
the person in their lives living with such
a disease.
My journey in Jake’s company has enriched
my life in ways I could not have expected. I
will always cherish what a Grade 5 student
said after thanking me for presenting
the play: “Now I understand more. My
grandfather has Alzheimer’s.” As one mental
health professional commented: “In the
field of dementia, the book is an extremely
useful therapeutic tool for an often forgotten
population — the children.”
Such feedback has encouraged me to seek
funding for a video of the play so that it
can reach a wider audience. Grants from
the Community Foundation of Ottawa and
the Organix Foundation in Montreal have
allowed this work to begin.
It is my hope that families in which someone
is living with Alzheimer’s or a related
dementia will read the book with their
children. Using Jake’s story, based on a real
situation, and the questions and answers
which also appear in the book should help
them prepare to meet the health challenges
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that come their way.
JC Sulzenko, known for workshops and projects with young or emerging
writers, received the Ottawa Public Library’s Order of Friendship in 2010
for “outstanding volunteer” service. Her poetry and prose appear in many
chapbooks and anthologies, on-line, and in local and national media. For
more information: www.jcsulzenko.com. Fall 2011 HEALTHWISE OTTAWA 19
42.195 km is Just Half the Journey!
“I got faster as I lost weight, and I got more
serious about it.”
By Dan Plouffe
Soon enough, Morton was running 100
kilometres a week in preparation for the
1994 Ottawa marathon. He qualified for
the Boston marathon later that season and
broke three hours when he tackled the famed
course in 1995.
D
ave Morton and Sonja
Adcock may have been
strangers before this
Healthwise Ottawa photo shoot
took place, but these Ottawans
have a lot in common. While they
used to regard physical activity
as just an afterthought, they now
balance career demands with
those of training for year-round
events that can take upwards of
12 hours to complete.
Now 53, Morton has 37 marathons under
his belt, including all the majors in New
York, Chicago, Boston, Berlin, and London.
Finding a love for pushing his body to the
limit — and past it in the case of one Boston
marathon, where he keeled over from heat
exhaustion and required intravenous fluids
around 5 kilometres short of the finish line —
is something he wouldn’t have imagined back
on the squash court.
Morton and Adcock are very
dedicated runners, constantly
pushing forward in search of
the next challenge. They may
have taken different paths to get
there, but both have developed
a passion that’s led them to
races around the world most
folks would call them crazy
for attempting.
Morton was playing squash with a friend
one day when they saw a poster for the
Canada Day Limestone Mile and decided
to give it a shot. “We ran a mile, but it
The next step was the Ottawa Race Weekend
10K, and then she jumped straight up to the
marathon in May 1996. By September of the
same year, Adcock had chopped 18 minutes
off her marathon time and qualified for the
Boston Marathon.
After running in the mecca of marathoners,
the Ottawa native got hit by the “what’s
next?” syndrome, which has taken hold ever
“It’s kind of like childbirth,” Morton says.
“There’s often, during a marathon, where
you’re pushing hard and you’re telling
yourself, ‘I’m not going to do this again.’
But once amnesia sets in after the fact,
you forget about the pain and you start
to look around and say, ‘Well, what will I
do next?’”
Getting Up to Speed
For Dave Morton, it started on
a whim. Working a sedentary
job in Kingston, the former
high school cross-country
athlete hadn’t run in years and
had packed on about 40 extra
pounds to show for it.
shape. But we went out three times a week
at lunchtime and every day we’d go a little
bit further and a little bit further until,
finally, we were up to running 5 kilometres.”
Birth of an Obsession
certainly wasn’t pretty,” recalls Morton,
who nonetheless went out for a 5 kilometre
race a few days later and then began running
loops around his neighbourhood regularly.
For Sonja Adcock, childbirth was the
catalyst. Without much of any sports
background, the mother of two simply
wanted to get back into shape after her
second child’s first birthday.
Running wasn’t at the top of her list because
she’d always hated it in the past, but Adcock’s
friends encouraged her to try it again. “At
first, we couldn’t run around the block,” the
51-year-old laughs. “We were in really bad
since. It started with a sprint triathlon in 1998 and then an
ironman to celebrate her fortieth birthday, and eventually
the brutal JFK 50 Mile ultra-marathon run in Maryland.
race. Nonetheless, Adcock persevered and bettered her
time from the downhill, with a clocking of 10 hours,
24 minutes.
“It was a really slow time, but I did it,” Adcock says. “I
didn’t really think I’d want to do an ultra-marathon
again, but in the back of my mind, I always sort of knew
about Comrades.”
“The atmosphere and excitement in the air…it’s
unbelievable,” Adcock notes, explaining that supporters
cheer on racers at every point along the course.
“Eventually, you get to a point where you know that,
even if you have to walk the rest of the way, you’re going
to make it (under 12 hours). It’s this amazing feeling to
know you’re going to make it and it’s such an amazing
accomplishment. Wow!”
The Comrades Marathon is the oldest and largest
ultra-marathon in the world, and represents Adcock’s
latest completed challenge. Founded in 1921 as a living
memorial to the spirit of WWI soldiers, around 18,000
runners take part in the annual 89 kilometre trek between
the South African cities of Pietermaritzburg and Durban,
although only three-quarters make it to the finish under
the 12-hour maximum to enjoy the last of the 5.4 tons of
bananas distributed to athletes.
“There’s points where I thought, ‘Oh my God, I don’t
know if I can make it any more, this is killing me,’”
Adcock recalls. “But you just kind of put one foot in front
of the other and you’ve set your mind to say, ‘I’m running
89 kilometres today and I’m going to finish it.’”
That battle became even more difficult this past spring.
It wasn’t so much the fact that she was doing the reverse
course — Adcock was embarking on the uphill version
after completing the downhill jaunt last year. It was a
foot injury that had her limping just days before the
Run Fun
Morton hails the concept of destination racing —
planning vacations around an athletic event. Of his 37
completed marathons, only four have been in Canada.
Recently, Morton and his wife did a cycling tour in
France — including a 175 kilometre race through the
Alps — as well as visiting sites such as Vimy Ridge.
“I’m not a person who likes to go and sit on a beach for
a week. I’d be too bored,” says Morton, who also enjoys
meeting people with a common interest from across the
globe. “I like being active. Part of it is stress relief.”
Both Morton and Adcock maintain very busy professional
careers but don’t look at work as a hindrance to their
athletic pursuits.
What’s in a Race?
Despite some long hours in his diverse role as
marketing director for Bushtukah, Morton
gets out to run once the workday is done and
then devotes a good chunk of his weekend
to training. “I’m not likely to suffer from
overtraining,” he smiles, highlighting other
positives his job offers, such as access to topquality products and entry into Bushtukahsponsored events. “You also meet people who
are sort of role models and are inspirational
stories, which gives you incentive and shows
you what can be done.”
For Adcock, the alarm goes off before 5:30
a.m. On many weekdays, she often does
group runs in the evenings, and 65 kilometrelong runs when in ultra-training mode can
eat up eight hours of her Sunday. “My job is
pretty demanding, so what works for me is
that I get up really early in the morning and
train then,” says the Infrastructure Canada
director who loves the feeling of taking a deep
breath when she first steps outside. “It makes
me feel really energized throughout the day.
It’s a good thing, because I wouldn’t want to
be falling asleep at my desk.”
Routing for the Future
Never far from Adcock’s and Morton’s minds
is what that next challenge will be. For
Morton, his bucket list includes the Loch Ness
marathon this fall down an old single-lane
military road, a 2014 trip to Flanders Fields
100 years after the start of WWI, the Two
Oceans ultra in South Africa (a 56 kilometre
race in Cape Town), and maybe even a
100 mile trail run, inspired by his first
completed ironman two years ago, when “I
realized that I could actually not kill myself
doing it,” he smiles.
Adcock also somehow
thought of doing a 100
her eye on the Beast of
in Lockport, New York,
can’t resist the
mile race and has
Burden 100-miler
which she expects
Marathon: This best-known race covers
a course that stretches 42.195 km.
Ultra-marathon: There are many
different variations to ultra-marathons,
but, simply put, it’s a race that’s longer
than 42.195 km. Popular distances
include 50 km, 100 km, 50 miles, and
100 miles. Other courses cover random
lengths between two points (such as
two cities), and some ultras challenge
participants to cover the greatest
distance possible in a time period
(often six, 12, or 24 hours).
Olympic triathlon: The standard
distance for the triathlon is: 1.5 km
swim, 40 km cycle, 10 km run.
Sprint triathlon: This is half the Olympic
distance — 750 m swim, 20 km cycle,
5 km run.
Ironman triathlon: A 2.4 mile (3.86
km) swim, 112 mile (180.25 km) cycle,
a marathon (26.2 miles/42.195 km)
run. Luc Van Lierde holds the Ironman
World Record of seven hours, 50
minutes, and 27 seconds.
will take somewhere between 24 and 30
hours to complete.
Despite the extreme lengths they’ve taken,
the drive behind Adcock’s and Morton’s
athletic pursuits all goes back to the reason
they began running in the first place.
“Good health is the main thing,” emphasizes
Morton, a veteran of four ironmans. “I was
inactive in a corporate role for many years. I
found running relatively late, in my late 30s,
and now it’s something I want to maintain
all the way through life. My goal is to stay
HWO
healthy through an active lifestyle.”
Walking the Distance
By Lis Angus and Linda Cruz
I
t was not until she was in her
mid-sixties that Edith (Edie)
Anderson became serious
about walking.
In the spring of 2005, Anderson
signed up for a walking clinic at
the Running Room to train for
the May Ottawa Race Weekend
10K. She earned her first medal at
that event, and started on her way
to becoming a respected and admired
competitive walker.
Anderson completed her first half marathon at
the Ottawa Fall Colours in Cumberland that
October. From then on, she was constantly
training, completing one local event after
another — CIBC’s Run for the Cure, the
Running Room’s Resolution Run, the Ottawa
Race Weekend marathon, the Hypothermic
Half Marathon, the Hintonburg Centennial
5k Run/Walk, Ottawa Fall Colours Half
Marathon, the Army Run.
A charter member of the Ottawalkers — a
group that still meets at the Slater Street
Running Room three times a week — she joined
the group to have companions to walk with.
But few could keep up with her and, in 2007, at
age 68, she completed her first full marathon,
repeating this feat in 2008 and 2009.
In 2009, Anderson set her ultimate goal: the
Walt Disney World Goofy’s Race And A Half
Challenge in Orlando, Florida — a weekend
of a half marathon and a full marathon over
two consecutive days. After months of diligent
training, Anderson met the
challenge in January 2010. That
same month, she completed
her fifth Hypothermic Half
Marathon, bringing her medal
count to 27.
Unfortunately, she fell ill soon
after and was diagnosed with
throat cancer a few months later.
Thus began Anderson’s biggest
challenge. With much support from
her friends, her husband, and medical
staff at The Ottawa Hospital and Carefor
Health & Community Services, she fought
this disease for a year. Sadly, she crossed her
final finish line this past July.
Anderson’s 27 treasured medals are being donated
to Medals4Mettle (www.medals4mettle.org).
The international non-profit organization
awards marathon, half marathon, and triathlon
finishers’ medals to children and adults
fighting debilitating illnesses, who “might not
be able to run a race, but are in a race of their
own just to continue to live their life.” Anderson
certainly showed mettle herself, both in her
athleticism and in her final fight with cancer.
Says her husband: “She would be very happy
to know that her medals will have a new life,
acknowledging others who are going through
their own battles with illness.”
For information on Medals4Mettle or to
donate your own medals, please contact
Gary Cooper at the Ottawa chapter:
[email protected].
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The World is a Village —
in Barrhaven
Photo: kronickph
otography.com
By Barb Wilson
E
very so often, we encounter people
who have a positive influence on our
lives. We’re lucky to have more than
our fair share of such individuals here in the
Ottawa area.
Take Penny Giaccone, for example. A regular,
everyday schoolteacher at Jockvale Elementary
School in Barrhaven, she instructs Grades 2
and 3 students in reading, writing, and…
social awareness. Social awareness? In young
kids you’d normally expect to see hanging
out at the park or playing video games with
their friends?
Well, actually, Giaccone isn’t your average
schoolteacher, and her students aren’t your
typical seven- and eight-year-olds.
A few years ago, Giaccone began volunteering
in Third World countries. She found her
inspiration in the 2002 book by David Smith,
If The World Were A Village, which contains
ideas and statistics to help readers, especially
young people, understand how a village of
100 people can mirror the world at large.
Giaccone, her physician-husband Roberto,
and their children travelled to Ghana in
2008 as a family to help improve the lives
of villagers. While her husband provided
medical care, Giaccone and her children (Eli,
Sophia, and Callie) gave books and supplies
to the school to help enrich the students’
learning. They also helped prepare food for
the homeless.
In the fall of 2010, in an effort to help her
students understand the wider world, Giaccone
showed them a DVD about the work of Ryan
Hreljac, who, as young boy in Grade 1 back in
the 1990s growing up in Kemptville, embarked
on a journey that would lead him to establish
a national foundation called Ryan’s Well.
Starting out small, six-year-old Hreljac worked
at a number of chores to raise enough money
to deliver what he hoped would be a well, to
a small village in Uganda. He was chagrined
to learn his efforts yielded only enough funds
to purchase the equivalent of the handle for
the well. Instead of giving up, Hreljac became
even more motivated and finally raised enough
money to have the well installed.
After watching the DVD, Giaccone’s students
started to think up ways to help bring clean
water to villages in Africa. After all, they
thought, if Hreljac could do this all by
himself, what could they achieve as a group?
Student Katie Grimes, aged eight, went on her
own fundraising blitz, gathering $1,400 from
family and friends, door-to-door canvassing,
and donations from local businesses. “We’re
also planning a freezie sale at school and a
BBQ at the local shopping centre,” she says.
And the lessons continue
“I’ve been teaching almost 25 years now, and
I always wanted to help kids learn about the
‘real’ world — to develop a sense of social
responsibility,” Giaccone recalls. “You never
know when that teaching moment will
happen, and I think this event was it.”
She is awestruck by the level of energy and
engagement her students were giving to the
work: “These kids are a very special group.
They took it so much further than I thought
they would. They were coming up with their
own ideas of people and causes to help.”
Giaconne and daughter Callie returned to
Ghana this past summer to help teach children
to read and write with the Osu Children’s
Library Fund (www.osuchildrenslibraryfund.ca).
Before leaving, Giaccone also encouraged
her students to write to their African pen
pals so that they could learn about
each others’ worlds.
Galvanized by their teacher’s
enthusiasm and insights into a world
they’d never seen, let alone understood,
the 19 students put their thinking caps
on. Within days, one of them approached
Giaccone with a $45 contribution from
a bake sale. That quickly snowballed to
$300 and the ideas kept coming.
Parents also lent their support. Tracy
Beardsley, mother of student Chloe
Pearson and owner of a spinning and
cycling club, offered to host a spin-a-thon.
“My clients love to spin for more than an
hour when they have the opportunity,” she
says. With the students helping with money
collection and offering bottled water to the
participants, the event quickly raised $1,000.
And herein lies the
lesson: It doesn’t take
an Act of Parliament
to help people in
has shown us. People like her and Ryan
Hreljac live everyday lives here in the
Ottawa region, and yet their influence is felt
HWO
oceans away.
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Ryan’s Well — Ten Years and Count
for
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Ryan Hreljac at
two of “ his” wells
in Uganda (2006).
Photos: Courtesy of Ryan’s Well Foundation
other countries — or in our own — who
are less fortunate. Every effort counts, no
matter how large or small. Inspiration and
energy can be contagious, as Penny Giaccone
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L∙ O ∙ V ∙ E
That Green Door
O
By Debra Huron
utside The Green Door Restaurant, on
a Friday or Saturday night, the lineups
often extend way beyond the door.
Inside, diners savour the vegetarian fare that Ron
Farmer’s staff prepares six days a week, using
minimal cutlery (their forks — or their spoons
if they’re having soup). The only time patrons of
Farmer’s restaurant might need their knives is for
the thick and juicy lasagna!
This is one of many things that is different about
Ottawa’s most established vegetarian restaurant.
Another is that no one gets a paper menu to mull
over. The food is laid out buffet-style, there is no wait
staff (just a cashier or two), and you’ll pay for your
food by how much it weighs on your plate, not by
whether you choose to eat lasagna or sushi rolls.
Ron Farmer: Sharing the L• O •V•E
Bring on the L∙O∙V∙E
Farmer opened The Green Door Restaurant
23 years ago. Its door is no longer green and
wooden, having been replaced about two years
ago by two glass and steel portals that create
a small porch to keep out the cold. Someone
had the presence of mind to take a picture of
the door, and a framed portrait now hangs in
a hallway near the downstairs bathrooms.
The green door itself might be gone, but its
name lives on, especially as a metaphor for the
philosophy behind the place: The Green Door
Restaurant supports food that is local, organic,
and vegetarian. Most of the customers who
stream through its doors figure they are what
they eat, and they choose not to eat animals.
But not all are veggie lovers.
“You know, lots of people who eat here are not
vegetarian,” says Farmer. “They find the food
here to be good, nutritious, and it appeals to
their taste buds.
“They realize they don’t need to eat meat all
the time,” he adds. “I think they are looking
for alternatives. They can certainly come here
and get ideas for cooking at home . . . it’s a
learning experience.”
Last year, Farmer finally put pen to paper to
create a Guide to The Green Door Restaurant.
It’s available online at www.thegreendoor.ca
and sets out the three pillars of his
philosophy that just happen to spell L-O-V.
(Local, organic, vegetarian. Remember?)
Add an “E” and you’ve got “LOVE.”
When asked what the “E” might stand for,
Farmer smiles broadly and says: “Eco and
environmentally conscious.”
Although he feeds people vegetarian food all
day long and has devoted most of his adult life
to doing so, Farmer is not pushy or ideological
about the eating choices people make. He’s
more philosophical about his diet.
“For me, it’s about having a lighter footprint
on the planet,” says the 62-year-old. “People
have many different reasons [for adopting a
vegetarian diet] — some may be based on fact,
some on emotion. To me, it feels good and I
think it’s more environmentally sustainable,
not as wasteful.”
Making the shift
Farmer chose to be vegetarian at age 18 and
has seen various food trends come and go.
The one that worries him is the fact that
“health food today involves a lot of
packaging…it’s not just about going into
a store and buying a bag of beans and rice
anymore. It’s all ready-to-eat, prepared.”
Another concern of his is that when people
decide to shift from a meat-based to a
vegetarian diet, “there’s a danger, especially
with young people, that they may not be
eating very nutritionally.” Tofu hot dogs,
veggie ham slices, and even a bag of organic
potato chips are anathema to the restaurateur.
“I don’t eat them. I don’t recommend them.”
Furthermore, he strongly believes that
“just dropping the meat is not the answer.”
Farmer says: “What I’d suggest for someone
who wants to make a transition [from meat
to vegetarian foods] is to gradually include
beans and legumes in your diet. I find that
a lot of people will start to eat a lot of dairy,
thinking they’ll get their protein from cheese,
and milk, and yogourt. I’ve always thought
that dairy is not the way to go because people
may eat too much of that food group, creating
an imbalance.”
Locate the Door
The Green Door Restaurant
198 Main Street (Old Ottawa East)
(613) 234-9597
www.thegreendoor.ca
Open:
Tuesday to Sunday,
11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
More green doors?
Having a successful restaurant — 1,800
square feet of space that seats 100 people at
a time, and sometimes three full turnovers in
a busy night — does not mean that Farmer is
keen to launch The Green Door Restaurant
No. 2 or No. 3 in other parts of the city. “You
know, you can’t split yourself in two,” he says.
It’s a full-time job for him to manage suppliers
and 35 employees. “The truth is, we’re not
very professional [formally trained] in a whole
lot of ways. None of us went to school to
learn restaurant management, or to a culinary
institute. And, often, we have found that
when we had those kinds of employees, it
can be a disadvantage because the knowledge
gained in an environment like that does not
really translate well into what goes on here…
We soak beans every night!”
And at 6:30 a.m. the next day, the job of
turning those beans into tasty and healthy
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food begins all over again.
Surviving Cancer
By Kylie Taggart
W
hen Esther Guindon’s
oncologist told her she needed
to start doing weight training
after her treatment for invasive breast cancer
last year, she wasn’t sure how to begin. The
41-year-old mother of two had exercised
before but had never worked with weights.
“For me, weight training was intimidating.
It was for the athletes.”
Then a friend told her about the six-month
fitness Vitality Program for cancer survivors,
run by the Ottawa Regional Cancer
Foundation. Twice a week, 15 survivors meet
for an hour of cardiovascular and weight
training, followed by a half-hour information
session on nutrition or other topics.
Guindon says she now has the skills and
confidence to continue weight training at
home. She also knows the science behind
the advice on nutrition, thanks to the handson teaching style of Guylaine Perreault,
an occupational therapist and exercise
physiologist who is one of the Cancer
Foundation’s instructors. In one session,
Perreault took everyone to her home (after
an hour of Nordic walking) to make a salad
packed with cancer-fighting antioxidants.
A Merger of Programs
Perreault will not have to use her own
kitchen for teaching much longer; the
Vitality Program will soon have a new home
at the new Cancer Survivorship Centre.
The Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation is
scheduled to open the Maplesoft Centre this
fall, providing Cancer Survivorship Care
to anyone in the region who needs it. The
idea behind Survivorship Care at Maplesoft
Centre is to learn how to live well with
cancer, any type of cancer, whether someone
has just been diagnosed or has been out of
treatment for years. Part of that care is also
directed at others affected by cancer, from
caregivers to children of cancer patients.
While the medical services for cancer patients
in the Ottawa region are world-class, there
are “human aspects of the cancer journey
that are not being met,” says Linda Eagen,
president and CEO of the Ottawa Regional
Cancer Foundation. A cancer diagnosis forces
people into an emotionally stressful period
where you have to “sift through countless bits
of information, find a way to understand all
that is coming at you, and make critical life
decisions.” There are the practical aspects —
financial burdens and child care, for
example — which people need help with. The
programs provided at the Maplesoft Centre
are aimed at filling some of those gaps in care,
creating healthier survivors, and decreasing
the risk of cancer recurrence.
g
n
i
v
i
r
h
T
… and
with for years. We wanted to do something
to increase cancer survivorship.”
Programs to encourage self-care will help
with managing life after diagnosis, financial
planning, and how to cope with “brain
fog.” Eating-right sessions will be taught in
a kitchen equipped with professional-grade
appliances selected with the help of some
of the region’s top chefs.
All survivors will have access to ten hours
of one-on-one coaching with a professional
health coach. The coaches will work to
empower each individual to make changes
and regain control of their lives.
Supportive care for caregivers and family
members offered at the Centre will include
special sessions for children and teens
whose parents have cancer. Healing through
art therapy, meditation, and yoga will also
be offered.
The pilot sessions of the Gentle Yoga
course have been very popular with
A First in Canada
This is the first centre of its kind in
Canada. The programs being offered at
the Maplesoft Centre have been developed
using models from all over the world. Best
of all, the programs will be offered free of
charge and participants don’t need a referral
from their doctor to take part. Survivors
can receive one-on-one care, participate
in programs to enhance self-care, and find
support groups.
“It has been a dream of mine for years,”
says Eagen. “It is a vision that has evolved
from a group of people that I have worked
Linda Eagen, president and CEO of the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation, in front of the
Maplesoft Centre.
cancer survivors — some still undergoing
treatment — and caregivers taking part.
About half of the participants have never
done yoga before. “It really doesn’t matter.
You really don’t need any experience at all,”
says yoga teacher Anne Pitman. “They’ve been
in places where they’ve had to make decisions
and think about things and analyze things,
and this is the opposite of that. [Yoga] is so
spacious and so slow, and gives you a chance
to catch up with yourself and come back.”
The Centre will also be used by other regional
cancer support groups running their own
programs or sessions. “That way, we will learn
from each other,” says Eagen.
and Riverside Drives, and Industrial Road.
It was designed to look and feel like a home,
with the hope that it would evoke the same
welcoming and caring environment that is
most associated with home. Earth-friendly
materials were used in its construction,
and the five elements of fire, earth, metal,
water, and wood — important concepts
in traditional Chinese medicine and Feng
Shui — were incorporated into the design
to bring balance and harmony to those at
the Centre.
More information on how to register or volunteer
is available at www.ottawacancer.ca. HWO
The programs offered will depend on what
survivors in the region say they need. “We are
going to evolve based on what we learn from
the people we serve.”
Like Guindon, breast cancer survivor Donna
Gaines participated in the six-month-long
Vitality Program this past spring. “After all
your body has been through, it is nice to see
it come back again, all through lifting a few
little weights,” Gaines says.
One program she’d like to see at the new
Maplesoft Centre is a follow-up strength
training class for Vitality Program
participants. Both Gaines and Guindon say
they plan to check out other
programs at the Centre.
“I think the city is long
overdue for a centre like this,
and all the programs that I
have seen that they are going
to offer are going to be very
valuable for lots of people at
different stages of their postcancer or cancer treatment,”
Gaines says.
The Maplesoft Centre is
located at 1500 Alta Vista
Drive, adjacent to the Cancer
Survivors Park near the
intersection of Alta Vista
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Yoga teacher Anne Pitman (at centre in both photos) demonstrates
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Cancer Treatment —
Is There a Better Way?
© Bogdan Chirap | Dreamstime.com
What are the main components of these
alternative cancer treatments?
By Jake Cole and Bill Van Iterson
“Y
ou have cancer” are perhaps the
most dreaded words you ever
want to hear. The disease itself
can overwhelm your body and, as Canada’s
number one killer, quite possibly your life.
Consider the treatments you will face. Look
at the so-called conventional approaches:
poisonous, chemical concoctions; significant
levels of lethal radiation; and disfiguring
surgery. And what about the concerns and
side effects (like chemo fog, a depression-like
condition) that can linger for months and
years long after the cancer treatment itself
has ended? Yet people think alternative
treatments are dangerous.
Some 75,000 people die from cancer each
year in Canada. Presumably, most of
them were in the care of an oncologist and
likely receiving some sort of conventional
treatment. Aren’t those examples of the
failure of conventional cancer care?
How many people are refusing conventional
treatment and relying instead on more gentle,
alternative approaches? Does anyone track
their outcomes? Building up the body’s natural
defences through such things as improved
nutrition, specific natural treatments and
supplements, increased exercise, and avoiding
environmental carcinogens just makes good
sense, not only to prevent cancer, but to
avoid a recurrence as well.
Why do we get cancer, anyway? Do doctors ask
their patients for some historical background
to determine why they might have contracted
the disease? Do doctors send their cancer
patients home with a list of good foods
to eat, recommended cleaners and cosmetic
products to use, and perhaps recommended
lifestyle changes to help avoid a recurrence?
We’d like to hope so, but we believe that the
reality is that they don’t.
So what about these alternative cancer
treatments? What are they? Who offers them?
Do they work? How much do they cost?
Diet is a big one. A good anti-cancer diet can
be the most effective way to treat, and also
to prevent, cancer. It entails eating a lot of
fruit and vegetables, preferably raw; and
very little sugar, processed food, red meat, or
dairy products.
Exercise is another important component.
A half-hour of vigorous exercise per day is
effective. Similarly, reducing your stress is
beneficial. Pursue activities such as meditation,
yoga, qigong, or many similar options.
Natural treatments have turned around
even the most serious cases of cancer. There
are 10 to 15 such treatments, many of
which are described in Cancer-Free: Your
Guide to Gentle, Non-Toxic Healing by
Bill Henderson. Under the guidance of a
caregiver or qualified naturopath, choose the
best one for you. If it is not successful, try
another and, if necessary, a third. It is best
to try these treatments before being affected
by the destructive effects of chemotherapy
or radiation.
Use dietary supplements. Good choices
include vitamins A, B, C, D, E, minerals,
antioxidants, immune system enhancers, and
products to make the body more alkaline
(less acidic).
Alternatives to conventional treatment
These are often described as natural, holistic,
alternative, or complementary treatments.
They differ fundamentally from the
conventional treatments of chemotherapy,
radiation, and surgery. The conventional
treatments aim at destroying or removing
the cancer. In the process, they can also
destroy many healthy cells and thereby do a
great deal of damage to the body. It has been
said that people die more from the treatment
than from the cancer itself. By contrast,
the alternative treatments do not set out to
kill cancer. They set out to make the body
stronger and healthier, so that the body itself,
through its natural capabilities, will overcome
the disease.
© Gale Verhague | Dreamstime.com
offering that combination), the patient needs
to play a lead role in deciding what types of
treatment to use. That can be a difficult and
onerous role to play, so every cancer patient
needs a strong supporter, a spouse or good
friend, who will attend every appointment.
The supporter will help to gather, discuss, and
assess knowledge about the many treatment
options and will support the patient through
the powerful emotional ups and downs that
he or she experiences during years of dealing
with the disease.
© Shelagh Duffett | Dreamstime.com
Do alternatives work?
Although such treatments have been used
by many people for many years, there is
unfortunately little evidence from wellstructured research programs to support these
therapies. However, consider this: Most of
the natural treatments have zero or minimal
adverse side effects, unlike chemotherapy and
radiation therapy. As well, the cost of these
treatments is typically just a small fraction of
the cost of conventional treatments (although
they are currently not covered by health
insurance). Furthermore, a number of these
treatments can be administered at home, and
in most cases it will take only four to six weeks
of using a treatment to test its effectiveness.
Ultimately, it is important to get the best
advice possible. Ideally, a combination of
conventional and alternative treatments can
be effective. But because such an integrated
approach is not readily available (although
the new Maplesoft Centre established by the
Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation may be
Is there “a better way”? Yes, there is. The best
way to truly beat cancer is to prevent getting
it in the first place. It seems that our health
system should put a lot more effort into that
area if we are really serious about dealing with
HWO
Canada’s number one killer.
Beat Cancer
Before It Starts
By Jake Cole
C
ancer is the number one killer in
Canada, but did you know how much
of it can be prevented? Prevent Cancer
Now, a national, non-profit organization
dedicated to identifying, eliminating, and
reducing the preventable causes of cancer, tells
us that 80 per cent or more is preventable.
Prevent Cancer Now has a new presentation,
Prevention is the Cure, which is freely available
to the public in the Ottawa region. It covers the
steps many of us already know: eat an organic,
plant-based diet, exercise, and don’t smoke.
It presents ways to further eliminate cancercausing agents — in cleansers, cosmetics, and
other products. It also demonstrates the need
to work together to reduce environmental
carcinogens from our air, our food, our water,
our homes, and our workplaces.
Using the personal experience of cancer
survivors like Carole McCaskill, who has
Survivor Carole McCaskill
come through a bout of ovarian cancer
herself, the presentation will leave the
audience with practical tips on what to
do, what to buy, and how to better protect
themselves from cancer or a recurrence of it.
Contact [email protected] to arrange
or attend a presentation of Prevention is
the Cure. For more information on Prevent
Cancer Now, go to www.preventcancernow.ca.
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What’s the
Cure for Cancer?
W
ell over half of all cancers — some scientists say 80% — are preventable.
A combination of personal action and environmental changes can prevent most
cancers. Yet, many people still believe cancer is a matter of “the luck of the draw.”
What can you do to prevent cancer? There are dozens of steps you can take to protect
yourself and your loved ones. Here are a few:
✔
✔
✔
✔
✔
at a plant-based, organic diet.
E
Be physically active, and get outdoors to do it.
Be a cancer smart consumer.
Avoid radiation.
Make a difference in your community, your country, the planet.
Help Protect Yourself and Your Loved Ones
Pick one thing from the list above, and use that as your start to preventing cancer in your
life. What can you do? How about:
at organic food for one month!
E
Give up meat for a week or two, maybe even a month.
Reduce the radiation you are exposed to by getting a head-set for your cell phone.
Walk or cycle to work or run a race.
Clear out harmful cleansers from your house.
Give up a favorite “guilty pleasure” for a month — ice cream, chocolate, coffee,
fried foods — you know what you need to do!
➨ If you are keen, organize an event and get others involved.
➨
➨
➨
➨
➨
➨
It’s up to you! Pick something that you’ve always wanted to try, something challenging but
not impossible — here’s your motivation!
Raise funds as you raise awareness
The Cancer Prevention Challenge is the ONLY fundraiser in Canada aimed exclusively
at prevention — stopping cancer before it starts. And people are happy to contribute
to a cause that prevents their loved ones from cancer. By getting involved in the
Challenge, you will help Prevent Cancer Now continue its work to eliminate the preventable
causes of cancer.
So, once you have picked your challenge, email friends and family, tell them about your
effort and ask for their help. You can spread the word about prevention, get their support
to help you achieve your goal, and help raise
funds for cancer prevention.
We provide the online tools to make it easy for
people to donate to your personal challenge.
Have fun and write about your experiences on
your provided fundraising page.
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Your Kiss-Off Cancer Cook-Off
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Go to www.preventcancernow.ca to begin your challenge!
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Going to the Dogs:
A Look at Canine
Life in Ottawa
T
he dog days of summer may be over, but Ottawa’s lovable dog denizens
are still putting us through our paces. Healthwise Ottawa wanted
to recognize local dog-lovers who go the extra mile with man’s (and
woman’s) best friend in this special feature. You’ll meet dog aficionado Liz
Bradley of Ottawa Dog Blog (ottawadogblog.ca) — an invaluable resource
for Ottawa dog owners. In our feature, Bradley gives you tips on massage
therapy, and natural health care and nutrition for your favourite pooch.
You’ll also hear from our writer Barb Wilson, who’ll introduce you to
Ottawa Therapy Dogs, where local volunteers are working with their dogs to
help others in the community, from children with eating disorders to elderly
Alzheimer’s patients. Wilson also writes about an interesting program
that enlists dogs to encourage children to read.
So let’s go to the dogs and see what these marvellous creatures are up to
in our canine-loving city.
Photo: elizabethandjane.ca
Canine Care Naturally
By Liz Bradley
Photos: elizabethandjane.ca
M
any of us are into taking good care of
ourselves. We exercise, eat foods that
are good for us, get massages when
we’re stressed. Why not treat our loyal canine
pet the same way? Here are a few ideas for you
to try on your four-legged friend.
Canine Massage Therapy
Canine massage may seem like an absurd idea, but
it can be extremely beneficial to any dog — especially those recovering
from injuries or hoping to avoid surgery, as well as for older dogs who
may not be as mobile as they once were. Among the numerous benefits
for our canine friends is an improvement in their blood circulation,
reduction of stress and tension in the muscles, increased range of
motion, relaxation of muscle spasms, and a more vibrant coat.
My dog Paddington has luxating patella — a condition in which
the patella, or kneecap, dislocates or moves out of its normal location.
While one knee has been operated on and fixed, the other is still
a problem.
I began taking Paddington to Canine Touch & Tell, a canine massage
clinic and grooming shop in Ottawa’s west end. Owner Sandy Benoit
helps make sure that Paddington’s spine is aligned properly and
that the muscles around her knee are strong. If it weren’t for Benoit’s
expert touch, Paddington would have likely needed surgery on the
other knee a long time ago.
Canine Touch & Tell can be reached at 613-762-8869; or for more
information on their services, visit www.caninetouchandtell.com.
Veterinary Vantage
There’s been much controversy about the over-vaccination of dogs
and other veterinary practices. Yet with so many options out there for
canine health care, it’s a bit overwhelming for
a dog owner to decide which veterinary clinic
to go with and what style of care to opt for.
As a result, the option of choosing an holistic
veterinarian is welcomed by many pet owners
today, including me.
When I first heard about holistic veterinarians,
I’ll admit I was under the assumption that
they used plants and flowers to try to cure
ailments. While they may use some things like
that, their overall philosophy is to use the least
invasive process to diagnose and fix your dog’s
issues. Another huge part of their approach is
preventative care, rather than only care after an
issue arises. Holistic veterinarians still perform
tests and do blood work and wellness testing,
and still require you to bring your dog in every
year for a checkup.
Holistic professionals are few and far between,
but they are gaining in popularity. You’ll find a
few in the Ottawa area, and you can find a list
of registered holistic veterinarians in Canada
online at http://www.acreaturecomfort.com/
holisticveterinarians.htm.
Home-Cooked Nutrition
What your dog eats plays an enormous role
in its health and well-being. A few years ago I
had my eyes opened to the dangers of feeding
low-quality kibble packed with fillers. More
recently, I went one step further and made the
decision to eliminate kibble completely and,
instead, feed my dogs a home-cooked diet of
stew and muffins.
very well-balanced diet.
Within a week of
switching to this diet,
the benefits on my dogs
Paddington, Corduroy, and Wellington were
quite noticeable — their hair was softer, they
were more playful, and they had brighter eyes.
If you want to start small, begin by replacing
some of your dog’s store-bought treats with
pieces of carrot, watermelon, banana, apple,
plum, cucumber, melon, strawberries, green
beans, sugar snap peas, and blueberries (just
to name a few!). Last summer, I even made a
little fruit salad for my trio — they loved it!
If you are unsure about whether something is
okay for your dog to eat, I suggest checking
online first or with your vet.
Visit www.ottawadogblog.ca for more
information about the stew and muffins,
including recipes and detailed instructions.
Not only is it healthier for the dogs; homecooked is actually a less expensive option
because everything you need is bought at
a grocery store (aside from vitamins and a
muffin mix). You can tailor both the stew
and muffin recipes to your dog to create a
Liz Bradley is a self-proclaimed nerd who loves to laugh. She adores her dogs,
Paddington, Corduroy, and Wellington (and dogs in general). She is addicted
to TV and DVDs, Prada and Burberry glasses, Coach purses and shoes, candy,
grocery shopping, and organization. Liz is a pet and wedding photographer in
Ottawa (check her website at www.elizabethandjane.ca).
Ottawa Therapy Dogs:
Helping Families See
Clearly Since 1913
Just What the Doctor Ordered
R
emember Polynesia the parrot, who
taught Dr. John Doolittle to “talk
to the animals” in the 1920s Hugh
Lofting classic Dr. Doolittle books? Well,
Ottawa has some canine equivalents with
its Ottawa Therapy Dogs. These talented
pooches also “talk” to people, bringing those
who need it a little “creature” comfort.
Thanks to the vision of Marilyn Benoit,
Ottawa Therapy Dogs began in 2000, with
its patient-centred approach to improving
the lives of those experiencing physical
or mental challenges. The program was
modelled from the very successful Therapy
Dogs International, founded in 1976 in New
Jersey. It seems that in physical and emotional
rehabilitation, animals have often succeeded
where medical interventions have not. People
who are unable or unwilling to speak to or
interact with others respond well to fourlegged friends. And that’s where the Ottawa
Therapy Dogs come into play.
The program’s Animal Assisted Activities take
place at a number of health care institutions
across the city and surrounding areas. At
these locations, patients can simply snuggle
up to a furry face and wagging tail, or
watch demonstrations of fly ball, obedience
training, and tricks. These encounters have
very beneficial side effects for patients —
such as lowering blood pressure and heart
rate, reducing anxiety and depression, and
calming those who are agitated.
Volunteer Catherine Mirsky has been
involved with Ottawa Therapy Dogs for more
than a decade. She’s the chief evaluator for
the organization and sits on its standards
and practices committee. Catherine and
her Australian Shepherd therapy dog
Kye visit a number of places in the city,
bringing a positive, non-judgmental attitude
via a wagging tail.
Photo: kronickphotography.com
Catherine Mirsky and her Australian Shepherd
therapy dog Kye
She and other volunteers and their fourlegged companions visit The Ottawa Hospital
campuses, the Perley and Rideau Veterans’
Health Centre, The Ottawa Hospital
Rehabilitation Centre, and the Children’s
Hospital of Eastern Ontario, among other
centres, as part of the Animal Assisted
Therapy. “It’s heartening to see an elderly
Alzheimer’s patient, for example, who has,
to a large extent, withdrawn from the people
around him just light up when he sees or
touches one of the therapy dogs,” says Mirsky.
“Sometimes, patients will ‘come back,’ even
for a short time, and talk about their days
with their own dogs. It’s so rewarding.”
Mirsky and Kye are currently working with
the eating disorders unit at the Children’s
Hospital of Eastern Ontario. “We’re part of
a group therapy program. During our onehour sessions, the goal is to provide emotional
support to the children — and therapy
dogs are great for that,” she says. “The dog’s
presence during the visit acts to normalize the
otherwise clinical setting of the hospital.”
Training for both human handler and canine
is thorough. “We perform a detailed evaluation
of both the ‘north’ and the ‘south’ end of
the leash,” explains Mirsky. The interview
process also includes an in-depth orientation,
evaluation, and police checks upon successful
completion. Then the team completes a twostage mentoring process. “We need to be
very certain the individuals and their dogs
can respond to a variety of situations in a
professional and positive manner,” she adds.
Judging by the popularity of Ottawa
Therapy Dogs, the positive power of canine
companionship is working little miracles every
day. For more information on Ottawa Therapy
Dogs, visit www.ottawatherapydogs.ca.
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Improving Your Child’s Reading
Abilities — One Dog at a Time
By Barb Wilson
W
hen is the word “read” spelled
w-o-o-f? When it’s Ottawa
Therapy Dogs’ R.E.A.D program!
The Reading Education Assistance Dogs
program (R.E.A.D.®) involves registered
therapy animals acting as reading companions
to children. Introduced to Ottawa Therapy
Dogs in 2004 by Chantelle Hutter, the
program was originally developed by
Intermountain Therapy Animals of Salt Lake
City, Utah, in 1999.
The non-judgmental pooches make great
listeners, and help to stimulate and encourage
children’s love of books and reading. Often,
children who have difficulty reading respond
well to the presence of a therapy dog. It’s fun,
empowering, and gives the young readers
a sense of accomplishment as they improve
their literacy skills.
Volunteer R.E.A.D. coordinator Julie Davies
sees the benefit between animals and children,
especially when it comes to learning and
improvement. “Growing up with horses and
dogs, I’ve seen how the presence of an animal
can draw out a shy child, spark a curiosity, and
inspire calm focus,” she says. Davies is also a
former reviewer of children’s literature, and so
brings added perspective to the program.
How the program works
During the 2010-2011 school year, seven
R.E.A.D. teams visited Ottawa-area schools
weekly, reading one-on-one with upwards
of 45 children. “While we tend to
concentrate our efforts on younger
children in primary grades, we also
visit with high school classes with
special needs,” says Davies. Three
other teams work outside of the
school environment, at libraries,
book clubs, and special events.
Volunteers of the two- and
four-legged variety
Davies emphasizes the qualities
required in both the human
handler and the canine reading
companion for the R.E.A.D.
program: the volunteers should be
compassionate, patient, caring, and
prepared to commit one-and-onehalf to two hours per week to the
program. “A number are retired
individuals, but not all. Several have
a background in speech therapy,
teaching, or library services, but it’s
not required,” explains Davies.
The furry half of the duo must be calm,
gentle, obedient, and have an unflappable
demeanour to withstand a school
setting, with all of its distractions, noise,
and general chaos. “The dogs need to
literally be ‘bomb-proof ’,” says Davies.
The dogs and handlers are put through
their paces and evaluated in depth
before being admitted into the R.E.A.D
program. Most are therapy dogs that have
Photo: Tony Nevett, used with permission from Intermountain Therapy Animals
experience visiting hospitals and other
centres as part of Ottawa Therapy Dogs’
other programs.
Growing success
The R.E.A.D. program will have an
additional six teams in place for the 20112012 school year, for a total of 16. That’s
because demand for the program is growing:
at times, there are more applicants than
resources available to meet the need. As a
registered charity, the program relies on
volunteers and donations for its operation.
If you are interested in knowing
more about the program — as a
volunteer, donor, or participant — visit
www.ottawatherapydogs.ca.
HWO
Diapers and Downward Dog:
Yoga for Youngsters
By Debra Huron
T
he students are chanting their own
mantras. The decibel level rises and
falls as two students circumambulate
the room at a fast, then slower, pace. It seems
that at any moment a party could break out.
I’m in the midst of a yoga class with three
pig-tailed two-year-olds. When the little girls
decide it’s time to plop down on their tiny,
square yoga mats at Happy Seed Yoga, at
least they have a soft landing thanks to their
diapers. Their yoga teacher, Maripily Yera,
appears to be somewhat exhausted at the end
of the 20-minute class.
“I was scared to teach kids,” she confides.
“You really have to keep them interested.
Their energy is very high.”
A focus on children
Yera and her business partner, Sue Ducros,
are yoga teachers whose business focuses
solely on teaching yoga to kids. They offer
classes in their homes to children from
age two to late teens. Both have
taken Radiant Child
Yoga teacher
Photos: Howard Sandler Photography
training — all three levels. In fact, Ducros
travels throughout North America and
Europe as a facilitator for these training
courses. She’ll be offering the training this
fall (September 23-25) at Rama Lotus Yoga
Centre in Ottawa.
“After I did my regular yoga teacher training,
I adopted the idea, ‘Don’t say no to anything,’”
says Ducros, a triathlete who also holds
an MBA and a degree in Early Childhood
Education. One of the first requests she had
was from the Hintonburg Community
Centre, where she taught yoga to
a class that included teens with
developmental disabilities. As
a mother of three, she felt
drawn to teaching yoga to
young people.
Yera set up Happy Seed Yoga using a different
business model. “We weren’t sure we wanted
to pay $4,000 a month to rent a yoga
studio space,” says Ducros. “With young
children, it seemed to make sense to have it
in a home environment.”
The age to start
Most of Ottawa’s yoga teachers specializing
in children’s yoga agree that four is the
age by which children can attend a yoga
class without having an adult to supervise
the experience. At Happy Seed Yoga, the
In April 2010,
Ducros and
Sue Ducros of Happy Seed Yoga and a flexible
young yogini keep nimble with music.
class with the two-year-olds includes Yera’s
daughter and two friends.
“Normally, for kids three and under, the
parents are with the kids, and the class would
be limited to five in total,” Yera explains. Even
so, a toddler’s natural desire to mimic what
others do allows Yera to convince the twoyear-olds to belt out the mantra “MOOO”
(the kids’ version of Om?) as they sway their
backs down and raise their noses to the sky in
the flowing cat/cow pose.
“These days, even if parents don’t practice
yoga themselves, they’ve heard of it,” says
Yera. “Many moms are gym moms, but they
want their kids to do yoga.”
How parents get involved
Jamie Reardon is another yoga teacher (and
mom) who only teaches children’s yoga. Her
playground is PranaShanti Yoga Centre,
where she has been offering yoga to youngsters
since October 2008.
“A lot of parents coming to yoga classes want
to do yoga with their child. They’re looking
for an activity they can do together. It’s
bonding time. It’s quality time.”
The owner of Windhorse Yoga, Sheila Craig,
echoes those sentiments. She teaches a class
called Family Yoga. “It’s very easy yoga. The
postures are all very basic poses that any
relatively healthy adult can do,” she says. “You
don’t have to be a yogi to do that program
at all.”
Family Yoga at Windhorse Yoga incorporates
stories and adventures that appeal to children.
“Because it’s so exploratory, you get to crawl
all over your parent. Sometimes you prop
each other up,” says Craig.
This physical contact adds something special
to the yoga experience. “Some people are not
naturally huggy, feely-touchy people…it’s
not that they don’t love their children, it’s
just not how they bring that across,” explains
Craig. “In Family Yoga, the children have
the opportunity to be just really tactile with
their parents…we always include a hugyour-parent pose!
“There’s a lot of opportunity to show
affection. It’s just amazing for that reason,
and there’s never a child who does not want
to just crawl all over their parent.”
The energizer that calms
In her children’s yoga classes at PranaShanti,
Reardon welcomes three-year-olds. Trained
through a program called YogaKids©, she says
that her classes often include students aged
three to ten. “Yes, it’s a big age difference,”
she concedes. “And, yes, it works! Often, the
three-year-olds have parents who are yogis, or
yoginis, and you can tell that they have been
practising yoga with their parent since birth.”
For adults who are simply looking for an
activity they can do with children, Reardon’s
classes offer an experience that moms, dads,
and grandparents can share with the youngsters
in their lives. “I’ve had parents whose kids
are hyperactive seek out yoga. It’s important
for the kids to be able to release that pent-up
energy and to be exposed to the tools that yoga
gives them to calm themselves down.”
Each class has a theme and ends with the
children creating a painting or other artwork
based on that theme. “The kids really look
forward to the craft,” Reardon says.
Originally trained to teach yoga to adults,
Reardon outlines two main differences
Sheila Craig (far right) of Windhorse Yoga leads a Family Yoga class.
with balance and flexibility. All of those
things come into play with all the other
sports they do.”
between adult and children’s yoga. “A yoga
kids’ class has to be stimulating. And it has
to be upbeat. However, one thing that is
just as beneficial for a child as for an adult is
shavasana [final relaxation]. They need it, they
want it, and they enjoy it, so I give them a
good ten minutes of shavasana, and we end
with a song, as well as some chanting.”
Yoga and school-age kids
Because she understood the stresses and
strains buffeting her own school-age children,
Sally Waterfall of WaterfallYoga decided that
the focus of her yoga teaching would be on
that age group, and on teens. Waterfall taught
at yoga studios and local schools.
The fact that the media has publicized major
league baseball and professional hockey players
doing yoga is a bonus for boys, she adds.
Taking yoga skills off the mat
“Yoga is amazing for kids,” she says. “It
provides them with a sense of mindfulness —
being aware of the breath of the body, of
the mind, of the spirit. It just keeps
everything connected.”
Not being connected is the sad reality in too
many kids’ lives. “What we’re finding now is
that there’s a sense of disconnection with their
body, with their mind, with the food they eat,
with the environment. And they just go, go,
go. They’re just on autopilot.”
Waterfall taught after-school classes, mostly
to girls, at Surround Circle Yoga in Old
Ottawa South. But in local schools where she
offered yoga, boys were just as likely to show
up for her classes as girls.
“The boys are starting to understand that
you can partner yoga up with other sports.
So, if you’re into track or basketball or
hockey or football, yoga is a wonderful
accompaniment. It helps to strengthen
your muscles, build endurance. It helps
Follow the Teachers to Kids’ Classes
If you think your children might want to spend some time on a yoga mat, check out the
places and people featured in this article by browsing through their websites.
Happy Seed Yoga (Maripily Yera and Sue Ducros): www.happyseedyoga.com
PranaShanti Yoga Centre (Jamie Reardon): www.pranashanti.com
Windhorse Yoga (Sheila Craig): www.windhorse-yoga.ca
At the time of printing, Healthwise Ottawa learned that Sally Waterfall has relocated to California. Tara
Porter will continue the children’s yoga program at Surround Circle Yoga (www.surroundcircleyoga.com).
“Yoga is about self-regulation,” says Waterfall.
“You can self-regulate your emotions.”
She encourages children to have fun as they
move from pose to pose. “Yoga helps kids
with their self-esteem because it’s a noncompetitive activity. You don’t have to be
number one. You’re here to do yoga for
yourself and for your own enjoyment.”
Waterfall is explicit about this with the kids in
her classes. “Yoga allows you to calm yourself
and then you can take that into your everyday
life, and it only enhances your relationship
with yourself, and with others, as well.”
Over at Happy Seed Yoga, Sue Ducros also
reflects on the impact yoga can
have on young minds.
When she opened Windhorse Yoga, Sheila
Craig knew she wanted to teach children’s
yoga. Her daughter was eight at the time.
“Yoga was a huge part of my life, and it was
something that I wanted her to be able to
experience as well.” Craig brought a YogaEd
trainer to Ottawa and she was part of the
graduating class of six teachers.
Like other yoga teachers, she uses the term
“tools” to describe the diverse parts of the
package that is yoga.
“The tools you get for living are more
powerful than the tools you can get from
anything else, and it can’t help but enhance
everything else you do,” says Craig. “That’s
its purpose. Yoga isn’t for itself. Yoga is to
enhance the rest of your life when you’re not
doing yoga.”
Sally Waterfall is clear about what teaching
yoga to children means to her. “We’re
growing and evolving together. It’s a really
HWO
nice bonding experience.”
“For tweens and teens, beyond the
postures, yoga speaks to how they
relate to themselves and others. I
invite them to open up to how they
feel when they do the postures. I
also make it clear that anything
shared in a yoga class is private.”
All the benefits,
all the time
“The moms who come to yoga
with their young kids see right
away that it works,” Ducros adds.
“It calms the nervous system and
balances the glandular system.
There’s nobody who can’t benefit
from yoga.”
Making the stretch together in Sally Waterfall’s
WaterfallYoga class.
A D V E R T I S E R S ’ al p ha b etic A l I N D E x
Alison Atkins, Master Coach
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
letellier shoes
www.letelliershoes.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Bastien-Prizant Optometrists
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
New Balance Ottawa / Sports 4
www.sports4.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22, 23
Bushtukah
www.bushtukah.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
NutriChem Compounding Pharmacy
& Clinic
www.nutrichem.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Cancer Prevention Challenge
www.preventcancernow.ca . . . . . . . . . 44, 45
Comfy Posture Solutions TAB Bra
www.comfyposturesolutions.com . . . . . 28
CWG Footcare Inc.
www.cwgfootcare.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Dance With Alana
www.dancewithalana.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Dovercourt Recreation Centre
www.dovercourt.org . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Financially Sound Inc.
www.financiallysound.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Healthy Bra Boutique
www.healthybraboutique.com . . . . . . . . . 43
Killens Reid Physiotherapy Clinic
www.killensreid.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Krumpers Solar Blinds
www.krumpers.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
TAP BELLY DANCE
BURLESQUE
HIP HOP SALSA
SWING ZUMBA
BALLROOM & MORE
PranaShanti Yoga Centre
www.pranashanti.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Prevent Cancer Now
www.preventcancernow.ca . . . . . . . . . 44, 45
Rama Lotus Yoga Centre
www.ottawayoga.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Rainbow Natural Foods
wwww.rainbowfoods.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Ristorante La Dolce Vita
www.ladolcevitapreston.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Somersault Event Series
www.somersault.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
The Pantry Vegetarian Restaurant
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9, 59
Watson’s Pharmacy and Wellness Centre
www.watsonspharma.com
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16, Back Cover
O
ttawa resident Amanda Potts was the winner of the
Reader’s Contest in the spring/summer 2011 issue
of Healthwise Ottawa. Amanda was delighted to receive
the assortment of natural skincare, laundry and cleaning
products. One-year-old Eric thought this was pretty
special, too.
IS ON THE MOVE!
Visit our NEW location
1800 Bank St., Unit Lucky #13 (@ Alta Vista)
Oodles of FREE parking
Come learn on Ottawa’s newest
sprung dance floor
Your knees & back will
you forever!
See page 46 in this issue for a chance to win running
shoes from New Balance Ottawa and four entries for 2012
Somersault events…you just might be the lucky winner!
192 Main Street, Ottawa, (613) 238-1881
“We’ll take good care of you”
Scott Watson, Pharmacist and Owner
BPharm, MSc, and 20 years experience
Providing sound health advice, quality products, and
friendly service, family-owned Watson’s offers:
•  Compounded medicines
Bioidentical hormones, customized capsules, creams, and
suspensions, medicines for pets, and more; made in-store in
our compounding lab
•  Quality supplements
Sisu, AOR, Genestra, Metagenics, Thorne, Carlson, Flora,
Douglas Laboratories, Boiron, Organika, and more
•  Natural products
Avalon, derma-e, Green Beaver, JASON, and more
•  Health books, seminars, and clinics
•  Gifts, toys, and gourmet treats
Professional Compounding
Centers of America
•  Free delivery
Visit www.watsonspharma.com for:
Health and product info, upcoming events, and to watch Scott Watson
discuss health topics on ‘A’ Morning’s “Ask the Expert”

Dave Morton and Sonja adcock Go the Distance!

Transcription

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