Tips and Resources

As the second COVID-19 wave spreads across the country, many Canadians are either locked-down or in self imposed quarantines. The consequence is significantly fewer medical appointments and trips to emergency. 

Beyond the physical health threat of Covid-19, 81% of working Canadians feel the pandemic has had a negative impact on their mental health¹. As fall slips into winter across Canada, daylight hours decline significantly.

You are at work and receive a call from your parent’s neighbor. Your father has fallen and is in emergency.  This is a scenario many of us with older parents can image. Indeed, the stats on falling are alarming.

Measure to Manage! The link between Diabetes and Hypertension.

Type 2 Diabetes and Hypertension often develop together in people that have metabolic syndrome, obesity, and
cardiovascular disease.

Each year Canadians’ face a “seasonal influenza epidemic”. The Flu Season typically begins in late fall and is with us through the winter months. Historically, 5-10% of adults and 20-30% of children contract the flu.

Over 7.5 million Canadian’s have hypertension (high blood pressure). Frequently called “the silent killer”, most of us learn we have hypertension from our family doctors because there are no symptoms or pain to warn us we have the condition.

September is “Self Improvement Month”, who knew?

If you are a Baby Boomer, there’s a good chance you’ve been diagnosed with hypertension, and 90% of us will develop hypertension over the next number of years.

After six months into to COVID-19, several studies have revealed people with hypertension are at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19. In fact, there is mounting evidence that COVID-19 affects the heart, regardless of age and fitness levels of patients. The Center for Disease Control in the US has identified several underlying health conditions that put individuals at higher risk should they contract COVID-19. These include: serious heart diseases, COPD, obesity, cancer, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and people with compromised immune systems¹.

Whether you have been diagnosed with hypertension (>135mmHg / >85mmHg) or your BP is in the “pre-hypertensive / elevated” range (>120mmHg / 80mmHg) self-monitoring blood pressure at home is highly valuable and clinically preferred to measurements at your doctor’s office…. here’s why.

If you’ve ever tried to start an exercise program after years of being on the sideline, you know the first few weeks are extremely tough. Statistically, most of us abandon our initial goals and end up back on the couch within a few weeks. But there are some specific steps you can take to break through and overcome getting stalled during your first month.

We know that data collected from Covid-19 studies across the globe shows that age is a common risk factor in the severity of the disease.  Put simply, older people get sicker from Covid-19.

Over half of Canadians over the age of 60 have hypertension (high blood pressure), and 9 out of 10 of us will likely develop the condition as we grow older. If you have been diagnosed with hypertension, you have likely been prescribed medication to control the condition, and you should be monitoring your blood pressure at home.