By Jolanta Kurz
Heart disease and stroke are now leading causes of death in Canada
Sedentary lifestyle, unhealthy diet, obesity, and chronic stress all contribute to increased risk of heart disease.
The good news is that even small changes in our lifestyle can improve our health and reduce this risk. Exercise, adequate water intake and nutrition as well as a balance between work and leisure are the pillars of better health.
A great way to help with the chronic stress issue, we are all facing, are massage therapy and/or acupuncture treatments. During massage session your “flight or fight” response caused by stressful situations will be turned off. This will be followed by drop in the blood pressure, redirection of the blood into internal organs and stimulation of digestive processes (“rest and digest response”) The body responds to tactile input from massage by stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system and causing relaxation of muscles and filling of bliss and well being. Addition of acupuncture to the treatments will offer a significant help in dealing with anxiety and stress and some other unpleasant symptoms like heart palpitations, chest tightness and high blood pressure. February is heart month and it is a great time to start thinking about your health and maybe time to try some drugless therapies like massage and acupuncture.
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Jolanta Kurz PhD, RMT, RAc is a Fredericton
