Biotin

For centuries, we’ve relied on topical products to enhance beauty — but in more recent years we’ve bridged the gap between topical and ingestible beauty products. 2019 was a big year for the topic of gut-brain-skin connection — and for good reason. Research has shown time and time again that your skin is a major indication of what’s going on in your gut. As more research comes out showing that what you put IN your body shows up on the OUTSIDE, more ingestible beauty products are hitting the shelves. We’ve seen companies come out with beautiful potions and elixirs aiding with healthy, glowing skin. It’s a magical time for those wanting a little extra help with their skin! But what exactly are ingestible beauty products? What other lifestyle factors can ensure glowing skin? Don’t worry beautiful, I've got you covered! What is ingestible beauty? Ingestible beauty is the term used for products that have a focus on ingredients that aid in cell regeneration and gut health; they’re packed with magical things like ashwagandha, schisandra berries, collagen, and goji extract, to name a few ingredients. They’re not topical, but instead are taken orally so that they make their way to the gut for absorption and utilization in the body. Oh, what an exciting time to be alive! I’m fully supportive of these products as long as: they have good quality ingredients they’re used in conjunction with a holistic diet full of whole, unrefined foods they’re used in conjunction with mindful lifestyle practices they don’t break the bank Enter Organika, a family-owned and operated Canadian company dedicated to natural supplements. Their new venture includes ingestible beauty drops, and in my opinion, they really cover all the above points. The Detox Drops include chlorophyll, a known detoxifying agent that works as a cleansing tonic in the body. It’s high in antioxidants and a natural internal deodorizer — which in my books is super cool! The BEAU-T Drops contain trace minerals and fulvic acids, which aid in the transportation of other vitamins and minerals in the body. Simply add these ingestible beauty drops to your daily dose of water— they're super effortless to include in your day-to-day routine. I personally love adding a few drops to my morning lemon water and sipping while I get ready to tackle the day; it really makes me feel like I’m giving my body that extra love and attention it needs. And speaking of extra love and attention, I make sure to include a few mindful lifestyle choices to support my hardworking body. After all, our bodies serve us unconditionally — so let’s show them unconditional love back! Redefine beauty. Focus on your internal workings rather than your external appearance. Your body is more than just a simple vessel; it’s incredibly resilient and giving. Treat is with respect and honour and appreciate all that it does for you — because let’s be honest, it takes a lot of abuse. *sigh* Hone in on self-love practices. If self-care were a book, self-love would be the encyclopedia. It’s really the basis of life; the foundation on which we build happy, healthy lives and more importantly, strong relationships with ourselves and others. Self-love isn’t a one size fits all approach. It’s incredibly unique to each individual — but overall it’s all about mindful holistic practices that nurture the mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual bodies. These can range anywhere from daily meditation to committing to non-negotiables. Slow down and honour the signs your body gives you. Listen to what your body is telling you. Learn to be in tune. If you’re exhausted and your body is craving sleep, cancel that gym session and go to bed early. If your stomach is growling and you have intense hunger pangs, finish what you’re doing and give it fuel ASAP. Give your body what it wants when you have the choice, otherwise it won’t give you a choice later on down the road. Be gentle on your body. I always tell my clients that I’d much rather they do 15 minutes of consistent daily movement than sporadic HIIT sessions. This allows for gentle, mindful breathing, and also stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) VS. the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight response). Be slow, be gentle. Stick to a diet full of whole, unrefined foods - but treat yourself once in a while. Try to predominantly eat items that are as close to their natural state as possible, but don’t be afraid to treat yourself once in a while. Your trillions of cells need raw fuel for optimal function, but your soul needs a little love too. Eat that donut from time to time and wholeheartedly enjoy it! The worst thing you can do is eat something while feeling guilty about it. Please remember to be gentle with yourself. This is a lot of information, it's easy to get overwhelmed. So please, if you can take ONE takeaway from this blog post, it is to honour your body and start slow. Try out one or two of the above points and see whether they feel authentic to you. Adjust as you go, and don’t be afraid to reach out if you need a helping hand to guide you. I’m here. xo

Improve your health by building a better foundation for healing The path to being healthier starts with a stronger foundation. Often when issues arise with our health we treat the symptoms and don’t really address the reason why the symptoms exist. When we discontinue the treatment, the symptoms often come back worse than they were before or develop into a more serious health problem. 1. Detoxification When I start working with a new patient, I always start them out with some sort of detoxification program. The reason for this is because we are all exposed to a considerable amount of toxins in our daily life. It’s unavoidable. While our body does have the ability to detoxify itself, it wasn’t designed to handle the flood of stuff that we are often exposed to in our day-to-day life. Toxins in our body cause damage to our tissues and impair basic pathways that are essential to our health. This serves as an obstacle for people trying to feel better. 2. Digestion and proper nutrition Digestion and proper nutrition impact how we absorb and utilize the building blocks (vitamins, minerals, proteins and carbohydrates) of our health. Eating a healthy diet is a great start, but it’s difficult to get everything our body needs in our diet on a daily basis. This is for a couple of reasons. Firstly, due to impaired digestive function (dysbiosis, leaky gut, IBS, hypochlorhydia), our bodies don’t always breakdown and absorb our nutrients effectively. Secondly, our food is lacking in some essential nutrients that are fundamental to our health. Supplementing with a few basics (multivitamin and mineral, omega 3 fatty acids and vitamin D) can really make an enormous difference in your overall health. 3. Exercise and movement Exercise and movement are essential for health. As the basic law of inertia states an object in a state of rest will remain in a state of rest. This means that the less you do, the more sluggish and less efficient your system becomes. Movement helps to keep better flow throughout your system and provides benefits to your body that go far beyond the obvious physical improvements. It balances our endorphins, helps our body to cope better with stress and improves the function of all the systems of the body. 4. Immunity Our immune system is integral to how our body copes with exposure to outside influences, such as bacteria or viral infections. It also plays a key role in inflammation and allergies. If you are getting sick often or have allergies and inflammation, these are signs of immune system dysfunction. There are lots of ways to improve your immune function with herbs such as echinacea, ginseng, turmeric, astragalus, and medicinal mushrooms like reishi. Taking these if you feel run down or just to give your immune system a boost as we go into peak cold and flu season can be powerful for your health. 5. Sleep Sleeping well is crucial to your overall health. Most people need 7-8 hours of sleep consistently to be able to function optimally. Not sleeping well or enough, will wear you down and make you susceptible to all kinds of health issues. Also, if you are already experiencing health problems, not sleeping will slow down your road to recovery significantly. 6. Stress management Everyone experiences stress at times, it’s just a fact of life. If stress isn’t managed properly it can contribute to all kinds of dysfunction in our health. Supporting the body during times of stress is imperative to getting through the rough patches in our lives. There are many ways to help your body during stressful times including specific nutrients like B vitamins and herbs such as ashwagandha and ginseng. Lifestyle changes to decrease stress including deep breathing and shifting your perspective can all help you to cope better with stress. Rebuilding a stronger foundation for your health will allow your body to realign and rebalance more efficiently and effectively. Ultimately this makes the path to better health much faster and easier. Getting a plan in place that starts with these fundamentals will ensure that you are on track to better health now, and for years to come. Health and happiness! Dr. Cheryl Cooper Dr. Cheryl Cooper B.Sc., ND Dr. Cheryl Cooper is a Naturopathic Doctor and the owner and CEO of Vitallife Integrative Medicine based in Ottawa. She has 20 years of experience in the health and wellness industry, specializing in hormone balancing, women’s health, detoxification, stress management and sleep issues. Dr. Cooper uses a holistic approach to helping patients, involving educating and empowering patients to take control of their health. Recently moved to her hometown of Canmore, Alberta, she now practices out of Inner Balance Spa in Calgary. Vitallife Integrative Medicine @doc_cheryl