Merrimack Valley Magazine

Wellness Wednesday – 12/4/19

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WELLNESS TIP OF THE WEEK

The Fiber of Youth and Health

By Rebecca Moy, BSN, RN, Solace Wellness Center & MedSpa 

Collagen is a protein fiber that makes up 30% of the protein found in our skin, bones, muscles and tendons. For the skin, collagen is what keeps it looking supple, smooth and youthful. 

But did you know that, starting in our 20s, collagen production starts to slow down? Collagen is also negatively affected by sun exposure, alcohol, stress, smoking and pollution buildup on our skin, thus speeding the aging process by making our skin thinner, drier and saggier. So what can we do? There is no miracle cream that will keep you looking young forever, but there are treatments and procedures to slow down the aging process.  

The key is to find ways to stimulate collagen and protect your skin. Today, we have technology such as radio frequency, micro-needling, growth factors like PRP/PRF to supercharge your skin to build new collagen. A more recent use of surgical grade threads to lift tissue and build collagen targets both loss of skin volume and sagging. These threads allow plumping and lifting without surgery. You shouldn’t forget to wear a quality sunscreen, have a good home skin routine that includes exfoliants, retinols and Vitamin C and make lifestyle and nutritional changes to round out a long term plan for skin health.  

At Solace, we pride ourselves in using technology to analyze your skin and customize a treatment and maintenance plan for each individual. We use radio frequency, micro-needling, chemical peels, PRF and nonsurgical lifting threads as well as superb skin care products to help you fight the battle against aging. Give us a call and we’ll show you how!   

(978) 851-8600 | FoundSolace.com 

What This Sunny, Religious Town in California Teaches Us About Living Longer

Loma Linda is nestled between mountain peaks in the middle of California’s San Bernardino Valley. According to CNN, this city is known as an epicenter of health and wellness, with more than 900 physicians on the campus of Loma Linda University and Medical Center.  

But that’s not Loma Linda’s only wellness claim to fame. This city is one of the five original blue zones — regions in the world where people live longest and are the healthiest. In fact, the people in this community tend to live eight-to-10 years longer than the average American. Experts say that’s because Loma Linda has one of the highest concentrations of Seventh-day Adventists in the world. The religion mandates a healthy lifestyle and a life of service to the church and community, which contributes to their longevity.

Winter Survival Tips for Health and Home

In light of the recent snowstorm that pummeled most of the Valley earlier this week, here are some important safety tips to keep in mind while you brace for the snow, courtesy of The Washington Post.

●In the home, water pipes exposed to outdoor cold can freeze and burst. Turn off the flow and drain the water.

●Lower the storm windows and check for under-door drafts. If windows are stuck, try a lubrication spray. For doors, draft stoppers of cloth, plastic or metal can keep out icy gusts.

●Experts suggest reversing the direction of ceiling fans so they rotate clockwise and circulate warm air down that has risen to the ceiling. There’s usually a reverse switch on the hub.

●Make sure your furnace works. Bleed air out of radiators.

●If you have a fireplace, check the chimney for animals that may have taken up residence. If you suspect an animal, you can light a piece of newspaper, stick it in the fireplace and smoke the animal out the top. Or call a chimney sweep.

●Go out now and buy ice melt, a windshield scraper, windshield washer fluid and a snow shovel before the stores sell out. You might want two bottles of washer fluid, because it can go fast.

●As for the shoveling, don’t do it if you have a heart condition. Otherwise, go easy and take rests, especially if the snow is wet.

●Take care of your neighbors, and don’t pitch snow into the roadway.

●Be careful of big icicles. They’re pretty but they can be heavy, and if they fall on you, they can hurt.

●Clean the top of your car after a snowstorm. Snow flying off a car’s roof can be dangerous to the driver behind you. In some places, you can be fined if snow from your car hits another car or injures someone.

●Don’t drive in the snow if your car can’t handle it. You’ll get stuck and irritate other motorists.

●Allow more time for everything.

●Be prepared for power outages if a storm is coming. A little extra food and water, flashlights and batteries and an independent phone charger are recommended. Extra pet food and bags for dog waste are also good to have.

●If you have to drive in the snow, go slow and be aware of your car’s ground clearance. If you have a four-wheel-drive vehicle, remember that your car may perform better in the snow than a two-wheel-drive vehicle, but it might not stop any better.

Good luck, stay warm and don’t drive with the windshield iced over.

Wellness Wednesday – 10/9/19

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WELLNESS TIP OF THE WEEK

Skin Care In An Intimate Way

by Rebecca Moy, BSN, RN, Solace Wellness Center & MedSpa

 

All of us would take care of itching, burning and dryness of our skin right away. But there’s an area that women often overlook when taking care of their skin; an area that three out of four women experience itching and burning 1-2 times in their life and all women eventually experience dryness. The feminine intimate area is often overlooked in self-care until you’re experiencing a problem. This sensitive area contains normal bacteria and yeast, but an imbalance of these leads to overgrowth and infection that causes uncomfortable itching, burning and pain. Hormone changes with birth control, with pregnancy or in peri or post-menopause predisposes you to yeast infections. Antibiotics can kill off your good bacteria causing an overgrowth of yeast. Maintaining proper vaginal pH of 3.8 to 4.5 and hormonal balance is critical to keeping your normal bacteria and yeast in check. Simple lifestyle changes like avoiding scented soaps and fragrances in the intimate area, eliminating pH altering douches and sprays and taking probiotics all help maintain good bacteria and yeast balance.

A preventative approach to skin care is common sense. At Solace, our Nelly DeVuyst bio-organic products called BioFemme® are designed to inhibit the growth of bacteria, balance the pH of your most intimate skin, address yeast infections, correct dryness as well as treat skin irritations from ingrown hairs. Don’t put up with itching, burning and pain. Give us a call to find out more.

(978) 851-8600 | FoundSolace.com

WELLNESS AROUND THE WEB

How Social Life Affects Bone Health

According to BlueZones.com, high levels of social stress have been established through research as associated with fractures in postmenopausal women. New research has pointed to bone loss as a process in this relationship.

Many people, especially women, experience osteoporosis as they get older. The onset of menopause precipitates the issues. Osteoporosis then becomes a public health concern, as people with the condition are more at risk for falls and subsequent fractures.

Stress is when you are unable to cope with the condition at hand. It could be any combination of psychosocial events, including loss of positivity, loss of satisfaction with life or education level that is a precursor to bone loss. It includes the release of stress hormones as the physiological response.

For six years, 11,020 women from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) were studied to investigate if poor quality socialization, or psychosocial stress, was related to bone loss in these women. The findings of the six-year follow-up study were published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

Research findings provide evidence that social stress does decrease BMD over a six-year period in women following menopause. These findings correlate with previous findings that social stress increases fractures, as BMD and fracture risk are related.

Subjects lost density of bone in the femoral neck (0.082%), total hip (0.108%) and lumbar spine (0.069%). The researchers evaluated participants for factors that might influence the study, such as history of a fracture after the age of 55, age, education, other conditions, weight and Body Mass Index (BMI), smoking, excess use of alcohol, hormone treatments, age at menopause and lack of physical activity.

Stress is already linked to many chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and some cancers. The alterations in bone mass seen in the study may also suggest high levels of cortisol, thyroid and growth hormones, along with glucocorticoids.

Can The Moon Influence Your Sleep?

The moon influences life on Earth and natural mechanisms in many ways. At full moon, corals release eggs and gametes in a reproductive frenzy, and the gravitational attraction between the moon and the Earth causes sea tides — the rising and falling of the sea.

Since the moon influences such mechanisms of life on Earth, people have also believed that it can affect various aspects of our health, including our sleep patterns.

Popular belief has it that the full moon disrupts sleep, making people more prone to insomnia. There is something attractive about the notion that the moon could influence such intimate aspects of our lives. The evidence is not abundant and is primarily based on small-scale studies, but it does seem to suggest that the full moon can affect a person’s quality of sleep.

According to MedicalNewsToday.com, a study published in Sleep Medicine in 2014 assessed the sleep quality of 319 participants during different moon phases. This study found that during a full moon, participants had lower sleep efficiency. This means that they remained awake or in a state of light sleep for most of the time they spent in bed overnight.

It may be intuitive to blame sleeplessness — as our reader did — on the bright moonlight and the lack of heavy drapes, but that is not the conclusion reached by Christian Cajochen — from the University of Basel in Switzerland — and colleagues.

In 2013, Cajochen and team conducted an a posteriori analysis of data they had collected some years prior as part of an experiment conducted in laboratory conditions.

This experiment involved 17 healthy volunteers aged 20–31 and 16 healthy volunteers aged 57–74. The volunteers agreed to sleep in windowless, dark rooms over a study period of 3.5 days.

During this time, the researchers measured changes in sleep structure, brain activity during sleep, as well as in melatonin and cortisol levels.

The team got the idea to look at any correlations with moon phases only later. “We just thought of it after a drink in a local bar one evening at full moon, years after the study was completed,” they write in their paper.

The analysis the investigators then conducted suggested that immediately before and after a full moon, participants took about five minutes longer, on average, to fall asleep, and their sleep duration fell by about 20 minutes.

Their sleep was also lighter than usual, and melatonin levels also dropped close to the full moon, the researchers note. The researchers could not explain these changes by exposure to bright moonlight since the participants slept in fully dark, controlled environments.

The study suggests that lunar cycles seem to influence human sleep, even when one does not see the moon and is not aware of the actual moon phase.

 

 

Wellness Wednesdays – 8/14/19

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WELLNESS TIP OF THE WEEK

Pollution and The Aging Skin

by Rebecca Moy, BSN, RN, Solace Wellness Center & MedSpa

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), pollution is the world’s biggest environmental health risk, and outdoor pollution contributes to 4.2 million deaths per year due to stroke, heart disease, lung cancer and chronic respiratory diseases.

There are six distinct categories of environmental pollutants identified by the WHO: particulate, ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur oxide, nitrogen oxide and lead.

What does this have to do with the skin? Think about the buildings around us; over time, they turn grey and get dirty, and just like those buildings, our skin can become dull and absorb the same outdoor pollutants. Prolonged exposure to airborne pollutants accelerates the skin’s aging process. UV combined with pollutants creates a chemical reaction that damages the skin. When air pollution enters the skin it induces stress. Indoor pollution come from household products, dust, mold, pet dander and gases such as carbon monoxide and radon and creates a similar damaging effect on the skin.

With technology on the rise and our increased dependency on it, we are exposed to more blue light then ever. For most, the first and last thing we do before waking up and going to bed is to be on our phones. Recent studies have shown that repeated exposure to visible blue light induces skin stress, inflammation and hyperpigmentation. Long term exposure results in premature aging of the skin.

Good skincare is such a key factor in keeping the skin healthy. So if you don’t have a good routine already, our team at Solace is ready to show you how our elite bio-organic anti-aging skin care protocols will protect you from outside toxins and premature aging of your skin. 

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WELLNESS ON THE WEB

Plant-Based Diet May Reduce Cardiovascular Death Risk by 32%

Now more than ever, Americans have been introducing plant-based products, like the Impossible and Beyond burgers, into their regular diets, and it’s no coincidence. A growing body of evidence is showing that a plant based diet could benefit cardiovascular health.

According to Medical News Today, a new study appearing in the Journal of the American Heart Association strengthens these findings, as researchers find that eating more vegetables, legumes, nuts and whole grains and fewer animal products correlate with a much lower risk of dying of a heart attack or other serious cardiovascular event.

The findings reveal that the participants who had the highest intake of plant based foods were 16% less likely to have a cardiovascular condition — such as a heart attack, stroke, or heart failure — when the researchers compared them with adults who consumed the smallest amount of plant-based foods. Additionally, high plant-based food consumers were also 25% less likely to die from any cause and had a 32% lower risk of dying from a cardiovascular condition.

Although it does not prove causation, the research adds to a growing collection of data that suggest that plant-based foods may be the key to keeping a happy, healthy heart.

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Not All Bad: How Some Viruses Can Actually Protect Our Health

The term “virus” often spawns connotations of physical illness and computer malware, but some viruses can actually kill bacteria, while others can fight against more dangerous viruses. So like protective bacteria (probiotics), we have several protective viruses in our body.

Popular Science describes bacteriophages (or “phages”) as viruses that infect and destroy specific bacteria. They’re found in the mucus membrane lining in the digestive, respiratory and reproductive tracts. Phages have actually been used to treat dysentery, sepsis caused by Staphylococcus aureus, salmonella infections and skin infections for nearly a century.

Additionally, viral infections at a young age are important to ensure the proper development of our immune systems.

Modern technology has enabled us to understand more about the complexities of the microbial communities that are part of the human body. Along with good bacteria, we now know there are beneficial viruses present in the gut, skin and even blood.

Still, our understanding of this viral component is largely in its infancy. But it has huge potential in helping us understand viral infections, and importantly, how to fight the bad ones. It could also shed light on the evolution of the human genome, genetic diseases, and the development of gene therapies.

Beyond Skin Deep

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— Sponsored —

Solace Wellness Center & MedSpa

This beautiful Tewksbury spa offers guests a peaceful sanctuary from their everyday cares and innovative products and services that can help them soothe their stresses, rid their bodies of toxins and bring their best selves to light.

If you asked most people what they think a med spa is like, a sterile office staffed by lab coat-clad clinicians wielding Botox needles might come to mind. After all, many med spas focus exclusively on the cosmetic products and procedures they offer, such as dermal fillers and chemical peels. But Dr. James Wu, a Board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon and Diplomate of the American Academy of Aesthetic Medicine who holds a certification in plant-based nutrition from Cornell University, and who is also a lifestyle and weight management coach, had a different vision when he opened Solace Wellness Center & MedSpa in Tewksbury in February 2018.

The first thing you notice when you walk into Solace is the overwhelming sense of calm. The space is large, airy and beautifully designed, the staff genuinely friendly, giving you the feeling that they really do care about how your day is going. 

All of this, according to Wu, is by design.

“If someone is to feel truly well, they need to feel good about themselves; they need to manage their stress,” Wu says. “Our concept at Solace is to blend physical and emotional wellness to help people be at their best.”

Photo by Adrien Bisson.

Wu has incorporated concepts of prevention and health promotion from Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine into Solace’s treatment offerings. “There are important components of our overall health, like our emotional and spiritual wellbeing, that are not easily measured by Western methods,” Wu says. “I believe there is validity to those things even if we can’t explain them. That’s why
I wanted Solace to be a wellness center, not just a spa.”

Wu says he first became interested in non-Western health concepts several years ago when he was a therapeutic massage client. After a few sessions, Wu, who also maintains a surgical practice, noticed an improvement in his ability to work on his feet all day, every day. He had more energy and felt better in general. “I felt like massage would help me lengthen my career,” Wu says.

Solace’s model also stems in part from Wu’s research on the effects of chronic inflammation on our bodies and how, according to some studies, it can cause a range of serious health problems such as heart disease, stroke, type II diabetes, certain cancers, gum disease and premature aging.

“I read two books that really influenced my thinking,”
Wu says. “One was ‘The Inflammation Syndrome’ by Jack Challem, which talks about how many diseases that are common today are tied to chronic inflammation. The other was ‘The China Study’
[by T. Colin Campbell and Thomas M. Campbell II], which talks about a long-term study of nutrition in China, and basically how people living in urban areas with a more Westernized diet have higher rates of cancer and heart disease than people living in rural areas who eat a plant-based diet.”

Because the skin is the body’s largest organ and is constantly exposed to the elements, Wu says that one of the most common ways that inflammation-causing toxins enter the body is through the skin.

To help address this, Solace offers a variety of skincare offerings which include several types of organic facials that, among other things, aim to rid the skin of toxins and improve its texture and brightness. 

Solace also offers guests the use of three far infrared saunas. 

Used for decades in Scandinavia, saunas can help stimulate blood flow and improve circulation, treat muscle and joint pain, help the body rid itself of toxins such as heavy metals, and also help to melt away your daily stress. 

L-r: Dr. Wu; Janice Wu; Fabiola Harrington; Rebecca Moy. Photo by Adrien Bisson.

“The far infrared wavelength penetrates the skin and heats the body from the inside out, rather than from the outside in, like most saunas,” Wu says. “This can help the body eliminate impurities and even help decrease high blood pressure and improve heart health.”

Another cause of chronic inflammation is poor diet. “There are a lot of things we can control and do from a nutritional standpoint to stay healthy,” Wu says. 

All Solace’s core team members are trained in lifestyle and weight management coaching. Guests interested in doing so can take advantage of this added benefit that Solace offers. “We’re not there to yell at people and tell them what they’re doing is wrong,” Wu says. “Our goal is to provide advice and encouragement, fresh ideas that people can adapt to their own lifestyle.”

According to Wu, many of Solace’s clients come in because they are interested in improving the way they look. “Most of our guests are in their 40s, 50s and 60s,” Wu says. “They tell us they want to look a little fresher, maybe five or 10 years younger.”

The spa offers a number of what Wu calls “advanced treatments,” things like Botox and Xeomin injections that can help reduce fine lines and wrinkles on the face, and advanced facials, such as the IPL Skin Rejuvenation and Photofacial, which uses light therapy to smooth your skin while treating facial veins, skin discoloration and age spots. 

To insure the best results and to protect their clients’ safety, Solace uses skin care products in its facials that have been certified organic by the European Union standard called COSMOS EcoCert. “The FDA doesn’t regulate cosmeceuticals. The E.U. does,” Wu says.

One of Wu’s goals is to develop personal relationships with Solace’s clients. Because it’s Solace’s business to help people improve themselves in areas that can feel quite personal, Wu wants the spa’s guests to feel comfortable at Solace, to think of the spa as a respite from their everyday lives. “First and foremost, we want our guests to get to know us and trust us,” Wu says.

One of the ways Solace is making this happen is by offering spa and wellness packages that make it easier, and often more cost effective, for guests to take advantage of the spa’s facilities and services. These range from the “Refresh Package,” which includes unlimited use of Solace’s saunas and relaxation areas, 12 facials and discounts on products, to the “Ultimate Solace Lifestyle Package,” which includes multiple benefits chosen from Solace’s Advanced Treatments menu like DermaFrac Micro-channeling Facials, IPL Hair Removal and Xeomin for elimination of facials lines and wrinkles. 

For people interested in seeing what Solace has to offer but might feel hesitant to call because they aren’t sure what types of services they want or need, Solace offers first-time guests a reasonably priced introductory service that includes skin analysis, a customized facial and a visit to the far infrared sauna. As an extra bonus for the telephone-shy, appointments can be booked right on Solace’s website.

“Our main goal is to help improve our guests’ quality of life,” Wu says. “If we can affect one or two things in a positive direction, sometimes that’s enough to encourage people to make other healthy changes.”   

Solace Wellness Center & MedSpa
Tewksbury, Mass.
(978) 851-8600
FoundSolace.com

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