Holistic nutritionist reveals top five spring trends and tips in healthy living

Fresh from the largest gathering of natural health and organic leaders in Western Canada

VANCOUVER, April 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - Holistic nutritionist Joy McCarthy, in partnership with the Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA), today released her top five healthy living trends and tips for spring 2012.  Her findings are based on observations in her own practice and interviews with natural health and organic leaders at the recent CHFA West event, the largest natural health industry gathering of its kind in Western Canada.

"This year's CHFA event was enlightening, with a stimulating exchange of ideas and a wide variety of new products that are responding to the wants and needs of Canadian consumers," said Joy McCarthy, registered holistic nutritionist. "Many people are now including natural health and organic products as part of their overall solution to a range of health issues. Based on what I saw at the show, Canadians' appetite for them is skyrocketing."

With a recent IPSOS Reid survey showing that 73 per cent of Canadians are regular consumers of natural health products, these products are fast becoming part of their regular health and wellness toolkit.

This spring's top trends and Joy's tips include:

1) Working from the inside out to attain natural beauty
Canadians are embracing the concept of beauty from the inside out. They are turning to the health food and the grocery stores to create gorgeous skin, healthy hair and strong nails.
Joy's tips: Try natural products such as Omega-3's to improve skin elasticity and improve hair health; probiotics to improve your digestion which promotes healthy skin and vitamin C to help produce collagen.

2) Dialing up the nutrient density of foods
Canadians are completely time-starved these days. Not cooking at home and eating fast food on-the-go has created the need to maximize the nutritional content of every morsel we consume. This spring there is a new and wide variety of natural health products that can be added directly to food such as flavoured protein powers, flavoured Omegs-3 oils and liquid vitamin D.
Joy's tips: Try adding some of these food-ready supplements to your favourite recipes as a simple way to improve overall nutrition. As always, make sure to read dosage recommendations on packaging and consult with your health care practitioner.

3) Ridding our bodies of toxins
Every day, we are exposed to a vast array of chemicals from many different sources including personal care, food, household cleaners, air pollution and gases from paint/furniture/carpet and other synthetic products. Canadians are discovering that detoxing the body is safe and effective when done correctly with the right supplements, simple lifestyle habits and diet.
Joy's tips: Talk to your health care practitioner about what's right for you.  The most common natural products include: Vitamin B, Vitamin C, probiotics, green supplements, fibre supplements and drinks made with various barks, roots and herbs such as licorice, dandelion, burdock and milk thistle.

4) Keeping stress in check by going beyond medication
It seems there's a pill for everything these days, but instead of relying only on prescription medications to ease our anxiety, Canadians are also finding success incorporating natural health products into their health care regime.
Joy's tips: Consider using vitamin C, B complex vitamins, chamomile, American ginseng, green powders, Rhodiola rosea, supplements with adrenal tissue, magnesium and valerian all of which have been shown to play a role in relieving stress.

5) Tapping into nature for a good night's sleep
One in seven Canadians have problems going to sleep or staying asleep, and by the time we reach 75 or older one in five of us will suffer from insomnia. A good night's sleep enhances energy, mood, motivation, keeps appetite hormones in check and reduces the risk for many chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, cancer and more. With recent reports of a link between certain sleeping pills and early death, Canadians are turning to natural health products as part of the solution to getting a good night sleep.
Joy's tips: Combine lifestyle changes with natural health products such as Rhodiola rosea, melatonin, magnesium citrate, hops, passionflower and chamomile to improve sleep.

People interested in including natural health and organic products as part of the solution to a wide range of health issues facing all Canadians can learn more about this event at chfa.ca.  There you will find Joy's trends, tips and recipes.

The Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) is Canada's largest national trade association dedicated to the natural health and organic products industries. Representing manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, distributors, and importers of natural health products, the Canadian Health Food Association has 1,000 members who contribute three billion dollars to the Canadian economy annually.  For more information on CHFA and about natural health and organic products visit chfa.ca.

SOURCE Canadian Health Food Association