731293_highAs individuals we are all responsible for our own health and wellness.  It’s up to each of us to be physically active, to eat healthy food, to get enough sleep, manage our stress and to make informed decisions.  We all live in a social environment where friends, family, our community and the media sometimes have values that are not favorable (and in some instances downright unhealthy).  Therefore, if we are to succeed at being healthy we need to take action to ensure our health

The most serious problems of today are largely caused by the way people live and are referred to as lifestyle diseases.  Lifestyle accounts for about two-thirds of life expectancy.  While some aspects of health are determined by your genes, your age, and other aspects that may be out of your control, true wellness is mostly determined by the decisions you make about how to live your life.  Fortunately we can make choices that will promote health and well-being, prevent or delay the premature onset of many chronic illnesses and improve our quality of life.  Staying healthy is not just a matter of common sense.  Rather, it is a lifelong process that requires self-awareness, reflection, knowledge and most of all action.  Wellness is the process of adopting patterns of behavior that can lead to improved health and life satisfaction.  Wellness generally is evidenced by optimal functioning, a sense of well-being, and health related quality of life. 

A growing body of scientific and practical evidence has demonstrated that lifestyle intervention is an essential component in the treatment of chronic disease that can be as effective as medication, but without the risks and unwanted side-effects.

At Essence of Wellness, we are committed to helping you enjoy a wellness lifestyle if this is what you wish.  We understand you may only want to get out of pain, but many others truly want to transform their lives to become well.  No matter what your health goals we would like to help you achieve these goals. 

The following are links to websites for information about various aspects of wellness. We have included links to information about nutrition, to exercise and to positive mental health. If you have any questions or would like more information about a specific topic, we will be happy to help you. These sites are linked only to give you general information. For specific information on nutrition for example and how it relates to your health, ask your chiropractor.

Exercise and fitness links: A lot of neat exercise information can be found here. This is a searchable database from Medline. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/exercisephysicalfitness.html

Georgia State University has a nice page on how to get started with an exercise program. The link below will give you information on the benefits of exercise through how to increase your physical activity. It also provides information on aerobic exercise, strength training, nutrition, flexibility, etc.http://www.gsu.edu/~wwwfit/

Learn about the FITT principle, a basic principle of exercise.

Nutrition links: Nutrition.gov provides a searchable database as well as articles about nutrition and dietary guidelines. http://www.nutrition.gov/

Find lots of information about supplements and various conditions that can be improved with nutrition here. We also have available supplements from this company. http://www.douglaslabs.com

Mental health links:

Want to have peak mental performance? Then you need to contact Dr. Douglas Smith withPromind.ca

Chiropractic links: Education and Research. This is a great site and the Foundation for Chiropractic Education and Research was kind enough to fund Dr. Dean Smith to support his education and research at Miami University. Lots to learn here. Thanks FCER!!! http://www.fcer.org/

Kids and chiropractic. Check out the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association for tons of terrific information about children and chiropractic. Essence of Wellness is a member of this organization. Yeah! http://www.icpa4kids.com/

Get information from our state association. http://www.oscachiro.org/

Dr. Phil Smith is an excellent chiropractor in Whitby and Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. Check out his practice at http://www.welcometowellness.ca/

Search for chiropractic research here. http://www.chiroindex.org/index.cfm

Sports and chiropractic http://www.chirosport.org/index.shtml