Health

Biocare Winter Care Review and Giveaway

December 21, 2017 by Erica Hughes 55 Comments

biocare supplements and winter care package

This year I’ve been trying to take more care of myself. I feel like I’ve been exhausted for the last 10 years thanks to a range of things, including getting up too early to take care of my child, but also the demands of daily life and work. This year I’ve had the chance to rest a little and get the odd lie in, but I’m aware that there is more to taking care of yourself than just getting sufficient rest (although that does help a lot!).

Biocare decided to help me out a little with the self-care and sent me a package of goodies through including some of their products. A multivitamin and mineral capsule is a good way to boost health and the immune system if you have been feeling a bit run down. I backed that up with the Everyday BioAcidophilus and what I like about this capsule is that it doesn’t need to be kept refrigerated, so it’s really easy to take. Zinc Citrate to round things off and this type of zinc supplement is easy to take as it has a high absorption rate. Zinc is good for healthy bones, skin and hair so it’s a good one for helping you look your best over the party season. It’s difficult to be sure of what makes you feel better when there are so many variables in life, but I have felt like I’ve had more energy since I started taking the supplements.

Alongside my Biocare supplements I’ve been trying to walk more and I’ve continued with my yoga classes, plus I’ve tried to do some at home too. As well as that I’ve been trying a little meditation every day and I think this is helping me sleep better. What do you do to help you stay fit and healthy? Do you have any tips that work for you?

I’ve teamed up with Biocare to offer readers the chance to win some supplements of their own. I have a month’s supply of BioCare Everday BioAcidophilus and BioCare Red Berry BioMelts to give away. Enter via the Gleam widget below.

Competition Terms and Conditions

1. No bulk, third-party or automated entries.

2. Entrants must be UK residents aged 18 years or older.

3. The winners will be chosen by a random draw.

4. The winner will be notified by email and will have a week to claim their prize. Should they fail to respond within this time, an alternative winner will be selected.

5. Promoter is responsible for fulfilling the prize and full contact details of the winner will be passed onto the promoter.

6. Competition closes on 14th January 2018.
Biocare

Hilary Leach Natural Therapies Review

October 21, 2017 by Erica Hughes 8 Comments

Hilary Leach Natural Therapies
I first encountered Hilary Leach‘s therapy skills, probably somewhere around 13-15 years ago. As it happened I just rang a clinic that I knew of locally and ended up having an appointment with Hilary, but I quickly realised that I’d got lucky with that call. At that time I’d go along for the occasional treatment to help me destress after a day taking the sort of flack that a manager in the financial services industry tends to take. It really helped. Sometimes I’d have an aromotherapy massage and other times I’d go for reflexology. On other occasions I’d go to help clear a persistent ailment with an Indian Head Massage or Hopi Ear Candles.

When I was pregnant I had treatments with Hilary regularly, which was a welcome treat and really helped me through my pregnancy. I had few problems with my pregnancy, despite being an older mother, and I put some of that down to the care I received from Hilary during that time. In fact, we followed a programme of treatments which led to me trying out some new (to me) therapies, including the Bowen Technique and Reiki Healing. Hilary has studied and gained qualifications in a wide range of treatments and is quite a specialist in treating pregnant women and those trying to conceive. Many therapists don’t have the right qualifications and expertise to treat you when you are pregnant, so it was good to be in safe hands with Hilary.

aromotherapy

After having my son H I didn’t have so much time to go for treatments, but I still managed an occasional treat. Thankfully though my stress levels have been at a much lower level since giving up my office job, until recently that is. This year things have moved up a gear or several and I have been visiting Hilary again. Her friendly manner has a way of putting you at ease and I always feel very welcome and relaxed.

This time I went along for a massage and reflexology combo, which was great as I find it very hard to choose between these treatments as I find both really effective. I just had a back and shoulder massage to begin with and as that is where I carry a lot of my tension it was really valuable. Now that I was feeling relaxed, we moved onto the reflexology which I always find fascinating. Hilary found evidence of tension in my neck which I wasn’t surprised to hear. There was an area on my feet though that felt really tender when Hilary reached that part and it related to my adrenal glands, which given my stress levels isn’t perhaps so surprising.

She also tried some of the Bowen Technique moves for tennis elbow on me and they did seem to have some effect and I’m now wondering if I shouldn’t book in to have a proper treatment session for that.

Hilary Leach is based in Harborne in Birmingham. She provides a wide range of different treatments including relaxation packages. If you are looking for a thoughtful gift, you could consider one of her gift vouchers.

treatment room towels

Braces Go Invisible

August 22, 2017 by Erica Hughes Leave a Comment

Life is difficult enough through the teenage years isn’t it? Your body is changing and there is so much to come to terms with on a social level. So many up and downs to deal with and then you find you have spots before a big night out or maybe your teeth aren’t very straight. Braces used to be the curse of teenage years and many didn’t get their teeth sorted out then, so had to do it later into their twenties and later.

Luckily sorting out crooked teeth is easy enough these days, and this is because it’s become a lot simpler and less obvious since the advent of invisible braces. Now if you have overcrowded teeth, you can even them out with invisible braces. Closing gaps in your smile is straightforward enough too. The main advantage of invisible braces: they’re barely detectable on your teeth, in fact many people won’t spot that you are wearing them, unless you tell them that you are.

So how do invisible braces work? The orthodontist will start treatment by taking a mould of your teeth to create a digital scan of your mouth. From this scan, your clear, plastic aligners are created for you. Each aligner is customised to fit your teeth and shaped to apply pressure in exactly the right places to slowly shift them into alignment. You’ll need to switch to a new aligner every two weeks, but this doesn’t mean visiting the dentist every time you need to change aligner. Your orthodontist will only need to check the progress of your treatment every four to six weeks, before providing you with a new set of teeth aligners for the coming weeks.

What dental problems can invisible braces help resolve? Teeth aligners can be used to treat a range of mild and moderate tooth alignment problems, including: underbite, overbite, gaps between teeth, crooked teeth and overcrowding.