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Northampton's Tuesday Market
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One of the many joys of summer is celebrating local agriculture and farms in the Valley. Rain or shine, farmer's markets are a great way to get out in the community and have access to a variety of fresh produce, pastries, flowers, honey, herbal medicine and other tasty food and suprises.
Northampton's Tuesday Market officially opens on April 25th and runs through the fall. It is open from 1:30pm-6:30pm and is conveniently located between Thornes Marketplace and the E.J. Gare Parking Garage.
Don't forget to give yourself some extra time for parking, and stop by for some local fare if you are coming into NCA on market day!
For more information on hours, recipes, vendors and access to their newsletter, visit:
northamptontuesdaymarket.com
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Local Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs)
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Rachel S. Condon, Lic. Ac.
If you have lived in the valley for a while, and/or have a love of fresh vegetables and local foods, you have probably heard of the CSA, or you may have your very own "farm share." The concept here is pretty straight forward - local farms provide customers with a share of the harvest throughout the season, and in exchange, the customer pays a set amount up front. So as a customer, you are investing in the farm for that season, and helping provide them with income during and ahead of the season, and in return, you share in the risks and joys of what that particular season reaps, depending on the weather, and various other factors.
For me, this is absolutely one of my FAVORITE parts of summer, period. I have been a member of various farms for about 13 or 14 years total, and even worked at two CSA farms, in my pre-acupuncture days, so it remains close to my heart. Here are some of my favorite parts:
*watching the season unfold, as the early shares start out with lots of greens, spring onions and radishes, and gradually builds to an explosion of abundance by the middle of August!
*paying for my share at the beginning, and then I go to the farm each week and take home this big bag of beautiful produce. It's a nice feeling to know that I've invested in this work, and now I get to reap the benefits. The money part has already been exchanged, but this great energy exchange happens all season long, between farmers and appreciative consumers of this fresh, wholesome food.
*U-Pick! Throughout the season, most CSAs offer u-pick crops, a rotating selection of items that you can go right out into the field and pick yourself - from peas to cherry tomatoes to green beans to herbs, flowers. Kids often love this too, and it's a great educational opportunity to show kids exactly where their food comes from, and to remind ourselves! We are intimately connected to, and dependent on, Mother Earth.
*The challenge and discovery of new vegetables! These days I am often cooking for myself, or for a friend or two, and I take it as a personal challenge to get through the entire share each week, and to get creative! I've made garlic scape pesto and carrot top pesto, beet hommus and carrot hommus, yellow tomato sauce, green smoothies galore, cauliflower crust pizza, the options are endless... and you can even freeze some of these delectable creations for an extra special treat in the middle of winter!
But did you know that there are other CSAs now available too?
Vegetable CSAs
Meat CSAs
Fruit CSAs
Herb CSAs
Plant CSAs
Mushroom CSAs
Fall and Winter CSAs
Options for Home delivery
Wow! This is truly a time of abundance, and if you are looking for ways to get you and your family healthier, and like the idea of supporting local, small-scale, sustainable farms, I guarantee this is one investment you'll be so glad you made.
Does it seem like a lot of money to spend on veggies? Here's another perspective - I consider my food budget to be part of my preventative healthcare. I'd much rather spend money now on keeping myself well and feeling good, than short-changing my health and paying for it down the road with medical bills.
The season is just gearing up now, and many farms start distributing shares in June, so consider signing up for one if you haven't already!
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If you are in and out of town, on permanent vacation or continuing with your regular schedule, we are pleased to announce that starting in June we will be opening availability -
every Monday from 12pm-5pm for the Summer!
We hope that this provides more availability for acu-vacations. The schedule is up, so feel free to book online.
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Acupuncture Point of the Month
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Katie Oleksak Lic.Ac.
The reason I chose stomach 3 (ST3) as the acupuncture point for this month is because of the prevalance of allergies symptoms that have been mentioned more recently by many of our patients. I have heard the repeated comment, "my allergies are really bad this year" by patients with symptoms such as stuffy nose, watery eyes, sinus pressure and sinus headaches. This is even coming from some patients who have never experienced allergies before.
The names of most acupuncture points can be confusing. What does the stomach have to do with allergies or sinus headaches? In acupuncture, much of our treatment is based on meridian therapy. The stomach meridian links to the internal organ that we know of as the stomach, related to digestion. Externally, along the main channels on the body that we work with, this stomach channel happens to run on a path that passes slightly below each eye, directly on the maxillary sinuses. As a result of this location, it is an excellent point to relieve sinus pressure, congestion and headaches that are associated with allergy symptoms.
I tend to avoid face points because like any point, bruising can occur, and most people do not want to walk around with a bruise that is visible on their face. That is why I typically ask if it is okay to needle points such as ST3. Once a patient experiences the almost immediate relief of sinus pressure, however, they often request this point!
If you are feeling acute allergy symptoms, you can also do some acupressure to ST3 to help relieve headaches associated with allergies.
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Katie Oleksak Lic.Ac.
Commonly known as citrus bioflavonoid, quercetin is found in many of our foods--grains, fruits and vegetables such as onions, tomatoes, apples and berries--and can be utilized as an effective antioxidant and anti-inflammatory for a variety of conditions. Most often, when used as alternative medicine, quercetin is recommended for allergies, hay fever and asthma.
It works in the body by preventing the immune system from releasing histamines, which create symptoms such as congestion, watery eyes and skin rashes.
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Quercetin may be found in supplement form and purchased at Cornucopia or River Valley Market--recommended dosage would be as directed on the bottle. Here at NCA, we offer Allergy Response, a 'multi-allergy' supplement that includes other excellent ingredients such as Vitamin C, Nettle and Baikal Skullcap for anti-histamine properties that work both preventatively and for acute flare-ups of allergy symptoms.
We stand behind Innate Response Formulas, as they are locally made in New England (New Hampshire), utilize local and organic whole food ingredients, provide higher therapeutic potencies and support US agriculture and farmers. For more information about Innate Products, check out their website and as always, let us know if you have any questions.
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Second Offering of our
Fight or Flight Workshop!
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'How to Manage Stress and Get out of the Fight-or-Flight Response'
The Fight-or-Flight stress response was an evolutionary development, meant to defend us from harm. Modern day living 'over-triggers' this response, which decreases proper functioning of other essential systems in the body, such as immunity and digestion.
Katie will be leading this workshop,
covering the basic functioning of the
Fight-or Flight response and how best to manage it, sending you home with some practical tips, and local resources you can use!
Saturday, May 20th 10am-12pm
*Price of this 2-hour workshop includes a hot cup of herbal calming tea and an informative take-home packet for future reference.*
*Please note: this is re-offering of the same workshop that we held in November, 2016*
Cost is $35/person
Pre-registering is recommended!
Please Call:
(413)586-825
Or
Pre-Pay and Sign-Up Online!
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Tips for Moving More Throughout the Day (even if you have a desk job!)
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Rachel S. Condon, Lic. Ac.
Adults spend 60 percent or more of their waking hours sedentary, according to a 2010 review of numerous studies over the past decade.
What's more, even 30 to 60 minutes of jogging a day will not undo the amount of hours sitting, the current research is showing.
While of course regular exercise, walking or other forms of aerobic exercise, as well as some form of strength or resistance training, have been shown to have a host of benefits on our health and longevity, more research is now pointing to the fact that if we spend most of the day sitting and not moving, even if we then stop at the gym before or after work and get that exercise in, it may not be enough to reverse all of the harmful effects of not moving for the other 10-12 hours of the day.
The American College of Sports Medicine has declared that a sedentary lifestyle is a health risk factor – regardless of whether we’re getting the proper amount of exercise otherwise. This is not big news for most of us these days. Many people have heard this is true, and if you have a long commute, and/or you sit behind a computer for a large part of the day, you know that we were probably not evolved and adapted to do this as human beings, day in and day out, and at the same time, continue to feel healthy and thrive.
From low back aches, to hip and knee pain, to shoulder and neck tension, wrist pain, headaches, digestive issues, to anxiety and depression, to gaining weight, and being at risk for obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease, being sedentary takes a toll!
So what can we do??
The answer is simple. Move more. That’s it. Just move more.
I’m not saying that you need to take up running, or get up at 4 in the morning so that you can walk more before you get in your car and drive to work to sit all day. There is research showing that “a higher number of breaks in sedentary time was beneficially associated with waist circumference, body mass index, triglycerides” and other factors. And there are a number of different techniques and strategies being tested out, employed and studied, with varying positive effects, to help remind us to move more throughout our days.
Many of you have noticed that I now use a standing desk at work. I got an inexpensive version of this from Amazon about a year ago, and have loved it. I find I have more energy and focus, and it also reminds me to keep moving my body, even in small ways. The goal of the standing desk is NOT to stand more instead of sit, the goal is to move more. Standing up while you work helps remind you to keep your body and muscles in a more active state. Anyone who has done or still works at a job where you are standing all the time, especially in one place, knows that this is very hard on the body. We are no more meant to stand in one place than we are to sit, for hours and hours at a time. So the standing desk is just one tool that you could experiment with, if your work environment allows for that, to encourage you to change your position more frequently.
If you are experimenting with standing more, whether with a standing desk or not, I also recommend getting an anti-fatigue mat to stand on, as I just purchased recently to use at work. Very helpful added support, if you are standing on hardwood or other hard surfaces for long periods of time.
Also, some of you have noticed the return of my funny-looking blue shoes that I used to wear at work... they're back! These are called "five-finger shoes" and are thought to mimic being barefoot in some ways, providing less support than a typical shoe so that your foot is forced to strengthen all of those little muscles and tendons in your feet that we used to use when we ran around barefoot more often. I stopped using the pair of Vibram five finger shoes that I own, when my feet started to hurt, after getting the standing desk. Now that I have the anti-fatigue mat to stand on, I can wear the shoes and my feet don't hurt. Plus, they're fun to wear!
Some people have found that investing in a treadmill desk is very worthwhile as well, especially if you spend a lot of your day writing, and you're not as apt to get outside for regular walks otherwise. Although, I would still suggest getting some time each day to walk outside, and not on pavement, for that good fresh air and vitamin D, and so that your feet are walking on natural surfaces as well.
Another strategy that is often recommended now is to set yourself an alarm to remind you to get up and move or just stretch, or use an App that does this for you. This link provides a list of all kinds of apps to help you sneak in more healthy habits while you’re working.
If you’re retired, or a student, or dealing with a chronic illness or injury, this means you too! Of course, adding in more movement while listening to your body and taking care of yourself. This is NOT about pushing ourselves or adding even more things to do our To Do lists to get done each day.
I
t’s about taking our health back, listening to our bodies, and finding ways to thrive in our own lives, one step at a time!
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