Park Orchards Health & Wellbeing Centre

24/10/2025

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We are holding a raffle for a magnificent, brand new TM7 Thermomix ✨🖤✨ Tickets are $20 and we have capped the raffle at 300...

22/10/2025

✨💛Homeopathy for headaches💛✨

One of my most favourite modalities, we have a full homeopathic dispensary in the clinic 🥰💋

22/10/2025

I think lots of you have heard me speak of these magical treats… they always steal the show at gatherings!

Who said a keto Mars Bar was impossible?! Not Me! This recipe is so easy, but the best bit is that these suckers truly do taste like the real thing, but without the sugar and carbs!

https://madcreationshub.com/recipe/sugar-free-keto-from-mars-bar/

21/10/2025

It’s happening again…

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Put Saturday the 14th February 2026 in the diary ladies 🩷 It’s back again for the second year.

After last year’s incredible success, the ladies of Park Orchards are coming together once again for an afternoon of laughter, friendship, and fundraising – all in support of the McGrath Foundation.

Join us for a fabulous celebration filled with good company, delicious food, and plenty of pink spirit and even a POCC Pink themed cricket match – all for a great cause close to our hearts: helping place McGrath Breast Care Nurses in communities across Australia.

Let’s make this year even bigger and brighter! 💕

📅 Saturday 14th February 2026
📍 POCC Domeney Reserve
🎟️ Tickets: details & link to come

Together, we’re turning Park Orchards pink – one fundraiser at a time! 💗

25/08/2025

Thyroid nodules are common and affect half of the general population by the age of 60 years. The causes are believed to be due to hypothyroidism, mutational changes or autoimmunity. They can be associated with over- or underactivity of the gland and may sometimes be malignant.

Dill (Anethum graveolens L.) has been used in Turkey to self-treat thyroid dysfunction such as hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism. Now a controlled clinical study has evaluated the impact of dill on patients with thyroiditis and benign thyroid nodules. They were divided into two groups: placebo (n =35) and dill group (n = 33). Dried and ground dill (300 mg) was put into capsules and patients on active treatment were given three capsules per day for 90 days. Various tests were conducted at the beginning and end of the study, including thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4), anti-thyroid peroxidase (anti-TPO), anti-thyroglobulin (anti-Tg), and C-reactive protein (CRP), and thyroid nodule dimensions were measured by ultrasound.

After 90 days, compared to the control group, the dill group exhibited significantly decreased TSH (by an average of 19% from a mean starting value of 2.69 compared to a 16% increase in the control group, P = 0.009), fT4 (P < 0.001), anti-TPO (P = 0.001), CRP (P < 0.001) and nodule size (by an average of 7.3% compared to a 4.5% increase in the control group, P < 0.001).

The authors concluded that dill suppressed inflammation of the thyroid gland, reduced nodule size, and lowered TSH levels in patients with thyroiditis and nodular goitre. The daily dose used was relatively low and higher doses might deliver a greater magnitude of clinical effects.

For more information see: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40329862/

01/08/2025

Celebrating the Return of the Light

Even though the weather is still cold, the days are now growing longer and spring is just around the corner. Halfway between the winter solstice (21st June) and spring equinox (23rd September) is the traditional fire festival of Imbolc, celebrated in the first week of August to honour the rekindling of light and warmth. A time for cleansing and purification, preparing both homes and spirits for the coming of spring.

Imbolc Ritual

To celebrate the return of the light, light a blue candle and place it in the centre of your home. Blue represents peace, wisdom, communication, truth, patience, health and calm. Fill a small bowl with water and add a pinch of salt for protection and purification. Follow this with a few drops of essential oil – something calming like rose, lavender or bergamot is a good choice.

Next, tie together a small bunch of dried herbs and beginning at your front door, dip the herbs in the water and wipe them gently round the door frame. Continue to do this to all doorways and windows in the house to spread protection and peace throughout your home. Once you have finished, place the bowl of water and bunch of herbs next to the candle to anchor the energy and then sit quietly for a few minutes. Once the herbs have dried out, burn them in the candle flame.

30/07/2025

🍵 Green Tea 🍵 and lowered dementia risk 🍵

A new study links drinking green tea with having fewer white matter lesions (WML) in the brains of Japanese seniors, potentially providing a level of protection against dementia. WML are abnormalities in the brain’s white matter (the part of the brain that contains nerve fibres responsible for communication between different brain regions) seen as hyperintense (bright) areas on MRI scans. They generally indicate chronic small vessel (microvascular) disease and are a relatively common finding in an older brain.

Researchers from institutions across Japan teamed up to analyse data on 8,766 volunteers over the age of 65, collected as part of a survey conducted between 2016 and 2018. Self-reported green tea and coffee consumption was cross-referenced against magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scans, which measured overall brain volume and features of five different brain regions.

The scientists claimed: “This cross-sectional study found a significant association between lower cerebral white matter lesions and higher green tea consumption, but not coffee consumption, in older adults without dementia, even after adjusting for confounding factors”.

The observed effects were not large. Averaged out, those who had three cups of green tea per day had 3 percent fewer WML compared with those drinking one cup per day. Those who drank seven to eight cups per day had 6 percent fewer lesions, compared to those drinking one cup a day. One cup of tea was equivalent to approximately 200 mL.

WML, indicative of cerebral small vessel disease, are associated with vascular dementia and Alzheimer disease (AD). Larger WML were associated with more severe brain atrophy in patients with AD. Recently, a longitudinal study also identified WML as an independent risk factor for cognitive decline, even after accounting for traditional AD risk factors.

Given previous investigations linking green tea with lower blood pressure, and other studies associating lower blood pressure with a reduced risk of dementia, at least one mechanism responsible for the results could be cardiovascular. Interestingly, the scientists observed a significant relationship between increased green tea intake and decreased white matter lesions in individuals without the ApoE ε4 allele, but not in individuals with the ApoE ε4 allele (p for trend = 0.008 and 0.491, respectively).

I have maintained for some time now that my microcirculation phytonutrient diet will help to protect against brain WML. Now there is clear proof of this for green tea (a key element of the diet). The relatively small protection seen for green tea highlights that, as per the basis of the diet, one single intervention might not be enough on its own.

For more information see: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/green-tea-drinkers-have-fewer-brain-lesions-linked-to-dementia

and

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39774601/

02/07/2025

Very good news indeed!!

Solidteknics Australia - Australian Made Healthy Cookware & Kitchen Tools all the way. They are the best of the best, and will last a few lifetimes..

05/06/2025

✨ CBD ✨

Cannabidiol (CBD) may offer real benefits for young people with autism, improving social interaction and reducing anxiety, without the risk of side effects.

A meta-analysis of randomised, placebo-controlled trials found that CBD not only enhanced social responsiveness and reduced anxiety, but did so with a safety profile comparable to placebo. The research, presented at the 2025 European Congress of Psychiatry in Madrid in April 2025, revealed that the use of CBD cannabis extracts can lead to meaningful benefits and improve the behavior of children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Three studies were included with 276 participants with a mean age of 10.5, ranging in age from 5 to 21. The dosage of CBD cannabis extract started at 1 mg/kg per day and was titrated up to 10 mg/kg. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) was present in minimal amounts or in ratios of 9:1 to 20:1 CBD to THC.

The authors noted that the review’s limitations included a small number of studies, limited sample sizes, and significant heterogeneity. Future research with larger, robust trials is needed to clarify the efficacy and safety of CBD cannabis extracts (especially CBD on its own) in managing ASD.

For more information see: https://scitechdaily.com/breakthrough-study-cbd-calms-autism-symptoms-and-improves-social-skills-without-side-effects/

30/05/2025

Yes.

1000 Hours Outside

29/05/2025

I used to think parenting was about having the right strategies - the perfect games to play, the ideal bedtime routine, the best communication techniques.
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But I've learned that all the tools in the world don't matter if I'm emotionally hijacked in the moment. When my child pushes back or acts in a certain way, my own childhood experiences of being criticised or feeling overwhelmed can flood back instantly. Suddenly I'm not a calm adult with parenting knowledge - I'm a triggered version of myself, reacting from old wounds rather than responding to what's actually happening right now.
I think we all know this. It's those moments when we loose our centre.
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The real work happens in those split seconds when we feel our emotions rising. Can I pause and notice what's happening in my body?
Can I recognise when my inner child feels criticised or when I'm about to repeat patterns from my own upbringing?
The first step is in acknowledging and tracking our reactions.

Our children don't actually need perfect parents; they need parents who are committed to growing alongside them.
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If you want support with this, come and join me on my 8 week Parenting Immersion where we explore your stories and beliefs and how we can transform what no longer serves us.
Links in bios...

22/05/2025

Herbs really are the best medicine 🌱✨

I recently reported that a Boswellia extract improved cartilage volume, thickness and joint space width in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA), a groundbreaking outcome. This disease modifying effect has now been backed up by a trial showing a similar finding for a combination of Boswellia with celery seed (Apium graveolens). Celery seed is one of my favourites for OA. The randomised, placebo-controlled, double blind clinical trial was conducted over 90 days in 62 participants using standardised Boswellia serrata gum resin extract (600 mg/day, minimum 240 mg of boswellic acids by HPLC) and celery seed extract (500 mg/day).

Oral administration of the herb combination resulted in prolonged symptomatic relief with reduced pain, stiffness and swelling. Inflammatory (serum IL-7, IL-1, IL-6, hs-CRP, TNF-α, ESR) and cartilage degeneration biomarkers (serum CTX-II, COMP, MMP-3 and urinary CTX-II) were decreased in the herbal group compared to both baseline and placebo. Furthermore, serum N-propeptide of collagen IIA (PIIANP) and procollagen-type-C propeptide (PIICP) levels were increased in the herbal group, suggesting enhanced collagen synthesis contributing to cartilage regeneration. At the given doses for 90 days, there were no adverse effects based on a clinical examination, biochemical, haematological and ECG analysis.

For more information see: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39875757/