Dr. Alexandra Verge, ND - Kura Clinic

Dr. Alexandra Verge, ND - Kura Clinic Naturopathic Doctor serving Guelph for over 20 years - with a passion for integrative heart health.

Make Sleep Health a Priority!😴 Why is good sleep important?Heart health, mental health, hormone health, brain health, im...
03/14/2025

Make Sleep Health a Priority!

😴 Why is good sleep important?

Heart health, mental health, hormone health, brain health, immune health, bone health, and more

A better question is what isn’t it good for?

Healthy sleep isn’t just about getting enough sleep. It’s multidimensional.

Here are the 6 aspects we should consider when assessing sleep health:

1. Duration: how much did you sleep over 24 hours?
2. Efficiency: how well do you fall asleep and stay asleep?
3. Timing: when do you sleep?
4. Regularity: do you have consistent sleep and wake times?
5. Alertness: do you maintain good focus & attention during waking
hours?
6. Quality: do you feel satisfied with your sleep?

Addressing sleep isn’t always easy, but it’s always worth it. If sleep is an issue for you, please bring it up with your healthcare provider (tip: use the above 6 aspects to organize your concerns).

❣️Because my focus is cardiovascular health, I must mention sleep apnea specifically (I can’t help it!). Sleep apnea is significantly under-diagnosed (particularly in women especially in midlife) and untreated apnea has a very real link with hypertension. Here’s your regular reminder to get a sleep study! 💤

Your Over-40 Cardiovascular Cheat Sheet ✔️Once you hit 40, your heart deserves a little extra attention. Whether you’re ...
03/05/2025

Your Over-40 Cardiovascular Cheat Sheet ✔️

Once you hit 40, your heart deserves a little extra attention. Whether you’re at a routine check-up or facing a new concern, having the right info on hand makes all the difference.

Here’s your quick guide to what you should know—and be ready to share—with your healthcare team.

📌 Your Blood Pressure – Do you know your numbers? Ideal is around 120/80 mmHg or lower, but trends over time matter just as much. If you’re monitoring at home, bring your readings!

📌 Cholesterol aka Lipid Panel – Know your numbers here too! And don't forget to get your lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) checked, a genetic risk factor that’s often overlooked but important to check at least once).

📌 Blood Sugar Levels – Fasting glucose and A1c (which gives a 3-month average) help assess your risk for diabetes, a major heart disease driver.

📌 Family History – A parent or sibling with early heart disease (before 55 in men, before 65 in women)? That’s important to mention—as is having many family members being affected regardless of age or even lifestyle factors.

📌 Symptoms to Report – Don't ignore things like chest discomfort, shortness of breath, dizziness, swelling, unusual fatigue, or slow-healing wounds—even if they come and go.

📌 Exercise + Diet Snapshot – Be honest about your activity level, typical meals, and alcohol intake—it’s not about judgment, just better guidance.

3 (Potential) Signs of Heart Disease You May Not Know About 🧐When you think about heart disease, symptoms like chest pai...
02/26/2025

3 (Potential) Signs of Heart Disease You May Not Know About 🧐

When you think about heart disease, symptoms like chest pain (angina) and shortness of breath may come to mind. But there are other, lesser-known signs that can indicate trouble with your cardiovascular system.

Here are three to be aware of … and mention to your healthcare provider:

1️⃣ Erectile Dysfunction (ED)

Struggling with ED isn’t just about hormones, lifestyle factors, or stress —it can also be an early warning sign of blood vessel problems. The same narrowing and reduced blood flow that lead to heart attacks can also affect circulation elsewhere. And since some of the smallest arteries are in this area, change is often seen here first.

2️⃣ Orthopnea

This is the medical term for difficulty breathing when lying flat. If you find yourself needing extra pillows at night to sleep comfortably or find yourself short of breath in bed, your heart may not be pumping effectively.

3️⃣ Bendopnea

This means shortness of breath when bending over (like when tying your shoes). It can indicate fluid overload and rising pressure in the heart. If you get winded just from bending forward, it may be a sign your heart may be struggling to keep up.

Your body often gives you subtle hints when something isn’t right. There may be other reasons for all the above symptoms, but we don’t know until we know.
If you’re noticing any of these signs, don’t brush them off—talk to your healthcare provider and take charge of your heart health. ❤️

💖 Heart Month Nutrition TipThe relationship between saturated fat and heart health is more complex than you might think....
02/21/2025

💖 Heart Month Nutrition Tip
The relationship between saturated fat and heart health is more complex than you might think. But what isn’t complicated is that it matters. Despite what you might sometimes hear, high saturated fat intake will increase cholesterol 👎🏻 and increase risk of heart disease in most people.
While high intake can increase your risk, what you replace it with matters!
❣️Replacing saturated fat with polyunsaturated fats (like those in fatty fish, walnuts, or flaxseeds), monounsaturated fats (like olive oil), and/or complex carbohydrates (like whole grains) can help lower your heart disease risk.

❣️Replacing with sugars and simple carbohydrates? Not so much.
The biggest culprits are fatty/processed meats and high-fat dairy (butter and cream). We’re generally less worried about other dairy products including cheese, coconut oil, or chocolate. But this can still count depending on the amount you take in and your personal response to them.
A general approach is to keep saturated fat content below 10% of your daily calories, choosing heart-healthy alternatives like olive oil or avocado 🥑.
One of my favourite approaches for die-hard butter lovers is to transition using a butter/olive oil blend:
😋 mix softened butter and olive oil in a 2:1 ratio
😋 keep in fridge and use as you would butter
💝 work towards using 100% olive oil more regularly
What have you done to reduce saturated fat in your diet?

Do you know about the DASH Diet? Like many classics, it seems to get forgotten more often than it should. This dietary p...
02/08/2025

Do you know about the DASH Diet? Like many classics, it seems to get forgotten more often than it should.

This dietary pattern, also known as Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, has been around for almost 30 years and has tons of research to support it.

In fact, in this year’s ‘Best Diets Overall’ (US News and World Report), DASH is virtually tied with the Med Diet for first place.

But remember, all these recommended dietary patterns cover similar territory:

🍎 lots of fruits and vegetable⁠
🌾 fibre-rich foods⁠
🥑 lower saturated fats⁠
🌰 higher polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats⁠
❌ no/low trans fats⁠
🧂 low sodium⁠

But let’s give a little more love to DASH specifically. Its main claim to fame is successfully lowering blood pressure and decreasing cardiovascular risk. Although it's likely a result of synergetic interactions, I wanted to highlight 3 specific components we’re aiming to get more of: potassium, magnesium, and calcium.

How does that happen in the DASH diet?

By encouraging more of the following:
fruits X 4-5 servings daily
veg X 4-5 servings daily
lower-fat dairy products X 2-3 servings daily
nuts, seeds, dry beans and peas X 4-5+ weekly

There is no doubt this is a challenge for many, and often isn’t achieved without some intentionality behind it.

If this is light years away from where you are now, consider a stepwise process over weeks to month. It takes practice!

Begin: Aim for some fruit with each meal
Add on a vegetable with each meal (yes, even breakfast – even a few carrot sticks).
At this point, if you started with neither, you’ll already up a total of 6 servings.
Add a second fruit at breakfast
Add a second vegetable at dinner (now you’re up to 8!)
Finish: Make some of your servings sizes a little bigger

Lastly, if you’re looking to learn more about DASH eating, one of my favourite resources is by – just search DASH Diet at NIH.gov.

Happy DASH-ing!

February is Heart Month and it’s already around the corner!Looking for a way to recognize the month? Consider the Wear R...
01/31/2025

February is Heart Month and it’s already around the corner!

Looking for a way to recognize the month? Consider the Wear Red Canada Movement Challenge taking place February 13-28th.

Wear Red Canada is hosted by the Canadian Women’s Heart Health Alliance and is celebrated each February 13th to raise awareness for women’s heart health.

This year, the Wear Red Canada Movement Challenge is encouraging movement while fundraising. Whether you join the Challenge or not, consider getting active in February (and every month) for your heart health.

If you want to register, visit the Wear Red Canada website or for more. You can join on your own or if you’re motivated by being part of a team - create your own or even join ours (Walkers with Heart)!

Movement … there’s never a too late to start. 💝

2024 was a big year.One of the highlights was doubling down on my speaking engagements.I said yes to virtually everythin...
01/24/2025

2024 was a big year.

One of the highlights was doubling down on my speaking engagements.

I said yes to virtually everything. It was exhilarating and exhausting. It was such a privilege to speak for , , -CE-Group, and over the course of the year.

⚡️7 presentations/conferences
⚡️14 hours of live lecturing (in-person and virtual, in 2 countries)
⚡️24 hours small group facilitation
⚡️10 pre-recorded summit lectures
⚡️350+ references
⚡️700+ slides
⚡️endless computer hours

Sharing my enthusiasm about improving cardiovascular health with my integrative care colleagues was a joy. I was left better for it and I hope they feel the same way.

2025 will be a quiet one. (But not entirely. Stay tuned.)

2024 was a big year.⁠⁠One of the highlights was doubling down on my speaking engagements.⁠⁠I said yes to virtually every...
01/24/2025

2024 was a big year.⁠
⁠
One of the highlights was doubling down on my speaking engagements.⁠
⁠
I said yes to virtually everything. It was exhilarating and exhausting. It was such a privilege to speak for , , , and over the course of the year.⁠
⁠
⚡️7 presentations/conferences⁠
⚡️14 hours of live lecturing (in-person and virtual, in 2 countries)⁠
⚡️24 hours small group facilitation⁠
⚡️10 pre-recorded summit lectures⁠
⚡️350+ references⁠
⚡️700+ slides⁠
⚡️endless computer hours⁠
⁠
Sharing my enthusiasm about improving cardiovascular health with my integrative care colleagues was a joy. I was left better for it and I hope they feel the same way.⁠
⁠
2025 will be a quiet one. (But not entirely. Stay tuned.)

Do you have an immune-mediated inflammatory disease (IMID) such as rheumatoid arthritis?⁠⁠If so, you should definitely k...
12/13/2024

Do you have an immune-mediated inflammatory disease (IMID) such as rheumatoid arthritis?⁠
⁠
If so, you should definitely know what the lipid paradox is all about!⁠
⁠
When inflammation goes up (like when you experience a flare or relapse of your condition), cholesterol levels go down.⁠
⁠
🧐 We don’t totally understand why this happens, but proinflammatory chemicals seems to be responsible.⁠
⁠
This misleading low lipid profile provokes an underestimation of cardiovascular risk which is particularly troublesome given that the opposite is actually true (there is a higher overall risk associated with IMIDs -see prior post).⁠
⁠
Talk about a double whammy!⁠
⁠
What’s to be done?⁠
⁠
❤️ Test (or retest) your cholesterol when the flare has subsided or you’re in remission. This will give you the real situation⁠
⁠
⚠️ Since the lipid paradox happens at times when people are not well with significant inflammation (e.g. disease flare, sepsis, right after a heart attack), some people mistakenly believe that low cholesterol must be directly linked to poor outcomes.⁠
⁠
Maybe you’ve seen this? An example would be suggesting that people who have heart attacks are more likely to have low cholesterol, so having high cholesterol is protective. This is a misunderstanding of the how the lipid paradox works. Don’t be fooled!⁠

Do you have an immune-mediated inflammatory disease (IMID) such as rheumatoid arthritis?If so, you should definitely kno...
12/12/2024

Do you have an immune-mediated inflammatory disease (IMID) such as rheumatoid arthritis?

If so, you should definitely know what the lipid paradox is all about!

When inflammation goes up (like when you experience a flare or relapse of your condition), cholesterol levels go down.

🧐 We don’t totally understand why this happens, but proinflammatory chemicals seems to be responsible.

This misleading low lipid profile provokes an underestimation of cardiovascular risk which is particularly troublesome given that the opposite is actually true (there is a higher overall risk associated with IMIDs -see prior post).

Talk about a double whammy!

What’s to be done?

❤️ Test (or retest) your cholesterol when the flare has subsided or you’re in remission. This will give you the real situation

⚠️ Since the lipid paradox happens at times when people are not well with significant inflammation (e.g. disease flare, sepsis, right after a heart attack), some people mistakenly believe that low cholesterol must be directly linked to poor outcomes.

Maybe you’ve seen this? An example would be suggesting that people who have heart attacks are more likely to have low cholesterol, so having high cholesterol is protective. This is a misunderstanding of the how the lipid paradox works. Don’t be fooled!

Do you have an inflammatory autoimmune condition?Also known as an immune-mediated inflammatory disease or IMID, examples...
12/10/2024

Do you have an inflammatory autoimmune condition?

Also known as an immune-mediated inflammatory disease or IMID, examples include:

🔥rheumatoid arthritis
🔥lupus
🔥Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis
🔥psoriasis (especially with psoriatic arthritis)

👎🏻 Bad news: this increases your risk of heart disease

👍🏻 Good news: knowing is half the battle, and there’s lots we can do!

Some days I feel like the bearer of bad news.
But it’s worse when someone says they wish they had known sooner.

Heart disease risk is increased in 3 main ways:

Related to some of the IMIDs drugs (particularly cyclosporine, JAK inhibitors, and overuse of steroid medications and NSAIDs)
The inflammation itself (regardless of how it comes about) increases the progression of atherosclerosis.
More risk factors: people with IMIDs are typically more likely to have cardiovascular risk factors such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure, low activity levels, and to***co use.

So what’s to be done?

We start with a thorough evaluation of cardiovascular risk. This should be done with anyone diagnosed with an IMID, regardless of age.
If risk factors are identified, they are aggressively managed and monitored.
Medication options should be carefully considered.
Early and robust treatment of the condition is emphasized to limit lifelong inflammation exposure. Reducing flare-up frequency is important with remission as the goal.

Do you have an IMID? If your healthcare providers haven’t brought up your cardiovascular health yet, put it on the agenda.

Address

15 Yarmouth Street
Guelph, ON
N1H 4G2

Opening Hours

Tuesday 9:15am - 12:30pm
2pm - 7:30pm
Wednesday 9:15am - 12:30pm
2pm - 6pm
Thursday 9:15am - 12:30pm
2pm - 6pm

Telephone

+15197669759

Website

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Naturopathic Care for Older Adults

Naturopathic Doctor serving Guelph for over 17 years - with a more recent focus on and passion for working with older adults. Information on this site is provided for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice.