Ascenta

By guest blogger Julie Daniluk, Nutritionist, author and TV host

Having radiant skin starts with building beauty from deep inside our body. I love the saying, “You are what you eat so don’t be fast, cheap, easy and fake!”. People underestimate how much our outward appearance is influenced by diet and nutrition. Here is my list of the top skin nutrients that beautify from the inside out.

Drink good fluids
Try herbal tea or fruit in your water instead of reaching for coffee, sodas, and alcohol which all dehydrate the skin. If you must drink alcohol, buffer it with 2 glasses of water per serving.

Consume anti-aging foods
Avocado is a perfect skin food. It is a good source of vitamin E and can help maintain healthy skin and slow down the aging process. Vitamin E may also help alleviate menopausal hot flushes and has a powerful action against the damage of free radicals. Vitamin E helps our skin retain its moisture, and a lack of it brings premature wrinkles, pale skin, acne, easy bruising and slow wound healing.

Eat your sunscreen
For head to toe protection against the skin damaging effects of UV rays have a healthy dose of zeaxanthin and lutein. These special antioxidants saturate in the skin and eyes where they block UV rays from the sun and prevent free radical damage. Unlike topical sunscreens which need to be re-applied frequently these natural SPF nutrients work all day long! Good sources of zeaxanthin and lutein include kale, egg yolk, and orange peppers.

Go crazy with the cruciferous
The family of Cruciferous vegetables includes cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, kale, turnip, Brussels sprouts, radish and watercress. Cruciferous vegetables help to balance hormones by supporting liver function. Unbalanced hormones can lead to skin breakouts. You should try to consume at least 115g/40z of any one or a combination of these vegetables on a daily basis. If possible, eat them raw or very lightly steamed so that the important enzymes remain intact.

Ginger is anti-inflammatory and cleansing
Fresh ginger can help keep your skin clear by acting as an anti-inflammatory and is effective for detoxing the body. You can get your daily dose—2 to 4 grams (more than that can actually cause heartburn)—by steeping ginger in hot water to make tea, chewing a piece of ginger, or using ginger generously when you cook.

Fish oil is rich in essential fatty acids
The Omega 3 fats EPA & DHA found in fish and fish oil are nature’s beauty secret. This is in part due to their potent anti-inflammatory effect. “Inflammation plays a big role in skin health and affects everything from skin aging to firmness, hydration, blemishes and colour tone. Consuming 1000-2000mg EPA+DHA daily feeds your skin from the inside out and keeps it looking youthful and blemish free” says Ascenta Skin formulator Marc St-Onge.

Studies have also shown that increased consumption the Omega 3s EPA & DHA increases your skin’s resistance to UV damage, reduces skin reddening, and increase firmness and elasticity. It is important to consume less saturated and processed fats if you want the EFAs to work as fats compete for absorption in the body.

More GLA please
While people generally consume too much pro-inflammatory Omega 6 (vegetable oils) there is a special type of Omega 6 called GLA which acts more like an Omega 3 than an Omega 6. GLA is super hydrating for the skin, reduces redness and gives the skin a smooth supple feel. A good source of GLA is organ meats however GLA is also produced from borage oil and sold as a dietary supplement.

Spinach is rich in iron
Iron is used for the formation of hemoglobin. A deficiency in iron brings anemia, and this shows up in our bodies by a pale complexion and dark circles under the eyes. Iron is best processed from animal food but can be found also in some vegetables.

Eat dark vegetables
Dark orange vegetables (carrots, sweet potatoes, winter squash) and dark green vegetables (broccoli, spinach, kale) are rich in Vitamin A and Vitamin B complex. Vitamin A helps in the formation of new cells, which keeps our skin renewed and it’s also vital for healthy eyes and hair. If you are lacking Vitamin A, your skin will be dry and flaky. Vitamin B complex is important as it releases energy from food for skin metabolism, keeping your skin moist and smooth.

Red peppers and citrus contain vitamin C
Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant, essential for the production of collagen (the elastic tissue in our skin that declines with age). Every time you are smoking, under stress, or receiving too much sun exposure, you are draining vitamin C from your body.

Hemp seeds are high in zinc
Zinc is a mineral vital to the manufacture of collagen and speeds up healing in our bodies, including skin. A deficiency produces stretch marks, a dull complexion, white spots on fingernails, dandruff and stubborn blemishes.

For a serious boost to your skin care regiment try adding 1-2 tsp of the new Ascenta Skin. It’s a combination of 6 different skin beautifying and anti-aging nutrients that exemplify the concept of “beauty from within”. Heather Thompson from Real Housewives NYC says “Ascenta Skin is staple of keeping her skin young and healthy”.

Nutritionist Julie Daniluk hosts The Healthy Gourmet on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), a reality cooking show that looks at the ongoing battle between taste and nutrition. Her first book, Meals that Heal Inflammation, advises on allergy-free foods that both taste great and assist the body in the healing process. Check out more amazing recipes and nutrition tips at www.juliedaniluk.com

Check out Julie on Facebook at Julie Daniluk Nutrition and on Twitter @juliedaniluk.

Established in June of 2003 the Ascenta story is nearing a decade. It seems like an appropriate stage of a company’s life cycle to reflect back on what you set out to accomplish and what you’ve achieved since. Being that it’s Earth Day this reflection is centered on Ascenta’s long term vision of sustainability and ecological prosperity.

Back in 2003 I have to admit that I had yet to fully define what my vision was for Ascenta. I naively followed my passion for natural health and a belief that we could transform lives with omega-3, the “missing” ingredient. After contemplating the broader meaning of health the story of Ascenta began to evolve. The goal of creating health became a goal of building prosperity and a notion that everything is interconnected.

As we began to shift our thinking we soon realised there were so many areas within our business that needed attention. The challenge was that we were still a relatively small growing company, resources were scarce, and seemingly never enough time to get everything done. The prospect of adding new tasks and a different way of thinking was a bit daunting.

This is typically the juncture where most companies adopt a “good enough” mentality and shift their primary focus towards fiscal responsibility. A good analogy would be a student graduating from university and excited to take on the world. As they take those first steps into a brave new world they quickly realise their goals and dreams don’t line up that well with how society defines success. You therefore let go of your dreams or at least give them a hard pruning.

Companies do the same thing. The thrill and excitement of a start-up company is undeniable. It’s a platform system for ideas and imagination. The socially oriented entrepreneur however will soon face the reality that the model you are trying to build does not yet exist thereby requiring you to become a pioneer and navigate uncharted waters. Adhering to your vision and values will be constantly challenged and you even risk alienating yourself. While loosening your grip on your original intentions can relieve some of the pressure this becomes a slippery slope and could ultimately compromise the vision.

All these challenges facing the social entrepreneur I have lived first hand and admit that I have made decisions in the past that were heavily influenced by internal and external pressures. In those cases I did what was expected of me, not what I wanted to do. The greatest gift for navigating through life is self awareness. It monitors in real-time the choices you make and its impact on your life. Ultimately it helps you identify when you make poor decisions and lets you learn and improve.

While many companies aspire to become sustainable the truth is that today there is no such thing as a sustainable company. Our current economy does not follow a cyclical flow. It’s a linear mathematical model that believes natural resources are inexhaustible and the planet has infinite storage capacity for waste and toxic debris. Therefore most of the resources a company requires to operate (power, construction materials, office supplies, electronics, etc) are scarcely available as fully eco-friendly alternatives.

While the vision is to be sustainable the process to get there is about reducing your ecological footprint. Making the best possible decisions based on ecological impact requires a solid understanding of the product or ingredient supply chain. One of the best examples I can highlight would be the garment and textile industry. While most would regard a simple t-shirt as having a relatively low ecological impact the reality is a very different story. The cotton for this t-shirt is grown in a field where heavy pesticides and herbicides are applied to the extent that no other life forms can be supported including other plants, insects, and wildlife. These chemicals eventually leach into the groundwater and are no longer localised.

Next the cotton is likely to be processed in a developing country where the factories discharge the toxic effluent from the dyes into the nearby river thereby impacting biological life over a vast geography. It should be noted that this practice also occurs in developed countries. Furthermore the employees in these factories work for unfair wages and statistically present with cancer rates 40x higher than the normal population. The matter of fact is that in business we often focus only on our own activities and discount the impact of the entire supply chain from which we depend. Supply chain management is probably the most challenging and time consuming aspect of the “sustainable” company.

It wasn’t until 2006 that we intently began examining the impact of our business beyond our own activities. Because the primary resource for our products is fish we needed to first and foremost better understand fisheries management. To help us do that we developed a relationship with a marine biologist working in the area of fisheries management and conservation. It’s a well known fact that our global fish supplies have been depleted by overfishing. It was therefore extremely important that we audit the fisheries we were sourcing from as well as audit any fishery we planned to source from in the future.

Greenwashing has become a very sophisticated practice in the world of commerce so applying scientific rigor to the process of supply chain management is critical. We witnessed this first hand in our assessment of the Antarctic krill industry. The story behind krill oil sounds too good to be true. Multiple internet sources promote it as being an almost inexhaustible resource and claim that it provides omega-3 with up to 10x the potency of omega-3 from fish. After conducting thorough research on this potential source the findings clearly indicated the krill fishery was a poor ecological choice at this time and the benefits of krill omega-3 over fish omega-3 were not significant. Today consumers pay upwards of 10x as much for krill oil vs. fish oil due to savvy marketing not scientific validation. Despite the potential for increased profits krill is not on our list of approved omega-3 sources.

As an entrepreneur one of my greatest mentors is Yvon Chouinard, founder of the outdoor apparel company Patagonia. In 2012 Yvon published the book entitled The Responsible Company. In this book he discusses the importance of supply chain management and coined the phrase “an examined life”. The process of examining your life, or business, means making conscious decisions about everything you do to ensure it aligns with your values and leads to the change you want to create in this world. Becoming a responsible company means understanding all the issues, researching all the viable options, and making decisions aligned with your values. This philosophy must be applied throughout your organisation.

How far is a company willing to go to push those boundaries and pioneer a path towards sustainability? For a company like Patagonia they will go as far as they possibly can. Yvon is considered one of the great social entrepreneurs of our era and has leveraged business success to create global change. He may even argue that the change he created was responsible for his business success. Either way the story of Patagonia is a North Star for companies like Ascenta.

While the story of Patagonia and The Responsible Company have contributed greatly to my beliefs Yvon’s greatest influence has been the result of an initiative he gave birth to in 2002. Discouraged by the amount of greenwashing and the continued degradation of the natural world Yvon, along with his good friend Craig Matthews, created 1% for the Planet. With a commitment to donate at least 1% of total sales to environmental non-profits 1% for the Planet companies represent a new level of environmental responsibility and transparency. Unlike most corporations where environmental giving is considered “charitable”, 1% for the Planet companies view it as a cost of doing business. Some refer to it as “keeping the Earth in business”.

Since its inception in 2002, the network of 1% for the Planet companies has grown to over 1000 companies worldwide, representing the largest source of environmental giving in the world having reached over $70million in 2012. Back in 2007, I was exploring several ideas in an attempt to start closing the sustainability loop including establishing university grants for the purpose of funding research in ocean conservation. To my surprise the university board of directors turned down the idea citing concerns it may appear that the university was endorsing the company’s products. While this left me scratching my head I reminded myself that sometimes things happen for a reason.

Not long after, I was at home relaxing to a new CD by one of my favorite music artists Jack Johnson. While reading the back cover of the eco-friendly CD sleeve I noticed for the first time the 1% for the Planet logo. Jack Johnson has always been a point source of inspiration for me, so I decided to look further into this logo. That became the light bulb moment as if fate brought us together.

Philosophically everything about 1% for the Planet resonated and I was eager to present this idea internally at Ascenta. While there were natural hesitations around the financial risk of the commitment, we all decided this embodied our vision and values. Entrepreneurs and business leaders know that as a growing business there will be times when finances are constrained and years where profits will not be realized. The idea behind 1% for the Planet is that companies have an ecological impact regardless of their profitability therefore environmental giving should always be linked to sales not profits.

At Ascenta we see this as a long term investment in our future. Without healthy productive natural ecosystems there would be no business. Since joining this movement in 2007, Ascenta has donated over a half million dollars to environmental non-profits including the David Suzuki Foundation, Environmental Defence, Nova Scotia Nature Trust, Ecology Action Centre, and Heal the Bay. Being associated with 1% for the Planet has enriched our culture at Ascenta, increased our awareness of key environmental issues, and connected us with some of the most inspiring and dedicated people trying to build a better world for all of us.

While 1% for the Planet is our most significant endeavor thus far, continuing to apply the idea of leading an “examined life” has lead to other key initiatives. In the province of Nova Scotia we have been subjected to an archaic energy industry fed primarily by dirty coal. Nova Scotia Power Inc is consistently listed as one of the top greenhouse gas emitters in Canada and reluctant to move the region away from cheap fossil fuels.

Then came along Bullfrog Power, a green certified renewable energy provider founded by eco-entrepreneurs Tom Heintzman and Greg Kiessling. Established in 2004, this Canadian green energy start-up gradually expanded out from their Ontario roots and today bring green energy alternatives to commercial and residential customers from coast to coast. When green energy came knocking in Nova Scotia we were excited to sign up and take this critical next step along our path towards sustainability.

While it’s easy to overlook the small things, we know when you multiply small changes you can generate big results. Based on that we’ve implemented some things at Ascenta worth noting such as eco-transportation rebates for employees, eco-purchasing policies for food, office supplies, and electronics, community garbage sweeps, and eco-themed staff presentations. Last year Ascenta was recognised as one of Canada’s greenest workplaces.

The next big adventure for Ascenta will be a new facility slated for 2015. Building our new home is an exciting chance to ask ourselves “imagine if...?” While our imaginations may not represent what’s possible today, it will surely help us breakthrough the status quos and push the boundaries of what is possible.

As individuals as well as businesses, it’s important to remember that the brain and the heart have different reward systems. The brain’s reward system is primarily based on receiving while the heart’s reward system is primarily based on giving. Conventional businesses think with their brains. Socially oriented businesses think with their brains and act with their hearts.

On this Earth Day 2013 I want to express my deepest gratitude to the entire Ascenta team and to all our supporters. Without you none of this would be possible. We are excited about what’s to come and hope you come along for the journey.

If you want to be happy then chose to be happy. If you want to be successful then chose to be happy. If you want to make others happy then chose to be happy.

Marc

The rapid growth and development of the past century is unprecedented in human history. The human machine as we’ll call it, continues to build speed, which for the most part elicits a sense of awe and excitement. But without a good understanding of where you want to go fast quite often comes at the expense of far. If all the sudden we need to put on the brakes will we stop in time? Are we already too close to the edge? Despite our scientific advances and vast amounts of data nobody really knows the answer to that question.

In the field of ecology exists a theory called “alternative stable states” which suggests that ecosystems possess multiple states of equilibrium which are separated by a threshold point. What this means is an ecosystem tends to exist in a relatively stable state and is resilient to change. However, if enough pressure is applied to the ecosystem a series of chain events take place which result in a new stable state. Some scientists call this a switching or flipping point. The consequence of this shift may involve new dominant species, re-organisation of the food web, and altered landscapes.

While the scientific community continues to compile data on our ever changing world, there is little to no consensus around how close our current activities are driving us towards a threshold with global consequences. It’s not implausible to think that humans may no longer be the dominant species a hundred years from now.

A classic example of a switching point was experienced here in Atlantic Canada. The North Atlantic cod fishery was once one of the world’s largest and most productive fisheries yet in the early 1990’s the cod stocks collapsed due to overfishing. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) issued a moratorium on the cod fishery and predicted the cod would recover in 5-6 years. No such recovery occurred. Only 20 years later have there been any positive trends in the cod stocks in the Northwest Atlantic.

What the DFO did not realise was that the food web flipped and the cod’s main prey became its predator. Cod fish are an apex predator and feed off a number of smaller forage fish such as herring. Conversely these forage fish feed off cod eggs and larvae. When the cod populations dipped below the threshold, the forage fish populations started to steadily increase. The increase in forage fish further suppressed the cod populations by consuming large amounts of cod eggs, thereby suppressing the reproductive capacity of the cod species.

The collapse of the North Atlantic cod fishery is not an isolated incident and ecologists are predicting many more ecosystems and food webs to flip in coming years. The stress on the planet’s ecosystems from global warming, resource mining, deforestation, pollution, and ocean acidification have the potential to cause stable state shifts on a global scale. Mathematical models have shown some promise in their ability to predict when an ecosystem will shift however the vast complexities of ecosystems and food webs present a significant challenge to answering these vital questions in time.

As we continue to apply unsustainable economic models to our increasingly stressed ecosystems we can be assured our fast machine will come to a fast end. The downside to our planet’s incredible resiliency is that it keeps us largely disillusioned to the impending change. But as we cross the threshold the tables will flip, presenting humanity with new challenges of epic proportions. And the question still remains, how close are we to the precipice?

Our nature is to react once we reach the edge. For instance in North America over 600,000 people will die, despite early warning signs, from preventable forms of heart disease. In many cases, like heart disease, we cannot stop fast enough once we reach the edge.

The goal now is to take action. As citizens and consumers we have all the power to make the necessary change. Its time to stand up for what you stand for and thanks to the endless hard work and dedication by our 1% for the Planet non-profit partners we have all the resources we need to make meaningful change.

Please visit our incredible 1% for the Planet partners to learn more about how you can “be the change”.

www.davidsuzuki.org

http://environmentaldefence.ca

www.ecologyaction.ca

www.nsnt.ca

“Our personal consumer choices have ecological, social, and spiritual consequences. It is time to re-examine some of our deeply held notions that underlie our lifestyles.” ~ David Suzuki

By guest blogger and Ascenta Ambassador Greg Carver.

In our modern times, we tend to think of ourselves as exempt from the natural world. Many of us spend but a few weekends a year enjoying nature, while existing for the most part in climate controlled, artificially lit, indoor environments. We’re a society of supermarkets, underground parking, condominiums, office buildings and technology.

Being natural creatures, it’s not surprising that this constant immersion in the artificial and virtual is affecting our health. Nature is part of our every being, and we have an increasing need to connect with it. In fact, recent studies* have indicated that nature has a way of calming us, resulting in greater focus, reduced stress and lowered cortisol levels. The combination of plants, fresh air, natural light, even sounds and smells all affect our mental state.

It turns out that our physical state can be improved outdoors as well. As a movement coach and trainer, I’ve seen far too many people who consider themselves “fit”, but can’t jump onto a rock or pull themselves up over a wall. They may have reasonable cardio, but lack skill and confidence when tested in the real world. Indeed, no treadmill or machine can replicate running outside, with nature’s inherent changes in terrain, hills, wind resistance and weather challenges. You stride differently outdoors, you expend more energy and you use your brain more actively.

So despite the allure of the 24-hour gym and its comforts, there are benefits to getting our exercise outdoors — regardless of the weather.
Human bodies evolved doing primal, natural skills — movements that we mastered over the millennia when most of our lives were spent outdoors. Consequently, we are built to run fast, walk long distances, climb trees and clamber over rocks. We should be able to jump, squat and crawl on all fours. Lifting, carrying, dragging, even moving in awkward positions — these activities challenge the whole body and the mind.

Training natural movement skills outside takes some resolve at first, but the results are well worth the effort. As a first step, try going for a daily walk. Play with your kids or your dog. Get in the occasional run, not just for distance - but for speed. Then challenge yourself a bit further in a park or local playground. A close examination of your surroundings will no doubt lead to some more advanced exercise opportunities. Think of a heavy stone as your barbell. A fallen log may be your balance beam. Run, jump, crawl and play.

This is exercise that could literally save your life.

Note: While Greg loves to train in nature, he also runs a natural movement gym in Toronto called StrengthBox. For further inspiration, visit www.strengthbox.ca or www.movnat.com.

"You must sleep sometime between lunch and dinner, and no halfway measures. Take off your clothes and get into bed. That's what I always do. Don't think you will be doing less work because you sleep during the day. That's a foolish notion held by people who have no imagination. You will be able to accomplish more. You get two days in one - well, at least one and a half." ~ Winston Churchill

Western culture tends to label the practice of napping as laziness or lack of stamina. Not only would Winston Churchill disagree but so would an entire field of sleep research. While few of us have the luxury of Churchill’s napping rituals it’s important that we understand the composition of sleep and the power of napping.

The truth is that napping and sleeping are one in the same and differ only by duration. Consequently the duration of your sleep or nap profoundly influences the end result. Let’s start with a common misconception about sleep. Most people believe sleep is broken down into two stages - light sleep and deep sleep (REM) – with REM sleep being the more beneficial.

Thanks to modern techniques of measuring brain activity during sleep cycles, we know there are 4 stages of sleep each lasting a different amount of time. Collectively the 4 stages of sleep that make up one sleep cycle last approximately 90 minutes, further repeating itself 5-6 times during the night. As it turns out REM sleep is on the opposite spectrum of deep sleep.

Stage 1 – Transitions us from wakefulness to sleep. Considered light sleep. Brainwaves slow from alpha (8-12Hz) to theta (4-7 Hz). Lasts approximately 5-15min in duration.

Stage 2 – Deep muscle relaxation, heart rate and breathing slows. Brainwaves in the lower theta range. Lasts approximately 20min in duration.

Stage 3 – Very deep sleep and rhythmic breathing. Brainwaves slow down to the delta range (1-4Hz). Lasts approximately 60min in duration however gets shorter after each cycle.

REM (stage 4) – Rapid Eye Movement sleep. Called paradoxical sleep because heart rate increases, rapid breathing, brainwave activity similar to wakefulness, yet muscles remain relaxed. Lasts approximately 10-20 minutes but increases with each subsequent cycle.

Fully rejuvenating sleep requires all 4 stages however it’s during stage 3 (deep sleep) when most of the essential processes take place including memory consolidation, tissue repair, and immune regulation. While stage 3 sleep produces the most significant rejuvenating effects the key to effective napping is not to reach stage 3.

During the day we tend to exhaust our mental and physical processes leaving us sluggish, less creative, and with diminished decision making ability. A nap therefore has the primary intention of restoring those faculties and enhancing our productivity. Furthermore napping has been proven to increase grey matter in the brain and improve memory.

During stage 3 of the sleep cycle our brainwave oscillations slow down dramatically to the delta wave range (1-4Hz). Waking during this stage of deep sleep results in mental fogginess, slight confusion, and irritability. This of course is not the effect we hope to achieve from a mid afternoon nap. Conversely waking during stage 2 leaves us feeling refreshed, mentally alert, and provides us that much needed boost to get us through the rest of the day. Therefore timing your nap to wake approximately 30 minutes after sleep will keep you in the optimal zone for napping. Repeat during the day as needed.

In addition to Churchill, many of the great minds throughout history have been advocates of napping. In fact, many of these individuals would restrict sleeping to 4-5 hours per night, yet maintain an alert and refreshed state throughout the day by taking frequent naps. The regular practice of napping was shared by the likes of Albert Einstein, Sir Isaac Newton, Nikola Tesla, Leonardo da Vinci, Benjamin Franklin, to name just a few. All of these high achievers extolled the virtues of regular napping. Einstein went as far as saying that his practice of napping was essential to his work, stoking the creative and scientific juices.

According to the science, sleeping on the job isn’t such a bad thing.