A new approach to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) may work wonders for individuals suffering from chronic pain. According to research reported in The Journal of Pain, a combination of Acceptance and Commitment therapy (ACT) and psychological flexibility may assist greatly in the healing process for these patients.

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is based on the psychological flexibility model, which includes a therapeutic process known as “self-as-context” (SAC)—a process that involves acting as an observer of one’s own psychological experiences.

“Psychological flexibility is the ability to be more aware, more focused on goals and more engaged. Another aspect of psychological flexibility pertinent to chronic pain, and supported by SAC, is called committed action, which involves goal-directed, flexible persistence,” said co-author Lance M. McCracken, Professor of Behavioral Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, Kings College London. “For pain management, ACT is an approach based on the psychological flexibility model and focuses on building effective patterns of behavior change rather than symptom reduction.”

For this study, 412 adults referred to a pain management center at Guy’s and St. Thomas’ Hospital in London completed measures of treatment processes, such as SAC and committed action, and outcomes, including pain-related interference, work and social adjustment, and depression before treatment, upon treatment completion and after nine months.

Ultimately, scores from all measures significantly improved after treatment and were maintained at a nine-month follow-up. The ACT-oriented treatment was associated with improved SAC as well as improved functioning. In turn, this was associated with changes in pain-related interference, work and social adjustment, and depression.

“Greater psychological flexibility is associated with less pain-related anxiety and avoidance, less depression, less physical and psycho-social disability and other measures of patient function,” said McCracken. “Based on studies of forms of CBT that did not include ACT, acceptance of pain, one component of psychological flexibility, may be a general mechanism by which CBT treatments achieve improvements in functioning, and more specific targeting of pain-related acceptance may lead to further improvement is CBT outcomes.”

A new study out of the University of Adelaide and the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI) notes that phthalates could be causing your male patients cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes, and high blood pressure.

Simply put, phthalates are found in everyday plastics like toys, medications, and other consumer products. What’s more, they can be found in certain foods—namely, those that have been processed and packaged.

This study looked at 1500 Australian men aged 35 and over. In 99.6 per cent of those examined, phthalates were present in urine samples.

“We found that the prevalence of cardiovascular disease, type-2 diabetes and high blood pressure increased among those men with higher total phthalate levels,” says senior author Associate Professor Zumin Shi, from the University of Adelaide’s Adelaide Medical School and the Freemasons Foundation Centre for Men’s Health, and a member of SAHMRI’s Nutrition & Metabolism theme.

“While we still don’t understand the exact reasons why phthalates are independently linked to disease, we do know the chemicals impact on the human endocrine system, which controls hormone release that regulate the body’s growth, metabolism, and sexual development and function. In addition to chronic diseases, higher phthalate levels were associated with increased levels of a range of inflammatory biomarkers in the body,” he adds.

What’s more, previous studies have shown that men who ate less fresh fruit and vegetables and more processed and packaged foods have higher levels of phthalates in their urine. As such, it is important to ensure that your clients are following a proper diet, as well as steering toward phthalate-free containers and medications.

Associate Professor Shi says that although the studies were conducted in men, the findings are also likely to be relevant to women.

Gilles Houde, the Canadian president and general manager of GNC, has announced his retirement from the company. After 35 years of work with GNC, Houde’s last day will take place on Friday, August 18.

At this time, John Castiglione will take over as GNC’s new general manager. Until then, Houde is working to ensure a smooth transitional process.
Gilles began his work with the retailer in 1982, operating out of the store’s Montreal office. Since that time, he has also worked for locations in South Carolina, Oregon, England, ultimately returning to his native location 16 years ago.
“GNC has been good to me and continues to do so,” Houde said in an email statement. “I will forever be grateful to GNC and the many colleagues I worked with inside and outside of GNC.”

According to Bloomberg, Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods may be spurning future partnerships—and business decisions—in the grocery sector.

Tim Steiner, CEO of Ocado Group Plc, a U.K.-based online grocer, notes that his company may now be interested in licensing technology to its U.S. counterpart. This, Steiner notes, is a result of Amazon’s Whole Foods deal, which has caused skeptical U.S. supermarket operators to reconsider the potential of the online market. In turn, U.S. grocers are flocking to take hold of Ocado’s e-commerce technologies.

Known as Ocado’s smart platform, the technology encompasses everything from grocery-picking robots to software that tracks delivery vans. With access to this technology, the aforementioned U.S. grocers would be able to increase their presence in the world of online grocery—a realm that analyst Marc Astrachan of Stifel Nicolaus & Co. projects could grow to 6 per cent over the next five years.

With this in mind, Canadian retailers must keep their e-commerce capabilities up-to-date. Investing in better technologies as well as branching out online could be the key to future success—especially when it comes to competing with Amazon.

Gowling WLG partner Lewis Retik has been named the recipient of the Direct Sellers Association (DSA)’s 2017 Distinguished Service Award.

The award was presented at the DSA Canada 2017 conference, which took place June 25-28 in Huntsville, Ont. It recognizes individuals for their significant contribution to the advancement of the DSA through participation and leadership on DSA committees, the DSA board, in the community or in public service. The award is not given out annually, which makes the accolade all the more notable.

This year, Retik received the prestigious award for being a dedicated champion of the direct selling industry. Through his legal practice, Retik advances the DSA members’ interests by advising them on Health Canada, Direct Sales, and Competition Bureau matters.

In 2016, Retik also received the DSA’s Partnership in Progress Award, which recognized his devotion to the direct selling industry and the extraordinary lengths to which he goes to ensure seamless maneuvering through the various entities that govern the industry and its products.

Retik is a partner in Gowling WLG’s Ottawa office and practises primarily in the areas of product regulatory and commercial law. He is also the leader of the firm’s Canadian Advertising & Product Regulatory Group and co-leader of its Food & Beverage Group. As part of his practice, he addresses regulatory compliance and commercial issues that pertain to direct selling, e-commerce, multi-level marketing, consumer protection and regulated products.

Retik interacts regularly with senior officials of government from departments and agencies such as Industry Canada, the Competition Bureau and Health Canada. He is listed in prestigious guides such as Best Lawyers in Canada and the Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, and is actively involved in a number of community-based initiatives and charitable organizations.

The DSA is an association of competitors who foster teamwork and who use their combined strength to ensure fairness in regulations and gain credibility and respect within government.

According to a new study out of the North American Menopause Society (NAMS), fennel is effective in the management of postmenopausal symptoms. Researchers found fennel to reduce hot flashes, sleeplessness, vaginal dryness, and anxiety—all without serious side effects.

Fennel has been found to contain phytoestrogens, or estrogen-like chemicals. For this reason, the NAMS decided to study its use for the treatment of menopausal symptoms.

The NAMS looked at 79 Iranian women, aged 45 to 60 years. Each participant was given soft capsules containing 100 mg of fennel twice daily for eight weeks. In the end, fennel was concluded to be a safe and effective treatment to reduce menopause symptoms without serious side effects.

The study is one of the first clinical studies to examine the benefits of fennel for managing menopause symptoms.

“This small pilot study found that, on the basis of a menopause-rating scale, twice-daily consumption of fennel as a phytoestrogen improved menopause symptoms compared with an unusual minimal effect of placebo,” says Dr. JoAnn Pinkerton, executive director of NAMS. “A larger, longer, randomized study is still needed to help determine its long-term benefits and side effect profile.”

Last month, an editorial in the Canadian Medical Association Journal called for the federal government to regulate natural health products (NHPs), citing them as doing “more harm than good” for patients. Members of the natural health industry have contested this claim, hoping to raise public awareness about the benefits of natural remedies.

The aforementioned editorial states, “The double standard perpetuated by both regulators and retailers that enables the deception of unsuspecting Canadians must end … Alternative medicines with claims based on alternative facts do not deserve an alternative, easy regulatory road to market.”

However, Shawn O’Reilly, executive director of the Canadian Association of Naturopathic Doctors (CAND), notes that the editorial doesn’t properly discuss the “robust” standards that NHPs must undergo before being sold to the public.

What’s more, pharmacist Mike Hannalah adds that he sells no NHPs without a natural product number (NPN) from Health Canada.
“To me, it’s the same kind of safety measures,” Hannalah told the CBC. “I do feel comfortable as a practitioner, as a pharmacist, to dispense those natural health products that meet those requirements.”

With organizations, researchers, and wrongly informed individuals making detrimental statements about the natural health product industry, it is absolutely essential for members of the industry to educate the public. Holding in-store education sessions, speaking to customers, and properly addressing clients are excellent ways to reach out to—and inform—Canadians about the safety of our practice.

Walgreens Boots Alliance has scrapped its two-year wooing of Rite Aid Stores Inc, instead opting to buy about half the chain’s stores in a new $5.157 billion deal. This move comes as a result of scrutiny by federal antitrust regulators.

The new deal covers 2,186 stores, three distribution centres, and inventory from Rite Aid, says the company. It also replaces a previous merger agreement with Rite Aid, which began in October of 2015. Valued at $9.4 billion, the original deal was amended earlier in 2017 to accommodate more divestitures.

The October 2015 deal also included another agreement with Fred’s Inc., which included the acquisition of nearly 1,000 Rite Aid stores. This transaction has also been cancelled.

“This new transaction extends our growth strategy and offers additional operational and financial benefits,” notes Stefano Pessina, CEO of Walgreens. “It will allow us to expand and optimize our retail pharmacy network in key markets in the U.S., including the Northeast, and provide customers and patients with greater access to convenient, affordable care. We believe this new transaction addresses competitive concerns previously raised with respect to the prior transaction and will streamline and simplify the transition for customers, team members and other stakeholders.”

Walgreens is set to begin the acquisition of these new assets over a period of approximately six months. It also plans to eventually convert the new stores to the Walgreens brand. Walgreens has also agreed to pay Rite Aid a $325 million cash termination fee.

“While we believe that pursuing the merger with WBA was the right thing to do for our investors and customers, this new agreement provides a clear path forward and positions Rite Aid as a strong, independent, multi-regional drugstore chain and pharmacy benefits manager with a compelling footprint in key markets,” says Rite Aid CEO John Standley. “The transaction offers clear solutions to assist us in addressing our pharmacy margin challenges and allows us to significantly reduce debt, resulting in a strong balance sheet and improved financial flexibility moving forward.”

Last month, the Executive Officer of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, purchased the Whole Foods Market brand for $13.7 billion. The announcement naturally generated concerns about the future of grocery shopping, e-commerce, and methods of proper food delivery. However the latest concern surrounds Bezos’ challenge to maintain the organic food industry—a business that’s growing at a considerably high rate.

According to the Organic Trade Association, 5 per cent of food sales in the US are organic, which estimates to $47 billion in revenue. As the industry continues to grow, the future of organic food sales is estimated to double in the next few years—especially if Amazon offers lower prices than in-store grocery markets. As a result, Bezos is trying to acquire as much of the US farming market as possible to keep up with the predicted demand, a strategy that hasn’t been expanded despite the popularity of the industry.

While the demand for organic food is high, farms have relatively kept their size due to the government’s regulations concerning organic farming. For farmers who wish to run and produce fruits and vegetables on organic soil, the government requests a three-year farming plan to ensure that soil levels meet nutrient standards, crops are properly rotated, pest management and erosion are stable, and sanitation compliance is in effect. A quick transition to organic farming may cause financial setbacks during its early stages as it differs from non-organic farming management. Despite rigorous standards and many years of planning, Maggie Monast, a sustainable sourcing expert at the Environmental Defense fund, suggests that farmers might be willing to transition to organic farming with the escalating demand.

Generally the US imports their organic fruits and vegetables from overseas, however questions of fraudulent organic claims are a regular concern that could be reduced with homegrown farming. Although the focus is on American farmers and their soils, Canadian support might offer create an opportunity to produce more organic foods that meet Amazon’s demand while expanding the Canadian job market. According to an Agriculture report released by Statistics Canada in May 2012, the number of farms in Canada decreased but the number of organic farms increased across the country.

Bezos might face challenges in growing the organic landscape, but the industry looks promising across borders.