Each program is tailored to individual needs and requests, so we can cover a wide range of topics. Here are a few of the most common themes discussed during our sessions:
If you have questions beyond these subjects, we want to know. Our clinicians have a wealth of clinical experience and want to hear what is most important to you.
None. If you are interested in a certain dietary protocol such as Intermittent Fasting or the Ketogenic diet we can work together to implement this safely and sustainably into your daily routine. However, most of our clients don’t choose to follow a diet, they choose to find ways of eating that feel comfortable, reduce hunger, and support them in meeting their health goals.
No! We will never ask you to buy any special foods or supplements. You may want to update your shopping list after some of our discussions but your food choices will always be up to you.
Ozempic and saxenda are GLP-1 analogues. They mimic the body’s own hormone, glucagon-like peptide 1 which is produced by our intestines when there is food in our stomachs.
We’ve been using GLP-1 analogues in the treatment of type 2 diabetes since the early 2000s. In patients with diabetes ,these medications help them produce and utilize insulin more efficiently. We’ve been GLP-1analogues for slightly less time in the treatment of obesity but we know that when these medications bind to receptor cells in the brain, they can influence the appetite control centre and people typically experience decreased hunger, decreased cravings, and a more rapid feeling of fullness.
Cost will vary depending on if you have coverage under your private health insurance and what pharmacy is dispensing the medication, but assuming you don’t have any type of coverage you should expect to pay between $250-$350/month.
As with any chronic condition treated with medication, if the medication is stopped there’s a very strong likelihood that the condition it was treating will recur. While some patients may affect changes to their lives that allow them to either decrease these medications’ dosages or stop them altogether, the expectation should be that they will be needed on a long term basis.
The primary side effects with GLP1 analogues tend to be gastrointestinal. Symptoms may include constipation, diarrhea, heartburn, and nausea.. The most common side effect is nausea. The good news is that these side effects are either easily managed or dissipate over time. The primary side effect leading to the cessation of these medications is persistent nausea but this only happens in about 2% of patients.
Yes. Think of these medications as amplifiers. Just as with a stereo system, if you have a great amplifier with a strong signal you’ll have great sound coming out of your speakers. But even with a great amplifier, if the signal is weak or choppy, the sound will be poor. What these drugs amplify are the body’s own fullness queues and so diets organized to maximize fullness will see these drugs work more effectively.
Currently these medications are self-administered at home by way of a needle thinner than a human hair and only 4mm long.
As noted, they have been used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes since the early 2000s so there is unlikely to be any surprising unknown risks. As far as risk goes, there are reported rare risks of pancreatitis and a slowing of stomach emptying. As far as long-term benefits go, these medications, consequent to their impact on weight, help to reduce the burden of many weight responsive medical conditions including diabetes, high blood pressure, and sleep apnea as well as reducing the mechanical load bearing on painful joints. These drugs are currently being investigated for their ability to reduce the risk of heart disease, kidney disease and dementia as they appear to be helpful with all three. We also know from patients who have had bariatric surgery that cancer risk lowers with sustained weight loss for some of our most common cancers including breast, colon, and uterine cancer.
Yes, people who have a history of medullary thyroid cancer, people trying to conceive a child, and people who are breast feeding.
Yes, as with any medication, how a person responds is unique. Meaning if you try thesemedications and don’t find them to be effective, you’ll stop them. Similarly,if you try these medications and develop side effects that don’t go away overtime, you’ll stop them. The only way you would continue with these (or any)medications would be if you decide that they were effective and withouttroublesome side effects.
We have hundreds of clients who get their prescription through their family doctor. We offer our prescribers to those who are either unable to access a family doctor or who, despite your meeting medical criteria for their use, are not willing to prescribe anti-obesity medications.
If you are interested in learning more about Constant Health check out our blog, social media, and Youtube channel:
Of course you can also email us, info@constanthealth.ca, and we'll be happy to answer any of your questions.
Dietitians translate the science of nutrition into real life and work with you to uncover the amazing benefits that food has to offer. Dietitians are registered professionals and hold a protected title, this means they only work with evidence based information. Dietitians will help guide you through the sea of myths and polarized advice to discover how your diet can really affect you. Rather than fitting yourself into a pre-made rigid diet, they will help you to create a tailor made, flexible approach that is designed specifically for you. This means they consider your health, your schedule and your preferences to address your own challenges.
Our teams’ knowledge doesn’t stop at nutrition; Constant Health dietitians receive ongoing training from our Director of Clinical Product and Behavioral Science, Dr. Segal, C.Psych to utilize principles of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and behaviour change science to not only guide you through information, but to discover sustainable ways to implement change, navigate roadblocks, form and most importantly maintain new habits.
Click here if you want to learn more about what dietitians do.
No, the choice will be yours! Weight is just one more data point that can help us understand if we are headed in the direction you want to go. Scales measure the gravitational pull of the earth at a given moment in time - nothing else. The number on the scale has no relationship to what type of person you are, your health or your own self worth. We appreciate that for some people stepping on the scale can have an adverse reaction to their motivation, mood or confidence. That is why we also focus on other non-scale measures like strength, stamina, consistency, health metrics, or simply how your pants are fitting!
This is a bit of a long one, so we made a video for you. See intro to food tracking for more information.
Constant Health is the only program of its kind in Canada. Our service was designed with equal focus on both behavioural and medical science to support you in forming long lasting behaviours and habits that help lead you to your health and lifestyle goals. Each person who joins our program has a unique journey customized to their needs and diet preferences.
You will receive over 5 hours of direct support from our team of registered dietitians trained in both nutrition science and behaviour change. Our clinicians specialize in supporting clients with weight loss and chronic disease management.
Our technology is designed to be a tool that can be customized to each user's needs and diet preferences that not only supports your journey between appointments, but allows us to have interactive sessions in which we can review data specific to you and develop strategies that are designed to help you on your journey.
At Constant Health you're always in the driver's seat while we're in the passenger's seat to help guide you! We connect directly through your smartphone or tablet. During your appointments we will always set an agenda, this may sound a little formal but it ensures that we are always focusing on topics or issues that are at the top of your priority list and most relevant to you. We will review what’s working well and what might be more challenging and create experiments designed to identify new helpful strategies and support you in building new habits.
If you want to focus on a certain topic let us know and we can review the evidence together and discover ways to translate the science to real life!
No, your food choices will always be your own! Many may aim for weight maintenance while on holiday to allow for more flexibility while still keeping some structure to maintain or develop new habits. Others plan to approach vacations differently. Holidays and celebrations will always be part of life and part of our job is to help teach you strategies to ensure that you still enjoy yourself.
Great question! The answer will vary between each client. The very minimum time required to undertake this program is ~6 hours to attend appointments;however, we know it is almost impossible to form long lasting habits in 6 hours! If you are hoping to discover lifestyle changes and health habits that support you to make lasting changes we suggest being able to dedicate at least 30 minutes each day throughout the program.
We would love to keep working with you! We hope, just like you wouldn’t stop brushing your teeth after you see the dentist, that you continue to practice the skills you’ve started to develop while participating in our program. Behaviour change is about progress, not perfection; we’ve designed our follow-up program, Relapse Prevention, to make sure that you continue to progress.
Relapse Prevention is designed to offer you as much support as you need, when you need it. Whether you want to work on your own to set experiments, continue to work regularly with your dietitian to both practice and learn new skills, or to have a quick check in when you need a booster session; we’ve got a model that will fit your needs.
No we don’t use meal plans, but this is a question we get asked a lot!
We don’t believe in handing out food plans for several reasons:
Many of our clients are looking for inspiration; with that in mind we designed our recipes feature to support menu planning for individuals or even large families! Here you will be able to filter our extensive recipe library to find meals and snacks that meet your own likes and preferences, save your favourites, add your own family favourites, and connect with the Constant Health community for recipe tips and tricks! We think this is a much better option than a meal plan - we hope you agree!
