Dr Beecher’s October 2014 Monthly Chiropractic Newsletter
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“The universal brotherhood of man is our most precious possession, what there is of it.” ~ Mark Twain
New Hope for People with
Spinal Cord Injuries and Dental Problems…
New Studies Show Stem
Cell Treatments May
Grow Back Damaged Nerves and Maybe Even Teeth!
Also this month:
- STUDY: Popular pain medication commonly recommended for back pain works no better than a placebo!
- Another Study Shows the Negative Effects of Marijuana Use on Teens’ Brains: Study shows teenagers and young adults using Marijuana just once a week have reduced cognitive skills compared with non-users.
- Natural Light in the Office May Benefit Health: Research shows the amount of light employees get at work affects sleep, mood, alertness, and metabolism.
- Who Would Kick a Paralyzed Man Out of His Wheelchair and Steal His Surf Boards? The amazing part is what happened next…
Houston – One thing is for sure, scientific discoveries and advancements have dramatically changed our lives. Not too long ago (about 20 years), only a few people owned a cell phone. Now, imagine leaving your house without one — you would probably have a panic attack!
Heck, they are not even “cell phones” any more. They are smart devices that are much more powerful than the computers we used to use at home just a few years back.
But, there are two sides to the coin. Some say this “progress” is not all good and many people are addicted to their devices and are becoming anti-social. One article states that a majority of people polled liked their fake Facebook life better than their real one. Is Facebook the problem, or the people using it?
Things that have the power for good can also be used for bad. This is not a judgment on the technology, just on how it is used.
For example, if there was technology available that could grow back the spinal cord of a paralyzed person, would that be a good thing?
Or, how about this: If the next time you have a bad tooth, instead of doing a root canal or pulling it out, what if your dentist could actually re-grow a replacement using your own tissue?
Would You Be Interested?
New research indicates that both may be a possibility in the not too distant future.
First, the spinal cord study: Scientists at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Veteran’s Affairs, San Diego Healthcare System report that: “Neurons derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) and grafted into rats after a spinal cord injury produced cells with tens of thousands of axons extending virtually the entire length of the animals’ central nervous system.”
According to the scientists, the human iPSC-derived axions traveled through the white matter of the injury sites and often into the gray matter to form synapses (connections) with the rat neurons. The rat axons did the same thing with human iPSC grafts.
Senior author Mark Tuszynski, MD, PhD, Professor of Neurosciences and Director of the UC San Diego Center for Neural Repair, writes, “These findings indicate that intrinsic neuronal mechanisms readily overcome the barriers created by a spinal cord injury to extend many axons over very long distances, and that these capabilities persist even in neurons reprogrammed from very aged human cells.”
In other studies, grafted stem cells have formed new functional circuits across an injury site. Animals treated this way have experienced some restored movement in the affected limbs.
While There is Potential for Good,
There is Also Potential for Harm…
Dr. Tuszynski warns about moving this research to human therapy too quickly: “The enormous outgrowth of axons to many regions of the spinal cord and even deeply into the brain raises questions of possible harmful side effects if axons are mis-targeted. We also need to learn if the new connections formed by axons are stable over time, and if implanted human neural stem cells are maturing on a human time frame – months to years – or more rapidly. If maturity is reached on a human time frame, it could take months to years to observe functional benefits or problems in human clinical trials.”
Tuszynski states that 95% of human clinical trials fail, so they are trying to do as much as possible to identify the best way to forge ahead with complete information to give themselves the best possible chance at success with human subjects. If they do not take their time and do it right, their work will probably just result in another failure.
Can Stem Cells Re-Grow Teeth?
Maybe. A new study published in Science Transitional Medicine claims that a lower-powered laser can trigger stem cells in teeth to form dentin.
Dentin is the yellowish tissue that makes up the bulk of teeth. It is harder than bone but softer than enamel.
Secondary dentin, a less well-organized form of tubular dentin, is produced throughout life as a patching material where cavities have begun to form, where the overlying enamel has been worn away, and within the pulp chamber as part of the aging process.
Scientists have figured out that a blast of laser light induces some chemically active molecules to activate a growth factor that stimulates dentin growth.
Previous studies have regenerated parts of a tooth in the laboratory, but the hopes are this laser procedure will do it right in a patient’s mouth.
In this study, researchers said the low-powered laser (LPL) treatment demonstrated significant increase in dentin regeneration in rat teeth.
Will it Work with Human Teeth?
It may seem like a short bridge to cross between rat teeth and human teeth, but this may not be the case.
Rat teeth have evolved to take more physical abuse and thus may have more natural regenerative abilities than human teeth.
In fact, rodents have two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws, which must be kept short by gnawing.
More studies need to be done before it will be known if this LPL treatment can replace some dental treatments, so don’t put off that visit to the dentist and stop taking care of your teeth just yet.
Advancements in science seem to be coming every day, but don’t gamble with your smile!
Study: Marijuana Use
Negatively Affects Teens Brains
According to psychologists discussing public health implications of marijuana legalization at the American Psychological Association’s 122nd Annual Convention, frequent marijuana use can have a significant negative effect on the brains of teenagers and young adults, including cognitive decline, poor attention and memory, and decreased IQ. “It needs to be emphasized that regular cannabis use, which we consider once a week, is not safe and may result in addiction and neurocognitive damage, especially in youth,” adds Krista Lisdahl, PhD, Director of the Brain Imaging and Neuropsychology Lab at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Don’t forget, if you ever have any questions or concerns about your health, talk to us. Contact us with your questions. We’re here to help and don’t enjoy anything more than participating in providing you natural pain relief.
Inspirational Story Of The Month
(Names And Details May Have Been Changed To Protect Privacy)
Who Would Kick a Paralyzed Man Out of
His Wheelchair and Steal His Surf Boards?
The Amazing Part is What Happened Next…
We like to think we live in a world filled with good, caring people. Yet, each day the cable news channels are filled with the worst of what society has to offer. Does this mean most people are mean, nasty murderers and criminals? No, it does not. It simply means that’s what gets ratings and makes the television networks money.
That’s why watching the news can make even the happiest person feel depressed in no time. But every now and then, the networks give us a gift and show an amazing story – an uplifting tale that makes up for all the negativity.
This is one of those stories, but it doesn’t start out that way…
In fact, it starts by showing the worst side of humanity.
In 2007, a man named Randy Abbott went in for a simple surgery, a micro lumbar discectomy, and his life changed forever.
During the procedure, there were complications and the surgeon partially cut his spinal cord, paralyzing Randy from the waist down. The damage also caused arachnodidise, dystonia, reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome (RSD), and a constant headache that will never go away.
Randy spent two and a half years in the hospital and underwent several additional surgeries. Over and over, his doctors told him all the things he would never be able to do. Randy told them this was not the life he had worked so hard for and this was not the life he wanted. He had big plans and dreams and living the rest of his life in a wheelchair was not one of them.
He thought about calling it quits. But, then he said he heard a voice in his head say, “If you want to throw in the towel, I understand. It’s OK. I understand that you think your life is over and nothing good can come out of it. But before you throw it away, think about something. At this moment, you are drowning in fear and uncertainty. If you get back to living in the moment, have faith, and stop looking at everything as being problems without answers, you are going to have a great life.”
Right then and there, Randy decided to lead a great life. The first thing he did was forgive the surgeon who injured his spinal cord, then he told his doctors that he was taking charge of his medical care. They were giving him limitations based on statistics. Well, he was not a statistic and was not going to be treated like one.
By 2012, Randy was doing a lot of things his doctors told him he could not. One of those things was surfing, which was made possible when his friends designed and made him a special wheelchair and surfboards. He surfs three to four days a week and also teaches disabled kids how to surf. Randy grew up surfing and being able to surf again was amazing.
Then the worst of humanity reared its ugly head…
In July this year, Randy returned to his vehicle and found two men cutting his surf boards off the roof of his car to steal them. Randy, in his wheelchair, yelled, “Hey, I’m paralyzed. Don’t steal my surfboards!” The two men attacked him, knocked him to the ground, and ran off with his three surf boards.
Professional surfer Rob Machado tweeted about it, and the story went viral. Randy said he got over 500 text messages of support from people all over the world whom he did not even know. They told him not to worry about his surf boards because they are going to get him new ones. Quickly, two out of the three stolen boards were recovered. But they were heavily damaged. Local surfer Christopher Tomlin heard what happened and gave Randy three of his own boards while two new ones were being made.
The real news story wasn’t that two thugs robbed a guy in a wheelchair. No, the real story here is Randy’s drive to never let his disability place limits on his dreams and the outpouring of support he received from complete strangers who were moved by his story. Maybe sometimes watching the news isn’t such a bad thing. J
We love helping our patients and their friends and relatives through their tough times and
getting them feeling better! We are here to help you stay feeling better and looking younger!
Don’t be a stranger. You really can afford Chiropractic care! Don’t wait until you can no longer move!
Did You Know?…
Some Facts About Water Fluoridation…
Most people living in developed nations do not fluoridate their water. For example, in Western Europe only 3% of the population consumes fluoridated water. While 25 countries have water fluoridation programs, in 11 of these countries, less than 20% of the population consumes fluoridated water: Argentina (19%), Guatemala (13%), Panama (15%), Papa New Guinea (6%), Peru (2%), Serbia (3%), Spain (11%), South Korea (6%), the United Kingdom (11%), and Vietnam (4%).
There are only 11 countries where more than half of the population drinks fluoridated water: Australia (80%), Brunei (95%); Chile (70%), Guyana (62%), Hong Kong (100%), the Irish Republic (73%), Israel (70%), Malaysia (75%), New Zealand (62%), Singapore (100%), and the United States (64%).
In total, 377,655,000 million people worldwide drink artificially fluoridated water, that’s about 5% of the world’s population. Interestingly enough, there is no difference in tooth decay between the Western nations that fluoridate their water and those that do not.
Tip Of The Month
Popular Pain Medication No Better Than a Placebo…
You may find this shocking, especially if you take Tylenol — also known as acetaminophen or paracetamol — in an effort to relieve your back pain. A new study in The Lancet (July 24, 2014) begins with, “Regular paracetamol is the recommended first-line analgesic for acute low-back pain; however, no high-quality evidence supports this recommendation. We aimed to assess the efficacy of paracetamol taken regularly or as-needed to improve time for recovery from pain, compared with placebo in patients with low-back pain.”
Wow. It’s 2014 and acetaminophen is often the first thing recommended for low-back pain, and there is no scientific evidence it helps.
What did the study discover? Using data from 235 primary care centers in Australia collected between 2009 and 2013, the researchers write, “Our findings suggest that regular or as-needed dosing with paracetamol does not affect recovery time compared with placebo in low-back pain, and question the universal endorsement of paracetamol in this patient group.”
Natural Light in the Office May Benefit Health…
Many people are practically scared to death of sun exposure because of the risk of skin cancer. Some “experts” even recommend wearing protective clothing or sunscreen whenever you may be exposed to sunlight. However, this may not be the best advice because sunlight is essential to our health. Sunlight is how we humans produce vitamin D, and studies suggest it has other beneficial effects as well.
Now, a study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine (June 2014) shows that even getting natural sunlight through a window can be beneficial. The study conducted by a team of scientists from Northwestern Medicine and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign reports that office workers with more light exposure at the office had longer sleep duration, better sleep quality, more physical activity, and a better quality of life compared with office workers with less sun light exposure in their workplace.
According to the lead author of the study Dr. Phyllis Zee, “There is increasing evidence that exposure to light during the day, particularly in the morning, is beneficial to your health via its effects on mood, alertness, and metabolism.” Employees with windows in the workplace received 173 percent more white light exposure during work hours and slept an average of 46 minutes more per night than employees who did not have the natural light exposure at their workstations.
Workers in offices with windows also tended to be more physically active than those without window in their offices. Workers without windows reported poorer scores on quality of life measures related to physical problems and vitality, as well as poorer outcomes on measures of overall sleep quality and sleep disturbances. The researchers emphasize the importance of architects using this information in the planning of new buildings. They add that workstations should be within 20-25 feet (~6-8 meters) of windows, because daylight from side windows almost vanishes after that distance.
Remember, we’re always here to help your body heal
and maintain the pain free body you deserve.
This information should not be substituted for medical or chiropractic advice. Any and all health care concerns, decisions, and actions must be done through the advice and counsel of a health care professional who is familiar with your updated medical history.
