Dr Beecher’s January 2012 Monthly Chiropractic Newsletter

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“Most of the change we think we see in life is due to truths being in and out of favor” ~ Robert Frost

 

 

Stress and anxiety can be extremely harmful to your health…

Got Lingering Holiday Stress?

Learn simple ways to let it go, feel better and maybe even look younger!!!

 

Also in this newsletter:

• Why George Clooney considered suicide (and why you should never give up hope).
• European Union bans claim that water can prevent dehydration…WHAT?
• Research: Meditation improves immune system and reduces blood pressure.
• Overweight people eat fewer meals than non-overweight people.

 

Fighting For His Dream:  After 26 long years in prison for a crime he did not commit, Dewey Bozella makes his professional boxing debut at age 52. You don’t want to miss this incredible story.

Houston – The holiday season is one of the most stressful times of the year.  Traveling, family visits, shopping, money concerns, etc. can all cause anxiety that is extremely unhealthy.

Increased anxiety and stress can weaken your immune system, allowing you to get sick with illnesses such as the common cold or flu. Who wants to be sick over the holidays, or any time, for that matter?

The accumulation of holiday stress and anxiety can last for months after the season is over.

High levels of stress can also cause a wide variety of aches and pains.  Some experts believe that stress and anxiety is one of the major causes of back pain.  There are even treatments for back pain based around stress and anxiety reduction.

Because high levels of stress and anxiety cause your body to produce very damaging chemicals, many harmful health conditions are possible (even if solid scientific evidence has not discovered the definitive link… YET).

Signs And Symptoms You Are Stressed Out

 

If you are having difficulty sleeping, feel tired (even when you first wake up and no matter how much you sleep) or are easily aggravated, then there is a good chance stress and anxiety are the culprits.  You may even gain weight from stress and anxiety.

One of the best ways to relieve stress and anxiety is through breathing. Controlled breathing is the simplest and most practiced relaxation technique for anxiety. It involves deep and slow breathing that helps the diaphragm expand and contract steadily, which in turn helps you control your breathing process. Take a deep breath, hold it for a few seconds, and breathe out hardily. Focus on expanding and contracting the stomach rather than the chest. Repeating this empowers one to control the oxygen intake in the body, divert the stress reaction, and regulate the parasympathetic nerves.

 

Meditation Becoming Mainstream

 

Meditation is another great way to relieve stress and anxiety. New research suggests that mindfulness meditation can have benefits for health and performance, including improved immune function, reduced blood pressure and enhanced cognitive function.

The study, published in the latest issue of the journal Perspectives on Psychological Science, draws on existing scientific literature to attempt to explain the positive effects.

The author of the study, Britta Hazel of Justus Liebig University and Harvard Medical School, pointed out that mindful meditation is not a vague cure-all.

According to the November 22, 2011 issue of The Telegraph: Effective mindfulness meditation requires training and practice and it has distinct measurable effects on our subjective experiences, our behavior, and our brain function.

Dr. Hazel said: “We hope that further research on this topic will enable a much broader spectrum of individuals to utilize mindfulness meditation as a versatile tool to facilitate change both in psychotherapy and in everyday life.”

 

Here’s Something For You If You

Put On A Few Pounds Over The Holiday Season…

 

According to Reuters, new research shows that normal weight adults ate more often than overweight people.  This includes people who lost weight and kept it off.

From Reuters: Researchers following about 250 people for a year found that overweight individuals ate fewer snacks in addition to meals than people in the normal body weight range, but the overweight still took in more calories and they were less active over the course of the day.

“Most of the research has shown that people who eat more frequently have a lower weight,” said lead researcher Jessica Bachman, Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics at Marywood University in Scranton, Pennsylvania. “But no one knows why.”

Bachman also said, “It appears that being extremely physically active and eating more often helps them keep the weight off… Most commonly, they were walking at least 60 minutes a day 7 days a week.”

It is theorized frequent snacking keeps people from going into an extreme hunger mode.  In other words, when you eat frequently, it keeps you from getting too hungry.  When you don’t snack – you tend to eat a lot more when you eventually eat.

No matter what the “why it works” is – eating multiple small meals throughout the day seems to work much better than a few big meals.

 

George Clooney Considered Suicide?

 

That’s right.  According to news reports. George said he contemplated suicide when he was struggling to cope with back pain while filming the movie Syriana in 2005.

He was doing his own stunts and ended up in the hospital.  He told Rolling Stone magazine, “I was at a point where I thought, I can’t exist like this. I can’t actually live.

 “I was lying in a hospital bed with an IV (intravenous drip) in my arm, unable to move, having these headaches where it feels like you’re having a stroke, and, for a short three-week period, I started to think, I may have to do something drastic about this.

“You start to think in terms of, you don’t want to leave a mess, so go in the garage, go in the car, and start the engine. It seems like the nicest way to do it.”

There is no doubt – back pain can be crippling. But, like most things, there is almost always a light at the end of the tunnel.  Seeking proper treatment for back pain and thinking positively is the answer.

 

And 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 Have Been Changed To Protect Privacy)

 

 

He Never Lost Sight Of His Dream…

Even After 26 Years In Prison For A Crime He Didn’t Commit

 

The year was 1977. 92 year old Emma Crapser came home from playing bingo and was brutally murdered in her apartment located in Poughkeepsie, New York.

That same year, Dewey Bozella was 18 years old, and a suspect with a troubled past.

When he was 9 years old, Dewey saw his father batter his pregnant mother. His mother died from the beating, and his father ran away and never came back. Dewey and his nine siblings grew up in a series of foster homes.

One of his older brothers had a knife stabbed through his heart and out his back. Another brother would be shot dead. A third would die of AIDS. As a teen, Dewey had a reputation for fighting, getting high and committing petty crimes. He’ll be the first to admit he was no saint.

There was no physical evidence linking Dewey to Emma Crapser’s murder but Dewey was arrested. The case against him was dropped for lack of evidence.  Dewey used this as a wake-up call.  He enrolled in community college and started working with the mentally challenged.

Six years later, in 1983, Dewey was arrested again in relation to Emma Crapser’s death. This time he was charged with the murder.  Prosecutors took the word of two inmates who said Dewey did it so they could cut a deal.  One of their brothers also lied to help out his family member.  During the trial, Dewey was advised by his attorney not to take the stand.  His attorney said the prosecution had no case and he didn’t want Dewey’s past brought up in an attempt to sway the jury.

But, on the word of convicted felons who had cut a deal with the prosecution, the jury came back with a guilty verdict.  Dewey went to Sing Sing a bitter man.  He started boxing while in prison and became the light heavyweight champion of the prison.

In 1990, the brother of the inmate came forward and admitted he lied.  Dewey was retried. The District Attorney came to Dewey’s attorney and offered a deal.  He said if Dewey would take the stand and admit he did it, he could walk out a free man.  Out of pride and the truth, Dewey stood by his principles and would not lie and say he did it.

The jury sentenced him to 20 years to life.

While in prison, Dewey continued to box and also earned a bachelor’s degree from Mercy College. Then, he earned a master’s degree from New York Theological Seminary.  He got married too.

Then, the legal firm of Wilmer Hale took his case pro bono. The lawyers tracked down the arresting officer, who had since retired. After 22 years on the job, the officer took home only one file: the case of Dewey Rader Bozella. Something just didn’t smell right about it.

The lawyers quickly found that evidence had been withheld during the trials. They put in nearly a million dollars worth of work and found evidence that proved Dewey had nothing to do with the murder and that another suspect had confessed to the crime.

In 2009, 26 years after first being sent to Sing Sing, the chains were taken off Dewey and he was set free. He was 50 years old.  Two years later, at age 52, Dewey became the oldest man to compete in an officially sanctioned professional boxing match.

Dewey won that fight against his 30-year-old opponent. When his hand was raised, so was his soul.  Dewey had accomplished a dream and did so against the worst possible odds.

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 feel great and look younger!  Don’t be a stranger.  You really can afford Chiropractic care! Don’t wait until you can no longer move!

Did You Know?…Water Doesn’t Prevent Dehydration?

 

Common sense tells you water prevents dehydration… right?

Well, not according to the European Union (EU).  As reported in the Telegraph, “EU officials concluded that, following a three-year investigation, there was no evidence to prove the previously undisputed fact. Producers of bottled water are now forbidden by law from making the claim and will face a two-year jail sentence if they defy the verdict, which comes into force in the UK next month.”

            WOW!  Two years in jail for saying water can prevent dehydration!!! Critics are up in arms, saying the law defies both science and common sense.

Conservative MEP Roger Helmer said: “This is stupidity writ large… The euro is burning, the EU is falling apart and yet here they are: highly-paid, highly-pensioned officials worrying about the obvious qualities of water and trying to deny us the right to say what is patently true… If ever there were an episode which demonstrates the folly of the great European project, then this is it.” 

The Telegraph reported, “NHS health guidelines state clearly that drinking water helps avoid dehydration, and that Britons should drink at least 1.2 liters per day.  The Department for Health disputed the wisdom of the new law. A spokesman said: ‘Of course water hydrates. While we support the EU in preventing false claims about products, we need to exercise common sense as far as possible.’”  This issue probably needs no further comment. J

 

 

Tip Of The Month – An Apple A Day?

 

 

Studies are constantly proving that what you eat can be as powerful and more potent than a prescribed drug. Recently, it was proven that the presence of fresh apples in your diet could improve your memory and sustain brain health. Apples are becoming increasingly associated with brain health after more recent studies have proven the effect of antioxidants and flavonoids present in apples on reducing brain-cell inflammation and oxidation that naturally occurs due to the presence of free radicals.

The consumption of as much as two apples a day heightens levels of acetylcholine, a specific neurotransmitter that greatly influences brain signals responsible for movement and sensory perception.

Not only that, but regular consumption as such was discovered to diminish accumulations of toxins in the brain, particularly one type of toxin called beta-amyloid, which is thought to be one of the main culprits that cause Alzheimer’s disease.

While apples are now being proven to aid, halt, and reverse Alzheimer’s disease, enhance cognitive functions, prevent memory loss and help in other brain-related matters, there are still a multitude of studies being vigorously conducted to prove that apples are the perfect food for diabetics, patients with heart disease, cholesterol, obesity, and constipation.

While the old proverb said one apple a day was enough, studies suggest increasing that dosage to two apples is a good idea for optimum health benefits.

 

 

Remember, we’re always here to help your body heal

and maintain the pain free body you deserve.

 

 

This information is solely advisory, and 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 healthcare professional who is familiar with your updated medical history. We cannot be held responsible for actions you may take without a thorough exam or appropriate referral. If you have any further concerns or questions, please let us know at 281-286-1300 or BeecherChiropractic.com.