Dr. Beecher’s June 6th, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
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WEEKLY HEALTH NEWS UPDATE Week of Monday, June 6th ,2011 Mental Attitude: Shorter Hours Please. If your workday averages 11 or more hours, you probably earn more than your 8-hour a day colleagues, but your risk of developing heart disease will be 67% higher! Researchers believe doctors should include data on a patient’s working hours when listing risk factors for heart disease (smoking, total body weight, diabetes and blood pressure). Annals of Internal Medicine, April 2011 Health Alert: Adverse Drug Reports Swell! In a new study of adverse events linked to medications-compiled by the FDA since 1969, researchers at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy revealed only 55% have been reported to the agency in the past decade! According to the FDA’s website, the agency’s Adverse Event Reporting System (AERS) is “designed to support the FDA’s post-marketing safety surveillance program for all approved drug and therapeutic biologic products. The FDA uses AERS to monitor for new adverse events and medication errors that might occur with these marketed products.” In the past decade, 2.2 million events reported to AERS represented a 1.65-fold increase from the prior decade. Archives of Internal Medicine, April 2011 Diet: Divide Your Plate! When putting food on your plate, fill half of it with veggies or salad (but watch out for fatty dressings). One-quarter of the plate should have lean protein, such as fish, chicken or beef that’s been grilled, baked or poached. The last quarter of the plate should be a healthy starch — but don’t load it up with butter or oil. Family Features, April 2011 Exercise: Have Some Standards! Adults who adhered to the US Department of Health and Human Services’ 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines reduced their mortality risks. To meet the guidelines, do moderate-intensity aerobic exercise at least 150 minutes per week or vigorous-intensity aerobic exercise at least 75 minutes per week and perform strengthening exercises at least twice a week. Adults who met the guidelines had lower risks of dying by 27% among those without health conditions and 50% less in those with an illness. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, May 2011 Chiropractic: Some Nerve! Growing evidence suggests that immune function is regulated, in part, by the sympathetic nervous system. Simply put: the nervous system has a direct effect on the immune system due to the nerve supply to the important immune system organs. Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, 1974 Wellness/Prevention: Shedding Skin Helps? The flakes of skin we shed (at the rate of 500 million cells a day) actually reduce indoor air pollution. The flakes contain squalene, a skin oil that reduces indoor ozone levels roughly 2-15%. American Chemical Society, May 2011 Quote: “I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me… All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.” ~ Jackie Robinson This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s May 30th, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
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WEEKLY HEALTH NEWS UPDATE Week of Monday, May 30th ,2011 Mental Attitude: Smile And Mean It! Customer-service workers who fake smile worsen their mood and withdraw from work, affecting their productivity. On the other hand, workers who smile as a result of cultivating positive thoughts – such as a tropical vacation or a child’s recital – improve their mood and withdraw less. Employers may think simply getting their employees to smile is good for the organization, but that’s not necessarily the case, smiling for the sake of smiling can lead to emotional exhaustion and withdrawal, and that’s bad for the organization. Academy of Management Journal, March 2011 Health Alert: A Hefty Price! People 70 pounds overweight will spend $30,000 extra in health care costs in their lifetime. Scientific American, March 2011 Diet: Why Do We Over Eat? Generational: “My parents taught me to clean my plate and not waste food.” Relational: “Feelings will be hurt if I don’t finish what they made me.” Economical: “This is such a good deal – more bang for my buck.” Convenience: “I’m in a rush and need it now.” Emotional: “Eating helps me feel better.” Loyola University Health System, February 2011 Exercise: Another Benefit of Exercise. According to David Nieman, director of Appalachian State University’s Human Performance Lab in Kannapolis, NC, “No pill or nutritional supplement has the power of near-daily moderate activity in lowering the number of sick days people take.” Wall Street Journal, January 2010 Chiropractic: The Power That Created The Body Heals The Body. This statement describes the chiropractic philosophy that the body is a self-healing organism. The body functions well on its own as long as there is no interference of function (muscular restriction of the joints, poor nutrition that decreases cellular function, mental stress, poor sleep habits, lack of exercise, etc). Wellness/Prevention: Healthy Lifestyles Help Healing. Joint replacement patients who improve their lifestyle and maintain a positive mindset prior to surgery are more likely to have better functional outcomes than those who do not. Multiple studies found that patients who smoke, misuse alcohol, fail to control blood sugar levels or simply have a poor attitude prior to undergoing total hip or knee replacement surgery can double their odds of post-operative complications. Risk factors for complications like advanced age and pre-existing heart or lung conditions are difficult or impossible to change prior to surgery, but smoking, alcohol abuse, high blood sugar levels and poor mental attitude are completely manageable by the patients themselves, which makes them an excellent target for prevention and intervention programs that are likely to improve outcomes. Current smokers had higher odds of pneumonia (53%), stroke (161%), site infections (41% ) and one-year mortality (63%) compared to non-smokers. Prior smokers were at higher odds of stroke (114%) and pneumonia (34%), compared with non-smokers. Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, February 2011 Quote: “A riot is the language of the unheard.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr. This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s May 23rd, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
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Week of Monday, May 23rd, 2011
Mental Attitude: Exercise Your Mood. Regular exercise reduces symptoms of moderate depression and enhances psychological fitness. During exercise, plasma levels of endorphins increases in the body, which can have an effect on the psychological state. Endorphins are hormones in the brain associated with a happy, positive feeling. A low level of endorphins is associated with depression. A recent National Health and Nutrition survey found physically active people were half as likely to be depressed. Exercise also boosts the neurotransmitter serotonin in the brain. Neurotransmitters are chemicals that send specific messages from one brain cell to another. Though only a small percentage of all serotonin is located in the brain, this neurotransmitter is thought to play a key role in keeping your mood calm. WebMD.com
Health Alert: Diabetes Out Of Control! 8.3% of Americans of all ages are affected by diabetes! 11.3% of Americans over 20 years old have diabetes. 27% of Americans who have diabetes do not know and 35% of individuals over 20 years old in the US have pre-diabetes. How do you prevent it? Try a healthy diet and regular exercise. CDC, 2011
Diet: Is It A Fad Diet? How can you tell if a diet is a fad diet? Here are some useful hints: It promotes or bans certain foods or food groups. It pushes a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. It promises quick, dramatic or miraculous results. It focuses on short-term changes to eating and exercise habits. It encourages ‘miracle’ pills, potions or supplements – often promoted as ‘fat burners’ and ‘metabolism boosters’. It contradicts the advice of trusted health professionals. It makes claims based on a single study or testimonials.
Dietitians Association of Australia, January 2011
Exercise: 7 Benefits of Regular Exercise. 1) Exercise improves mood. 2) Exercise combats chronic disease. 3) Exercise helps you manage your weight. 4) Exercise boosts your energy level. 5) Exercise promotes better sleep. 6) Exercise can put the spark back in your love life. 7) Exercise can be fun! Mayo Clinic
Chiropractic: The Very First! “I claimed to be the first person to adjust a vertebra by hand, using the spinous and transverse processes and levers. I developed the art known as adjusting, and formulated the science of chiropractic, and developed its philosophy.” ~ DD Palmer
Wellness/Prevention: Family Mealtimes? The amount of time families spend eating meals together has been linked to the health and wellbeing of children and teens. Families who eat together regularly report declines in substance abuse, eating disorders, and unhealthy weight in their children. Child Development, Feb 2011
Quote: “If you’re interested in ‘balancing’ work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable.” ~ Donald Trump
This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s May 16th, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
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WEEKLY HEALTH NEWS
UPDATE
Week of Monday, May 16th, 2011
Mental Attitude: Poor Eating Habits Can Cause Depression. The ingestion of trans-fats and saturated fats increase the risk of suffering depression, while ingesting olive oil appears to protect against depression. Participants with an elevated consumption of trans-fats (fats present in artificial form in industrially-produced pastries and fast food, and naturally present in certain whole milk products) showed a 48% increase in the risk of depression. Also, the more trans-fats consumed, the greater the harmful effect they produced.
Public Library of Science, February 2011
Health Alert: Only 24 Hours In A Day! National restrictions were first introduced in 2003 to limit the hours resident physicians could be on duty. At the time, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) cited increasing acuity and intensity of medical care in teaching institutions, as well as scientific evidence of the negative effect of sleep deprivation on performance, as reasons for instituting restrictions. Those limits were not to exceed 80 hours in a week or more than 24 consecutive hours. In December 2008, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued a report recommending further action to reduce resident fatigue and ensure patient safety within 24 months of the report. The IOM committee did not recommend a change from the maximum of 80 hours per week, averaged over four weeks, but instead recommends decreasing the maximum length of shifts, increasing the time off between shifts and mandating a sleep period during longer shifts.
Journal of the American College of Radiology, 2010
Diet: Tea Can Help. This study looked at the effect of treating superficial precancerous lesions in the mucosal lining of the mouth with a mixed tea product. After the six-month trial, partial regression of the lesions was observed in 37.9% of the group treated with tea as compared to only 10% of those treated with a placebo.
Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine, 1999
Exercise: Exercise And Stress. Regular exercise reduces the amount of stress hormones in the body, lowers the resting heart rate, relaxes blood vessels, and lowers blood pressure. Mayo Clinic, March 2011
Chiropractic: Have Back Pain? Spinal manipulation is the best treatment for acute low back pain.
Agency for Health Care Policy and Research
Wellness/Prevention: A Cup Of Tea. The antioxidant properties of tea flavonoids may play a role in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease by decreasing lipid oxidation, reducing the instances of heart attacks and stroke, and may beneficially impact blood vessel function (an important indicator of cardiovascular health).
Archives of Internal Medicine, 1996
Quote: “What some call health, if purchased by perpetual anxiety about diet, isn’t much better than tedious disease.”
~George Dennison Prentice
This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s May 9th, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
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WEEKLY HEALTH NEWS
UPDATE
Week of Monday, May 9th, 2011
Mental Attitude: Improved Memory? Scientists from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York increased the amount of the protein IGF-II in rats and found they showed significantly improved long term memory. The effects of the IGF-II were also found to last for several weeks. Nature, February 2011
Health Alert: Kids Working? Many teens work part-time during the school year and in the current economic climate, more youths may seek after school employment. Working more than 20 hours a week is associated with declines in school engagement, a lower probability of continued education, and increases in problem behavior such as stealing, carrying a weapon, drinking alcohol and using illegal drugs. Child Development, Feb 2011
Diet: I Could Have Had A… Studies show drinking vegetable juice may be a simple way for people to increase their vegetable intake and may help them more effectively manage their weight. Adults who drank one 8-ounce glass of vegetable juice each day consumed nearly twice as many vegetable servings a day than those who did not drink any vegetable juice. Also, 9 of 10 who drank the popular vegetable juice V8 said they felt they were doing something good for themselves. Journal of the American Medical Association, 2010
Exercise: Burning Calories! Most people know exercise keeps muscles strong. Did you know strong muscles burn more calories? Muscle mass is metabolically active tissue. The more muscle mass you have, the more calories you burn even when you’re not working out! For each pound of muscle you add, you will burn an additional 35-50 calories per day. So, an extra 5 pounds of muscle will burn about 175-250 calories a day or an extra pound of fat every 14-20 days. Mayo Clinic
Chiropractic: Light As A Feather! Pressure on a nerve root equal to a feather falling on your hand resulted in up to a 50% decrease in electrical transmission down the nerve supplied by that root.
Seth Sharpless, Ph.D. and Marvin Luttges, Ph.D.
Wellness/Prevention: Prevent Bad Lifestyle Habits. Unhealthy habits are especially predominant amongst young adults ages 19-26. Data points to the fact that young people show more risk behavior than expected (more even than they themselves perceive) and believe they are healthier than they really are. Unhealthy habits include poor diet, excessive alcohol consumption, lack of physical activity, risky sexual practices, smoking cigarettes, taking drugs and getting insufficient sleep. Bad habits tend to worsen with age. Special attention has to be paid to adolescents because around 16 years of age appears to be the point of no return, the age when either healthy activities are adopted or risk behavior patterns arise. AlphaGalileo Foundation. January 2011
Quote: “For the rational, psychologically healthy man, the desire for pleasure is the desire to celebrate his control over reality. For the neurotic, the desire for pleasure is the desire to escape from reality.” ~ Nathaniel Branden
This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s May 2nd, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
For More Information, please download this week’s newsletter, here.
WEEKLY HEALTH NEWS
UPDATE
Week of Monday, May 2nd, 2011
Mental Attitude: Parents Can Help. Many studies show parenting under stress can negatively affect children. Parents who struggle financially, who suffer from depression, or who are single parents need extra support. In schools offering ParentCorps, a program for families of Pre-Kindergarten students in disadvantaged urban communities that focuses on improved parenting strategies, parents reported using more effective discipline strategies and were observed in the home to be more responsive to their children during play interactions. By the end of the Pre-Kindergarten year, children in schools with ParentCorps were rated by their teachers as better behaved and showed more social and emotional competencies. Child Development, February 2011
Health Alert: Unemployed And Unhealthy! Unemployed people between the ages of 30 and 59 years are often affected by physical, emotional, and functional impairments such as sleep disorders, anxiety disorders, and substance addictions. The health consequences of unemployment result from loss of income, loss of social contacts in the workplace, and/or loss of social reputation. Unemployed men and women who are supported by their partners, family members, or friends are less frequently affected by these complaints.
Deutsches Aerzteblatt International, February 2011
Diet: Genes And Your Sweet Tooth. The substance ghrelin plays an important role in binge-eating and sugar consumption. Ghrelin is a neuropeptide that activates the brain’s reward system and increases appetite. People with certain changes in the ghrelin gene consume more sugar than their peers. Researchers also found, when ghrelin was blocked, rats reduced their consumption of sugar and were less motivated to hunt for sugar. Plos One, April 2011
Exercise: The Great Outdoors! Exercising in natural environments is associated with greater feelings of revitalization, increased energy and positive engagement, with decreases in tension, confusion, anger and depression. Participants also reported greater enjoyment and satisfaction with outdoor activity and were more likely to repeat the activity. Environmental Science and Technology, February 2011
Chiropractic: Stop On A Dime! At the spinal nerve root level, a sustained pressure increase of the weight of a dime was adequate to produce interference in normal nerve transmission! Dr. Chung Ha Suh, University of Colorado
Wellness/Prevention: Adopt Healthy Habits! When considering levels of HDL, or “good” cholesterol, people who did not improve any lifestyle factors between youth and adulthood had more than double the prevalence of low HDL levels (26.2% vs. 11.9%). Those who had improved at least two lifestyle factors had a prevalence of low HDL less than one-fourth that of the study average. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, February 2011
Quote: “Being entirely honest with oneself is a good exercise.” ~ Sigmund Freud
This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s April 25th, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
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WEEKLY HEALTH NEWS UPDATE
Week of Monday, April 25th, 2011
Mental Attitude: Risks For Quitting College. 40% of students in the US fail to get a bachelor’s degree within 6 years at the college where they began. Surprisingly, events such as a death in the family and students’ failure to get their intended major did not have a significant influence. The critical event with the most influence was depression. Other reasons include recruitment by an employer or another institution; losing financial aid or experiencing a large increase in tuition or living costs; unexpected bad grades; and roommate conflicts. Journal Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Feb 2011
Health Alert: Cough It Up. Research has linked over-the-counter cough and cold products to poisoning or death in hundreds of children, ages 2 and younger. Studies also show these medicines do little to control symptoms. In 2008, the FDA formally recommended OTC cough and cold products not be given to children under age 2. 61% of parents of children ages 2 and younger gave their children OTC cough and cold medicine within the last 12 months. More than half of parents report their child’s doctor says OTC cough and cold medications are safe for children under 2. University of Michigan Health System, Feb 2011
Diet: Too Fat! The rate of obesity among children and adolescents in the US has nearly tripled between the1980s and 2000s. Childhood obesity can lead to diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, sleep problems, cancer, liver disease, skin infections, asthma and other respiratory problems later in life. Pediatrics Journal, February 2011
Exercise: The “Skinny” on Exercise. Exercise boosts blood circulation and the delivery of nutrients to your skin, helping to detoxify the body by removing toxins. As exercise boosts oxygen to the skin, it helps increase the production of collagen, the connective tissue that keeps your skin elastic. Mayo Clinic, Feb 2011
Chiropractic: Headache Help! A study compared 6 weeks of chiropractic adjusting for tension-type headaches to 6 weeks of medical treatment with amitriptyline, a medication often prescribed for severe tension headache pain. Chiropractic patients experienced fewer side effects (82.1%) and only chiropractic patients continued to report fewer headaches when treatment ended. JMPT, 1995
Wellness/Prevention: Zinc! The cold accounts for 40% of sickness absence from work and millions of school days missed each year. Zinc taken within a day of cold symptoms can reduce severity and shorten the length of illness. At 7 days after onset, a higher proportion of people who took zinc reported no cold symptoms compared to those who took a placebo. The Cochrane Library, Feb 2011
Quote: “If we did all the things we are capable of, we would astound ourselves.” ~ Thomas Edison
This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s April 18th, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
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WEEKLY HEALTH NEWS UPDATE
Week of Monday, April 18th, 2011
Mental Attitude: A Positive Attitude Helps. Joint replacement patients who have a positive mindset prior to surgery are more likely to have better functional outcomes. Patients with poor pre-operative emotional health, poor coping skills, little social support and who are anxious are at risk for less functional improvement after total knee replacement. American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, 2011
Health Alert: On Your Knees! 10 million Americans suffer from knee osteoarthritis (OA). Due to obesity and symptomatic knee OA, Americans over the age of 50 will, in total, lose the equivalent of 86 million healthy years of life. Reducing obesity to the year 2000 levels would prevent 173,000 cases of coronary heart disease, 711,000 cases of diabetes and 270,000 total knee replacements. It would save 19.5 million years of life among US adults aged 50-
- Annals of Internal Medicine, February 2011
Diet: Can Cartoons Make Kids Eat Brussels Sprouts? Characters like Shrek, Donkey or Princess Fiona on food packaging, particularly cereals, can influence children to choose sugary items that provide little to no nutritional value. When there is no licensed cartoon character on the box, kids prefer a cereal whose name suggests healthy eating rather than sugar consumption. Annenberg School for Communications, University of Pennsylvania, Feb 2011
Exercise: Walk It Off. Because exercise helps use up oxygen, it causes your body to burn stored fat. If you walk 4 miles a day, 4 times a week, you can burn 1,600 calories a week. If you don’t change your diet at all and walk that same distance for six months, you’ll lose about 12 pounds. Walk that same distance for a year and you’ll drop about 24 pounds! Mayo Clinic
Chiropractic: Take A Deep Breath. Breathing is a function most people do not associate with spinal health. A case published in the 1980s involved a 53-year-old man with a 20-year history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. More than 14 months after starting chiropractic care, the amount of air he was able to forcibly exhale in one complete breath (a measure called “forced vital capacity”) and the amount of air he could move in the first second of that complete breath (called “forced expiratory volume in one second”) had both improved substantially (1 liter and 0.3 liters, respectively). This case is part of a growing body of literature indicating that improved lung volumes often accompany improved spinal health through chiropractic care. Chiropractic Technique, 1991
Wellness/Prevention: Dance Your Way To Cancer Prevention. Exercise makes your body stronger. By choosing a fun workout, like dance classes, it’s easier to get the 30 minutes of daily exercise you need to maintain a healthy weight, which may reduce your chances for some types of cancer. University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, February 2011
Quote: “Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.” ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s April 11th, 2011 Weekly Chiropractic Newsletter
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WEEKLY HEALTH NEWS UPDATE
Week of Monday, April 11th, 2011
Mental Attitude: It Could Be In Your Head. Your emotional response to challenging situations can predict how your body responds to stress. People with high levels of anger and anxiety showed greater increases in a marker of inflammation than those who remained relatively calm. This could help explain why some people with high levels of stress experience chronic health problems. Over time, these emotionally-reactive individuals may be more vulnerable to inflammatory diseases, such as cardiovascular disease. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, February 2011
Health Alert: Time To Get Healthy! A shortage of oncologists and the rising cost of chemotherapy and radiation therapies and imaging tests are making delivering quality cancer care increasingly difficult. By 2020, the shortage of oncologists in the US will be between 2,350 and 3,800, which represents a capacity of between
9.5 million and 15 million office visits. Cancer, March 2011
Diet: Vitamin E And Pneumonia. Vitamin E decreased pneumonia risk by 69% among those who had the least exposure to smoking and who also exercised. In contrast, vitamin E increased pneumonia risk by 79% among those who had the highest exposure to smoking and who did not exercise. Over half of the participants
were outside of these two subgroups and vitamin E did not affect their risk of pneumonia. Clinical Epidemiology, February 2011
Exercise: Fat Burner! Muscles are metabolically active, so the more muscle mass, the more calories you burn even when you’re not working out. For each pound of muscle you add, you will burn an extra 35-50 calories per day. Every 5 pounds of muscle added will burn 175-250 calories a day, or an extra pound of fat every 14-20 days. Mayo Clinic
Chiropractic: Better Immune System? Ronald Pero, Ph.D., chief of cancer prevention research at New York’s Preventive Medicine Institute and professor of medicine at New York University, performed one of the most important studies showing the positive effect chiropractic care can have on the immune system and general health. In his initial 3-year study of 107 individuals who had been under chiropractic care for 5 years or more, the chiropractic patients had a 200% greater immune competence than people who had not received chiropractic care.
The Chiropractic Journal, August 1989
Wellness/Prevention: A Leg Up? 9 million Americans over the age of 50 have peripheral arterial disease. Symptoms: 1. Claudication (fatigue, heaviness or cramping in the leg muscles that occurs during activity and goes away with rest). 2. Foot or toe pain at rest that often disturbs sleep. 3. Skin wounds or ulcers on the feet that are slow to heal. Risk increases if you: smoke, or used to smoke, have diabetes, have high blood pressure and/or abnormal blood cholesterol, if you’re African American or have a Vascular disease. Foundation, February 2011
Quote: “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” ~ Albert Einstein
This Weekly Health News Update is compliments of Dr. Ward Beecher and Beecher Chiropractic Clinic. If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at 281-286-1300 or www.BeecherChiropractic.Com.
Dr. Beecher’s April 2011 Monthly Chiropractic Newsletter
To download Dr. Beecher’s Monthly Newsletter, please click here!
In Good Hands
A Free Monthly Newsletter For The Friends and Patients of Ward Beecher DC
“An intellectual is a man who takes more words than necessary to tell more than he knows.” – Dwight D
Eisenhower
“How 55-80 Year Olds
Increased The Size Of Their Brains!”
Scientific Study Shows How You Can Stay Mentally Sharp As You Age
Also In This Issue:
Study finds childhood obesity linked to health habits – not genes
New research shows trans fat intake linked to depression
Study shows children with ADHD benefits from dietary changes
30-50% of children use energy drinks – why they may harm their health
Scary trend: Why young people prefer “virtual computer lives” to the real world
Japanese researchers say dogs can be trained to sniff out cancer!
Want To Live To Be 96? A special tribute to Chiropractor, Jack LaLanne,
his amazing feats, special achievements and the health blueprint he left for you…
Houston – How would you like to have a bigger, more powerful brain?
Sadly, the hippocampus, a part of the brain key to memory and special navigation, is known to shrink as we age.
This shrinkage starts in late adulthood and is responsible for memory loss and impairment.
Now, There Is New Hope
According to the Los Angeles Times, a new study published by the
Journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has revealed
“a program of aerobic exercise, over the course of a year, can increase the size of the hippocampus… in adults ages 55- 80.”
In the study, 120 people from ages 55-80 who did not exercise previously were split into 2 groups; 60 were put into an aerobic exercise
How Man’s Best Friend Might
Save You From Cancer
According to Japanese researchers,
“a specially trained Labrador proved nearly as good at identifying those with cancer as a conventional colonoscopy examination.”
Furthermore, dogs can be trained to sniff out bowel cancer even in the early stages of the disease.
In a series of experiments, a specially trained Labrador sniffed either the breath or stool samples of patients and detected cancer as well as traditional colonoscopy.
In other experiments, trained dogs have been used to sniff cancers of the skin, lungs, bladder and ovaries.
According to an article in Guardian,
“In later tests, the dog correctly identified 33 of 36 people with bowel cancer after sniffing their breath, and 37 of 38 cancer cases after sniffing a stool obtained from the patient.”
program that consisted of walking around a track 3 days a week for 40 minutes per session; and the other 60 did a program consisting of stretching and weights.
Results: According to the
Los Angeles Times article, “The group doing aerobic exercise had increases in hippocampus volume: up 2.12 % in the left hippocampus, and 1.97% in the right hippocampus. The stretching group, on the other hand, had decreased hippocampus volume: down 1.40% on the left and 1.43% on the right.”
What’s important to note is the article said it is never too late to start and it suggested that some very simple exercise programs may be a cost- effective way to treat a
1
widespread health problem, without the side effects of medication.
Study Finds Childhood Obesity
Linked To Health Habits – Not Genes
A study found, when 1,003 Michigan 6th graders were examined, obese children were “more likely to consume school lunch instead of a packed lunch from home and spend two hours a day watching TV or playing a video game.”
According to an article in Science Daily, the study suggests unhealthy habits are feeding the childhood obesity trend. “For the extremely overweight child, genetic screening may be a consideration,” says study senior author Kim A. Eagle, M.D., a Cardiologist and a Director of the U- M Cardiovascular Center. “For the rest, increasing physical activity, reducing recreational screen time and improving the nutritional value of school lunches offers great promise to begin a reversal of current childhood obesity trends.”
Here’s a startling fact: Childhood obesity has
TRIPLED in the U.S. in the last 30 years, and obesity among U.S. children ages 6-11 has gone from 6.5% in 1980 to 19.6% in 2008.
According to the Science Daily article,
“researchers found that 58 percent of obese children had watched two hours of TV in the previous day, compared to 41 percent of non-obese children. Forty- five percent of obese students always ate school lunch, but only 34 percent of non-obese students ate school lunch.”
Significantly fewer obese kids exercised regularly, took physical education classes, or were a member of a sports team.
In the study, 15% of the students were obese, but almost all had unhealthy habits. Over 30% drank regular soda within the previous day, less than 50% remembered eating 2 servings of vegetables in the same time period, and only 30% said they exercised for 30 minutes for 5 days during that week.
One of the biggest take home messages (besides realizing that it’s habits making us overweight — not just our genes) is that almost all the students can drastically improve their diet and exercise, not just the 15% who are obese. According to the AmericanCollege of Preventative Medicine, heart disease and diabetes are two of the most common preventable chronic diseases. Both have their preventable causes
in what we eat and how much we exercise, and both start from the habits we obtain in childhood.
As adults, we can change these habits any time we want and live a longer and healthier life just about instantly, but children need guidance to make the same healthy choices.
Many In Younger
Generation Prefer Online
Fake Life To Real One
Have you ever wanted to change your life? Maybe even wanted to be someone else?
If so, you are not alone. Now, a younger generation has found a way to make this desire a reality. Well… sort of…
According to an article in Dailymail, “A study has found that children are often more happy with their lives online than they are with reality, as it allows them to be who they want… They say they can be exactly who they want to be – and as soon as something is no longer fun they can simply hit the quit button.”
Even more shocking, according to the study, one in eight young people are in contact with strangers and often lie about their appearance, age and background.
The study also reveals 45% of younger people between the ages of 11-18 surveyed said they were happier with their online life than their real one.
“One told researchers: „It‟s easier to be who you want to be because nobody knows you and if you don‟t like the situation you can just exit and it is over.‟ Another said: „You can say anything online. You can talk to people that you don‟t normally speak to and you can edit your pictures so you look better. It is as if you are a completely different person.”
What’s more, 47% said they act differently online than in real life.
Experts warn this may be creating a generation of people who will not function adequately in society.
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 your lifelong good health.
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Presented by Beecher Chiropractic Clinic 1001 Pineloch, Ste 700 Houston TX 77062 (281) 286-1300
Inspirational Story Of The Month –
(Names And Details Have Been Changed To Protect Privacy)
Who Else Wants To Live To 96 And Be As Healthy As A Horse?
A special tribute to Chiropractor Jack LaLanne, his amazing feats, special achievements and health blueprint he left for you…
I’m sure you’ve heard of Jack LaLanne. Everyone has – he’s a legend among legends. But, what do you really know about him? If you are like most people, you probably have no idea why he is truly one of the most important people to have lived in the last 100 years. For starters, Jack was an unhealthy child with anger problems who was addicted to sugar. He stated he had violent episodes directed at him and others. Jack described himself as “a miserable goddamn kid… it was like hell.” Besides having a bad temper, he also suffered from headaches and bulimia, and dropped out of high school at age 14. The following year, at age 15, he heard health food pioneerPaul Bragg give a talk on health and nutrition, focusing on the “evils of meat and sugar.” Bragg’s message resonated with LaLanne and it instantly changed his life. He said he was “born again” and focused on diet and exercise. He began working out every day and went back to school. LaLanne made the football team, went to college and became a Doctor of Chiropractic.
But, LaLanne knew he could touch more lives if he didn’t practice Chiropractic, and that’s what he really wanted to do. So, Jack became a health and fitness pioneer. Since he did so many amazing things – the best thing to do is to list them: 1954 (age 40): Jack swam the entire length (8,981 ft/1.7 mi) of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, under water, with 140 pounds (64 kg; 10 st) of air tanks and other equipment strapped to his body; a world record. 1955 (age 41): Jack swam from Alcatraz Island to Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco while handcuffed. When interviewed afterwards, he was quoted as saying that the worst thing about the ordeal was being handcuffed, which significantly reduced his chance to do a jumping jack. 1956 (age 42): Jack set what was claimed as a world record of 1,033 push-ups in 23 minutes on You Asked For It, a television program hosted byArt Baker. 1957 (age 43): Jack swam the Golden Gate channel while towing a 2,500-pound (1,100 kg; 180 st)cabin cruiser. The swift ocean currents turned this one-mile (1.6 km) swim into a swimming distance of 6.5 miles (10.5 km). 1958 (age 44): Jack maneuvered a paddleboard nonstop from the Farallon Islands to the San Francisco shore. The 30-mile (48 km) trip took 9.5 hours. 1959 (age 45): Jack did 1,000 star jumps and 1,000 chin-ups in 1 hour and 22 minutes to promote The Jack LaLanne Show going nationwide. LaLanne said this was the most difficult of his stunts, but only because the skin on his hands started ripping off during the chin-ups. He felt he couldn’t stop because it would be seen as a public failure. 1974 (age 60): For the second time, he swam from Alcatraz Island to Fisherman’s Wharf. Again, he was handcuffed, but this time he was also shackled and towed a1,000-pound (450 kg; 71 st) boat. 1975 (age 61): Repeating his performance of 21 years earlier, he again swam the entire length of the Golden Gate Bridge, underwater and handcuffed, but this time he was shackled and towed a 1,000- pound (450 kg; 71 st) boat. 1976 (age 62): To commemorate the “Spirit of ’76”, United States Bicentennial, he swam one mile (1.6 km) in Long Beach Harbor. He was handcuffed and shackled, and he towed 13 boats (representing the 13 original colonies) containing 76 people. 1979 (age 65): Jack towed 65 boats in Lake Ashinoko near Tokyo, Japan. He was handcuffed and shackled, and the boats were filled with 6,500 pounds (2,900 kg; 460 st) of Louisiana Pacific wood pulp. 1980 (age 66): Jack towed 10 boats in North Miami, Florida.The boats carried 77 people, and he towed them for over one mile (1.6 km) in less than one hour. 1984 (age 70):Handcuffed, shackled, and fighting strong winds and currents, Jack towed 70 rowboats, one with several guests, from the Queen’s Way Bridge in the Long Beach Harbor to the Queen Mary, 1 mile.
Jack was also the first to: open a modern health spa, have a nationally syndicated exercise show on television, have athletes work out with weights, have women work out with weights, have elderly work out with weights, have a combination health food bar and gym, have a weight loss Instant Breakfast meal replacement drink, have a coed health club, combine weight training with nutrition, have an edible snack nutrition bar, sell vitamins and exercise equipment on television, teach scientific bodybuilding by changing the workout every 2-3weeks, encourage the physically challenged to exercise, and he also developed many of the exercise machines and equipment that are still used today. Jack said, “If man made it, don’t eat it.” He also said he NEVER ate dessert. Just doing those two things could change your life.
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.
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Presented by Beecher Chiropractic Clinic 1001 Pineloch, Ste 700 Houston TX 77062 (281) 286-1300
Did You Know?… Tea is a great food for health! 1. Tea, without sugar or honey, only has two calories per cup. 2. Steeping tea for three to five minutes produces the most antioxidants. 3. Milk in your tea doesn’t reduce tea’s health benefits. 4. The maximum amount of antioxidants contained in tea comes from brewing loose leaves or from tea bags. (Tea in powders or bottles has little or no helpful antioxidants!) 5. Tea in products applied to the skin has little or no health enhancing properties. Teas, especially white and green teas, can help with the following: Stimulate mental clarity, reduce the risk of certain cancers, reduce the risk of heart disease, lower blood sugar levels, help prevent viral infections, help prevent bad breath, and help prevent tooth decay. Also, because the water used in tea is boiled, this makes tea safer to drink than tap water…
Tip Of The Month – Dietary Changes May Help ADHD.
Also: Consumption Of This Is Linked To Depression.
You are what you eat. This is not just a catchy saying – it is the absolute truth. Yet, most people ignore this “truth” and suffer from preventable diseases, aches and pains. Most seem to think it is easier to eat junk and take a pill later. There is always a miracle medicine to save you, isn’t there? The truth of the matter is…No, There Isn’t. It is abundantly clear and becoming clearer
each and every day that taking medication is no substitute for eating right, exercising and practicing proper maintenance care. Clearly, having your teeth pulled and replacing them with dental implants is no replacement for brushing and flossing your teeth and going to the dentist for routine check-ups. Eating fat, sugar and processed foods for 40 years and then thinking a drug or surgery is going to save you is even more foolish. Here is some research on what you and your children eat that you will find very interesting. Study #1: What You Eat and ADHD – A recent study found putting children with ADHD on a restrictive diet to eliminate possible, unknown food allergies decreased hyperactivity for 64 percent of kids. In the study, 41 kids completed the elimination diet and 32 saw decreased symptoms. Here’s a really important part: When certain foods thought to be “triggers” for each child were reintroduced, most of the children relapsed. The elimination diet, which lasted 5 weeks, consisted predominantly of rice, white meat and some vegetables. Among 50 kids given a “control” diet that was just a standard, healthy diet for children, significant changes were not noted. Due to the results, lead author of the study and a psychiatrist at the Nijmegen Medical Centre, Jan Buitelaar, recommended the elimination diet become part of the standard of care for children with ADHD. Here’s An Important Note About This Study – Many doctors frown upon the elimination diet, not because of its results, but because it is
“difficult.” Because it is perceived to be hard and many won’t do it, it is tossed aside for an easier approach. Of course, it is “easier” to take medications, but is the easiest approach usually the best? Study #2: Eating This Increases Depression Risk – According to Dr. Joseph Mercola’s health blog, “Consumption of trans fats can increase your risk of depression, according to new research. However, healthier fats may actually reduce your risk.” Participants in the study with the highest level of trans fat consumption had up to a 48% increase in the risk of depression. Study #3: Report Says Energy Drinks Unhealthy – According to a new report published in the Journal of Pediatrics, popular energy drinks may be harmful to children’s health. These risks are amplified if the child has diabetes, ADHD or a heart condition. The report also stated that 30-50% of children consume these drinks and they do not substantially increase performance or energy levels. Sales of products such as Red Bull, Full Throttle, Monster Energy and Rockstar are expected to reach about $9 billion in the U.S. this year, with children and young adults under 25 providing most of the revenue. Because these drinks are considered supplements, they are not regulated by the FDA.
Remember, we’re always here, to help your body heal and maintain the health 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 call our office at 281-286-1300.
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Presented by Beecher Chiropractic Clinic 1001 Pineloch, Ste 700 Houston TX 77062 (281) 286-1300
