For years I have run a casual email
list serving the chiropractic profession, its students
and various interested non-chiropractor supporters.
Sep 2007
Issue 12
26/09/07 09:39
Cell Phones, Microwaves and Your Brain
from Dr Sears MD
Recent reports suggest that cell phones may cause cancer. Yet 1.5 billion people in the world use them. What’s the truth?
In today’s Health Alert, we’ll look at the latest research on cell phones and their dark side -- one that goes far beyond the cancer connection.
Cooking Your Brain with Microwaves
Cell phones contain power transmitters near the phone’s antenna. The phone sends out (even in standby) an encoded signal through the antenna that a receiver in a cell phone tower picks up. This encoded signal contains electromagnetic radiation, specifically RF radiation (radio frequency). In addition to traveling to the mobile receiver, RF travels through your skull and into your brain.
Depending on how close the cell phone antenna is to your head, studies show that as much as 60% of the microwave radiation penetrates your skull, reaching an inch and a half into your brain.
While the FDA claims, “the available scientific evidence does not demonstrate any adverse health effects associated with the use of mobile phones” the research is accumulating to show exactly the opposite.
For instance, we know that cell phone RF exposure makes the temperature in exposed tissues rise; we call this the “thermal effect.” Body tissues heat up by the same mechanism that heats food in your microwave. This increases free radical formation and oxidative damage to DNA, damage linked to aging, cancer and impaired brain function.
A four-year study in seven European countries found mobile phone radiation harms human cells and irreparably damages DNA. A ten-year study in Sweden directly linked mobile phone use with a rise in tumors. In that study, heavy mobile phone users were twice as likely to suffer cancerous and benign tumors in the ear and the brain. These tumors were also four times as common on the side of the head where the user held the phone.
Studies are also linking RF radiation from cell phones to other health problems, including higher blood pressure, infertility and Alzheimer’s disease. A German study found mobile phone use during a 35-minute call increases resting blood pressure between 5 and 10mm.
How to Protect Yourself from Cell Phone Radiation
You should attempt to minimize your exposure to RF radiation. First, you should find out the level of RF emissions of your cell phone. If you have a higher rating, think about replacing it with a phone with a lower rating. They rate cell phone emissions in specific absorption rates (SAR). They range from 0.5 to 1.6 W/kg (Watts of power absorbed per kilogram of body tissue).
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD
-=-=-=-=-=
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics
Volume 30, Issue 7, September 2007, Pages 514-521
Copyright © 2007 Published by Mosby, Inc.
Interexaminer Reliability of the Prone Leg Length Analysis Procedure
Michael Schneider DCa, Corresponding Author Contact Information, E-mail The Corresponding Author, Robert Homonai DCb, Brian Moreland DCb and Anthony Delitto PhD, PTc
aPrivate practice, Spine and Pain Care Center, Pittsburgh, Pa
bPrivate practice, Fay West Chiropractic Health Center, Mount Pleasant, Pa
cChair, Department of Physical Therapy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa
Received 8 September 2006; revised 8 March 2007. Available online 14 September 2007.
Abstract
Objective
The purpose of this study was to perform an interexaminer reliability evaluation of the prone leg length analysis procedure.
Methods
Two chiropractors each examined a series of 45 patients with a history of low back pain. Patients were in the prone position, with the knees in both extended and flexed positions, and with the head rotated right and left. The clinicians were asked to determine the side of the short leg with knees extended and if a change in leg length occurred with head rotation or when the knees were flexed. They were also asked to visually judge the amount of leg length differential by categorizing the difference as either less than 0.25, 0.25 to 0.5, 0.5 to 0.75, or more than 0.75 in. The head rotation portion of the test was performed only with patients (n = 22) in whom the leg length differential was determined to be less than 0.25 in.
Results
κ statistics and frequency distributions were calculated for each of the respective observations. Reliability of determining the side of the short leg with knees extended was good at 82% agreement (κ = 0.65) but fair for determining the amount of leg length difference at 67% agreement (κ = 0.28). Reliability of the head rotation testing procedure was extremely poor, with only 50% and 45% agreement about the observed change in leg length with the head rotated left and right, respectively (κ = 0.04, κ = −0.195). There was no significant correlation found between the side of reported pain by the patient and the side of the short leg as noted by either clinician (χ2 = 0.55, P = .91, and χ2 = 1.55, P = .67). All of the patients (100%) were judged to have a leg length difference by both clinicians. When the knees were flexed, there was 93% agreement that the short leg became longer (43/45 cases), with no reported cases of the short leg getting shorter. Calculation of κ statistics was confounded for these last 2 observations because of extremely high prevalence bias.
Conclusions
The results indicate that 2 clinicians show good reliability in determining the side of the short leg in the prone position with knees extended but show poor reliability when determining the precise amount of that leg length difference. The head rotation test for assessing changes in leg length was unreliable in this sample of patients. There does not appear to be any correlation between the side of pain noted by the patient and the side of the short leg as observed by the clinicians; all 45 patients in this sample were found to have a short leg by both clinicians.
This study was approved by the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa, institutional review board, IRB no. 0501147.
Corresponding Author Contact InformationSubmit requests for reprints to: Michael Schneider, DC, 1720 Washington Road, Suite 201, Pittsburgh, PA 15241, USA
-=-=-=-=-
Boy wakes up with posh accent after brain surgery
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/boy-wakes-up-with-posh-accent-after-brain-surgery/2007/09/18/1189881506532.html
I guess it might have potential in some areas of the outback or Georgia :-)
-=-=-=-
Rating Your Pain from 0 to 10 Might Not Help Your Doctor
September 17, 2007 | INDIANAPOLIS -The most commonly used measure for pain screening may only be modestly accurate, according to researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine and the University of North Carolina.
In a study that appears in the October issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine, they evaluate the usefulness of a scale that asks patients in primary care to rate their current pain from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst pain).
Universal pain screening is an increasingly common practice, largely because of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organization’s requirement that accredited hospitals and clinics routinely assess all patients for pain. JCAHO is the nation’s predominant standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.
http://healthorbit.ca/login1.asp?msg=1&neidws=012170907
-=-=-=-=-
Garlic vs. Brain Cancer
CHARLESTON -- Numerous studies provide evidence that garlic and its organo-sulfur compounds are effective inhibitors of the cancer process, most notably for prostate and stomach cancers.
Free Preview http://healthorbit.ca/login1.asp?msg=1&neidws=053170907
-=-=-=-
sent this out once before
you may have ignored it
quote from the article:
the association between the stroke and the office visit was no higher in patients who seek the care of a chiropractor than in patients who seek the care of a general physician.
Haldeman still powers on for the profession when there is need, it seems...
Chiropractic and Stroke Risk: Setting the Record Straight
A groundbreaking study on vertebral artery dissection (VAD) and stroke following chiropractic office visits is pending publication in Spine and the European Spine Journal. The study, conducted as part of the Bone and Joint Decade 2000-2010 Task Force on Neck Pain and Its Associated Disorders, looked at the association between chiropractic office visits and the incidence of vertebral artery strokes. “Current research suggests that dissections are probably multifactorial in origin,” said Task Force President Scott Haldeman, DC, MD, PhD. “They appear to occur in a person with a genetic predisposition to arterial dissection. They also appear to require a second factor such as viral infection or possibly estrogen.
They can then be triggered by a minor head movement, including activities of daily living, an adjustment or an examination of the neck.”
According to the study authors, their findings suggest that the risk of suffering a stroke following a chiropractic treatment might be due to the fact that a VAD is already in progress prior to the chiropractic adjustment. The dissection results in neck pain that brings the patient to the chiropractor’s office seeking relief.
The authors also documented only a handful of stroke cases following chiropractic cervical manipulation in a massive study population spanning nearly 100,000,000 person-years. Even more impressive, the data suggest that while spinal manipulation may increase the risk of an embolism in those with a VAD in progress, which can then lead to a stroke, the association between the stroke and the office visit was no higher in patients who seek the care of a chiropractor than in patients who seek the care of a general physician.
The findings, released confidentially at the May WFC Biennial Congress in Portugal, were presented on Aug. 18 in Orlando, Fla., to attendees of the Florida Chiropractic Association’s National Convention & Expo. Dr. Haldeman, Eric Hurwitz, DC, PhD (a member of the task force secretariat), and Linda Carroll, PhD (task force co-scientific secretary) interpreted the study results for session attendees during a panel session.
From a chiropractic perspective, the study offers important data to explain the longstanding contention that chiropractic cervical manipulation causes vertebral artery dissections. Organizations such as the Chiropractic Stroke Victims Awareness Group, headquartered in Connecticut, have based much of their anti-chiropractic campaign on misunder standing of the mechanisms that result in a stroke that can occur after a chiropractic office visit. The study also should help chiropractors explain the association when involved in litigation brought about when a chiropractic patient suffers a stroke following cervical manipulation.
The Bone and Joint Decade Task Force on Neck Pain was created to complete a best-evidence synthesis on neck pain and associated disorders. The mandate of the task force was to present the current state of the scientific literature on this topic and to make clinical and research recommendations related to the management of such conditions.
DC will feature a comprehensive review of the VAD/stroke study when it is published in Spine and the European Spine Journal.
Written by DC Staff
Dynamic Chiropractic - September 24, 2007, Volume 25, Issue 20
Page printed from:
http://www.chiroweb.com/archives/25/20/05.html
-=-=-=
Original Articles
The Effect of Combining Manual Therapy with Exercise on the Respiratory Function
of Normal Individuals: A Randomized Control Trial
Roger M. Engel, Subramanyam Vemulpad
pages 509-513
http://www.jmptonline.org/article/PIIS0161475407002084/abstract
-=-=-
Chiropractic Spinal Manipulation for Low Back Pain of Pregnancy: A
Retrospective Case Series
Anthony J. Lisi, DC
Journal of Midwifery & Womens Health
January 2006;51:e7-10.
ABSTRACT
Low back pain is a common complaint in pregnancy, with a reported prevalence
of 57% to 69% and incidence of 61%. Although such pain can result in
significant disability, it has been shown that as few as 32% of women report
symptoms to their prenatal provider, and only 25% of providers recommend treatment.
Chiropractors sometimes manage low back pain in pregnant women; however,
scarce data exist regarding such treatment.
This retrospective case series was undertaken to describe the results of a group of pregnant women with low back pain who underwent chiropractic treatment including spinal manipulation.
Seventeen cases met all inclusion criteria. The overall group average
Numerical Rating Scale pain score decreased from 5.9 (range 2-10) at initial
presentation to 1.5 (range 0?5) at termination of care. Sixteen of 17 (94.1%) cases
demonstrated clinically important improvement. The average time to initial
clinically important pain relief was 4.5 (range 0-13) days after initial
presentation, and the average number of visits undergone up to that point was 1.8
(range 1-5).
No adverse effects were reported in any of the 17 cases. The results suggest
that chiropractic treatment was safe in these cases and support the
hypothesis that it may be effective for reducing pain intensity.
from Dr Sears MD
Recent reports suggest that cell phones may cause cancer. Yet 1.5 billion people in the world use them. What’s the truth?
In today’s Health Alert, we’ll look at the latest research on cell phones and their dark side -- one that goes far beyond the cancer connection.
Cooking Your Brain with Microwaves
Cell phones contain power transmitters near the phone’s antenna. The phone sends out (even in standby) an encoded signal through the antenna that a receiver in a cell phone tower picks up. This encoded signal contains electromagnetic radiation, specifically RF radiation (radio frequency). In addition to traveling to the mobile receiver, RF travels through your skull and into your brain.
Depending on how close the cell phone antenna is to your head, studies show that as much as 60% of the microwave radiation penetrates your skull, reaching an inch and a half into your brain.
While the FDA claims, “the available scientific evidence does not demonstrate any adverse health effects associated with the use of mobile phones” the research is accumulating to show exactly the opposite.
For instance, we know that cell phone RF exposure makes the temperature in exposed tissues rise; we call this the “thermal effect.” Body tissues heat up by the same mechanism that heats food in your microwave. This increases free radical formation and oxidative damage to DNA, damage linked to aging, cancer and impaired brain function.
A four-year study in seven European countries found mobile phone radiation harms human cells and irreparably damages DNA. A ten-year study in Sweden directly linked mobile phone use with a rise in tumors. In that study, heavy mobile phone users were twice as likely to suffer cancerous and benign tumors in the ear and the brain. These tumors were also four times as common on the side of the head where the user held the phone.
Studies are also linking RF radiation from cell phones to other health problems, including higher blood pressure, infertility and Alzheimer’s disease. A German study found mobile phone use during a 35-minute call increases resting blood pressure between 5 and 10mm.
How to Protect Yourself from Cell Phone Radiation
You should attempt to minimize your exposure to RF radiation. First, you should find out the level of RF emissions of your cell phone. If you have a higher rating, think about replacing it with a phone with a lower rating. They rate cell phone emissions in specific absorption rates (SAR). They range from 0.5 to 1.6 W/kg (Watts of power absorbed per kilogram of body tissue).
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD
-=-=-=-=-=
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics
Volume 30, Issue 7, September 2007, Pages 514-521
Copyright © 2007 Published by Mosby, Inc.
Interexaminer Reliability of the Prone Leg Length Analysis Procedure
Michael Schneider DCa, Corresponding Author Contact Information, E-mail The Corresponding Author, Robert Homonai DCb, Brian Moreland DCb and Anthony Delitto PhD, PTc
aPrivate practice, Spine and Pain Care Center, Pittsburgh, Pa
bPrivate practice, Fay West Chiropractic Health Center, Mount Pleasant, Pa
cChair, Department of Physical Therapy, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa
Received 8 September 2006; revised 8 March 2007. Available online 14 September 2007.
Abstract
Objective
The purpose of this study was to perform an interexaminer reliability evaluation of the prone leg length analysis procedure.
Methods
Two chiropractors each examined a series of 45 patients with a history of low back pain. Patients were in the prone position, with the knees in both extended and flexed positions, and with the head rotated right and left. The clinicians were asked to determine the side of the short leg with knees extended and if a change in leg length occurred with head rotation or when the knees were flexed. They were also asked to visually judge the amount of leg length differential by categorizing the difference as either less than 0.25, 0.25 to 0.5, 0.5 to 0.75, or more than 0.75 in. The head rotation portion of the test was performed only with patients (n = 22) in whom the leg length differential was determined to be less than 0.25 in.
Results
κ statistics and frequency distributions were calculated for each of the respective observations. Reliability of determining the side of the short leg with knees extended was good at 82% agreement (κ = 0.65) but fair for determining the amount of leg length difference at 67% agreement (κ = 0.28). Reliability of the head rotation testing procedure was extremely poor, with only 50% and 45% agreement about the observed change in leg length with the head rotated left and right, respectively (κ = 0.04, κ = −0.195). There was no significant correlation found between the side of reported pain by the patient and the side of the short leg as noted by either clinician (χ2 = 0.55, P = .91, and χ2 = 1.55, P = .67). All of the patients (100%) were judged to have a leg length difference by both clinicians. When the knees were flexed, there was 93% agreement that the short leg became longer (43/45 cases), with no reported cases of the short leg getting shorter. Calculation of κ statistics was confounded for these last 2 observations because of extremely high prevalence bias.
Conclusions
The results indicate that 2 clinicians show good reliability in determining the side of the short leg in the prone position with knees extended but show poor reliability when determining the precise amount of that leg length difference. The head rotation test for assessing changes in leg length was unreliable in this sample of patients. There does not appear to be any correlation between the side of pain noted by the patient and the side of the short leg as observed by the clinicians; all 45 patients in this sample were found to have a short leg by both clinicians.
This study was approved by the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pa, institutional review board, IRB no. 0501147.
Corresponding Author Contact InformationSubmit requests for reprints to: Michael Schneider, DC, 1720 Washington Road, Suite 201, Pittsburgh, PA 15241, USA
-=-=-=-=-
Boy wakes up with posh accent after brain surgery
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/boy-wakes-up-with-posh-accent-after-brain-surgery/2007/09/18/1189881506532.html
I guess it might have potential in some areas of the outback or Georgia :-)
-=-=-=-
Rating Your Pain from 0 to 10 Might Not Help Your Doctor
September 17, 2007 | INDIANAPOLIS -The most commonly used measure for pain screening may only be modestly accurate, according to researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine and the University of North Carolina.
In a study that appears in the October issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine, they evaluate the usefulness of a scale that asks patients in primary care to rate their current pain from 0 (no pain) to 10 (worst pain).
Universal pain screening is an increasingly common practice, largely because of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organization’s requirement that accredited hospitals and clinics routinely assess all patients for pain. JCAHO is the nation’s predominant standards-setting and accrediting body in health care.
http://healthorbit.ca/login1.asp?msg=1&neidws=012170907
-=-=-=-=-
Garlic vs. Brain Cancer
CHARLESTON -- Numerous studies provide evidence that garlic and its organo-sulfur compounds are effective inhibitors of the cancer process, most notably for prostate and stomach cancers.
Free Preview http://healthorbit.ca/login1.asp?msg=1&neidws=053170907
-=-=-=-
sent this out once before
you may have ignored it
quote from the article:
the association between the stroke and the office visit was no higher in patients who seek the care of a chiropractor than in patients who seek the care of a general physician.
Haldeman still powers on for the profession when there is need, it seems...
Chiropractic and Stroke Risk: Setting the Record Straight
A groundbreaking study on vertebral artery dissection (VAD) and stroke following chiropractic office visits is pending publication in Spine and the European Spine Journal. The study, conducted as part of the Bone and Joint Decade 2000-2010 Task Force on Neck Pain and Its Associated Disorders, looked at the association between chiropractic office visits and the incidence of vertebral artery strokes. “Current research suggests that dissections are probably multifactorial in origin,” said Task Force President Scott Haldeman, DC, MD, PhD. “They appear to occur in a person with a genetic predisposition to arterial dissection. They also appear to require a second factor such as viral infection or possibly estrogen.
They can then be triggered by a minor head movement, including activities of daily living, an adjustment or an examination of the neck.”
According to the study authors, their findings suggest that the risk of suffering a stroke following a chiropractic treatment might be due to the fact that a VAD is already in progress prior to the chiropractic adjustment. The dissection results in neck pain that brings the patient to the chiropractor’s office seeking relief.
The authors also documented only a handful of stroke cases following chiropractic cervical manipulation in a massive study population spanning nearly 100,000,000 person-years. Even more impressive, the data suggest that while spinal manipulation may increase the risk of an embolism in those with a VAD in progress, which can then lead to a stroke, the association between the stroke and the office visit was no higher in patients who seek the care of a chiropractor than in patients who seek the care of a general physician.
The findings, released confidentially at the May WFC Biennial Congress in Portugal, were presented on Aug. 18 in Orlando, Fla., to attendees of the Florida Chiropractic Association’s National Convention & Expo. Dr. Haldeman, Eric Hurwitz, DC, PhD (a member of the task force secretariat), and Linda Carroll, PhD (task force co-scientific secretary) interpreted the study results for session attendees during a panel session.
From a chiropractic perspective, the study offers important data to explain the longstanding contention that chiropractic cervical manipulation causes vertebral artery dissections. Organizations such as the Chiropractic Stroke Victims Awareness Group, headquartered in Connecticut, have based much of their anti-chiropractic campaign on misunder standing of the mechanisms that result in a stroke that can occur after a chiropractic office visit. The study also should help chiropractors explain the association when involved in litigation brought about when a chiropractic patient suffers a stroke following cervical manipulation.
The Bone and Joint Decade Task Force on Neck Pain was created to complete a best-evidence synthesis on neck pain and associated disorders. The mandate of the task force was to present the current state of the scientific literature on this topic and to make clinical and research recommendations related to the management of such conditions.
DC will feature a comprehensive review of the VAD/stroke study when it is published in Spine and the European Spine Journal.
Written by DC Staff
Dynamic Chiropractic - September 24, 2007, Volume 25, Issue 20
Page printed from:
http://www.chiroweb.com/archives/25/20/05.html
-=-=-=
Original Articles
The Effect of Combining Manual Therapy with Exercise on the Respiratory Function
of Normal Individuals: A Randomized Control Trial
Roger M. Engel, Subramanyam Vemulpad
pages 509-513
http://www.jmptonline.org/article/PIIS0161475407002084/abstract
-=-=-
Chiropractic Spinal Manipulation for Low Back Pain of Pregnancy: A
Retrospective Case Series
Anthony J. Lisi, DC
Journal of Midwifery & Womens Health
January 2006;51:e7-10.
ABSTRACT
Low back pain is a common complaint in pregnancy, with a reported prevalence
of 57% to 69% and incidence of 61%. Although such pain can result in
significant disability, it has been shown that as few as 32% of women report
symptoms to their prenatal provider, and only 25% of providers recommend treatment.
Chiropractors sometimes manage low back pain in pregnant women; however,
scarce data exist regarding such treatment.
This retrospective case series was undertaken to describe the results of a group of pregnant women with low back pain who underwent chiropractic treatment including spinal manipulation.
Seventeen cases met all inclusion criteria. The overall group average
Numerical Rating Scale pain score decreased from 5.9 (range 2-10) at initial
presentation to 1.5 (range 0?5) at termination of care. Sixteen of 17 (94.1%) cases
demonstrated clinically important improvement. The average time to initial
clinically important pain relief was 4.5 (range 0-13) days after initial
presentation, and the average number of visits undergone up to that point was 1.8
(range 1-5).
No adverse effects were reported in any of the 17 cases. The results suggest
that chiropractic treatment was safe in these cases and support the
hypothesis that it may be effective for reducing pain intensity.
|
Issue 11
13/09/07 19:55
Welcome to Issue 11
ORIGINAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATION
Effect of low-fat, fermented milk enriched with plant sterols on serum lipid profile and oxidative stress in moderate hypercholesterolemia1,2,3
Boris Hansel, et al.
Background: Plant sterol (PS)-enriched foods have been shown to reduce plasma LDL-cholesterol concentrations. In most studies, however, PSs were incorporated into food products of high fat content.
Objective: We examined the effect of daily consumption of PS-supplemented low-fat fermented milk (FM) on the plasma lipid profile and on systemic oxidative stress in hypercholesterolemic subjects.
Design: Hypercholesterolemic subjects (LDL-cholesterol concentrations 130 and 190 mg/dL; n = 194) consumed 2 low-fat portions of FM in the same meal daily for 6 wk. Subjects were randomly assigned to 2 groups: low-fat FM enriched with 0.8 g PS ester per portion or control FM. Plasma concentrations of lipids, oxidized LDL, ß-carotene, ß-sitosterol, campesterol, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein were measured during the trial.
Results: Plasma LDL-cholesterol concentrations were reduced by 9.5% and 7.8% after 3 and 6 wk, respectively, in the 1.6-g/d PS group compared with the control group, whereas plasma triacylglycerol and HDL-cholesterol concentrations were not significantly affected. In addition, there were no significant changes in serum ß-carotene on normalization to LDL cholesterol during the study period in both groups, whereas plasma concentrations of oxidized LDL were reduced significantly in the PS group compared with the control group (–1.73 compared with 1.40 U/L, respectively; P < 0.05). Plasma sitosterol concentrations were increased by 35% (P < 0.001 compared with control); however, campesterol concentrations did not change during the study period.
Conclusion: Daily consumption of 1.6 g PS in low-fat FM efficiently lowers LDL cholesterol in subjects with moderate hypercholesterolemia without deleterious effects on biomarkers of oxidative stress.
-=-=-=-
THis might be a big waste of your time.
But:
Can you imagine why people think chiropractors are crazy?
No? Then watch this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3puqbnbJwSk
To think it is out in the general public....
Try to detect the subtle insanity, while you are at it...
-=-=-=
If you have the time and the interest, I think this little video is marvellous of a shadow pupetteer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGBJwcEEt7c
-=-=-=
maybe George should have brought Laura to Australia and seen a good chiropractor here :-)
WASHINGTON — Laura Bush will undergo surgery on Saturday to relieve pain from pinched nerves in her neck, her press secretary said Friday.
The problem prevented the first lady from accompanying President Bush to Australia this week for the annual meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Sydney.
Bush will be in Australia on Saturday, returning to Washington around dawn Sunday.
Spokeswoman Sally McDonough said Mrs. Bush was having elective outpatient surgery. She said the physician would use a minimally invasive procedure to take pressure off the nerve by enlarging the passageway where the nerve sits near the spinal column.
The first lady has been in discomfort for some time. She rubbed her right arm repeatedly during a meeting with reporters on Wednesday.
Mrs. Bush injured a nerve in her neck and shoulder earlier this year while hiking and has been treated with physical therapy since, McDonough said late last month. Her doctors strongly advised her to not travel overseas, saying such long flights could aggravate the problem and cause complications.
When the physical therapy did not work, doctors suggested surgery.
McDonough would not reveal where the surgery would be performed, saying that Mrs. Bush is a private citizen, not an elected official.
-=-=-=-=
AGAIN THE RUBBISH
http://www.atlasprofilax.ch/
This could be the most dangerous thing facing our profession at this point.
I am going to ask WFC if they are acting on it.
Get your local chiro boards to investigate it.
A patient sent it to me.
I raised awareness on it as much as a year ago.
Let me know if you have had any feedback on regulating this rubbish.
These nincompoops think that just because you can change a light bulb, you should be an electrician.
I never thought I'd see the day when atlas correction was performed in a beauty parlor.....ugh!
I just sent this email to a local propagator of this farce: NO RESPONSE to date.
Dear Gina's Human Tuning:
RE:
your web site
A concerned patient of mine alerted me to your latest "miracle" service, via your PDF document (attached).
I never thought I would see the day that adjusting the Human Atlas Bone was done in a beauty salon. Many of my beauty-therapy patients, I am sure, would be as disgusted as I.
Unless, of course, it is a (5 year undergrad, 1 year postgrad, registered with health dept.) chiropractor offering this service? If so, then I retract my statement with an unconditional apology.
Nevertheless, the information contained in your brochure (attached) is quiet incorrect. According to the trade practices act you must not provide information to the public which may cause inappropriate treatment or blatantly deceive. Most atlas are not "completely dislocated (luxated) in most humans?"
In my opinion, the only person who might believe this is the gullible, or untrained in the art, science and philosophy of atlas correction. An idiot may do likewise.
In my opinion, The only person who might ever state this should not be trusted with the truth.
Yours with appropriate professional sensibilities;
Joseph J. Ierano BSc DC BCAO MACC
Board Certified Atlas Orthogonist
Director: Atlas Orthogonal Australia Ltd
be specific
www.atlasorthogonal.com.au
-=--=
amazing when we have to actually regard that big star in the sky as being of benefit?
oh well, no more subterranean real estate dreams....
Sunshine: It does you more good than harm
06 September 2007
Think of sunshine and you're likely to think of skin cancer. But the sun's rays – the main source of vitamin D – are vital for our health and wellbeing, and do far more good than harm.
Even when we're developing in the womb, a vitamin D deficiency in the mother can cause us growth problems, skeletal deformities, and an increase in the risk of hip fractures later on.
When we grow up, a vitamin D deficiency can trigger osteoporosis, muscle weakness, fractures, common cancers, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases, and heart problems.
Without the vitamin, only about 10 per cent of dietary calcium and 60 per cent of phosphorus gets absorbed by the body, and these are nutrients that are vital for bone mineral density.
People who live at high altitudes, where the sun's rays fall at such an angle that they cannot produce adequate amounts of vitamin D, are more likely to develop Hodgkin's lymphoma, and cancers such as colon, pancreatic, prostate, ovarian and breast.
Dr Michael Hollick, from the Boston University School of Medicine, recommends that the recommended daily intake of vitamin D should be increased to 1000 IUs.
He believes the best strategy to achieve this is a combined one of sunshine – but only so that it slightly reddens the skin – more oily fish in our diet, and supplements.
(Source: New England Journal of Medicine, 2007; 357: 266-81).
=-=-=-=-=-
HEALTH & FITNESS
Choice myths over exercise
Ever heard that exercising three times a week was enough? Don't believe all you hear.
Ever heard that exercising three times a week was enough? Or that stretching before training warms muscles and reduces injury?
Don't believe all you hear, consumer group Choice has warned in a new report.
They are all common exercising myths propagated by eager fitness instructors or lax health groups who haven't got all the facts. Among its 10 exercise myths, Choice found tri-weekly sessions were not enough.
According to the national physical activity guidelines, Australians should be exercising for a brief period every day.
Choice also debunked the popular myth that stretching before activity was beneficial, given most studies are mixed on its effect - from helping, to hindering, to not doing anything.
Choice spokesman Christopher Zinn said there were many common misconceptions, many of which related to the difference between burning fat and burning calories.
=-=-=-=-=-
Got some time to watch a video...history...
want to see a chiropractic legend?
Dr. Herb Reaver, "most imprisoned chiropractor" ever
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfC1w8mkXXs
very nice
thanks for this donald
-=-=-=-
Not sure we need to cut out ALL grains, but here is a useful guide
Here’s the Best Tool to Improve Your Carbohydrate
The body converts all carbohydrates into glucose, or blood sugar. In order to digest blood sugar, the pancreas kicks into gear, producing the hormone insulin to make the sugar available to cells for metabolism.
Carbohydrates vary in how fast they turn into sugar in the body. The faster they breakdown, the higher the glycemic index (GI) score.
As you can see from the graph above, foods with a high GI spike your blood sugar very quickly – usually within the first 30 to 45 minutes after eating them. But the drop off is equally rapid and dramatic. That’s why you’ll feel tired and slow after the buzz of a high-carb meal wears off.
Here’s a table ranking some of the most common carbohydrates in the American diet:
Common Food Glycemic Index
High
95% Corn bread
80-90% Corn flakes, carrots, maltose, honey, white potatoes
70-79% Whole-grain bread, millet, white rice, new potatoes
Moderate
60-69% White bread, shredded wheat, bananas, raisins, Mars Bars
50-59% Spaghetti, corn, whole cereals, peas, yams, potato chips
40-49% Oatmeal, sweet potatoes, navy beans, oranges, orange juice
Low
30-39% Peaches, cherries, blueberries, apples, ice cream, milk
20-29% Kidney beans, lentils, fructose
10-19% Soybeans, peanuts
0-10% Most green vegetables
As you can see, starches are the chief culprits. They not only produce more blood sugar; they result in a more prolonged elevation in blood sugar and insulin than simple sugars.
The starchiest foods, like cornbread and potatoes, have glycemic ratings close to 100. Meanwhile, sweet foods like cherries only score 22. In other words, the relationship between sweetness and the glycemic rating has been misrepresented.
How does this work? All grains must be processed before humans can digest them. Everything from lasagna, bread, cookies, pizza, spaghetti, crackers and chips are heavy in starches. These foods cause an unnatural surge in insulin levels into the blood. This is what ultimately does the most harm. Too much insulin leads to inflammation, heart disease and excess fat deposition. And ultimately, it paradoxically robs you of energy.
Now we know it is also associated with age-related vision loss by contributing to the onset of AMD.
Here are a few simple tips to bear in mind before you dig into a high-carb meal:
Don’t eat grains, period. This includes “healthy whole grains.” Cereals are no more natural to your diet than the cardboard box with all that natural mother nature’s goodness pasted all over it.
Avoid potatoes and other tubers that grow below ground, like parsnips and sweet potatoes.
Eat vegetables that grow above ground.
Don’t eat corn. You are best not to classify it as a vegetable – it’s a grain.
Skip “low-fat” processed foods altogether.
Avoid container foods with added sweeteners especially high-fructose corn syrup. You’ll find it in many foods and drinks and it’s the absolute worse.
Focus on high-fiber foods. Fiber slows digestion, so the sugar in fiber-rich foods enters you bloodstream more slowly. You don’t need grains for fiber. The fiber in fruits and vegetables is best.
- received via:
http://www.alsearsmd.com/content/index.php?id=113
-=-=-=-
Palmer Clinic Tour...New?
Now when I was at Palmer a decade ago, I was impressed by my well-rounded education. I was grateful for the physical examination expertise, as well as the upper cervical specific, and all the other diverse range of manual technique.
Leave the place for 10 years and what happens?
Is this report biased towards physiotherapy? OR is it a reflection of reality.
Maybe my friends who are over there can answer this.
Meanwhile, take a look
YouTube - Palmer Clinic Tour
The adjustment is blatantly absent.
Thanks Dr Sacha Samerski for this
-=-=-=-=-=-
Ever wondered what the "wet specimen" was?
Look at this nice, brief video by Dr Stanley Bolton.
A living chiropractic legend.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaZMtJdKeQY&NR=1
-=-=-=-
Conclusion says : Lowering cholesterol with drugs involves raising cancer risk.
Natural methods may yet prevail unless risk outweighs benefits, just like any drug.
CLINICAL RESEARCH: STATINS AND TOXICITY
Effect of the Magnitude of Lipid Lowering on Risk of Elevated Liver Enzymes, Rhabdomyolysis, and Cancer
Insights From Large Randomized Statin Trials
Alawi A. Alsheikh-Ali, MD, Prasad V. Maddukuri, MD, Hui Han, MD and Richard H. Karas, MD, PhD1,*
Molecular Cardiology Research Institute and Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Tufts-New England Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts.
Manuscript received February 14, 2007; accepted February 21, 2007.
* Reprint requests and correspondence: Dr. Richard H. Karas, Molecular Cardiology Research Institute, Box #80, Tufts-New England Medical Center, 750 Washington Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02111. (Email: rkaras@tufts-nemc.org).
Objectives: We sought to assess the relationship between the magnitude of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) lowering and rates of elevated liver enzymes, rhabdomyolysis, and cancer.
Background: Although it is often assumed that statin-associated adverse events are proportional to LDL-C reduction, that assumption has not been validated.
Methods: Adverse events reported in large prospective randomized statin trials were evaluated. The relationship between LDL-C reduction and rates of elevated liver enzymes, rhabdomyolysis, and cancer per 100,000 person-years was assessed using weighted univariate regression.
Results: In 23 statin treatment arms with 309,506 person-years of follow-up, there was no significant relationship between percent LDL-C lowering and rates of elevated liver enzymes (R2 <0.001, p = 0.91) or rhabdomyolysis (R2 = 0.05, p = 0.16). Similar results were obtained when absolute LDL-C reduction or achieved LDL-C levels were considered. In contrast, for any 10% LDL-C reduction, rates of elevated liver enzymes increased significantly with higher statin doses. Additional analyses demonstrated a significant inverse association between cancer incidence and achieved LDL-C levels (R2 = 0.43, p = 0.009), whereas no such association was demonstrated with percent LDL-C reduction (R2 = 0.09, p = 0.92) or absolute LDL-C reduction (R2 = 0.05, p = 0.23).
Conclusions: Risk of statin-associated elevated liver enzymes or rhabdomyolysis is not related to the magnitude of LDL-C lowering. However, the risk of cancer is significantly associated with lower achieved LDL-C levels. These findings suggest that drug- and dose-specific effects are more important determinants of liver and muscle toxicity than magnitude of LDL-C lowering. Furthermore, the cardiovascular benefits of low achieved levels of LDL-C may in part be offset by an increased risk of cancer.
-=-=-=-
More talk about clearing those arteries.
If you are interested in hopeful, real outcomes, watch this:
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/561806_print
you will have to login, I think, but this accompanies the video:
Although heart disease is still the leading cause of death in the United States for men and for women, it can be prevented and even reversed. In my 21-year Cleveland Clinic nutritional study,[1] I arrested and reversed advanced coronary artery disease in patients who had already undergone bypasses and angioplasties; some had even been told by their cardiologist that they had less than a year to live.
This study builds from epidemiological evidence in plant-based cultures, such as rural China, the Papua Highlanders, central Africa, and the Tarahumara Indians, where the inhabitants are virtually free of coronary disease.
The goal was for patients to achieve and maintain a total cholesterol less than 150 mg/dL and an LDL-cholesterol less than 80 mg/dL through plant-based nutrition. At this cholesterol level, the body does not deposit fat and cholesterol into arteries.
Results were published at 5, 12, and 16 years, and updated beyond 20 years in the book.[1-4] Compliant patients' angina diminished and largely disappeared; they achieved and maintained cholesterol goals; and angiographic evidence showed their disease had selectively reversed. Most importantly, they survived.
My recent book, Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease, updates the study beyond 21 years, making it the longest of its type. Those patients told by expert cardiologists 20 years ago that they had less than a year to live who are alive and well in 2007 are a particularly compelling story.
Patients are empowered when they know they can control their disease, rather than rely on risky expensive inconsistent drugs, stents, or bypasses. Patients can maintain profound lifestyle changes when they recognize huge benefits.
Plant-based nutrition can eliminate some diseases. This is a clear message medicine must embrace and share with the public.
That's my opinion. I'm Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., Preventive Medicine Consultant, Cleveland Clinic.
-=-=-=-
I like this.
Get your lungs pumping for a short time for big benefits.
From Dr Al Sears:
To explore my archive of over 400 articles, go to www.alsearmsd.com.
Al Sears, MD
12794 Forest Hill Blvd., Suite 16
Wellington, FL 33414
Dear Joe,
Finally, the old theories of aerobic training are crumbling under the weight of new evidence. At the center of the breakthrough is lactic acid. You've probably heard of it, especially if you've ever had a coach or a trainer. Conventional wisdom said you had to avoid lactic acid because its build up in your muscles caused pain, fatigue and the soreness you feel after "over doing it".
We were told to exercise aerobically and not cross the dreaded lactic threshold. To do so would mean an-aerobic (without oxygen) exercise, which created the damaging lactic acid. That sparked the aerobics craze that reached its peak in the 1980's.
But this theory never jived with my real world experience of the benefits of exceeding your aerobic threshold (which would build lots of the dreaded lactic acid.) It turns out lactic acid is not only not your enemy. To the contrary, it's fuel for your muscles.
Dr. George Brooks from the University of California at Berkeley recently found that lactic acid is taken up and burned for energy by your mitochondria – the energy factories in your muscle cells.1 What's more, it can not create the after workout soreness because it is rapidly removed as you burn it for fuel. In other words, it's long gone before you get sore.
A high output, anaerobic workout is exactly what your body needs to increase your lungpower, build reserve capacity in your heart and melt away your fat stores.
To move your workout into the anaerobic range, the key feature I use is this: Create an "oxygen debt." Simply exercise at a pace you can't sustain as in a short sprint. Ask your lungs for more oxygen than they can provide. The difference between the oxygen you need and the oxygen you get is your oxygen debt. This will cause you to pant and continue to breathe hard even after you've stopped the sprint until you replace the oxygen you're lacking.
Let's say you pedal as fast as you can on a bike for 15 seconds. When you stop, you continue to pant. This is the kind of high-output challenge I'm talking about. You have reached a supra-aerobic zone. This is very different from doing an aerobic workout for 45 minutes.
Aerobic exercise is low to medium output held for an extended period. Anaerobic or supra-aerobic exercise is high output, but short in duration. Why is this important? For one thing, it restores an element of your native environment. Our ancestors lived in a world where our food fought back. Predators attacked without notice. They had to run or fight – fast and hard. These short bursts of high-output activity fine tuned our ancient ancestors and kept them fit. We still have the same physiology.
This is the basis for my PACE® program. I began using most of this program 25 years ago. I'm delighted to see University-based science catching up to the idea. More recently, I added progressivity to increase the benefits.
By making small changes in the same direction, your workouts can produce remarkable results. And you only need 12 minutes to achieve the desired effect.
In a matter of weeks, you can:
Lose pounds of belly fat
Build functional new muscle
Reverse heart disease
Build energy reserves available on demand
Strengthen your immune system
Reverse many of the changes of aging.
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD
1 Kolata G. Lactic Acid is Not Muscle's Foe, It's Fuel. The New York Times. May 16, 2006
ORIGINAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATION
Effect of low-fat, fermented milk enriched with plant sterols on serum lipid profile and oxidative stress in moderate hypercholesterolemia1,2,3
Boris Hansel, et al.
Background: Plant sterol (PS)-enriched foods have been shown to reduce plasma LDL-cholesterol concentrations. In most studies, however, PSs were incorporated into food products of high fat content.
Objective: We examined the effect of daily consumption of PS-supplemented low-fat fermented milk (FM) on the plasma lipid profile and on systemic oxidative stress in hypercholesterolemic subjects.
Design: Hypercholesterolemic subjects (LDL-cholesterol concentrations 130 and 190 mg/dL; n = 194) consumed 2 low-fat portions of FM in the same meal daily for 6 wk. Subjects were randomly assigned to 2 groups: low-fat FM enriched with 0.8 g PS ester per portion or control FM. Plasma concentrations of lipids, oxidized LDL, ß-carotene, ß-sitosterol, campesterol, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein were measured during the trial.
Results: Plasma LDL-cholesterol concentrations were reduced by 9.5% and 7.8% after 3 and 6 wk, respectively, in the 1.6-g/d PS group compared with the control group, whereas plasma triacylglycerol and HDL-cholesterol concentrations were not significantly affected. In addition, there were no significant changes in serum ß-carotene on normalization to LDL cholesterol during the study period in both groups, whereas plasma concentrations of oxidized LDL were reduced significantly in the PS group compared with the control group (–1.73 compared with 1.40 U/L, respectively; P < 0.05). Plasma sitosterol concentrations were increased by 35% (P < 0.001 compared with control); however, campesterol concentrations did not change during the study period.
Conclusion: Daily consumption of 1.6 g PS in low-fat FM efficiently lowers LDL cholesterol in subjects with moderate hypercholesterolemia without deleterious effects on biomarkers of oxidative stress.
-=-=-=-
THis might be a big waste of your time.
But:
Can you imagine why people think chiropractors are crazy?
No? Then watch this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3puqbnbJwSk
To think it is out in the general public....
Try to detect the subtle insanity, while you are at it...
-=-=-=
If you have the time and the interest, I think this little video is marvellous of a shadow pupetteer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGBJwcEEt7c
-=-=-=
maybe George should have brought Laura to Australia and seen a good chiropractor here :-)
WASHINGTON — Laura Bush will undergo surgery on Saturday to relieve pain from pinched nerves in her neck, her press secretary said Friday.
The problem prevented the first lady from accompanying President Bush to Australia this week for the annual meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Sydney.
Bush will be in Australia on Saturday, returning to Washington around dawn Sunday.
Spokeswoman Sally McDonough said Mrs. Bush was having elective outpatient surgery. She said the physician would use a minimally invasive procedure to take pressure off the nerve by enlarging the passageway where the nerve sits near the spinal column.
The first lady has been in discomfort for some time. She rubbed her right arm repeatedly during a meeting with reporters on Wednesday.
Mrs. Bush injured a nerve in her neck and shoulder earlier this year while hiking and has been treated with physical therapy since, McDonough said late last month. Her doctors strongly advised her to not travel overseas, saying such long flights could aggravate the problem and cause complications.
When the physical therapy did not work, doctors suggested surgery.
McDonough would not reveal where the surgery would be performed, saying that Mrs. Bush is a private citizen, not an elected official.
-=-=-=-=
AGAIN THE RUBBISH
http://www.atlasprofilax.ch/
This could be the most dangerous thing facing our profession at this point.
I am going to ask WFC if they are acting on it.
Get your local chiro boards to investigate it.
A patient sent it to me.
I raised awareness on it as much as a year ago.
Let me know if you have had any feedback on regulating this rubbish.
These nincompoops think that just because you can change a light bulb, you should be an electrician.
I never thought I'd see the day when atlas correction was performed in a beauty parlor.....ugh!
I just sent this email to a local propagator of this farce: NO RESPONSE to date.
Dear Gina's Human Tuning:
RE:
your web site
A concerned patient of mine alerted me to your latest "miracle" service, via your PDF document (attached).
I never thought I would see the day that adjusting the Human Atlas Bone was done in a beauty salon. Many of my beauty-therapy patients, I am sure, would be as disgusted as I.
Unless, of course, it is a (5 year undergrad, 1 year postgrad, registered with health dept.) chiropractor offering this service? If so, then I retract my statement with an unconditional apology.
Nevertheless, the information contained in your brochure (attached) is quiet incorrect. According to the trade practices act you must not provide information to the public which may cause inappropriate treatment or blatantly deceive. Most atlas are not "completely dislocated (luxated) in most humans?"
In my opinion, the only person who might believe this is the gullible, or untrained in the art, science and philosophy of atlas correction. An idiot may do likewise.
In my opinion, The only person who might ever state this should not be trusted with the truth.
Yours with appropriate professional sensibilities;
Joseph J. Ierano BSc DC BCAO MACC
Board Certified Atlas Orthogonist
Director: Atlas Orthogonal Australia Ltd
be specific
www.atlasorthogonal.com.au
-=--=
amazing when we have to actually regard that big star in the sky as being of benefit?
oh well, no more subterranean real estate dreams....
Sunshine: It does you more good than harm
06 September 2007
Think of sunshine and you're likely to think of skin cancer. But the sun's rays – the main source of vitamin D – are vital for our health and wellbeing, and do far more good than harm.
Even when we're developing in the womb, a vitamin D deficiency in the mother can cause us growth problems, skeletal deformities, and an increase in the risk of hip fractures later on.
When we grow up, a vitamin D deficiency can trigger osteoporosis, muscle weakness, fractures, common cancers, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases, and heart problems.
Without the vitamin, only about 10 per cent of dietary calcium and 60 per cent of phosphorus gets absorbed by the body, and these are nutrients that are vital for bone mineral density.
People who live at high altitudes, where the sun's rays fall at such an angle that they cannot produce adequate amounts of vitamin D, are more likely to develop Hodgkin's lymphoma, and cancers such as colon, pancreatic, prostate, ovarian and breast.
Dr Michael Hollick, from the Boston University School of Medicine, recommends that the recommended daily intake of vitamin D should be increased to 1000 IUs.
He believes the best strategy to achieve this is a combined one of sunshine – but only so that it slightly reddens the skin – more oily fish in our diet, and supplements.
(Source: New England Journal of Medicine, 2007; 357: 266-81).
=-=-=-=-=-
HEALTH & FITNESS
Choice myths over exercise
Ever heard that exercising three times a week was enough? Don't believe all you hear.
Ever heard that exercising three times a week was enough? Or that stretching before training warms muscles and reduces injury?
Don't believe all you hear, consumer group Choice has warned in a new report.
They are all common exercising myths propagated by eager fitness instructors or lax health groups who haven't got all the facts. Among its 10 exercise myths, Choice found tri-weekly sessions were not enough.
According to the national physical activity guidelines, Australians should be exercising for a brief period every day.
Choice also debunked the popular myth that stretching before activity was beneficial, given most studies are mixed on its effect - from helping, to hindering, to not doing anything.
Choice spokesman Christopher Zinn said there were many common misconceptions, many of which related to the difference between burning fat and burning calories.
=-=-=-=-=-
Got some time to watch a video...history...
want to see a chiropractic legend?
Dr. Herb Reaver, "most imprisoned chiropractor" ever
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfC1w8mkXXs
very nice
thanks for this donald
-=-=-=-
Not sure we need to cut out ALL grains, but here is a useful guide
Here’s the Best Tool to Improve Your Carbohydrate
The body converts all carbohydrates into glucose, or blood sugar. In order to digest blood sugar, the pancreas kicks into gear, producing the hormone insulin to make the sugar available to cells for metabolism.
Carbohydrates vary in how fast they turn into sugar in the body. The faster they breakdown, the higher the glycemic index (GI) score.
As you can see from the graph above, foods with a high GI spike your blood sugar very quickly – usually within the first 30 to 45 minutes after eating them. But the drop off is equally rapid and dramatic. That’s why you’ll feel tired and slow after the buzz of a high-carb meal wears off.
Here’s a table ranking some of the most common carbohydrates in the American diet:
Common Food Glycemic Index
High
95% Corn bread
80-90% Corn flakes, carrots, maltose, honey, white potatoes
70-79% Whole-grain bread, millet, white rice, new potatoes
Moderate
60-69% White bread, shredded wheat, bananas, raisins, Mars Bars
50-59% Spaghetti, corn, whole cereals, peas, yams, potato chips
40-49% Oatmeal, sweet potatoes, navy beans, oranges, orange juice
Low
30-39% Peaches, cherries, blueberries, apples, ice cream, milk
20-29% Kidney beans, lentils, fructose
10-19% Soybeans, peanuts
0-10% Most green vegetables
As you can see, starches are the chief culprits. They not only produce more blood sugar; they result in a more prolonged elevation in blood sugar and insulin than simple sugars.
The starchiest foods, like cornbread and potatoes, have glycemic ratings close to 100. Meanwhile, sweet foods like cherries only score 22. In other words, the relationship between sweetness and the glycemic rating has been misrepresented.
How does this work? All grains must be processed before humans can digest them. Everything from lasagna, bread, cookies, pizza, spaghetti, crackers and chips are heavy in starches. These foods cause an unnatural surge in insulin levels into the blood. This is what ultimately does the most harm. Too much insulin leads to inflammation, heart disease and excess fat deposition. And ultimately, it paradoxically robs you of energy.
Now we know it is also associated with age-related vision loss by contributing to the onset of AMD.
Here are a few simple tips to bear in mind before you dig into a high-carb meal:
Don’t eat grains, period. This includes “healthy whole grains.” Cereals are no more natural to your diet than the cardboard box with all that natural mother nature’s goodness pasted all over it.
Avoid potatoes and other tubers that grow below ground, like parsnips and sweet potatoes.
Eat vegetables that grow above ground.
Don’t eat corn. You are best not to classify it as a vegetable – it’s a grain.
Skip “low-fat” processed foods altogether.
Avoid container foods with added sweeteners especially high-fructose corn syrup. You’ll find it in many foods and drinks and it’s the absolute worse.
Focus on high-fiber foods. Fiber slows digestion, so the sugar in fiber-rich foods enters you bloodstream more slowly. You don’t need grains for fiber. The fiber in fruits and vegetables is best.
- received via:
http://www.alsearsmd.com/content/index.php?id=113
-=-=-=-
Palmer Clinic Tour...New?
Now when I was at Palmer a decade ago, I was impressed by my well-rounded education. I was grateful for the physical examination expertise, as well as the upper cervical specific, and all the other diverse range of manual technique.
Leave the place for 10 years and what happens?
Is this report biased towards physiotherapy? OR is it a reflection of reality.
Maybe my friends who are over there can answer this.
Meanwhile, take a look
YouTube - Palmer Clinic Tour
The adjustment is blatantly absent.
Thanks Dr Sacha Samerski for this
-=-=-=-=-=-
Ever wondered what the "wet specimen" was?
Look at this nice, brief video by Dr Stanley Bolton.
A living chiropractic legend.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaZMtJdKeQY&NR=1
-=-=-=-
Conclusion says : Lowering cholesterol with drugs involves raising cancer risk.
Natural methods may yet prevail unless risk outweighs benefits, just like any drug.
CLINICAL RESEARCH: STATINS AND TOXICITY
Effect of the Magnitude of Lipid Lowering on Risk of Elevated Liver Enzymes, Rhabdomyolysis, and Cancer
Insights From Large Randomized Statin Trials
Alawi A. Alsheikh-Ali, MD, Prasad V. Maddukuri, MD, Hui Han, MD and Richard H. Karas, MD, PhD1,*
Molecular Cardiology Research Institute and Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Tufts-New England Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts.
Manuscript received February 14, 2007; accepted February 21, 2007.
* Reprint requests and correspondence: Dr. Richard H. Karas, Molecular Cardiology Research Institute, Box #80, Tufts-New England Medical Center, 750 Washington Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02111. (Email: rkaras@tufts-nemc.org).
Objectives: We sought to assess the relationship between the magnitude of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) lowering and rates of elevated liver enzymes, rhabdomyolysis, and cancer.
Background: Although it is often assumed that statin-associated adverse events are proportional to LDL-C reduction, that assumption has not been validated.
Methods: Adverse events reported in large prospective randomized statin trials were evaluated. The relationship between LDL-C reduction and rates of elevated liver enzymes, rhabdomyolysis, and cancer per 100,000 person-years was assessed using weighted univariate regression.
Results: In 23 statin treatment arms with 309,506 person-years of follow-up, there was no significant relationship between percent LDL-C lowering and rates of elevated liver enzymes (R2 <0.001, p = 0.91) or rhabdomyolysis (R2 = 0.05, p = 0.16). Similar results were obtained when absolute LDL-C reduction or achieved LDL-C levels were considered. In contrast, for any 10% LDL-C reduction, rates of elevated liver enzymes increased significantly with higher statin doses. Additional analyses demonstrated a significant inverse association between cancer incidence and achieved LDL-C levels (R2 = 0.43, p = 0.009), whereas no such association was demonstrated with percent LDL-C reduction (R2 = 0.09, p = 0.92) or absolute LDL-C reduction (R2 = 0.05, p = 0.23).
Conclusions: Risk of statin-associated elevated liver enzymes or rhabdomyolysis is not related to the magnitude of LDL-C lowering. However, the risk of cancer is significantly associated with lower achieved LDL-C levels. These findings suggest that drug- and dose-specific effects are more important determinants of liver and muscle toxicity than magnitude of LDL-C lowering. Furthermore, the cardiovascular benefits of low achieved levels of LDL-C may in part be offset by an increased risk of cancer.
-=-=-=-
More talk about clearing those arteries.
If you are interested in hopeful, real outcomes, watch this:
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/561806_print
you will have to login, I think, but this accompanies the video:
Although heart disease is still the leading cause of death in the United States for men and for women, it can be prevented and even reversed. In my 21-year Cleveland Clinic nutritional study,[1] I arrested and reversed advanced coronary artery disease in patients who had already undergone bypasses and angioplasties; some had even been told by their cardiologist that they had less than a year to live.
This study builds from epidemiological evidence in plant-based cultures, such as rural China, the Papua Highlanders, central Africa, and the Tarahumara Indians, where the inhabitants are virtually free of coronary disease.
The goal was for patients to achieve and maintain a total cholesterol less than 150 mg/dL and an LDL-cholesterol less than 80 mg/dL through plant-based nutrition. At this cholesterol level, the body does not deposit fat and cholesterol into arteries.
Results were published at 5, 12, and 16 years, and updated beyond 20 years in the book.[1-4] Compliant patients' angina diminished and largely disappeared; they achieved and maintained cholesterol goals; and angiographic evidence showed their disease had selectively reversed. Most importantly, they survived.
My recent book, Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease, updates the study beyond 21 years, making it the longest of its type. Those patients told by expert cardiologists 20 years ago that they had less than a year to live who are alive and well in 2007 are a particularly compelling story.
Patients are empowered when they know they can control their disease, rather than rely on risky expensive inconsistent drugs, stents, or bypasses. Patients can maintain profound lifestyle changes when they recognize huge benefits.
Plant-based nutrition can eliminate some diseases. This is a clear message medicine must embrace and share with the public.
That's my opinion. I'm Dr. Caldwell B. Esselstyn, Jr., Preventive Medicine Consultant, Cleveland Clinic.
-=-=-=-
I like this.
Get your lungs pumping for a short time for big benefits.
From Dr Al Sears:
To explore my archive of over 400 articles, go to www.alsearmsd.com.
Al Sears, MD
12794 Forest Hill Blvd., Suite 16
Wellington, FL 33414
Dear Joe,
Finally, the old theories of aerobic training are crumbling under the weight of new evidence. At the center of the breakthrough is lactic acid. You've probably heard of it, especially if you've ever had a coach or a trainer. Conventional wisdom said you had to avoid lactic acid because its build up in your muscles caused pain, fatigue and the soreness you feel after "over doing it".
We were told to exercise aerobically and not cross the dreaded lactic threshold. To do so would mean an-aerobic (without oxygen) exercise, which created the damaging lactic acid. That sparked the aerobics craze that reached its peak in the 1980's.
But this theory never jived with my real world experience of the benefits of exceeding your aerobic threshold (which would build lots of the dreaded lactic acid.) It turns out lactic acid is not only not your enemy. To the contrary, it's fuel for your muscles.
Dr. George Brooks from the University of California at Berkeley recently found that lactic acid is taken up and burned for energy by your mitochondria – the energy factories in your muscle cells.1 What's more, it can not create the after workout soreness because it is rapidly removed as you burn it for fuel. In other words, it's long gone before you get sore.
A high output, anaerobic workout is exactly what your body needs to increase your lungpower, build reserve capacity in your heart and melt away your fat stores.
To move your workout into the anaerobic range, the key feature I use is this: Create an "oxygen debt." Simply exercise at a pace you can't sustain as in a short sprint. Ask your lungs for more oxygen than they can provide. The difference between the oxygen you need and the oxygen you get is your oxygen debt. This will cause you to pant and continue to breathe hard even after you've stopped the sprint until you replace the oxygen you're lacking.
Let's say you pedal as fast as you can on a bike for 15 seconds. When you stop, you continue to pant. This is the kind of high-output challenge I'm talking about. You have reached a supra-aerobic zone. This is very different from doing an aerobic workout for 45 minutes.
Aerobic exercise is low to medium output held for an extended period. Anaerobic or supra-aerobic exercise is high output, but short in duration. Why is this important? For one thing, it restores an element of your native environment. Our ancestors lived in a world where our food fought back. Predators attacked without notice. They had to run or fight – fast and hard. These short bursts of high-output activity fine tuned our ancient ancestors and kept them fit. We still have the same physiology.
This is the basis for my PACE® program. I began using most of this program 25 years ago. I'm delighted to see University-based science catching up to the idea. More recently, I added progressivity to increase the benefits.
By making small changes in the same direction, your workouts can produce remarkable results. And you only need 12 minutes to achieve the desired effect.
In a matter of weeks, you can:
Lose pounds of belly fat
Build functional new muscle
Reverse heart disease
Build energy reserves available on demand
Strengthen your immune system
Reverse many of the changes of aging.
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD
1 Kolata G. Lactic Acid is Not Muscle's Foe, It's Fuel. The New York Times. May 16, 2006
Issue 10
09/09/07 16:40
Blow the Whistle
just watched this disturbing story about a "whistle-blower" at the Canberra Hospital
he alerted against a neurosurgeon who was injuring people and suffered greatly
you can watch it online, I am told, here
-=-=-=
Weight Loss
shedding the kilos may get you off cholesterol drugs?
this is very good info
remember HDL cholesterol needs to HIGH
and LDL cholesterol needs to be LOW
GREAT INFO here...
Cholesterol “ain’t” all bad
In practical terms, the bottom line is simple: The higher your HDL cholesterol, the better. But the biological reality is more complex. Research into the molecular biology of HDL is spurring new therapies.
Genes direct the body’s production of HDL. Some of us are lucky enough to inherit genes that result in a lot of HDL, while others are dealt a less favorable hand. But genes are only part of the story. Lifestyle factors and, to a smaller extent, medications can strongly influence HDL levels. Genes re-enter the picture, though, because for some people, balky genes limit their ability to boost HDL levels with exercise and other interventions.
How HDL helps
At first, scientists believed that HDL was simply a garbage collector that picked up cholesterol from an artery’s walls and delivered it to the liver for disposal. That’s still considered the main role of HDL, but research is starting to suggest that HDL can help protect the heart in many ways:
Reverse cholesterol transport. HDL latches onto LDL embedded in an artery wall, lugs it back into the bloodstream, and carries it to the liver. The liver collects cholesterol from the HDL particles, packages it into bile salts and bile acids, and dumps it into the intestines for excretion.
Antioxidant activity. LDL cholesterol in the artery wall is bombarded by oxygen free radicals, which turns it into oxidized LDL cholesterol. Oxidized cholesterol is the stuff that’s actually responsible for arterial damage — and research shows that HDL can help protect LDL cholesterol from free radicals.
Anti-inflammatory action. HDL helps to quiet the inflammation of an atherosclerotic plaque. Elevated levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) reflect the inflammation of such a plaque and HDL may neutralize CRP’s tendency to perpetuate the inflammatory cycle.
Antithrombotic activity. Plaque rupture triggers the formation of an artery-blocking blood clot. By halting the flow of oxygen-rich blood, the clot kills heart muscle cells (heart attack) or brain cells (stroke). HDL reduces clot formation and accelerates the healing process that dissolves clots.
Endothelial function. Blood vessels plagued with atherosclerosis sustain other damage. In particular, the endothelial cells lining the arteries fail to produce normal amounts of nitric oxide, the chemical that allows arteries to dilate (widen) when tissues need more oxygen. HDL helps preserve nitric oxide production and protect endothelial function.
How much does HDL help?
The Framingham Heart Study was responsible for many landmark discoveries about HDL cholesterol, and the Physicians’ Health Study helped confirm that HDL was protective, reporting that various HDL subtypes are all helpful. Data continue to show that the good cholesterol is very good indeed.
Heart disease. Low HDL levels are associated with an increased risk of heart attacks, while high levels are protective. According to the Framingham Heart Study, cardiac risk rises sharply as HDL cholesterol levels fall below 40 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). In general, each 1 mg/dL rise in an HDL cholesterol level can be expected to cut cardiac risk by 2% to 3%.
Stroke. Strokes come in many forms, but the most common type, ischemic stroke, shares many risk factors with heart attack. High HDL cholesterol levels reduce the risk of stroke; in several studies, HDL cholesterol is a much better predictor of risk than LDL cholesterol, particularly in people older than 75.
Erectile dysfunction. Normal erections depend on many things, including healthy arteries that produce good amounts of nitric oxide. It’s no surprise, then, that the Massachusetts Male Aging Study found that 16% of men with low levels of HDL cholesterol had erectile dysfunction, but none of the men with the highest levels did.
Longevity. Several investigations suggest that high HDL levels are linked to longevity, particularly exceptional longevity. Other research links high levels of HDL cholesterol to preserved cognitive function in old age. More research is needed to learn if HDL deserves the credit or if other genetic factors are responsible.
Your goal
When it comes to HDL cholesterol, the higher your level, the better. Still, targets are important. The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) and the American Diabetes Association advise aiming for HDL levels of at least 40 mg/dL. An even more protective goal, according to the NCEP, is 60 mg/dL or higher.
Ways to raise your HDL
Exercise. Exercise is an important way to boost HDL levels. On average, sedentary people who start to exercise regularly can expect their HDL levels to rise by 3% to 20%. The benefit can occur with as little as one mile of walking or jogging a day, but the more you do, the better your result. Brisk walking for 40 minutes a day is a good target, but if you need more help, aim higher.
Watch your dietary fats. Saturated fat won’t affect your HDL cholesterol, but it will raise your LDL cholesterol. The latest American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines call for limiting saturated fat to less than 7% of your total daily calories. Reduce your intake of trans fats to less than 1% of your total daily calories. Trans fat lowers HDL cholesterol and raises LDL cholesterol, a double whammy to health. But unsaturated fats like virgin olive oil may boost HDL levels, and the omega 3 fats in fish, nuts, and canola oil may promote cardiac health even if they don’t affect your HDL reading.
Watch your carbs! Or at least the types of carbs you’re eating. Diets that provide large amounts of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates are clearly linked to low levels of HDL cholesterol. Avoid highly refined carbohydrates in favor of coarsely ground, whole grain, unrefined carbs like whole grain bread, oatmeal, and beans.
Alcohol. Moderate drinking will raise HDL levels by about 4 mg/dL, which should cut cardiac risk by about 10%. This translates to one to two drinks a day for men, and one drink a day for women. For this “prescription,” count 5 ounces of wine, 1½ ounces of liquor, or 12 ounces of beer as one drink.
Weight control. Obesity is linked to low HDL levels, but weight loss can help. Exercise and diet are the dynamic duo for weight loss, but shedding excess pounds will boost HDL levels over and above the independent effects of regular exercise and a healthful diet.
For more information on healthy cholesterol levels, order our Special Health Report, What to Do About High Cholesterol, at www.health.harvard.edu/HC.
-=-=-=-
Dirty Secret
which secret do you think they'll listen to most?
my "secret", or Barrett's??
RIP quackwatch...
-=-=-
more "manipulation kills...."
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1026012007&format
-=-=-=-
VICTIMS OF CHIROPRACTIC ABUSE
this cant be real?
am i dreaming?
joe
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/08/prweb549561.htm
Hi Joe,
How hard has it been to get a positive postage stamp for the profession in the US?
They have been working at it for years.
Now, in a few months this negative one is going to be released.
US Chiro's are going to get slammed.
Donald
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/08/prweb549561.htm
NOT REALLY: LOOK...
It appears they have created
the stamp using the Web site Stamps.com:
http://photo.stamps.com/Store/?source=si00001331. Anyone can use this
site to create a personalized stamp.
-=-=-=-
Dont forget this one...
Thanks Dr Richards.
Coulter I, Adams A, Coggan P, Wilkes M, Gonyea M. A comparative study of
chiropractic and medical education. Altern Ther Health Med 1998;4:64-75
School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), USA.
BACKGROUND: Chiropractic is the largest of the alternative/complementary health professions in North America. However, little attention has been given in the health sciences literature to the formal curriculum of chiropractic education or to its similarities to and differences from the curriculum of allopathic medical education. This lack of information precludes extensive referrals and interaction between the 2 professions, even when historical and political barriers can be overcome.
METHOD: This is a descriptive, comparative study of the curriculum Content of North American chiropractic and medical colleges, supplemented by in-depth data obtained through site visits with 6 institutions (3 chiropractic and 3 medical).
DISCUSSION: Considerable commonality exists between chiropractic and medical programs. Regarding the basic sciences, these programs are more similar than dissimilar, both in the types of subjects offered and in the time allotted to each subject. The programs also share some common areas in the Clinical sciences. Chiropractic and allopathic medicine differ the greatest in clinical practice, which in medical school far exceeds that in chiropractic school. The therapies that chiropractic and medical students learn are distinct from one another, and the settings in which students receive clinical training are different and isolated from one another. With these similarities and differences established, future studies should examine the quality of the 2 educational programs in detail.
-=-=-=
People in Pain: How Do They Seek Relief?
Little is known about how people with pain seek relief.
To estimate the proportion of the population reporting recent pain, to identify ways people seek pain relief, and to report the perceived effectiveness of pain relief methods, we conducted a secondary analysis of results from a nationwide survey of the general U.S. population.
Of the 1204 respondents, 31% had experienced moderate to very severe pain within the past 2 weeks and 75% of these had sought medical attention.
Only 56% of those who sought medical attention got significant pain relief. Although seeking medical attention was the primary pain relief strategy, almost all of those with pain had tried multiple alternative methods for pain control, with 92% of pain sufferers having tried 3 or more alternative strategies.
People who did not seek medical attention were more likely to report pain relief from prayer and going to a chiropractor than were those who sought medical attention. Factors leading to inadequate pain relief included difficulty communicating with a health professional and lack of health insurance. People who perceive that their pain is not understood by medical providers and those without health care insurance coverage are at greater risk for poor pain control.
Shi Q, et al. The Journal of Pain. August 2007; Vol. 8, Iss. 8, pp. 624-636.
-=-=-
should this read "birth centres SAFER than hospitals"?
its good news at any rate
email me for the paper
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/midwife-centres-safe/2007/09/02/1188671797076.html
-=-=-
STROKE ONE
this could be groundbreaking stuff.....
http://www.chiroweb.com/archives/25/20/05.html
-=-=-=
Doctor questions higher dosage of cancer drugs
Christian Catalano
September 1, 2007
CANCER sufferers are taking doses of expensive and potentially toxic treatments that may be well in excess of what they need, a leading oncologist says.
Dr Ian Haines said that because pharmaceutical companies were the only group who could afford to fund trials of expensive drugs, they had enormous control over the scientific evidence that dictates how they should be used.
Writing in the world's foremost cancer journal, he cites an emerging body of evidence that many of these new and expensive cancer drugs may be just as effective - and produce fewer side-effects - if taken over shorter periods and in lower doses."It would seem that pharmaceutical companies, understandably, are attracted to studies looking at the maximum- tolerated dose of any treatments," he says in the Journal of Clinical Oncology article.
"I urge that we make the search for minimum effective doses of these treatments one of the key goals of our research."
Dr Haines lists three Government-approved cancer therapies - Herceptin, Avastin and Mabthera - to show that the gap between the "minimum effective" and "maximum tolerated" doses may already be vast.
For the drug Avastin, which is used for colon and lung cancers, the dose that is being tested is 15 milligrams per kilogram of body weight. Other research shows it may work with just three milligrams per kilogram.
Dr Haines was joined by several other cancer experts who said this week that both state and Federal Governments must spend more on analysing drug data after a new medicine is made available.
Not only was our health system's acquiescence in industry- manipulated trials wasting taxpayers' money, they said, but the failure to link electronic data could be risking patients' lives.
The health economist Jeff Richardson said Australia was "absolutely primitive" in the way it collected electronic health data.
"It's criminally scandalous. People are dying because we are not allowed to use the evidence."
The frustration, he said, was that Australia was positioned to set up a thorough analysis of how all drugs performed after they received Government subsidy.
"We've got Medicare data on the use of all these services, we've got the hospital data on what goes on there and we could link all of this to the mortality statistics," said Professor Richardson, who is the director of Monash University's Centre for Health Economics. "What it means is that, whenever someone gets ill, we can get a profile over time of what happens to that person."
Dr Haines has proposed that continuing Government subsidy for a new drug would depend on whether the patient outcomes matched the evidence the drug company presented to the Government for approval. "That way the drug companies won't put any spin on the data.".
-=-=-=-
Without Footlevelers pelvic stabilizers my wife would not be able to walk. This is not an endorsement, but mere truth.
This study forwarded by Donald to me, supports the supports.
Prevention of sports injuries: systematic review of randomized controlled trials.
Arch Intern Med. 2007 Aug 13-27;167(15):1585-92.
Aaltonen S, Karjalainen H, Heinonen A, Parkkari J, Kujala UM.
Department of Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.
Increased participation in sports has led to more sports injuries.
Evidence-based methods to prevent sports injuries are needed. A systematic review was conducted of the effects of randomized controlled interventions to prevent sports injuries.
A systematic search was performed of various databases and the reference lists of articles and reviews. Two reviewers independently extracted the data and assessed the methodological quality of the included trials. Thirty-two trials (24,931 participants) met the inclusion criteria. We found evidence of the preventive effect of 3 types of injury prevention interventions. In 5 trials including 6 different comparisons (2446 participants), custom-made or prefabricated insoles reduced lower limb injuries compared with no insoles in military recruits (risk reduction > or =50% in 4 comparisons).
All 7 studies investigating external joint supports (10,300 participants) showed a tendency to prevent ankle, wrist, or knee injuries (risk reduction > or =50% in 5 studies).
All 6 multi-intervention training programs (2809 participants) were effective in preventing sports injuries (risk reduction > or =50% in 5 studies). Various interventions may prevent sports injuries.
A decreased risk of sports injuries was associated with the use of insoles, external joint supports, and multi-intervention training programs.
More high-quality randomized controlled trials in different sports and populations are needed.
-=-=-
Gasp at this one:
Bronchitis: Inhaled steroids are likely to land you in hospital
06 September 2007
Many elderly people with bronchitis or emphysema, known collectively as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), are likely to end up in hospital – but it's because of the drugs they're taking, not the disease.
Researchers have discovered that 70 per cent of COPD patients who take an inhaled corticosteroid – the common treatment to control the problem – end up in hospital. But it's the drug that has caused the need for hospital care, not the bronchitis.
A research team from McGill University in Canada discovered just how dangerous corticosteroids are when they looked at the histories of 175,906 COPD patients living in Quebec between 1988 and 2003.
During that time, 23,942 of them ended up in hospital – and there was a direct link between the doses of corticosteroids and the need for hospital care. Conversely, the risk receded when the dose was lowered.
Overall, 53 per cent of the patients died within 30 days of being admitted to hospital, and while pneumonia is blamed, the real culprit may well be the drug.
Inhaled corticosteroid use for COPD increased from 13.2 per cent to 41.4 per cent in the USA between 1987 and 1995.
Pneumonia-related complications are the third major reason for a hospital stay, and now it's reckoned it's more down to corticosteroids than the disease itself.
(Source: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 2007; 176: 162-6).
just watched this disturbing story about a "whistle-blower" at the Canberra Hospital
he alerted against a neurosurgeon who was injuring people and suffered greatly
you can watch it online, I am told, here
-=-=-=
Weight Loss
shedding the kilos may get you off cholesterol drugs?
this is very good info
remember HDL cholesterol needs to HIGH
and LDL cholesterol needs to be LOW
GREAT INFO here...
Cholesterol “ain’t” all bad
In practical terms, the bottom line is simple: The higher your HDL cholesterol, the better. But the biological reality is more complex. Research into the molecular biology of HDL is spurring new therapies.
Genes direct the body’s production of HDL. Some of us are lucky enough to inherit genes that result in a lot of HDL, while others are dealt a less favorable hand. But genes are only part of the story. Lifestyle factors and, to a smaller extent, medications can strongly influence HDL levels. Genes re-enter the picture, though, because for some people, balky genes limit their ability to boost HDL levels with exercise and other interventions.
How HDL helps
At first, scientists believed that HDL was simply a garbage collector that picked up cholesterol from an artery’s walls and delivered it to the liver for disposal. That’s still considered the main role of HDL, but research is starting to suggest that HDL can help protect the heart in many ways:
Reverse cholesterol transport. HDL latches onto LDL embedded in an artery wall, lugs it back into the bloodstream, and carries it to the liver. The liver collects cholesterol from the HDL particles, packages it into bile salts and bile acids, and dumps it into the intestines for excretion.
Antioxidant activity. LDL cholesterol in the artery wall is bombarded by oxygen free radicals, which turns it into oxidized LDL cholesterol. Oxidized cholesterol is the stuff that’s actually responsible for arterial damage — and research shows that HDL can help protect LDL cholesterol from free radicals.
Anti-inflammatory action. HDL helps to quiet the inflammation of an atherosclerotic plaque. Elevated levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) reflect the inflammation of such a plaque and HDL may neutralize CRP’s tendency to perpetuate the inflammatory cycle.
Antithrombotic activity. Plaque rupture triggers the formation of an artery-blocking blood clot. By halting the flow of oxygen-rich blood, the clot kills heart muscle cells (heart attack) or brain cells (stroke). HDL reduces clot formation and accelerates the healing process that dissolves clots.
Endothelial function. Blood vessels plagued with atherosclerosis sustain other damage. In particular, the endothelial cells lining the arteries fail to produce normal amounts of nitric oxide, the chemical that allows arteries to dilate (widen) when tissues need more oxygen. HDL helps preserve nitric oxide production and protect endothelial function.
How much does HDL help?
The Framingham Heart Study was responsible for many landmark discoveries about HDL cholesterol, and the Physicians’ Health Study helped confirm that HDL was protective, reporting that various HDL subtypes are all helpful. Data continue to show that the good cholesterol is very good indeed.
Heart disease. Low HDL levels are associated with an increased risk of heart attacks, while high levels are protective. According to the Framingham Heart Study, cardiac risk rises sharply as HDL cholesterol levels fall below 40 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). In general, each 1 mg/dL rise in an HDL cholesterol level can be expected to cut cardiac risk by 2% to 3%.
Stroke. Strokes come in many forms, but the most common type, ischemic stroke, shares many risk factors with heart attack. High HDL cholesterol levels reduce the risk of stroke; in several studies, HDL cholesterol is a much better predictor of risk than LDL cholesterol, particularly in people older than 75.
Erectile dysfunction. Normal erections depend on many things, including healthy arteries that produce good amounts of nitric oxide. It’s no surprise, then, that the Massachusetts Male Aging Study found that 16% of men with low levels of HDL cholesterol had erectile dysfunction, but none of the men with the highest levels did.
Longevity. Several investigations suggest that high HDL levels are linked to longevity, particularly exceptional longevity. Other research links high levels of HDL cholesterol to preserved cognitive function in old age. More research is needed to learn if HDL deserves the credit or if other genetic factors are responsible.
Your goal
When it comes to HDL cholesterol, the higher your level, the better. Still, targets are important. The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) and the American Diabetes Association advise aiming for HDL levels of at least 40 mg/dL. An even more protective goal, according to the NCEP, is 60 mg/dL or higher.
Ways to raise your HDL
Exercise. Exercise is an important way to boost HDL levels. On average, sedentary people who start to exercise regularly can expect their HDL levels to rise by 3% to 20%. The benefit can occur with as little as one mile of walking or jogging a day, but the more you do, the better your result. Brisk walking for 40 minutes a day is a good target, but if you need more help, aim higher.
Watch your dietary fats. Saturated fat won’t affect your HDL cholesterol, but it will raise your LDL cholesterol. The latest American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines call for limiting saturated fat to less than 7% of your total daily calories. Reduce your intake of trans fats to less than 1% of your total daily calories. Trans fat lowers HDL cholesterol and raises LDL cholesterol, a double whammy to health. But unsaturated fats like virgin olive oil may boost HDL levels, and the omega 3 fats in fish, nuts, and canola oil may promote cardiac health even if they don’t affect your HDL reading.
Watch your carbs! Or at least the types of carbs you’re eating. Diets that provide large amounts of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates are clearly linked to low levels of HDL cholesterol. Avoid highly refined carbohydrates in favor of coarsely ground, whole grain, unrefined carbs like whole grain bread, oatmeal, and beans.
Alcohol. Moderate drinking will raise HDL levels by about 4 mg/dL, which should cut cardiac risk by about 10%. This translates to one to two drinks a day for men, and one drink a day for women. For this “prescription,” count 5 ounces of wine, 1½ ounces of liquor, or 12 ounces of beer as one drink.
Weight control. Obesity is linked to low HDL levels, but weight loss can help. Exercise and diet are the dynamic duo for weight loss, but shedding excess pounds will boost HDL levels over and above the independent effects of regular exercise and a healthful diet.
For more information on healthy cholesterol levels, order our Special Health Report, What to Do About High Cholesterol, at www.health.harvard.edu/HC.
-=-=-=-
Dirty Secret
which secret do you think they'll listen to most?
my "secret", or Barrett's??
RIP quackwatch...
-=-=-
more "manipulation kills...."
http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1026012007&format
-=-=-=-
VICTIMS OF CHIROPRACTIC ABUSE
this cant be real?
am i dreaming?
joe
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/08/prweb549561.htm
Hi Joe,
How hard has it been to get a positive postage stamp for the profession in the US?
They have been working at it for years.
Now, in a few months this negative one is going to be released.
US Chiro's are going to get slammed.
Donald
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/08/prweb549561.htm
NOT REALLY: LOOK...
It appears they have created
the stamp using the Web site Stamps.com:
http://photo.stamps.com/Store/?source=si00001331. Anyone can use this
site to create a personalized stamp.
-=-=-=-
Dont forget this one...
Thanks Dr Richards.
Coulter I, Adams A, Coggan P, Wilkes M, Gonyea M. A comparative study of
chiropractic and medical education. Altern Ther Health Med 1998;4:64-75
School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), USA.
BACKGROUND: Chiropractic is the largest of the alternative/complementary health professions in North America. However, little attention has been given in the health sciences literature to the formal curriculum of chiropractic education or to its similarities to and differences from the curriculum of allopathic medical education. This lack of information precludes extensive referrals and interaction between the 2 professions, even when historical and political barriers can be overcome.
METHOD: This is a descriptive, comparative study of the curriculum Content of North American chiropractic and medical colleges, supplemented by in-depth data obtained through site visits with 6 institutions (3 chiropractic and 3 medical).
DISCUSSION: Considerable commonality exists between chiropractic and medical programs. Regarding the basic sciences, these programs are more similar than dissimilar, both in the types of subjects offered and in the time allotted to each subject. The programs also share some common areas in the Clinical sciences. Chiropractic and allopathic medicine differ the greatest in clinical practice, which in medical school far exceeds that in chiropractic school. The therapies that chiropractic and medical students learn are distinct from one another, and the settings in which students receive clinical training are different and isolated from one another. With these similarities and differences established, future studies should examine the quality of the 2 educational programs in detail.
-=-=-=
People in Pain: How Do They Seek Relief?
Little is known about how people with pain seek relief.
To estimate the proportion of the population reporting recent pain, to identify ways people seek pain relief, and to report the perceived effectiveness of pain relief methods, we conducted a secondary analysis of results from a nationwide survey of the general U.S. population.
Of the 1204 respondents, 31% had experienced moderate to very severe pain within the past 2 weeks and 75% of these had sought medical attention.
Only 56% of those who sought medical attention got significant pain relief. Although seeking medical attention was the primary pain relief strategy, almost all of those with pain had tried multiple alternative methods for pain control, with 92% of pain sufferers having tried 3 or more alternative strategies.
People who did not seek medical attention were more likely to report pain relief from prayer and going to a chiropractor than were those who sought medical attention. Factors leading to inadequate pain relief included difficulty communicating with a health professional and lack of health insurance. People who perceive that their pain is not understood by medical providers and those without health care insurance coverage are at greater risk for poor pain control.
Shi Q, et al. The Journal of Pain. August 2007; Vol. 8, Iss. 8, pp. 624-636.
-=-=-
should this read "birth centres SAFER than hospitals"?
its good news at any rate
email me for the paper
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/midwife-centres-safe/2007/09/02/1188671797076.html
-=-=-
STROKE ONE
this could be groundbreaking stuff.....
http://www.chiroweb.com/archives/25/20/05.html
-=-=-=
Doctor questions higher dosage of cancer drugs
Christian Catalano
September 1, 2007
CANCER sufferers are taking doses of expensive and potentially toxic treatments that may be well in excess of what they need, a leading oncologist says.
Dr Ian Haines said that because pharmaceutical companies were the only group who could afford to fund trials of expensive drugs, they had enormous control over the scientific evidence that dictates how they should be used.
Writing in the world's foremost cancer journal, he cites an emerging body of evidence that many of these new and expensive cancer drugs may be just as effective - and produce fewer side-effects - if taken over shorter periods and in lower doses."It would seem that pharmaceutical companies, understandably, are attracted to studies looking at the maximum- tolerated dose of any treatments," he says in the Journal of Clinical Oncology article.
"I urge that we make the search for minimum effective doses of these treatments one of the key goals of our research."
Dr Haines lists three Government-approved cancer therapies - Herceptin, Avastin and Mabthera - to show that the gap between the "minimum effective" and "maximum tolerated" doses may already be vast.
For the drug Avastin, which is used for colon and lung cancers, the dose that is being tested is 15 milligrams per kilogram of body weight. Other research shows it may work with just three milligrams per kilogram.
Dr Haines was joined by several other cancer experts who said this week that both state and Federal Governments must spend more on analysing drug data after a new medicine is made available.
Not only was our health system's acquiescence in industry- manipulated trials wasting taxpayers' money, they said, but the failure to link electronic data could be risking patients' lives.
The health economist Jeff Richardson said Australia was "absolutely primitive" in the way it collected electronic health data.
"It's criminally scandalous. People are dying because we are not allowed to use the evidence."
The frustration, he said, was that Australia was positioned to set up a thorough analysis of how all drugs performed after they received Government subsidy.
"We've got Medicare data on the use of all these services, we've got the hospital data on what goes on there and we could link all of this to the mortality statistics," said Professor Richardson, who is the director of Monash University's Centre for Health Economics. "What it means is that, whenever someone gets ill, we can get a profile over time of what happens to that person."
Dr Haines has proposed that continuing Government subsidy for a new drug would depend on whether the patient outcomes matched the evidence the drug company presented to the Government for approval. "That way the drug companies won't put any spin on the data.".
-=-=-=-
Without Footlevelers pelvic stabilizers my wife would not be able to walk. This is not an endorsement, but mere truth.
This study forwarded by Donald to me, supports the supports.
Prevention of sports injuries: systematic review of randomized controlled trials.
Arch Intern Med. 2007 Aug 13-27;167(15):1585-92.
Aaltonen S, Karjalainen H, Heinonen A, Parkkari J, Kujala UM.
Department of Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.
Increased participation in sports has led to more sports injuries.
Evidence-based methods to prevent sports injuries are needed. A systematic review was conducted of the effects of randomized controlled interventions to prevent sports injuries.
A systematic search was performed of various databases and the reference lists of articles and reviews. Two reviewers independently extracted the data and assessed the methodological quality of the included trials. Thirty-two trials (24,931 participants) met the inclusion criteria. We found evidence of the preventive effect of 3 types of injury prevention interventions. In 5 trials including 6 different comparisons (2446 participants), custom-made or prefabricated insoles reduced lower limb injuries compared with no insoles in military recruits (risk reduction > or =50% in 4 comparisons).
All 7 studies investigating external joint supports (10,300 participants) showed a tendency to prevent ankle, wrist, or knee injuries (risk reduction > or =50% in 5 studies).
All 6 multi-intervention training programs (2809 participants) were effective in preventing sports injuries (risk reduction > or =50% in 5 studies). Various interventions may prevent sports injuries.
A decreased risk of sports injuries was associated with the use of insoles, external joint supports, and multi-intervention training programs.
More high-quality randomized controlled trials in different sports and populations are needed.
-=-=-
Gasp at this one:
Bronchitis: Inhaled steroids are likely to land you in hospital
06 September 2007
Many elderly people with bronchitis or emphysema, known collectively as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), are likely to end up in hospital – but it's because of the drugs they're taking, not the disease.
Researchers have discovered that 70 per cent of COPD patients who take an inhaled corticosteroid – the common treatment to control the problem – end up in hospital. But it's the drug that has caused the need for hospital care, not the bronchitis.
A research team from McGill University in Canada discovered just how dangerous corticosteroids are when they looked at the histories of 175,906 COPD patients living in Quebec between 1988 and 2003.
During that time, 23,942 of them ended up in hospital – and there was a direct link between the doses of corticosteroids and the need for hospital care. Conversely, the risk receded when the dose was lowered.
Overall, 53 per cent of the patients died within 30 days of being admitted to hospital, and while pneumonia is blamed, the real culprit may well be the drug.
Inhaled corticosteroid use for COPD increased from 13.2 per cent to 41.4 per cent in the USA between 1987 and 1995.
Pneumonia-related complications are the third major reason for a hospital stay, and now it's reckoned it's more down to corticosteroids than the disease itself.
(Source: American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 2007; 176: 162-6).