Healthy Life Newsletter, January 2019
Message from Dr. Mha Atma:
On New Year’s Day this year I did a little math and realized it was the 40th anniversary of the day that the State of California granted me a license to practice chiropractic. Yikes! Forty years! I enjoy being a chiropractor as much as I ever have and am very grateful and happy to be able to help folks feel better and live healthier lives. Thanks to all of you who have given me the opportunity to help you improve your health, and to the many of you who’ve granted me more opportunities by recommending family, friends, neighbors and co-workers to our office.
I wish you a very happy healthy 2019 and invite you to visit our office and/or email me any time regarding your health questions and concerns or those of your loved ones!
Gratefully, Dr. Mha Atma Khalsa
Why It’s Great and Important to Eat a Wide Variety of Vegies and Fruit
By Michael Greger M.D. FACLM
“According to a recent survey, the number of Americans adults who say they are eating ‘pretty much whatever they want’ is at an all-time high,” which unfortunately includes “too few fruits and vegetables,” as well as “too little variety.” Half of all fruit servings are taken up by just six foods: orange juice, bananas, apple juice, apples, grapes, and watermelons. Only five foods—iceberg lettuce, frozen potatoes, fresh potatoes, potato chips, and canned tomatoes—make up half of all vegetable servings. We’re not only eating too few fruits and veggies. We’re also missing out on the healthiest fruits, which are berries, and the healthiest vegetables, which are dark green leafies. The fruit and vegetable palette for our palate is sadly lacking.
Why does dietary diversity matter? As I discuss in my video Specific Receptors for Specific Fruits and Vegetables, different foods may affect different problems. Cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts are associated with lower risk of colon cancer in the middle and right side of our body, whereas risk of colon cancer further down on the left side of our body appears to be better lowered by carrots, pumpkins, and apples. So, “different F/V [fruits and vegetables] may confer different risks for cancer” of different parts of even the same organ.
Variety is the spice of life—and may prolong it. “Independent from quantity of consumption, variety in fruit and vegetable consumption may decrease lung cancer risk,” meaning if two people eat the same number of fruits and vegetables, the one eating a greater variety may be at lower risk.
It’s not just cancer risk. In a study of thousands of men and women, a greater quantity of vegetables and a greater variety may independently be beneficial for reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes. Even after removing the effects of quantity, “each different additional two item per week increase in variety of F&V [fruit and vegetable] intake was associated with an 8% reduction in the incidence of T2D [type 2 diabetes].” Why? Well, it “may be attributable to individual or combined effects of the many different bioactive phytochemicals contained in F&V. Thus, consumption of a wide variety of F&V will increase the likelihood of consuming” more of them.
To read the rest of this article: nutritionfacts.org
Vitamin D!
The full article is worth reading at articles.mercola.com but below is the summary of key points:
Top 5 signs you may have a vitamin D deficiency that you will notice as an individual include onoing musculoskeletal pain, frequent or intense colds and flus, neurological symptoms such as depression, impaired cognition and headaches, unrelenting fatigue and head sweating
As a society, three key things that indicate a vitamin D deficiency are increasing or stable rates of the incidence of breast cancer, the increase in the number of pre-term births and, now, an increase in the incidence of type 1 diabetes
An estimated 40 percent of Americans are profoundly vitamin D deficient, defined as having a serum level below 20 ng/mL (50 nmol/L); 75 percent of American adults and teens are deficient when a sufficiency level of 30 ng/mL is used. If the sufficiency cutoff is moved to a healthy 40 to 60 ng/mL (100 to 150 nmol/L), as recommended by the GrassrootsHealth panel of 48 vitamin D researchers, deficiency rates in the U.S. would likely be in the high 90 percent bracket
20 ng/mL is grossly insufficient for good health and disease prevention. According to the most recent research, a vitamin D level between 60 and 80 ng/mL (150 to 200 nmol/L) appears to offer the greatest protection against cancer and other chronic diseases
Pregnant women need a minimum vitamin D level of 40 ng/mL (100 nmol/L) to help prevent premature birth and other pregnancy complications
Optimizing your vitamin D levels may help you prevent cancer, heart disease, autoimmune diseases, infections, neurodegenerative diseases and much more. Optimizing it is extremely simple and can be measured for success using an in-home test and some form of intake
(From Dr. Mha Atma: More info and home testing kits may be found at grassrootshealth.net .)
Mediterranean Diet Linked to 33 Percent Lower Depression Risk
October 12, 2018—Researchers from the U.K., Australia and Spain explored the link between the risk of depression and following a high-quality diet rich in plant foods like the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet). They found close adherence to the eating plan could substantially reduce the likelihood of developing the mental illness
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 8.1 percent of American adults suffered from depression in a given two-week period from 2013 to 2016. Symptoms include poor sleep and appetite, as well as low mood and a loss of interest in life. Because medication is only effective in one-third of cases, the researchers believe modifying risk factors, such as diet, has value.
“There is compelling evidence to show that there is a relationship between the quality of your diet and your mental health. This relationship goes beyond the effect of diet on your body size or other aspects of health that can, in turn, affect your mood,” said lead author Camille Lassale of University College London Epidemiology and Public Health.
“We aggregated results from a large number of studies and there is a clear pattern that following a healthier, plant-rich, anti-inflammatory diet can help in the prevention of depression.”
The research was a review of 41 studies. Of these, four involved an assessment of the association between adherence to the MedDiet and depression in 36,556 adults. They showed that people who followed the eating plan closely were one-third less likely to develop the mental illness than those who followed it the least. In addition, the consumption of a pro-inflammatory diet with large quantities of sugar, processed food and saturated fat was tied to a higher depression risk.
According to the researchers, following a diet that avoids pro-inflammatory foods while favoring anti-inflammatory foods plentiful in vitamins, minerals, polyphenols and fiber protects against depression. Such an eating plan includes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, olive oil, legumes, nuts and fish.
“A pro-inflammatory diet can induce systemic inflammation, and this can directly increase the risk for depression. There is also emerging evidence that shows that the relationship between the gut and brain plays a key role in mental health and that this axis is modulated by gastrointestinal bacteria, which can be modified by our diet,” explained Lassale.
In an interview with Olive Oil Times, Eugene Charles, New York chiropractor, applied kinesiologist and author of Antidotes for Indiscretions, elaborated about how aspects of the diet have an effect on depression.
“The MedDiet is rich in fiber, which is a prebiotic that feeds beneficial intestinal bacteria, thus promoting their growth. These bacteria play a role in the body’s production of neurotransmitters, especially serotonin and gamma-aminobutyric acid, both of which elevate mood,” Charles noted.
“In addition to gut health, the diet contributes in other ways to help prevent depression. One is that the brain is predominantly fat; therefore, the healthy fat from olive oil and fatty fish enhance brain function. For years I have taught my patients to use olive oil in their coffee to make it a more healthy drink, a mood elevator and an exceptional ‘natural remedy’ for depression.”
Although the connection between nutritious foods and a lower depression risk has been established, a need exists for more intervention studies evaluating how improving diet can benefit mental health. The study was published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.
Berries for Blood Pressure
High blood pressure (hypertension) essentially means blood flow through your arteries increases, which can lead to some serious problems over time: we’re talking arterial damage (increasing the risk of arteriosclerosis), coronary artery disease, heart attack or heart failure, kidney damage/failure, and stroke.
Not a pretty picture, but here’s an easy – and tasty – solution: eat berries! According to a recent study, eating at least one serving a day of blueberries and/or strawberries reduces your risk of high blood pressure by nearly 10 percent compared to eating no berries. Researchers postulate that the blood pressure benefits of berries are attributable to a compound called anthocyanin, a dietary flavonoid present in blueberries, strawberries and other berries.
This wasn’t a small study, by the way; it included 87,242 women who took part in the Nurses’ Health Study II, 46,672 women from the Nurses’ Health Study I, and 23,043 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up study, all of whom were tracked for 14 years to see who developed high blood pressure. And while there were some limitations, the study did account for other potential risk factors for high blood pressure including family history, body mass index, physical activity, and multiple other dietary factors That means it’s more likely the findings are applicable to the general population – that means you! So get your daily dose of berries as part of a healthy diet and active lifestyle - and feel confident that you’re making every effort to keep your blood pressure within normal limits and in so doing, keep your cardiovascular system in tip-top shape for a lifetime.
Take the Sting Out of Sciatica
The sciatic nerve is the longest nerve in the body, beginning in the lower back and extending through the buttocks and down the entire leg. When the nerve is inflamed or compressed, you’ve got sciatica, characterized by mild to severe pain, burning, tingling, numbness and/or weakness.
Your chiropractor knows a great deal about sciatica, particularly because the nerve originates in the lower back, and herniated spinal discs account for the majority of sciatica cases. In fact, sciatica is a common reason for visiting a chiropractor. If you’re suffering from sciatica, your DC may perform chiropractic adjustments and related techniques to help resolve your pain.
In terms of future prevention once the pain is gone, exercise – specifically two low-level activities, walking and biking – may be suggested. Why? According to recent research, regular walking and/or biking reduces the risk of being hospitalized for sciatica by 33 percent, the same percentage risk increase attributable to obesity. While sciatica uncommonly leads to a hospital stay, it can persist if not treated properly and cause significant pain / disability.
The study did not find an association with other types of leisure-time physical activities, leading the researchers to speculate that walking / biking are specifically beneficial because they are low-level physical activities that don’t strain the low back.
Talk to your chiropractor about sciatica prevention and conservative chiropractic treatment – before you are someone you know is faced with chronic pain or even hospitalization.
Pain Pills Don’t Go Away After Back Surgery
We can debate the necessity of spine surgery until the proverbial cows come home, but a few concerning realities are becoming apparent: it’s performed far too frequently and it doesn’t mean your pain will go away. In terms of the latter point, a recent study in the peer-reviewed journal Pain found that patients who took prescription opioid pain meds before undergoing lumbar (lower back) fusion surgery were overwhelmingly likely to continue opioid use long term following surgery.
Among nearly 2,500 adult patients who underwent fusion surgery, almost half used opioids long term (at least four prescriptions filled in seven months) prior to surgery. Among those presurgical users, a whopping 77 percent continued use long term following surgery, while 14 percent continued use on a periodic basis. Only 9 percent discontinued opioid use or used them postsurgically for only a short period of time. Of the 77 percent who continued long-term use, 45 percent actually had their dosage increased following surgery. And to top it all off, 13 percent of patients who did not use opioids before surgery became long-term users after the procedure.
So, is spine surgery failing to take away the pain, or is opioid use a hard habit to break? Both probably deserve equal blame. That’s why nondrug, nonsurgical options – such as chiropractic care – for back pain are landing front and center in the health care conversation. If you’re experiencing back pain, schedule a visit with a doctor of chiropractic as your first provider choice. Why? Because research suggests back pain patients who see a chiropractor first are far less likely to undergo spine surgery compared to patients whose first contact is with a spine surgeon. Less chance of surgery, less chance of addictive pain medication; now that’s a win-win for your health.
Keep Your Spine in Shape
Your spine is the backbone of your entire body – literally and figuratively. That means poor spine health can negatively impact you from head to toe. How can you keep your spine in shape? Let’s learn more about this critical anatomical structure and take a look at some of the simple strategies you can employ to ensure a healthy spine and a healthy body.
Exercises (to Do and Not to Do): Since we’re talking shape here, let’s start with a few exercises that help promote spinal health in the form of proper posture – along with a few that promote poor posture and put the spine at risk. First, a strong core supports the spine, whereas a weak core can lead to pain and injury. To build the core, think planks, bent-leg knee raises, stability ball exercises, ab curls, medicine ball slams and other exercises that strengthen the core muscles (remembering to keep your spine protected at all times by avoiding rounding the back / neck). On the other hand, avoid exercises / movements that unduly stress the spine: slumping while sitting and bending forward immediately after sitting come to mind, as do exercises that make you prone to rounding your back (traditional sit-ups, toe-touches, etc.).
Sleep Matters: Your sleep position and the overall quality of your sleep play a big role in spinal health. The ideal position for the spine during sleep places you on your back with a pillow between your legs. As you might imagine, lying on your stomach is the worse position. Your pillow and mattress also matter, so make sure you choose the right ones for you, or your spine will let you know with neck and/or back pain. (Talk to your chiropractor for suggestions.)
Nutrition Essentials: Believe it or not, certain foods promote a healthy spine (and vice versa). For example, adequate water intake is necessary to nourish not only the body’s cells, but also the spinal intervertebral discs, which consist primarily of water at birth. As you might imagine, water helps keep the discs (and thus the spine) from getting stiff and subject to injury. In addition, an anti-inflammatory diet is key to preventing back pain and other spine problems due to inflammation. Think foods such as omega-3 fish and lean proteins, fresh produce, avocado, olive oil, and various spices while reducing intake of pro-inflammatory foods (most fast foods and processed foods, sugar-laden sweets, etc.).
Chiropractic Care: No conversation about spine health would be complete without mentioning chiropractic, an entire health care profession founded on the principle that a healthy, properly aligned spine has far-reaching effects on the entire body. Research asserts chiropractic’s effectiveness in treating back pain, neck pain and various other musculoskeletal conditions, and the goal of periodic chiropractic care is to maintain spinal health, optimize the body’s self-healing capacities, and thus prevent pain from returning. If you haven’t been to a chiropractor yet, what are you waiting for? If you’ve visited one, but haven’t returned in awhile, remember: your spine – and your entire body – deserve it.