Healthy Life Newsletter, August 2020
How the U.S. Could Save Billions of Healthcare Dollars
By Sherry McAllister, DC
On which health conditions do you think our country spends the most? Diabetes, heart disease and hypertension? While these chronic conditions are costly, from 1996 through 2016, it has been musculoskeletal disorders that are the most and second-most expensive, according to a study published in March in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
The study examined commercial, government and patient out-of-pocket healthcare spending. No conditions were as costly to payers as low back and neck pain – which are also the most common conditions treated by doctors of chiropractic (DCs) – followed by other musculoskeletal disorders.
DCs, however, are not always the first provider-of-choice to treat those disorders. For low back pain, 69% of patients choose a primary care physician instead of a DC for their first consultation. This initial visit is often more costly for the payer, but also leads down the care pathway toward pharmaceuticals, imaging tests and surgery, the latter of which is often ineffective and risky for the patient.
Instead, healthcare payers – including patients paying out of their pocket – could save significant funds and reduce the chances of long-term opioid use while patients could experience low back pain relief have improved mobility and overall quality of life by pursuing chiropractic care first compared to pharmacological and surgical care.
Read the rest of this article.
And watch a very good 5 minute video presentation relating to this topic
5 Common Causes of Neck Pain (and How Chiropractic Can Help)
Neck pain can be acute (short term) or chronic (recurring or persisting for months and even years), but regardless, when you’re in pain, relief is the first thing on your mind. Just as important as relief, of course, is finding the cause and ensuring you avoid the behavior / action that brought the pain on in the first place.
Here are five common causes of neck pain – and why doctors of chiropractic are well-suited to relieve the pain and determine the underlying cause.
\1. Poor Posture: Leaning over a desk all day or slouching in your office chair? You’re bound to develop neck pain eventually, if you haven’t already. Do this quick test: In an upright or seated position, round your shoulders and back (poor posture). Does it impact your neck as well? Exactly!
\2. Monitor Madness: Staring at the computer screen for hours at a time? That’s not good for your health (or sanity), but from a neck pain perspective, it’s madness, particularly if the screen height forces you to crane your neck up (too high) or extend it down (too low).
\3. Sleep Issues: Ideally, we spend a third of our day sleeping, so your sleep habits – for better or worse – can have a dramatic effect on your health. With regard to neck pain, anytime you sleep in an uncomfortable position, particularly one that stresses your neck musculature (think about side-sleeping while grabbing your pillow tightly, sleeping on your stomach with your arms out in front of you, or even sleeping on your back, but with a pillow that doesn’t adequately support your neck), you risk neck pain.
\4. Technology Overload: We may spend a third of our day sleeping, but we increasingly spend the other 16 hours typing, texting, tapping and otherwise interacting with our smartphones, tablets, etc. Bottom line: bad for your neck. One doctor has even coined the phrase, “text neck,” to describe the neck pain that can result from this constant technology interaction.
\5. The Wrong Movement: Twisting, turning, stretching and stressing your neck is an easy way to cause neck pain. While the muscles in the neck are strong, they can be strained, sprained and even torn, just like any other muscle.
It’s important to note that beyond these common causes, various other health issues can also contribute to or directly cause neck pain, including fibromyalgia, cervical arthritis or spondylosis (essentially spinal arthritis), spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal), infection of the spine, and even cancer. The good news is that a doctor of chiropractic can help identify which of these or the above causes is to blame.
When neck pain strikes, most people turn to a temporary solution first: pain-relieving medication. But that’s not a permanent solution, of course, and it doesn’t address the cause of the pain at all, which could be something relatively minor – or more serious. What’s more, research suggests chiropractic spinal manipulation is actually more effective than over-the-counter and prescription medication for relieving both acute and subacute neck pain.
Suffering from neck pain? Then give your doctor of chiropractic a call. They’ll help you relieve your pain and determine the cause so it doesn’t return.
Is COVID-19 Severity Linked to Vitamin D Status?
While the pharmaceutical industry rushes at breakneck speed to produce a vaccine that will protect us from the coronavirus, health and wellness experts, particularly those with a nutritional background, understand that strengthening the body’s immune system may be the ultimate protection.
In fact, in addition to the growing body of research suggesting vitamin D can boost immune function, a new study provides evidence that vitamin D status may be associated with disease severity in COVID-19 patients.
Researchers performed a retrospective audit of patients with COVID-19 who had been admitted for inpatient care, evaluating vitamin D status, compliance with local treatment protocols, and the potential relationship between vitamin D deficiency (VDD) and markers of COVID-19 severity. Published in Clinical Endocrinology, the study revealed: “Higher prevalence of VDD was observed in patients requiring [intensive care unit] admission compared to patients managed on medical wards.”
So, if vitamin D deficiency could negatively impact your immune system; and your immune system helps fight COVID-19, other viral infections and basically every foreign “invader” that tries to compromise your health; and vitamin D deficiency could make you more likely to require ICU admission if you’re infected with the coronavirus - then you should probably be making sure you’re getting enough vitamin D right about now! Talk to your doctor about the health benefits of vitamin D, how to determine your current vitamin D status, and what to do if you’re deficient or borderline deficient.
Baby Wearing: The Best Way to Carry Your Child
By Claudia Anrig, DC
Since the beginning of the “Back to Sleep” program, which recommended that babies be placed on their backs in order to reduce the risk of SIDS, babies spend more time on their backs than ever.
When we add in the time spent in baby carriers, it’s no wonder there has been a significant increase in the number of babies with “flat head syndrome.” However, the bigger concern here is not cosmetic, but instead the issue of cranial distortions potentially resulting in compromised neurological function. That’s why it’s key to understand why infants should spend less of their awake time on their backs, along with alternative ways to accommodate improved baby positioning.
Why Baby Wearing?
The benefits of baby wearing are vast. For instance, research has shown that babies who are carried cry 43 percent less than those who aren’t and 54 percent less during the evening hours, when colicky babies may be the most fussy.
Babies that are worn while awake also spend much more time in a quiet and alert state, which is ideal for learning. Since they feel safe and secure, they are more open to outside stimuli, which is the world from their carrier’s point of view, not the limited view available from their crib, car seat or stroller. Since they are closer to people and can study facial expressions, carried infants also are more socialized and will typically learn to speak sooner and be more familiar with body language, becoming independent at an earlier age.
Read the rest of this important article
Magnesium Intake Associated with Lower Risk of Mortality & Cardiovascular Disease
Magnesium has been shown to have a strong relationship to cardiovascular health. One previously reviewed study showed how magnesium uses the same pathway as statins to lower LDL cholesterol and raise HDL cholesterol to reduce inflammation, clotting, and plaque formation in the arteries. Another study illustrated how magnesium helps regulate the heartbeat by controlling the sodium potassium pump and extending the relaxation period after contraction, which may help lower the risk of atrial fibrillation, or irregular heartbeat. Adequate intake of magnesium from the diet or supplemental sources is necessary for maintaining cardiovascular health and reducing the risk of cardiac events.
Can Magnesium Intake Affect Mortality?
Because of the strong association between magnesium and cardiovascular health, Guasch-Ferre et al. conducted a study to determine whether that association also translated to death from cardiovascular disease (CVD), cancer, and all-causes. They analyzed data from 7216 adults at high risk of CVD to further define the relationship between dietary magnesium intake, CVD (including stroke, heart attack, and cardiovascular death), and mortality from cardiovascular events, cancer, and all-causes. Dietary magnesium intake was calculated and broken down into thirds. The Low Magnesium Intake group had an average magnesium intake of 318 mg/day, the Medium Magnesium Intake group had an average of 347 mg/day, and the High Magnesium Intake group had an average of 454 mg/day.
What Did the Study Find?
Participants were followed an average of 4.8 years; during this time, 323 total deaths, 81 cardiovascular deaths, 130 cancer deaths, and 277 cardiovascular events were recorded for the group.
When analyzed by magnesium intake group, compared to the participants with the lowest magnesium intake, the participants with the highest magnesium intake had a:
47% decreased risk of CVD death (P=0.06)
45% decreased risk of death from cancer (P=0.04)
37% decreased risk of all-cause mortality (P<0.01)
These calculations included adjustments for BMI, smoking status, educational level, physical activity, alcohol intake, and certain disease prevalence.
Note from Dr. Mha Atma: To see the expanded version of this article and links to original research, go to the link above. A healthy diet with lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, along with nuts and beans, provides the best source of magnesium. To ensure you have an ample supply of this vital mineral, it’s sensible to also take a magensium supplement along with ample vitamin D. Magnesium citrate and magnesium glycinate or two of the best-absorbed types of magnesium to look for, and although needs may vary taking 200 to 400 mg/day is likely a good dose for many. Magnesium also acts as a natural muscle relaxant (often helps with cramps) and promotes good bowel elimination (too much can cause diarrhea).
A Great Time (and a Great Reason) to Vary Your Exercise
Your initial reaction when COVID-19 prompted stay-at-home orders and shuttering of non-essential businesses such as your local gym may have been, How am I possibly going to maintain my exercise routine? Hopefully by now, you’ve figured out a few workarounds; here’s a simple suggestion that can reap big fitness benefits, now and in the post-COVID world: mix things up.
Yep, researchers suggest you’re more likely to spent adequate time exercising if you pick different activities, rather than focusing on just one (for example, only lifting weights or running on a treadmill / elliptical) day after day.
In fact, they suggest mixing at least three different activities into your exercise routine per week after learning that people who were more likely to meet weekly goals (total time spent exercising) participated in more types of exercise. People who spent less time exercising generally participated in fewer types of exercise by comparison.
Among people who reported exercising, walking was the most popular activity (30 percent of respondents), followed by bicycling (9.5 percent), dance (7.5 percent), treadmill walking and running (7.4 percent), and weightlifting (6.9 percent) - but overall, a whopping 47 different types of physical activity made the list. The study appears in the research journal Translational Behavioral Medicine.
Cancer Loves When You Sit Around
Unfortunately, the world is collectively spending more time sitting around these days, and as you might expect, COVID-19 is the culprit. When gyms, parks, athletic facilities close; when all but essential workers stay at home all day; and when constant media reports keep us glued to our proverbial seats (in modern terms, our cellphones, computers, etc.) – that all adds up to a lot of sitting and not a lot of moving.
That’s the bad news. The even worse news is that the dreaded C word – cancer – absolutely loves when we sit around. If you need proof, look no further than a new study in JAMA Oncology in which researchers examined the relationship between sedentary behavior and cancer mortality.
Each study participant wore hip accelerometer for seven straight days that measured daily physical activity patterns, including light-intensity and moderate-to-vigorous activity, and sedentary time (no activity). Just over 8,000 adults, ages 45 years and older, participated in the study, which found a clear association between sedentary time and risk of dying from cancer (more sedentary time = higher risk; less time = lower risk).
The authors’ conclusion is all you need to do is
\ to get up from that chair, get off of that couch and start moving: “These findings suggest that the total volume of sedentary behavior is a potential cancer mortality risk factor and support the public health message that adults should sit less and move more to promote longevity.”
Toxins
By Ann Charlotte Valentin
Are You Aware of Everyday Dangers?
There are two types of toxins: exogenous and endogenous. Exogenous toxins are those that we find in our environment, while endogenous toxins are those that our bodies make as a result of metabolism. We may experience a variety of symptoms and conditions due to environmental toxins, such as fatigue, headaches, coughing, joint pain, skin rashes, sleep problems, gastrointestinal issues, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, autoimmune disease, memory loss, and many other symptoms and diseases.
Our environment is full of toxins, and it is up to each of us to become aware of the dangers so that we can avoid them. Some examples of environmental toxins are gasoline, petroleum, cleaning products, exhaust fumes, paints and pesticides, which can be ingested, inhaled and absorbed. Our foods are sprayed with a variety of pesticides, such as organochlorine, organophosphate and glyphosate. There are chemicals in almost everything we use and eat—even our makeup, soaps and shower products.
We sometimes ingest toxins unknowingly, such as when we drink water out of plastic water bottles. Plastic can leach into the water over time, making what are called xenoestrogens. These xenoestrogens then act as estrogens in our bodies and cause a disruption of the endocrine system. This may happen with any food that is packaged in plastic.
According to the Environmental Working Group, the 12 most pesticide-laden foods, referred to as the Dirty Dozen, are strawberries, spinach, kale, nectarines, apples, grapes, peaches, cherries, pears, tomatoes, celery and potatoes. If you are trying to stay away from pesticides, it may be worth purchasing these products in the organic produce department.
Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contamination in foods has also become a concern. Even though the production of this human-made organic chemical was banned in 1979, it is still being released into our environment. PCBs are endocrine disruptors and have been linked to causing problems with the endocrine system, such as the thyroid. Farm-raised fish, such as Atlantic salmon, may have up to 40 times more PCBs than other foods. Butter (nonorganic) and canned tuna fish also contain high levels.
Heavy metal overload can cause many problems, such as neurological, respiratory, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, skeletal and bone-related issues, dermatological, renal, hepatic and reproductive issues. Heavy metal toxicity may, therefore, be the root cause of many chronic symptoms and diseases. Heavy metals are present throughout the United States, and can accumulate in water, soil and air. Heavy metals have the ability to deplete our bodies of vital nutrients, such as minerals and antioxidants. The World Health Organization considers these heavy metals of importance: arsenic, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, mercury, manganese, nickel, lead, tin and titanium.
The best way to stay away from toxins is to educate yourself on the products you use. Look up the ingredients listed on your foods as well as your personal products and familiarize yourself with the toxins. Purchase organic produce, sustainably farmed foods and natural personal products, and stay away from the Dirty Dozen, unless they are organic.
Dr. Ann Charlotte Valentin is a family physician and also has post-graduate education in bioidentical hormones, Koren Specific Technique, CranioSacral Therapy, Emotional Release Technique and BodyTalk.