“D” for Depression

“D” for Depression

By

Jane Hart, MD

Women who eat high amounts of vitamin D may lower their risk of depression

Related Topics

1. Fish Oil May Offer Relief for Seniors with Depression
2. Feeling Blue? Zinc May Help You
3. Recipes with Fish

The list of health benefits linked to vitamin D is rapidly growing, and a new report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that women who eat high amounts of vitamin D may lower their risk of having depression symptoms by as much as 20%.

Dietary vitamin D linked to a healthier mood

In this study, which included 81,189 postmenopausal women from the Women’s Health Initiative, researchers used questionnaires to estimate the amount of vitamin D that women ate and informally diagnose depression symptoms. The results of the questionnaires, given at the beginning of the study and three years later, showed:

• Women who consumed a total of 800 IU of vitamin D or more through diet and supplements had a 20% lower risk of having depression symptoms compared with women who ate less than 100 IU of vitamin D.
• In women who did not have depression symptoms at the beginning of the study, those who ate 400 IU or more of dietary vitamin D per day had a 20% lower risk of having depression symptoms at the three year follow-up compared with women who ate 100 IU or less of dietary vitamin D per day

The study authors comment, “Vitamin D may affect the function of dopamine and norepinephrine, which are monoamine neurotransmitters that are likely involved in depression.” They add that further research is needed to know more about the role of vitamin D in preventing and possibly treating depression.

Getting your vitamin D

• Try these top dietary sources of vitamin D. Top sources of dietary vitamin D include oily fish such as salmon and mackerel. Non-fish options include vitamin D–fortified foods and beverages such as cereal, margarine, yogurt, milk, and orange juice. To a lesser extent, eggs and sardines are also sources of vitamin D.
• Check your vitamin D status. Increasingly, doctors recommend that people have their vitamin D levels checked to ensure a healthy level that may help prevent disease and optimize the health of your mind and body. If the level is found to be low then a doctor may recommend vitamin D supplements. When thinking about taking a supplement, check with a doctor about the appropriate dose, duration of time to take the supplement, and the potential risks and benefits.
• Live a balanced life. Getting enough vitamin D is just one aspect of having a healthy mind and body. People who eat a balanced diet, exercise regularly, and who have strong social supports are also less likely to be depressed. See a healthcare professional if you feel you are suffering from symptoms of depression such as persistent sadness, feelings of hopelessness, frequent crying, and/or a loss of interest in participating in social activities.

(Am J Clin Nutr doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.017384.)

Jane Hart, MD, board-certified in internal medicine, serves in a variety of professional roles including consultant, journalist, and educator. Dr. Hart, a Clinical Instructor at Case Medical School in Cleveland, Ohio, writes extensively about health and wellness and a variety of other topics for nationally recognized organizations, websites, and print publications. Sought out for her expertise in the areas of integrative and preventive medicine, she is frequently quoted by national and local media. Dr. Hart is a professional lecturer for healthcare professionals, consumers, and youth and is a regular corporate speaker. 

Back To Health Wellness Center

755 North Ave Ste B

Grand Junction, CO 81501

970-257-9199

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

Above-Down, Inside-Out

Chiropractic and the Nerve System

How is it that chiropractic health care can be so effective across so broad a range of conditions? The key is that chiropractic care focuses on restoring more normal function within the nerve system. The nerve system is responsible for directing and coordinating all the functions in your body. When the nerve system works right, your body can begin to recover effectively from many kinds of problems. Chiropractors are specialists in analyzing and correcting nerve interference, Chiropractic care restores the free flow of information between your brain and the rest of your body. When your body's physiologic systems receive accurate information - on time and in the right sequences - they can do the jobs they were designed to do. The result is dynamic, vibrant, fully expressed health and well-being.

"Above-down, inside-out" is a poetic coinage by Dr. B.J. Palmer, one of the founders of the field of chiropractic. "B.J.", as he has been affectionately known by chiropractors for almost 100 years, was describing the inner workings of the brain and spinal cord, the complex nerve system connected to all parts of the body, and the cells, tissues, and organs comprising the bulk of human physiology.

In his inimitable style, Dr. Palmer was addressing many deep, complex phenomena all at once. From a high-level viewpoint, he was describing how the central nervous system communicates with the rest of the body. One major conclusion is that the brain (as the originator of nerve signals that flow to the spinal cord and from there to the organs, tissues, and cells) is the master controller of all the other systems. The gastrointestinal, endocrine, cardiopulmonary, and musculoskeletal systems are all ultimately controlled and regulated by activities within the brain. 

More than this, "B.J." was pointing directly to an organizing intelligence responsible for all the operations of living tissue. This concept, "Innate Intelligence", was propounded by his father, Dr. Daniel David Palmer. "B.J." expanded, publicized, and promoted the idea of Innate Intelligence as he helped the field of chiropractic grow into the second largest healing arts profession in the United States.

In the above-down, inside-out paradigm, Innate Intelligence is an intrinsic guiding and instructional force that maintained ongoing health and healing. Innate Intelligence knows how much oxygen and other nutrients a cell needs to meet its energy requirements. Innate Intelligence knows how to direct B lymphocytes to build a new antibody to fight a previously unencountered bacteria or virus. Innate Intelligence knows how much insulin should be released by beta cells in the pancreatic islets of Langerhans in order to properly use the carbohydrates you ingested during your last heart-healthy meal.

But disorder within the nerve system can interfere with the body's ability to carry out the instructions of Innate Intelligence. Symptoms, pain, disorders, and disease ensue from such nerve interference. Chiropractic care helps restore balance within the nerve system, thus helping restore health and well-being.^1,2,3

¹Nguyen LT, et al: Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine and Self-Rated Health Status: Results from a National Survey. J Gen Intern Med Nov 5 2010 (Epub ahead of print)

²Millet JD: Progress in complementary and alternative medicine research: Yale Research Symposium on Complementary and Integrative Medicine. Yale J Biol Med 83(3):127-129, 2010

³Ahn AC, et al: Applying principles from complex systems to studying the efficacy of CAM therapies. J Altern Complement Med 16(9):1015-1022, 2010

 

 Daniel Lonquist, DC, CCST, CCWP

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

755 North Ave Ste B

Grand Junction, CO 81501

970-257-9199

New Beginnings

Chiropractic Care and Long-Term Health

Achieving long-term health does not imply that you will never get sick. Achieving long-term health does not imply that you will never have a neck or back problem. Achieving long-term health does mean that you will get the most out of what you've got; you will be much healthier than otherwise; and you will feel better about yourself, have more energy, and get more out of life. Chiropractic care is an essential component of achieving long-term health. Making sure you eat good food, drink plenty of water, and eat several portions of fresh fruits and vegetables each day is a very good place to start. Adding a daily program of 30 minutes of regular, vigorous exercise is the next key piece in achieving good health. Chiropractic care is the important link that brings everything together, enabling your body to make the best use of your nutrition and exercise. Chiropractic care helps ensure that the various parts of your body are working in harmony to achieve your long-term goals in health and wellness.

The time is always right to begin returning to good health. Regardless of whether your issues involve weight, exercise, diet, blood pressure, diabetes, or chronic pain, now is the time to begin taking action on your own behalf.

You are not alone. Literally hundreds of millions of people worldwide have various chronic complaints and illnesses.^1,2,3 Some problems are more serious than others, but everyone eventually wants to find a better way to manage their health problems. Eventually everyone wants to actually begin to be healthier and feel better.

Of course, a healthy diet and regular vigorous exercise are the key elements in any process of returning to good health. People know this, but for the most part this knowledge alone does not do any good. The deep truth is that feeling good and actually being healthy takes a lot of effort. It's much easier to pick up dinner from a fast food restaurant than to spend precious time planning and shopping and preparing meals. It's much easier to sit on your couch and watch people on TV trying to lose weight than to actually do the work of losing weight yourself. It's much easier to spend 30 minutes watching the news for the third time that day than to put on your workout clothes and go for a brisk 30-minute walk.

We are all slaves to our habitual ways of thinking and habitual ways of living. Just as in physics, people have inertia. Newton's First Law of Motion states that a body at rest stays at rest and a body in motion stays in motion, unless it is acted upon by an external unbalanced force. We will do the same things we have always done, achieving the same results we have always achieved, unless we make an active choice to engage in new thinking and new activities.

By the way, no one is going to make any lasting changes in their lifestyle - for example, by choosing a healthy diet and daily exercise - merely because someone told them they needed to do it. If you're chronically overweight, your doctor has told you every year that you need to make changes. Every year at your annual physical she tells you to begin regular, vigorous exercise and adopt healthy eating habits. Do any of these admonitions ever make a lasting difference? They don't, not becauses they are bad advice, but because they were not a match for your own world view. Real change, lasting change, has to come from within, from your own personal choice.  

When a person is actually ready to choose to revamp her lifestyle with respect to achieving good health, there are many possible steps to take. Chiropractic care can be an important and critical component of an overall health improvement strategy.

¹Temple R, Murphy H: Type 2 diabetes in pregnancy - An increasing problem. Best Pract Res Clin Endocrinol Metab 24(4):591-603.

²Li S, et al: Genetic predisposition to obesity leads to increased risk of type 2 diabetes. Diabetologiz Jan 26, 2011 (Epub ahead of print)

³Urquhart DM, et al: Increased fat mass is associated with high levels of low back pain intensity and disability. Spine Jan 25, 2011 (Epub ahead of print)

 

Dr. Daniel Lonquist

755 North Ave Ste B

Grand Junction, CO 81501

970-257-9199

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

www.facebook.com/BTHWellnessCenter

http://dlonquist.2ndcousinmedia.com/widget

The Pain of Clinical Depression

Many of us think of depression as a psychological condition. The causes of depression are sought in the person's childhood or in her personal circumstances as an adult. But within the last 10 or 20 years depression is increasingly being evaluated within a physiological context. Various disease states and physical disorders are being recognized as important contributors to depression. This viewpoint is empowering to persons with depression and often provides a way forward when progress has been minimal or absent.

Those with depression experience both physical and psychological pain. It is well-documented that chronic physical pain can lead to depression. Also, it is well-known that depressive states can cause physical pain. A feedback loop (vicious circle) is often created in which physical pain makes a person's depression worse and the person's depression makes the physical pain worse.

In addition, changes in brain physiology may cause a person to be depressed. In other words, abnormal electrical activity in the brain - which, of course, is not under the person's conscious control - may result in depression. The brain's electrical activity is evaluated by a method known as quantitative EEG (QEEG).1 For those with clinical depression, the QEEG often demonstrates too much slow-wave activity in the left front brain (prefrontal cortex) and too much fast-wave activity in the right prefrontal cortex.

For those with clinical depression, the light of the world is considerably dimmed. The mood of a depressed person is low and he loses interest in normally pleasurable activities. Depressive disorders interfere with a person's work and/or school activities, family life and social life, and overall health. Lack of energy, lack of appetite, and decreased physical activity are all associated with clinical depression.

An access to relieving chronic depression may be found in encouraging the person to begin to engage in physical activity.2,3 Such activity may be difficult for those who are severely depressed, and yet all persons with depression should be presented with this form of therapy.

Additionally, chiropractic care may be of great benefit for those with clinical depression. The pain relief and improved musculoskeletal function afforded by chiropractic care may help reduce the physical component of ongoing depression.

 Read More

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

Daniel Lonquist, DC, CCST, CCWP

970-257-9199

¹Hargrove JB, et al: Quantitative electroencephalographic abnormalities in fibromyalgia patients. Clin EEG Neurosci 41(3):132-139, 2010

²Gill A, et al: Clinical Inquiries: Does exercise alleviate symptoms of depression? J Fam Pract 59(9):530-531, 2010

³Uebelacker LA, et al: Hatha yoga for depression: critical review of the evidence for efficacy, plausible mechanisms of action, and directions for future research. J Psychiatr Pract 16(1):22-33, 2010

Four Resolutions for a Healthier Back

Eat more vegetables. Stress less. Take the kids out to the park more often. You may already have a long list of resolutions for the new year. This year, honor your spine, too. With the help of your doctor of chiropractic, these simple steps can promote a healthier back for the new year.

Consider replacing your pillow or mattress.

Do you wake up with aches and pains? It could be time to purchase a new mattress or pillow. The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) recommends finding a mattress that evenly supports your whole body. There should be no gaps between you and the mattress when you lie down. When choosing a pillow, select one that supports your head and neck in alignment with the rest of the spine, whether you sleep on your side or back. Keep in mind that what works for your partner may not work for you— there isn’t one mattress or pillow that fits everyone. Simple adjustments, such as adding foam padding, can help tremendously.

Re-evaluate your posture at work.

Americans spend an average of 44 hours at work every week— often behind a desk. To avoid poor posture that can lead to tension, back pain, and joint problems such as carpal tunnel syndrome, check that your chair is the right size and adjusted correctly, says the ACA. Do your feet rest comfortably on the ground? Does the chair offer lumbar support? Are you able to tilt or swivel easily while performing tasks at your desk? Also, be sure you have adequate light (so that you aren’t straining to see documents or a computer screen), adjust your computer monitor so that it is at eye level, and wear a headset for longer telephone conversations. And don’t forget to take frequent breaks and stretch throughout the day.

Learn how to lift correctly.

Many back injuries are caused by improper lifting of items such as luggage, backpacks or briefcases, storage boxes, or even groceries. But knowing how to lift properly can prevent serious injury. First and foremost, don’t bend from the waist. Keep your back straight, and squat to reach the item. Then, keep it close to your body as you lift, and avoid twisting motions. When traveling, check all bags that weigh more than 10 percent of your body weight.

Eat right and exercise well.

Eating a balanced diet and getting regular exercise helps your body stay toned and tension-free— and promotes a healthy weight and a happier spine. Smart exercise and a good diet can also prevent osteoporosis, which affects over 20 million American women. To start, the ACA recommends eating out at restaurants less (to reduce the amount of unhealthful fats and sugars you consume) and adding more fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains to your diet. Aim for a minimum of 20 to 30 minutes of exercise, three or four days a week.

Read More

Back To Health Wellness Center

Daniel Lonquist, DC, CCST, CCWP

755 North Ave Ste B

Grand Junction, CO 81501

970-257-9199

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

What is Health?

In the language of statistics, health is a continuous variable. A person's health can be expressed as an infinity of values ranging from abundant well-being to terminal states approaching death. If health were a discrete quantity you could assign a number to it. You could say that someone had 95% health or 32% health. You'd be able to measure health on an exact scale. But of course health is much more complex. Health status requires intermediate descriptive states for a more complete understanding of a person's level of wellness.
The practical outcome is that health is an expression of many factors, not merely one kind of activity. A person who has an extraordinarily healthy diet but has very high levels of stress may still suffer from cardiovascular disease, regardless of the amounts of omega-3 fatty acids and fresh fruits and vegetables he consumes.¹ A person may be a champion athlete, such as a ballet dancer or a figure skater, and yet have type 2 diabetes owing to a lifetime of unhealthy nutrition.²
There are many such cautionary tales, including that of a famous runner, author, and fitness expert who died suddenly of a heart attack at the age of 52.
Like an archeological dig, good health has many layers. It's always a mistake to stop digging (even though you think you completely understand a process), because a little more effort and a little more thought will reveal new patterns and new connections. This is the major problem with medications. You take a drug to stimulate one thing or inhibit another thing, but there always more layers to consider. Side effects result from trying to manipulate one layer of effects while ignoring the consequences to other important layers.
Statins are a good example of this process of failing to consider the layers of health. These drugs lower blood cholesterol levels by inhibiting the production of a liver enzyme that is part of the pathway of cholesterol synthesis. But statins have many side effects, including Lou Gehrig's disease, memory loss, liver damage, nausea, diarrhea, and muscle pain.³
In contrast, chiropractic care is designed to pay attention to all the layers. Chiropractic care, in fact, is a layer-optimization process. By restoring full functioning of a person's nerve system and improving the mechanical functioning of the musculoskeletal system, chiropractic care enables the body's layers of health to interact in the way they were designed to interact. Chiropractic care is a natural, efficient method of restoring and maintaining good health.

Click to Read More

¹Knoepfli-Lenzin C, et al: Effects of a 12-week intervention period with football and running for habitually active men with mild hypertension. Scand J Med Sci Sports Feb 2, 2010 (Epub)
²Fuemmeler BF, et al: Weight, dietary behavior, and physical activity in childhood and adolescence. Implications for adult cancer risk. Obes Facts 2(3):179-186, 2009
³Sharma M, et al: Systematic review: comparative effectiveness and harms of combination therapy and monotherapy for dyslipidemia. Ann Intern Med 151(9):622-630, 2009

Back To Health Wellness Center

Daniel Lonquist, DC, CCST, CCWP

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

970-257-9199

REAL Cancer Advancements that Need to Become Mainstream Knowledge

By: Dr. Mercola

In the last 30 years the global cancer burden has doubled, and it will likely double again between 2000 and 2020, and nearly triple by 2030—unless people begin to take cancer prevention seriously. We CAN turn this trend around, but to do so the medical community must stop overlooking the methods that can actually have a significant impact.
Three cancer advancements in particular merit special mention. These advancements have not yet been accepted by conventional medicine, and they must be.

Number 1: Vitamin D—There's overwhelming evidence pointing to the fact that vitamin D deficiency plays a crucial role in cancer development. Researchers within this field have estimated that about 30 percent of cancer deaths -- which amounts to 2 million worldwide and 200,000 in the United States -- could be prevented each year simply by optimizing the vitamin D levels in the general population.

On a personal level, you can decrease your risk of cancer by MORE THAN HALF simply by optimizing your vitamin D levels with sun exposure. And if you are being treated for cancer it is likely that higher blood levels—probably around 80-90 ng/ml—would be beneficial.

If the notion that sun exposure actually prevents cancer is still new to you, I highly recommend you watch my one-hour vitamin D lecture to clear up any confusion. It's important to understand that the risk of skin cancer from the sun comes only from excessive exposure.
Meanwhile, countless people around the world have an increased risk of cancer because their vitamin D levels are too low due to utter lack of sun exposure.

The health benefits of optimizing your levels, either by safe sun exposure (ideally), a safe tanning bed, or oral supplementation as a last resort, simply cannot be overstated. In terms of protecting against cancer, vitamin D has been found to offer protection in a number of ways, including:

• Regulating genetic expression
• Increasing the self-destruction of mutated cells (which, if allowed to replicate, could lead to cancer)
• Reducing the spread and reproduction of cancer cells
• Causing cells to become differentiated (cancer cells often lack differentiation)
• Reducing the growth of new blood vessels from pre-existing ones, which is a step in the transition of dormant tumors turning cancerous

To learn the details on how to use vitamin D therapeutically, please review my previous article, Test Values and Treatment for Vitamin D Deficiency.
Number 2: Optimizing Your Insulin Levels—Normalizing your insulin levels is one of the most powerful physical actions you can take to lower your risk of cancer. Otto Warburg actually received a Nobel Prize for his research on cancer cell physiology in 1934, which clearly demonstrated cancer cells require more sugar to thrive. Unfortunately, very few oncologists appreciate or apply this knowledge today.
The Cancer Centers of America is one of the few exceptions, where strict dietary measures are included in their cancer treatment program.

High levels of insulin can cause major damage to your body. The most recognized of these is diabetes, but that is far from the only one. As Ron Rosedale, M.D. said in one of my most popular articles, Insulin and Its Metabolic Effects:

"It doesn't matter what disease you are talking about, whether you are talking about a common cold or cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis or cancer, the root is always going to be at the molecular and cellular level, and I will tell you that insulin is going to have its hand in it, if not totally control it."

The good news is that controlling your insulin levels is relatively straightforward. First, limit your intake of processed foods, grains and sugars/fructose as much as possible to prevent your insulin levels from becoming elevated in the first place.
Number 3: Exercise—If you are like most people, when you think of reducing your risk of cancer, exercise doesn't immediately come to mind. However, there is some fairly compelling evidence that exercise can slash your risk of cancer.
One of the primary ways exercise lowers your risk for cancer is by reducing elevated insulin levels, which creates a low sugar environment that discourages the growth and spread of cancer cells. Controlling your insulin levels and optimizing your vitamin D level are two of the most powerful steps you can take to reduce your cancer risk. For example, physically active adults experience about half the incidence of colon cancer as their sedentary counterparts, and women who exercise regularly can reduce their breast cancer risk by 20 to 30 percent compared to those who are inactive.
Additionally, exercise improves the circulation of immune cells in your blood. Your immune system is your first line of defense against everything from minor illnesses like a cold right up to devastating, life-threatening diseases like cancer.
The trick about exercise, though, is understanding how to use it as a precise tool. This ensures you are getting enough to achieve the benefit, not too much to cause injury, and the right variety to balance your entire physical structure and maintain strength and flexibility, and aerobic and anaerobic fitness levels. This is why it is helpful to view exercise like a drug that needs to be carefully prescribed to achieve its maximum benefit.
It's important to include a large variety of techniques in your exercise routine, such as strength training, aerobics, core-building activities, and stretching. Most important of all, however, is to make sure you include high-intensity, burst-type exercise, such as Peak 8. Peak 8 are exercises performed once or twice a week, in which you raise your heart rate up to your anaerobic threshold for 20 to 30 seconds, and then you recover for 90 seconds.
These exercises activate your super-fast twitch muscle fibers, which can increase your body's natural production of human growth hormone. For detailed instructions, please see this previous article.

Winning the War Against Cancer Begins with Your Personal Choices

You can do a lot, right now, to significantly decrease your cancer risk. Even the conservative American Cancer Society states that one-third of cancer deaths are linked to poor diet, physical inactivity, and carrying excess weight. So making the following healthy lifestyle changes can go a very long way toward ending the failure-streak and becoming one less statistic in this war against cancer:

1. Normalize your vitamin D levels with safe amounts of sun exposure. This works primarily by optimizing your vitamin D level. Ideally, monitor your vitamin D levels throughout the year.
2. Control your insulin levels by limiting your intake of processed foods and sugars/fructose as much as possible.
3. Get appropriate amounts of animal-based omega-3 fats.
4. Get appropriate exercise. One of the primary reasons exercise works is that it drives your insulin levels down. Controlling insulin levels is one of the most powerful ways to reduce your cancer risks.
5. Eat according to your nutritional type. The potent anti-cancer effects of this principle are very much underappreciated. When we treat cancer patients in our clinic this is one of the most powerful anti-cancer strategies we have.
6. Have a tool to permanently erase the neurological short-circuiting that can activate cancer genes. Even the CDC states that 85 percent of disease is caused by emotions. It is likely that this factor may be more important than all the other physical ones listed here, so make sure this is addressed. My particular favorite tool for this purpose, as you may know, is the Emotional Freedom Technique.
7. Only 25 percent of people eat enough vegetables, so by all means eat as many vegetables as you are comfortable with. Ideally, they should be fresh and organic. Cruciferous vegetables in particular have been identified as having potent anti-cancer properties. Remember that carb nutritional types may need up to 300 percent more vegetables than protein nutritional types.
8. Maintain an ideal body weight.
9. Get enough high-quality sleep.
10. Reduce your exposure to environmental toxins like pesticides, household chemical cleaners, synthetic air fresheners and air pollution.
11. Reduce your use of cell phones and other wireless technologies, and implement as many safety strategies as possible if/when you cannot avoid their use.
12. Boil, poach or steam your foods, rather than frying or charbroiling them.

Daniel Lonquist, DC, CCST, CCWP

Back to Health Wellness Center

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

970-257-9199

Potassium Iodide: When Not to Use It

By

Alan R. Gaby, MD

Only take KI for radiation protection if you are in a contaminated area and have been instructed to do so by health officials

Related Topics

The recent tragedy in Japan has reminded the world of potential health threats from nuclear radiation, and attention has turned to potassium iodide (KI), a supplement that is known under certain conditions to protect the body from certain radiation effects. However, it is important that people take the time to learn when and how KI may be used effectively and safely, since there is no cause to believe that anyone outside the affected area in Japan should be taking KI, and the risk of taking it could outweigh the benefits.

How does KI work?

For people exposed at close range to large amounts of radioactive material, taking potassium iodide tablets can be very important. Radioactive iodine is one of the materials released after a nuclear accident. The thyroid gland actively takes up and stores iodine, including radioactive forms of the mineral, and exposure to large amounts of radioactive iodine can increase the risk of developing thyroid cancer.

Taking a large amount of nonradioactive iodine (in the form of KI) prior to massive radiation exposure saturates the thyroid gland with iodine and thereby prevents radioactive iodine from entering the gland. This protective effect lasts about 24 hours, so the drug has to be taken daily during a period of intense radiation exposure in order to be effective.

Potassium iodide does not protect against the adverse effects of other radioactive compounds released during a nuclear accident, such as radioactive cesium.

What is the current radiation danger?

So far, health officials report an insignificant amount of radiation reaching the West Coast of the US. For example, the radiation dose a person normally receives from rocks, bricks, and the sun is 100,000 times the amount coming from Japan.

In contrast, the risks associated with daily use of large doses of potassium iodide are not insignificant. Long-term use of high doses of this compound can cause acne, headaches, and other side effects, and occasionally leads to thyroid abnormalities such as hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism. Because the amount of radioactive iodine currently reaching the US from Japan is so small, the risks associated with taking potassium iodide for radiation protection probably outweigh the benefits.

What about taking extra iodine in the form of iodized salt?

The amount of iodine added to table salt is so small that it would be physically impossible to consume enough salt for it to protect against radiation. Further, high salt intake carries its own risks of adverse effects, so eating more salt is not recommended as a method of protecting against radioactive iodine.

When should I use it?

According to all of the available evidence, the reactor accident in Japan is not a threat to the US population, and the use of KI tablets is not currently recommended. People should only take KI for radiation protection if they live in contaminated areas and have been instructed to do so by health officials. The adult dose of KI for protection against radiation is 130 mg per day, which is nearly 700 times the Recommended Dietary Allowance for iodine.

Are there other protections against radiation?

In areas exposed to dangerous radiation levels, authorities will recommend that people stay indoors with all the doors and windows closed and sealed until the threat passes. The walls of buildings provide some degree of protection against radiation, especially those that are tightly sealed, as this prevents radioactive particles from the passing air from entering the house.

Alan R. Gaby, MD, Chief Medical Editor

An expert in nutritional therapies, Chief Medical Editor Alan R. Gaby is a former professor of Bastyr University of Natural Health Sciences, where he served as the Endowed Professor of Nutrition. He is past-president of the American Holistic Medical Association and gave expert testimony to the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine on the cost-effectiveness of nutritional supplements. Dr. Gaby has conducted nutritional seminars for physicians and has collected over 30,000 scientific papers related to the field of nutritional and natural medicine. In addition to editing and contributing to The Natural Pharmacy (Three Rivers Press, 2006), and theA–Z Guide to Drug-Herb-Vitamin Interactions(Three Rivers Press, 2006), Dr. Gaby has authoredPreventing and Reversing Osteoporosis(Prima Lifestyles, 1995) and B6: The Natural Healer (Keats, 1987) and coauthoredThe Patient’s Book of Natural Healing(Prima Lifestyles, 1999).

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

Daniel Lonquist, DC, CCST, CCWP

www.Facebook.com/BTHWellnessCenter

970-257-9199

Are Fruits and Veggies the Key to Easing Cold Symptoms?

By

Jane Hart, MD

Reseach found that taking a dietary supplement of powdered fruits and veggies eased the severity of cold symptoms by up to 20%

Related Topics

1. Cold & Flu Health Center
2. Fruits & Veggies
3. Eat Healthy

Advice to eat a balanced diet may hold new meaning for people trying to fight off the common cold, as a new study in the British Journal of Nutrition found that taking a dietary supplement of powdered fruits and veggies eased the severity of cold symptoms in healthcare workers by as much as 20%.

Supplement eases severe cold symptoms

In this study, 529 healthcare workers (who are, by profession, particularly susceptible to colds) were randomly assigned to four capsules of a dietary supplement (Juice Plus+® juice powder concentrates from fruits and vegetables) or placebo, daily for eight months. The participants kept a diary of cold symptoms for six months following the intervention.
Results found that the average number of days with moderate or severe cold symptoms was 20% lower in the dietary supplement group compared with the placebo group, and people in the supplement group also reported fewer days of taking cold medicine. People in either group did not have fewer colds, and there was no difference in the total number of days with any cold symptoms between the two groups.
So while the quest for a cure for the common cold continues, the authors comment, “Given the widespread utilization of concentrated dietary products, the present study has potentially important public health relevance. To our knowledge, it is the first randomized investigation focusing on the benefits of juice powder concentrate in subjects particularly exposed to patient contact.” It should be noted that this study was funded by the makers of Juice Plus. Further research on this important topic is needed.

Tips for preventing a cold

• Get enough rest. Sleep is essential for our health and well-being and getting a good night's rest every night or almost every night is a good first step in helping to prevent infections, including colds.
• Live a balanced and healthy life. A nutritious diet including an abundance of fruits and veggies is essential for keeping our immune system working properly and for our ability to fight off infection. Avoiding bad habits such as smoking and drinking too much is also important in efforts to remain healthy. Regular exercise is critical for keeping the body fine-tuned to ward off illness.
• Cover your mouth and wash your hands. Healthcare workers are particularly trained to wash their hands before and after contact with sick people, and the general public should wash their hands after using the restroom or interacting with people who are sick with a cold or the flu. When possible, steer clear of friends and colleagues who are in the first couple of days of having a cold, which is when they are most contagious, and if you are sick remember to cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze and wash your hands frequently.

(Br J Nutr 2011;105:118–22)

Jane Hart, MD, board-certified in internal medicine, serves in a variety of professional roles including consultant, journalist, and educator. Dr. Hart, a Clinical Instructor at Case Medical School in Cleveland, Ohio, writes extensively about health and wellness and a variety of other topics for nationally recognized organizations, websites, and print publications. Sought out for her expertise in the areas of integrative and preventive medicine, she is frequently quoted by national and local media. Dr. Hart is a professional lecturer for healthcare professionals, consumers, and youth and is a regular corporate speaker. 

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

970-257-9199

755 North Ave Ste. B

Grand Junction, CO 81501

52 Week Health & Lifestyle Tips

 

01

If you are trying to lose weight, look at your liquid calories. Beverages now supply more than 20% of the calories in the average diet. Most liquid calories come from soda or alcoholic beverages. Studies show that people who get calories from beverages tend to subsequently eat more than those who get the same number of calories from solid food.

02

Exercise every day. Yes, every day. Your ancestors did it. It’s the way our bodies are meant to work. Even 15-20 minutes. How important is it? If an insulin-dependant diabetic does 30 SECONDS of vigorous exercise 4 times a day, they lower their insulin requirements 20%!!! Just DO IT!

 Anyone wanting a FREE copy of my e-book of 52 Health and Lifestyle Tips as well as a free subscription to my health news podcast all you have to do is email me with "Free 52 week" in the subject line and your first name and email in the body. There is NO obligation to buy anything and you will not be solicited either. It is just my way of educating the public on how to live a healthy lifestyle.

Daniel Lonquist, DC, CCWP
Back To Health Wellness Center
970-257-9199
drl@backtohealthgj.com
www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

Chemical Stress, Children, and Subluxation

Subluxations, for those who do not know, are interferences of the communication in the nervous system. They are epidemic in children! Why?

Chemical toxins are a much overlooked cause of subluxations, nerve interference and ill health in children. Chemicals are a direct poison to their body and nervous system. Everything that our children put in or on their body, what they eat, drink, breathe, place on their skin, or are exposed to in their environment that is not a nutrient may have a negative consequence to their health or nerve system and result in subluxation.

Children have many opportunities to expose themselves to toxins. Cleaning products, pesticides, arts and craft supplies, paints, food dyes, food preservatives, hormones & antibiotics in their meat, sweeteners, sugar, second hand smoke, caffeine, processed foods, prescriptions, over the counter drugs, chemicals in their air, water and even house plants. The list can be quite extensive.

Consider these facts:

• Vaccines may contain aluminum and mercury - neurotoxins
• Fluoride toothpaste contains ammonia, ethanol, artificial colors and flavors, mineral oil, sugar or saccharin, and carcinogenic polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)
• 58% of American children are exposed to second hand smoke, and the levels of a nicotine byproduct, cotinine, test twice as high in those children than in adults.
• Man made chemicals now total over 20,000 (3,000 food additives alone) with an estimated exposure of over 200 chemical toxins a day
• Regular shampoos often contain formaldehyde as a preservative, listed on the label as "quatemium-15"

Researchers suspect exposure to tiny amounts of some environmental chemicals in the womb or early childhood may permanently alter a child's intelligence, motor skills, memory, behavior, fertility and immune response. "Kids are being exposed. We don't have all the details yet about the health effects, but it can't be good for kids," said Dr. Howard Frumkin, chair of environmental and occupational health at Emory University.

"It's time for our government to do more to crack down on these toxic pollutants in our air, water and food," said Robert Musil, executive director of Physicians for Social Responsibility. According to recent estimates from the National Academy of Sciences, it is concluded that 360,000 children, 1 in every 200, suffer from developmental or neurological disabilities caused by a range of toxic exposures. 

If you would like to have your children checked for subluxations, we are here to help.

Back To Health Wellness Center

970-257-9199

755 North Ave Ste B., Grand Junction, CO

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

www.facebook.com/BTHWellnessCenter

Will an Aspirin-A-Day Improve your Health?

An aspirin a day to improve your health?  A recent study indicates that an aspirin-a-day may do a lot more damage to your health than just stomach problems.  The American Association for Cancer Research in Phoenix, Arizona presented a study in October, 2003.  The study indicated that people who take an aspirin-a-day may risk pancreatic cancer!

They studied 88,000 women who took aspirin for a long period of time.  Women who took two or more aspirin a week had an increase risk for pancreatic cancer by a whopping 58% and the women who took 14 or more aspirin a week increased their risk of pancreatic cancer by an amazing 86%!

Why would someone take an aspirin-a-day?  We are made to believe that an aspirin-a-day will reduce our risk of heart disease.  We may reduce our risk of heart attacks but we increase our risk for other diseases such as: stomach problems, kidney problems, stops your blood from clotting correctly and even pancreatic cancer. 
   
According to recent studies, research shows that aspirin might cause as many problems as it's supposed to prevent.  The HeartCenter online recommends not taking an aspirin if you have high blood pressure.  Another recently discovered aspirin side effect is aspirin-induced asthma, which could effect up to 21% of all those who regularly take it or other NSAIDs. This discovery was based on 66 medical papers dating back to 1964.  According to a new study in the British Medical Journal, many people who regularly take aspirin still suffer from heart problems, giving birth to a new condition: aspirin resistance. Doesn’t it make better sense to reduce your risk of heart disease by adopting a wellness lifestyle?  With a healthy lifestyle there are no risks of side effects.

Back To Health Wellness Center

755 North Ave Ste B

Grand Junction, CO 81501

970-257-9199

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

Your Body, the Doctor!

No doctor can heal you! If that is so, you may wonder why chiropractic works so well? Wellness Chiropractic holds forth the notion that your body is the true healer, not the doctor. Chiropractic care facilitates your healing force, but it's your body that does the healing. Understanding simple wellness principles will help you understand how chiropractic frees your body to heal itself. There are two simple wellness laws that you can't violate in order to stay well.
1. Your nervous system must be free from interference. Your central nervous system controls the function of every cell, tissue, organ and system of the body, and you must keep it functioning at 100% to maintain function and health. When a wellness chiropractor removes the interference in the nervous system, it allows the tissues, cells and organs to function properly and heal from within.
For example: When a child comes to us with an ear infection and is healed after chiropractic care, it is not the chiropractic that did the healing; it is the child's innate ability to heal itself that does the healing. The real magic is inside. Chiropractic doesn't treat ear infections; chiropractic removes interference in the nervous system and allows the body to be the doctor. Only our body can do the healing, there has never been a doctor o a drug that has healed you.
2. Your body must be free to heal itself from within. Your body is a self-healing organism and has the ability to heal itself naturally from within, as long as there is no interference. True healing comes from within. When you take drugs or have surgery, you are trying to gain health from an outside source or agent. You are forcing the body against its will and there are always consequences, which we call side effects. Adding chemicals to your body only adds additional interference to its natural ability to function and heal. Free your body from outside chemical, physical and emotional interference to allow your body to heal naturally. We are not saying never to use drugs. There are times when drugs may be necessary, but there are consequences. We want you to practice wellness first; drugs and surgery should be a last resort.

Back To Health Wellness Center

Dr. Daniel Lonquist

970-257-9199

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

Start The New Year Healthy!

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com

There are only 3 Types of Health Conditions!

It may be a gross over-simplification but there really are only 3 kinds of health problems or conditions and they are:
*Acute
*Chronic
*Permanent
And, these conditions are progressive. The first time someone’s health begins to fail, there are usually no symptoms. When the body has been moving in an unhealthy direction long enough for it to begin to break down, symptoms
generally appear. The first sign of a symptom does not mean that the health problems associated with it are acute or new…it just means the symptoms are. An acute health problem is usually one that develops as a result of an obvious injury either physically, chemically or emotionally.
If the cause of that health issue is left unhandled, eventually the problem returns, symptoms return and the body demonstrates signs of a chronic problem. Unfelt but frequent signs of a chronic problem include symptoms that come and go, xrays that demonstrate localized areas of spinal degeneration or decay, muscle
problems that won’t be massaged away or simply health concerns that most people use over-the-counter medicines to deal with.
Permanent health problems result from simply treating symptoms when they arise without taking the time to address the underlying cause of the malfunction in the body. People often use medication for the rest of their lives to try and bring comfort to a malfunctioning body. Unfortunately, this only buys comfort…not
health. And, this practice usually actually causes health problems that are easy to correct to progress from acute to chronic to permanent.
It is for these reasons that we so strongly recommend spine and nervous system evaluations be performed regularly…not just when symptoms develop. It is also why we are so adamant about how important it is to make sure your children grow up healthy rather than wait for them to break down as adults.

Dr. Daniel Lonquist

Certified Chiropractic Wellness Practitioner

Back To Health Wellness Center

970-257-9199

www.BTHWellnessCenter.com