Weekly Health Update For The Week Of Monday, April 29th, 2013

Mental Attitude: Negativity Online.
Simply reading angry rants online can cause a negative mood shift within five minutes of doing so, even if you find them entertaining, interesting, or funny.
Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, March 2013

Health Alert: Superbug Hits United States Hospitals!
Untreatable, antibiotic-resistant infections from a rare but life-threatening super bug are on the rise in United States hospitals. Early in 2012, close to 200 hospitals and long-term care facilities treated at least one person infected with bacteria from the Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) family, and 50% of patients who contract bloodstream CRE infections will die. These bacteria can spread among patients and on the hands of health care workers. This kind of transmission can produce new deadly infections for hospital patients, and potentially for normally healthy people as well. To date, nearly all CRE infections occur in people receiving medical care in hospitals, long-term care facilities, or nursing homes.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, March 2013

Diet: Olive Oil and Satiety.
Consuming olive oil as part of your normal diet may help increase satiety (the feeling of fullness) following a meal.
Technical University of Munich, March 2013

Exercise: More Reasons.
Exercise helps reduce and prevent the immediate symptoms of menopause (hot flashes, sleep disturbances, irritability) and decrease the long-term risks of cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and obesity.
Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Health, 1996

Chiropractic: Bone Demineralization.
With lack of proper motion (joint immobilization), vertebral bone density will decrease if the vertebrae do not bear normal weight (think of osteoporosis). On the other hand, bone density will increase when coupled with lack of proper motion and the vertebrae bearing too much weight (think of degeneration and bone spurs).
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 1992

Wellness/Prevention: Prevent Tobacco Deaths.
By the end of this century, tobacco smoking is projected to kill one billion people! To reduce the prevalence of smoking to less than 5% worldwide by 2048, world officials are attempting to implement plain packaging, high taxation, smoke-free public places, and educational non-smoking and stop smoking campaigns.
Governance of Tobacco in the 21st Century, March 2013

Weekly Health Update For The Week Of Monday, April 22nd, 2013

Mental Attitude: Cognitive Function and Exercise.
Regular exercise as a child can result in improved cognitive function at age 50. Exercise represents a key component of lifestyle interventions to prevent cognitive decline, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer. Even low levels of exercise can have a positive effect on cognitive function.
Psychological Medicine, March 2013

Health Alert: Insomnia and Heart Failure!
Compared to people with no insomnia symptoms, people who suffer from insomnia appear to have a three-fold increased risk of developing heart failure.
European Heart Journal, March 2013

Diet: Lack of Sleep and Your Diet.
People who are sleep deprived are more likely to choose both larger portion sizes and more calorie dense meals and snacks than they would after a normal night's sleep.
Psychoneuroendocrinology, February 2013

Exercise: Stroke Survivors and Walks.
Taking regular brisk walks outdoors can help people recovering from a stroke to improve their physical fitness, enjoy a better quality of life, and increase their mobility. The walking group in this study reported a 16.7% improvement in health-related quality of life, and walked 17.6% further in a six-minute physical endurance test. They also had a 1.5% lower resting heart rate at the end of the study than they did at the beginning, while the non-walking groups resting heart rate went up 6.7%. The American Heart Association recommends stroke survivors do aerobic exercise for 20-60 minutes, 3-7 days a week, depending on fitness level.
Stroke, March 2013

Chiropractic: Bad Deposits!
Fibrin deposits (from lack of proper motion) form and build-up in and around joints and the surrounding soft tissue, resulting in chronic inflammatory conditions. This can cause chronic pain and associated dysfunction of the joint complex.
Spine, 1987

Wellness/Prevention: Maternal Diet.
An important predictor of the severity of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in infants is what their mothers ate during pregnancy. The most serious cases of RSV correlate with mothers who ate a diet high in carbohydrates during gestation.
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, March 2013

Weekly Health Update For The Week Of Monday, April 15th, 2013

Mental Attitude: Video Games and Happiness? Older adults who play video games are more likely to be happier and have better emotional health. Those who played video games (even those who said they just played occasionally) reported a greater sense of well-being. The seniors who did not play video games reported more negative emotions and a likelihood toward increased levels of depression. Computers in Human Behavior, March 2013 Health Alert: Dementia Death Rate Soars! Dementia and Alzheimer's disease have risen from the 24th leading cause of death in the United Kingdom to the 10th in the last 20 years. Dementia is now one of the top 10 (and fastest rising) causes of death. Not including the untold human cost, dementia costs the UK economy £23 billion a year. The Lancet, March 2013 Diet: Heart Healthy Lifestyle Also Lowers Cancer Risk. People who adhere to 6 out of the 7 factors from The American Heart Association's "Life's Simple 7 Steps" to reduce heart attack risk also reduced their risk of cancer by 51%. Those who followed at least four of the 7 factors decreased their cancer risk by 33%. The seven factors include: being physically active, keeping a healthy weight, eating a healthy diet, maintaining healthy cholesterol levels, keeping blood pressure down, regulating blood sugar levels, and not smoking. American Heart Association March, 2013 Exercise: Exercise and Sleep. Light, moderate, and vigorous exercisers are more likely to experience restful sleep than non-exercisers (67% vs. 39%). If you are inactive, taking a ten minute daily walk could improve your likelihood of a good night's sleep. National Sleep Foundation, March 2013 Chiropractic: Don't Wait. While patients with chronic (>3 months) low back pain generally report good outcomes following chiropractic care, patients with acute pain (<4 weeks) recover faster. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, July 2012 Wellness/Prevention: Prevent Visceral Fat. Visceral fat (fat stored in the abdominal cavity) is directly linked to an increased risk for colon cancer. Loss of fat by surgery or a calorie restricted diet reduced the risk of developing intestinal tumors. Cancer Prevention Research, March 2013

Weekly Health Update For The Week Of Monday, April 8th, 2013

Mental Attitude: Cash and Weight Loss?
Researchers found money is an effective incentive when motivating people to lose weight. 62% of participants who received financial incentives ($20 if they met their monthly goal vs. paying $20 if they fell short of their goal) met their goal, compared with 26% of the non-incentive group. In the incentive group, the participants' mean weight loss was 9.1 lbs (~4.1 kg), and for the non-incentive group it was 2.3 lbs (~1 kg).
Mayo Clinic, March 2013

Health Alert: Get Healthier!
Epidemiologists estimate that 80% of the most common diseases are linked to obesity and a sedentary lifestyle. Obese people are at an increased risk for cardiovascular diseases, vascular diseases, hypertension, diabetes, and cancer. Regular physical activity lowers the risk of developing breast, colorectal, and cervical cancers.
National Center for Tumor Diseases, March 2013

Diet: Timing and Weight Loss.
In a study of over 400 overweight people, those who ate more of their calories earlier in the day lost more weight than those who skimped on (or skipped) breakfast or ate a later lunch.
International Journal of Obesity, January 2013

Exercise: Less Stress For Kids.
Children who exercise are less affected by stressful events than their more sedentary peers.
Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, March 2013

Chiropractic: Disk Biochemistry.
Proper joint motion helps remove wastes and fluids from the disks of your spine and improves the flow of proper nutrients into the disk. It is important to understand that the disk does not have a direct blood supply, and disks only stay healthy with motion. With lack of motion there is decreased oxygen, glucose, sulfates, and proteoglycan content, all of which are essential for disk health.
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 1992

Wellness/Prevention: Mental Stimulation and Alzheimer's Disease.
Alzheimer's disease is thought to result from the build up of amyloid beta protein in the brain. This protein can interfere with nerve cell communication, gradually eroding a person's mental processes and memory. Regular, prolonged exposure to a mentally stimulating environment appears to prevent amyloid beta proteins from negatively affecting the brain's inner workings.
Neuron, March 2013

Weekly Health Update For The Week Of Monday, April 1st, 2013

Mental Attitude: Decreasing Depression Symptoms in Adolescents.
Teenage students who received mindfulness training (a form of meditation therapy focused on exercising 'attentiveness') in school were almost half as likely to report depression related symptoms than their peers who received no such training. At a six month follow-up, these results held up.
Mindfullness, March 2013

Health Alert: Type 2 Diabetes Costs!
Diabetes cost the United States $245 billion in 2012. The new figure represents a 41% rise in just five years. The $245 billion includes $176 in direct medical costs (such as hospital and emergency care, visits to the doctor, and medications), and $69 billion resulting from indirect costs (such as absenteeism, reduced productivity, diabetes-related job loss, and productivity loss due to premature deaths). 26 million adults and children have type 2 diabetes, and another 79 million have pre-diabetes. Medical expenditure for people with diabetes is about 2.3 times higher than for people who don't have the disease.
American Diabetes Association, March 2013

Diet: Phytonutrients?
"Phyto" nutrients are substances of plant origin that appears to provide added natural protection against cardiovascular disease, cancers, and degeneration. They have anti-oxidant properties, which help with immunity, inflammation, growth, repair, and overall health. Fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, and nuts are rich in phytonutrients.
Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2009

Exercise: Short Bouts.
Short bouts of moderately intense exercise seem to boost self-control, possibly due to increased blood and oxygen flow to pre-frontal area of brain. This is particularly important for children and teens, because well-developed higher brain functions are important for academic achievement.
British Journal of Sports Medicine, March 2013

Chiropractic: Standard Medical Care and Chiropractic.
Compared to those who received standard medical care (SMC) alone, military personnel (ages 18-35) with back pain who received chiropractic care in addition to SMC showed significantly more improvement in both decreased pain and increased physical function. Note: This particular study did not include a group of patients who only received chiropractic manipulative therapy.
Spine, October 2012

Wellness/Prevention: Omega-3s Reduce Cancer Risk.
According to researchers at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, a lifelong diet containing omega-3 fatty acids may reduce cancer risk by as much as 30%.
The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry, February 2013