Muscle Soreness

“Just take an Advil”

I recently shared with another health care provider that I had started a new, intense workout program. I shared that the soreness of my muscles was something I had to stay on top of.  She responded, “Just take one Advil before and one Advil after.”  This is a very common response that most people would not think twice about.

So, what’s the big deal? 

Ibuprofen, the main constituent of Advil, can damage the kidneys.  People who are dehydrated are more at risk.  Because dehydration is a common risk of working out, Advil is actually a very bad choice.

What is a good choice for muscle soreness?

The answer is minerals!  Minerals like Calcium, Magnesium, and Potassium actually help to neutralize lactic acid, improve hydration, and decrease muscle soreness without risking damage to the kidney, liver, or stomach lining.

There is also a great herb called  Boswellia serrata that not only help with pain but inflammation too.  Make sure you are getting it from a respected herbal source.

Finally, keep hydrated!  Be sure to give your body support during workouts and increase the amount of water you consume.

Sick care vs. Health care

There has been a lot of uncertainty with health insurance lately surrounding the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare). Debating the pros and cons of the new law is an important conversation to have, but the current discussion seems to overlook some very important issues.  It is time for an overall paradigm shift that would help us to see health insurance through a more realistic lens.

Calling it "health" insurance presumes health is the priority. In reality, it would be more accurate to call it "sick" insurance as the system requires you to be "sick" before you can use it.  It is imperative to understand our health insurance system measures success in terms of profit, not measurements of health.  Therefore, there is no incentive for the system to promote health or wellness.  It is time to stop relying on a for-profit private insurance company to determine what we can do for our health.  Health insurance is important to help insure us against a catastrophic illness or accident, but you and only you can insure your own health.

Statistically, the US is number one in emergency medicine but we are 78th in wellness care.  We can do better.  Health is not a mystery.  We know how to achieve it.  But, until our system is set up to have health as a measurement  of success, it is ultimately up to us to take responsibility for our health through diet, exercise, chiropractic care, nutritional supplements, and other holistic based modalities that nurture our body, mind, and spirit.  We will likely not see improvements to insurance coverage for health improving activities, it is up to you to invest in the most important asset you have.

Body Messages - Brown Skin Spots

One of the more popular new cosmetics product out recently is the "age spot" remover. These brown spots on the skin are not called age spots because you are growing older.

AGE stands for Advanced glycation end-product.

Translation: your body cannot handle all the sugar you are eating. You can think of it like the sugar is carmalizing under your skin.

Understand when I say sugar, I am also referring to carbs. Carbohydrates are a bunch of sugars all connected together. Some of the worst offenders are bagels, breads, pasta and rice.

Brown skin spots are minor considering what unstable blood sugar can do to your body. Internal inflammation, hormone imbalance, elevated triglycerides, PCOS, excessive weight, osteoarthritis, fatigue are just some of the symptoms.

Stablizing blood sugar relies heavily on getting enough protein and avoiding carbs. There are several diets that follow this basic idea; Phase II diet, Paleo diet, Mediterranean diet. The short version is protein and vegetables for every meal and get off the grains and sugar.

Infertility & Breast cancer

I opened my internet this morning to see a story about Guiliana Rancic and her decision to undergo a double masectomy. I have followed her and her husband's struggle with infertility over the years but I had not heard that she was fighting breast cancer. Sadly, I wasn't surprised.


So what does breast cancer have to do with fertility?
The answer is hormone imbalance.

Hormone imbalance comes in many different forms:

• infertility



• breast, uterine, ovarian cancers



• severe menopause symptoms



• early puberty



• PMDD, severe PMS



• Prostate hypertrophy & cancer in men
  

Unfortunately we are living in a toxic pool of hormone disrupters and while hormone imbalance is common, it is not normal.

There are some easy lifestyle tips you can implement to improve hormone balance:

1. Stop all forms of HRT and hormonal birth control (esp. Yaz & Mirena)



2. Eat one serving a day of cruciferous vegetables/day (broccoli, kale, brussel sprouts)
   


3. Avoid soy & plastics
   

These tips may not be enough to restore balance which is where nutritional therapy can help.
*A special note to those woman who have gone through IVF or are planning to go through IVF, the drugs are powerful hormone disruptors by design. Helping the body clear them safely through nutritional therapy helps to prevent other problems down the road.

Body Messages - Red Dots on Your Skin

Our bodies are often giving us messages, so do we know what they mean or that it is a message?
Red dots on the skin are an important message. They can show up anywhere on the body; arms, back, chest, face.
These little dots are an indication of too much estrogen in the body. They can show up on women or men. Men can get lots of them if they are taking synthetic testosterone since excess testosterone in a man's body will turn into estrogen. Women can get them when the body is not filtering estrogen properly, from birth control or HRT. Anyone can get too much estrogen from non-organic animal products, plastics, soy, pesticides and many other sources.

If you have too much estrogen in the body, it can put women at risk for breast, cervical, ovarian and uterine cancers and men at risk for prostate cancer. If you find little red dots on you or your family, pay attention to this very important message.

There are things you can do to help reduce estrogen in the body:

• Eat 1 serving of cruciferous vegetables / day (kale, broccoli, brussel sprouts)


• Avoid soy products


• Switch to organic sources of animal products (milk, cheese, butter, meat, etc)


• Seek natural alternatives to birth control & HRT


• Avoid using all pesticides and herbicides

Think Before You Drink...Fiji Water

I am not a fan of plastic bottled water as a rule for several reasons:
1) Cost
2) There are no purity standards
3) Plastic leaches into the water and contributes to the severe hormonal imbalances found in a majority of Americans
4) The enviromental impact of bottling and shipping water all over the world
5) It is one of the major contributors (plastic bags being the other) to the plastic waste problem that the world is facing along with the Eastern Garbage Patch that is already the size of Texas found in the Pacific Ocean

Now I have one more to add after reading this article on the irreparable damage that the Fiji Water Company is doing to the island of Fiji, the people and the environment.

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/08/24/tale-of-fiji-water-too-familiar-sounds-like-industrial-colonial/

A good way to make sure that you and your family have clean, environmentally responsible drinking water is distillation. You can find countertop distillers on Amazon.com or Gaiam.com. They require a investment of $200-$400 which is easily made back with avoiding plastic bottled water.
Distillaton removes

• Bacteria, viruses & other microorganisms
• Fluoride, sodium, nitrates and other soluable inorganic salts
• Organic chemicals like pesticides, PCBs, THMs
• Radionuclides
• Heavy metals such as lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, etc.
• Soluable minerals such as calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, etc.

What distillation does not remove are gases and volatile organic compounds but this is easily remedied by incorporating a carbon filter which most countertop distillers have.
It is important to note that most distillation does require electricity so a easy way to minimize your electric bill is to run it over night. Using glass or stainless steel bottles to store the distilled water in the refrigerator allows for busy families to grab and go.

The controversy that is brought up over distilled water is that is devoid of minerals...which is true but the claim that ingesting distilled water will leach minerals out of the body is false. Once distilled water hits our stomach it mixes with our stomach juices and immediately loses its leaching abilities.

An easy solution to make your distilled water into absorbable mineral water...a few grains of brown rice in your water bottle!

If we are going to claim to be "GREEN", we have start speaking with our money and skipping the bottled water, especially Fiji Water, is a good start.

Understanding the Nervous System

Every day in my office I explain how the nervous system works and that chiropractic is not really about neck and back pain but about caring for the nervous system.

Leave it to Schoolhouse Rock to make it so simple: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTwASnQ3S6Y&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Efacebook%2Ecom%2Fhome%2Ephp%3Fref%3Dhome&feature=player_embedded

Worried About Swine Flu? Get To Your Chiropractor

If you are freaking out about the newest virus, consider the benefits of chiropractic.

In 1917, there was a flu epidemic across the nation and the world. In the midst of the tragedy, the benefits of chiropractic were undeniable! Take a look at these statistics.

Davenport, Iowa (home of Palmer College of Chiropractic)
MD: 4,953 cases, 274 deaths
DC: 1,635 cases, 1 death

Rest of Iowa
MD: 93,590 cases, 6,116 deaths - 1 patient out of every 15
DC: 4,735 cases, 6 deaths - 1 patient out of every 789

Similar numbers were reported in Oklahoma, New York and even France.

Why, you might ask, does chiropractic have anything to do with the flu? Chiropractic’s health benefits are much greater than the relief of back or neck pain, it is whole-body health care. It emphasizes the relationship between the spine and the nervous system, and how that relationship affects function and health. Spinal misalignments (known as vertebral subluxations) can interfere with the transmission of information from the brain, over the spinal cord and/or nerve roots to any and all systems of the body. The resulting altered information produces altered function and lowered resistance.

If you want to read more, check out the rest of the article. http://www.danmurphydc.com/Rhodes_Flu.pdf

High Fructose Corn Syrup - Don't Believe the Hype!

The corn refiners association is in full propoganda mode. I am sure most of you have seen the ridiculous commericials and even now have the news organizations reporting that there is no difference between high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and sugar.

Let me be very clear...there is a HUGE difference. HFCS is dangerous to your health and should be avoided.

Sucrose or sugar is made up of 50% glucose & 50% fructose. HFCS is only made up of fructose. The fructose can only be metabolized in the liver. Glucose, on the other hand, is metabolized in every cell in the body including the brain which accounts for 25% of the glucose metabolism of the entire body.

Mice given a diet of fructose only showed livers plugged with fat, cirrhosis of the liver, male rats did not reach adulthood, anemia, high cholesterol, enlarged heart and delayed testicular development. In the same study, the mice that were given glucose only diets were unaffected.

Other problems with HFCS is the that most corn in the US is genetically modifed and has high levels of pesticide. Recently, there has evidence that HFCS contains high levels of mercury due to the processing.

Please do not go running for the artificial sweetners, they are even more dangerous. While sugar is not a health food, your body does know how to metabolize it. Use it in moderation along with lots of good proteins and veggies and your health should not suffer.

http://www.westonaprice.org/

Attention All Mothers!

Attention all mothers, you have powerful instincts...use them!

We all know that animals in the wild often only have their instincts but for some reason we believe that because we have brains our instincts should be ignored. Moms are bombarded daily with decisions about their children. Sometimes it is something as small as when to put shoes on a baby to choosing whether or when to vaccinate. Your instincts have nothing to do with your knowledge on a particular topic, it is the feeling, the voice, the pause that is your queue. Your instincts need a workout, when you start to listen to them, you become more confident which leads to stronger feelings and more trust in the gift. Moms tell me all the time that "something didn't sound right" or "I just had a feeling" but they are intimidated by somebody with maybe more education, more children or just more opinions. Be brave and your instincts will lead the way.

Reconsider the Flu Shot

The whole premise of the flu shot is a problem because flu virus strains are constantly mutating and there is no way for researchers to determine this year’s flu strain

According to the Centers for Disease Control, The National Institutes of Health, and 30 years of data, the flu shot has not saved any lives

The flu shot can not only cause the flu, especially if given to a person with a weakened immune system like the elderly, small children and pregnant women, but it also exposes the recipient to toxins such as mercury, formaldehyde & aluminum

Consider this:

-A single dose of the flu vaccine will expose a person to 25 micrograms of mercury in one day
-Mercury has been proven to kill brain neurons
-According to the FDA & EPA, the maximum mercury exposure for the average 6 mo old should be no more than 7/10ths of one microgram of mercury in one day.
-Mercury can cause failing memory in adults
-Individuals who get too many consecutive flu shots can have 10 times the chance of developing Alzheimer’s as those who received one, two or no shots

Ingredients in a Flu Shot
•Ethylene glycol (antifreeze)
•Phenol, also known as carbolic acid (this is used as a disinfectant, dye)
•Formaldehyde, a known cancer-causing agent
•Aluminum, which is associated with Alzheimer's disease, seizures and also cancer producing in laboratory mice (it is used as an additive to promote antibody response)
•Thimerosal (a mercury disinfectant/preservative) can result in brain injury and autoimmune disease
•Neomycin and Streptomycin (used as antibiotics) have caused allergic reaction in some people.

Possible Side Effects of the Flu Shot
–Flu
–Allergic reactions (especially in those with egg/poultry/feather allergies)
–Guillain-Barré Syndrome (a de-myelinating disease caused by acute infection with an ascending paralysis, if not treated immediately can cause death due to inability to breathe)
–Temporary neurological disorders (encephalopathy, optic neuritis/neuropathy, partial facial paralysis, brachial plexus neuropathy)
–Vasculitis (inflammation of the blood vessels)

Feed A Cold, Starve a Fever?

Actually it is Feed a Virus, Starve a Bacteria

According to New Scientist, January 2002,

“Dutch scientists have found that eating a meal boosts the type of immune response that destroys the viruses responsible for colds, while fasting stimulates the response that tackles the bacterial infections responsible for most fevers.”

It is important to note that viruses can cause fevers along with bacterial infections

Halloween Candy ALERT!

From http://www.innatehealer.blog.com/

About a month ago, samples of Cadbury chocolate produced in China were found to contain melamine - an industrial chemical that can be used to mask protein deficiency. Melamine tainted pet foods had sicken and killed pets in the United States and contaminated milk products had sickened over 50,000 Chinese children with kidney failure and killed some of them.
Now consumer are warned to watch out for Halloween candy for sale in the U.S. may be tainted with melamine. Milk powder, produced in China, may have been used to produce Halloween candy that's currently on sale all across the country. See some provided links to YouTube clips with more information.You may want to throw away candies you already purchased especially those that were made in China.

PLEASE share this urgent message with your family and friends to help ensure a safe Halloween for our children.
http://www.youtube.%20com/watch?
http://www.youtube.%20com/watch?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMaPuAmvexU

Those Lovely Lead Lips

On October 11, 2007, the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics released new products tests that revealed more than half of 33 brand name lipsticks tested (61 percent) contained detectable levels of lead. One-third of the tested lipsticks exceeded the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s 0.1 ppm limit for lead in candy. Lipstick, like candy, is ingested directly. Nevertheless, the FDA has not set a limit for lead in lipstick. Lovely.

Check out their website to see if your personal products are safe at http://www.safecosmetics.org/

Guard Your Girls Against Gardasil

I received this information from a colleague and I wanted to pass it on. I have been warning patients, friends and anyone else who will listen to avoid the Gardasil vaccination for girls and for good reason.

Merck, tried to strong arm the Texas legislators to mandate it two year ago. A recent report published by Judicial Watch has summarized the approval process, side effects, safety concerns, and marketing practices related to the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine Gardasil based on records obtained under a May 2007 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
The organization calls the approval of Gardasil as a vaccine as a large-scale public health experiment.
Here are some of the report findings:
-78 cases of outbreaks of warts following the vaccine in women already infected without knowing it.
-Besides genital warts, some patients experienced massive outbreaks on the face, hands, or feet, sometimes caused by strains not included in the vaccine.
-The vaccine increases the incidence of CIN 2/3 (cervical endothelial neoplasia in moderate stage) in women who had persistent infection with vaccine-relevant HPV strains at baseline.
-A chart in a report of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) showed an efficacy rate of -44.6% (that's a minus sign) in subjects already exposed to relevant HPV types.
-Most tests with Gardasil were done against an adjuvant-containing rather than a nonreactive saline base, possibly making the vaccine appear safer than it actually is.
-It reported that 27% of pregnant women experienced an adverse reaction upon receiving the vaccine, and the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) contains 45 cases of spontaneous abortion following Gardasil.
-A total of 8,864 VAERS reports have been filed, including 38 of Guillain-Barre syndrome (a virus that causes paralysis and is connected with Fibromyalgia, Multiple Sclerosis and other autoimmune disorders) and 18 deaths, 11 occurring within one week of receiving the vaccine. Association, of course, does not prove causality.
-Diane Harper, M.D., a principal chief investigator in clinical HPV trials, was quoted in a Medscape article as saying, "The side effects that have been reported are real and they cannot be brushed aside." She suggested that physicians not vaccinate patients with personal or family histories of the more serious complications, which have included neurologic disorders, thromboembolism, and autoimmune conditions.
-Gynecologist Christiane Northrup, M.D., said on an Oprah show that she wouldn't advocate vaccinating her daughters, and that medical dollars were better spent elsewhere. Of course her view is opposed by many vaccine front groups masquerading as consumer advocacy such as the National Cervical Cancer and HPV Coalition. In addition to that, The FDA and CDC issued a joint statement reassuring the public and physicians of the vaccine's safety.
There are many safe natural remedies that can prevent cervical cancers. Diet, nutrition, detoxification and herbal supplements to strengthen the immune system are simple and effective ways to prevent any cancers. Even if a teen does not show adverse reaction after being vaccinated with HPV shots, it does not protect her from contracting the virus nor will it protect her from getting cervical cancer in the future. The toxic chemicals in the vaccine will certainly compromise her health immediately.

Irradiated lettuce and spinach

I received the following alert from the Organic Consumers Association (http://www.organicconsumers.org/). I am posting it because I feel it is so important that consumers are aware of what the FDA and the food industry is doing to the food supply


Alert of the Week:FDA OKs Irradiated Lettuce and Spinach Rather than dealing with the problems inherent in a disease-ridden factory-farmed food system, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced in mid-September it will allow the irradiation of lettuce and spinach. Food irradiation is the controversial practice of bombarding food with high levels of x-rays (ionizing radiation) in order to destroy disease causing pathogens. Unfortunately, in the process of irradiation, other hazards arise, like the creation of toxic free radicals, vitamin and nutrient loss, and the formation of carcinogenic chemicals. While irradiated lettuce and spinach must be labeled in supermarkets, there are currently no labeling requirements whatsoever for restaurants, schools, hospitals, or nursing homes serving irradiated produce or other nuked foods such as beef. Over the past decade, OCA and our allies in the organic community have prevented corporate agribusiness and the nuclear industry from contaminating organic standards. Food irradiation is prohibited on any product labeled as "organic." There is currently a 30 day comment period for the FDA's new rule.

The Problem with Plastic Bags

The plastic bags we get at the grocery store, office supply store, electronic store, etc., will exist on earth for 1,000 years before decomposing. The bags' petroleum-based plastic contaminate the environment and the food chain.

-September 2007 San Francisco banned plastic bags

-July 2010 Los Angeles will ban plastic shopping bags from stores

-China put a nationwide ban on plastic bags beginning June 1st, 2008 saving China 37 millions barrels of oil a year

-Bangladesh already bans plastic bags along with 30 remote Alaskan villages

-South Africa, Ireland & Taiwan tax shoppers or charge fees on companies that distribute plastic bags

Not only do plastic bags cause environmental dangers and use valuable oil, they are dangerous to our bodies. Exposure to plastics whether it is through the food chain or in our environment, is disruptive to our hormones acting like estrogen in our bodies. Estrogen-like compounds called xenohormones are one of the main reasons for the high numbers of breast & prostate cancer, infertility, PMS, precocious puberty, and problems with gall bladder, thyroid and adrenal glands.

You can make a big impact on your health and your environment by getting plastic bags out of your life

Ban Drug Ads on Television

I received an email from a colleague on a topic that I feel very strongly about. We are inundated with pharmaceutical ads on our TV everyday encouraging patients to "Ask your doctor about...". With the recall of many drugs like Vioxx and Baycol, it is obvious that the FDA isn't doing enough to fully research drugs before releasing them to the public.

The United States is the only country IN THE WORLD that allows pharmaceutical companies to advertise on television. We have 5% of the world's population and take 75% of the world's medications. The link below allows you to send an email to my member of Congress urging their support of a new bill that would ban advertising of new prescription drugs for three years.

While I feel it doesn't do enough by completely banning all pharmaceutical ads, it is a start and allows time to address safety problems before the drugs become well known and patients are asking their doctors for the drug. The bill also would require a toll-free number on all TV drug ads so we can easily report serious side effects to the FDA. The more quickly the agency knows about dangerous side effects, the more quickly it can get unsafe medications off the market.

I hope you will take 30 seconds and participate.

http://www.prescriptionforchange.org/

Starting a Blog

I have decided to set up a blog to share important health information that I come across along with answering common questions from friends, family and patients

I hope you find it helpful