Monday, October 28, 2019

My Flu Strategy


I’m running this article again because, like last year, several people have asked me if I’ve gotten my flu shot this year.  I confess that I’ve never opted for the flu shot in the past and I’ll admit that I don’t plan on getting one because of fear.  I’m afraid of many of the chemicals that are included with the shot to attenuate the virus – these are preservatives that keep it alive and maintain its shelf life.  These include thimerosal (a mercury derivative), formalin (a formaldehyde derivative), as well as polysorbate 80 and sodium deoxycholate (known to cause cancer in animals).  More than this, I’m afraid of the research submitted by Hugh Fudenberg, M.D.  He is one of the world’s leading immunogeneticists and in 1997 he announced that having five consecutive flu shots (in 5 years) would increase the chances of getting Alzheimer’s disease by 10 times.  This research has been greatly debated – some concur while some deny.  As for me, I’m still afraid.

You’re most certainly going to come in contact with several strains of the flu virus this season.  So whether you opt for the shot or not, what should you do?  Fighting the flu is a little like fighting cancer.  The goal should not be to fight the disease, but to fortify your own immune system so that you recover rapidly or avoid getting the virus to begin with.  The standard recommendations are as follows: 1) eat a healthy diet high in vegetables and low in sugar and trans-fats; 2) get around 7 hours of sleep per day; 3) exercise regularly; 4) drink plenty of pure water and 5) wash your hands regularly.  I also take a high quality multivitamin and use extra Vitamin C when I detect any symptoms.  I also rely on regular spinal adjustments to reduce interference to the nerve system that is intimately linked to the immune system.  You may ask, “Can popping your back really help keep you healthy?”  Dr. Pero of New York’s Prevention Medicine Institute published a study that showed individuals who had been under regular chiropractic care for at least 5 years had a 200% greater immune function than the general public.  More than this, he found that the chiropractic group had a 400% greater immunity than people that already had a disease.  These strategies have allowed me to miss very few days of work due to illness in nearly eighteen years of practice.

Monday, October 21, 2019

DNA & Positive Thinking


For those of you who are regular followers of this article, I hope that you’ve grasped the concept that health exists on a continuum and that everything you do; everything you eat, drink, or breath are all either moving you toward health and away from dis-ease or moving you toward dis-ease and away from health.  I found an outstanding article that suggests that one of the biggest factors on this continuum is our own thoughts. The article identified several research studies that show how we think can actually change the behavior of our DNA.  In one study performed by the military, DNA from white blood cells was taken from people, placed in a vial and moved to be monitored in another room.  The people were subjected to different emotional stimuli while their DNA was monitored.  As the donors were stimulated, they found that their DNA exhibited similar electrical responses at precisely the same time in the other room.

In a similar study done by the Institute of Heartmath, 28 scientists took DNA from other people and were taught to generate strong emotions in the presence of the DNA samples.  When the scientists generated feelings of joy, love, and gratitude, the DNA relaxed, unwound, and lengthened.  While they generated feelings of anger, fear, and frustration, the DNA tightened, shortened and shut off many of its codes.  The researchers applied this discovery to HIV-positive patients and discovered that when the AIDS patients generated feelings of joy, love, and gratitude their immune systems became 300,000 times more resistant to the virus than when they were not feeling this way.  Put simply, our thoughts affect our physiology and can have as great an impact on our health and wellness as any other factor.  Think about what you think about!

Monday, October 14, 2019

The Importance of pH


In his Textbook of Medical Physiology, Arthur Guyton, M.D. states that when the body is alkaline it converts free radicals to harmless water and oxygen, which maintain energy and vitality.  This means that the body will always work best when it maintains an alkaline or basic environment rather than an acidic one.  In fact, I’ve read some authors who state that disease cannot exist or even manifest in an alkaline environment.  Either way, understanding pH and how to keep your body alkaline is good practice.

When blood pH is at 7.365 (alkaline) the cells receive nourishment and release waste with ease.  When pH drops below this number you are considered acidic.  In an acidic environment, the body tissues become susceptible to chronic inflammation and free radicals will become more prevalent.  This by definition is the phenomenon known as “oxidative stress” which is associated with chronic disease, degenerative processes and increased aging.  Early symptoms of oxidative stress often include chronic joint and muscle pain or aching.   In the body, pH is affected by emotional stress (how we think) and chemical stress based on what we eat, drink, and breathe.  For this reason, pH changes all the time based on our habits.  If we have adequate mineral reserves, our bodies can adapt to temporary emotional and chemical stressors that produce acidity.  Unfortunately, chronic stress and poor diet will overwhelm the body’s adaptive ability resulting in acidity.  So this is something we need to continually work on and in my experience it’s easier to control your chemical stress by watching what you put into your body than it is your emotional stress which is often the result of outside factors.  Foods that alkalize the body include most of your green vegetables as well as fruits such as berries, apples and pears.  Pathogens and disease processes thrive in diets high in animal products, processed and refined foods, and synthetic chemicals.

Monitoring your pH is a relatively simple process that only takes a couple of minutes.  We can do saliva testing in our office and teach you how to check yourself simply because this is so important to long-term health.  Even if you don’t check your pH, keeping check of your diet and stress level and committing to a regular intake of vegetables and fruits will pay off in the long run.

Monday, October 7, 2019

Skin & Diet


I read an article about healthy skin and diet.  This article stressed how an unhealthy diet can be the primary contributor to acne.  It turns out acne affects one in five adult Americans and is a problem to 85% or all Americans at some point in their lives.  While poor skin isn’t necessarily a life-threatening condition, I do want you to understand that it is a sign or symptom that your system is not as healthy as it could or should be.  Skin blemishes are a major source of embarrassment and self esteem problems that people spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars upon.  What you need to know is that anytime you fight a symptom like this, most often there is an underlying cause that is not being addressed.  And like anything else in the body, when you are able to address the cause of a problem, the symptom takes care of itself.

To sum up the author of this article as concisely as possible, it is recommended that you cut sugars and grains to reduce any and all skin problems.  The sugars should come as no surprise.  In the past I’ve discussed numerous times that sugar increases inflammation in the body.  Skin problems are often a sign of an inflammatory process going on inside.  The skin also acts as a third kidney to help detoxify the toxins that are often included with the sugary foods.  As people clean up their diet by following a low glycemic eating plan, we always see their skin look more youthful just in the first couple weeks.  You may be surprised by the recommendation to limit grains for healthier skin.  Whole grains are healthy, right?  They are a good source of fiber and numerous vitamins and minerals, but all grains ultimately get broken down to sugar and all grains, even whole grains, feed inflammatory processes.  Likewise, many people have a sort of allergic reaction to grains.  This is often due to the gluten – a binder that is added to grain products to hold them together.

A 2007 study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that subjects struggling with acne and skin conditions who followed a low-glycemic diet for 12 weeks showed significant improvements with all their skin sensitivities.  Try cutting grains and sugars for just a few weeks and see if you don’t notice a major change!