Back Clinic Nutrition Team. Food provides people with the necessary energy and nutrients to be healthy. By eating various foods, including good quality vegetables, fruits, whole-grain products, and lean meats, the body can replenish itself with the essential proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, and minerals to function effectively. Nutrients include proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, and water. Healthy eating does not have to be hard.
The key is to eat various foods, including vegetables, fruits, and whole grains. In addition, eat lean meats, poultry, fish, beans, and low-fat dairy products and drink lots of water. Limit salt, sugar, alcohol, saturated fat, and trans fat. Saturated fats usually come from animals. Look for trans fat on the labels of processed foods, margarine, and shortenings.
Dr. Alex Jimenez offers nutritional examples and describes the importance of balanced nutrition, emphasizing how a proper diet combined with physical activity can help individuals reach and maintain a healthy weight, reduce their risk of developing chronic diseases, and promote overall health and wellness.
Being physically inactive raises the risk of losing the ability to perform activities of daily living – both before and after a stroke – according to results from a long-term U.S. study.
“Physical activity reduced the risk of dependence in both basic activities of daily living (for example, dressing and getting across a room) as well as instrumental activities of daily living (for example, managing money or grocery shopping), which are considered to be more cognitively demanding,” said lead author Dr. Pamela M. Rist from Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.
“These instrumental activities of daily living can be important determinants of quality of life among stroke patients, so it is important to find factors which reduce the risk of dependence in these activities as well as in basic activities of daily living,” she told Reuters Health by email.
Rist’s team studied 18,117 individuals participating in the national Health and Retirement Study in an effort to find out whether physical activity and body mass index (BMI), a common measure of overweight and obesity, could predict disability.
During 12 years of follow-up, the amount of physical activity people did was not associated with the risk of stroke, but it was associated with the likelihood of being independent three years after a stroke.
Those who were physically inactive at baseline were significantly less likely to be independent at that point, compared with those who were physically active at baseline.
Somewhat surprisingly, this difference between inactive and active stroke survivors was also evident three years before their strokes, researchers report in the journal Neurology.
Obesity, in contrast, was associated with an increased risk of stroke, but it was not associated with loss of independence during the follow-up period, regardless of whether an individual suffered a stroke.
“Individuals can reduce their risk of dependence before and after stroke events by being physically active, which in our study was defined as participating in vigorous physical activity at least three times per week,” Rist said.
The researchers recommend further study to clarify whether increases in physical activity might also improve outcomes after a stroke.
When most people think of injury or inflammation, they think of a sprained ankle or injured low back due to acute trauma.
However, inflammation is a far more serious health issue.
In fact, it can be said that inflammation is the root of all disease.
One may not even notice the immediate affects of chronic inflammation, but it can be there, particularly if you don�t eat properly or exercise constantly.
That�s because inflammation is actually the body�s natural response to stress�be it physical, dietary,� environmental and/or even emotional. Once your body starts to become inflamed, it places you at risk for everything from weight gain, allergies, migraines, and susceptibilities to more serious illnesses such as heart disease, stroke, gout, diabetes, Alzheimer�s disease and even cancer.
Even the healthiest among us will have some type of inflammation�if you live in today�s fast and toxin-filled world, you have inflammation. The real question is what do you plan to do about it?
Where Does Inflammation Start?
The process of inflammation actually begins in your gut!
People tend to overlook their digestive system as a source of disease, but it makes sense when you consider that our guts are home to about 70 percent of our immune system and where 80 percent or more of our IgA cells (immune cells) live.
Where inflammation comes in is when the permeability of this organ starts to vary depending on different chemicals and conditions.
This, in turn, allows things like toxins, viruses, and bacteria, even undigested food, to enter your bloodstream through the larger holes in this lining. This condition, known as a leaky gut syndrome (LGS), is key to inflammation and where things can start going downhill�fast.
Constant damage to your intestinal lining from the leaky gut syndrome eventually will destroy the essential microvilli � tiny projections that exist in, on, and around the cells in your intestine and help with absorption and secretion.
When damaged the microvilli are unable to process and utilize the necessary nutrients and enzymes for digestion, which means your digestion eventually becomes disabled. When this happens, your body essentially sends out an alarm and starts an attack on the foreign bodies, such as the undigested food particles or viruses, yeast, etc.
And as part of this response, it becomes inflamed, causing allergic reactions and eventually other symptoms (diseases).
Common Inflammation Triggers
More and more, research is linking food to disease. We know that certain foods are clearly not healthy, while others have shown to promote healing.
But there are also some foods�mainly the majority of those that make up the standard American diet�that can be considered �inflammatory foods.�
Today, there are food additives in basically anything that isn�t organic. And now, we are starting to realize that even some foods that would otherwise seem �natural� can also be triggers.
These inflammatory triggers include such things as refined sugar, chemical additives, GMOs, artificial dyes and anything processed. All of these essentially trigger inflammation in your gut and can lead to devastating health issues.
The Biggest Cause Of Inflammation
Food and chemicals are not the only triggers.
Stress is also one of the biggest causes of inflammation.
Probably one of the reasons we don�t always link stress to disease is that it takes time for it to wreak havoc on our bodies. But anyone who has been under long-term stress will tell you that is can be deadly.
Eventually, your body starts to give out and break down. But now that you know this, you can limit the damage by recognizing the 14 most common signs of inflammation before they get out of hand.
14 Warning Signs Of Inflammation
1. Chronic fatigue
2. Acne
3. Food cravings
4. Binge eating
5. Unexplainable weight gain (not associated with eating more)
6. Bloating
7. Water retention
8. Diarrhea or constipation
9. High blood pressure
10. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
11. Joint pain
12. Stiffness
How To Treat Inflammation Naturally
Diet is the most important stuff to look at when addressing inflammation. Before the invasion of drugs to treat everything imaginable, the food was considered medicine.
Hippocrates said, �Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.� These are words to live by, literally.
The only caution is that the food must be fresh, unprocessed and as natural as possible. The type of food you eat also determines the types of microbes that will grow and live in your gut.
Good microbes are necessary for proper digestion and absorption of the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients in your food. Processed foods are the main cause of inflammation, so you will need to start by eliminating all of these from your diet.
Refined sugar and wheat are also big contributors. And if you have food sensitivities, which is highly likely if you have inflammation, foods such as gluten, and cow�s milk can trigger further inflammation.
A diet based on fresh, mostly raw vegetables, salads, good sources of protein, such as eggs, seafood, organic or grass-fed meat and poultry, as well as healthy fats that include omega-3 fats, fresh fruit and plenty of nuts and seeds (again raw is better) and plenty of probiotics, is what is going to heal inflammation for good. As a good rule of thumb, try to avoid any food that comes pre-packaged.
There are also many foods that have been shown to be especially good for fighting inflammation. Choosing as many of these as possible will help to speed the healing process.
Spices (turmeric, ginger, curry, garlic, chili peppers, cinnamon, etc.)
Probiotics and fermented foods (kefir, kombucha, sauerkraut, yogurt)
Inflammatory Foods To Avoid Completely:
Processed foods
Certain dairy
Processed meats
Refined sugars
Trans fats
Gluten
Soda
Lard
Caffeine
Alcohol
Other Tips
Drink plenty of filtered water as water helps flush toxins out of your body and keeps you hydrated. Try to reduce, if not eliminate all stressors in your life as much as possible. Make sure to get regular exercise and try things like meditation, aromatherapy, massage, and soothing music to relax your mind and body. And above all else, get enough sleep!
Some people who rely on fitness trackers to see how hard they work out may want to rethink this approach, according to a small study that suggests the increasingly popular devices may get more accurate heart rate readings when users are at rest than during exercise.
The study tested four popular wristbands, each of which has a light-emitting diode (LED) that measures heart rate from tiny changes in skin blood volumes by using light reflected from the skin.
Participants in the study – 40 healthy adults – wore two trackers on each wrist and compared resting and exercise heart rate readings on the devices to the gold standard used by doctors: an electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) test.
At rest, the Fitbit Surge got heart rate measurements that most closely matched the ECG results, and the Basis Peak was furthest off. In tests that also included the Fitbit Charge and Mio Fuse, none of the trackers got exercise heart rate readings that came close to the ECG.
These results suggest that while the trackers may help monitor daily activity, it’s not clear the heart rate readouts would be accurate enough to help patients with certain health problems make medical decisions, the authors note in Annals of Internal Medicine.
“At any moment, the tracker could be off by a fair bit, but at most moments, it won’t be,” said lead study author Lisa Cadmus-Bertram of the University of Wisconsin in Madison.
“This is why our paper doesn’t suggest that the commercial trackers we tested would be sufficient for medical applications where high precision is needed during exercise,” Cadmus-Bertram said by email. “Yet for the typical recreational user, they may still provide feedback that’s useful and motivational.”
To assess the accuracy of the trackers, researchers examined heart rate data for participants who were 49 years old on average and slightly overweight.
First, they looked at the amount of agreement between the readings from the trackers and the ECG tests.
When participants were seated, researchers took readings for the trackers and the ECG tests at one-minute intervals for 10 minutes.
The narrowest range of differences between the trackers and the ECG, indicating the most accuracy, was for the Fitbit Surge. The range for this tracker ranged from an underestimation of 5.1 beats per minute to an overestimation of 4.5 beats per minute.
The widest range of difference at rest was for the Basis Peak, which ranged from an underestimation of 17.1 beats per minute to an overestimation of 22.6 beats per minute.
When participants exercised on a treadmill, the ranges were even wider. The Mio Fuse ranged from an underestimation of 22.5 beats per minute to an overestimation of 26 beats per minute, for example, while the Fitbit Charge range from an underestimation of 41 beats per minute to an overestimation of 36 beats per minute.
The study is small, and researchers found only limited repeatability with results for the same participant under the same conditions.
Still, the findings are an important first step in understanding the clinical validity of wrist trackers many patients already use, said Dr. Daniel Cantillon, a researcher at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio who wasn’t involved in the study.
“We need data testing these devices among patients with specific disease states, such as heart failure, atrial fibrillation and other chronic medical problems, where it is possible that additional variation will occur with physical activity,” Cantillon said by email.
In particular, patients with the most common heart rhythm disorder, atrial fibrillation, shouldn’t rely on the trackers to detect abnormal rhythms, said Dr. Sumeet Chugh, a researcher at Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute in Los Angeles who wasn’t involved in the study.
“There is a lot at stake here,” Chugh said by email. “When it comes to the use of wrist-worn trackers, we need to be confident of accuracy comparable to treadmill testing if we are going to use the information for patient care.”
A spokesperson for Fitbit told Reuters Health that Fitbit trackers “are not intended to be medical devices” but instead “to give a more informed picture” of overall health. “Extensive internal studies . . . show that Fitbit’s PurePulse technology performs to industry standard expectations for optical heart rate on the wrist,” the spokesperson said.
Mark Gorelick, Chief Science Officer at Mio Global, said in a statement that the company’s technology “helps consumers understand the intensity of their exercise, based on their personal profile and heart rate data, and empowers them to proactively manage their health and reduce risk of lifestyle-related diseases.”
While most of us know that good nutrition is vital in assisting us reach our optimum health and feel our best; finding time to eat a balanced diet on a daily basis seems a formidable job in this fast paced, affluent society. Though your life may be frantic, there are still many good tasting, healthful alternatives which can assist you to lose weight and enhance your health. This information is designed to be a practical guide in finding those alternatives whether you are at a friend’s home, on the job, on the road, or at home. The good news is that by taking charge of your diet plan, you can improve your well-being while reducing your own risk of “lifestyle” diseases including heart disease or cancer.
A nice spot to start is defining what constitutes a “healthy” diet. The “Four Food Group” Plan of yesteryear meant that foods in the Meat, Dairy Product, Breads and Vegetable Fruit group were identical in their contribution to a healthy diet. Today, researchers show that diets rich in complex carbohydrates and low in saturated fats may reduce our risk of chronic disease. Health professionals designed the “Food Pyramid” guide to translate these recommendations into a food strategy for daily living.
Complex Carbohydrates
Complex carbohydrates are present in cereals, whole grain breads, starches and fruits and vegetables. These foods are not just rich in B vitamins and trace minerals, but they also contribute dietary fiber that has been shown to reduce risk for helping in weight control, lowering cholesterol levels and developing specific cancers.
Six to twelve servings of cereals, breads and starches may seem like a lot of food, but if you consider one cup of rice is three servings of cereal, you can see that fulfilling these guidelines isn’t that difficult.
Fruits & Vegetables
Similarly for vegetables and fruits. The majority of people gag in the thought of eating four to seven servings daily until they find one medium piece of fruit is two servings.
Proteins
Proteins are observed in the meat and dairy group.
Foods in the dairy group not only provide protein, nevertheless they also bring other essential nutrients needed for synthesizing teeth and healthy bones, Vitamin D and calcium. They could be a significant source of saturated fat, so picked two to three helpings of the low-fat (1% fat or less) milks, yogurts and cheeses.
The meat group includes nuts, fish, chicken and beans or legumes. A three ounce serving is around approximated by a deck of cards and also you need at least two portions a day. These foods provide magnesium, zinc and iron which, along with protein, are used by the body in creating hemoglobin and slender body tissue. These foods may also contribute to a raised intake of saturated fat, so picked lean cuts of meat like round or flank steak, pork tenderloin, ham and leg of lamb. Jump the skin on chicken or turkey and you’ll miss much of the fat and cholesterol.
Fats & Sugar
Sugars, fats and alcohol have the least amount of surface area on the pyramid for a reason. They bring more than calories to the dietary plan and they will be squeezed by your body into a fat cell. Yet, your body will really create another fat cell until they may be burned off, to harbor them,
Many health organizations, like the American Heart Association and also the American Cancer Society, agree that limiting your fat intake to less than 30% of calories goes a ways to protect you from life threatening ailments. That isn’t much fat, as a gram of fat has nine calories. You are better off to avoid adding fat to your food as there’s some fat in dairy products and meat, chicken and fish. Fortunately, there are numerous good tasting low-fat or nonfat salad and sandwich spreads which make the task of averting added fat a lot easier.
Yes, certain fats are essential to good nutrition (like linoleic acid), but these are seen in ample numbers in whole grain breads, cereals and vegetables. Corn, for instance, is where mother nature initially set corn oil. Why don’t you bypass the margarine and merely eat corn?
Overview
In a nutshell, good nutrition means eating a wide selection of foods from each of the five food groups. The Food Pyramid reveals us that by eating more complex carbohydrates and not as total fat and saturated fat, we can become empowered by the good life and not fall victim to it.
Just a bit of vigorous exercise each day could help some children and teens reduce their risk of developing heart problems and diabetes, researchers say.
The new study looked at nearly 11,600 kids, aged 4 to 18, in the United States, Brazil and Europe.
The investigators found that replacing light exercise with as little as 10 minutes a day of intense activity may provide significant cardiometabolic benefits for young people who have relatively large waists and elevated levels of insulin in their blood. These are factors that put them at risk for developing heart problems and metabolic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes.
“The results suggest that substituting modest amounts of vigorous physical activity for longer-duration light exercise may have cardiometabolic benefits above and beyond those conveyed by moderate activity and the avoidance of sedentary behavior,” lead author Justin Moore said.
Moore is an associate professor of family and community medicine at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C. He noted that more research is needed because additional factors that contribute to disease risk — such as diet and genetics — need to be taken into account.
“If such studies provide robust results, a relatively brief but intense dose of physical activity — perhaps as little as 10 minutes day, which is certainly feasible for most youth — could turn out to be part of a ‘prescription’ for children to achieve or maintain cardiac and metabolic health,” Moore said in a medical center news release.
The study was published recently in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.
Many people in the United States will experience back pain at some point in their lifetime, whether it’s a temporary or chronic issue. However, a great percentage of individuals with this debilitating complication are overweight or obese.
Fortunately, research has demonstrated that weight loss can have a considerable effect towards relieving symptoms of back pain. Weight loss programs can be very helpful for patients with weight problems and back pain. While there are a variety of programs available, not every program is the same and it may be difficult to find the best one for each individual. Some are commercialized and others are managed by a physician. Some weight loss programs recommend the use of supplements while others prescribe medications. Others may or may not be covered by insurance companies.
What to Look for in a Weight Loss Program
Considering all the differences in weight loss programs, it’s ultimately essential for Americans to first do some research in order to find the most appropriate program for them before signing up and spending any amount of money. Several weight loss programs may even provide practices that your healthcare professional may have advised you to avoid participating in if they would have been consulted first.
A recent study evaluated 191 different weight loss programs in the Maryland, Washington, DC and Virginia region of the country. From the wide array of programs, their websites provided little to no relevant information regarding they type of weight loss program. Important details, such as the type of diet, the amount of exercise and physical activity, types of behavioral therapies, and the use of medications, were all missing online, factors which were heavily considered for the study. Most websites had not been designed to offer details of each program, but rather offer contact information for clients.
Several of the weight loss programs also incorporated weight loss supplements and medications, an important piece of information which they also failed to mention on their websites. Individuals must be cautious of taking products which have not been approved by the FDA. There are U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved medications and supplements available to help treat excess weight and obesity, however, these must be prescribed by a licensed and qualified healthcare professional.
Three essential factors to an effective weight loss program, as recommended by the American Heart Association, American College of Cardiology and the Obesity Society, which should be featured include:
a moderately reduced caloric meal plan;
a regimen for increased physical activity;
and a behavioral therapy strategy.
Seeking Professional Advice
Because many weight loss programs are commercialized products or services, these can most commonly offer practices which may not meet professional standards. According to Dr. J Michael Gonzalez Campoy, MD, PhD, FACE, a specialist in obesity medicine, people seeking a weight loss program to participate in should primarily seek advice and guidance from a healthcare professional who specialized in treating weight issues and obesity.
�With the epidemic of overweight and obesity in this country, two-thirds of Americans will seek help managing their weight. The point is well taken that there is too much commercialism, or selling products with a promise of unrealistic achievements. It is best for each patient to address weight management with their personal healthcare professional first,” stated Dr. Gonzalez Campoy.
When it comes to finding the best weight loss program for your own needs, speaking to a licensed and qualified expert can be the most suitable alternative, as this option can often be safer and more effective than other weight loss programs. Patients can find obesity medicine doctors through the website of The American Board of Obesity Medicine, abbreviated as ABOM.
When Back Pain is an Issue for Weight Loss
Although many people with excess weight and obesity seek weight loss program alternatives to lose weight, it can often be difficult for them to engage in the practices due to back pain. Studies have shown that back pain is most prevalent on individuals with weight issues and that can play a huge role on their inability to engage in a proper weight loss program. However, inactivity can also ultimately lead to muscle weakness and stiffness, particularly affecting core strength, which is necessary for supporting the spine and its surrounding structures.
Aquatic therapy, or physical activity in a pool, is a low-impact form of exercise that can be a good choice for people with back pain, helping them reduce weight and strengthen the muscles. Additionally, people with obesity and excess are more likely to experience muscle weakness and stiffness along their lower back, making it difficult for them to walk on a treatmill or step mill. Although overweight or obesity complications can contribute to back pain, consulting a healthcare professional is a good approach to learning the best possible way for them to stay active and avoid further injury.
If symptoms of back pain worsen and/or they are accompanied by tingling sensations, numbness and/or weakness, it may be advised to obtain a proper diagnosis to determine the source of the symptoms and adjust or stop physical activity and exercise immediately. Furthermore, regular physical activity and exercise can help prevent aggravating back pain during intense or prolonged workouts. Over time, regular exercise and physical activity will help increase the individual’s strength, flexibility and endurance, improving their overall health and wellness.
For more information, please feel free to ask Dr. Jimenez or contact us at 915-850-0900 .�
By Dr. Alex Jimenez
Additional Topics: Weight Loss Eases Back Pain
Back pain and symptoms of sciatica can affect a majority of the population throughout their lifetime. Research studies have demonstrated that people who are overweight or obese experience more back complications than people with a healthy weight. A proper nutrition along with regular physical fitness can help with weight loss as well as help maintain a healthy weight to eliminate symptoms of back pain and sciatica. Chiropractic care is also another natural form of treatment which treats back pain and sciatica utilizing manual spinal adjustments and manipulations.
Governments could boost the consumption of healthy food by making it cheaper, as well as requiring that unhealthier food be more expensive, a new review suggests.
The findings are based on an analysis of 30 studies. Eleven studies looked at what happened when unhealthier foods were taxed. Nineteen studies explored what people choose to eat when subsidies lowered the price of healthier food. The collection of studies found that food prices really do matter.
“Our results show how 10 percent to 50 percent changes in price of foods and beverages at checkout could influence consumers’ purchasing behaviors over a relatively short period of time,” said study co-first author Ashkan Afshin, a former postdoctoral fellow at Tufts University in Boston. He is now at the University of Washington.
Researchers found that consumption of produce jumped by 14 percent for each 10 percent drop in price. A similar increase in consumption occurred when other healthier foods became cheaper. People also became slightly thinner when produce prices went down, the review reported. On the flip side, a 10 percent price increase in sugar-sweetened beverages and unhealthier fast food translated to decreases in consumption by 7 percent and 3 percent, respectively.
“The global food system is causing a staggering toll on human health. And this is very costly, both in terms of real health care expenses and lost productivity,” said study senior author Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science & Policy at Tufts.
“Our findings suggest that subsidies and taxes are a highly effective tool for normalizing the price of foods toward their true societal costs. This will not only prevent disease but also reduce spiraling healthcare costs, which are causing tremendous strain on both private businesses and government budgets,” Mozaffarian said said in a Tufts news release.
The study was published March 1 in the journal PLOS One.
News stories are written and provided by HealthDay and do not reflect federal policy, the views of MedlinePlus, the National Library of Medicine, the National Institutes of Health, or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The scope of our information is limited to chiropractic and spinal injuries and conditions. To discuss options on the subject matter, please feel free to ask Dr. Jimenez or contact us at 915-850-0900 .
Additional Topics: Weight Loss Eases Back Pain
Back pain and symptoms of sciatica can affect a majority of the population throughout their lifetime. Research studies have demonstrated that people who are overweight or obese experience more back complications than people with a healthy weight. A proper nutrition along with regular physical fitness can help with weight loss as well as help maintain a healthy weight to eliminate symptoms of back pain and sciatica. Chiropractic care is also another natural form of treatment which treats back pain and sciatica utilizing manual spinal adjustments and manipulations.
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