Wellness
Clinic Wellness Team. A key factor to spine or back pain conditions is staying healthy. Overall wellness involves a balanced diet, appropriate exercise, physical activity, restful sleep, and a healthy lifestyle. The term has been applied in many ways. But overall, the definition is as follows.
It is a conscious, self-directed, and evolving process of achieving full potential. It is multidimensional, bringing together lifestyles both mental/spiritual and the environment in which one lives. It is positive and affirms that what we do is, in fact, correct.
It is an active process where people become aware and make choices towards a more successful lifestyle. This includes how a person contributes to their environment/community. They aim to build healthier living spaces and social networks. It helps in creating a person’s belief systems, values, and a positive world perspective.
Along with this comes the benefits of regular exercise, a healthy diet, personal self-care, and knowing when to seek medical attention. Dr. Jimenez’s message is to work towards being fit, being healthy, and staying aware of our collection of articles, blogs, and videos.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Natural Health, Wellness
Menopause can be a smooth transition for some women, but others are plagued with flushes, night sweats, fatigue, depression, headaches, and other troublesome symptoms. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which used to be routinely prescribed to replace lost estrogen and mitigate symptoms, has come under fire in recent decades for a possible link to breast cancer.
Red clover has long been a major weapon in herbalists’ defense against the symptoms of menopause. Red clover contains isoflavones, which are plant-based chemicals that have effects similar to estrogen. Now, a Danish study finds that fermented red clover extract effectively prevents the hot flushes, hormonal swings, and bone loss that often accompany menopause.
Researchers at Aarhus University found that red clover extract significantly decreases both the number and severity of daily hot flushes, one of the most annoying symptoms.
It is the fermentation of red clover that makes the herb so effective, says researcher Max Norman Tandrup Lambert. “The lactic acid fermentation increases the bioavailability of the bioactive estrogen-like compounds, known as isoflavones or phytoestrogens, that red clover has in abundance.”
“The challenge with isoflavones is that they can be difficult to digest as they naturally occur in the plant bound to sugar molecules which prevent absorption,” he said. “Hence, a large proportion of the isoflavones that are consumed as a pill or capsule can pass through the intestine without entering circulation.
“This problem is bypassed when the red clover extract undergoes a fermentation process,” he continued. “To be technical, the process separates the sugar molecules from the isoflavones, thereby increasing bioavailability.”
For the study, 130 women with menopause symptoms were recruited. Of those, 60 were selected because they reported at least five severe hot flushes a day.
The women were divided into two groups of 30. One group drank 150 ml (about 5 ounces) of red clover extract each day for 12 weeks while the other 30 drank a placebo product. The researchers were “speechless,” said Lambert. “There was a much greater effect than we had hoped for.”
Other studies have found that red clover increases HDL — the “good” cholesterol — in women, and another found that menopausal women taking red clover supplements had stronger and more flexible arteries. Some studies have found that red clover extract slows bone loss in women.
In addition, a study appearing in Phytomedicine found that red clover could prevent potential brain damage triggered by the food additive MSG (monosodium glutamate).
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness
Macaroni and cheese mixes made with powdered cheese contain high levels of potentially harmful chemicals called phthalates, according to a new study.
Phthalates, which can get into food from packaging and equipment used in manufacturing, have been linked to genital birth defects in infant boys and learning and behavior problems in older children, The New York Times reported.
Researchers tested different cheese products and found that all 10 varieties of macaroni and cheese included in the study had high levels of phthalates, even those labeled as organic.
“The phthalate concentrations in powder from mac and cheese mixes were more than four times higher than in block cheese and other natural cheeses like shredded cheese, string cheese and cottage cheese,” said Mike Belliveau, executive director of the Environmental Health Strategy Center, one of four advocacy groups that funded the report, according to The Times.
The other groups were the Ecology Center, Healthy Babies Bright Futures and Safer States.
“Our belief is that (phthalates are) in every mac ‘n’ cheese product – you can’t shop your way out of the problem,” Belliveau said.
He encouraged consumers to contact manufacturers and ask them to determine how phthalates are getting into their products and take action to prevent it. Nine of the cheese products tested were made by Kraft. Company officials did not respond to requests for comment on the study findings, The Times reported.
The U.S. government phthalates from children’s teething rings and rubber duck toys a decade ago.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness, Pregnancy
Pregnant women who drink non-diet sodas during pregnancy are more likely to have kids who carry extra body fat by age 7, researchers say.
In the study of more than 1,000 mother-child pairs, each additional serving of sugary soda per day consumed in pregnancy was associated with higher increments of waist size and body mass in kids years later.
“Sugary beverages have been linked to obesity in children and adults,” said study author Sheryl Rifas-Shiman of Harvard Medical School in Boston.
Although past research has tied sodas and some fruit drinks to excess weight gain, obesity, metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes, few have looked at beverage intake during pregnancy, she and her colleagues write in Pediatrics.
“Childhood obesity is widespread and hard to treat,” Rifas-Shiman told Reuters Health by email. “So it’s important to identify modifiable factors that occur prenatally and during infancy so prevention can start early.”
The researchers recruited 1,078 women from among patients at eight obstetric offices affiliated with Atrius Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates in eastern Massachusetts.
The study team had in-person meetings with each woman at the end of her first and second trimesters, as well as during the first few months after her baby was born. In addition, kids were assessed in early childhood, around age 3, and in mid-childhood, around age 8. Mothers also completed mailed questionnaires every year for the child’s first six birthdays.
At all visits, researchers collected information about both parents and details of the household. During pregnancy, women answered questionnaires about what they typically ate and drank, including how much regular and sugar-free soda, fruit juice, fruit drinks and water they consumed each day.
At the mid-childhood visit, when kids were between ages 6 and 11 years, the research team measured each child’s height, weight, waist circumference and skinfold thickness. With these measurements, they calculated body fat percentage and body mass index (BMI), a measure of weight relative to height.
When researchers looked at data gathered during pregnancy, they found that more than half of mothers had consumed more than half a serving a day of non-diet soda during pregnancy, and nearly 10 percent had consumed two or more servings a day.
Mothers who drank more sugary drinks during pregnancy tended to be younger, had higher prepregnancy BMI, lower education, lower income, shorter breastfeeding times and were more likely to have smoked during pregnancy.
About one quarter of the children were overweight or obese by mid-childhood, and BMI, waist circumference and skinfold thickness were highest among kids whose mothers drank at least two servings of sugary drinks per day.
Only regular sodas were associated with this difference. Juice, diet soda and water consumed during pregnancy weren’t linked to a higher BMI score in kids. The research team also didn’t see differences based on the mother’s weight, race or ethnicity, the child’s gender or the amount of soda children themselves drank.
“I was surprised that maternal intake seemed to be more important than child intake,” Rifas-Shiman noted.
In the future, she and colleagues plan to study the long-term effects of efforts to reduce sugary beverage intake during pregnancy. They’re now using new methods to analyze when children’s intake of sugary beverages matters the most for their weight and health.
“I was struck that the differences in children’s body composition were seen in relation to intake levels that appear unremarkable, even less than one serving per day,” said Sian Robinson of the University of Southampton in the UK, who wasn’t involved in the study.
“We need to know more about the long-term effects of maternal nutrition on offspring health,” she told Reuters Health by email. “Few intervention studies in pregnancy have longer-term follow-up data to describe the effects on children’s body composition.”
Several of these intervention studies have been completed recently, Robinson added, and that follow-up data will be available soon.
“The links between sugar-sweetened beverages and obesity are well-established,” she said. “But this new data suggests mothers’ consumption is important and has public health relevance.”
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness
It’s hard to eat right all the time, but making small improvements by choosing healthier foods now and then may significantly boost one’s chances of living longer, said a US study Wednesday.
The report in the New England Journal of Medicine is the first to show that improving diet quality over at least a dozen years is associated with lower total and cardiovascular mortality.
Researchers at Harvard University tracked dietary changes in a population of nearly 74,000 health professionals who logged their eating habits every four years.
Researchers used a system of diet-quality scores to assess how much diets had improved.
For instance, a 20-percentile increase in scores could “be achieved by swapping out just one serving of red or processed meat for one daily serving of nuts or legumes,” said a summary of the research.
Over the 12-year span, those who ate a little better than they did at the start — primarily by consuming more whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and fatty fish — saw an eight to 17 percent lower risk of dying prematurely in the next 12 years.
Those whose diets got worse over time saw a higher risk of dying in the next 12 years of follow-up, on the order of a six to 12 percent increase.
“Our results highlight the long-term health benefits of improving diet quality with an emphasis on overall dietary patterns rather than on individual foods or nutrients,” said senior author Frank Hu, professor and chair of the Harvard Chan School Department of Nutrition.
“A healthy eating pattern can be adopted according to individuals’ food and cultural preferences and health conditions,” he added.
“There is no one-size-fits-all diet.”
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Anti Aging
The number of Americans living to 100 — and beyond — has increased dramatically in recent decades, while those over the age of 80 comprise the world’s fastest-growing segment of the population, according to the latest research.
Between 1980 and 2014, life expectancy in the United States increased from 73.8 years to 79.1 years. Meanwhile, the number of Americans reaching and surpassing age 100 has exceeded 100,000, and that figure is expected to grow eight times — to 800,000 — by 2050, according to the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Census Bureau.
So what’s the secret to living long enough to celebrate your 100th birthday?
While there are no sure-fire prescriptions for living to an extremely advanced old age, longevity researchers have found the ticket is a mixture of genetics and lifestyle — which means there are steps you can take to up your odds of living longer.
A landmark Swedish study, for example, showed that men who celebrated their 100th birthday all had mothers who lived into their 80s and 90s. But genetics wasn’t the only factor. The study also showed that the men had many controllable lifestyle factors in common. For instance:
- All of them were non-smokers.
- They generally stayed fit and trim by eating nutritious diets and exercising regularly.
- Nearly all had healthy levels of cholesterol and blood pressure, which reduced their risk of developing cardiovascular disease, the No. 1 cause of death worldwide.
- They owned their own homes or rented expensive residences, allowing them to live independently and stay mentally, physically, and socially active.
- Most did not retire early, but instead actively worked until at least age 54.
- None drank more than four cups of coffee per day.
- Many reported having an optimistic outlook on life, which researchers said helped them embrace the power of positive thinking and combat stress and anxiety.
Studies of American centenarians have reached similar conclusions about the links between healthy lifestyles and longevity.
A recent study that compared and contrasted the lifestyles of Americans with the highest and lowest life expectancy found significant differences the daily habits of those individuals. For the study, researchers examined residents of Summit County, Colo., which has the nation’s highest life expectancy (86.8 years, two years higher than that of Andorra, the tiny country with the world’s highest life expectancy) and Lakota County, S.D. — which has the nation’s lowest life expectancy (66.8 years, comparable to Third World countries such as Sudan.
Researchers concluded that 74 percent of this disparity can be explained by controllable risk factors such as levels of physical activity, diet, tobacco use, and obesity, which increases the risk of developing life-threatening conditions diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and certain cancers.
Worldwide, the rate of chronic illnesses such as heart disease is lowest in the Okinawa Archipelago, a group of 161 coral islands in the East China Sea that are home to the Earth’s longest-living people.
Here are some of the reasons why so many of them live to 100:
Diet. Okinawans primarily rely on plant sources such as sweet potatoes, greens, and whole grains. They supplement their diet with two or three servings per week of freshly caught fish, soya products, and an occasional serving of boiled pork with the fat trimmed off. They also drink antioxidant-rich green tea supplemented with jasmine flowers.
Exercise. Since most Okinawans are fishermen or farmers, they usually work outdoors into extreme old age. They get additional exercise from walking, gardening, martial arts and traditional dance.
Social life. Like other long-lived people, Okinawans maintain close social ties.
Stress. They also engage in stress-relieving strategies such as regular meditation.
Another longevity hot spot is the Greek island of Symi, where residents routinely live into their 90s. They, too, rely on fruits, vegetables, fish, and little meat. But they tend to slather their food tomato sauce, extra virgin olive oil and garlic. They also drink red wine with most meals, which helps account for their low rate of heart attacks.
So how long can life expectancy to continue to grow?
McGill University biologists Bryan G. Hughes and Siegfried Hekimi attempted to answer that question by analyzing the genetics and lifestyles of the longest-living individuals from the U.S., U.K., France, and Japan.
Their findings, published in the journal Nature, explodes the commonly held belief that the upper limit of the human lifespan is around 115 years.
“We just don’t know what the age limit might be. In fact, by extending trend lines, we can show that maximum and average lifespans, could continue to increase far into the foreseeable future,” Hekimi says.
It’s impossible to predict what future lifespans in humans might look like, Hekimi says. Some scientists argue that technology, medical interventions, and improvements in living conditions could all push up the upper limit.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness
The U.S. is one of the world’s laziest countries, according to a new Stanford University study that used smartphone measurements of the number of steps taken by people in 46 countries.
The study, published in the journal Nature, included 700,000 participants and was “1,000 times larger than any previous study on human movement,” co-leader and Stanford bioengineering professor Scott Delp said, the BBC reported.
Countries with the highest average number of steps walked included China, Ukraine, Japan, and No. 1 Hong Kong, with 6,880 steps walked per day on average, USA Today reported.
The U.S. ranked in the bottom half of countries represented, with 4,774 steps walked per day, just below the worldwide average of 4,961 steps. Indonesia had the least steps walked with 3,513 per day on average, USA Today reported.
The study found that countries where people walked a similar amount of steps each day had lower rates of obesity, whereas countries where some people walked a lot and others walked very little had higher rates of obesity. The U.S. falls into the latter category, with high levels of what the study called “activity inequality.”
The study analyzed a total of 68 million days’ worth of data and tracks people’s activity over longer periods of time than previous studies, the BBC said.
Women averaged about 1,000 fewer steps than men in the U.S., and suburban areas reported fewer steps on average than urban, city areas that are more pedestrian-friendly.
Researchers hope the data might help design towns, cities, and neighborhoods that encourage more physical activity.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness
Western diets, high in sugar and fat, cause liver inflammation, especially in males, according to a new animal study in The American Journal of Pathology. Inflammation was most pronounced in males that lacked farnesoid x receptor (FXR), a bile acid receptor.
The study also found that probiotics may prevent and treat the condition, keeping it from advancing to liver cancer.
“We know the transition from steatosis, or fatty liver, to steatohepatitis — inflammation in the fatty liver — plays a crucial role in liver injury and carcinogenesis,” said lead investigator Yu-Jui Yvonne Wan, Ph.D., Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at UC Davis Health.
“Because the liver receives 70 percent of its blood supply from the intestine, it is important to understand how the gut contributes to liver disease development,” Wan said.
“Our data show that diet, gender, and different antibiotic treatments alter the gut microbiota as well as bile acid profile and have different effects on liver inflammation,” she said.
Wan used an FXR-deficient mouse model (FXR KO), which has become an important tool to better understand the role of diet and inflammation in the development of liver diseases, including cancer, because patients with cirrhosis or liver cancer also have low FXR levels.
Other studies have found that mice deficient in FXR spontaneously develop liver problems and tumors even when they are fed a normal diet.
In this study, FXR-deficient mice as well as wild mice were fed either a Western diet or a matching control diet for 10 months. Both Western diet-fed wild-type mice and control diet-fed FXR KO mice accumulated fat in the liver, which was more severe in males than females.
The study suggested that antibiotics might help block inflammation in control mice, but not in the FXR KO mice fed a Western diet. It also indicated that probiotics might also deter some of the inflammation.
“Our results suggest that probiotics and FXR agonists hold promise for the prevention and treatment of hepatic inflammation and progression into advanced liver diseases such as cancer,” Wan said.
A recent Australian study found that zinc may be a major key in fighting liver damage. An article published in Nature Communications found that zinc had the potential to be a simple and effective treatment against acute and chronic liver inflammation.
Other natural substances have been found to be effective against liver disease. A 2016 study conducted at the University of Southampton found that two cups of coffee a day reduced the risk of liver cirrhosis — scarring due to alcohol and viruses like hepatitis C — by 44 percent.
