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
Remember the days when, if you wanted a glass of water, you poured it from the kitchen sink tap? This seems so quaint now, considering the vast number of different types of water available, including alkaline water. But is this specialty water better for your health?
Yes, says Dr. Keith Kantor, a natural health expert an author, who says alkaline water balances the body’s pH level, which can help ward off disease.
The body’s pH level refers to the acidity or alkalinity of blood. The lower the pH, the more acidic the blood. The normal blood pH is tightly regulated between 7.35 and 7.45.
“Our body keeps our pH level at between 7.35 and .45 and it does that very well. Every time our body produces an acid, a sodium bicarbonate molecule is produced to neutralize it,” says Kantor, a natural health expert and author.
“Because the American diet is very acidic, acid can build up in the body, which is why it’s beneficial to drink alkaline water,” says Kantor, the national spokesman for Optimal Harmony Water, which manufactures a type of it.
This buildup of acid can result in acidosis (an excessively acidic condition of body fluids and tissues), and this leads to inflammation, he adds.
“Alkaline water can help with a number of health problems, including acid digestion, heartburn, low energy levels and infections, nausea, and dehydration, but the biggest one is inflammation, which leads to diabetes and obesity,” he says.
But is alkaline water really healthier than tap water?
“The FDA has not studied or reviewed the science relating to alkaline water and cannot speculate or speak to a potential benefit,” says Lyndsay Meyer, spokeswoman for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
As a registered dietitian, Vicki Shanta Retelny says her clients often ask her about different types of water.
“I don’t think there’s enough research to say that this type of water is going to be beneficial for fending off disease,” says Retelny, author of “Total Body Diet for Dummies.”’
“If you live in an area where the tap water is hard, it could be helpful, but what most people need to be concerned with is simply whether they are drinking enough water,” she adds. (Hard water is high in dissolved calcium and magnesium.)
“There may be too much iron, sulfur or even arsenic in your tap water,” she notes.
Of course, alkaline water isn’t the only specialty water available these days. Retelny’s clients often ask her about other types of waters as well, including the debate over whether tap or bottled water is best, she says.
According to her, most tap water is generally as good as bottled.
“People spend a lot of money on bottled water but it doesn’t mean that it’s healthier than tap. Usually, it’s not really necessary,” she says.
“Some people like bottled water because they want to bring their water with them on the go, and it’s measured, so they know they are drinking enough. But tap water can be just as beneficial,” she says.
Also, although people like to believe their bottled water comes straight from the spring, it does go through a bottling process, Retelny notes.
In addition, environmentalists are concerned about the buildup of plastic water bottles, she says.
Most Americans get their tap water from a water company, which is required to publicly list its ingredients, so you can call your company to find out, she notes.
But what about specialty, or designer waters, like vitamin water. According to Retelny, they aren’t necessarily healthier either.
“Vitamin water sounds healthy, but along with the vitamins comes flavorings, colors and sugar. You need to be aware of these additions because the calories can add up,” she says.
“Also, it’s difficult to know exactly how much of vitamins are in that water, and sugar-free ones may have artificial sweeteners,” she adds.
“Ordinarily, I don’t recommend vitamin water because I think you should get your vitamins from the foods you eat,” Retelny adds.
This goes for sports drinks as well, she says.
“Drinks with added potassium and sodium are there to benefit people who are sweating because they are participating in sports, she says.
“They can be beneficial for athletes, but most people don’t need them,” Retelny adds.
To add flavor to chilled water, Retelny recommends these additions:
- Lime, basil and crushed berries
- Cucumber, mint and strawberries
- Apple cider vinegar, honey and cinnamon
- Rosemary, mandarin orange
- Lemon, ginger and agave nectar
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness, Pregnancy
Women who drink diet drinks while pregnant almost double the risk that their child will be overweight or obese at 7 years of age, says a study lead by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. Childhood obesity is known to increase the risk for health problems later in life, such as diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.
Researchers found that as the volume of amniotic fluid increases, pregnant women tend to increase their consumption of fluids. To avoid extra calories, many women replace sugar-sweetened soft drinks and juices with beverages containing artificial sweeteners.
Previous studies of adults have found that artificially sweetened beverages encouraged weight gain, and the study authors sought to discover if drinking diet beverages during pregnancy had an effect on the weight of children.
“Our findings suggest that artificially sweetened beverages during pregnancy are not likely to be any better at reducing the risk for later childhood obesity than sugar-sweetened beverages,” said the study’s senior author, Cuilin Zhang, Ph.D.
“Not surprisingly, we also observed that children born to women who drank water instead of sweetened beverages were less likely to be obese by age 7.”
The researchers limited their analysis to data from more than 900 pregnancies that were complicated by gestational diabetes, a type of diabetes that occurs only during pregnancy.
Approximately 9 percent of these women reported consuming at least one artificially sweetened beverage each day. Their children were 60 percent more likely to have a high birth weight, compared to children born to women who never drank sweetened beverages.
At age 7, children born to mothers who drank an artificially sweetened beverage daily were nearly twice as likely to be overweight or obese.
Drinking a daily artificially sweetened beverage appeared to offer no advantages over consuming one sweetened by sugar. At age 7, children born to both groups were equally likely to be overweight or obese.
Women who substituted water for sweetened beverages, however, reduced their children’s obesity risk at age 7 by 17 percent.
Scientists aren’t sure why drinking artificially sweetened beverages compared to drinking water may increase obesity risk. The authors cited an animal study that associated weight gain with changes in the types of bacteria and other microbes in the digestive tract.
Another animal study suggested that artificial sweeteners may increase the ability of the intestines to absorb the blood sugar glucose. Other researchers found evidence in rodents that, by stimulating taste receptors, artificial sweeteners desensitized the animals’ digestive tracts, so that they felt less full after they ate and were more likely to overeat.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the percentage of obese children has more than tripled since the 1970s. Today, 1 in 5 children between the ages of 6 and 19 are obese.
In addition to increased health risks as adults, obese children also have an increased risk of chronic health problems, such as asthma and Type 2 diabetes. They are also more likely to be bullied, and to suffer from depression and lower self-esteem.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness
For years, you probably have been told that wheat bread is far better for you than its white counterpart, but a small, new study suggests that maxim may not hold true for everyone.
Researchers looked at how quickly blood sugar levels rose after eating (a process called the glycemic response) either white bread or sourdough-leavened wheat bread. The researchers found that the response seemed to vary by person, and that some people didn’t have a bad glycemic response to white bread.
“Our study suggests that, in terms of glycemic responses, different people respond differently to even the same meal,” explained study author Eran Segal, from the Weitzman Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel.
“In the context of white bread, this means that some people respond badly to white bread and should probably avoid it, while others have a healthy response to it, given what we measured,” Segal said.
“In a broader sense, what this means is that the ‘one-size-fits-all’ diets that are given to the population as a whole, without personalization, are probably not optimal for everyone,” added study co-author Dr. Eran Elinav, who’s also from the Weitzman Institute.
The researchers theorized that differences in the gut microbiome (the natural bacteria living in a person’s intestine) may explain why people respond differently to different breads. The researchers added that they were able to predict what a person’s glycemic response would be to a particular bread based on the makeup of their microbiome.
Both Segal and Elinav did report they are paid consultants for a company that offers personalized dietary advice based on an individual’s gut microbiome.
At least one nutritionist wasn’t convinced that people should give up on whole grains.
“This small, short-term study does not offer a free pass to eating tons of highly processed white bread,” said Samantha Heller, a senior clinical nutritionist from New York University Langone Medical Center.
“Epidemiological research has shown that people who eat more whole grains, such as whole grain breads, crackers, cereals, brown rice and quinoa, have a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, inflammation, obesity and certain cancers,” Heller noted.
In addition, she said, whole grains have a balance of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that white bread doesn’t. Plus, Heller said, fiber is the “preferred meal for gut microbiota.”
The study included 20 people from Israel. They were between 27 and 66 years old. Eleven were female, the researchers said.
Each volunteer spent a week eating white bread and a separate week eating artisanal sourdough-leavened whole wheat bread.
They ate bread first thing in the morning. Half the time, they were allowed butter on their bread. They couldn’t eat anything else beginning the night before, and then for two hours after eating the bread. They also weren’t allowed to exercise for two hours after eating, because all of these things can alter the glycemic response.
Across the groups, the researchers found a similar response to the breads when averaged together. There were no significant overall differences based solely on the bread and glycemic response. The researchers also said there didn’t seem to be a difference in the gut microbiota based on which bread was eaten.
“Our study challenges the common belief that types of food that are considered healthy are indeed healthy. We know that people are different in their genetic makeup and lifestyle, and here we show that people have rather stable and person-specific microbiomes,” said Avraham Levy, one of the study’s researchers. He’s also from the Weitzman Institute.
“These differences between people affect how they respond to even the same meals, which means that foods which are considered healthy may not be as healthy for everyone, and vice versa,” Levy said.
The scientists noted that more research needs to be done. Funding for the study came from the Israeli Ministry of Science, Technology and Space, as well as from private foundations and donors.
In the meantime, a number of groups recommend eating whole grain foods instead of processed white foods. These groups include the U.S. federal government, the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
The study was published June 6 in the journal Cell Metabolism.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Natural Health, Wellness
Your home is your castle, and also your haven. But common household items may be turning your sanctuary into a hazard and increasing your risk for colds, viruses, and food poisoning as well as deadly diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and cancer.
Below are five common, but possibly dangerous, items you should consider replacing … now.
Aluminum pots and pans. Aluminum pots and pans may increase your risk for neurological diseases because small amounts of aluminum leach into foods, especially those containing acids. Experts have linked aluminum to Alzheimer’s disease as well as Parkinson’s disease, kidney and liver damage, weakened bones, and multiple sclerosis.
“Aluminum is cumulative, and even small doses over time become highly toxic,” board-certified neurosurgeon Dr. Russell Blaylock tells Newsmax Health. “It’s a powerful neurotoxin. When aluminum combines with certain acids, such as those in orange juice, aluminum absorption is increased 11-fold,” he says. “If you’re cooking with fluoridated water, the aluminum and fluoride bind, so you’re producing aluminum fluoride, an extremely toxic compound.”
The worst scenario for a health disaster involving cookware is boiling water for tea in an aluminum kettle or pan, says Blaylock. “Black tea is already high in aluminum and fluoride, and you’d be getting very high levels of aluminum fluoride. Replace aluminum pots and pans with stainless, says Blaylock.
Scratched “non-stick” cookware. Manufacturers use the chemical PFOA (perfluororctanoic acid) when making Teflon (also known as polytetrafluoroethylene or PTFE), the “no stick” cookware. But the pots and pans that are so easy to clean could be increasing your risk for several conditions, including breast cancer, preeclampsia, thyroid disease, and ulcerative colitis.
Teflon and similar coatings, such as T-Fal and Silverstone, emit PFOAs when heated to a high temperature. The fumes can cause flu-like symptoms in people, nicknamed “Teflon flu.” A study by the Environmental Working Group found that heating a nonstick pan to 680 degrees on an ordinary electric stove released six toxic gasses including two that are known to cause cancer.
Studies have found that empty pans can reach 800 degrees in only five minutes, and some studies show that enough PFOAs are emitted to kill pet birds at temperatures as low as 325 degrees.
At high temperatures, Teflon also releases tetrafluoroethylene, a known carcinogen, and another chemical called monofluoroacetic acid, which can be fatal even in small amounts. When heated to 887 degrees, Teflon also emits perfluoroisobutene, a substance used in chemical warfare. When pans are scratched, the harmful chemicals are released at even lower temperatures.
Older cookware, scratched or not, is more likely to emit toxins, and many manufacturers have agreed to produce non-stick cookware that would not emit PFOAs. To be on the safe side, replace questionable pots and pans with stainless steel. Dr. Blaylock warns of one exception — don’t buy Chinese stainless. “It is usually extremely low-grade and it will degrade,” says Dr. Blaylock.
Kitchen sponges. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that food poisoning sickens 1 in 6 Americans every year (48 million). Of those, 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die. Salmonella and E. coli, two of the most common, hide on kitchen surfaces and in sponges, which are usually wet and provide an ideal environment for germs to multiply.
To stay safe, replace sponges on a regular basis. Sanitize wet sponges by microwaving them for two minutes, washing in the dishwasher, or placing them in boiling water laced with a couple of tablespoons of vinegar for three or four minutes.
Fire extinguishers. You probably have at least one fire extinguisher in your home, but how long has it been since you’ve even given it a second look? Fire extinguishers can de-pressurize over time and be worthless in an emergency. Check the label to see how long yours should last — some are expected to work for only about five years.
The National Fire Protection Association recommends non-rechargeable units be replaced every 12 years and rechargeable ones tested and recharged every six years. If your home is humid, your extinguisher may need replacing more often.
Check the pressure gauge on your extinguisher every month to make sure it falls in the green area. If not, replace it immediately. Also check for corrosion, cracked hoses, and broken handles — all indicate your fire extinguisher needs to be replaced.
Plastic food containers. Bisphenol A (BPA) is used to make plastics used in food and beverage containers and is often used in the lining of metal cans. BPAs are proven endocrine disruptors and can increase the risk for breast and prostate cancer, heart disease, and obesity. “BPA actually disturbs the hormone production in our bodies,” Dr. Erika Schwartz, a leading expert on hormones tells Newsmax Health.
Avoid BPA by choosing fresh foods and those in glass containers instead of those in cans. Buy plastic containers with the recycling labels No. 1, No. 2, No. 4, and No. 5 on the bottom. Avoid those with No. 3, No. 7, or PC (polycarbonate). Cloudy or soft containers don’t contain BPA.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Natural Health, Wellness
When children live through a contentious divorce or separation by their parents, the fallout appears to harm their health for decades, even into adulthood, researchers said Monday.
The study involved 201 healthy adults who agreed to be quarantined, exposed to a virus that causes the common cold, and monitored for five days.
Those whose parents had separated and had not spoken to each other for years were three times as likely to get sick, compared to those whose parents had separated but had stayed in touch as the children grew.
Previous research has shown that adults whose parents separated during childhood have an increased risk for poorer health.
The latest study showed that this higher risk of illness is due, at least in part, to heightened inflammation in response to a viral infection, the report said.
“Early life stressful experiences do something to our physiology and inflammatory processes that increase risk for poorer health and chronic illness,” said Michael Murphy, a psychology postdoctoral research associate at Carnegie Mellon University.
“This work is a step forward in our understanding of how family stress during childhood may influence a child’s susceptibility to disease 20-40 years later.”
The study also showed that the adult children of parents who had separated but stayed in touch were no more likely to get sick than the adult children of intact families.
“Our results target the immune system as an important carrier of the long-term negative impact of early family conflict,” said Sheldon Cohen, a co-author and professor of psychology.
“They also suggest that all divorces are not equal, with continued communication between parents buffering deleterious effects of separation on the health trajectories of the children.”
The findings were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a peer-reviewed US journal.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Diets, Fitness
Packaged foods and store-bought drinks are blamed for adding a lot of salt to U.S. diets, but a new study suggests those foods and beverages don’t contain as much sodium as they once did.
The amount of salt brought into U.S. households through packaged food and store-bought beverages fell by about 18 percent from 2000 through 2014, researchers found.
Still, they say, the vast majority of U.S. children and adults consume well over the recommended amount of sodium every day.
“Households are getting less sodium form the grocery store, but I think it’s important to know sodium in packaged foods is still way too high,” said lead author Jennifer Poti, of the Department of Nutrition at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “So we have a long way to go.”
Experts and dietary guidelines have urged people in the U.S. to cut back on sodium. The current recommendation is to consume less than 2,300 milligrams (mg) per day, or the amount in about 1 teaspoon of salt.
Too much sodium increases blood pressure by drawing water from the body into the blood vessels, according to the American Heart Association. High blood pressure can damage the blood vessels and lead to serious problems like heart attacks and strokes.
Writing in JAMA Internal Medicine, Poti and colleagues cite a 2010 report form the Institute of Medicine calling for reduced sodium in packaged foods, to bring down the amount in U.S. diets.
For the new study, the researchers analyzed data on packaged food purchased from 2000 through 2014 by 30,000 to 60,000 U.S. households each year. Overall, they had data on about 1.5 million products.
Over the study period, sodium from packaged foods and beverages fell from 2,363 mg per day per person to 1,967 mg per day.
When they examined the nutritional content of the purchased foods, the researchers found that the salt content in the products had fallen about 12 percent over the study period.
In seven of the 10 biggest sources of salt among packaged foods and beverages, sodium content declined at least 10 percent. Those included items like condiments, sauces and dips.
The new study can’t say why the amount of salt from packaged foods and beverages declined. Poti said people didn’t seem to drastically change their purchases during the study.
“Potentially some of these changes are due to the removal of sodium from products by manufacturers,” she told Reuters Health.
Despite the progress in reducing sodium, less than 2 percent of households were buying foods and beverages considered to contain an acceptable amount of salt, the study found.
Still, the results are encouraging, said Lisa Harnack, who was not involved with the new study but recently published research on salt in food.
“It suggests that Americans are decreasing sodium intake form packaged food, which is important,” said Harnack, of the University of Minnesota School of Public Health in Minneapolis.
She also told Reuters Health that U.S. diets have a long way to go.
“People should read labels and aim for lower sodium products to support their own health and increase demand for lower sodium options,” she said.
Poti said the results suggest the U.S. needs more concerted efforts to reduce the amount of salt in diets.
“We really need to have more environmental-level efforts to remove sodium from the products so consumers have more choices and that there are lower sodium options in the marketplace,” she said.
SOURCE: bit.ly/2s9ZHsx JAMA Internal Medicine, online June 5, 2017.
by Dr Alex Jimenez | Anti Aging
Bisphosphonates, which are sometimes used to treat osteoporosis, do not prevent fractures in women who take them for more than 10 years. The drugs include popular prescription drugs such as Boniva, Fosamax Plus D, and Reclast.
Osteoporosis causes thinning of the bones, reducing bone density and making them fragile and putting them at higher risk for bone fractures.
Risk for osteoporosis increases as we age. Studies show that 50 percent of women over the age of 50 will suffer a bone fracture due to osteoporosis.
Bisphosphonates increase bone mineral density, which strengthens bones and is thought to make them less likely to fracture. Studies have shown that taking these drugs for one to four years decreases the risk of fractures in women with low bone density, but little is known about whether taking them for longer periods of time has the same effect.
A study, which was published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, examined whether older women taking bisphosphonates for 10-13 years had fewer bone fractures than older women with similar fracture risks who took these medicines only briefly.
Researchers looked at information from 5,120 women with a high risk for bone fractures who used bisphophonates. They discovered that women who took bisphosphonates for 10 to13 years had higher fracture rates, compared with women who took the medication for two years. Taking bisphosphonates for shorter periods of time was not linked to a higher fracture risk.
Recent studies have found that natural foods and supplements can strengthen aging bones. An Irish study examined the relationship between dairy intake and bone density, and found that the hip bones of senior citizens who ate the most were denser than the hip bones of those who ate the least.
Researchers at the Universities of Bristol and Eastern Finland followed 2,245 middle-aged men for 20 years, and found that men with lower blood levels of magnesium had an increased risk of fractures, particularly fractures of the hip.
Men who had higher blood levels of magnesium lowered their risk by 44 percent. None of the men who had very high magnesium levels suffered a fracture during the 20-year follow-up. However, dietary magnesium intake was not found to be linked with fractures. Only supplements were shown to be beneficial.
By 2020, an estimated 61 million American adults will have low bone mineral density.
