Boosting Your Immunity Through Chiropractic

In 1975, Ronald Pero, PhD., chief of cancer prevention research at New York’s Preventive Medicine Institute and professor of medicine in Environmental Health at New York University, began developing scientifically valid ways to estimate individual susceptibility to various chronic diseases. Pero and his colleagues found strong evidence that susceptibility to cancer could be gauged by the activities of various enzymes involved in metabolic and genetic changes due to exposure to carcinogenic or “mutagenic” chemicals. An individuals immune system responsiveness, or immune competence,” also was directly linked to certain DNA-repalring enzymes, which provided an objective way to assess disease susceptibility. Lack of those enzymes, Pero said, “definitely limits not only your lifespan, but also your ability to resist serious disease consequence”.

Pero was also fascinated by various hormones synergistic relationship with other cancer-inducing agents to promote disease. For example, thyroid hormones affect the early phases inducing of radiation and chemically induced cancer. if the thyroid produces too much of either thyroxine or thyroid-stimulating hormone, cancer risk greatly increases. Since the nervous system regulates hormonal balances, it too can influence susceptibility to cancer. Along these lines, various kinds of spinal cord injury are accompanied by a high risk of developing cancer, particularly lymphomas and lymphatic leukemias. This connection led Pero to consider chiropractic as a potential alternative for reducing the risk of immune breakdown and disease.

In 1986 Pero collaborated with Joseph Flesia, D.C, chairman of the board of directors for the Chiropractic Basic Science Research Foundation, Inc. With a hefty grant from CBS, they began a research project at the University of Lund in Lund, Sweden. Using Pero’s test to gauge resistance to hazardous environmental chemicals, they hypothesized that people with cancer would have a suppressed immune response to such a toxic burden, while healthy people and people receiving chiropractic care should have a relatively enhanced response:

Measuring 107 individuals who had received long-term chiropractic care, Pero’s team turned up some surprising findings. All chiropractic patients were “genetically normal” – that is, they had no obvious genetic reasons for increased resistance or susceptibility to disease. Any difference, therefore, had to be accounted for by environmental or therapeutic factors. The chiropractic patients also had 200 percent greater immune competence than people who had not received chiropractic, and 400 percent greater immune competence than the people with cancer or other serious diseases. Surprisingly, despite a wide range of ages in this study, the immune-competence did not show any decline with age it was uniform for the entire group.

Pero concluded that “chiropractic may optimize whatever genetic abilities you have” so that you can fully resist serious disease. “I’m very excited to see that without chemical intervention. this particular group of patients under chiropractic care, did show a very improved response, ” he told CBSRF. “These changes occur from chiropractic treatment.”

The Benefits of Regular Physical Activity

Every year we make a New Year’s Resolution to exercise. We all know that exercise is beneficial, but many aren’t aware of how beneficial it can be. Sometimes a little more knowledge helps us to get up and take action. Other people need tidbits on HOW to get up and take action. This article is meant to address both.

With Education There Is Power
With that in mind, this is what has been learned about physical activity and health from decades of research. Among its major findings:

• People who are usually inactive can improve their health and well-being by becoming even moderately active on a regular basis.
• Physical activity need not be strenuous to achieve significant health benefits.
• Even greater health benefits can be achieved by increasing the amount (duration, frequency, or intensity) of physical activity.

So what are those health benefits? Regular physical activity that is performed on most days of the week reduces the risk of developing or dying from some of the leading causes of illness and death in the United States. Regular physical activity improves health in the following ways:

• Reduces the risk of dying prematurely.
• Reduces the risk of dying from heart disease.
• Reduces the risk of developing diabetes and improves control of blood sugar.
• Reduces the risk of developing high blood pressure.
• Helps reduce blood pressure in people who already have high blood pressure.
• Reduces the risk of developing colon cancer.
• Reduces feelings of depression and anxiety.
• Helps control weight by increasing your metabolism to help prevent obesity.
• Helps you sleep better.
• Reduces some of the effects of aging.
• Helps build and maintain healthy bones (including the prevention of osteoporosis), muscles, and joints.
• Helps older adults become stronger and better able to move about without falling.
• Promotes psychological well-being. It helps treat depression and relieves stress and anxiety.
• Increases your energy and endurance.
• Reduces the risk of breast cancer by 40% in those who exercise 3 times weekly.

Fitness Is Critical To Weight Loss
In order to increase your metabolism and burn fat, you need to build muscle. If you lose weight by diet alone, on by aerobics alone, or by aerobics and diet together, but neglect muscle building/strengthening exercises, 40% of the weight that you lose will be muscle. Muscle burns fat. In fact, every pound of muscle burns between 50-100 calories per day, at rest! If you are like the average American and lose 60 pounds (without the addition of strength training), 24 pounds of the weight you lose is muscle! 24 pounds of muscle burns between 1200 and 2400 calories per day, at rest! The next time you gain the weight back, it is all fat, not muscle. Then you diet again. It is more difficult to lose the weight this time because you have less calorie-burning capacity. Again 40% of the weight that you do lose is muscle. Then you gain the weight back again because your metabolism is so much slower. Each time it gets more and more difficult to lose the weight because you have less and less muscle to rev up your metabolism and help you burn the calories. Now you can see the yo-yo cycles most people fall prey to. If you have a history of dieting, then your muscle mass is probably low.

When you do strength training (using hydraulic equipment or weights), you add muscle. More muscle means that you burn fat faster. Every pound of muscle that you add to your frame will increase your metabolism by 50- 100 calories per day! When you start working out, you jump-start your metabolism, resulting in more calories burned. As your muscles become tight and firm you will notice a loss in inches, especially in your waist, tummy and hips. In fact, when most people start strength training with hydraulic equipment, they lose 5-10 inches in the very first month!

So, How Do We Incorporate Exercise Into Our Lifestyle?

• Determine where you want to be – what are your goals?
• Evaluate what results you would see if you continued to be sedentary (i.e. more weight gain,
increased risk of heart disease, less energy, more shortness of breath and fatigue, more depression, etc.).
• How would those results change if you exercised (i.e. more energy, improved body and body image, happier, more control over your health, less health risks, etc.)
• Make the commitment to get healthier, which means also to exercise.
• Call a reputable fitness center and make an appointment to visit it. Have them use state of the art equipment to determine where you are now. In other words, get a fitness Evaluation.

To Make Exercise a Habit

• Stick to a regular time every day.
• Sign a contract committing yourself to exercise
• Put “exercise appointments” on your calendar.
• Keep a daily log or diary of your activities.
• Check your progress. Can you walk a certain distance faster or further now than when you began? Or is your heart rate slower now?
• Determine the best exercise program for you, such as what type of exercise to do, how often to exercise and for how long.
• Join a health club. The cost gives some people an incentive to exercise regularly.

How Do We Know Which Gym To Go To?
You want to enjoy your workout. Choose a gym that is FUN. Upbeat music, fun personnel. Meet and get to know the personnel – they can either make or break your experience. Make sure you can get ongoing training and support any time you need it. You shouldn’t have to pay extra for this service! The best gyms are those that incorporate hydraulic equipment with aerobic exercise. The term “hydraulic” has been used very loosely in the fitness industry. Most gyms use automobile style shock absorbers to cut costs and produce an inferior product with an inadequate “one size fits all” work out. Attend gyms that use hydraulics specifically manufactured for the fitness industry. Use facilities whose cylinders YOU can easily ADJUST, within seconds.

Chiropractor Fort Bragg – Is Plant-based Meat A Healthy Alternative?

If you have switched to the new plant based hamburger alternatives, you need to watch this video now. Don’t get fooled because it has the word plant in the package. Just click on the Red More Button in your email or the image below if you are on our website.

Continue reading

What is the Flora Story?

We hear lots of talk about “Flora” or intestinal bacteria. Or maybe you’ve just heard that we need acidophilus or bifidus to help with digestive disorders. So what is it?

We have a natural ecological system in our body referred to as “flora”. This is mostly in our skin and our mucus membranes (mouth, nose, vagina and intestines primarily). Other tissues such as the blood, brain, heart and muscles are supposed to be free from microorganisms. This flora consists primarily of bacteria, with a few fungi, yeasts and other microorganisms. Some of these bacteria may surprise you. Our natural healthy flora contains species of streptococcus, staphylococcus, E. Coli, Enterobacterium and more than 200 other bacteria.

As recently as last month an article appeared in one of the medical journals stating that flora balance will be used in the future as a way of assessing risks for a variety of health conditions, but especially colon cancer and other intestinal-related diseases. This comes as no surprise to the thousands of natural healing practitioners who have recognized the importance of floral balance for decades!
So if an imbalance of the flora (called “dysbiosis”) is a marker for disease, what occurs in our lifestyle that alters this balance? Many things. Antibiotics are the worst culprit. According to one authority, it takes approximately 1 year of pro-biotic therapy (restoring the destroyed healthy flora) for every dose of antibiotic taken. Coffee has been reported to contribute to dysbiosis. Many of the processed foods are to blame as well. Another interesting finding is the lack of eating fermented foods. Sauerkraut, yogurt (more on yogurt later), pickled vegetables (including ginger), sprouted grains, nuts and seeds, miso, Umeboshi plums, and soy sauce are examples. Fermented means “pre-digested” which then become “pro-biotic”, meaning they restore floral balance. In addition to being pre-digested they support healthy digestion because they are so enzyme-rich. However, it is ruined by pasteurization and canning.
The body is an amazing machine and the role of healthy flora is no exception. There are many benefits to flora. The most important beneficial effect is that it keeps competing pathogens in check. In other words if your “good” or “friendly” bacteria are in high enough concentrations the “bad” or “pathogenic” bacteria don’t get out of control and cause disease. Flora is needed to synthesize or make vitamins such as Vitamin K, Vitamin B12 and other B vitamins, and to excrete excess vitamins. Flora is also needed to stimulate the development of certain tissues in the intestinal tract and in the lymphatic system. The immunological response is also highly dependent upon normal flora. Flora cross-reacts with certain pathogens preventing “invasion” by them, referred to as “natural antibodies”

So to address this issue of dysbiosis, we need to know how to restore the balance. First, eliminate the offenders. Then restore the missing microorganisms. This is referred to as pro-biotic therapy. The most common sources of probiotics are in pill form called lactobacillus acidophilus. There are other forms such as bifidobacterium bifidus and streptococcus faecium. Yogurt has long been known as the premier food source of probiotics, however recent research is discounting that. It appears that because of pasteurization there is minimal survival of the important microorganisms. Couple that with the sugar (which contributes to the “bad bacteria” colonizing), and the chemicals (dyes and flavorings) in yogurt, it is quickly becoming a deleterious option.

Another term coming to the limelight is “Prebiotics”. As we have come to understand flora better, we realize that as live microorganisms, they need certain foods or nutrients to survive and proliferate.Prebiotics are just that. They improve the chances of the probiotics sticking and growing.
Conditions often associated with dysbiosis include: chronic gastrointestinal inflammatory or autoimmune disorders, allergies or food intolerances, antibiotic use, “anti-ulcer” medication use, unexplained rashes, unexplained fatigue, malnutrition, neuropsychiatric symptoms, vaginal infections and others. Although there may be other underlying causes for those conditions, it is wise to rule out dysbiosis as one of them. If you feel you may have dysbiosis contact a trained physician to assist you in restoring balance. It is more complicated than just grabbing a bottle of a probiotic.

Sugar is Killing Us!

Sugar harms your health in many ways. Most people know this, yet few control the intake of it. Worse yet, they are given to children in greater and greater quantities. An example is soda pop: more than a quarter of all drinks consumed in the United States are soda. More than 15 billion gallons were sold in 2000 and that number is rising every year. That means every man, woman and child consumes at least one 12-ounce can per day. Obviously not everyone consumes sodas – many people drink more than their share!

In one study it was found that that 56% of 8 year olds consume sodas daily and at least 30% of teenage boys drink greater than 3 cans per day. Sixty percent of all public and private high schools and middle schools have vending machines or otherwise sell sodas to the kids. Carbonated soda pop provides more added sugar in the diet than cookies, candies and ice cream combined. This has resulted in an increase in obesity, tooth decay, weakened bones and caffeine dependence in our children. For every daily serving of soda consumed the risk of obesity increases 1.6 times. Researchers found that kids that drink sodas consume almost 200 more calories per day than kids who do not. Sugar and corn syrup from soft drinks, juices and the copious teas and sports drinks now supply more than 10 percent of our total calories.

We have turned into a nation that has replaced real foods (such as vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and meats) with carbohydrates that are refined and treated by the body no differently than eating a cookie. Fat, fiber and protein slow the rate carbohydrates enter the blood stream. This prevents a sudden rise in insulin levels, with a subsequent drop thereafter. Refined carbohydrates (also known as “white trash”) such as cereals, pasta, potatoes, white rice, breads and other refined grains contain virtually no nutrients. We are feeding our bodies empty calories, and then wonder why we have so many diseases!

Grain consumption, especially refined grains, has increased almost 60 pounds per person, and caloric sweeteners (primarily high-fructose corn syrup) by 30 pounds. We consume more total calories (up to 400 more) each day since the government started recommending low-fat diets. Most people don’t realize that “low fat” foods contain more sugar, and “diet” foods contain either high fat or artificial sweeteners.

Sugar harms the body in many ways: it suppresses the immune system immediately and takes 3 days to recover. It can cause a rapid rise in adrenaline, hyperactivity, anxiety, difficulty concentrating and crankiness in children. It weakens eyesight, contributes to gallstones and appendicitis, and suppresses calcium absorption in the bones (in fact, soda is now considered the number one contributor to osteoporosis). Sugar can cause many problems with digestion, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and many other bowel diseases. It interferes with protein absorption, impairs DNA structure, makes your skin age more quickly, reduces learning capacity, increases hormonal imbalance, weakens the adrenal glands (which makes you fatigued, increases emotional instability, causes high blood pressure in obese individuals, induces cell death, feeds cancer cells, contributes to PMS, causes a rise in cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the blood. And the list goes on. This is in addition to the already recognizable causes such as obesity, diabetes, and tooth decay.

All of this is accentuated if your body does not handle blood sugar well. Blood sugar is managed primarily by the liver, adrenals and pancreas. A weakness in one of those glands results in a weakness in how the body responds to sugar. The more sugar consumed, the worse the condition. Diabetes and hypoglycemia are at an all-time high.

Eating foods rich in minerals (such as spinach, beet greens, collards, swiss chard, kale, and broccoli) assist the organs in managing blood sugar. They also help to control sugar cravings. Much of the time, the use of “green” mineral supplements is also needed. Greens such as kelp, alfalfa, spirulina and others, tableted, are good sources of complex minerals. Digestion also plays an important role.

Sugar cravings for many people make it difficult to stop drinking or eating sugar. It’s a sign of other imbalances in the body and can be treated through acupuncture, chiropractic, nutrition, herbal b6 medicine or all four. Since sugar causes many problems in the body, it would be wise to reduce the intake of sugary foods. If this is difficult, get help from a professional trained to support you in this area.

Chiropractor Fort Bragg – Yoga and Mediation Reduces Inflammation

Now you can add yoga and mediation to all the things we shared you can do to lower inflammation in the body and remember inflammation is the cause of so many diseases. This video is under 60 seconds so go watch it now. Just click on the Red More Button in your email or the image below if you are on our website.

Continue reading

Chiropractor Fort Bragg – Chiropractic Care for Poor Posture

Poor posture is not just about how you look. Poor posture is associated with numerous health problems including compression fractures, pain and disability. Did you know chiropractors can do more to help correct your posture than any other healthcare provider? Watch this video now and take the first step in better posture. Just click on the Red More Button in your email or the image below if you are on our website.

Continue reading

Chiropractor Fort Bragg – Reasons to Avoid Gluten

Most people have heard of glutens and wonder whether they should eliminate them from their diet. Understanding what glutens are, and where they are found will help you decide if they are affecting your health. Watch this video now and learn all things gluten. Just click on the Red More Button in your email or the image below if you are on our website.

Continue reading

Chiropractor Fort Bragg – Black Mold

Many people who experience chronic symptoms that no one can figure out the cause, has a good chance of having a mold problem either at home or at work. A black mold problem. The problem is that even if you look in the common places black mold usually grows you may not see it. What do you do then? Watch this video and find out. Just click on the Red More Button in your email or the image below if you are on our website.

Continue reading