CRC Wellness eNewsletter

 

Another cause for ADD/ADHD…and it’s in your child’s diet!

Most of you who read my eNewsletter know by now that I am a huge fan of a truly organic diet (not just wal-mart labeled). Well if you need another reason to at least feed your children organic food than I have one. A study in The Lancet (Sept. 5, 2007) looked at the whether or not food additives and food coloring caused any changes in children’s behavior. This study took 153 three year old children & 144 eight/nine year old children and gave them a Sodium benzoate (a common preservative) and/or food coloring cocktail.

Here is some of the authors notes:

1.)“In this community-based, double-blinded, placebo-controlled food challenge,
we tested the effects of artificial food additives on children's behaviour and have
shown that a mix of additives commonly found in children's food increases the
mean level of hyperactivity in children aged 3 years and 8/9 years.”

2.)“This study provides evidence of deleterious effects of AFCA on children's
behaviour with data from a whole population sample…

            3.)“These findings show that adverse effects are not just seen in children with
extreme hyperactivity (ie, ADHD), but can also be seen in the general population
and across the range of severities of hyperactivity.

3.)“We have found an adverse effect of food additives on the hyperactive
behaviour of 3-year-old and 8/9-year-old children.”

I used to be more worried about antibiotics and hormones in our food, now these things scare me just as much!

If the statements (from this study) don’t make you think, I don’t know what will! We all (myself included) need to take a more serious look at what we are not only putting into our own bodies but also our children’s.

Does the flu shot cause Alzheimer’s disease?

Flu shot season is here so it is appropriate to remind everyone that according to Hugh Fudenberg, MD, the world's leading immunogeneticist and 13th most quoted biologist of our time (over 850 papers in peer reviewed journals), if an individual has had five consecutive flu shots their chance of getting Alzheimer's disease is ten times higher than if they had one, two or no shots. (1)

Dr. Fudenberg claims this is due to the mercury and other toxins in flu shots (and still used in many childhood vaccinations and RhoGam shots). These toxins build up in the brain causing cognitive dysfunction. Alzheimer's is expected to quadruple – could this be the reason? (2)

By the way, in an attempt to disprove the Alzheimer’s/flu shot connection, some MDs went to nursing homes and asked people with Alzheimer’s if they remember getting a flu shot. Most said they didn’t but that’s not surprising since people with Alzheimer’s may not remember the name of their spouse. Based on this “research” they concluded flu shots didn’t cause Alzheimer’s. However, the disclaimer at the bottom of the abstract negated its value: “Because of the self-reported nature of the risk factor questionnaire we cannot exclude the possibility of recall bias.” (3) Can you believe that the media reported this as “proof” the flu shot was safe? They didn’t mention the disclaimer. Maybe they all had too many flu shots?

But do flu shots work? Studies are now reporting the shots are minimally effective, if at all, and do not result in decreased mortality in the elderly – the very reason the elderly are told to get the shots. (4)

How dangerous is the flu?

We hear reports that “Influenza kills 30,000 to 40,000 Americans every year.” (5)

It is simply not true. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) the number of people who die of the flu are a fraction of that. Here is what the CDC says:

In 2002: 753 died of the flu (6)

In 2001: 267 died of the flu (7)

Those who die of the flu are mostly frail, sickly, weak, malnourished and unhealthy to begin with. For people in generally good health, dying from the flu is, in fact, very rare – research even shows the flu shot does not affect mortality of elderly people. Thus the flu shot is both dangerous and useless.

One of the most important things to remember here though is that the flu shot DOES CONTAIN THIMERASOL! The CDC readily admits this and even says so on their website.

You do not have to choose what I choose regarding this (or any other) matter but please at least educate yourself as to what the pro’s and con’s are!

Click here to see the CDC website

Sugar Sweetened Drinks…STAY AWAY

An excellent review article in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (Vol. 84, No. 2, 274-288, August 2006) discuses the problems with all of those sweetened drinks (pop, Gatorade, cool-aid,etc…). I really like review articles because they do all the hard work for us and we get to see the summaries of the most recent research!

Here are some highlights:

1.)“In the United States alone, an estimated 129.6 million persons, or 64% of
the population aged 20–74 y, are overweight, and 30% of those 129.6 million are considered obese.”

2.)In the United States there is a concomitant increase in rates of being
overweight and obese with consumption of carbohydrates, largely in the form of added sugars.

*The largest source of these added sugars is soft drinks, which account for
47% of total added sugars in the diet.

3.)In the United States, a 12-oz can of soda provides 40–50 g of sugar in the
form of high-fructose corn syrup ((HFCS) 45% glucose and 55% fructose), which is
equivalent to 10 teaspoons of table sugar.

*One soda/day could lead to a weight gain of 15 lb or 6.75 kg in 1 year.

4.)“In addition to its potential role in weight gain, the intake of sugar-sweetened
soda may increase the risk of type 2 diabetes,” probably because of the HFCS which
is rapidly absorbable

5.)“Sugar-sweetened beverages, particularly soda, provide little nutritional
benefit, increase weight gain and probably the risk of diabetes, fractures, and
dental caries.”

            6.)“The HFCS content of soda may have a particular role in adiposity and diabetes risk.”

            7.)The intake of sweetened soft drinks may be associated with a greater risk of pancreatic cancer

            8.)Fruit juices, “such as apple juice, which are consumed in great quantities by young children,” are also been linked to being overweight and obese.

It’s no big surprise that pop (and juices!!) is bad for you but after reading all of these statements, doesn’t it make you think a little more before picking up that can of soda!

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and chiropractic

Do you have tingling and numbness in your hands, fingers and wrists; swelling of the fingers; dry palms; pain that awakens you at night; or upper arm, elbow, shoulder or neck pain? You may have Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS). (8)
The drug-free chiropractic approach of releasing nerve and spine stress has been a blessing to millions afflicted with this condition. For over a hundred years clinicians, researchers and patients have reported relief of classic carpal tunnel symptoms and improvement in overall body function after chiropractic spinal adjustments. (9)

Chiropractic care may make the difference between a pain-free wrist and surgery!

Better sex life with chiropractic

It says so in (of all places) the British Medical Journal:

“Chiropractic patients not only reported less pain than hospital patients at six weeks, but three years later chiropractic patients reported a 29% greater improvement with chiropractic compared to hospital treatment … many of the factors that contribute to the quality of lifewere affected by chiropractic care [such as] sitting for more than a short period of time and sleeping showed the most significant improvement, but scores such as personal care, lifting, walking, standing, sex life, social life, and ability to travel also improved.” (10)

You are dancing all the time

“No, I’m a terrible dancer,” you say? Think again. You are an incredible dancer. Really! At this moment your body is full of billions of cells that are vibrating, singing and dancing as your life energies organize them. If they weren’t organized you’d be a formless pile of chemicals instead of the marvelous, miraculous living person you are. Your cells organize to form tissues, your tissues dance and vibrate together to form organs, organs dance together as systems (such as the digestive system, circulatory system, etc.) and when all of your systems are singing, dancing and vibrating in a harmonious, coordinated fashion they create an organism – a healthy, living you.

What is it that makes all these structures come "alive” and dance? Many things. One of them is your nervous system! Nerves control and coordinate all of your parts so they work together harmoniously. Chiropractic relieves nerve stress so your body can produce beautiful music!

The other cool part about this is this is the reason the laser and some of the other things we use work so good! We are all vibrating, energetic being’s…It’s the way God created us!

Sea salt for better health

Chiropractic is a natural healing art that respects the wisdom of nature. That respect translates into nutrition that is natural, organic and unprocessed.

That includes natural salt. As salt researcher Jacques De Langre (author of Seasalt’s Hidden Powers) writes:

“When harvested with dedication and care, the oceans give us a natural sea salt with the most exquisite taste and physiologically vital mineral mix. Today, every common table salt is artificial and pales beside the real sea salt. Out of the richest spectrum of 92 essential minerals found in the ocean, the industrial refined variety retains only two! Debased white table salt deserves its bad name and all the misdeeds as charged.” (11)

Note: For a good source of sea salt go to the Grain and Salt Society’s web site at www.grainandsaltsociety.com.

Breastfeeding works better when mother is better fed

A recent research study revealed that when a breastfeeding mother eats organic dairy and meat products the nutritional quality of her breast milk improves due to increased beneficial fatty acids. These fatty acids are especially important for the child’s brain development. The study involved 312 breastfeeding women with 1-month old infants from the Netherlands that appeared in the British Journal of Nutrition. (13)

There are many types of beneficial fatty acids. It is very important for children to get a good amount of Omega 3 fatty acids, particularly DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid). When the children are babies ideally they are breastfed and they get the omega 3’s from the mother who is supplementing with a good Omega supplement! It is important to mention here that pregnant/breast feeding women should not consume conventional fish from supermarkets as it probably contains mercury, pcb’s or both!

Once children are beyond the breast feeding stage, they can begin taking a supplement that is high in DHA. We give Ava (our daughter) Complete Children’s DHA/EPA.

Click here to read about children’s omega 3 supplement.

Click here to read about the adult omega 3 supplement.

What color is your steak?

Is the FDA permitting your steak to be gassed? Find out at

http://hightowerdownload.com/pink

The stupid box…Literally

O.K. Every once and a while a study comes out that confirms the absolutely obvious but this is one I think that we can all learn from. This study is from PEDIATRICS (Vol. 120 No. 3 September 2007, pp. 532-537) and looks at whether or not television (tv) watching in children leads to attention problems.

The conclusion of the study: “Childhood television viewing was associated with attention problems in adolescence, independent of early attention problems and other confounders” and wait there’s more “These results support the hypothesis that childhood television viewing may contribute to the development of attention problems and suggest that the effects may be long-lasting.”

So in other words, the tv probably cause some sort of attention problem (ADD/ADHD anyone?) and it’s effects could be long lasting…meaning the poor child has to deal with it for the rest of their life!

Some more of the author’s notes:

1.)“It has been suggested that television is so exciting that real-life tasks, such
as schoolwork, may seem boring by comparison, leading to difficulties in
maintaining attention”

2.)In this general population longitudinal study, we found that a greater
Number of hours of childhood television viewing was associated with attention
problems in adolescence

3.)Television viewing displaces other activities that promote and encourage
attention, such as reading, games, sports, and play.

The moral of the story here is to really try to avoid the television as much as possible. I realize that there are some educational shows out there and sometimes we don’t have much of a choice but please try and limit your child’s time in front of the tv, especially the younger ones!

Chiropractic and spinal research

Is there any disease or condition you'd like to know about? Write us.

Low back pain in pregnancy. The majority of pregnant women (57% to 69%) suffer from low back pain. In a study of 17 pregnant women under chiropractic care with an initial average pain score of 5.9, the average pain score dropped to 1.5 under chiropractic care. (14)

ADHD. This is the case of an 8-year-old boy with many learning and behavioral disorders associated with ADHD. The ADHD occurred after a fall 18 months prior. For two months the child was seen weekly by his chiropractor. The child’s symptoms had been stable for 18 months but after two months of care his mother noted positive changes in behavior and a reduction in his complaints of headaches and neck pain symptoms. Reports from his teachers at school remarked on the positive changes in his behavior and improvements in academic performance. (15)

Neck pain. Seventy patients with neck pain (25 males and 45 females, ages 20-55 years) were randomly divided into either a chiropractic group or a control group. The chiropractic group showed a significant improvement in neck pain after one adjustment. The chiropractic group obtained a greater improvement than the control group in all the outcome measures. (16)

Humor

Kids…some of their Words of Wisdom

HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHOM TO MARRY?
You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming. Alan, age 10
No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with. Kristen, age 10

WHAT IS THE RIGHT AGETO GET MARRIED?
Twenty-three is the best age because you know the person FOREVER by then. Camille, age 10

HOW CAN A STRANGER TELL IF TWO PEOPLE AREMARRIED?
You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids. Derrick, age 8

WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR MOM ANDDAD HAVE IN COMMON?
Both don't want any more kids. Lori, age 8

WHAT DO MOST PEOPLE DO ON A DATE?
Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough. Lynnette, age 8 (isn't she a treasure)
On the first date, they just tell each other lies and that usually gets them interested enough to go for a second date. Martin, age 10

WHAT WOULD YOU DO ON A FIRST DATE THAT WAS TURNING SOUR?
I'd run home and play dead. The next day I would call all the newspapers and make sure they wrote about me in all the dead columns. Craig, age 9

WHEN IS IT OKAY TO KISS SOMEONE?
When they're rich. Pam, age 7
The law says you have to be eighteen, so I wouldn't want to mess with that. Curt, age 7
The rule goes like this: If you kiss someone, then you should marry them and have kids with them. It's the right thing to do. Howard, age 8

IS IT BETTER TO BE SINGLE OR MARRIED?
It's better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to clean up after them. Anita, age 9 (bless you child)

HOW WOULD THE WORLD BE DIFFERENT IF PEOPLE DIDN'T GETMARRIED?
There sure would be a lot of kids to explain, wouldn't there? Kelvin, age 8

And the #1 Favorite is........

HOW WOULD YOU MAKE A MARRIAGE WORK?
Tell your wife that she looks pretty, even if she looks like a truck. Ricky, age 10

Bye. See you next month. Don’t forget to stop by for a checkup and (maybe) an adjustment.

 

References

1. Dr. Fudenberg at the NVIC International Vaccine Conference, Arlington, VA. September, 1997. Quoted with permission.

2. Alzehimer’s expected to quadruple. John's Hopkins Newsletter. November 1998.

3. Verreault R, Laurin D, Lindsay J et al. Past exposure to vaccines and subsequent risk of Alzheimer’s disease. CMAJ. 2001;165(11):1495-1498.

4. Sherry Tenpenny, DO Newsletter, May 1, 2006. http://www.newswithviews.com/Tenpenny/sherri6.htm

5. http://www.acponline.org/journals/news/jul-aug04/vaccinations.htm
6. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr52/nvsr52_13.pdf (p.16)

7. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr51/nvsr51_05.pdf (p.16)

8. Verghese J, Galanopoulou AS, Herskovitz S. Autonomic dysfunction in idiopathic carpal tunnel syndrome. Muscle Nerve. 2000;23(8):1209-1213.

9. Davis PT, Hulbert JR, Kassak KM, et al. Comparative efficacy of conservative medical and chiropractic treatments for carpal tunnel syndrome: a randomized clinical trial. JMPT. 1998;21(5):317-326.
10. Meade TW et al. Randomized comparison of chiropractic and hospital outpatient management for low back pain: results from extended follow-up. British Medical Journal. 1995;311:349-351.

11. DeLangre J. Seasalt’s Hidden Powers. Asheville, NC: Happiness Press. 1994.

13. Rist L, Mueller A, Barthel C et al. Influence of organic diet on the amount of conjugated linoleic acids in breast milk of lactating women in the Netherlands. British Journal of Nutrition. 2007;97(4):735-743.  http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_6245.cfm

14. Lisi AJ. Chiropractic spinal manipulation for low back pain of pregnancy: a retrospective case series. Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health. 2006;51:e7-10.

15. Lovett L, Blum C. Behavioral and learning changes secondary to chiropractic care to reduce subluxations in a child with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: a case study. JVSR. October 4, 2006 ;(OCT:4):Online access only 6 p.

16. Martínez-Segura R, Fernandez-de-las-Penas C, Ruiz-Saez M et al. Immediate effects on neck pain and active range of motion after a single cervical high-velocity low-amplitude manipulation in subjects presenting with mechanical neck pain: a randomized controlled trial. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. 2006;29(7):511-517.