Nervous System and Weight Loss Link

People with higher levels of nerve activity may have an easier time losing weight, a small study suggests.

Researchers looked at 42 overweight or obese people who took part in a 12-week weight-loss program that cut their daily calorie intake by 30 percent. The participants' resting sympathetic nerve activity was measured at the start of the study.

The sympathetic nervous system, which spreads throughout the body, regulates many functions, including control of resting metabolic rate and the use of calories from food consumption.

The researchers found that successful weight losers had significantly higher resting sympathetic nerve activity than those who had trouble shedding pounds. They also found that successful weight losers showed large increases in nerve activity after they ate a carbohydrate test meal. This did not occur in those who were weight-loss resistant.

The study will appear in the February 2012 issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

"We have demonstrated for the first time that resting muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) is a significant independent predictor of weight-loss outcome in a cohort of overweight or obese subjects," lead author Nora Straznicky, of the Baker IDI Heart & Diabetes Institute in Melbourne, Australia, said in a journal news release.

"Our findings provide two opportunities. First, we may be able to identify those persons who would benefit most from lifestyle weight-loss interventions such as dieting. Secondly, the findings may also help in developing weight-loss treatments through stimulating this specific nervous activity."

  

Source: health.msn.com

Man and Machine

Is a computer like a human brain or is a human brain like a computer? When machines allow us to extend our abilities, are we enhancing our humanness or becoming more machine-like? What are the meaningful distinctions between humans and machines and how do these impact our daily pursuits of health, well-being, and happiness?

One primary practical distinction is that humans initiate spontaneous, unique, non-predetermined actions and machines do not. Advanced machines such as military early warning systems may initiate spontaneous activities, but all of these are predetermined and predefined to a greater or lesser degree. And for any machine responses that are not previously designated and programmed as routine, human interaction is required for initiation of the suggested action.

Generally, even the "smartest" machine only has access to a built-in suite of responses. Noted exceptions include computer programs based on simple rules which emulate living systems. The "cellular automata" generated by these programs demonstrate spontaneous emergent behaviors not predictable from the simple rules themselves. The "artificial life" thus observed is exceedingly complex and can even provide optimal solutions to deep scientific problems posed to the system by investigators.

Cellular automata are examples of complex systems, defined as systems which are critically sensitive to small changes in initial conditions. Complex systems achieved fame in Michael Crichton's novel (and the subsequent Stephen Spielberg film), "Jurassic Park". In the book, the paleobotanist Dr. Ian Malcolm uses the weather as an example of the nature of complex systems. In a scene which has achieved iconic status, Malcolm relates how a butterfly flapping its wings in the Amazon rain forest can cause a tornado in the American Midwest. Small changes in a complex system's initial state can lead to substantial unpredictable results in the system as a whole.

The human nervous system is such a complex, dynamic system.^1,2,3 Small changes in the nervous system's initial state can result in dramatic outcomes. For example, a spinal misalignment (resulting from an innocuous low back muscle strain) can irritate a spinal nerve (a small change in initial conditions) which can lead to chronic indigestion, allergies, migraine headaches, or even high blood pressure down the road.

Most machines are not complex in this way, but they do require regular maintenance and care. As human beings, we are complex systems by our very nature and the importance of regular maintenance and care is that much greater. A healthy spine and optimally functioning nerve system go very far toward ensuring the health of our body-as-machine and our associated happiness and well-being.

 

The machine metaphor is very useful when we are considering aspects of human health and disease. For example, human machines need tuneups just as much and just as regularly as do mechanical machines.
Human machines that are "out of tune" break down. The nature of the breakdown may be minor or major, but it's never a good thing. Most of the time our health is transparent to us - we don't consciously experience our various body parts doing their job. Pain, however, is a notably conscious experience and one which is almost always unwelcome and unpleasant.

Regular chiropractic care is a convenient, efficient, and highly effective method of maintaining your personal human machine at peak levels of performance and structural integrity. Chiropractic care corrects the spinal misalignments that are common denominators in many, if not most, physical ailments and disorders. Chiropractic care directly addresses mechanical problems and helps ensure optimal functioning - optimal levels of health and well-being.

¹Bourjaily MA, Miller P: Synaptic plasticity and connectivity requirements to produce stimulus-pair specific responses in recurrent networks of spiking neurons. PLoS Comput Biol 7(2):e1001091, 2011 [Epub February 24, 2011]

²Rigotti M, et al: Internal representation of task rules by recurrent dynamics: the importance of the diversity of neural responses. Front Comput Neurosci 4:24, 2010

³Power JD, et al: The development of human functional brain networks. Neuron 67(5):735-748, 2010

4 Reasons You Should Drink More Water!

You can go without food for days, weeks and even months, but going without water for just one day can negatively impact your health.

Many people don’t realize just how important water really is. The human body is made up of 2/3 (66%) water and when we lose just a little bit of water through sweat and elimination, and we do not replenish lost liquid, we’ll begin to notice the effects to our health right away.
 
Health Effects of Going without Water

Water is the most valuable life support product for our health, right up there with oxygen. Water and oxygen are the only two things in life that without for just a short period of time we would die.  Studies have been done that show if a 175 pound man were to lose just 2.5% of water in his body (2 quarts) he will lose 25% of his body’s effectiveness towards survival.
When a person begins to dehydrate more things happen in the body than just being thirsty. The more liquid in the body that is lost, the thicker the blood becomes and the harder the heart muscle must work to pump the blood through the circulatory system.  When a person loses their abilities to reason and think straight because of dehydration it means they will die very soon, unless they drink water to rehydrate. Depending on the circumstances, mainly environment, a person can die within 24 to 28 hours after having no water if they are laboring in the hot dry sun with no water. If a person is sedentary indoors and the elements, such as wind, sun, and heat is not present they may live up to 3 days, tops. So water is VERY important for survival, but water is also very important to your overall health.
Most people think they drink enough liquids throughout the day to keep them hydrated. But if you counted all the beverages besides water that people drink you would see that they are actually dehydrating themselves. Most liquids such as coffee, tea, soda, alcohol, Gatorade, and sugary fruit drinks do not hydrate the body like pure water can. Some people are walking around actually dehydrated and they don’t know it because they don’t feel thirsty. Let’s take a look at 4 of the main reasons you should make sure you’re getting enough water.

1. Fatigue and Tiredness
The first sign of dehydration is the feeling of being tired; some people experience a headache and feel like taking a nap. When the body begins to dehydrate it means the tissues and cells are not getting enough water to make a person feel like doing anything; enzymatic activity slows down and without water the enzymes are unable to produce energy either. In fact a dehydrated person may have no enthusiasm or joy for life.   The good news is once the individual starts to drink some water their energy reserves speed back up and sometimes the headache completely goes away.

2. Constipation and Digestive Problems
If a person is not drinking enough water they do not have enough liquid to help with the elimination process and without eliminating the foods we digest we gain weight, gain toxins, and feel awful.  Being constipated is the beginning to many health problems from allergies to toxic overload syndrome to digestive disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome, gas bloating, stomach pain, nausea and loss of appetite in chronic cases.

3. Stomach Ulcers
To protect the stomach from its acidic digestive fluids that is made during the digestion of food, the stomach is coated with a lining of mucous, which are 98% water and 2% sodium bicarbonate.  Sodium bicarbonate helps in the digestive process by neutralizing the acids. When a person is dehydrated the stomach does not have enough liquid available to make the mucous, thus a poor mucous lining protecting a person from the acidic fluids the digestive process makes. This is why some people are more acidic rather than alkaline, and have digestive problems such as acid stomach and heartburn, which eventually without the alkalinity results in an ulcer of the stomach lining.
4. Weight Gain
Many times when we are thirsty we eat food rather than drink water. This can cause unnecessary weight gain, especially for a sedentary person. When your body is dehydrated, just a little bit, sometimes it won’t tell you with a dry throat or mouth, but rather with a feeling of being hungry.  Here’s the thing, if you just ate a sufficient meal not too long ago how can you really need to eat again?
To know if you need water or food, next time you are hungry when you have already ate a meal, drink a couple glasses of pure water. If the hunger pangs subside you’ll know you just needed to feed the body some water. The body needs at least 2 to 3 liters of water a day, and drinking more than that will keep you from feeling hungry. Not only that, but it will also help you eliminate more toxins from your body. Eventually your body will stop telling you it’s hungry because you are maintaining hydration throughout the day.
When you drink enough water throughout the day you are feeding the tissues and cells in your body and that gets the enzymatic system moving, which actually releases fat toxins out of the body! Now isn’t that good news? Rehydrating the body through pure water gets your metabolism running in full balance rather than being slow and sluggish, which is a cause of weight gain.
Do you want to add some vitamins and zest to your water? Then squeeze two or three lemons or limes into each liter of water and drink this nourishing water throughout the day. The great news about this is you probably won’t catch a cold anytime soon! Drink water for your health!

Drink Pure Water
Some water sources are not clean even though many people drink from them. Well water can be full of toxic inorganic minerals that could be making you sick. Bottled water isn’t necessarily any better, you still need to know where it came from and what is in it. Minerals on rocks build up into a sludgy scum and then you drink it. Tap water in some cities is also very mineral laden and too much minerals will cause arterial problems. Water should be as pure as possible, without minerals and bad bacteria.

Inorganic Minerals that could be lurking in your Water

Aluminum	Arsenic	Asbestos
Barium	Cadmium	Chromium
Copper	Fluoride	Lead
Mercury	Nitrate	Nitrite
Selenium	Silver

Minerals and vitamins should come from the purest source, which are organic foods that derive from plants or animals. If you think you might be drinking water that is dirty with inorganic minerals you can have it tested. The safest and easiest thing to do to ensure clean water is to buy a good water filter or softener to put on your faucet that filters out mineral toxins from your water.

The Health Costs of High Fashion

For years, women have worn high heels to add inches to their height, to make a “fashion statement” or to accentuate a long lean leg. All this fashion NONsense has wreaked havoc on women’s spines, necks, legs and backs.
Ask most women why they wear high heels and they might respond, “They complement my outfit,” or “They make me look taller.” Ask these same women if these shoes are comfortable and most will respond with a resounding “NO!” What they may not understand is that wearing these types of shoes can alter the forward curve in the spine, causing the pelvis to tip forward. This affects the body’s ability to maintain its center of gravity. Because of this, wearing high heels can actually increase your risk of falling!
When I see a woman walking down the street with high heels and a two-ton bag, I want to stop her and make her aware of what she is doing to her body.
Your legs are an important part of your musculoskeletal system. When you stand bare-footed you have the best opportunity to balance yourself. Your hamstring muscles along the back of your legs are taut and both parts of the pelvis are stabilized. But by raising your heel, you shorten and actually weaken these crucial support muscles.
Aside from all the stress you place on your spine by wearing high heels, they can also cause damage to your feet, such as corns, calluses and bunions that can last for a lifetime. They can even change the shape of your foot!
The solution? Wear flat shoes or lower heels with the proper arch support as often as possible. And if you’re concerned about the long-term effects that wearing heels may have had on your spine, mention it on your next visit.

Flax Seeds and Menopause

Several studies looked at the consumption of flax seeds and its effect on menopausal symptoms. One study
published in the Journal for the Society for Integrative Oncology (2007Summer; 5(3): 106-12) involved 30
women having at least 14 hot flashes each week. The subjects were given 40 grams of crushed flax seeds each day. Over a six week period, the women experienced a mean 57% decrease in the number of hot flashes. Subjects receiving the flax seed also experienced less joint and muscle pain, a reduction in sweating and chills, and a general improvement in the quality of life.

Another study, appearing in Family Practice News (February 1, 2005:48), was double-blind and placebo
controlled. It involved 85 women who were experiencing at least 5 episodes of either hot flashes or night sweats per day. They were randomly assigned to receive either 40 grams per day of flax seed or a placebo for three months. After the initial three month therapy, the subjects switched roles, with the placebo group receiving therapy and the initial therapy group receiving a placebo (crossover). There was a 38%
decline in the median number of hot flashes when a group was receiving the flax seed. Occurring with the decline in symptoms was an increase in enterodiol, enterolactone and other lignans found in the urine.

Other Flax Seeds and Menopause research appearing in Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers Preview
(October 2000;9:1113-1118) also found an increase in urinary lignans when women were supplemented
with flax seed. The flax seeds may affect estrogen levels. A study that appeared in Cancer Epidemiology
Biomarkers Preview (July 2000;9:719-725) found that supplementation with flax seed increased the ratio of the urinary excretion of 2-hydroxyestrogen and 16 alpha-hydroxyesterone. A study appearing in Gynecology
and Obstetrics Investigation (2007; 64(4): 204-207) looked at the effect vitamin E supplementation had on
hot flashes. The double-blind, placebo-controlled study involved 51 female subjects who were given
either 400 IU of vitamin E or a placebo for a period of four weeks. They were taken off of the
supplement for a week and given it again for another four weeks. The vitamin E supplementation produced
statistically significant reduction in the number of hot flashes experienced by the group receiving the therapy.

Fibromyalgia and Chronic Pain

The condition of fibromyalgia creates many challenges for a person with this disorder. These challenges often go far beyond the characteristic chronic pain which alone can be potentially debilitating. Those with fibromyalgia have pain in many locations and the presence of multiple pain sites is often confusing to their doctor or doctors. Family physicians, internists, endocrinologists, and even pain management specialists and rheumatologists often have great difficulty in comprehending the full extent of fibromyalgia and the serious health and well-being issues that are caused by the disorder.

Persons with fibromyalgia have so many symptoms that an uninformed physician may find it easier to refer such patients to a psychologist or psychiatrist. But the physical symptoms of fibromyalgia are real. The sufferers have widespread pain on a chronic basis. Additional symptoms include fatigue, sleep disturbances, numbness or tingling in the hands and feet, joint stiffness, and cognitive dysfunction (brain fog). Depression commonly affects those with fibromyalgia.
Owing to the presence of so many chronic symptoms, fibromyalgia is notoriously difficult to treat. Such patients are typically taking multiple medications, prescribed by multiple specialists attempting to combat the problems that fall within their particular branch of medicine - pain management, rheumatology, and psychology/psychiatry.

Despite taking several medications on a long-term basis, most fibromyalgia patients tend not to improve. Depression and chronic pain take a profound toll, and daily living becomes quite burdensome. Many fibromyalgia patients despair of ever finding even a partial solution.

Attempts to address the problems of fibromyalgia by just treating the symptoms often fail. As the physiologic causes of the disorder are unknown, holistic approaches have a much greater likelihood of success. Multidisciplinary treatment is needed to impact this systems-wide disorder, including chiropractic care, nutritional recommendations, psychological counseling, and a gradual return to increased levels of physical activity and exercise.^{(1, 2, 3)}

Chiropractic care, by its very nature, is a holistic method of healing. By using noninvasive methods which balance function within both the nerve system and the musculoskeletal system, chiropractic care gives your body the best chance to recover from many complicated problems.

Chiropractic care is a key component of the multidisciplinary approach to management of multisystemic disorders such as fibromyalgia. By restoring more normal function to the person's nerve system, chiropractic care unleashes powerful and natural healing forces. The result is a body whose parts are now working together instead of against each other. As the body heals, pain and symptoms will likely naturally begin to reduce and resolve

¹Schneiderr M, et al: Chiropractic management of fibromyalgia syndrome: a systematic review of the literature. J Manipulative Physiol Ther 32(1):25-40, 2009

²Hauser W, et al: Guidelines on the management of fibromyalgia syndrome. A systematic review. Eur J Pain 14(1):5-10, 2010

³Busch AJ, et al: Exercise for fibromyalgia: a systematic review. J Rheumatol 35(6):1130-1144, 2008

A Walk In The Forest

The world is changing. Global populations continue to migrate to urban areas. These ongoing relocations have a profound impact on deeply interconnected environmental systems and also lead to substantial distortions in human biosystems. In a word and to no one's surprise, living in big cities comes with a big cost in terms of our health and well-being.

The takeaway is not to turn around and go back to the countryside. Most persons living in large cities would not desire to pack up and move. Worldwide, people head to the cities seeking employment, a greater variety of opportunities, and hopefully an improved standard of living. The fact that frequently these aspirations are not fulfilled does not deter their friends, family, and fellow villagers from following the same course. Most large cities continue to get larger.

The takeaway relates to the methods and means we can employ to counter the effects of living in the big city. These often deleterious effects are well-known and yet worth repeating. Urban air quality is notoriously poor. We all can easily conjure up a mind's-eye view of the oily ochre tint of many metropolitan skies. Food in many urban areas has lost much of its nutritional value owing to the great distances meat, dairy products, and fruits and vegetables have to travel to get to the city supermarkets and marketplaces. Water quality is often degraded by nearby industry and sewage treatment plants. Green space is at a premium in most urban environments - there are few places in which to play outdoors.

How can we combat these tradeoffs in air quality, water quality, food quality, and lack of nurturing green space? First, it's important to recognize that these tradeoffs exist. The human organism was not designed to live in crowded cities. Our bodies were designed to thrive in a richly diverse outdoors environment, sowing and reaping in various ways and participating in complex ecosystems. 

Now most of that is gone and we pay the price in terms of lifestyle diseases - diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disorders.^1,2,3 The good news is that there are many action steps we can take to restore precious health to ourselves and our loved ones. 

Two specific actions focus on food quality and outdoor activity. First, whenever possible, buy food produced locally. In general and all things being equal, the less distance food has to travel to get to the dining table the more nutritious it is. Food produced nearby is always best. Increasingly, farmers markets are making locally produced food available to urban populations in even the biggest cities. All that's required is to find out where the local farmers are setting-up their stands.

The other specific action involves engaging in outdoor activities several times per week. Getting outdoors is important in big cities, even though air quality leaves much to be desired. Being in the presence of sunlight, trees, flowers, birds and small wildlife, and shrubs, plants, and ground cover provides nourishment that is not measured in calories. Humans need to interact with other living species in order to thrive, in order to become more fully alive.

By taking simple, doable, healthful actions on our own behalf, we can become healthier and happier members of our great urban communities.

¹Zhao Z, Kaestner R: Effects of urban sprawl on obesity. J Health Econ 29(6):779-787, 2010

²Coombes E, et al: The relationship of physical activity and overweight to objectively measured green space accessibility and use. Soc Sci Med 70(6):816-822, 2010

³Sallis JF, Glanz K: Physical activity and food environments: solutions to the obesity. Milbank Q 87(1):123-154, 2009