The Cochrane Library is a collection of databases that contain high-quality, independent evidence to inform healthcare decision-making. Cochrane Reviews represent the highest level of evidence on which to base clinical treatment decisions. In addition to Cochrane Reviews, The Cochrane Library provides other sources of reliable information: other systematic reviews abstracts, technology assessments, economic evaluations, and individual clinical trials – all the current evidence in one single environment.
Archive for April, 2009
The Cochrane Library
Saturday, April 25th, 2009Forbes: Worst Cities For Allergies
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009http://www.forbes.com/2008/04/08/health-allergies-pollen-forbeslife-cx_avd_0408health.html
There’s a reason you had to make multiple trips to the drugstore for allergy medications and generally couldn’t stop sneezing last spring.
A combination of climate change and weather patterns in many parts of the country caused trees that would ordinarily bloom over the course of a month to pollinate all at once, allergists say.
But while you may have had it bad, it probably could have been worse–unless you’re a resident of Lexington, Ky., ranked the most challenging place to live with spring allergies by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America’s report due out this week.
In Depth: Top 25 Worst Cities For Spring Allergies
Coming in a close second and third were Greensboro, N.C., and Johnson City, Tenn., followed by August, Ga., Jackson, Miss., and Knoxville, Tenn.
You city allergy index
Allergy medications reviewed by the Mayo Clinic
Evidence Based Practice resources for massage therapists
Wednesday, April 15th, 2009Headaches – Thermalball / Icyball products and lifestyle suggestions
Monday, April 6th, 2009If you have a headache, you’re not alone. Nine out of
ten Americans suffer from headaches. Some are occasional,
some frequent, some are dull and throbbing,
and some cause debilitating pain and nausea.
What do you do when you suffer from a pounding
headache? Do you grit your teeth and carry on? Lie
down? Pop a pill and hope the pain goes away? There
is a better alternative.
New research shows that spinal manipulation – the primary
form of care provided by doctors of chiropractic, massage and rehabilitation therapists
– may be an effective treatment option for tension
headaches and headaches that originate in the neck.
Icyball or Thermalball products used cold can reduce inflammation when applied directly to the head or behind the neck. The reduction in swelling not only reduces headache pain, but can provide a refreshing, stimulating and energetic effect.
Researchers at the Duke
University Evidence-Based Practice Center in Durham,
NC, found that spinal manipulation resulted in almost
immediate improvement for those headaches that originate
in the neck, and had significantly fewer side
effects and longer-lasting relief of tension-type
headache than a commonly prescribed medication.
Headache Triggers
Headaches have many causes, or “triggers.” These
may include foods, environmental stimuli (noises,
lights, stress, etc.) and/or behaviors (insomnia, excessive
exercise, blood sugar changes, etc.). About 5 percent
of all headaches are warning signals caused by
physical problems.
Ninety-five percent of headaches are primary
headaches, such as tension, migraine, or cluster
headaches. These types of headaches are not caused
by disease. The headache itself is the primary concern.
“The greatest majority of primary headaches are associated
with muscle tension in the neck,” says Dr.
George B. McClelland, a doctor of chiropractic from
Christiansburg, VA. “Today, Americans engage in more
sedentary activities than they used to, and more hours
are spent in one fixed position or posture. This can
increase joint irritation and muscle tension in the neck,
upper back and scalp, causing your head to ache.”
What Can You Do?
• If you spend a large amount of time in one fixed
position, such as in front of a computer, on a
sewing machine, typing or reading, take a
break and stretch every 30 minutes to one
hour. The stretches should take your head and
neck through a comfortable range of motion.
• Low-impact exercise may help relieve the pain
associated with primary headaches. However, if
you are prone to dull, throbbing headaches,
avoid heavy exercise. Engage in such activities
as walking and low-impact aerobics.
• Avoid teeth clenching. The upper teeth should
never touch the lowers, except when swallowing.
This results in stress at the temporomandibular
joints (TMJ) – the two joints that
connect your jaw to your skull – leading to TMJ
irritation and a form of tension headaches.
• Drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of water a
day to help avoid dehydration, which can lead
to headaches.
Cancer Update from Johns Hopkins
Thursday, April 2nd, 20091. Every person has cancer cells in the body. These cancer cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients that there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after treatment, it just means the tests are unable to detect the cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable size.
2. Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a person’s lifetime.
3 When the person’s immune system is strong the cancer cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and forming tumors.
4. When a person has cancer it indicates the person has multiple nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic, environmental, food and lifestyle factors.
5. To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing diet and including supplements will strengthen the immune system.
6. Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing cancer cells and also destroys rapidly-growing healthy cells in the bone marrow, gastrointestinal tract etc, and can cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.
7. Radiation while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars and damages healthy cells, tissues and organs.
8. Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor destruction.
9. When the body has too much toxic burden from chemotherapy and radiation the immune system is either compromised or destroyed, hence the person can succumb to various kinds of infections and complications.
10. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to mutate and become resistant and difficult to destroy. Surgery can also cause cancer cells to spread to other sites.
11. An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply.
*CANCER CELLS FEED ON:
a. Sugar is a cancer-feeder. By cutting off sugar it cuts off one important food supply to the cancer cells. Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc are made with Aspartame and it is harmful. A better natural substitute would be Manuka honey or molasses, but only in very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in color. Better alternative is Bragg’s aminos or sea salt.
b. Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and substituting with unsweetened soy milk cancer cells are being starved.
c.. Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little chicken rather than beef or pork. Meat also contains livestock antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer.
d. A diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds, nuts and a little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment. About 20% can be from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells. To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C).
e. Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high caffeine. Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer fighting properties. Water-best to drink purified water, or filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in tap water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it.
12. Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the intestines becomes putrefied and leads to more toxic buildup.
13. Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes to attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows the body’s killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.
14. Some supplements build up the immune system (IP6, Flor-ssence, Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, EFAs etc.) to enable the bodies own killer cells to destroy cancer cells. Other supplements like vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body’s normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells.
15. Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit. A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor. Anger, un-forgiveness and bitterness put the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and enjoy life.
16. Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercising daily, and deep breathing help to get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer cells.
1. No plastic containers in microwave
2. No water bottles in freezer.
3. No plastic wrap in microwave.
icyballs and Thermalballs are designed for the Freezer and Microwave and are NOT edible – please don’t try to eat them. Use them to treat the pain that you would otherwise use pharmaceuticals for. Cold for anti-inflammatory, heated for increased blood flow and relaxation.
Johns Hopkins has recently sent this out in its newsletters. This information is being circulated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center as well. Dioxin chemicals cause cancer, especially breast cancer. Dioxins are highly poisonous to the cells of our bodies. Don’t freeze your plastic bottles with water in them as this releases dioxins from the plastic. Recently, Dr. Edward Fujimoto, Wellness Program Manager at Cast le Hospital, was on a TV program to explain this health hazard. He talked about dioxins and how bad they are for us. He said that we should not be heating our food in the microwave using plastic containers. This especially applies to foods that contain fat. He said that the combination of fat, high heat, and plastics releases dioxin into the food and ultimately into the cells of the body. Instead, he recommends using glass, such as Corning Ware, Pyrex or ceramic containers for heating food You get the same results, only without the dioxin. So such things as TV dinners, instant ramen and soups, etc., should be removed from the container and heated in something else. Paper isn’t bad but you don’t know what is in the paper. It’s just safer to use tempered glass, Corning Ware, etc. He reminded us that a while ago some of the fast food restaurants moved away from the foam containers to paper. The dioxin problem is one of the reasons.
Also, he pointed out that plastic wrap, such as Saran, is just as dangerous when placed over foods to be cooked in the microwave. As the food is nuked, the high heat causes poisonous toxins to actually melt out of the plastic wrap and drip into the food. Cover food with a paper towel instead.
