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What About Splenda?
Infants with Acid Reflux and Colic Helped by Chiropractic
Children Who Get Flu Vaccine Have Three Times Risk Of Hospitalization For Flu
Female Infertility and Chiropractic - A Case Series
Women With 'Dowager's Hump' At Higher Risk Of Earlier Death
Nine Year Old Boy Can Walk Again Thanks to Chiropractic
Too Many C-Sections?
Chiropractic Care of a Pediatric Patient with Asthma, Allergies, Chronic Colds
Chiropractic is Part of Swine Flu Prevention Program in Children
Many British Nurses and Doctors Not Willing to Have Swine Flu Vaccine
Developmental Delay Syndromes and Chiropractic: A Case Report
Dead by Mistake
Americans Spending More for Non-medical Healthcare
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Touts Chiropractic as Prevention
One in Four Parents Link Autism to Vaccines
Eight Time Bodybuilding Champion Lee Haney Gives Credit to Chiropractic
Hospital Infections Kill Nearly 50,000 a Year
Study Shows Chiropractic Helps Headaches
Few Medical Studies Actually Compare One Treatment to Another
What About Splenda (Sucralose)?
This is from two sources:
"Tired All the Time?"
FIRST, "A Magazine For Women On The Go"
June 26, 2006, pp 25-26.
AND
Splenda: Is it Safe or Not?
By Janet Starr Hull, Ph.D., Pickle Press, 2005
Sucralose can cause one to suffer from sluggishness, fatigue, make legs feel like lead weights, mood swings, severe cramps (female), intense pain, painful bowel movements, bloating, dizziness, confusion, and more.
Seven (7) out of ten (10) American women consume Sucralose daily.
"The artificial sweetener Sucralose (Splenda) is made by binding three chlorine atoms to a molecule of sugar. The problem: Chlorine reacts with organic material to create chlorination by-products (CBPs) that can trigger chronic symptoms like fatigue, headaches and brain fog, as well as reproductive and immune problems."
"Sucralose is found in nearly 4,000 food, beverage and health-care products, including diet drinks, ice cream, protein bars, vitamins and toothpaste." It is also found in gum, over-the-counter drugs, and salad dressings.
Consumer use of Sucralose has grown annually by 10%.
70% of those who consume Sucralose (Splenda) will have a sensitivity to it and develop symptoms.
If one is experiencing symptoms from consuming Sucralose (Splenda), the solution is to stop taking it and to "Flush Your System" as follows:
- "Supplementing daily [for 2 months] with 600 mg of the amino acid N-acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC) boosts the body's production of glutathione, according to a study in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. This antioxidant (glutathione) flushed CBPs from the body." I purchase N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC) in the product Complete Glutathione From Nutri-West: 800-443-3333.
If these symptoms are caused by Sucralose (Splenda) sensitivity, elimination from the diet for a minimum of 2 weeks should start to improve symptoms:
- Unexplained Tiredness
- Brain Fog
- Nausea
- Joint Pain
- Cramps/Bloating
- Diarrhea
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Mood Swings
- Depression
The above statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. The nutritional information, suggestions, and research provided are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease and should not be used as a substitute for sound medical advice. Please see your health care professional in all matters pertaining to your physical health.
Infants with Acid Reflux and Colic Helped by Chiropractic
Research published in the Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health on May 9, 2009 documented the cases of 16 infants who were suffering with colic or acid reflux and got complete resolution of their symptoms with chiropractic care. In this study, seven of the infants were diagnosed by a medical physician with colic, while nine had been diagnosed with acid reflux prior to receiving chiropractic care. The infants in this study ranged in age from two weeks to eleven months.
Of the 16 infants a history of birth trauma was reported in 10 of the cases. Upon examination, upper cervical (neck) subluxations were determined to be present in all 16 cases. In this study chiropractic care was rendered for 2 to 6 weeks on the various infants with all patients showing a complete resolution of their symptoms in that time frame.
Dr. Erin Elster, a chiropractor and the author of the study, explained the relationship between subluxation and colic or acid reflux by saying, "Research is revealing that injuries to the upper part of the neck may be a factor in a number of disorders. These injuries lead to misalignments in the neck that may compress the spinal cord and other nerve structures in the neck. This compression leads to nerve interference and can result in a host of disorders such as colic and acid reflux."
Dr. Matthew McCoy a chiropractor, public health researcher and editor of the journal that published the study added, "It makes a lot of sense when you think about it. "If you damage or compress the neurological structures in the neck this can have far reaching implications on the functioning of the body. Through research like Dr. Elster's we are finding that correcting the misalignments associated with these injuries reduces the nerve compression and people improve. In this study it was infants suffering from colic and acid reflux."
In her conclusions the author, Dr. Elster wrote, "These results suggest a causal link between birth trauma, upper cervical injury, and colic / acid reflux onset. Correcting the injury to the upper cervical spine (with chiropractic adjustments) appears to eliminate colic and acid reflux."
Children Who Get Flu Vaccine Have Three Times Risk Of Hospitalization For Flu
The above headline comes from Science Daily on May 20, 2009. The ensuing article reports on research presented at the International Conference of the American Thoracic Society that stated that children who get the flu vaccine are more at risk for hospitalization than those children who do not.
In this study researchers followed 263 children ages 6 months to 18 years, who were evaluated at the Mayo Clinic and had laboratory-confirmed influenza between 1996 to 2006. The researchers determined who received the flu vaccine and who did not. They then looked at their asthma status and who did and did not require hospitalization. The records were reviewed for each child with influenza-related illness to see if they had the flu vaccination preceding the illness and if they required hospitalization during that illness.
The researchers found that children who had received the flu vaccine had three times the risk of hospitalization, as compared to children who had not received the vaccine.
Avni Joshi, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, responded in the Science Daily article by noting, "The concerns that vaccination may be associated with asthma exacerbations have been disproved with multiple studies in the past, but the vaccine's effectiveness has not been well-established." Dr. Joshi, continued, "This study was aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of the TIV (vaccine) in children overall, as well as the children with asthma, to prevent influenza-related hospitalization." He continued by explaining that this study does not mean that the cause of the hospitalizations was the vaccine, "While these findings do raise questions about the efficacy of the vaccine, they do not in fact implicate it as a cause of hospitalizations."
Female Infertility and Chiropractic - A Case Series
A case series published in the June 8, 2009 issue of the Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health documented the cases of three women who presented themselves for chiropractic care with the primary problem of infertility. In these cases all three women were able to conceive following chiropractic care.
In the initial review of literature, the study points out that chiropractic was founded on a vitalistic and holistic philosophy to patient care. The author noted that the care of the chiropractic patient was not dependent on the patient's presenting symptoms or medical diagnosis but rather the detection and elimination of spinal and extraspinal subluxations.
The study points out how wide spread the problem of infertility is by noting that data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that there were 7.3 million infertile women in the U.S. in 2002 with 1.2 million women having had an infertility-related medical appointment in that timespan.
In all three of the cases reported in this study the women were in their thirties ranging from 33 to 35 years of age. All had attempted medical interventions to become pregnant and all had been unsuccessful for between 7 months and 4 years. In each of these cases chiropractic care was initiated for the correction of subluxations detected in their spines.
The study noted that in addition to the specific correction of subluxations with the chiropractic care, nutritional intervention and counseling on stress management was provided to the patients involving goal setting, affirmations, meditation, massage, exercise, alteration of work schedule and overall paradigm shifts in lifestyle modification.
The research noted that two of the three women in this study also had complaints of low back pain. The results in these cases showed that between 12 days and 2 months after the initiation of chiropractic care all three women had become pregnant.
Women With 'Dowager's Hump' At Higher Risk Of Earlier Death
Research published in the May 10, 2009 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine reported that women with an increased curvature in the middle back, known as kyphosis or sometimes known as Dowager's Hump, is associated with a shorter lifespan. Articles in the May 26, 2009 Science Daily and in Medscape on June 2, 2009 also reported on the research and noted that this research was different from previous research in that the researchers factored out such things as compression fractures and other problems typically present with spinal kyphosis.
The study looked at 610 women, aged 67 - 93 years, measuring their mid back curvatures (Kyphosis) and then following up over a 13.5 year period to see the correlations between the participants kyphosis curvatures and their mortality. The results showed that an increase in kyphosis carried a 1.14-fold increased risk for death. Dr. Deborah Kado, the study's primary investigator stated, "We demonstrated that having this age-related postural change is not a good thing. It could mean you're likely to die sooner."
In this study the researchers write, "This study demonstrates a possible association between hyperkyphosis and increased risk for earlier death independent of the number and severity of vertebral fractures or osteoporosis in older women." Dr. Deborah Kado, an associate professor of orthopedic surgery and medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and the study's primary investigator added, "Just being bent forward may be an important clinical finding that should serve as a trigger to seek medical evaluation for possible spinal osteoporosis, as vertebral fractures more often than not are a silent disease."
Dr. Gary Walsemann, a Doctor of Chiropractic for 40 years and president of the International Chiropractors Association commented on the research by explaining the significance from a chiropractic perspective. "Chiropractors have been saying for years that spinal distortions create health issues because of interference to the nervous system created by spinal distortions that we know as subluxations." Dr. Walsemann continued, "This research serves to further highlight the connections between spinal problems and overall health."
Nine Year Old Boy Can Walk Again Thanks to Chiropractic
A feel good story by Barbara Morse Silva appeared on, June 1, 2009, on the NBC TV news station "turnto10.com" serving Rhode Island and Massachusetts. This story followed the case of a young boy who was able to walk again after chiropractic care. In this news story a young boy named Charlie had a rare disease that created tumors in his brain, heart and kidneys. He was also born with fetal alcohol syndrome and has a history of seizures.
Five years ago he was adopted by the Rivera family. His adopted mother Michele described young Charlie by noting that he was confined to a wheelchair, was lethargic and on all kinds of medicines. His adopted father Abraham added that Charlie, "basically sat in a wheelchair slumped over. There was nothing for the child."
The Riveras took Charlie to a chiropractor Dr. Ross Rutkowski of Somerset, MA. Dr. Rutkowski explained that he performed a specific type of chiropractic that involved posture to help the upper part of Charlie's neck causing a change instantly after the first adjustment. His mother recalled, "He'd never slept a full night since we had gotten him the first five years." Mrs. Rivera then recalled what happened after Charlie's first adjustment, "When he came here (the chiropractor's office) that night was the first night he slept, and it was 24 hours with no seizure." His father noted that now him and Charlie can make eye contact.
The story then notes that Charlie is walking a lot, and his seizures have also been "few and far between." The story notes that the Riveras call this nothing short of a miracle and their son now has a good quality of life.
The story did point that at first the Riveras would not even consider going to a chiropractor. Mr. Rivera admitted that he, "Would never even go a chiropractor." But now he says, "Amazing, all my aches are gone too! Yup I'm a patient now too."
Dr. Rutkowski pointed out, "To be clear, chiropractic is not a treatment for seizures. It's a way of taking pressure away from that nervous system so that the body always does the healing. We just remove the interference and the body heals."
Too Many C-Sections?
From the June 10, 2009 issue of the Los Angeles Times comes an article with the title, "Childbirth: Can the U.S. improve?", by Lisa Girion. This article argues the point that there are too many C-sections performed in the United States. The article noted that cesarean is most common operation in the U.S.. In 1965 only 4.5% of all births were by cesarean. The rate has grown substantially with currently 31% of all births in the US by cesarean.
The article quotes Dr. Roger A. Rosenblatt, a University of Washington professor of family medicine who has written in the past that the increase in interventions such as cesarean is linked to declining outcomes. Dr. Rosenblatt said, "We're going in the wrong direction, (maternity care) "is a microcosm of the entire medical enterprise."
The article notes that childbirth is the number one reason for hospital admissions costing $79 billion per year and representing a large part of the $2.4 trillion dollars spent on medical care each year in the US. In 2008 a New York think tank group, Childbirth Connection, issued a report that said, "The financial toll of maternity care on private [insurers]/employers and Medicaid/taxpayers is especially large. Maternity care thus plays a considerable role in escalating healthcare costs, which increasingly threaten the financial stability of families, employers, and federal and state budgets."
The LA Times article also noted that in the U.S. the cesarean rate is higher than in most all other developed nations. They also note that even though the government has set goals to reducing such deliveries, the number of cesareans performed has set a new record every year for more than a decade.
In spite of the high level of medical intervention in the birth process, the U.S. ranks behind other developed nations on key performance indicators including infant mortality and birth weight. A typical American newborn is delivered at 39 weeks, instead of the full 40 weeks. Additionally, the article reports that starting in 2002 the death rate for mothers in childbirth began to rise.
Perhaps the most telling comment as to why there is no major effort to reverse this issue came from Dr. Elliot Main, chief of obstetrics for Sutter Health hospital in Northern California, "Cesarean birth ends up being a profit center in hospitals, so there's not a lot of incentive to reduce them."
Chiropractic Care of a Pediatric Patient with Asthma, Allergies, Chronic Colds
A case study involving a 7-year-old boy suffering chronic colds, allergies, and asthma since the age of 5 months, who was subsequently helped with chiropractic, was documented in the August 17, 2009 issue of the scientific periodical, the Journal of Pediatric, Maternal and Family Health.
In this study the young boy's parents explained that their son had been suffering from his problems since age 5, and was now taking the medications Alavert daily for allergies and Albuterol for asthma as needed. The child also required nebulizer treatments for his asthmatic episodes. Additionally steroid injections were also used "regularly". Because of his illnesses he missed 1-2 days of school per month. He also had monthly visits to the medical doctor for all his health issues.
Finally his parents brought him to a chiropractor to see if he could be helped. The chiropractic examination revealed multiple postural abnormalities and changes in the boy's ranges of spinal movement.
Additionally areas of the spine felt abnormal to the doctor's touch. These findings are all indicative of spinal subluxations. Subluxations are when bones of the spine are positioned incorrectly and create pressure or irritation on nerves. This causes changes in the function of the nervous system and can result in a variety of health issues depending on the severity of the nerve system interference and the areas of the nervous system involved.
Specific chiropractic care was initiated on the boy at the initial frequency of 3 visits per week for the first month of care. Within two weeks of the child's first chiropractic adjustment, the patient's mother indicated that her son no longer was dependent on his prescription medication for allergies, so they decided to discontinue them on their own. His parents also reported that his frequency and severity of the asthma attacks had greatly improved, and he no longer required his nebulizer treatments since beginning chiropractic care.
According to the study records within 3 months of the initiation of chiropractic care, the boy's mother reported that all the young boy's initial complaints were addressed successfully. The child continued chiropractic wellness care, and after a 16 month follow up, it was noted that the boy experienced only 1-2 minor colds or sinus infections and required the use of his nebulizer on only two occasions. Neither the patient nor his mother reported any adverse reactions to the chiropractic care.
Chiropractic is Part of Swine Flu Prevention Program in Children
The above headline comes from a September 8, 2009 research update release from the Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health. The author of the release Matthew McCoy D.C., is an Associate Professor of Clinical Sciences at Life University, a public health specialist, health researcher and editor of the Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health.
The release notes that on September 4, 2009, the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) issued a report on the H1N1 virus known as the swine flu. The CDC report showed that there had been 36 deaths in children under 18 associated with the swine flu. The CDC report noted that a higher than usual amount of these deaths (67%) involved children with serious "high-risk medical conditions". Normally the average death toll in children from the yearly flu shows that only 35% to 55% had previous serious medical conditions. This suggests that children not suffering from serious medical conditions are less likely to die from H1N1 than from previous years flu outbreaks.
Additionally, the CDC report noted that most of the previously seriously ill children, (92%), who succumb to the flu were suffering from "neurodevelopmental conditions". Because of the nervous system involvement reported by the CDC, Dr. McCoy noted, "The number of children with neurological, neurodevelopmental and pulmonary disorders who ended up with complications from the H1N1 flu and who ultimately died from these complications point to the need to make sure that children with such disorders, and in fact all children, have as little interference to their nervous systems as possible". Dr. McCoy added "It (CDC report) also shows that the majority of children who ended up with complications from H1N1 infection were not normal, healthy children. So, if you have normal, healthy children - rather than panic from these media reports its better to consider the things you can do to make sure that your child's immune system remains functioning at its best."
The Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health notes that in addition to a healthy diet, exercise and proper sleep, one crucial way to make sure a child's immune system is functioning at its best is to make sure their nervous system is free from interference. The Journal release also noted that the nervous system has a direct effect on the immune system and the spine houses and protects the spinal cord and nerves, a vital portion of the nerve system. They therefore state that it is important to have children’s spines checked for any interference to the nervous system.
Dr. Christopher Kent, chiropractic researcher and President of the Foundation for Vertebral Subluxation, advised, "Nerve interference can result from spinal misalignments or abnormal motion in the spine called vertebral subluxations and because the nervous system affects immune function it is important to reduce or correct any vertebral subluxations if found." Dr. Kent added, "The lesson in all of this is to go back to the basics. The best defense against viral and bacterial diseases, in addition to the recommendations for hand washing and covering your mouth, is a highly functioning immune system. Chiropractic should be part of an effective flu prevention strategy."
Many British Nurses and Doctors Not Willing to Have Swine Flu Vaccine
Several news stories mainly in British publications show that doctors and nurses in the United Kingdom are openly questioning the efficacy and safety of the Swine Flu vaccine. One such story in the August 17, 2009 issue of the Telegraph, reports on a survey done of British nurses showing that only one-third were willing to have the vaccination.
This article noted that of the nurses who said they would not get vaccinated, 60 per cent said concern about the safety of the vaccine was the main reason. The results were taken from a poll of 1500 nurses of whom 91% said that they were "frontline" healthcare workers who are the people most told they need the vaccine by pro-vaccine efforts. One nurse, echoing what is probably a predominant view, responded to the poll by commenting, "I would not be willing to put myself at risk of, as yet, unknown long-term effects to facilitate a short-term solution." Another respondent added, "I have yet to be convinced there is a genuine health risk (from swine flu) and it's not just government propaganda."
In another article on August 26, 2009 also in the Telegraph, it was reported that up to 50% of all general practitioners do not plan to take the vaccine. Similarly they report that another study published online by the British Medical Journal showed that half of 8,500 healthcare workers in Hong Kong said that they would refuse a swine flu vaccine, because of safety concerns and worries that it would not work very well.
In response some government officials in the UK are exerting pressure on healthcare workers to fall into line on the issue of vaccinations. On the August 17, 2009 Nursing Times.com, website an article appeared that starts by reporting, "The (British) Department of Health's director of immunization Professor David Salisbury has said nurses have a responsibility to be vaccinated against swine flu."
Some of the genuine concern may have come from the safety revelation reported on in several news outlets including the August 16, 2009 American Chronicle which ran a story with the title, "Letter Leaked Showing New Swine Flu Jab Linked to Guillain Barre Syndrome." The US story reports that a UK newspaper has received letters showing a link between the new Swine Flu vaccine and Guillain Barre Syndrome, a serious neurological disease that can cause paralysis and in extreme cases can lead to death. The article reports that on July 29, 2009, "A member of the JCVI Professor Elizabeth Miller and head of the HPA's Immunisation Department has sent a confidential letter to senior neurologists warning to be on the alert for new cases of GBS (Guillain Barre Syndrome) which she says could be linked to the vaccine."
With all the confusion, the minimal time for testing and the concern over safety issues many people are planning on passing on the vaccine. Several groups including the National Vaccine information Center, www.nvic.org, in the US have urged caution and are against any attempt to mandate this vaccination to any group of US citizens. Statements and a video can be seen on their website.
Developmental Delay Syndromes and Chiropractic: A Case Report
A case study research article published on August 31, 2009 in the scientific periodical, the Journal of Pediatric, Maternal and Family Health, documented a case of a 2 year old girl with developmental and emotional growth issues, also known as Developmental Delay Syndrome or DDS. In this case study these issues were subsequently resolved with chiropractic care.
In this case a 2 year old girl was brought to the chiropractor with an interesting history. It seems that she was the younger of fraternal twins, with her brother being born vaginally, while she required a c-section to be born. From the trauma of her birth it was noted that her head and facial features were asymmetrical.
At the age of 28 months the young girl was suffering with Developmental Delay Syndrome or (DDS), and exhibiting frequent rages, furious temper tantrums, and nightmares that caused her to wake up screaming. She was described as a child that was not able to function in pre-school or at home with the family. She was notably slower than her twin brother in both intellectual and emotional development.
After a chiropractic evaluation was performed a specific regimen of care was initiated. After only 2 visits the child had noticeably improved posture. The case study also reported that after the 5th visit, the child was very stable within her family and pre-school environments, and she had stopped walking on her toes as she had prior to beginning chiropractic. Long term follow up years later at age 7, showed that she was equal in development to her twin brother and she was doing well in school.
In the conclusion to this case study the authors wrote, "Since there is some question as to the causation of the various developmental delay syndromes, this ultimately leads to some lack of clarity on treatment options, particularly for children sensitive to medication or who do not choose medication as an option. Patients are seeking alternative care, and particularly care that offers low risk and some benefit should be brought to their attention. While the studies are inconclusive, there is an emerging evidence base that does show chiropractic care can be involved in the treatment and care of patients with developmental delay syndromes."
Dead by Mistake
A collaborative effort by a group of journalists from the Hearst newspapers and television stations, spearheaded by Phil Bronstein, Editor-at-Large, Hearst Newspapers and the San Francisco Chronicle, has resulted in a series of articles and a website to expose what they call a, "critical and neglected health care issue that dramatically affects hundreds of thousands of Americans every year."
The website and articles are called Dead by Mistake and can be seen at the following address: http://www.chron.com/deadbymistake/ as well as on many Hearst publications. The Dead by Mistake website itself contains several articles with many interesting facts. They report that 200,000 people die each year from medical errors and infections in hospitals. Even with this high toll less than half of all states require adverse medical event reporting. When states do mandate such reporting, consumer access to hospital-specific information is either extremely limited or not available at all.
The series of articles started on August 9, 2009 in the San Francisco Chronicle with 2 articles titled, "Secrecy shields medical mishaps from public view", and "DEAD BY MISTAKE - Avoidable errors kept out of view". These articles and the subsequent ones by the team of investigational reporters not only reported on a series of tragic deaths caused by medical error, but also noted some glaring deficiencies in the system.
The authors of the reports note that experts acknowledge that there are some 98,000 deaths per year from known medical errors and an additional 99,000 from infections in hospitals. For some perspective, this means that more Americans die each month of preventable medical injuries than died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. The authors admit that these numbers are not absolute, but that part of the problem is that there is no definitive study or system of reporting to track the carnage.
Americans Spending More for Non-medical Healthcare
Several news stories recently reported on the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine study released on July 30, 2009 titled, "Costs of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) and Frequency of Visits to CAM Practitioners: United States, 2007". Although it was included in this study, many no longer consider chiropractic as an "Alternative Medicine" since the profession has become more accepted as a mainstream form of healthcare.
The study focuses on the amount of out-of-pocket money spent by consumers on the non-medical forms of care they refer to as "CAM" for the year 2007. The study reports that in 2007 Americans spent $33.9 billion of their own money out of pocket on visits to CAM practitioners and purchases of CAM products. The largest portion of that amount, $22 billion, was spent on CAM products classes and materials. Another $11.9 billion was spent on practitioner visits which include all chiropractic care.
The study points out that in 2007, 38.1 million adults made an estimated 354.2 million visits to CAM practitioners. Of this number almost half were chiropractors accounting for about $3.9 billion out of pocket expenses. As a comparison the study noted that Americans spent $49.6 billion out of pocket for medical doctor visits.
The study results also noted that chiropractic was one of the most affordable types of CAM care as they stated, "Some of the highest per-person, out-of pocket costs are associated with visits to practitioners of naturopathy and chelation therapy, while one of the lowest per-person, out-of-pocket costs is associated with visits to practitioners of chiropractic or osteopathic manipulation therapy."
In the total scheme of healthcare CAM is not a large portion of the expenses but is a large part of the number of people receiving care. The study notes that all of the CAM expenditures combined only amounts to 1.5% of the total health-care expenditures in the United States. However, as many people are willing to pay for these services CAM does total 11.2% of all out-of-pocket health-care expenditures in the US.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Touts Chiropractic as Prevention
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger addressed a group of about 200 chiropractors at the International Chiropractors Association's Symposium on Natural Fitness held in Columbus, Ohio, on March 6, 2010. Each year, the chiropractic profession and the fitness world come together during the Arnold Fitness weekend. Governor Schwarzenegger is a long time proponent of physical fitness, and a long time supporter of chiropractic. The Governor and his family have received chiropractic care for years.
This year marks the 18th year that the International Chiropractors Association (ICA) has held their "Symposium on Natural Fitness" in conjunction with the "Arnold Classic". For each of those 18 years, Arnold has attended the chiropractic event to speak to chiropractors and take pictures with every chiropractor in attendance. He also gives an address in which he speaks about the benefits of chiropractic and other relevant issues in health and fitness.
During his address, Governor Schwarzenegger enthusiastically showed his support for chiropractic by saying, "What I love about chiropractors, is that you say, OK, we can fix you up when you have an injury and we can help you when you're sick, we can help you with all kinds of different things. But what you are really saying is in your profession is, look, why don't you come to us before you get sick, before you have a problem with your back, before you have a problem with your shoulders or elbows." He continued, "Prevention, it's all about prevention."
As Governor Schwarzenegger continued his remarks, he noted that health care reform must contain prevention. He stated, "If you don't have prevention as a big-big part of the health care reform, you have nothing, you have absolutely nothing!" He continued by pointing out that incentives for healthy living and prevention must be included in health care reform, "\This is why I say that prevention is the answer."
As Governor Schwarzenegger was summing up his comments, he once again linked the chiropractic profession to health and prevention when he said, "We know it (prevention) works. And we know that you (chiropractors) are in the right profession. Because you are really in a profession that saves people money, and it brings the health care costs down. This is what I love about your profession. You are the most incredible profession, you always help people."
One in Four Parents Link Autism to Vaccines
A study released in the March 1, 2010 issue of the American Academy of Pediatrics' official journal, Pediatrics, showed that 1 in 4 parents believe there is a link between vaccines and autism. The study also showed that nearly one in eight parents have refused at least one recommended vaccine in the past.
In this study, 2521 online surveys were electronically sent to a nationally representative sample of parents of children who were less than 17 years of age. The responses and opinions of the parents were recorded on the subject of vaccinations. From these surveys, 62% responded and were included in the study.
One of the most telling statistics obtained from this study was that 54% of all respondents expressed concerns regarding serious adverse effects from vaccinations. Additionally, 11.5% of the parents in this study had refused at least 1 recommended vaccine for their child. According to the study, the vaccine that parents were most likely to reject was the HPV vaccine, designed for human papillomavirus for cervical cancer.
Barbara Loe Fisher, Co-founder of the National Vaccine Information Center, (NVIC), commented on the study by saying, "I am not surprised by these survey results because, since 1982, most parents contacting the National Vaccine Information Center tell us they want to trust what their doctors tell them about vaccination. Mothers and fathers depend upon their doctors to give them good advice; but when the health of their child or a child they know deteriorates after vaccination, parents logically start to ask questions. And when they are belittled or even threatened for asking those questions, the relationship between doctor and parent is never the same again."
The NVIC is a consumer organization that disseminates information on vaccinations and gives the parents of vaccine injured children a resource to offer help and guidance. Ms. Loe Fisher added some interesting vaccine facts and summed up the sentiment expressed by the results of the Pediatrics survey by saying, "More and more Americans are becoming painfully aware that their medical bills, taxes, and health insurance premiums are going up because, today, 1 in 6 highly vaccinated child in America is learning disabled; 1 in 9 has asthma; 1 in 100 develops autism; 1 in 450 becomes diabetic and 7 in 1,000 babies born alive are dying before their first birthday. With 69 doses of 16 vaccines being given to children from birth through age 18, and hundreds of new vaccines being developed to prevent infectious disease while trillions of dollars are being spent to treat chronic disease, is it any wonder more parents are asking more questions about vaccine safety?"
Eight Time Bodybuilding Champion Lee Haney Gives Credit to Chiropractic
Lee Haney is one of the greatest bodybuilders in history. He has been bodybuilding for 25 years and has won eight consecutive Mr. Olympia titles, beating Arnold Schwarzenegger's seven-title record. Lee was a featured speaker at the 18th annual Symposium on Natural Fitness, held in Columbus, Ohio, on March 5-6, 2010, hosted by the International Chiropractors Association.
During an onstage interview, Haney was asked how and when he first got under chiropractic care, and about his experience in chiropractic. The former Mr. Olympia noted that his first experience with Chiropractic began back in 1980. He recalled, "I was in the gym training on that particular day doing squats and so forth. I happened to come up the wrong way, and sort of twisted sideways. After doing so, I ended up having pain in my lower back. And the trainer at the facility that I used recommended chiropractic care."
Prior to this, Mr. Haney had no knowledge of chiropractic. He noted, "I'd never heard of chiropractic care before." Based on the recommendation from the trainer, Haney went to see a chiropractor. "After my first two adjustments, I was back to doing squats again, no pain in the lower back. So from that point on, I was a believer."
During his talk, Haney pointed out that he believes in chiropractic for his entire family. He proudly pointed out that his son, a college football star and NFL hopeful, regularly sees a chiropractor near his school. He stated, "All my kids are under chiropractic, and so is my wife." He stated that his kids have been under care since they were 13 or 14 years old. "They're athletes," Haney added when speaking about his kids. "And not just because they're athletes. I know the importance of chiropractic care. Because you can't be structurally well, or psychologically well, unless you are physiologically well and in balance."
Hospital Infections Kill Nearly 50,000 a Year
The above is a headline from the February 23rd, 2010 issue of the New York Daily News. The article reports on a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine on February 22, 2010. The study and resultant articles point out that approximately 48,000 patients die each year from pneumonia or blood poisoning picked up in hospitals.
In this study, hospital discharge records were looked at on 69 million patients who were in hospitals in 40 US states between 1998 and 2006. The records were examined to look for blood infections or pneumonia. Problems of these types that were acquired from outside the hospital were excluded, so that the data only showed problems resulting from a stay at the hospital.
The results of this large study brought forth some alarming data. The study revealed that hospital-acquired illnesses were responsible for 2.3 million extra patient days in hospitals. These extra days in a hospital resulted in a cost of $8.1 billion in the year 2006 alone. Overall, 1.7 million healthcare-associated infections are diagnosed every year.
Ramanan Laxminarayan, spokesperson for Resources for the Future, the group that sponsored the study, reacted to the high rates of infection by saying, "In many cases, these conditions could have been avoided with better infection control in hospitals."
One of the researchers on the study, Anup Malani, from the University of Chicago, added, "That's the tragedy of such cases. In some cases, relatively healthy people check into the hospital for routine surgery. They develop sepsis because of a lapse in infection control and they can die."
Study Shows Chiropractic Helps Headaches
A study published in the February 2010 issue of The Spine Journal, the official journal of the North American Spine Society, provided additional evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of chiropractic for certain types of headaches known as "cervicogenic headaches". A report on the results of this study was also published online on February 26, 2010, on the site "Modern Medicine".
In this study, 80 patients with chronic cervicogenic headaches were divided into three groups. Two of the groups received various forms of chiropractic adjustments, which the study authors called Spinal Manipulative Therapy (SMT), and one group received just a light massage so as to be able to compare the results. Results were calculated using standard pain scales. Data from the subjects was collected every 4 weeks for a 24 week period.
The researchers found that the groups that received chiropractic showed significantly greater improvement in pain scores as compared to the group that got just light massage. Those receiving the chiropractic care were more likely to have a 50-percent improvement in their pain. The two groups of patients who received chiropractic care were only given either 8 or 16 chiropractic sessions. The study did see a slightly better response for the group receiving more adjustments, but due to the study parameters, no data was available beyond 16 visits.
Dr. Mitch Haas and a team of researchers at Western States Chiropractic College, were quoted in their conclusion as saying, "Our pilot study adds to an emerging picture of spinal manipulative therapy dose for the treatment of headache. It showed that a plateau in intervention effect might be found in the range of eight to 16 treatment sessions, although a dose effect at these treatment levels cannot be ruled out. The study also adds to the support of spinal manipulative therapy in moderate doses as a viable option for the treatment of chronic cervicogenic headaches."
Few Medical Studies Actually Compare One Treatment to Another
A study released in the March 10, 2010 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) noted that most other studies in medical journals do not compare one type of treatment to another. According to the study, and several news articles written about this study, most medical studies are testing a new drug and not looking to see how it compares to drugs already on the market, or to non-drug care.
It is the lack of "comparative effectiveness" studies that makes it hard for patients and doctors to evaluate which course of treatment or care is best for a patient. A March 10, 2010, article on this study in the Los Angeles Times noted that this is the reason that there is such a large discrepancy between the way medical doctors care for patients with the same ailments.
Coauthors of the study and the LA Times article, Drs. Danny McCormick and Michael Hochman, explained how they conducted their study in the Times article by saying, "In the study, we analyzed 328 medication studies recently published in six top medical journals and found that just 32% were aimed at determining which available treatment is best. The rest were either aimed at bringing a new therapy to market or simply compared a medication with a placebo. Whether the therapy was better or worse than other treatments was simply not addressed."
In an attempt to explain why very few studies are done to check existing treatments against new drugs, the authors explained, "So why, then, did only a third of medication studies focus on helping doctors use existing therapies more effectively? The answer lies in the fact that pharmaceutical companies fund nearly half of all medication research, including the lion's share of large clinical trials. For obvious reasons, commercially funded research is primarily geared toward the development of new and marketable medications and technologies. Once these products have won approval for clinical use, companies no longer have incentives to study exactly how and when they should be used."
Not surprisingly, the research showed that most of the studies done are funded by drug companies trying to get approval for their new drugs. The study also showed that the few studies that actually do "comparative effectiveness" and look at one type of care as compared to another, were mostly funded by the government or received other non-drug company related funding.
