I am happy to say that after just one visit with Dr. Nicole (who my daughter LOVED!) she has had a complete turn around! Before getting adjusted, she had to take laxatives at least once a day.  Well, I haven’t given her laxatives since the day before her session with Dr. Nicole and she hasn’t had any digestion issues at all.  She is so much happier, and so am I!

For anyone wondering if chiropractic is right for a baby, I can personally tell you it helps.  The adjustment is as gentle as the touch of a finger, and Dr. Nicole offered toys and stickers to keep my baby happy.  The whole experience was a pleasant one and I am so grateful to Distano Chiropractic for helping my precious little girl! Thank you!!!!

Zinc is Essential for Good HealthMost of us are familiar with the use of zinc as an aid to combating common colds and sore throats; however, many of us are unaware of just how vital zinc is in maintaining overall good health. Zinc is an essential trace element found in every cell in our bodies. While studies have indicated that about 12% of Americans are deficient in zinc, our ability to absorb zinc declines with age and it is estimated that this percentage increases to 45% in older Americans.

Zinc performs a variety of important functions, including strengthening the immune system, protecting cell membranes against free radicals, preventing cell structural damage and repairing damaged DNA. Zinc also is instrumental in healing wounds, supports the stabilization of blood glucose, supports neurological function, maintains the senses of taste and smell, and stimulates activity in approximately 100 different enzymes.

In addition, Zinc supports normal growth during pregnancy, childhood, and adolescence and helps to protect against macular degeneration, a cause of blindness in adults over the age of 60. Zinc can even help boost libido. Zinc may also be effective in treating such conditions as acne, eczema and anorexia nervosa and for those suffering from trauma after surgery.

Zinc deficiency can lead to numerous health conditions, including prostate disorders which may in turn lead to prostate cancer. Because zinc affects the immune system, a deficiency can present itself in frequent colds, flus, and other infections. In children, a zinc deficiency can manifest itself in growth retardation.

In addition to aging and poor dietary habits, digestive disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome and Crohn’s Disease can be contributing factors in the depletion of zinc from our bodies. Deficiency in zinc can also be caused by certain medications. Among the offenders are diuretics and medications used in controlling blood pressure. Acid-suppressing medications also play an important role. Alcoholics have a higher risk of being zinc deficient. Others at risk include women taking birth control pills and those on hormone replacement therapy.

Zinc deficiency symptoms can present themselves as:

         Rashes

         Chronic diarrhea

         Night blindness

         Depression

         Loss of appetite

         Decline in libido

         Hair loss

         Eye and skin lesions

There are several good dietary sources of zinc. Some of the best sources are:

         Beef

         Crab

         Turkey

         Oysters

         Liver

         Dairy

         Nuts, such as cashews, almonds, peanuts

         Crimini mushrooms

         Spinach

         Pumpkin seeds

The Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for zinc is 11 mg for men and 8 mg for women. However, those that are zinc deficient, not eating a diet rich in zinc, or have a prostate disorder should take 15 mg of zinc daily. Because of the lower absorption of zinc from plants, vegetarians may need about 50% more zinc. Since zinc can interfere with copper absorption, any zinc supplement should contain 1 to 2 mg of copper.

http://www.naturalnews.com/028404_zinc_health.html

Cancer cells feed on fructose, study finds….

Pancreatic tumor cells use fructose to divide and proliferate, U.S. researchers said on Monday in a study that challenges the common wisdom that all sugars are the same.Tumor cells fed both glucose and fructose used the two sugars in two different ways, the team at the University of California Los Angeles found.
They said their finding, published in the journal Cancer Research, may help explain other studies that have linked fructose intake with pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest cancer types.
“These findings show that cancer cells can readily metabolize fructose to increase proliferation,” Dr. Anthony Heaney of UCLA’s Jonsson Cancer Center and colleagues wrote.
“They have major significance for cancer patients given dietary refined fructose consumption, and indicate that efforts to reduce refined fructose intake or inhibit fructose-mediated actions may disrupt cancer growth.”

Americans take in large amounts of fructose, mainly in high fructose corn syrup, a mix of fructose and glucose that is used in soft drinks, bread and a range of other foods.

Politicians, regulators, health experts and the industry have debated whether high fructose corn syrup and other ingredients have been helping make Americans fatter and less healthy.

Too much sugar of any kind not only adds pounds, but is also a key culprit in diabetes, heart disease and stroke, according to the American Heart Association.

Several states, including New York and California, have weighed a tax on sweetened soft drinks to defray the cost of treating obesity-related diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

The American Beverage Association, whose members include Coca-Cola and Kraft Foods have strongly, and successfully, opposed efforts to tax soda.

The industry has also argued that sugar is sugar.

Heaney said his team found otherwise. They grew pancreatic cancer cells in lab dishes and fed them both glucose and fructose.

Tumor cells thrive on sugar but they used the fructose to proliferate. “Importantly, fructose and glucose metabolism are quite different,” Heaney’s team wrote.

“I think this paper has a lot of public health implications. Hopefully, at the federal level there will be some effort to step back on the amount of high fructose corn syrup in our diets,” Heaney said in a statement.

Now the team hopes to develop a drug that might stop tumor cells from making use of fructose.

U.S. consumption of high fructose corn syrup went up 1,000 percent between 1970 and 1990, researchers reported in 2004 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Copyright 2010 Reuters. Click for restrictions.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38528161/ns/health-cancer/

‘Biological clock’ could be a key to better health, longer life

If you aren’t getting a good, consistent and regular night’s sleep, a new study suggests it could reduce your ability to handle oxidative stress, cause impacts to your health, increase motor and neurological deterioration, speed aging and ultimately cut short your life.

That is, if your “biological clock” genes work the same way as those of a fruit fly. And they probably do.

In research just published in the journal Aging, scientists from Oregon State University outline for the first time how a key gene that helps control circadian rhythms can improve the health of aging fruit flies if it is intact, but can result in significant health impacts, up to and including earlier death, if it is absent.

Of particular interest, the research found, was that young fruit flies without this gene were able to handle some stress, but middle-aged and older flies were not.

“We’re beginning to identify some of the underlying mechanisms that may help explain why organisms age,” said Natraj Krishnan, a research associate in the OSU Department of Zoology. “This study suggests that young individuals may be able to handle certain stresses, but the same insults at an older age cause genetic damage and appear to lead to health problems and earlier death. And it’s linked to biological clocks.”

It’s not completely clear how closely the effects of genetic damage in fruit flies correlate to humans and other animals, Krishnan said, but “the genes themselves, their molecular mechanisms and function is essentially the same, conserved through many millions of years of evolution.” The “period” gene in fruit flies, for instance, is also found and expressed in almost every cell in the human body.

This research examined that gene, which is one of four primary genes that help control the biological clock in many animals – the rhythms that are related to the cycle of day and night, and can be disrupted by anything from inadequate sleep to jet lag or working the swing shift. The study used some normal fruit flies and other mutant flies in which the “period” gene was absent.

The work was done under the leadership of Jadwiga Giebultowicz, an OSU professor of zoology, in collaboration with Dr. Doris Kretzschmar from the Oregon Health and Sciences University. The research was supported by the National Institutes of Health and the Oregon Partnership for Alzheimer’s Research.

In control studies, the mutant flies with no functional “period” gene lived just about as long as normal flies, unless they were stressed. In experiments, researchers caused a mild metabolic stress – an elevated level of reactive oxygen species for 24 hours – to the flies at various times, which corresponded to their youth, middle age and old age. There was no significant change in the young flies. But in middle-age and older flies, significant damage began to occur.

Mutant flies lost some of their motor ability to climb, and morphologic examinations of their brains showed higher levels of neuronal degeneration, similar to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease in humans. When exposed to a single stressful event in “middle age,” the mutant flies had a 12 percent shorter lifespan than normal flies exposed to the same stress. And when exposed to a single stress in old age, their lifespan was 20 percent shorter.

The study concluded that expression of the “period” gene naturally declines with age. If the same is true for humans, that could help explain why people may lose some of their ability to handle oxidative and other stresses at a time of their life when they need it most.

The scientists theorized that the “period” gene is regulating pathways involved in removal of oxidative damage, and those without this function experienced the symptoms of aging more quickly. This could ultimately have impacts on everything from neurological damage to heart disease and cancer.

“What’s worth noting, of course, is that every animal species, unless they are in a protected laboratory, experiences stressful events,” Krishnan said. “That’s part of a normal life. The metabolic challenge we presented to these fruit flies was only a moderate stress. But even so, it appeared to later cause motor and neuronal degeneration and an earlier death in the mutant flies, due to faster buildup of cellular damage.”

Further research will explore ways in which biological clocks might be “re-vitalized.”

“Understanding these mechanisms will help to determine in the future whether strong circadian clocks add water to the fountain of youth,” the researchers wrote in their conclusion.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/osu-cc030110.php

Combo Vaccine Raises Risk of Fever-Related Seizures in Kids

Toddlers who receive the combination MMRV (measles, mumps, rubella and varicella) vaccine are at higher risk of having a febrile seizure a week to 10 days after receiving the shot than children who get the MMR and varicella (chicken pox) vaccines separately at the same visit, a new study confirms. Although the combination shot doubles the risk of febrile seizure, the odds are still quite small, experts noted.

What’s important for parents to understand is that even though there’s a doubling of the risk for the combination vaccine, the overall risk of seizure to any one child with any measles-containing vaccine is still less than one in 1,000 doses,” said Dr. Nicola Klein, co-director of the Kaiser Permanente Vaccine Study Center in Oakland, Calif., and lead investigator of the study, published online June 28 and in the July print issue of Pediatrics.

The study, funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, involved the health records of more than 459,000 children who received their first dose of measles-containing vaccine between 2000 and 2008. The data came the Vaccine Safety Datalink (VSD), a vaccine safety surveillance system sponsored by the CDC and comprised of health records from eight managed care organizations across the country.

Researchers found that among 12- to 23-months olds who received their first dose of measles-containing vaccine, the MMRV shot resulted in one additional febrile seizure for every 2,300 doses given when compared with separate MMRV and varicella vaccines.

Febrile seizures are brief convulsions brought on by fever that occur in about 5 percent of children between 6 months and 5 years of age, said Klein. Although the seizures are distressing, especially to parents, they don’t lead to epilepsy or seizure disorders.

The findings are a follow-up to preliminary findings on the twofold increased risk of febrile seizures, which Klein and her colleagues reported to the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in February 2008. Soon afterward, the ACIP changed its recommendations from a stated preference for the MMRV vaccine to no preference for either MMRV or separate MMR and varicella vaccines.

“The reason we did the larger study was to confirm the finding of the twofold increased risk, and to evaluate seizures that occurred at other times, and we found no increased risk outside the seven-to-10-day window,” said Klein.

The MMRV vaccine, made by Merck & Co., was licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2005, for use in children aged 12 months to 12 years. The first dose was recommended at 12 to 15 months, and the second at 4 to 6 years. Since 2007, the vaccine has been unavailable because of manufacturing problems, but the company recently began taking orders for it again. Many clinics and doctors offices still had the vaccine in stock for much of 2008.

Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson, a pediatrician in Mill Creek, Wash., who is also on staff at Seattle Children’s Hospital, said she was initially a big proponent of the MMRV vaccine but began counseling parents about the increased risk of febrile seizures as soon as the preliminary findings were made public and the ACIP changed its recommendation.

“I would say, ‘There’s a new report out that says seizures are twice as likely with this combination vaccine, but they’re still really rare,’ and every person chose to separate the vaccines,” said Swanson. “Parents thought it was worth an extra 20 seconds of discomfort if they could protect their kids from these diseases equally well with two shots and reduce the risk of seizures.”

“My job as a pediatrician is to help families decrease side effects and risks,” added Swanson, herself a parent of two young children. “One in 2,300 is nearly nil, but it’s not entirely nil. And nobody wants their child to be that one.”

Partly because of the findings of this larger study, the CDC last month released new recommendations for the MMRV vaccine, stating that all children with a personal or family history of seizures should get the separate MMR and varicella vaccines. The CDC also said that, although either the MMRV or the separate MMR and varicella vaccines may be used as the first dose for children aged 12 to 47 months, health care providers should give separate vaccines for the first dose “unless the parent or caregiver expresses a preference for MMRV vaccine.”

http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/healthday/640537.html

The researchers examined electronic medical records of 100 pediatric asthma patients referred to National Jewish Health. Overall, 47 percent of them had vitamin D levels considered insufficient, below 30 nanograms per milliliter of blood (ng/mL). Seventeen percent of the patients had levels below 20 ng/mL, which is considered deficient. These levels were similar to vitamin D levels found in the general population.

Patients low in vitamin D generally had higher levels of IgE, a marker of allergy, and responded positively to more allergens in a skin prick test. Allergies to the specific indoor allergens, dog and house dust mite, were higher in patients with low vitamin D levels. Low vitamin D also correlated with low FEV1, the amount of air a person can exhale in one second, and lower FEV1/FVC, another measure of lung function. Use of inhaled steroids, oral steroids and long-acting beta agonists were all higher in patients low in vitamin D.

“Our findings suggest two possible explanations,” said senior author Donald Leung, MD, PhD. “It could be that lower vitamin D levels contribute to increasing asthma severity, which requires more corticosteroid therapy. Or, it may be that vitamin D directly affects steroid activity, and that low levels of vitamin D make the steroids less effective, thus requiring more medication for the same effect.”

The researchers performed a series of laboratory experiments that indicated vitamin D enhances the action of corticosteroids. They cultured some immune cells with the corticosteroid dexamethasone alone and others with vitamin D first, then dexamethasone. The vitamin D significantly increased the effectiveness of dexamethasone. In one experiment vitamin D and dexamethasone together were more effective than 10 times as much dexamethasone alone.

The researchers also incubated immune-system cells for 72 hours with a staphylococcal toxin to induce corticosteroid resistance. Vitamin D restored the activity of dexamethasone.

“Our work suggests that vitamin D enhances the anti-inflammatory function of corticosteroids,’ said Dr. Leung. “If future studies confirm these findings vitamin D may help asthma patients achieve better control of their respiratory symptoms with less medication.”

This study comes on the heels of another paper by National Jewish Health faculty, which showed that low levels of vitamin D in adult asthma patients are associated with lower lung function and reduced responsiveness to corticosteroids.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/185816.php

Broccoli ‘could aid breast cancer fight’ – scientists

The vegetable, already hailed as a so-called “superfood”, contains a chemical capable of targeting the cells which fuel the growth of tumours.
A component of broccoli called sulforaphane targets and kills cancer stem cells as well as preventing new tumours from growing, according to researchers at the University of Michigan. Current chemotherapies do not work against cancer stem cells. Researchers believe that eliminating the cancer stem cells is key to controlling cancer.

The study, published in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, charts how scientists at the university’s Comprehensive Cancer Centre tested the effects of sulforaphane in experiments involving mice and cell cultures.

Prof Duxin Sun, the author of the study, said: “Sulforaphane has been studied previously for its effects on cancer, but this study shows that its benefit is in inhibiting the breast cancer stem cells.

“This new insight suggests the potential of sulforaphane or broccoli extract to prevent or treat cancer by targeting the critical cancer stem cells.”

Researchers took mice with breast cancer and injected varying concentrations of sulforaphane from the broccoli extract.

They then used several established methods to assess the number of cancer stem cells in the tumours.

These measures showed a marked decrease in the cancer stem cell population after treatment with sulforaphane, with little effect on the normal cells.

Cancer cells from mice treated with sulforaphane were also unable to generate new tumours.

The researchers then tested sulforaphane on human breast cancer cell cultures in the lab, finding similar decreases in the cancer stem cells.

Researchers are currently developing a method to extract and preserve sulforaphane.

The tests involved higher concentrations of sulforaphane than are available by simply eating broccoli.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/7679711/Broccoli-could-aid-breast-cancer-fight-scientists.html

By smiling, you could be adding seven years to your life

The secret to a longer life could be as simple as cracking a smile.
The broader your grin and the deeper the creases around your eyes when you smile, the longer you are likely to live, a study has shown. The research adds to mounting evidence that a happy disposition can have a powerful impact on health as well as life expectancy. Broader grins and wrinkles around the eyes reflect an underlying positive outlook on life that translates into better long-term health, the researchers believe.
The conclusions emerged from a study of old photographs.
Experts at Wayne State University, Michigan, studied 230 pictures of major league baseball players printed in the 1952 Baseball Register.

The register listed each player’s statistics, such as date of birth, weight, marital status and career details.
The researchers ranked each player according to whether they had no smile at all, a partial smile, where only the muscles around the mouth were involved, or a full-blown smile that featured a toothy grin, raised cheeks and creases around the eyes.
The researchers then compared the photos with the life span of each player.

The results revealed that of the 184 players that had since died, those in the ‘no smile’ category had lived an average of 72.9 years.
Among the ‘partial smiles’ group, lifespan had averaged out at 75. But those with the biggest grins had lived for an average of 79.9 years – seven more than their straight-faced colleagues.

The study, published in the journal Psychological Science, found putting on a false grin may not give the same benefit because the extra life expectancy was only seen in players who had genuine smiles, known as Duchenne smiles.
These are smiles that engage groups of muscles around the mouth and eyes and are named after the 19th-century neurologist who defined them in detail.
‘Non-Duchenne’ smiles affect only the mouth.
The findings support another study which showed that being happy can reduce the risk of heart disease.
Scientists who studied 1,700 people over ten years found those who were most anxious and depressed were more likely to suffer clogged arteries and high blood pressure.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1265548/Smiling-add-years-life.html

Chiropractic care of the spine may have profound effects on the body and may help with pain during your menstrual cycle. (more…)

A recent study found chiropractic care was highly successful for those suffering from migraine headaches. (more…)

People with unrelenting pain don’t only suffer from the nonstop sensation of pain, they have a more serious problem!. (more…)

In this day and age, it is very hard to find a doctor who is willing to take the time and truly listen to your complaints and figure out how best to help.  (more…)

I met Dr. Nicole when she and Dr. Anthony performed Scoliosis screenings In my school.  (more…)