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Mediterranean diet may help prevent dementia, study says

In a study, people who most closely followed a Mediterranean-like diet were 36% less likely to have areas of brain damage.

Eating a diet rich in healthy fats and limiting dairy and meat could do more than keep your heart healthier. It could also help keep you thinking clearly.

New research shows that sticking to the Mediterranean diet, previously shown to reduce heart and other health issues, also may help lower the risk of having small areas of dead tissue linked to thinking problems. Known as brain infarcts, they’re involved in vascular dementia, the second most common form of dementia, after Alzheimer’s disease.

“We’ve got these diseases of aging that cause disability, cost a ton of money to treat and manage, and wreck people’s lives,” said Dr. Gregory Cole, a professor of medicine and neurology at the University of California, Los Angeles, who was not involved in this new study. “You’ve got to get in there and figure out what actually works for prevention, and not have people guessing.”

A Mediterranean diet includes a lot of fruit, vegetables and fish, olive oil, legumes and cereals, and fewer dishes containing dairy, meat, poultry, and saturated fatty acids than other diets. It also involves small to moderate amounts of alcohol.

Here’s the full CNN report.

Johnson & Johnson Recalls Children’s Tylenol and Motrin

The U.S. FDA has urged consumers to stop using liquid Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl and Zyrtec medicines for children and infants. Johnson & Johnson has announced a broad recall following the discovery of manufacturing deficiencies that could affect the quality, purity and potency of the drugs.

The FDA also warned that consumers should not give adult strength medicine to children instead, as this can result in serious harm.

According to Reuters:

“Some of the products affected by the recall may contain a higher concentration of active ingredient than specified; others contain inactive ingredients that may not meet internal testing requirements; and others may contain tiny particles.”

Read the entire report at Dr Mercola’s site.

Ulcer meds linked to grave infections, fractures

Worth $15-billion (U.S.) a year, proton pump inhibitors among the most misused drugs on North American market.

Proton pump inhibitors – drugs used to treat a range of digestive problems ranging from heartburn to bleeding ulcers – are among the most misused drugs on the market, new research concludes.

Between 53 per cent and 69 per cent of PPIs are inappropriately prescribed, particularly for dyspepsia, the medical term for indigestion and upset stomach. Proton pump inhibitors reduce the production of acid by blocking the enzyme in the stomach wall that produces it.

“Harm will result if these commonly used medications are prescribed for conditions for which there is no benefit, such as non-ulcer dyspepsia,” said Dr. Deborah Grady of the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center. She said risks seem particularly acute in seniors.

Full Report

Did you know that in one study 45% of adults who received Chiropractic care, while suffering from from dyspepsia (heart burn) noticed an improvement in their symptoms and decreased their medication. Full report.

Try safe and effective Chiropractic first!
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Exercise in Pregnancy Benefits Babies

For most pregnant women, exercise is the last thing on their minds. After all, keeping slim while you’re expecting isn’t exactly the top priority — rather, it’s making sure your baby gets enough nutrients to grow. But in a small new study, researchers at the University of Auckland in New Zealand report that a mother’s regular aerobic exercise may be good for a growing fetus’ health — and may even help a baby get a healthier start in life.

The finding is a bit surprising, because exercise is known to lower the risk of insulin resistance — the precursor condition to diabetes. Although insulin resistance is a detriment in healthy adults, it turns out to be helpful for proper fetal development. Insulin-resistant individuals gradually lose their ability to respond to changing glucose levels in the blood; in pregnant women, the condition, which occurs when hormones produced by the placenta interfere with the proper function of insulin in the body, means nutrients get shunted to the growing baby. (If the condition gets severe, however, it can result in a temporary condition called gestational diabetes in the mother, which is associated with heavier babies and a higher risk of obesity in childhood.)

It’s an even more important message for overweight and obese mothers-to-be, who tend to deliver heavier babies (anything over about 8 lb. 12 oz., or 4 kg, is considered a high birth weight), who are then at higher risk of diabetes and obesity later in life. Those heavier children are then more likely to become overweight adults and in turn give birth to bigger babies. The goal, says Hofman, is to break the cycle of ever bigger generations of babies. According to his latest findings, exercise during pregnancy may be a safe and reliable first step; the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends 30 minutes a day for pregnant women, for as long as they are physically able.

Chiropractic for the Treatment and Prevention of Sports Injuries

Chiropractic for the Treatment and Prevention of Sports Injuries

Chiropractors have a longstanding history of treating musculoskeletal sports injuries.

Hoskins and Pollard used two groups of male semi elite Australian Rules football athletes, matched them in several ways and randomly placed them in one of two arms of the study. All received the usual and customary management and medical care. Half also received chiropractic care which consisted of both soft tissue and Chiropractic adjustments.

When chiropractic care was added to conventional management, there was a significant reduction in lower limb strain injuries, time missed as a result of knee injuries, lower low back pain, and there was improvement in health status.

Here’s the full study.

Studies Suggest Seasonal Fu Shot Increased H1N1 Risk

In a lengthy article published today in Public Library of Science Medicine (PLoSMed), researchers detail the results of four supplementary studies that were launched after an April 2009 school outbreak provided the first signal of an association between seasonal flu shots and pandemic flu illness. The studies, which took in about 2,700 people, found overall that the likelihood of needing medical attention for pandemic flu was 1.4 to 2.5 times greater among people who were vaccinated the previous fall.

…All four studies, the authors say, show that the seasonal flu vaccine was effective in that season, reducing cases of flu needing medical attention. But all four also show an increased risk of illness from pandemic flu among the vaccinated. The risks shown in the studies ranged from 1.19 to 3.20 times greater for those who received the seasonal vaccine than for those who did not.

Full Report

Study Finds that Chiropractic Adjustments May Induce Pregnancy

A recent study by the World Chiropractic Council on Women’s Health finds that in some cases, Chiropractic care is responsible for helping previously infertile women to become pregnant without fertility treatments or invasive procedures. Published by Dr. Madeline Behrendt, chairwomen of the council, the study could make landmark improvements in the way fertility treatments are administered to women all over the world.

Read the entire report here…