Diabetes Increases Risk of Alzheimer's Disease

New research confirms that diabetics have an increased risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Researchers from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden and the Stockholm Gerontology Research Center reported that people with diabetes are 70 percent more likely to develop Alzheimer's compared to those with normal blood sugar levels.Type II diabetes is characterized by insulin resistance, a condition where chronic high blood sugar levels have caused an overproduction of insulin. Along with many other side effects, high insulin levels produce inflammation in the body. This inflammation can cause damage in the brain."Diabetes does damage some of the vessels particularly neuropathy, which is when your nerves and vessels are damaged in your feet. And now they're saying that damage has gone as far as even brain cells," states Kelly O'Connor, a diabetes educator with Mercy Medical Center.Another study, led by Rachel A. Whitmer of the Division of Research at Kaiser Permanente in California, looked at the history of more than 22,000 patients with Type II diabetes whose records had been followed for eight years. The study revealed that higher blood sugar counts correlated with an increased risk of developing dementia. Those with very high blood sugar levels showed a dramatically increased risk of dementia."With the whole diabetes epidemic we're seeing much more Type II, so are we going to see even more Alzheimer's than we thought we would see? If we continue in this direction, it's a little bit frightening," says Dr. Whitmer.For someone with type II diabetes, when blood sugar rises, brain function begins to slow. This occurs even before a diabetic may notice symptoms of blood sugar swings, which is why it is so important for diabetics to develop lifestyle habits that help them control their blood sugar.The link between diabetes and Alzheimer's goes even deeper. In both diseases, there is a buildup of the protein amyloid--in the brain in Alzheimer's patients, and in the pancreas in those with diabetes. Too much insulin, a condition common in diabetics, can contribute to the buildup of amyloid in the brain."It by no means means that you're going to develop Alzheimer's disease, and certainly many people with Alzheimer's don't have diabetes," says Dr. Ralph Nixon of New York University, vice chairman of the Alzheimer's Association's scientific advisory council. His advice for diabetics is not to panic.While there may be no reason to panic, there is strong urging for both diabetics and pre-diabetics to take every measure possible to properly manage blood sugar levels. And since diabetes is a disease which develops because of years of high blood sugar, even people who are not yet at risk for diabetes should do what they can to stay that way.Managing your blood sugar is not at all complicated. Exercising and maintaining a healthy weight are two simple ways to combat diabetes. It's also important to consider how your eating habits affect your blood sugar. Refined carbohydrates and sugar are especially known for causing high blood sugar. Eating carbohydrates alone can cause blood sugar to spike, so try eating whole carbohydrates with some protein and healthy fat to prevent this. Making permanent healthy lifestyle habits is your best chance at preventing disease.

Sources:http://wjz.com/local/diabetes.alzheimer.memory.2.961396.htmlhttp://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/17/health/17alzheimer.htmlhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03/17/more-evidence-links-diabe_n_175715.html

Wellness and Chiropractic

Wellness without Chiropractic is a fraud and isn't real wellness. You can't leave out the spine and nervous system and still be well. It is as simple as that.

The 15 Most Important Fruits and Vegetables to Buy Organic

As many shoppers trim their food budgets in response to the economy, you may also be scaling back on organic purchases, which are sometimes (though not always) more costly than conventional food products.
Peaches topped the list of most contaminated fruits and veggies, with 87 percent containing two or more pesticide residues.
Unfortunately, non-organic fruits and vegetables are grown with potentially toxic chemicals, including pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilizers. Those chemical residues remain not only on the skin of the fruit, but also can be absorbed into the inner flesh.
Even low levels of pesticide consumed over time can be problematic. A study in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine, for instance, found that people who had been exposed to low levels of pesticides were 1.13 times as likely to have Parkinson's disease as those who had never been exposed. Other studies have also linked pesticides to health problems including:
Cancer
Fertility problems
Brain tumors
Childhood leukemia
Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Birth defects
Irritation to skin and eyes
Hormone or endocrine system problems
Nervous system damage
Children, whose bodies are still developing, are especially at risk from pesticides, as are pregnant women, whose unborn children are extremely susceptible to damage from these toxic chemicals.
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And if you eat produce, there's a good chance you're being exposed. According to Hazardous Pesticides in the European Parliament, released October 2007, the eight food samples they tested, which ranged from oranges to strawberries to grapes, contained 28 different pesticide residues, with an average of almost five per fruit!
Among them were 10 known carcinogens, 3 neurotoxins, 3 reproductive or developmental toxins, 8 suspected endocrine disrupters, and 2 contaminants classified as "Highly Hazardous" by the World Health Organization.
Three of the eight food samples contained pesticide residues so high they were technically illegal to sell, and the oranges contained illegally high levels of imazalil, a carcinogen. By eating just one orange, a 5-year-old would receive 70 percent of the "Acute Reference Dose" for that chemical.
Which Fruits and Veggies are MOST Contaminated?
Every year the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a not-for-profit environmental research organization, releases a list of fruits and vegetables that are most and least contaminated with pesticide residues (you can view this year’s full list here).
By eating some of the most contaminated fruits and vegetables, you and your children are exposed to about 10 different pesticides a day, according to EWG. Fortunately, by avoiding the most-contaminated produce out there, and concentrating on the least contaminated instead, you can reduce your exposure to pesticides by almost 80 percent, and be exposed to less than 2 pesticides per day, EWG says.
With that in mind, if you’re trying to decide which food products to buy organic, focusing on those on the following 2009 list of the MOST contaminated fruits and vegetables would be money well spent.
The MOST Contaminated Fruits and Veggies (Buy These Organic)
Peach
Apple
Sweet Bell Pepper
Celery
Nectarine
Strawberries
Cherries
Kale
Lettuce
Grapes - Imported
Carrot
Pear
Collard Greens
Spinach
Potato
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Peaches and apples had the most pesticides detected on a single sample, with nine pesticides on a single sample, followed by strawberries and imported grapes where eight pesticides were found on a single sample of each fruit, according to EWG.
On the flipside, the produce with the LEAST amount of pesticide residues were:
Onion
Avocado
Sweet corn (frozen)
Pineapple
Mango
Asparagus
Sweet peas (frozen)
Kiwi
Cabbage
Eggplant
Papaya
Watermelon
Broccoli
Tomato
Sweet potato
How to Get Pesticides Off of Your Produce
The simplest way to ensure your produce is not contaminated with pesticides is to buy organic. By definition, organic produce must "abstain from the application of prohibited materials (including synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and sewage sludge) for 3 years prior to certification and then continually throughout their organic license."
Next, whether you buy your produce organic or not, it’s important to wash it before you eat it. But, contrary to popular belief, simply washing with water and peeling fruit and vegetables is not enough to protect yourself and your family from pesticides. It will reduce the levels somewhat, but it will not eliminate them.
Meanwhile, you really don't want to peel fruits and veggies like apples and potatoes because the skins contain a lot of the nutrients and antioxidants.
An excellent alternative that will help to remove pesticides from your produce better than water alone is Vermont Soap Organics' Wash dem Veggies. This fruit and veggie wash naturally eliminates the pesticides, dirt, mold and other residues found in so many of today's fruits and vegetables.
Another innovative tool is the MiniMate Refrigerator Unit. When you put one of these in your fridge, it not only kills potentially dangerous food-borne bacteria, extending the freshness and life of many foods three to four times longer, but it also helps to break down pesticides and herbicides on produce.
By taking these simple steps, you’ll be able to greatly reduce the amount of pesticides on your family’s produce, allowing you to eat lots of fruits and veggies (one of the best things you can do for your health) without having to worry about potential contaminants.

Recommended Reading
How to Make Sure You Aren't Consuming Pesticides and Herbicides: The 5 Key Steps
How to Choose the Best Fruit in the Produce Section: A Guide for 15 Common Fruits

Diet Change May Ease ADHD

(March 31, 2009, Canton,GA). An article authored by Nina Larson credits changes in diet with the successful treatment of hyperactivity in children.

As part of a long-term study that began in 1996-1997 in the southwestern Norwegian town of Stavanger, 23 children aged four to 11 — all suffering from hyperactive disorders including ADHD — were put on milk-free and/or gluten-free diets. Their development has been monitored by researchers ever since in a quest to prove a theory by scientist Karl Ludvig Reichelt that a metabolic disorder hinders the adequate breakdown of certain proteins in kids suffering from hyperactive disorders.

Eating certain foods like milk and gluten may accelerate ADHD in the children, because they lack an enzyme that breaks down proteins like casein (which is found in milk and enables milk-clotting to make cheese), explains Canton-based Mike Headlee, D.C. Moreover, the missing or inhibited enzyme has an opium-like effect on the children’s brains. By reducing the intake of foods containing proteins that require casein for proper digestion, the patients’ hyperactivity can be controlled.

Dr. Headlee points to the study published this year by Agence France Press.

In the study, 22 of the children taken off milk products and other foods containing casein showed an almost immediate improvement in their mental health, including overall behavior, enhanced attention-span and increased learning capabilities. The symptoms returned, however, as soon as the foods were reintroduced into their diets. Most kids had been taking medications, like Ritalin, to treat the disorders prior to changing their diets. After adjusting their food intake, however, they were taken off the medicine.

Similar international research has already been done to link the protein disorder with autism and schizophrenia. Now, ADHD may stem from the same digestive disorder as well.

“Digestive problems and metabolic imbalances have an overall effect on our bodies, even on our mental state,” explains Dr. Headlee, who also stresses the importance of a properly functioning nervous system. Dr. Headlee’s chiropractic practice features the Insight Subluxation Station, a technology used by NASA in the space program, to measure nervous system health and performance.

“Listen to your body and you can dramatically alter your well-being,” Dr. Headlee continued. “That old adage is true: You are what you eat.”


Editor’s note:
Anyone wishing more information may contact Dr. Headlee, whose office is located at 206 Sawtooth Ct, Canton, GA (telephone 770-720-6813).

Reference:
“Diet Change Gives Hyperactive Kids New Taste for Life in Norway” by Nina Larson, AFP and Yahoo! News, Feb. 24, 2008.

A Big Fat Fib: Low-Fat is Not the Answer

It started a few decades ago, when well-known health experts began recommending that people eliminate fat from their diets. A lot of people jumped on the no-fat train because some studies at the time seemed to point to fat as the villain of our modern diet. It soon became obvious to health professionals that completely eliminating fat was not any kind of solution. First of all, most people couldn`t stay on this type of extreme diet for any length of time. Secondly, health problems like cancer, infection, fatigue and depression ran rampant when fat was eliminated.So over time we have seen a steady trend reintroducing the idea that fats can be a part of a healthy diet. It seems that every few years medical experts slightly raise the recommended amount of fat one should consume. It`s been happening so slowly it`s almost indiscernible, but if you look closely, low-fat diets are no longer in style.Even so, many people are still under the impression that a low-fat diet is healthy, and most people believe cutting out fat is still the best way to lose weight. This is a popular misconception that makes sense on the surface, but when you dig a little deeper the concept begins to unravel.First, it`s important to look at what the body actually does when you go on a low-fat diet. The most common belief is when you stop eating fat, your body will burn its own fat for energy. In reality what really happens is a little more complicated. Here are some common results of a low fat diet:- People who drastically lower their fat intake generally increase their carbohydrate intake.- Even complex carbohydrates can cause a rise in blood sugar and insulin levels, especially when they aren`t consumed with adequate protein and fat.- With this sudden influx of excess carbohydrates, there is simply too much sugar in the blood to be used for energy. The rest is converted into fat and cholesterol.- Without adequate fat and protein in the diet (which is common during a low-fat diet), the body is forced to break down lean body mass to use the nutrients it needs to function. This includes muscle and bone mass.- Losing lean body mass shows up as drastic weight loss on the scale at first, which may thrill the dieter, but over time the body uses less energy because of the loss of muscle. Combined with excess fat storage because of high insulin levels, eventually weight loss on a low-fat diet is almost impossible and you may even start to gain weight.Moreover, a low-fat diet can be downright harmful to your body, especially in the long-term. High insulin levels and the breakdown of lean body mass are not healthy. Over time, these factors can cause serious hormone imbalances and can even contribute to health problems like diabetes and heart disease. Cutting out fat is merely swinging the pendulum to another extreme that will have negative side effects.A 2008 report in the New England Journal of Medicine may interest dieters who think low-fat is the answer. The report showed the results of a study which compared the effectiveness of low-fat, low-carb and Mediterranean diets. The study was partially funded by the Dr. Robert C. and Veronica Atkins Foundation (which is not to be confused with the commercial venue of Atkins Nutritionals Inc.). There were 322 participants in the study, all of whom were moderately obese. One of the three diets was randomly assigned to each person.Study participants on the low-fat and Mediterranean diets had moderate calorie restrictions, while those on the low-carb diet did not have any. Overall, the low-fat diet had the least effect on both weight loss and cholesterol profiles, while the low-carb diet was most effective (the Mediterranean diet was a close second). It should be noted the low-carb dieters were consuming about 120 grams of carbs per day, which is a more balanced approach compared to extreme low-carb diets of yesteryear.So, it begs the question, is fat really all that bad? Well, that`s a loaded question if there ever was one. In our society fats can be good or bad, depending on the source and how they`re prepared. Processed fats that have been exposed to heat, light and air can be rancid and oxidized. Polyunsaturated oils like soybean, canola and corn oil are most susceptible to damage. These damaged oils are linked with many health problems such as cancer, premature aging and degenerative diseases like Alzheimer`s. Then we have oils that have been purposely altered like hydrogenated oils. These are chock full of trans fat, which is known to sharply increase the risk of cardiovascular disease and many types of cancer. These types of over-processed, damaged fats should be avoided as much as possible.Instead, if we are supposed to increase our fat intake, it should be with healthy, unprocessed fats from as natural a source as possible. Organic fats are best, since harmful chemicals and hormones tend to be stored in fat.Again, what we are really looking at here is a balance of nutrition. The body utilizes carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Cutting out any one of these nutrients is a mistake. To achieve optimum health, the best thing you can do is eat a diet consisting mostly of natural, unprocessed foods with an overall balance of fat, protein and carbohydrates.

Sources:http://www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/lowfatdiets.htmlhttp://articles.latimes.com/2008/jul/17/science/sci-diet17Schwarzbein, Diana. (1999) The Schwarzbein Principle: The Truth About Losing Weight, Being Healthy and Feeling Younger.

22%

The amount your heart disease risk drops from eating legumes four times a week.

Source: Archives of Internal Medicine

Want To Burn More Fat?

Feast on flax. The healthy lignans abundant in flaxseed as well as whole grains and berries have been linked to improved metabolism and reduced body fat.

Source: British Journal of Nutrition