How do you know who to believe when it comes to issues about your health and your family’s health?  It used to be that people trusted their family doctor for medical info.  These days it is well known that much of the general public health policy and many physicians are deeply influenced by the pharmaceutical industry.  Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

To me, I know that the human body makes sense.  There is an intelligence within my body that created all hundred billion cells of me from one cell.  (Let’s just say that if I had to do that with my brain I might have left something important out, or forgot something.)  My body strives for health and the times I have been the healthiest have been due to my body functioning at its highest efficiency without interference from the outside world.  This is my benchmark.  If the information seems to make sense with the overall view that the inborn, innate intelligence in my body knows best, then it seems reasonable to me, and if the information is of the viewpoint that there is something inherently wrong with my body and that something for the outside knows best then I tend to put less stock in it.

So what about you?  How do you decide who to believe about health?

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Within our body resides an innate wisdom. This wisdom created us from one tiny cell, it inspires our smile at playing children, it brings our tears of joy and our tears of sadness, it heals our wounds when we fall and it is the driving force that allows us to succeed against all odds. It is perfect and ever-present. In our body this innate intelligence utilizes our nervous system (N.S.) as a vital means of communication. The nervous system is also the perceptual, and conceptual system of our body, meaning that all we experience from the outside and inside world is perceived through the N.S. Throughout our normal daily lives we have hundreds of different experiences and interactions, basically our bodies are bombarded with information from the world around us and within us. Whenever the N.S. receives more information than it can handle and digest, it is stored for later use in our development and evolution. It is stored as a pattern of tension or subluxation, an interference to the N.S. Which in turn interferes with our experience of full life expression, this interference is the root cause of dis-ease. As these subluxation patterns build up over time the N.S. becomes more rigid and inflexible, less able to adapt to and digest our world. Our ability to handle the stresses of life diminishes, and our natural health and well-being suffers. We become a creature of the past; our experiences are colored by the perceptual lenses stored in our N.S. as subluxations. Even with many years of subluxations clouding our well-being, the body can continue to function, symptom free even. Truly, one of the most amazing things our body is capable of, is functioning with severely compromised health, I mean some people eat fat-free, sugar-free food from a box and make new eyeball, and brain, and muscle out of it, and it isn’t even food. Now the really good news. Chiropractic adjustments help to release the many layers of interference, allowing for a fuller expression of life. Just as the subluxations build up slowly over time, so too will regular chiropractic adjustments, over time, help the body to become better able to handle all that life has to offer. With each adjustment your system becomes better able to adapt, better able to heal and self-correct. As the Innate Intelligence is allowed it’s full expression we begin to experience life in present time. Imagine if you could flow with, and adapt to all life’s challenges instead of being hit head on. Imagine living each moment through the perceptual lens of now instead of colored by past experience. Imagine having full access to the immeasurable wisdom of your body, life lived to its fullest. My purpose is simply to remove interference to your full expression of life. I trust you and the universe to handle the rest.

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How Bad Feelings Can Harm Your Health
Studies show impact of apathy, hopelessness on cardiovascular disease

By Ed Edelson
HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Aug. 27 (HealthDay News) — A depressed emotional state — feelings of hopelessness and apathy — could have a direct effect on your physical health, new research indicates. A study of stroke survivors found a slower rate of recovery among those experiencing apathy, caring little about themselves and the world around them. And a study of healthy middle-aged women found an association between hopelessness and unexpected thickening of the carotid artery, the main blood vessel to the brain. Both findings are reported in the Aug. 27 issue of Stroke. The apathy study was triggered by a 2006 paper on Parkinson’s disease in a different journal, said Nancy E. Mayo, a professor of medicine at McGill University in Montreal, and lead author of the apathy study. “It said that if patients were apathetic the best thing was just to leave them alone,” she said. “I was incensed that the author said we just shouldn’t care.” So Mayo launched a study in which 408 family caregivers of stroke survivors filled out apathy questionnaires every four months, asking whether the survivor “waits for someone to do things that he or she can do for self,” or “just sits and watches” and the like. It’s an admittedly imperfect method of measurement, Mayo said, “but we used what we had.” Reports indicated that a third of the stroke survivors had minor apathy through the first year, with 3 percent having high levels of apathy. Apathy worsened for 7 percent of the survivors, and eased for 7 percent during the year. Measurements of physical function showed that “even very minor apathy had just as strong an impact on recovery as major apathy,” Mayo said. Answers about the quality of life of the stroke survivors, such as their engagement in social activities, found lesser improvement among those whose apathy worsened. It’s not clear what can be done to help in such a situation, Mayo said, in large part because very little research has been done on apathy. “You can’t fix what you can’t measure,” she said. “This is a first attempt to sort things out. Since no one is paying attention, it is not surprising there are no treatments for it.” Drug therapy is a vague possibility, along with behavioral therapy. “We don’t have anything that has evidence-based data other than being kind and enthusiastic,” Mayo said. “Were looking at clues from addiction research. There needs to be a lot of work.” The report on the physical effect of hopelessness was an offshoot of a nationwide study of cardiovascular disease in women, said study author Susan A. Everson-Rose, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota. She and her colleagues singled out 559 menopausal women with no history of cardiovascular disease to answer a two-item questionnaire about their expectations regarding future goals. A previous study led by Everson-Rose, using the same questionnaire in Finnish men, found an association between hopelessness and cardiovascular disease outcome, she said, as did another study in women with documented cardiovascular disease. This new study found a direct relationship between rising hopelessness and thickening of the lining of the carotid artery, a risk factor for stroke. Overall, women measuring higher on the hopelessness scale had .02 millimeters more thickening, equal to the amount caused by one year of aging. Women with the highest hopeless scores had an average .06 millimeters greater thickening than those with the lowest scores. “This doesn’t necessarily mean that hopelessness had a direct physical effect, since it could be operating through mechanisms we didn’t measure,” Everson-Rose said. But there is a clinical message, she said: “Physicians should tell patients that emotional states can have a physical effect, and that they should seek appropriate treatment for them. Psychiatric treatment for severe depression and hopelessness is warranted.” More information A guide to stroke recovery is offered by the National Stroke Association. SOURCES: Nancy E. Mayo, Ph.D, professor, medicine, McGill University, Montreal; Susan A. Everson-Rose, Ph.D, associate professor, medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; Aug. 27, 2009, Stroke Last Updated: Aug. 27, 2009 Copyright © 2009 ScoutNews, LLC. All rights reserved.

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Passionate engagement in a creative project leads to real health. 

MANHATTAN, Kan., Aug. 26 (UPI) — Employees who are invigorated and dedicated at work carry over their positive work experiences for a happier home life, U.S. researchers say.

Clive Fullagar, a professor of psychology, Satoris Culbertson, assistant professor of psychology, and Maura Mills, a graduate student in psychology — all of Kansas State University in Manhattan — tracked 67 extension agents for two-weeks.

The participants responded to two daily surveys, one at the end of their workday and the other immediately before going to bed. The study participants also completed a separate survey before the start of the two-week period and another after the daily data collection had ended.

The researchers found that employees who are engaged in their work — higher levels of vigor, dedication and absorption in daily activities — had better moods and more satisfaction at home.

Source: © 2009 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2009/08/26/Engaged-work-life-Happier-home-life/UPI-44311251268824/

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National conference to showcase research and classroom experience during National ADHD Public Awareness Month

A panel of physicians and scientists will report on the benefits of a simple meditation practice for aiding students diagnosed with ADHD during a national medical webinar, which will be hosted by the David Lynch Foundation on Wednesday, September 30, 12 noon (ET).

The webinar, which comes on the final day of National ADHD Public Awareness Month, will report on published research on the effects of the Transcendental Meditation technique for improving academic achievement and executive brain function while reducing learning disorders, anxiety, depression, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and heart disease.

Conference panelists

Sarina Grosswald, Ed.D. George Washington University-trained cognitive learning specialist; lead researcher on a pioneering study on the Transcendental Meditation technique and ADHD; and Executive Director of the David Lynch Foundation’s Office of ADHD and Other Learning Differences.

Norman E. Rosenthal, M.D. Senior Researcher in Psychiatry and Psychobiology for 20 years at the National Institute of Mental Health; currently Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Georgetown University; and Medical Director of Capital Clinical Research Associates in Bethesda, MD.

William Stixrud, Ph.D. Clinical Neuropsychologist and Director of William Stixrud and Associates, specializing in the evaluation and treatment of children, adolescents, and adults with learning, attention, and/or social/emotional difficulties; Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the George Washington University Medical Center.

Over 50% reduction in stress and anxiety, and improvements in ADHD symptoms

One recent study, published in the January 2009 issue of the peer-reviewed Current Issues in Education, followed a group of 10 middle school students with ADHD who were practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique twice a day in school. After three months, researchers found over 50% reduction in stress and anxiety, and improvements in ADHD symptoms.

“The effect was much greater than we expected,” said Sarina J. Grosswald, Ed.D., a George Washington University-trained cognitive learning specialist and lead researcher on the study. “The children also showed improvements in attention, working memory, organization, and behavior regulation.”

Grosswald said that after the in-school meditation routine began, “teachers reported they were able to teach more, and students were able to learn more because they were less stressed and anxious.”

Prior research shows ADHD children have slower brain development and a reduced ability to cope with stress.

Stress interferes with learning

“Stress interferes with the ability to learn—it shuts down the brain,” said William Stixrud, Ph.D., a Silver Spring, Maryland, clinical neuropsychologist and co-author of the study.

“Medication for ADHD can reduce the symptoms for some children, but it is marginally or not effective for others. Even for those children who show improved symptoms with the medication, the improvement is often insufficient,” Stixrud said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, almost 50% of the 4.5 million children (ages 4-17) in the United States diagnosed with ADHD are on ADHD medication—and the majority of those on medication stay on it in adulthood. Stixrud said there is growing concern about the health risks and side effects associated with the common ADHD medications, including mood swings, insomnia, slowed growth, and heart problems. In 2006 the FDA required manufacturers to place warning labels on ADHD medications, listing the potential serious health risks.

These high risks and growing concerns are fueling parents’ search for alternatives that may be safer for their kids.

“There is already substantial research showing the effectiveness of the TM technique for reducing stress and anxiety and improving cognitive functioning among the general population,” Dr. Grosswald said. “What’s significant about our findings is that among children who have difficulty with focus and attention, we see the same results. TM doesn’t require concentration, controlling the mind or disciplined focus. The fact that these children are able to do TM and do it easily shows us that this technique may be particularly well suited for children with ADHD.”

The study was funded by grants from the Abramson Family Foundation and the David Lynch Foundation http://www.davidlynchfoundation.org/.

The David Lynch Foundation is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3), which has provided more than $7 million in scholarships to teach Transcendental Meditation to over 100,000 at-risk students throughout the United States, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa.

Additional resources for reporters

Transcendental Meditation reduces ADHD symptoms among students: New study
Dissatisfaction with medication spurs interest in meditation
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-12/muom-tmr122408.php

Transcendental Meditation buffers students against college stress: Study
Research at American University shows meditating students react better to stress, are less fatigued, have more ‘integrated’ brains
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-02/muom-tmb021309.php

SOURCE: Eureka Alert  http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-09/muom-men091409.php

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The experience of wellness is a marker of the degree to which one is engaged in their life creatively expressed.  All disease and dysfunction physically begins first as lack of full expression in some arena of life.  It is a backward perception that having energy and passion for life follows having more physical energy and physical health and well-being.  In fact the order is just the opposite, passionate engagement in life and creative projects begets high energy and mental clarity begets good health and long life.

The cells in the human body responded according to their environment in a digital manner either growth and good health and evolvement, or defense and disease and death.  The environment is created by the mind as this is the system that controls and coordinates all the other systems.  However it is not as simple as I think I am health with positive thinking and affirmations and therefore all disease goes away and I am perfectly health.  In fact most of the input and throughput between our minds and bodies is at a subconscious level.  The interaction is much more complex than the current conscious thought I am holding.  The environment of the cell, the chemical bath it is in, the signals of growth or defense it is receiving form the nerves is a function of the perception of the human.

As a mechanism of functional efficiency and simple biological survival, in order to keep our conscious level awareness free for thoughts, most of our reactions to stimulus are dictated by a set of preconceived thought patterns or equations.  These are our conditioned patterns, the unthinking behaviors and responses that rule most of our interactions with our world.  This is both a great evolution of biological efficiency and the culprit of most of the so-called evils of the world; war, crime, bigotry, etc…

As a physiological function this can be seen in how your foot works.  A human foot is comprised of 26 individual bones.  With each step the joints between the bones become loose enough to bend around the curves and tilts of the surface you put them down on, and then rigid enough to hold a support your full body weight.  The purpose of this is for the proprioceptors to have info to keep your balance, to respond to the surface you step on, without having to use your eyes and your conscious mind to keep you upright.  These incredibly complex sets of information flow, comprehension, integration, and then response, are all performed thousands of times daily without any input from your conscious mind.

Another example, when you are walking alone down an unfamiliar, dark, urban street at night and pass a menacing looking person on the sidewalk, you might have the body response of increased heart-rate, blood moving to the skeletal muscles, decrease in digestive function, the release of adrenaline in to your blood stream, the preparation of fight or flight.  This did not occur due to a conscious series of thoughts, like “here I am walking down the street alone, oh look there is a menacing person in the shadows, I think that they might present a threat to my safety, I will initiate a flight or flight response in my body”.  In fact this all occurred at a subconscious level, the equation of me alone at night + a person in the shadows ahead = potentially dangerous situation and therefore initiate a biological fight or flight response, was preprogrammed in perhaps from years of imagery on television and movies, perhaps from previous experiences of a threat that was similar and compromised you safety, perhaps it was parental influence from childhood, the point is that it was not a present-moment series of mental decisions, it was an equation that was already there below the surface.  These biological responses flood your body with hormones and other chemicals, all the while you could be thinking about what you want for dinner. 

For true wellness to occur we must change our body’s perception.  We must move from a world of dis-ease and sickness towards a world of health and wellness.  While it is true that most of the functions of our body happen on a subconscious level, our conscious mind can exert a powerful control over the entire system.  The key here is consistency of thought which can most easily be achieved by passionate engagement in life and creative projects.  When your mind and most forward moving thinking is focused towards a specific goal with full passionate engagement all of your body aligns with this vision and health, energy and vitality are created and maintained. 

Of course longevity and perfect health are multi-faceted and complex topics.  Of course diet, exercise, exposure to environmental pollutants and mental/emotional stress have important roles to play in our overall wellness.  However, the quantum aspect of health and well-being, the unobservable, nonlocal property of wellness, that which causes cancers to spontaneously remit, that is shifting the overall perceptual frame-work of the human.  That is becoming creatively involved in your life.

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