December 20, 2000 [Volume 1, Issue 29]

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In this issue of To Your Health:

• Taking Control of Neck Pain
• Playing Sports, Staying Healthy
• Exercise Today Keeps Osteoporosis
• Fighting High Cholesterol with Grape Juice

Common causes of neck pain include watching TV, using a computer, reading a book, or talking on the phone, especially with the receiver held on your shoulder or under your chin. Fortunately, this pain usually subsides within a short period of time, particularly if you discontinue the offending activity for a while. On the other hand, chronic neck pain, the kind that doesn't go away or that keeps "coming back," can be a far more serious and debilitating problem.

Current treatment of chronic neck pain runs the proverbial gamut, from anti-inflammatory and pain-relief medications to group gymnastics, neck massage and manipulation. Neck-specific strengthening exercises have also been suggested as a potential treatment option. In a recent study designed to evaluate this potential, 76 men and women with chronic neck pain received active care, home care, or simple recommendations on exercising.

Active care included postural control exercises, relaxation training to reduce muscle tension, and cervical muscle endurance/coordination training. Home care comprised a neck lecture and training on exercises to be performed at home. The third treatment protocol (the control group) received a lecture on neck care and general recommendations to exercise. Patients in the active group reported greater satisfaction, reduction in pain severity, and improvements in working ability at three and 12-months compared with the home group and the control group.

If neck pain's putting a crimp in your day, it's about time you did something about it. For more information on neck pain and the various treatment options available to you, schedule an appointment with your doctor of chiropractic. And for information on line, visit https://www.chiroweb.com/tyh/neckpain.html.

Reference: Taimela S, Takala E, Asklof T, et al. Active treatment of chronic neck pain: a prospective randomized intervention. Spine 2000: Vol. 25, No. 8, pp1021-27.

Playing Sports, Staying Healthy

Organized athletics are woven into the fabric of the American tradition. Millions of boys and girls participate in baseball, basketball, track and field, and other sports as part of club and/or school teams. In addition to its established health benefits, sports participation has been lauded for fostering such basic values as fair play, competitiveness and achievement.

It has also been hypothesized that because team rules and guidelines often promote proper nutrition and the avoidance of unhealthy behaviors, sports participation in youth may contribute to an overall healthy lifestyle. A study published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine examined this hypothesis using data from the 1997 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Youth Risk Behavior Survey. More than 14,000 U.S. high-school students were asked about sports participation and about experiences with various health-risk behaviors, including poor diet, tobacco use, alcohol and illegal drug use; sexual activity; violence; and weight-loss practices.

Results showed that approximately 62% of U.S. students (70% of male students, 53% of female students) participated on one or more sports teams in school or nonschool settings. With few exceptions, these students also reported less risky health behaviors than nonparticipants, including better diet (higher consumption of fruit and vegetables) and lower incidence of cigarette smoking, illegal drug use, and sexual intercourse in the previous three months. The authors make their findings clear, concluding: "Sports participation is common among U.S. high-school students and is associated with numerous positive health benefits and few negative health behaviors."

Encourage your children to participate in athletics as part of a healthy lifestyle. For more information on the many benefits of exercise and fitness, go to https://www.chiroweb.com/tyh/sports.html.

Reference: Pate RR, Trost SG, Levin S, et al. Sports participation and health-related behaviors among U.S. youth. Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine, Sept. 2000: Vol. 154, pp904-11.

Exercise Today Keeps Osteoporosis Away

Osteoporosis is known as the "silent thief" because symptoms often remain hidden while bone loss manifests. Many people remain unaware of the threat until their bones are sufficiently weakened to the point that a simple fall can cause a debilitating fracture.

Isometric exercises involve tensing a muscle and holding it stationary while maintaining the tension, and evidence hints at their utility in combating the effects of osteoporosis. Forty-one postmenopausal women (a high risk group for the disease) with osteoporosis participated in a two-part study that evaluated the effect of isometric exercise on muscle strengthening and bone loss.

Exercises incorporated an inflatable ball with attached nonelastic straps providing progressive resistance. Study participants performed 10 exercises every other day (half each day) with one exercise-free day per week; each exercise session lasted approximately 5-10 minutes. Eight weeks of training improved muscle strength and bone formation, with no further loss of bone noted.

Women in particular are at risk for osteoporosis following menopause because levels of circulating hormones drop noticeably. Your doctor can tell you more about the dangers of osteoporosis and what you can do to minimize or prevent the "silent thief" from attacking.

Reference: Swezey RL, Swezey A, Adams J. Isometric progressive resistive exercise for osteoporosis. Journal of Rheumatology 2000: Vol. 27, No. 5, pp1260-64.

For additional information on women's health, visit https://www.chiroweb.com/tyh/women.html

Fighting High Cholesterol with Grape Juice

Previous studies have shown that moderate wine consumption can favorably influence cholesterol levels in the bloodstream, specifically by increasing high-density lipoproteins (the "good" cholesterol). These studies suggest that such benefits confer specifically to consumption of red wine, rather than white wine, beer or other types of alcohol.

If you'd like to get the cholesterol-lowering benefits of red wine without the alcoholic content, consider a possible alternative: purple grape juice. Flavanoids, the powerful antioxidants present in red wine, are also present in purple grape juice, an observation that spurred a recent study published in the journal Circulation. In the study, 15 adults with coronary artery disease consumed approximately 21 ounces of purple grape juice twice daily for 14 consecutive days. Results showed improved arterial dilation (the ability of the arteries to expand, allowing for enhanced blood flow) and improvements in other indicators of the disease.

What are you waiting for? Get to the store and get yourself some purple grape juice today! As these results suggest, you'll be doing yourself and your loved ones a favor.

Reference: Stein JH, Keevil JG, Wiebe DA, et al. Purple grape juice improves endothelial function and reduces the susceptibility of LDL cholesterol to oxidation in patients with coronary artery disease. Circulation 1999: Vol. 100, pp1050-55.

Additional information on the benefits of proper nutrition can be found at https://www.chiroweb.com/tyh/nutrients.html.

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