October 19, 2004 [Volume 5, Issue 22]

To Your Health is brought to you by:

• Recommended Reading: Modern Foods: The Sabotage of the Earth's Food Supply
• Lower Extremity Injuries: Know the Risks
• Laboring Over Low Back Pain
• How to Prevent Cancer: Let Us Count the Ways

This month's featured title is Modern Foods: The Sabotage of EarthÕs Food Supply by David Casper, MA, and Thomas Stone, ND, CN

For thousands of years, humans subsisted on a diet of plants and, only occasionally, animals. With the progress of the 20th century came enormous changes in food production, marketing and consumption. The process of eating hasnÕt changed, but whatÕs being eaten has -- and not necessarily for the better. Chemicals, genetic engineering, additives and preservatives have made it so that while we can produce vast quantities of food, the quality of food being produced is not nearly what it was a century ago. In a nutshell, thatÕs the premise of Modern Foods: The Sabotage of EarthÕs Food Supply , a text that contains a wealth of information, including some startling facts about food and the food industry.

Click here to read the complete review.

It's been estimated that sports-related injuries cost up to $1 billion annually worldwide. In the U.S. alone, between 3 million and 5 million sports-related injuries occur each year; most are injuries to the ankle, knee and lower leg - a region generally termed the "lower extremity."

What increases the risk of suffering a lower extremity injury, and how can you prevent or reduce the risk of getting hurt? Researchers set out to answer these questions by reviewing several previous studies and found approximately 20 factors that can contribute to lower extremity injuries. Among the most common factors are age; history of previous injury; body size (including the size of a person's limb); muscle strength; the type of shoe being used while performing an activity; whether the person is using any type of ankle wrap or bracing; and playing surface. All of these factors can determine, positively or negatively, the degree to which a person might sustain a lower extremity injury while playing sports.

Few practitioners know how to diagnose and treat lower extremity injuries better than doctors of chiropractic. If you suspect you have an injury, or if you're involved in an organized sport or other type of regular physical activity and want more information on preventing injuries from occurring, schedule an appointment with a DC. Your chiropractor can create an exercise plan that maximizes your fitness level while minimizing the risk of injury.

For more information on exercise and physical fitness, go to www.chiroweb.com/find/archives/sports.

Reference: Murphy DF, Connolly DAJ, Beynnon BD. Risk factors for lower extremity injury: a review of the literature. British Journal of Sports Medicine 2003;37:13-29.

As if pregnancy isn't challenging enough with its emotional ups and downs, weight gain, etc., recent evidence suggests that low back pain (LBP) is a major factor as well. A 36-question survey of 950 pregnant women revealed that 70 percent of respondents experienced LBP at some point during their terms.

Anonymous surveys were distributed to pregnant women participating in prenatal classes throughout New Haven County, Conn., over a period of 18 months. The surveys found that LBP was more common among younger pregnant women and those with a history of LBP both during and independent of previous pregnancies. Survey respondents also indicated that LBP had negatively affected sleep patterns and some daily activities. Of the women who reported LBP to their doctors, only 25 percent received treatment recommendations. These results show that LBP is prevalent during pregnancy; sadly, it seems that few of these patients' primary care providers did much to help.

Pregnancy notwithstanding, LBP can be disruptive if left untreated. Don't let LBP take the joy out of your pregnancy.Your doctor of chiropractic can recommend a safe and gentle treatment plan.

For more on women's health, visit www.chiroweb.com/find/archives/women.

References: Wang SM, Dezinno P, Maranets I, et al. Low back pain during pregnancy: prevalence, risk factors, and outcomes. Obstet Gynecol July 2004;104(1):65-70.

As scary as it sounds, some scientists estimate that up to one-third of all American women will develop some form of cancer during their lifetime. It was the second leading cause of death in American women in 2000, and the leading cause of death for American women between the ages of 40 and 79.

In 1997, the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) published a series of 14 guidelines to help reduce cancer rates worldwide.Researchers at the Mayo Clinic examined the effect the AICR guidelines has had on cancer prevention by condensing the 14 recommendations into nine that were considered relevant to Western populations, then measuring those recommendations against a population of more than 29,000 women (ages 55-69) over a 12-year period. The study found that women who adopted at least six of the nine recommendations were 35 percent less likely to get cancer and 43 percent less likely to die from cancer than women who followed zero or one recommendation.

Among the AICR's recommendations, people should: have a maximum BMI (body mass index) of 25 and limit adult weight gain to no more than 11 pounds; engage in daily moderate and weekly vigorous physical activity; eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables each day; eat seven or more portions of complex carbohydrates (such as grains and cereals) each day; limit intake of processed foods and refined sugars; limit alcoholic drinks to one (for women) or two (for men) daily; limit red meat intake to no more than 3 ounces daily; limit intake of fatty foods, particularly those derived from animals; limit intake of salted foods and use of salt in cooking; and eliminate tobacco use.

For more information on health and nutrition, visit www.chiroweb.com/find/archives/nutrition.

Reference: Cerhan JR, Potter JD, Gilmore JME, et al. Adherence to the AICR cancer prevention recommendations and subsequent morbidity and mortality in the Iowa Women's Health Study Cohort. Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention July 2004;13(7):1114-20.

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