January 25, 2005 [Volume 6, Issue 3]

To Your Health is brought to you by:

• Recommended Reading: Deskercise! The Workplace Workout
• Warning: Chronic Back Pain May Shrink the Brain
• Could Your Prescription(s) Be Harmful to Your Health?
• Don't Worry...Be Happy

This month's featured title is Deskercise! The Workplace Workout by Todd M. Berntson, DC.

Deskercise! The Workplace Workout is an easy-to-follow exercise program designed for the workplace that requires only three pieces of equipment for a full-body workout: a desk, a chair, and a pair of small hand weights. Included are stretches that target the back and neck, as well as exercises designed to strengthen the muscles in these areas. The text also includes photographs of each exercise, detailed descriptions of the proper way to execute the moves, and the number of repetitions required. Exercises range from basic to the more creative, including chair dips and the bicep door stretch.

Click here to read the complete review.

If you suffer from chronic back pain, take note: A recent study has revealed that those who suffer from chronic back pain (CBP) for one year may experience a reduction in the brain's gray matter equivalent to the amount lost by the average person in 10 to 20 years of normal aging. Gray matter refers to the darker-colored tissue of the brain composed of the bodies of neurons; it is the "thinking" center of the brain, which is responsible memory and information processing.

Researchers compared 26 CBP patients with 26 matched healthy volunteers. The CBP patients had experienced pain for one year and were diagnosed with musculoskeletal disorders; "pure" radiculopathy (pain, numbness, or tingling of the extremeties caused by the nerve roots); and a combination of musculoskeletal and radiculopathic pain. The normal decrease in gray matter was found to be 0.5 percent per year in both groups; however, after adjusting for age and gender, the investigators found that the gray matter in CBP patients decreased by 11 percent. In addition, the longer someone experienced chronic back pain, the more gray matter they lost.

The researchers concluded "that CBP (sustained for six months) is accompanied by abnormal brain chemistry...implying neuronal loss or dysfunction in this region and reduced cognitive abilities on a task that implies abnormal prefrontal processing."

While additional research is warranted, the information from this study should serve as a warning to those with back pain to seek care as soon as possible in order to prevent the condition from becoming chronic. If you suffer from chronic pain, your doctor of chiropractic can help! Ask about a treatment plan to help manage your pain and preserve your gray matter!

For more about this study, read "Chronic Back Pain May Shrink the Brain" at www.chiroweb.com/archives/23/03/08.html.

Reference:Apkarian AV, Sosa Y, Sonty S, et al. Chronic back pain is associated with decreased prefrontal and thalamic gray matter density. The Journal of Neuroscience, Nov. 17, 2004 24(46):10410-10475.

From pain to depression to infection, there seems to be a pill for just about everything; it's no surprise then that prescription use is at an all time high in the U.S. A recent study, however, revealed that inappropriate medications are often prescribed to the elderly, putting them at risk for many adverse side-effects.

Investigators from Duke Clinical Reasearch Institute in Durham, NC, examined over 700,000 outpatient prescription claims from a national pharmaceutical benefit manager in subjects 65-years or older. The study found that 21 percent of the subjects had filled a prescription for one or more drugs that had been named on the Beers revised list of drugs to be avoided in elderly populations. More than 15 percent filled prescriptions for two drugs on the list, and four percent filled three or more within the same year. Alarmingly, 51 percent of the prescriptions filled were known to have possible severe side-effects.

Before your next trip to the drug store, talk to your doctor about the pros and cons of your prescriptions, and ask about those with fewer side effects to avoid suffering potentially severe consequences. Or better yet, ask about nonprescription alternatives to treatment. For more information on senior health, visit www.chiroweb.com/find/archives/senior.

References: Curtis LH, Ostbye T, Sendersky V, et.al. Inappropriate prescribing for elderly Americans in a large outpatient population. Archives of Internal Medicine 2004 (164):1621-25.

Think optimism is over-rated? Perhaps a recent study that found a link between optimism and longevity will change your mind. Researchers in the Netherlands set out to determine if optimistic people live longer than their more pessimistic counterparts. Approximately 1,000 elderly men and women between the ages of 65-85 were interviewed about their health, self-respect, morale, optimism and contacts, or relationships.

Results: During a nine-year follow-up period, researchers discovered that participants who reported higher levels of optimism were 55 percent less likely to die from any cause and 23 percent less likely to die from cardiovascular-related causes than the pessimistic group. Researchers cited several possible reasons for the correlations between optimism and longevity, including that happier people tend to engage in more physical activity and handle stress better than pessimists.

Want to increase your chances for a longer and healthier life? Try changing your outlook. And remember, things like exercise, nutrition and regular chiropractic care can help bring about positive changes in the mind and body -- changes that can potentially be life-saving. For more information on general health and wellness, visit www.chiroweb.com/find/archives/general.

Reference: Giltay EJ, Geleijnse JM, Zitman FG, et. al. Dispositional optimism and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in a prospective cohort of elderly Dutch men and women. Archives of General Psychiatry. 2004 Nov 61(11): 1126-35.

This issue features a number of articles you will want to share with your family, friends and co-workers. Please feel free to forward this newsletter to them via e-mail. If you have received this e-mail newsletter from someone else, you may subscribe free of charge and begin receiving your own copy by going to: www.chiroweb.com/newsletter/TYH/subscribe.php

Visit Dynamic Chiropractic's "Ask a Doctor of Chiropractic" forum at www.chiroweb.com/find/ask.html, where 15 doctors of chiropractic are waiting to answer any of your health questions.

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