Summer Special and Newsletter
Summer Special - Red
Yeast Rice
Buy One, Get One 25% off $3.00 savings
Why take Red Yeast Rice:
Protection
of arterial lining to prevent atherosclerotic lesions that lead to heart attack
Reduction
of inflammation and oxidative stress, both known to be associated with heart
disease
Modulation
of blood lipids favorably and naturally
Who could benefit from Red Yeast
Rice?
Patients who:
Want to
try an alternative way to lower cholesterol before using statin drugs.
Have a strong
family history of heart disease
Experience
side effects, such as muscle pain, from statin (cholesterol-lowering) drugs
Owning Your Health
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Chiropractic Care and Lifetime Health
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Regular
chiropractic care is a key ingredient in the mix of activities that
result in lifetime health. A healthy diet - consistently eating
balanced, nutritious meals with plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables
during the day - is very important. Regular vigorous exercise - three
to five times per week for at least 30 minutes a session - is another
important component. Getting sufficient rest, more often than not, is
another critical piece of the health puzzle. If you're doing all these
things, you're doing a lot. When you add regular chiropractic care to
your weekly, biweekly, or monthly schedule, you're substantially
enhancing the value of all your other health activities.
In
a word, by helping to maintain the health and proper functioning of
your body's master system - your nerve system - regular chiropractic
care helps you get the most out of your diet, your exercise, and your
rest. Regular chiropractic care helps make it possible for you to
function at your maximum, and when that's happening you are likely to
be enjoying peak health and well-being.
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Recent
discussions in the scientific literature are focusing on monitoring and
possibly improving cardiovascular health in children. There's been a
lot of conversation and a lot of controversy. An article in the Journal
of the American Medical Association1 argued that universal
screening of children could result in young people being put on
cholesterol-lowering drugs such as statins. And, according to certain
experts, there just isn't sufficient medical evidence to justify such
prescriptions.
These are not new
proposals. In July 2008 the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended
that some children as young as 8 be treated aggressively with
cholesterol-lowering drugs.2 Soon thereafter, in November
2008, researchers recommended that statins be prescribed for millions
of healthy people with normal cholesterol levels.3
What's
going on here? Healthy adults and healthy children should take drugs?
How can we make sense of these medical controversies and how can we
take action that is actually appropriate to the health and well-being
of ourselves and our children?
First,
it's very important to take responsibility. That's difficult, because
it seems that we live in a culture of denial. No one is responsible for
anything. "Twinkies made me do it." "I have bad genes." "It's not my
fault."
A person's health is usually
evaluated in the same way. Who is responsible for a lifelong
two-pack-a-day smoker developing lung cancer? The tobacco company, of
course. Who is responsible for someone gaining 50 pounds in a year?
Well, the fast food chain is responsible. Who is responsible for
hundreds of thousands of Americans developing diabetes each year? Candy
manufacturers, naturally. Throw in doughnut-makers, too.
But,
people are actually responsible for their own actions. Going further,
in many cases people are partly responsible for the diseases and
disorders they develop. It's not that I'm a bad person, but I may be
making choices that aren't in my own best interests.
"Lifestyle
health" is a relatively new term being used by many researchers and
health practitioners. From a lifestyle perspective, many cases of
diabetes, overweight and obesity, and high cholesterol are caused by
lifestyle choices. High-fat diets, high-sugar diets, lack of daily
fruits and vegetables, and lack of exercise will cause people to
develop diabetes, obesity, and high cholesterol.
Lifestyle health is directed at causing people to choose healthy behaviors.4
So
taking statins when you're healthy to prevent high cholesterol and
associated cardiovascular and inflammatory disorders is highly
questionable. Giving medicines - whose long-term effects are largely
unknown - to children makes even less sense.
Am
I going to choose risky behaviors for myself and recommend risky
behaviors for my children, causing us to possibly need medications down
the road, or am I going to choose and recommend healthy lifestyles and
take responsibility for my health and well-being and that of my
children?
Statins like Crestor and
Lipitor have certainly helped millions of adults with serious health
problems. Still, taking these medications is like slamming the barn
door after the horse has run away.
Let's
see. If I'm healthy now, will I choose to maintain my good health by
regular exercise, a consistent healthy food plan, and sufficient rest?
The choice seems clear.
1Psaty
BM, Rivara FP: Universal screening and drug treatment of dyslipidemia
in children and adolescents. JAMA 307(3):257-258, 2012
2Daniels SR, et al: Lipid screening and cardiovascular health in childhood. Pediatrics 122(1):198-208, 2008
3Ridker
PM, et al: Rosuvastatin to prevent vascular events in men and women
with elevated C-reactive protein. NEJM 359:2195-2007, 2008
4Chan AT, Giovannucci EL: Primary prevention of colorectal cancer. Gastroenterology 138(6):2029-2043, 2010
