Alternative Therapies for Back Pain

Musculoskeletal Pain: The most common and shortest-term back pain is often caused by the out-of-condition back doing normal things, or the conditioned back doing extraordinary things. If you've strained a muscle or aren't properly aligned, alternative therapies such as physical therapy (PT), Feldenkrais, pilates and yoga will gradually soothe you. Feldenkrais (which is minimal movement, analogous to minimal music) promotes proper use of the proper muscles. Massage may also be a good idea, but be careful; if you have a neurological problem, massage may make you worse.

Herniated Disk: The McKenzie technique of physical therapy works to draw the offending material from behind the vertebrae, where the nerves are, and out of harm's way over 75 percent of the time. Even large disk herniations that may suggest a need for surgery can respond to physical therapy within a few weeks. By properly arching the back, a partial vacuum develops in front of the herniation. The disk reacts by moving the herniated material toward the vacuum, lowering pressure on the nerve. While you're waiting for McKenzie physical therapy to work its magic, acupuncture can reduce the pain.

Piriformis Syndrome: This is a combination of muscles and nerves. The piriformis muscle in the buttock contracts and compresses the sciatic nerve, so the symptoms are neurological -- sciatica -- but the cause is in the muscle. After a steroid injection, yoga and physical therapy are quite effective in stretching the muscle and teaching you to relax it yourself. Acupuncture can sometimes expedite the healing process.

Sacroiliac Joint Derangement: The last lumbar vertebra fits into the sacrum, and the sacrum fits into the iliac bones, the two bones that wrap around the pelvis. When there is misalignment, there is lots of severe pain. Most establishment doctors aren't as good at diagnosing and treating this as osteopaths, chiropractors and PTs., so it might be a good idea to go to these professionals. Acupuncture, Feldenkrais and yoga can augment injections, pain patches and non-steroidals.

Spondylolisthesis: In Greek: 'listhesis' means slipping. In your back, one vertebra slides out of alignment. It usually slips forward, but sometimes back or to one side or the other. It's a radiological diagnosis, and state-of-the-art EMG techniques can determine if that's your problem. PT to strengthen abdominal muscles (front back and sides) and possibly an abdominal binder are good treatments, but some yoga also helps, as does Alexander Technique, which can work wonders with posture.

Spinal Stenosis: This is where the canal inside the spine gets too narrow, compressing nerves. You may need an MRI to be sure of the diagnosis. Posture is the best conservative solution -- Alexander Technique is probably the single best treatment, though PT is helpful too. Stenosis may worsen inexorably over time, and then it's one condition where surgery may be the best option.

Arthritis: The little joints in the spine -- the facets -- have the components that are structurally like knees and shoulders, which are other favorite sites for arthritis. And like knees and shoulders, facet joints are also vulnerable to intense pain. You can't stop arthritis, but you can slow it down. Conventional non-steroidals and more sophisticated anti-inflammatories are a great help, as is acupuncture. There are physical therapists who specialize in this condition. Yoga will improve your range of motion, and there are some good studies that suggest yoga is an effective anti-inflammatory.

by: Dr. Loren Fishman

Exercising while Pregnant

For most pregnant women, exercise is the last thing on their minds. After all, keeping slim while you're expecting isn't exactly the top priority — rather, it's making sure your baby gets enough nutrients to grow. But in a small new study, researchers at the University of Auckland in New Zealand report that a mother's regular aerobic exercise may be good for a growing fetus' health — and may even help a baby get a healthier start in life.

Researchers asked some women to exercise on a stationary bicycle for at least 40 minutes per session, up to five times each week, starting in the 20th week of pregnancy; the other women were not specifically asked to exercise. When the two groups and their babies were compared, the team found that women who bicycled regularly gave birth to babies who were on average 150 g (about 5 oz.) lighter than those born to the nonexercising mothers. In both groups, however, the babies were of healthy weight, and there was no difference in the mothers' weights.

http://www.time.com/

5 Activities for Longevity

1. Laugh out loud! Research shows that laughter and joy boost immune functions, especially the production of the natural killer cells that help protect the body from illness and cancer. Laughter also increases the release of endorphins, compounds that give you a sense of well-being, in your brain. Without a doubt, joyful people live longer and healthier lives.

2. Drink it up--tea, that is. Besides being anti-cancerous and cholesterol lowering, the antioxidant-rich tea leaves also protect your brain from free-radical damage, strengthen your bones against osteoporosis and according to studies published in the Journal of American Medical Association, lowers risks of death from all forms of cardiovascular diseases. So drink tea to your heart's content!

3. Unwind with meditation (not medication). Stress is the root cause of most of the diseases that shorten our life span. In our modern society stress will continue to increase - unless you find techniques to manage it. Meditation is the best way to release tension and revitalize your being. It also quiets your mind, lowers your stress hormones, and teaches self-discipline, which is a necessary attribute to achieving your health and longevity goals.

4. Massage. Countless studies have shown benefits of massage to include relieve pain and stiffness, boost immunity, reduce anxiety and depression, lower stress and blood pressure, and increase circulation that you wouldn't want to skip out on a good thing.

5. Climb the stairs instead of using elevator. The health benefits of a daily exercise program cannot be stressed enough. Regular exercise can help promote physiological well-being, strengthen the immune system, maintain joint mobility, increase energy - and the list goes on. Look for opportunities all through your day to work in physical activity. Power-walk, run, or ride your bike instead of driving.

Running Barefoot is Better

Mother Nature has outpaced science once again: the bare human foot is better for running than one cushioned by sneakers. What about those $125 high-tech running shoes with 648 custom combinations? Toss 'em, according to a new study published online January 27 in the journal Nature(Scientific American is part of Nature Publishing Group). "Most people today think barefoot running is dangerous and hurts," Daniel Lieberman, a professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University, said in a prepared statement. "But actually you can run barefoot on the world's hardest surfaces without the slightest discomfort and pain…It might be less injurious than the way some people run in shoes."

Lieberman and his group used 3-D infrared tracking to record and study the running and strike style of three groups of runners: people who had always run barefoot, people who had always run with shoes, and people who had switched from shoe to shoeless. They found that when runners lace up their shmancy sneakers and take off, about 75 to 80 percent land heel-first. Barefoot runners—as Homo sapiens had evolved to be—usually land toward the middle or front of the food. "People who don't wear shoes when they run have an astonishingly different strike," Lieberman said.

Without shoes, landing on the heel is painful and can translate into a collision force some 1.5 to 3 times body weight. "Barefoot runners point their toes more at landing," which helps to lessen the impact by "decreasing the effective mass of the foot that comes to a sudden stop when you land," Madhusudhan Venkadesan, an applied mathematics and human evolutionary biology postdoctoral researcher at Harvard who also worked on the study, said in a prepared statement. But as cushioned kicks have hit the streets and treadmills, that initial pain has disappeared, and runners have changed their stride, leading to a way of high-impact running that human physiology wasn't evolved for—one that the researchers posit can lead to a host of foot and leg injuries.

Four Healthy Choices to Change Your Life

This article was sent to me from my friend Marcy (thank you Marcy)

Enjoy.

You can lower your risk of several chronic diseases by 80% if you do these four things:

-Engage in regular physical activity

-Eat a healthy diet

-Not smoke

-Avoid becoming obese

For full article go here:

http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-sci-lifestyle11-2009aug11,0,148496.story

10 Natural Antidepressants

1. Get your hands in the dirt. Gardening has long been known for its meditative, relaxing, and grounding effects. Medical News Today reports that UK scientists have discovered friendly bacteria in soil that reportedly affects the brain in a way similar to antidepressants by increasing the release of serotonin.

2. Meditate. Many of us have all heard that meditation reduces stress. Scientists are now beginning to uncover evidence that meditation has a tangible effect on the brain. Professor Mark Williams, from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Oxford conducted a trial study reported by the BBC News, indicates that meditation reduces the likelihood of depression by over 50%.

3. Burn Incense. In a new study (that can be found at The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) Journal an international team of scientists have discovered how burning frankincense (resin from the Boswellia plant) activates poorly understood ion channels in the brain that alleviate depression. Floracopeia provides high quality, organic frankincense available as incense and essential oil.

4. Ingest a yellow flower. St. John's Wort is a wild yellow flower that has been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years. There is some scientific evidence that St. John's Wort is helpful in treating mild to moderate depression. Two large studies, one sponsored by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), showed that the herb may be helpful for treating mild depression, however it may not be effective for treating major depression.

5. Eat Sushi. Research has shown that fatty fish oil can actually improve wellbeing. People suffering from depression have lower levels of omega-3 fatty acids in the blood. One study (Nemets & Belmaker - American Journal of Psychiatry) showed that the lower the level of EPA, the more severe the clinical depression. In addition, fish oil supplementation reduced suicidal tendencies and improved the well being when 40 people were given fish oil or placebo for 12 weeks (Hallahan, Hibbeln, Davis - British Journal of Psychiatry).

6. Move your body. Talk a walk, ride a bike, hit the gym, or go dancing. Science indicates that people who regularly exercise benefit from positive boosts in mood and reduce the risk of depression. When you exercise, the body naturally releases chemicals called endorphins that trigger positive feelings in the body and mind.

7. Use natural sweeteners such as Agave Nectar or Maple Syrup. Some studies have linked the use of refined sugar to depression. Author William Dufty creates a strong argument for avoiding sugar in his book Sugar Blues. Another interesting book on the subject is Sugar Shock, by Connie Bennett with Stephen Sinatra, M.D.

8. Get in the sunshine. Vitamin D has been shown to increase levels of serotonin in the brain. Researchers from the University of Toronto noticed that people who were suffering from depression, particularly those with seasonal affective disorder, tended to improve as their levels of vitamin D in the body increased over the normal course of a year. The recommendation is to allow yourself limited, unprotected sun exposure in the early morning and late afternoon (no more than 15 minutes for light-skinned individuals, 40 minutes for darker skin).

9. Have a good laugh. Have you ever noticed the physical response you sometimes have after a good laugh? Studies show that laughter fights the onset of depression by reducing stress hormones.

10. Use depression to make you stronger. Can depression actually make you healthier? A recent article from the BBC News features Dr Paul Keedwell, an expert on mood disorders at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London. Keedwell says that depression is not a human defect at all, but a defense mechanism that in its mild and moderate forms can force a healthy reassessment of personal circumstances. "Don't beat yourself up about being depressed, in most cases it will run its course provided you take yourself out of the situation that caused it." Depression can actually serve a purpose, deepening and enriching the human experience. By overcoming challenging times in our lives, we can actually become stronger evolutionarily speaking.