Healthy Brains Equals Healthy Bodies

I had discussed in my last newsletter about the concept of how the brain plays a vital role in physical modalities like acupuncture, chiropractic, massage therapy and even aromatherapy. I explained that by stimulating particular areas of the body we are actually directly stimulating the brain. The brain then responds to that stimulus which creates immediate and specific affects back out into the body. This is why needling a point on the hand can have positive affects in the abdomen for example. My teaser at the end of that last article brought up the concept of why acupuncture or any of the other modalities might work better for some people and not others, or why they might work better for you on some days more than others. I hope to answer this question here. You will find that the answers are often time quite simple. And reading this article may just allow you to gain more benefit from your particular modality of choice, in which case I will feel that I have done my job. The idea is to extract the most benefit out of what we do and how we choose to heal.

As you all probably know by now I use quite a bit of blood chemistry with my patients. Using blood chemistry as a tool I am able to find many different things that are causing stress to the body. I use much narrower reference ranges than the average MD which are called "Functional Ranges." There are a few factors in a blood chemistry panel that when out of range Functionally speaking, can have dramatic affects on brain function and other bodily functions alike. Blood sugar for example is one factor that is often times overlooked because the mainstream ranges that are used are so very broad and based upon an illness model and not a wellness model. But it is important to understand that blood sugar only needs to be out of range slightly to begin to have negative impacts on the body.

So it is important to consider three major factors when thinking about brain health and optimal brain function. I have listed them here:
The first is stimulation. This is really quite simple... Use it or lose it! People who do not continuously stimulate their brains with new information or challenging tasks tend to suffer mental decline quicker than those who do engage in these activities. It is one thing to be really great at something, but to keep your brain healthy you will need to find new things to learn or ponder. Learn a language for example. Learn to play an instrument. Dance. Exercise. All of these things challenge the brain and help maintain good brain health.

Second is healthy blood sugar. The brain, unlike most other tissues in the body, can only use sugar for it's energy. If the brain tissue is not getting an adequate supply of blood sugar, function declines and so does brain health in general. I see poor blood sugar scenarios in close to 75% of the people that I do blood chemistry work-ups with. So I can tell you that this is one area that is wreaking havoc for a lot of people, brain health or otherwise. I either see reactive hypoglycemia, or sub-clinically low blood sugar, meaning the doctor won't pick up on it. This is a fasting blood sugar under 85. Or elevated blood sugar which is a fasting blood sugar over 99. In this case there will be insulin resistance and the cells simply cannot take in the sugar floating around in the blood. The sugar is there, it just can't be used adequately. So either way the cells of the brain (and body) are not able to get adequate sugar supply and therefore health and function decline. Poor blood sugar equals poor brain function.
Lastly the brain needs a healthy supply of Oxygen. This is an obvious one. Without oxygen to our brains we die! But really what I am talking about here are conditions like anemia where the red blood cells cannot deliver adequate oxygen to the cells of the body, brain included. Or this could be something like poor circulation due to arterioscleroses, or the clogging of the blood vessels. Look for things like cold hands and feet, hair loss on the lower part of the leg which often times gets brushed off as, "my boots rub on that area." Or look for nail fungus. Smokers are also prime suspects for poor circulation. All of these things may be indicators that inadequate oxygen is making it to your brain and is therefore hindering function and supporting mental decline.

So going back now to my original concept of acupuncture working better for some people and not others, or better on one day vs. the next. Considering the above three brain health concepts you can see how some people may have all three of these things out of whack. Knowing that healthy brain function is vital for good acupuncture results you would want to make sure that the above mentioned concepts are in order to maintain the best results from your particular modality of choice. Let's consider a 65 year old man who is overweight and a smoker. He sits around on the recliner chair all day watching Jerry Springer while drinking his 2 liter bottle of Pepsi. How well do you think this guy's brain is working? How well do you think that his acupuncture results for his knee pain would stack up against a 30 year old athlete who eats well and is going through a Ph.D. program in astrophysics for example? But forgetting that for a second, how well do you think that you would respond if all you had for breakfast that morning was a cup of coffee and you roll into your acupuncture appointment at 1pm? Let me tell you... You would get more for your time and money if you squeezed in at least some eggs that morning. Stable blood sugar is the key.

So to reiterate, brain function is everything. Without it we have nothing. Our brains are our link to the outside world. Without healthy brain function we lose our connection with our surroundings and we lose the ability to maximize the benefits of the healing energy around us. I urge you to keep brain health in the forefront of your concerns. Not only will doing so ensure a long and healthy life ahead, but will have dramatic impacts on your life today. You will be happier, healthier, and have the ability to enjoy things more fully. You will be stronger, have better balance, have a better sex life, have better memory and you will maximize the benefits of medical modalities like acupuncture, chiropractic and massage therapy. I work worth people on customizing healthy brain plans. This is the kind of work that I do. To embrace Functional Medicine means to find out what is hindering optimal health. And we all, MD's, acupuncturists, Chiropractors and Massage Therapists alike need to think more about the health of our patient's brains. Without doing so we cannot achieve the superior and lasting results our patients expect from us.

Bone Health 101

Perhaps one of the most significant and measurable successes that I see in my practice comes in the treatment of bone health. As we get older the risk and incidence of bone related diseases and or fractures increase. And at the age of 65 the medical establishment starts routine bone scan tests to determine bone density and therefore risk of fracture and disability. This is usually when someone will come into my clinic asking about a natural way to protect or heal their bones. My first task is to educate my patients about the particular problem at hand. I feel that this is lacking to a large degree in the standard medical experience. When it comes to bone health there is a lot to know, and once again there is a lot more going on than drugs like Fosamax and Boniva are able to treat. I hope to provide for you here some important facts that you need to know about your bones, and how to go about preserving or even rebuilding any bone loss that you have had already.

The first and most important thing to understand about your bones is that though they are indeed hard like rocks or wood, they are not a static material. By this I mean that they are a living tissue that is constantly changing. A rock is created and then remains basically the same until it is either pulverized or melted again. It is a static material. But bone tissue in contrast is built upon a framework of bone matrix. This matrix is like a cartilage lattice work where minerals are attached to create a hard and strong structure. These minerals and protein lattice structures are constantly being broken down by specialized cells called Osteoclasts. The bone tissue is then rebuilt by cells called Osteoblasts. So there is a constant interplay between bone resorption and formation. You can't build new bone tissue without breaking down the old stuff. This process allows for constantly new bone tissue formation that is healthy and strong. Out with the old and in with the new so to speak. The trick here is to keep things in balance. Too much resroption and you end up with a net loss of bone tissue, weakening and fracture. But remember, some breaking down of bone is essential for healthy bone repair.

When people take one of the many "Osteoporosis drugs," like Fosamax for example the drug is designed to shut down osteoclast activity. This means that the drug is stopping or slowing down the breakdown of bone. This all sounds great, but remember without breakdown of bone tissue there is not going to be any bone rebuilding. So these medications are not stimulating the building of bone. The bones of people who use these medications may remain thicker, but the bone tissue becomes old and brittle over time. And it can easily be said that thick but brittle bone is not much better than thin but strong bone. If it were me I would choose the thinner yet stronger bone. So take this info for what you will. These medications may indeed slow the breakdown of bone, but at what cost. Very little research has shown that these medications have helped to stop fractures in any significant way. And they are very harmful to the digestive tract particularly the esophagus.

On the other hand, there are ways to stimulate production of new healthy bone tissue and decrease bone breakdown at the same time. And what do you know, they are all natural:

· Calcium

· Vitamin K

· Strontium

· Ipriflavone

· Genestein

· Vitamin D



Taking in these compounds on a daily basis is a great way to optimize bone health. But bones also respond to stress. By this I mean weight bearing exercise. When bones experience physical stress they grow stronger. This is really important in your younger years. What you build when you are young directly relates to what you will have when you are older. So young people, get in your weight bearing exercise now! And for those of you out there who are currently experiencing bone loss, now is the time to get in your exercise as well. Walking, jogging, light weights, yoga and tai qi are all good examples of weight bearing exercises. Doing these activities on a regular schedule will help in more areas than just bone health so take them seriously. There is no such thing as a work out in a pill. "Just one pill provides for a whole week of exercise!" No... You have to get out there and do the work!

And as a final note it is important to realize that it isn't really the bone density itself that we are all worried about after all. It is the fall and the bone break that causes the problems. How much is being done to reduce the numbers of falls in the elderly? Do you think that insurance companies are willing to pay for balance training? Or working with a living space to reduce the hazards that lead to falls? I think not. Do not forget this very important part of your concern over bone health. This alone makes activities like yoga or tai qi extremely powerful in reducing bone breaks. Balance and core stability is everything. Find a trainer and regain your balance! Your bones depend upon it.

So putting all of these concepts of supplementation, physical exercise to strengthen bone density and increase balance, and optimizing one's living/work environments will create a powerful and effective strategy for increased bone health and reduced fractures. This goes way beyond taking a pill and hoping for the best. It is something that you need to understand and take action on now. I would be happy to schedule an initial consultation with you to discuss this further and get you on your way to healthier bones!