Health Account

Your health is very similar to your finances. If you keep adding to your savings account you will be in good shape when you retire. However if you keep taking out of the account and don't add money back to it, you are likely to go broke.

Your health account is very similar. If you keep taking out of the health account and don't do proactive healthy living to add value back to it, you will find your good health to be all used up as you get older and will have no good health left.

Exercise a little, eat a little better,and have a better attitude. All these things will add to your health account.

Improve

What one thing have you done this month to improve yourself?

Crackers, Pretzel and Popcorn

Crackers are viewed as healthier than cookies, but a closer look at the labels often reveals enriched wheat, partially hydrogenated vegetable oils and refined sugar as high fructose corn syrup. Pretzels and popcorn are both considered healthy snacks, but pretzels often contain enriched wheat and partially hydrogenated fats (trans fat), and most microwave popcorn contains trans fats.

Try instead: pop your own popcorn, preferably with an air popper. Use canola or olive oil and only very little salt. When shopping for pretzels and crackers, think whole grain and all-natural.

Salad Dressings

A number of salad dressings contain high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. The low-fat dressings are often higher in refined sugar.

Try instead: Many conventional markets are now joining health-food stores in offering organic and all-natural salad dressings.You can always try the old formula of oil and vinegar.

Stop! Read the Labels

Have you checked the labels of some of your families favorite foods? Many of the foods your family enjoys may be contributing to family illnesses and weight gain. These days ingredients such as enriched wheat, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil,and high fructose corn syrup are common in our food supply, but are very deficient in nutrients.

These are a few of the food additives you should stay away from when you visit your local grocery store.

"My Favorite Foods for Wellness"

It's clear that nutrition and life style are well-defined modulators of chronic diseases. Poor diets and a lack of exercise clearly contribute to today's lack of quality of life in our country.

Many fruits, vegetables, and herbs have cleansing and detoxification properties, but they must be free of chemicals and pesticides and not altered by exposure to radiation of other methods of shelf-life extension. It is always best to buy certified organic when choosing your vegetables and fruits.

Here are some of my favorite foods to help cleanse and purify your systems.

Organic green tea will help induce the enzymes needed for cell protection.

Cruciferous vegetables such as kale,collard greens,broccoli,cauliflower,cabbage,brussel sprouts,and turnips are all excellent for liver detox.

Lemons, garlic, oregeno, and fruits are also powerful detoxifying foods that aid in colon-cleansing.

Spinach, seasame seeds, legumes, and sweet potatoes are the rest of my favorites!

Stop Coughs with Honey

Coughing is the body's way of cleaning the upperchest and throat and ideally shouldn't be suppressed. But if it's keeping you up at night, two teaspoons of honey will help. It works in three ways. It soothes the throat, it kills bugs, and it has a compound that blocks the cough reflex to the brain.

"Chronic Pain"

According to a 2008 study published in BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, a connection exists between physical inactivity and chronic musculoskeletal complaints. The study concluded that physcial exercise was found to lower the incidense of chronic pain.

Here is one more reason to exercise. I have found in my practice that the majority of chronic pain patients are the least active when it comes to exercise.

If you are suffering from backpain, arthritis, neck pain,fatigue, depression, or overweight, find some type of exercise that works best for you.

The Detox: It Will Change Your Life!

Detoxification: It's a word that is being used with more frequency and urgency in today's toxic environment. There is an increased awareness of pollution and abundance of artificial chemicals added to foods, chemicals in our make up, shampoos, and lotions. When these toxic chemicals get into our system they must be detected and filtered out before they cause cellular changes and disease. The liver is the main organ along with the digestive tract and kidneys that help in filtering these toxic chemicals from our system. Because of this, filtering organs become overworked and find it difficult to detox our systems. The left over toxic chemicals get dispersed into our fat cells.

The good news is there is a very effective nutritional detox program available to help your body purify and cleanse. Ask a HealthFirst doctor to share the information about this great program and see how it will change your life.

Perfecting Your Posture

Poor posture can lead to a variety of health problems over time, and yet too many people have bad postural habits. We always hear how important our posture is and at sometime in our lives, we have been told to sit up straight and to stop slouching.

The human body is designed to be well balanced in a neutral relaxed position. The more often we lose this normal neutral system, the more stress we place on our musculo-skeletal system.

Some of the most common postural habits that many of my patients have are: sitting with head looking down or turned to one side, sitting with legs crossed, sitting with a slightly forward slouched back of the chair, sleeping on stomach with head turned to one side, sleeping on your side with the top leg rolled over.

You can check your posture at home. Stand up straight with your arms down in a relaxed position. Have someone look at your ears, shoulders, and each hip. Are they level comparing one side to the other or is one side higher or lower than the other?

If you find that you have some postural imbalances call HealthFirst to get a thorough comprehensive spinal exam.

Good posture does a whole lot more than just allow you to stand and walk tall. It's a full-body improvement that benefits you from head to toe.

Benefits of good posture are: Increased joint mobility, improved balance, overall wellness and decreased injury.

Consequences of poor posture are: Increased muscle tension, increased pain, increased fatigue, and increased degenerative arthritis.

Health Healing System

At HealthFirst we have developed a wellness system that establishes a continuous care plan for your spine and entire body. Through extensive research,wellness studies,and more than 35 years experience, HealthFirst has developed the exclusive Health Healing System to provide you with the absolute best care.

It is a proven way to measure where you are and monitor your progress.

Discover our Health Healing System: Relief, Restoration, Revitalization and Praktikos. Reach and exceed milestones you never though possible.

Better Health Through Better Living

Understanding the Chiropractic message is very simple. Everyone has an inner wisdom within them that always knows what the body needs to be perfect. Chiropractors are the only health care specialists that are committed to releasing the perfect power within you by unwinding your nervous system stress and by balancing postural distortions.

Many of our patients choose a Chiropractic lifestyle for their entire life.

Pain Reliever Facts

It is estimated that over 40,000 Americans each year have to be hospitalized due to the side effects of these "NSAIDS" (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). That's correct, aspirin, acetaminophen, Tylenol, Excedrin, Advil, and Nuprin.

In many of these cases, the suggested dose of the pain reliever has caused severe intestinal bleeding. In fact, clinical researchers tell us Ibuprophen causes you to bleed a teaspoon of blood everytime you take one.

Over 6,000 Americans actually die every year from NSAID- related complications,from taking pain relievers.

If you take any of these NSAID's before going to bed, you will likely cut your body's production of melatonin, a hormone that helps you sleep, by 75%.

<3Happy Valentine's Day<3

Wishing a very Happy Valentine's Day to you and yours!!<3

If You Want to Live Longer, Die Laughing

Children laugh an average 400 times a day, adults 15. But can laughter keep you healthy? "It is possible", Lee Bark, associate director at The Center for Neuroimmunology at the Loma Linda School of Medicine, says in "Parenting Magazine".

According to Berk, laughter helps keep life balance and is a key part of a healthy lifestyle. Researchers have found that laughter helps produce NK Cells, which fight infections.

Laughter also suppresses the release of cortisol, a harmone that weakens the immune system. Laughter also increases circulatory capacity and strengthens organs.

Children and Chiropractic

In my 27 years of practice, I have always expressed the need for children to be under Chiropractic care.

The spine is subject to stress and strain from the very moment of birth.Childbirth itself is the first shock to the spine and nervous system.

As the infant develops, the first steps and falling on their rear ends time after time. Falling and hitting their heads, tricycle accidents, play ground accidents, and sports injuries are just a few ways that many childrens spines become stressed and injured.

Many times these injuries to the spine and musculo-skeletal system becomes undetected creating for spinal weaknesses as they age.

Many parents will ask me when they should get their child checked and I always tell them the sooner the better. Getting your childs spine checked by a Chiropractic specialist may be more important than getting their eyes and teeth checked.

Include a Chiropractic exam for your child in their yearly check ups.

Muscle Relaxer Shortage?

Orchestrated by your nervous sysytem, your body supplies the correct dosage of antibiotics, enzymes, endorphins, and other compounds precisely when they are needed. If not, why?

Liquid Candy

Everything about soft drinks is BIG... big ad budgets, big sale and big serving sizes. They're a big part of our diets and a big health problem.

Coca Cola sells over 1 billion of their products daily. The world consumes over 47 billion servings of beverages every day.

Americans spend over $60 billion a year on soft drinks. This is for a sugared artificial non-nutrient drink that causes more harm to the body than it does good.

A 12 Oz. can of a non-diet cola has about 10 teaspoons of sugar and 150 calories.

When you or your children are looking for something to drink, think twice about a cola and switch to a healthy glass of water.

Topics

I try to cover many different topics. Let me know if you have a specific topic you would like me to discuss.

God's Abundant Life

Happiness is a choice. When you get up in the morning, you can choose to be happy and enjoy that day, or you can choose to be unhappy and go around with a sour attitude. Its up to you.

If you make the mistake of allowing your circumstances to dictate your happiness, then you risk missing out on God's abundant life.

Change the Channel

We all know how to use the remote control to change the channels on T.V. If we see something we don't like, no big deal-we just flip the channel.

We need to learn how to change the channels in our mind when negative images and thoughts of the past pop up unexpectedly.

Unfortunately, when some people see those negative experiences on their minds' "screens," instead of quickly changing channels, they pull up a chair and get some popcorn, as though they're going to watch a good movie.

They willingly allow themselves to relive all these hurts and pains. Then they wonder why they are depressed, upset, or discouraged.

You have the choice to change the channels in your mind. Take charge of the remote and focus on the good.

February is Heart Month

February is heart month. Heart disease is the number one cause of death in our country.

The heart is a very large muscle whose job is to pump blood out to the body where your cells use the blood for oxygen and nutrients.

Studies show that the heart is one of the most receptive organs in our bodies to good nutrition.

Make sure you take time to review your eating habits and include good heart nutrients.

Many medications deplete your body of many needed nutrients. It is important to include many vegetables in your daily diet.

Standard Process makes a great supplement called Cardio Plus. This along with folic acid, Vitamin B, and a multi-mineral will enhance heart function.

Most important is to make sure you are eating smart and making good decisions on your food selections. A good heart always starts with eating your vegetables and fruits.

What's Up Doc?

When it comes to good nutrition for the eyes, Popeye tops Bugs Bunny.

While good for your eyes, carrots aren't as powerful as spinach. Research shows that more protective benefits come from the lutein found in spinach than the beta-carotene found in carrots.

I would include both of these vegetables in your daily diet along with others and make sure you find time to include at least seven servings of these great vegetables everyday.(one cup equals one serving)

Do Nuts Cause Diverticulitis?

Nuts can theoretically get stuck in those little pouches in your colon that are indicative of diverticulitis, but nuts don't actually cause it. In fact, there's never been a case where nuts have been implicated as the perpetrator. The real culprit is not having enough fiber and water in your diet.

Fiber helps keep digested food bulky and soft-so it passes through the colon easily. Fiber makes it easier for food to move through your intestines without much pressure being placed on your tubing.

Found solely in plant foods, fiber is largely indigestible as it passes through the digestive tract. It contains no calories, but makes you fill full which helps control over eating.

Some good forms of fiber are grapefruit, oranges, grapes, raisins, dried fruit, sweet potatoes peas, zucchini, whole wheat, whole grains, beans, and lentils.

Catching Colds

Can I catch a cold by being in the cold?

It's an old wives' tale that you can catch a cold by running around in the cold without a hat on. Research shows that being chilled or wet has no effect on whether or not people caught the common cold.

What does matter, is the condition of your immune system. When your body is run down and depleted in proper nutrients it weakens your immune system and makes it difficult for your body to fight off those bugs.

Get plenty of rest, eat well, and be happy.

An Old Cherokee Tale

Healthy people choose to develop better healthier habits. You can't keep doing the same unhealthy things and expect your health to be better.

An old Cherokee tale tells of a grandfather teaching life principles to his grandson. The old cherokee told his grandson that inside every person is a battle raging between two wolves. One wolf is evil. It's angry, jealous, lazy, unforgiving unhappy and unhealthy. The other wolf is good. He is filled with love, kindness, self-control, respect, happiness and health.

The little grandson asked "which wolf usually wins?" the grandfather said, "whichever one you feed."

Make sure starting today you feed the right wolf inside of you.

Studies say that 90 percent of our everyday behavior is based on our habits. Change your habits and you change your life.

Wax in My Ear

If you have excess wax in your ear, try some mineral oil.Use a dropper to drop one-two drops in your ear, then lie down with that ear facing up. Try to lie in that position for 45-60 minutes. The mineral oil should dissolve any wax in the ear.