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What Everyone Should Know About Heavy Metal Poisoning

What Everyone Should Know About Heavy Metal Poisoning

Even if you do not spend a lot of time in an industrial manufacturing environment, there is a chance that you may be exposed to heavy metals on a regular basis. Although it is not a common problem, you could be at risk of heavy metal poisoning (sometimes referred to as heavy metal toxicity) from such things as eating lots of large fish, getting some types of immunizations and painting your bedroom.  

There are 35 metals that are considered toxic to us, though only 23 of them are actually categorized as “heavy metals”. Of these, the 15 most common (and therefore the ones to be most concerned about) are arsenic, bismuth, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, copper, iron, lead, manganese, mercury, nickel, selenium, silver, thalium and zinc. Some of these (such as copper, iron, manganese and zinc) are metals that our bodies require in trace amounts in order for us to maintain good health. However, an overabundance of any of these metals can lead to serious health problems such as reduced function of the brain and central nervous system, alteration to the structure of the blood and major organ damage. 

The problem lies in the fact that the body cannot metabolize heavy metals easily, so they bioaccumulate in the soft tissues. Arsenic, lead and mercury are the most frequent sources of heavy metal toxicity.  

Symptoms of heavy metal toxicity include chronic pain, general discomfort and fatigue, brain fog, chronic infections, food allergies, gastrointestinal problems, dizziness, headaches and/or migraines, mood swings, depression, anxiety, and feelings of numbness, tingling and burning in the extremities. 

If you have many of the above symptoms, there are a few tests you can take to determine if you have heavy metal poisoning. Tests that can determine the presence of heavy metals in your body include a blood test, urine test, x-rays, fecal analysis and a hair and fingernail analysis.  

Conventional treatment for heavy metal poisoning usually involves some form of chelation therapy that uses a chelating agent to remove heavy metals from the body. During chelation (from the Greek word meaning “claw”), the chelating agent binds to the heavy metals in the body so they can be excreted. 

Following are some tips on how to reduce your risk of heavy metal poisoning: 

  • Eat large fish such as tuna sparingly. Fish at the top of the food chain bioaccumulate heavy metals such as mercury, which is why scientists and nutrition experts advise that you eat fish only twice a week. If you want to get more oily fish in your diet, stick with small fish such as sardines, which are low in heavy metals.
     
  • Have any mercury fillings removed from your teeth. Ask for glass ionomer or composite (resin) fillings, which are not only better for your overall health, but are comparable in price and better for the long-term health of your teeth. If your dentist insists on using mercury fillings, change dentists.
     
  • Ban smoking from your house. Not only can second-hand smoke affect your health and the health of your family (particularly your children), but so can “third-hand” smoke.  Studies have found that even those who smoke outside still carry the residues of tobacco smoke on their clothing and in their hair (which is why you can always tell who is a smoker when in an elevator with them). These residues include arsenic, lead, polonium and other carcinogens.
     
  • Eat organic food as much as possible. Conventional agriculture uses a lot of heavy metals in food production, from fertilizers and insecticides to storage.
     
  • Ceramic dishware from some foreign countries can contain heavy metals such as lead and cadmium in their paint. Check to ensure your dishware is free of these substances.
Raking Leaves and a Pain-Free Fall

Raking Leaves and a Pain-Free Fall

With summer becoming a distant memory, the leaves will soon be turning colors and falling from the trees, blowing about your yard, driveway and sidewalk. So it’s only natural that your thoughts are turning to the day you’ll need to get the rake out and start to work. However—as with all maintenance and household tasks that require some physical exertion—it‘s very important for you to take a few common-sense precautions against accident and injury.

Fall yard work, leaf raking and other outdoor activities carry numerous risks, including upper and lower back strain, neck strain, and shoulder pain. Just like sports, this type of physical activity can increase your chances of getting hurt if your body isn’t properly prepared for it. You can avoid these types of injuries by warming up, stretching and maintaining good posture as you go about your work.

Athletes are able to reduce the risk of injury by warming up and stretching. You can use this approach too. The American Chiropractic Association (ACA) recommends 10-15 minutes of stretching exercises such as trunk rotations, side-bends and knee-to-chest pulls. When these are combined with a short walk or some jumping jacks (which help to stimulate circulation) and followed by additional stretches, the body is ready for the sort of manual labor associated with raking and yard work.

While raking your yard, good posture can also prevent back problems—make sure you keep your back straight and your head up! Use common sense while working: lift with your legs and bend with your knees, taking care that you don’t strain your back while picking up bundles of leaves and grass. If you’re likely to carry heavy items, hold them close to your body to help prevent back strain. In order to take the pressure off your back, rake using the “scissors” stance: put your right foot forward and the left one back, then reverse after a few minutes. When using a lawn mower, try to use your core body weight to move it as opposed to your arms and back.

Also, remember that it’s important to pace yourself and take frequent breaks. This is particularly important when the weather is hot. If this is the case, also be sure to drink lots of water and wear sun-protection such as a hat, sunblock and sunglasses. Switching tasks regularly can help prevent repetitive motion injuries in vulnerable muscle groups—change body positions, or simply move onto another job for a short period of time before returning to the previous one.

Investing in extra protective gear (maybe some gloves to prevent blisters, a mask if you’re prone to allergies and protective eyewear) can make life easier while taking on outdoor chores. Ergonomic tools with extra padding, larger or curved handles are less tiring to use over a long time period.

One of the most useful things you can do to help prevent accidents and injuries is to have a plan for what you want to accomplish and to make sure that you have realistic expectations about how much you can get done in the time available. If you’re unaccustomed to physical labor, chances are pretty good that you’ll feel a bit stiff or possibly sore the next day. If this happens, you can use ice to soothe the discomfort. Of course, chiropractic care is always available if you need it.

As chiropractic physicians, we’re experts in diagnosing and treating a wide variety of conditions that affect the musculoskeletal and nervous system. We know from experience how easy it is for fall clean-up to unexpectedly go wrong. Please be smart and take reasonable precautions!

Teens, Back Pain and Chiropractic Care

Teens, Back Pain and Chiropractic Care

Looking at the big picture, low back pain is a big problem. The condition affects more than 600 million people worldwide, including over one-third of all Americans—more than the number of people affected by diabetes, heart disease, and cancer combined. The financial burden (medical care plus lost productivity) caused by chronic lower back pain in America exceeds $550 billion annually.

That said, one of the saddest aspects of chronic lower back pain is that it doesn’t discriminate between adults and children. And in an era when teens’ musculoskeletal systems are particularly at risk because of reduced physical activity and poor posture (thanks to heavy school backpacks, improper sitting ergonomics and lots of time spent on mobile devices), this problem is only growing larger. In addition, a number of studies have already indicated that lower back pain in adolescents is strongly associated with the development of chronic lower back pain later in life. That’s the bad news for teens. However, the good news is that those adolescents who have been successfully treated to eliminate lower back pain in their youth have a lower risk of developing chronic lower back pain as they grow older.

So it’s natural that the medical community is keenly interested in learning which treatments are most successful in terms of eliminating the lower back pain itself and in preventing it from recurring later in life. This interest led to a recent study. The aim of the study was to determine which of the commonly-available treatment methodologies were most effective. To determine this, researchers performed a meta-analysis of existing studies published in English, French, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese to measure which of the treatments used in these studies produced the most consistently positive outcomes in terms of pain, disability, flexibility, endurance, and mental health. The researchers found studies that produced data for 11 treatment groups and 5 control groups involving a total of 334 children and adolescents, and then compared the data.

Their findings were both strong and definitive. Of all the treatment methodologies used in the individual studies, the ones most effective in producing short-term and long-term positive outcomes in the five areas studied were those that involved therapeutic physical conditioning and manual therapy. That is, treatments provided by “hands on” practitioners such as chiropractors, osteopaths, and physical therapists.

These therapies, commonly involving joint and spinal manipulation and ultrasound treatment to reduce pain, were subjectively found to be more effective by the patients than other treatments. The patients’ subjective analysis was confirmed in most of the studies by clinician assessments. Naturally, these “manual therapy” treatment options were preferable in many other ways as well, because they avoided reliance on potentially addictive painkillers like OxyContin and Vicodin, epidural steroid injections, and surgery.

These findings confirm what Doctors of Chiropractic have observed in their own clinics. Over the years, we have seen many patients (of all ages) benefit from the manual therapies we use to provide relief for their lower back pain. So if you (or your children) experience lower back pain—whether occasional or chronic—contact your chiropractor and ask him or her to explain to you the treatment options available, and what they can do to relieve your symptoms and allow you to enjoy life free from pain once again.

Why Does Back Pain Tend to Recur?

Why Does Back Pain Tend to Recur?

In a recent Consumer Reports survey, 88% of more than 14,000 subscribers who had lower back pain indicated that it had recurred during the prior 12 months. While other academic studies suggest that recurrence may be somewhat less widespread—perhaps affecting between a third and half of all back pain sufferers—it’s very clear that many people experience back pain as a recurring problem.

Professor Doune Macdonald and fellow researchers at the University of Queensland in Brisbane were interested in learning why some people experienced a recurrence of their back pain while others did not. Their investigation found an association between recurrence of low back pain and altered muscle activity in the deep muscle fibers of the lumbar spine. These muscles are also referred to as your “core” muscles, the ones that are most targeted in Pilates training. Your core muscles give strength, balance and stability to the back, and consist of muscles in the lower back, abdomen and pelvis.

The most important of the core muscles for the stability of your back are the multifidus. These run along the length of the spine and help to take some of the pressure off the vertebral discs so that weight is more evenly distributed along the length of the back. When working properly, the multifidus muscles are activated even before any movement takes place, so as to protect the spine against injury from a sudden load of weight (such as when lifting a heavy box or bending over to tie your shoes).

According to a study published in the journal Painin 2009, Macdonald and colleagues found that the multifidus muscles showed later activation in those with recurrent low back pain than in the backs of healthy subjects. Any delay in muscle activation can be a potential problem, as a sudden loading of weight on the spine when it is unprepared can lead to abnormal bending and twisting of the spine, increasing the risk of injury.

Possessing strong multifidus muscles is one of the obvious solutions to preventing the occurrence of low back pain. However, part of the problem is that once this set of muscles has been injured, the multifidus tends to atrophy due to disuse while the patient is healing. Prolonged bed rest is one of the worst ways to recover from low back pain because it encourages the multifidus to atrophy even further.

Chiropractic care that includes rehabilitation exercises and spinal adjustments has been shown to improve the function of the multifidus muscles. Your chiropractor can suggest exercises you can do at home that will strengthen your core muscles in between adjustments. The adjustments themselves will align your spine so that it functions properly and will not put excess strain on the supporting multifidus, thus reducing the likelihood of a recurrence of low back pain.