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What’s Inside the Average American Medicine Cabinet? And What Should Be.

What’s Inside the Average American Medicine Cabinet? And What Should Be.

What’s Inside the Average American Medicine Cabinet? And What Should Be.Take a look inside the average American’s medicine cabinet and you are likely to find out-of-date prescription medications, half-used bottles of lotion, some painkillers and a box of Band-Aids. Some of these are useful, and some should have been disposed of long ago. Along with the annual maintenance that you perform on your smoke detector, your medicine cabinet should have a thorough evaluation and clean-out once a year as well.

Many minor health issues can be treated at home, saving you and your doctor unnecessary time and expense. The key is to be sure that what you have on hand is effective for treating your problem. Medicines lose their effectiveness over time, so any medicine that is beyond its expiration date should be discarded. Do not flush medicines down the toilet or dispose of them in the trash, as they can make their way into the water system, which is becoming an increasing problem for water treatment facilities. Instead, drop off expired medicines at your local pharmacy, where they will dispose of them safely.

Experts advise that the following items should be staples in any medicine cabinet:

Painkillers – It is useful to have a few different types on hand, to treat different types of pain. Aspirin is best for general pain relief and to reduce fever, acetaminophen is easier on the stomach and good for children (who should not take aspirin due to the danger of Reye’s syndrome), and ibuprofen is an anti-inflammatory useful for treating muscle cramps, sprains and arthritis pain. None of these should be taken in large amounts, as they can harm the liver.

Antihistamine/Decongestant – For itching, sneezing and congestion due to colds and allergies.

Cold and flu remedies – To reduce the aches, pain and fever of a cold or flu.

Cough medicine – Can be either a suppressant (to reduce coughing) or an expectorant (to loosen phlegm and make coughing more productive). However, FDA pediatricians warn that cough medicine should not be given to children under 6 years of age because of the potential for severe harmful side effects. Studies have found that honey is actually more effective than most cough medicines in reducing coughing. Honey, however, should not be given to children under one year of age because of the risk of infant botulism.

Gastrointestinal remedies – To treat indigestion, heartburn, diarrhea and nausea. Pepto-Bismol and some type of antacid are useful items to have on hand.

First aid kit – To treat minor injuries, a basic first aid kit should contain Band-Aids, sterile dressing, medical tape, tweezers, eyewash, antiseptic cream, an ace bandage and a thermometer.

Your bathroom is not the best place to keep medications, as the heat and moisture from the shower can speed their deterioration. A better choice is to keep them in a cool, dark, dry place such as in a linen closet. By keeping your medicine cabinet well-stocked and up-to-date, you may be able to save yourself a trip to the doctor.

Remember, that in addition to basic medical supplies, one of the best ways to stay healthy is to get a regular adjustment from Dr. Oblander!

Have a Cold? Top Ten Tips for Getting Better Faster

Have a Cold? Top Ten Tips for Getting Better Faster

sick-man-with-thermometer
sick-man-with-thermometer

The common cold: Even though Americans have over a billion colds per year, there’s nothing “common” about it when you’ve got one. The sneezing, the scratchy throat, the runny nose, the nasal congestion, and the watery eyes can make your life miserable. Even though most colds go away within three to seven days, there are steps you can take to boost your body’s immune system and help get rid of your cold sooner than that. Read on for our “Top 10 Tips” on getting over your cold quickly, consolidated from healthcare experts all over the world.

  1. First, make sure you’ve really got a cold. The symptoms listed above are those of the common cold, which is a disease of the upper respiratory tract caused by a number of different viruses. But if these symptoms are accompanied by more severe ones such as muscle aches, high fever, chills, headache, and fatigue, chances may be that it’s not a cold at all, but the flu instead. This is important to find out, because if you have a serious case of the flu, you may need to see a doctor and take an antiviral medication like Tamiflu, which can shorten the length of the outbreak. However, if you’ve got a cold, not only will the antiviral medication be ineffective, it can even weaken your immune system in the long run.
  2. Don’t “tough it out”—stay at home and get some rest. Going to work will only make your cold last longer, and you can expose all your coworkers to the virus as well. So take a few days off and give your body the rest it needs to recover and heal faster.
  3. Drink lots and lots of liquids, including—yes, really—chicken soup. Your mother’s advice to drink lots of fluids was correct, as it turns out. Research has shown that drinking warm fluids helps to relieve the most common cold symptoms and also loosens sinus secretions that cause a buildup of mucus. Hot tea or broth is a good choice, as is coffee, which has been shown to increase alertness in people with colds. And interestingly enough, the centuries-old prescription to “Have a nice bowl of chicken soup.” is also correct—it has been shown to be more hydrating and thus more beneficial than other liquids.
  4. Gargle with salt water. Gargling with 1/2 teaspoon of salt dissolved in 8 ounces of water can help to relieve your sore or scratchy throat.
  5. Use over-the-counter medications (very selectively) to deal with runny nose and coughs. A pharmacy has reliable saline nose drops or sprays and cough syrups that can help to make these cold symptoms more bearable, although they won’t make the cold go away any faster.
  6. Steam the cold away. If you have access to a steam bath, take one—or many. If you don’t, you can improvise by leaning your head over a bowl of hot water or by taking a long, steamy shower. Inhaling warm, moist air helps to loosen and thin out mucus.
  7. Boost your immune system with supplements. Research has shown that taking zinc supplements during the first couple of days may help shorten the duration of your cold and perhaps reduce its severity. But don’t take zinc on an empty stomach, and don’t use intranasal zinc nose drops or sprays; the FDA has warned that they can permanently impair your sense of smell. Vitamin C can also help to shorten colds, whether in supplement form or in fruits and vegetables. Echinacea, elderberry syrup, and raw honey have also been shown to shorten colds.
  8. Avoid smoke and polluted air. Anything that affects your ability to breathe properly is going to extend your cold.
  9. Don’t reinfect yourself or others. Practice “safe sneezing and coughing” by covering your nose and mouth and carefully discarding any tissues you use. Wash your hands often and consider using hand sanitizers to keep from infecting family, friends, coworkers, and yes, even yourself. If you contracted the cold at work and others there still have their colds, avoid the place for a few days if you can until people get better.
  1. Use over-the-counter pain relievers to reduce inflammation. Used in moderation, aspirin, acetaminophen, ibuprofen, and naproxen can all help relieve minor bodily aches that may accompany your cold, but they also act as anti-inflammatories and can reduce a fever and speed up the healing process.
What to Look For When Buying Nutritional Supplements

What to Look For When Buying Nutritional Supplements

pillsThere are quite literally hundreds of different brands of nutritional supplements (also called dietary supplements) on the market today, and it’s difficult for the average consumer to tell the difference between one and another. Each manufacturer claims that its products are supportive of your health, but how can you really determine if a nutritional supplement is safe and effective? Then there’s the price tag. Brands vary considerably in cost—one multivitamin may cost 20 cents per day, whereas another can cost a whopping $7.50! How can you decide whether it’s worth it? Our goal is to provide you with some practical advice—basic facts combined with a few do’s and don’ts—that you can use to be a more educated consumer if you decide to buy nutritional supplements.

Just because a nutritional supplement is “natural” does NOT necessarily mean it is safe. There are plenty of products that can be dangerous if you suffer from certain health conditions, use them along with certain other foods, medicines or supplements, or take them incorrectly. Even if you avoid interactions and take a supplement correctly, it is still possible for your body to have a negative reaction to a supplement. If this happens, stop taking the supplement immediately and see your doctor.

The FDA regulates dietary supplements very lightly. A supplement manufacturer does not need FDA approval to put its products on the market, but the FDA is responsible for monitoring the products’ safety, removing them only if they have caused problems. However, the FDA does require that manufacturers follow “good manufacturing practices” for processing and that they meet quality standards. This includes ensuring that the supplement contains the stated amount of ingredients and that it is free from contamination from things such as pesticides and heavy metals.

One thing to look for in a nutritional supplement is the “USP Verified” seal of approval. This is given to products that meet the stringent requirements for quality, purity and potency as established by the non-profit group U.S. Pharmacopeia.

The form in which you take your dietary supplements may also make a difference. Tablets tend to contain more fillers and binders than capsules because the powder they are made from must stick together in a regular mass. They may also be coated to keep it from falling apart and to make swallowing easier. They may also have added coloring and flavoring to make them more palatable. All else equal, it usually makes sense to avoid these. Capsules or gel caps are more likely to be free from excess fillers and binders. But if you are vegetarian or vegan, be sure to read the label to ensure the capsules are not derived from animal sources (cellulose is the most common vegan-friendly form of capsule).

Always read the product’s label thoroughly to see exactly what each supplement contains. While buying the most expensive supplement obviously won’t guarantee its quality or effectiveness, it is often true that you get what you pay for. Cheap supplements are frequently made from inferior ingredients or those that cost less to manufacture, and are often less readily absorbed by the body. Who wants to pay for supplements only to have them flushed down the toilet? A high-quality supplement will be more bioavailable, which is what you’re taking it for in the first place!

As with most other products, it usually pays to do a little homework before choosing a manufacturer and buying a supplement. Above all, you’ll want a manufacturer who has a good reputation and stands behind its products. Good companies will stress their excellent quality control and will be happy to provide you with independent evaluations of their products. Many chiropractors have specialized training and experience related to nutrition, and can help you decide which dietary supplements might be right for you.

Spotlight on Drug Interactions: What You should Know

Spotlight on Drug Interactions: What You should Know

drug-interactions
drug-interactions

Medications—prescription, over-the-counter, and herbal/nutritional­—are used every day by millions of Americans to treat illnesses and to help them stay healthy.  There is no question that these medications have improved our lives: Just try to imagine a world without antibiotics or without the tens of thousands of other medications that we rely on to save lives and prevent serious diseases.

At the same time, because Americans take so many medications—often simultaneously—a growing health risk has emerged in the form of drug interactions. Drug interactions are the negative side effects that can occur when we combine medications with other medications or with certain types of food or drinks that we also consume. For example, you have probably received a prescription at some point and been told by your doctor or pharmacist not to drink alcohol while taking it, because that could cause negative drug interactions. But did you know that a simple thing like grapefruit juice could also cause negative interactions? In a review published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, researchers identified 85 different medications that interact negatively with grapefruit or grapefruit juice. Of these medications, 43 pose a risk of serious side effects, including severe symptoms like respiratory failure, kidney failure, intestinal bleeding, and even sudden death.

The growing possibility of serious—and even deadly—drug interactions places an increasing burden on physicians, pharmacists, and the public to become more aware of this problem and to take steps to prevent it. The risks of negative drug-to-drug and drug-to-food reactions are numerous and can be affected by factors such as the age and gender of the patient as well as his or her medical history, general health, body composition, and the number of medications used.

It is virtually impossible for a layman to be aware of all of the possible negative drug-to-drug and drug-to-food interactions, so the most important piece of advice to take to heart is to never leave your doctor’s office after having been prescribed a drug without asking when to take it, how much of it to take, and whether there is anything it should not be taken with.

This should be considered a basic health safety procedure, and you should practice it with scrupulousness. For example, if you are meeting with your doctor and are about to be prescribed medication, be sure to tell him or her if you are using any other medications, nutritional supplements or herbal products. Your doctor needs this information to safely prescribe the medications you need. Even “small” things that you think may not matter might actually matter a great deal! Remember our grapefruit example? If you normally eat a lot of grapefruit or drink a lot of grapefruit juice, you should mention this. Why? Because one of the chemical compounds found in grapefruit increases the absorption of many drugs. This can enhance their effects and make them more powerful, sometimes dangerously so.

This does not mean, of course, that you need to provide every detail of your diet and lifestyle to your doctor—focus on the aspects that you think may be relevant. You can learn a lot about possible negative drug interactions by reading publications such as this document on common drug interactions, “Drug Interactions: What You Should Know,” available from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Also, if you want to be proactive, you can consult the online Interactive Drug Checker at WebMD, which allows you to enter the name of a prescription, over-the-counter, or herbal medication and then enter additional medications and find possible negative interactions between them.

Another all-important piece of advice is to always read the label that comes with the medication or supplement. It will contain information about the medication as well as other drugs, supplements, and foods that should not be taken at the same time.

Head-to-Head: Chiropractic Adjustments or NSAIDs for Acute Lower Back Pain?

Head-to-Head: Chiropractic Adjustments or NSAIDs for Acute Lower Back Pain?

???????????????????????Lower back pain (LBP) is so widespread that it was listed in the 2010 Global Burden of Disease report as being the single leading cause of disability worldwide. Over half of all working Americans have lower back pain symptoms each year, resulting in lost work time and enormous expense – Americans spend over $50 billion each year to treat their back pain.

So it’s not surprising that a great deal of research is being conducted to determine the most effective methods for treating acute LBP. Much of this research has sought to compare the effectiveness of spinal manipulation (the sort of adjustments performed by Doctors of Chiropractic) with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). While these studies have generally not produced definitive findings one way or the other, they have served to highlight potential safety concerns related to NSAIDs. For example, investigators in one study found that diclofenac (an NSAID commonly used to treat LBP) increased the risk of gastrointestinal complications by 54% and posed other risks to the kidneys.

Given the added concern about NSAID side effects, researchers and clinicians have had a renewed interest in learning whether drug-free manual therapies—chiropractic care, in particular—can really be just as effective, but safer. According to a recent study published in the April 2013 edition of the journal Spine, the answer is YES! In fact, the research team that conducted the study found that chiropractic adjustments were both safer and FAR MORE EFFECTIVE.

In this study, investigators divided a total of 101 patients suffering from acute lower back pain into three groups. One group received chiropractic spinal manipulation plus a placebo (sham) version of the NSAID diclofenac (meaning that the only treatment actually being offered was chiropractic care). A second group received sham spinal manipulation and real diclofenac (meaning that the NSAID was the only treatment being employed). And a third group received the same sham spinal manipulation plus placebo diclofenac (meaning that no treatment was actually being offered – this was the “control group”). All treatments were “blinded,” meaning that the patients did not know whether they were receiving real or sham spinal manipulation or real or placebo diclofenac. Outcomes were measured based on a combination of patient self-reporting, physical examination, missed work time, and the amount of rescue medication (paracetamol tablets) participants required over a 12-week period.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, about half of the participants in the “control” group receiving no treatment dropped out of the study because of intolerable pain. Comparing the remaining no-intervention subjects and the two remaining intervention groups, researchers found that the group receiving chiropractic high-velocity low-amplitude (HVLA) manipulation fared significantly better than the group being treated with diclofenac and the control group.

Researchers reported a clear difference between the two intervention groups: “The groups receiving spinal manipulation showed a faster and more distinct reduction in the RMS [root mean square, a standardized test of flexibility and mobility]. Subjects also noted a faster and quantitatively more distinct reduction in their subjective estimation of pain after manipulation.” They also found that the group treated only with the NSAID diclofenac required more rescue medication (paracetamol) than the spinal manipulation group, taking 3 times as many tablets and for twice the number of days. No negative effects were reported from the spinal manipulation group, but several negative effects were reported from the diclofenac group.

So, overall, this study indicates a clear “win” for chiropractic in the treatment of acute lower back pain. Not only does HVLA spinal manipulation avoid the potential safety concerns of NSAID medications such as diclofenac, it has been found to be far more effective. Remember this the next time you experience lower back pain, and consider seeing your chiropractor first. This one simple decision may help you recover more quickly and more completely while also helping you avoid the negative side effects of NSAIDs.

 

What You Need to Know About Depression – Oblander Chiropractic

What You Need to Know About Depression – Oblander Chiropractic

I was once a person with depression. Not “just” the baby blues or a few months of feeling down and out – I had all out don’t-want-to-live anymore depression for about 5 years.

It is surviving those five years of my life that has been a major contributor to my passion to help others have health and wellness in their lives.

The dictionary defines depression as: A condition of general emotional dejection and withdrawal; sadness greater and more prolonged than that warranted by any objective reason.

My personal definition of depression is pain, anguish, torture, agony, grief, melancholy, and suffering, etc. which overshadows the life of an individual who has every reason to feel otherwise. Depression is the sponge that robs life of its joy and satisfaction while wreaking havoc with relationships, families, and the life of the depressed individual.

Most people think that depression is a mental illness – in the medical books that is how it is defined but I can tell you from personal experience that depression affects every area of health: mental, emotional, physical and spiritual. I can also tell you that for each of those headline-grabbing stories about those with “mental illnesses” gone haywire, there are millions of depression victims suffering silently who are of no danger to anyone but possibly themselves. Those millions only want to be well again.

My own experience with depression included allopathic (MD’s) treatment and alternative treatment.

My first experience was with MD’s. MD’s sought to mask my symptoms with medications. The egos of the doctors who treated me did not allow me, as the patient, to be a viable participant in my own treatment. Unfortunately, patients with mental illnesses are often judged incapable by health professionals of being able to have clear, coherent thoughts. My doctors may have thought I was “crazy” but even now – these many years later I believe that I knew my body and what my body was experiencing better than anybody and that I should have been considered an essential participant in my treatment. However, the issues I had with allopathic treatment went deeper than that. I have always believed in addressing the source of a problem. Therefore, I wanted to get to the root of what was causing my depression. Getting to the root of a health issue is not something a standard MD does. A standard MD looks at symptoms, makes a diagnosis, and whips out the prescription tablet. For me, masking symptoms was not an adequate solution.

My second experience was with chiropractors. They tested my blood, found that I was suffering from severe adrenal fatigue and that I was in need of other nutritional components. They recommended the appropriate herbal remedies. From there, they worked with me to get to the root of the other physical ailments that I was suffering from – believing that all of the ailments I was suffering from were related. Finally, they encouraged me to do stretching exercises, deep breathing, and to incorporate inspirational books and literature into my life on a daily basis. Their treatment included regular adjustments to make sure that my nervous system (and therefore my entire body) was working as optimally as it could.

Eventually, we were able to find that my depression was directly related to my 24/7 migraines. I had been suffering from migraines for almost 13 years by the time I first received chiropractic treatment. The chiropractors who treated me helped me find the cause of my headaches and then eliminate them. Once my pain levels were significantly reduced – my depression left.

The chiropractic treatment and nutritional therapy that I received was not a “magic pill” and my depression and migraine headaches were not remedied overnight. However, they were eliminated and, for me, finding  and removing the cause was a much better solution than masking symptoms for the rest of my life.

As a former sufferer of depression, I can tell you what depression was and what it wasn’t and what I have since seen in common among those I know who suffer with depression.

Depression, for me, was not a complete withdrawal from life. It was also not a choice. I could not choose to be better just because I wanted to be. Although learning to have a more positive mindset helped – it too was insufficient.  What depression was was the loss of the emotional coordination I had once had. I was no longer able to navigate the normal ups and downs of life with the same tenacity and flexibility I had once possessed. It was not unlike losing muscle control in a hand or a limb but in this case it was my emotional state that lost its coordination and control.

I also can tell you that just like any victim of an accident or illness – my need for love and support did not go away – instead, it became even more important.

There are several components that I believe link themselves to depression:

Inadequate Nutrition – I believe that the absence of adequate nutrition can be a huge contributor to depression. Good whole food supplements are wonderful but a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains is not just important to a healthy body – it is also important to healthy emotions.

  1. Health Issues – Physical health that struggles can and usually will affect emotional health. Again, what we eat is so important and so is exercise. Those endorphins that help us feel better when we do not have depression also help us feel better when we do. Chemical imbalance is a common culprit in depression. (Sometimes chemical imbalances can be caused by prescription drugs.)
  2. Lack of Proper Self-care – How we take care of ourselves and the expectations we place on ourselves is huge. I was personally guilty of too often burning the candlestick at both ends. I see many sufferers of depression who are guilty of the same thing. Our bodies are amazing in their ability to adapt and compensate. For those who push the limits relentlessly there often comes a time when their body decides to give them a warning that they need to slow down and take life a little easier. Depression is often that warning.
  3. Negative Self-talk – We all talk to ourselves. We all have self expectations. It is common for those who suffer from depression to have unrealistic expectations of themselves and to be especially hard on and/or demanding of themselves. We all need to be as kind to ourselves as we are to our best friend or sweetheart. It is important that we love ourselves.
  4. Lack of Spirituality – Spirituality or the ability to look to a higher source of power to assist us in life is incredibly important. When we believe that we can only rely upon ourselves or that it is us against the world – just that thought alone can be depressing. I found that spending time each day with inspirational literature and working to build my personal spirituality helped me immensely.
  5. Lack of Faith – The faith I am talking about here includes faith in ourselves, in our fellow man and in our creator. Believing in ourselves and in our ability to change, to improve and to create a meaningful life is incredibly important. Believing that we can heal and that life can improve is critical.

 I remember once having a conversation with a woman regarding my depression. Frustrated with my inability to function in a healthy and normal way, she accused me of choosing to be depressed. I can tell you that no one “chooses” to be depressed. However, I do believe that our lifestyle choices can greatly influence our propensity for depression. I also believe that our lifestyle and attitude choices greatly influence the type of health we will enjoy and how we will age. It would be wonderful if depression could become a thing of the past. In the meantime, I hope we will all do what we can to minimize its likelihood and to help those who are suffering!