“The Doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in care of the human frame, in diet and in the cause and prevention of disease.”
Thomas Edison
As I suggested in a previous blog post Irish Medicine is just not working. Of course Medicine will always have its’ place in our world and some of us would not be alive today if it was not here. But, the end result of using drugs, surgery, injections, and lotions to promote health is clearly not working. We spent 8% of the nations gross national product on our health care service which approximates to almost €3000 per head of the population. Yet despite spending all this money Ireland is only ranked at 20 in the world in its health system performance according to the W.H.O. Why? Well contrary to what we are led to believe health is not a switch, you cannot switch it on or switch it off.
Nothing in life ever stays still; it is either growing or dying and health is no different it never stays still; you are either getting sicker or getting healthier! The direction you go in is entirely up to you!
A suitable analogy is your bank account, take too much out and not put enough back in, what happens? Well you become overdrawn and start receiving aggressive letters from the bank. If the imbalance continues eventually the bank starts repossessing things!
Your health is no different, we are all born with a health healing account if we continually abuse our bodies and do nothing to readdress the balance, our health healing account will inevitably go in to the red, and low and behold we become sick!
So what can you put back in to your Health healing account or to push you back towards better health?
Move Well
Eat Well
& Think Well
And that is all. How simple is that?
In the next BLOG we will discuss these 3 components!
Monday, March 30, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Health Is A Process Not An Event
“YOU CANNOT SOLVE A PROBLEM WITH THE SAME LEVEL OF THINKING THAT CREATED IT.” ~Albert Einstein
It is quite a staggering statistic but for the past 160 years, the top life expectancy has risen by a quarter of a year, each year. Babies born in 1900 could expect to live to age 47. By 1950 life expectancy rose to 68, and reached age 77 by the year 2000. The top life expectancy will keep growing 2.5 years per decade. The world’s top average life expectancy will be age 100 in about 60 years. As I mentioned in the last blog the elderly population is growing rapidly so the chances are the majority of you reading this are destined for a long life!
However have you ever stopped to consider how important your quality of life is as you age! Are you confident you will be active and healthy in your twilight years or will you be sick and become a drain on your family and society! It is quite a sobering question but nevertheless it is very important. Quite honestly if you don’t start taking measures now you will inevitably suffer later in life! Furthermore if current lifestyle trends continue then our children will have a shorter life expectancy than us! I reiterate health is a process and not an event!
So what have these incredible individuals who have reached 100 done? 80% of which are women! What is certain is that they are not random survivors. Genetics does not hold the answer because no centenarian has ever been recorded having a centenarian parent! So what have they done, well they have maintained ten important traits and characteristics.
Ten Keys To Longevity
1) STRONG SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS – They have meaningful relationships with family and friends. The risk of death is 2 to 4 times higher for people with fewer or weaker social relationships.
2) MANAGING STRESS – Centenarians are much better at handling stress, coping, grieving, and moving on than the general population. They realize that stress weakens the immune system and damages the brain. To neutralize stress, they exercise, practice yoga, and properly breathe for maximum relaxation.
3) PURPOSE & PASSION – They work hard and enjoy their work, are highly ambitious, with a strong will to live and a great appreciation for life.
4) HEALTHY DIET – They eat five or more fruit and vegetable servings daily which can reduce all cancers by 20% or more. Longevity has little to do with being 10% over or underweight, but has more to do with being stable and having a healthy self-image.
5) EXERCISE – The greatest longevity benefits come from aerobics for the heart and lungs and strength training for improved bone density. A well exercised bicep doesn’t deteriorate, rather it gets stronger. Someone who walks 30 minutes a day, six days a week has the same mortality rate as someone who runs 30-40 miles per week.
6) LEARNING – They welcome anything that challenges the brain and engages all senses.
7) ADAPTIVE TO CHANGE – They possess a willingness to accept new circumstances and feel well emotionally, take setbacks gracefully, and move on. They tend to be lighthearted and have a great sense of humor.
8) OPTIMISTIC IDENTITY – They enjoy their personal freedom, are emotionally resilient, love autonomy, and have a high self-esteem.
9) SPIRITUALITY- They are spiritually connected to others, live for the day, enjoy helping others grow, and nurture deep personal relationships. Their desire to live longer is built into their character
10) CHIROPRACTIC CARE – Elderly patients under chiropractic care report better overall health, fewer chronic conditions, spend fewer days in nursing homes and hospitals, are more mobile in their communities, and are more likely to report regular levels of exercise.
It is quite a staggering statistic but for the past 160 years, the top life expectancy has risen by a quarter of a year, each year. Babies born in 1900 could expect to live to age 47. By 1950 life expectancy rose to 68, and reached age 77 by the year 2000. The top life expectancy will keep growing 2.5 years per decade. The world’s top average life expectancy will be age 100 in about 60 years. As I mentioned in the last blog the elderly population is growing rapidly so the chances are the majority of you reading this are destined for a long life!
However have you ever stopped to consider how important your quality of life is as you age! Are you confident you will be active and healthy in your twilight years or will you be sick and become a drain on your family and society! It is quite a sobering question but nevertheless it is very important. Quite honestly if you don’t start taking measures now you will inevitably suffer later in life! Furthermore if current lifestyle trends continue then our children will have a shorter life expectancy than us! I reiterate health is a process and not an event!
So what have these incredible individuals who have reached 100 done? 80% of which are women! What is certain is that they are not random survivors. Genetics does not hold the answer because no centenarian has ever been recorded having a centenarian parent! So what have they done, well they have maintained ten important traits and characteristics.
Ten Keys To Longevity
1) STRONG SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS – They have meaningful relationships with family and friends. The risk of death is 2 to 4 times higher for people with fewer or weaker social relationships.
2) MANAGING STRESS – Centenarians are much better at handling stress, coping, grieving, and moving on than the general population. They realize that stress weakens the immune system and damages the brain. To neutralize stress, they exercise, practice yoga, and properly breathe for maximum relaxation.
3) PURPOSE & PASSION – They work hard and enjoy their work, are highly ambitious, with a strong will to live and a great appreciation for life.
4) HEALTHY DIET – They eat five or more fruit and vegetable servings daily which can reduce all cancers by 20% or more. Longevity has little to do with being 10% over or underweight, but has more to do with being stable and having a healthy self-image.
5) EXERCISE – The greatest longevity benefits come from aerobics for the heart and lungs and strength training for improved bone density. A well exercised bicep doesn’t deteriorate, rather it gets stronger. Someone who walks 30 minutes a day, six days a week has the same mortality rate as someone who runs 30-40 miles per week.
6) LEARNING – They welcome anything that challenges the brain and engages all senses.
7) ADAPTIVE TO CHANGE – They possess a willingness to accept new circumstances and feel well emotionally, take setbacks gracefully, and move on. They tend to be lighthearted and have a great sense of humor.
8) OPTIMISTIC IDENTITY – They enjoy their personal freedom, are emotionally resilient, love autonomy, and have a high self-esteem.
9) SPIRITUALITY- They are spiritually connected to others, live for the day, enjoy helping others grow, and nurture deep personal relationships. Their desire to live longer is built into their character
10) CHIROPRACTIC CARE – Elderly patients under chiropractic care report better overall health, fewer chronic conditions, spend fewer days in nursing homes and hospitals, are more mobile in their communities, and are more likely to report regular levels of exercise.
Friday, March 20, 2009
So would you rather be healthy or just not sick?
Welcome to our new blog! Now considering I am neither technically minded nor blessed with computer literacy this is a dive in to the complete unknown! However hopefully this will develop in to a forum that will stimulate thought and provoke action! But in reality it is not what you know that will create a change in your life; it is what you do with what you know! So please feel free to comment, ask questions and ultimately take action and responsibility for your and your family’s lives!
As a nation we may be living longer but we are becoming sicker and sicker and it is my goal and desire to promote change in our society by provoking, prompting and persuading healthier choices! So rather than relying on a plethora of drugs and medication and unnecessary operations I would like to promote a more responsible sustainable, easier and healthier approach. Our healthcare system as it is is not about Health care, it is about Disease care. Its forte is in Crisis management and life saving interventions, and I am sure there are some people reading this that owe their lives to the intervention of modern medicine. But sadly you cannot get healthy by trying to avoid being sick!
It is well established that we should be living until we are at least 126 years old! And in fact one of the fastest growing sections of the population are the over 85 year olds! Yet although reaching 100 may bring a congratulatory award from the President, it is no guarantee of a happy, contented, old age. So why are we not keeping healthy as we get older and what determines our longevity and indeed the quality of our lives?
The Pharmaceutical companies would have us believe that it is due to our genes, and the hand you are dealt or the genes you have is the best you can hope for. Fortunately science tells us in no uncertain terms that this is not the case! Our genes have not changed in 40,000 years! However every gene quite literally has a switch that can be triggered on or off! So what is causing these triggers! The answer lies in our lifestyle!
Our lifestyle stresses affect the expression of our genes and the function of our brain and our nervous system! Your Nervous System controls and coordinates all the functions of the body. Quite literally you live your life through your nervous system. However any interference with the quality or quantity of nervous system function can interfere with your health, longevity, quality of life and ultimately genetic expression!
But how do you know if you have nerve interference or a trapped nerve? Well oftentimes you don’t until things get so severe and you develop symptoms! I am sure there are those of you reading this that can testify to the fact that pressure on a nerve can cause pain and weakness, leading to sciatica or carpal tunnel syndrome. But what happens if you have pressure on a nerve that goes to a vital organ, such as the heart? Well common sense tells us that the organ, in this case the heart, cannot function properly! Now heart disease remains the number one killer in this country despite the fact that hundreds of thousands of people are on copious quantities of blood pressure medication! And there lies the problem; the focus of medicine is on the symptoms and not the cause. So medicine is focused on the detection and treatment of symptoms, disease and infirmity. So the best you can really hope for is fixing a problem after it occurs!
So what are the alternatives? Well this may come as no surprise but number one is Chiropractic! Our purpose is to promote, regain and maintain health and wellness and thereby preventing disease and infirmity! It is a very simple premise but if your nervous system is functioning better you will have a far better chance of adapting to the stresses of modern living! Please do not get me wrong here I am not advocating taking you off all blood pressure medication and nor am I treating your high blood pressure but if your nervous system is working better your body can work better. Science has proven that blood pressure falls after chiropractic adjustments! But like brushing your teeth Chiropractic is a process not an event!
March 20, 2009 12:47 PM
As a nation we may be living longer but we are becoming sicker and sicker and it is my goal and desire to promote change in our society by provoking, prompting and persuading healthier choices! So rather than relying on a plethora of drugs and medication and unnecessary operations I would like to promote a more responsible sustainable, easier and healthier approach. Our healthcare system as it is is not about Health care, it is about Disease care. Its forte is in Crisis management and life saving interventions, and I am sure there are some people reading this that owe their lives to the intervention of modern medicine. But sadly you cannot get healthy by trying to avoid being sick!
It is well established that we should be living until we are at least 126 years old! And in fact one of the fastest growing sections of the population are the over 85 year olds! Yet although reaching 100 may bring a congratulatory award from the President, it is no guarantee of a happy, contented, old age. So why are we not keeping healthy as we get older and what determines our longevity and indeed the quality of our lives?
The Pharmaceutical companies would have us believe that it is due to our genes, and the hand you are dealt or the genes you have is the best you can hope for. Fortunately science tells us in no uncertain terms that this is not the case! Our genes have not changed in 40,000 years! However every gene quite literally has a switch that can be triggered on or off! So what is causing these triggers! The answer lies in our lifestyle!
Our lifestyle stresses affect the expression of our genes and the function of our brain and our nervous system! Your Nervous System controls and coordinates all the functions of the body. Quite literally you live your life through your nervous system. However any interference with the quality or quantity of nervous system function can interfere with your health, longevity, quality of life and ultimately genetic expression!
But how do you know if you have nerve interference or a trapped nerve? Well oftentimes you don’t until things get so severe and you develop symptoms! I am sure there are those of you reading this that can testify to the fact that pressure on a nerve can cause pain and weakness, leading to sciatica or carpal tunnel syndrome. But what happens if you have pressure on a nerve that goes to a vital organ, such as the heart? Well common sense tells us that the organ, in this case the heart, cannot function properly! Now heart disease remains the number one killer in this country despite the fact that hundreds of thousands of people are on copious quantities of blood pressure medication! And there lies the problem; the focus of medicine is on the symptoms and not the cause. So medicine is focused on the detection and treatment of symptoms, disease and infirmity. So the best you can really hope for is fixing a problem after it occurs!
So what are the alternatives? Well this may come as no surprise but number one is Chiropractic! Our purpose is to promote, regain and maintain health and wellness and thereby preventing disease and infirmity! It is a very simple premise but if your nervous system is functioning better you will have a far better chance of adapting to the stresses of modern living! Please do not get me wrong here I am not advocating taking you off all blood pressure medication and nor am I treating your high blood pressure but if your nervous system is working better your body can work better. Science has proven that blood pressure falls after chiropractic adjustments! But like brushing your teeth Chiropractic is a process not an event!
March 20, 2009 12:47 PM
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