DAILY HEALTH UPDATE: Saturday, April 26, 2014 Dr. Jeff Allyn, Berkley Chiropractic Clinic

“Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.” ~ Babe Ruth

Mental Attitude: Scientists Discover Another Gene that Increases Depression Risk. Scientists have found gene variants related to the neuropeptide Galanin that appear to increase one's risk for developing depression. Galanin is involved in the regulation of waking mood, blood pressure, sleep, and pain and may play some role in anxiety and stress disorders. Researchers hope this discovery will lead to new and more effective treatments for depression.  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, March 2014

Health Alert: Drunk-Driving Fatalities Under-Reported. A study of data from 1999-2009 revealed that in fatal traffic accidents, only approximately 3% of death certificates listed alcohol as a contributing cause. However, data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System shows that 21% of individuals killed in those crashes were legally drunk. The researchers believe the disparity is due to the fact that coroners sign death certificates within 3-5 days, before toxicology reports may be available. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, March 2014

Diet: Does Eating Frequent, Smaller Meals Burn More Calories? Based on data from a small study including 24 female participants, researchers say that eating small, frequent meals does not encourage weight loss or boost metabolism. Their study revealed that whether the women involved ate two large meals or five smaller meals throughout the day, it had no effect on how many calories they burned. Lead author Dr. Milan Kumar Piya concludes, "Firstly, that the size or frequency of the meal doesn't affect the calories we burn in a day, but what matters most for losing weight is counting calories.”  Society for Endocrinology, March 2014

Exercise: Exercise While Young = Stronger Bones Later in Life. A new study suggests that exercising as a youngster helps bones grow bigger and stronger, and this effect continues during aging. Lead author Dr. Stuart Warden explains, “Exercise during youth adds extra layers to the outer surface of a bone to essentially make the bone bigger. This gives you more 'bang for the buck,' as the addition of a small amount of new material to the outside of a bone results in a disproportionate increase in bone strength relative to the gain in mass.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, March 2014

Chiropractic: Low Back Pain is the Leading Cause of Disability Worldwide. According to new research, low back pain causes more disability than any other condition. Investigators found that nearly 10% of people in the world suffer from low back pain, and low back pain is responsible for a third of work-related disability. Certain factors increase the risk for low back pain such as increased age, low education, obesity, stress, anxiety, depression, and occupations that require heavy lifting or that are extremely stressful. Lead author Dr. Damian Hoy concludes, "With aging and growing populations, low back pain is an enormous burden in developing countries… This is predicted to grow substantially over coming decades and will likely have an enormous impact on individual livelihoods, health care systems and economies."  Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, March 2014

Wellness/Prevention: More Accurate Diagnosis of Prostate Cancer with MRI. A clinical trial in Australia shows that a biopsy guided by MRI-derived data significantly improves the diagnosis of life-threatening prostate cancer. The new MRI-guided system allows doctors to first use an MRI scan to find where a tumor may be located in the prostate. Then (if indicated) a two needle sample is taken, sparing the need for multiple biopsies. The use of MRI reduced the number of men needing prostate biopsies by 51%, while showing a 92% sensitivity in diagnosing life-threatening disease. This reduced the problem of over-diagnosis of non-life-threatening prostate cancer by around 90%.   European Urology, March 2014

For More Information on Back Pain, Neck Pain, Headaches, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, and Whiplash, and To Sign Up For Our Daily Health Update Emails, Go To:www.DrJeffAllynBlog.com or our website at:www.berkleychiropracticclinic.com 

(This information is brought to you in conjunction with www.Chiro-Trust.org, it is solely advisory and should not be substituted for medical or chiropractic advice. Any and all health care concerns, decisions, and actions must be done through the advice and counsel of a health care professional who is familiar with your updated medical history.)