I’ve seen a couple of articles on this recently and I think it’s pretty interesting. Here’s one. Here’s another. There’s growing support for the idea that Alzheimers is related to diabetes, specifically, Type 2 diabetes, and though they aren’t quite sure how yet, this is actually good news. It’s good news because Type 2 diabetes, for those who don’t know, is strongly related to lifestyle factors such as diet and exercise levels, which are things you can obviously do a lot to improve. Type 1 diabetes, on the other hand, …

I just read this article on The New York Times website which talked about the rate of misdiagnosis in the medical fraternity. This follows on from a number of earlier articles questioning the necessity of many surgeries. If your condition is not life threatening and especially if it involves your musculoskeletal system don’t be afraid to seek a second opinion before agreeing to surgery or injections.
I’ll leave you with this quote: “In the United States and Canada it is estimated that 50,000 hospital deaths each year could have been prevented …

I just read a great article that ran with the title “The truth about back pain“. It was a breakdown of the success (or otherwise) of various treatment approaches for low back pain, and it’s well worth a read. It outlines the risks associated with injections, painkillers, unnecessary medical scans and surgery. But if you’re short on time, here are a few choice quotes:
“In 2012, an outbreak of fungal meningitis in the US was traced to contaminated epidural steroid injections administered for back pain – more than 700 people had …

Yes, that’s a picture of my Nan and I playing the pokies. I was browsing a bunch of nerdy medical sites the other day trying to make myself seem knowledgeable when I stumbled across an article with the title “Aging process reversed with positive lifestyle changes“. I opened it and had a read and it had merit, so I thought I’d share the contents with you.
There’s these tiny things in your chromosomes called Telomeres, and according to scientists Telomeres control the aging process: “If the telomeres are shortened or damaged, …

At this time of year I see a lot of people with new injuries. When I ask them what they think caused it, they give me a sheepish kind of look, like they know they did something wrong. They then proceed to give me a list of “reasons” as to why they were a bit slack about exercising during winter but now that summer is approaching, they really need to get in shape fast, so they’re trying to fit 6 months of training into 3.

I think the most common times …

The use of paracetamol, such as Panadol, for conditions like arthritis, has come under fire after a panel of medical experts “said they were ‘extremely concerned’ about the links of higher doses to cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and renal adverse events.
An article on Pulse.co.uk outlined the panel’s findings, which included:

warnings about the potential side effects of paracetamol
findings that paracetamol only provides ‘limited benefit’
when used, it should be the ‘lowest effective dose’ for the ‘shortest possible time’
clinicians should be particularly cautious of using it in combination with an oral NSAID (anti-inflammatory)
‘There is more evidence of …

You can’t win, can you. A new study has suggested that ” males with high blood concentrations of omega-3 fatty acids are at a higher risk of developing prostate cancer.” Everything I’ve ever read on fish oils suggests that they help with inflammation and that omega 3 fatty acids are great for your brain. In fact I posted something on it not that long ago…
Luckily, sanity prevailed:
Dr. Iain Frame, director of research at Prostate Cancer UK, says men reading about the results of this research should not panic about their omega-3 intake. Dr. …

This article came out late last year but I’m a little slow I guess. A study which followed nearly 10,000 adults found that those who regularly used natural supplements to reduce inflammation had the following results:

intake of glucosamine decreased inflammation by 17%,
chondroitin led to a 22% decrease in inflammatory markersand
fish oil lowered levels of inflammatory markers by 16%

It;s good news for anyone looking to limit or reduce the use of pharmaceuticals, as some medications have been linked to an increased risk of cardiac events.

I get asked about those shoes that look like gloves all the time. People bring me copies of those books about the mountain men of Chile running barefoot and get all philosophical about how our ancestors ancestors ran barefoot and it’s more natural and better for us and for the environment. I look outside at all the concrete and wonder if they’ve considered how hard the environment has become lately.

I’ve never personally been a fan of the “barefoot” running idea. I see a lot of people with a lot …

New Scientist recently ran an article on how to recharge your immune system. The article was broken down into several sections, which I have taken the key points from and outlined below for your perusal. Hope you find it useful!
1. Go for a walk every day: “When 500 adults were tracked for 12 weeks, those who were the most physically active – five sessions or more of aerobic exercise a week – spent nearly half the number of days sick with an upper respiratory tract infection such as a cold …