Health

How Austerity Kills

By John Wiens DC|May 21, 2013|Health|

Fiscal Policy can be a Matter of Life or Death

In their new book, “The Body Economic: Why Austerity Kills,” economist David Stuckler and physician Sanjay Basu examine the health impacts of austerity across the globe. The authors estimate there have been more than 10,000 additional suicides and up to a million extra cases of depression across Europe and the United States since governments started introducing austerity programs in the aftermath of the economic crisis. For example, in Greece, where spending on public health has been slashed by 40 percent, HIV rates have jumped 200 percent, and the country has seen its first malaria outbreak since the 1970s. An economist and public health specialist, Stuckler is a senior research leader at Oxford University. Dr. Basu is a physician and epidemiologist who teaches at The authors estimate there have been more than 10,000 additional suicides and up to a million extra cases of depression across Europe and the United States since governments started introducing austerity programs in the aftermath of the economic crisis.

If suicides were an unavoidable consequence of economic downturns, this would just be another story about the human toll of the Great Recession. But it isn’t so. Countries that slashed health and social protection budgets, like Greece, Italy and Spain, have seen starkly worse health outcomes than nations like Germany, Iceland and Sweden, which maintained their social safety nets and opted for stimulus over austerity.

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New Report Warns About Chemicals and Cancer

By Frank M. Painter|May 6, 2010|Health, News|

SOURCE: The New York Times: May 5, 2010

By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF

The President’s Cancer Panel is the Mount Everest of the medical mainstream, so it is astonishing to learn that it is poised to join ranks with the organic food movement and declare: chemicals threaten our bodies.

The cancer panel is releasing a landmark 200-page report on Thursday, warning that our lackadaisical approach to regulation may have far-reaching consequences for our health. (more…)

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Calcium deposition in osteoarthritic menisci and meniscal cell culture

By stevev|April 6, 2010|Health, Nutrition|

osteoarthritic menisci and meniscal cell culture

The results of a study published online on March 30th 2010 could very well present a treatment dilemma in OA patients with concomitant osteoporosis.

How to insure target tissue specific outcome for Ca++ supplementation therapy in these type of patients? I certainly am no expert when it comes to supplements, are there any other supplements that could be coupled with the Ca++ in order to at least maximize osseous uptake while also decreasing cartilaginous uptake?

Abstract is available here which includes a link to the complete article as a provisional PDF.

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Low IQ among top heart health risks, study finds

By John Wiens DC|February 12, 2010|Health|

LONDON (Reuters) – Intelligence is second only to smoking as a predictor of heart disease, scientists said on Wednesday, suggesting public health campaigns may need to be designed for people with lower IQs if they are to work.

Research by Britain’s Medical Research Council (MRC) found that lower intelligence quotient scores were associated with higher rates of heart disease and death, and were more important indicators than any other risk factors except smoking.

Heart disease is the leading killer of men and women Europe, the United States and most industrialized countries.

According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes accounted for 32 percent of all deaths around the world in 2005.

It is well known that people with poorer education and lower incomes often face higher risks of ill health and a range of diseases. Studies have pointed to many likely reasons, including limited access to healthcare and other resources, poorer living conditions, chronic stress and higher rates of lifestyle risk factors like smoking. (more…)

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In Support of Chiropractic (and Maintenance) Care

By Frank M. Painter|January 9, 2010|Education, Health|

In Support of Chiropractic (and Maintenance) Care

The Chiro.Org Blog

Although I prefer the term “stabilizing care”, maintenance care remains a controversial topic, at least with insurance providers and the science buffs who claim that only randomized trials are “proof”.

I invite you to read Ron Rupert, D.C,.’s article “Maintenance Care: Health Promotion Services Administered to US Chiropractic Patients Aged 65 and Older, Part II” as it reports some very interesting statistics:

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JAMA Claims Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain Increases Fall Risk in Older Adults

By Frank M. Painter|December 2, 2009|Health|

JAMA Claims Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain Increases Fall Risk in Older Adults

The Chiro.Org Blog

SOURCE: Journal of the American Medical Association 2009; 302 (20): 2214-2221

Chronic pain is experienced by as many as two out of three older adults. Now, a new study finds that pain may be more hazardous than previously thought, contributing to an increased risk of falls in adults over age 70. The findings appear in the November 25 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

“It’s clear that pain is not just a normal part of aging and that pain is often undertreated in older adults,” explains lead author Suzanne Leveille, PhD, RN, who conducted the research while a member of the Division of Primary Care at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and is currently on the faculty at the University of Massachusetts Boston. “Our findings showed that older adults who reported chronic musculoskeletal pain in two or more locations – mainly in the joints of the arms and legs – as well as individuals who reported more severe pain or pain that interfered with daily activities were more likely to experience a fall than other individuals.” (more…)

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