Finally…something all chiropractors can all agree on!
Whether you are a reactionary DC who believes all drugs are evil, or if you are like most of us who recognize that drugs have their place (but not in my office, thank you), or even if you treat patients in tandem with a prescription-pad toting MD, you probably have a problem with the pharmaceutical industry wantonly pushing “a pill for every ill”. Especially if you have ever railed against the philosophy that what America needs is a better pill, then you need to see the movie Side Effects.
Side Effects is a satirical look at the big drug companies starring Katherine Heigl (from Gray’s Anatomy) as a pharmaceutical drug rep living the American Dream with a big salary, company car, great clothes…and a growing pit in her stomach.
Here’s the blurb from the movie box:
KARLY HERT has spent the last ten years selling drugs...legally, that is.
Although conflicted on a daily basis by the values within the pharmaceutical industry, an industry driven by profits at the expense of patients; Karly has been seduced by the golden handcuffs of corporate America.
Enter ZACH DANNER, who convinces Karly to be true to her values and walk away from her lucrative but empty job. As their relationship blossoms, Karly devises a plan to get out. But leaving is never quite as easy as it seems...
It’s a funny movie, but it also has a brave and unique message which is consonant with the “drugs last” wellness philosophy many DCs espouse.
There is also a documentary about the movie, Money Talks, which is a more journalistic look at big Pharm. If you want to see an 8 minute clip from the documentary about Vioxx and the problems created by drug companies financing research which is more profitable than objective then
CLICK HERE: http://www.bodyzone.com/articles/article.html?id=156&filter=topic
If you are like me and want Americans to think twice before taking a pill, and consider seeing a chiropractor first rather than last, consider getting a few copies of the movie to lend patients.
Planting seeds of knowledge is the best way to grow a practice, and our profession.
You'll find more about Money Talks and Side Effects online at:
http://www.bodyzone.com/articles/article.html?id=156&filter=topic
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Heavy Metals May Be Implicated in Autism
New Scientist Magazine (newscientist.com)
May 30, 2006
Heavy Metals May Be Implicated in Autism
URINE samples from hundreds of French children have yielded evidence for a link between autism and exposure to heavy metals. If validated, the findings might mean some cases of autism could be treated with drugs that purge the body of heavy metals.
Samples from children with autism contained abnormally high levels of a family of proteins called porphyrins, which are precursors in the production of haem, the oxygen-carrying component in haemoglobin. Heavy metals block haem production, causing porphyrins to accumulate in urine. Concentrations of one molecule, coproporphyrin, were 2.6 times as high in urine from children with autism as in controls.
Autism is thought to have a number of unknown genetic and environmental causes. Richard Lathe of Pieta Research in Edinburgh, UK, says he has found one of these factors. "It's highly likely that heavy metals are responsible for childhood autistic disorder in a majority of cases," he claims. The study will appear in Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology.
Lathe says these porphyrin metabolites bind to receptors in the brain and have been linked with epilepsy and autism.
The researchers restored porphyrin concentrations to normal in 12 children by treating them with "chelation" drugs that mop up heavy metals and are then excreted. It is not yet known whether the children's symptoms have eased, but Lathe cites anecdotal reports suggesting the drugs might do some good.
The study is available online at: http://filariane.org/anglais/DOC/MSFINAL.pdf
May 30, 2006
Heavy Metals May Be Implicated in Autism
URINE samples from hundreds of French children have yielded evidence for a link between autism and exposure to heavy metals. If validated, the findings might mean some cases of autism could be treated with drugs that purge the body of heavy metals.
Samples from children with autism contained abnormally high levels of a family of proteins called porphyrins, which are precursors in the production of haem, the oxygen-carrying component in haemoglobin. Heavy metals block haem production, causing porphyrins to accumulate in urine. Concentrations of one molecule, coproporphyrin, were 2.6 times as high in urine from children with autism as in controls.
Autism is thought to have a number of unknown genetic and environmental causes. Richard Lathe of Pieta Research in Edinburgh, UK, says he has found one of these factors. "It's highly likely that heavy metals are responsible for childhood autistic disorder in a majority of cases," he claims. The study will appear in Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology.
Lathe says these porphyrin metabolites bind to receptors in the brain and have been linked with epilepsy and autism.
The researchers restored porphyrin concentrations to normal in 12 children by treating them with "chelation" drugs that mop up heavy metals and are then excreted. It is not yet known whether the children's symptoms have eased, but Lathe cites anecdotal reports suggesting the drugs might do some good.
The study is available online at: http://filariane.org/anglais/DOC/MSFINAL.pdf
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Exercise helps eliminate Low Back Pain at the office
Effects of a workplace physical exercise intervention on the intensity of low back symptoms in office workers: A cluster randomized controlled cross-over design
Objectives: The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of a workplace physical exercise intervention on the intensity of low back symptoms.
Methods: The study was a cluster randomized controlled trial with department (n=4) as the unit of randomization. The subjects were office workers [(n=36), mean age 47.1 (SD 8.4) years] who self-reported low back symptoms, which restricted their daily activities during the last 12 months. Low back symptoms were measured using the Borg CR10 scale. The cross-over design consisted of one intervention period of light resistance training and guidance and no training and no guidance of 15 weeks duration. Statistical analyses were based on linear mixed models.
Results: The active component of the intervention, light resistance training, resulted in a slight, but statistically significant, decrease in the intensity of low back symptoms (p=0.020). At the average training time of 5 minutes per working day (25 min/week) the average decrease during the 15-week period was 0.42 CR10 (95% CI 0.07-0.77) and 19% (95% CI 3-35).
Conclusion: A physical exercise intervention, which included daily light resistance training, conducted during the working day affected low back symptoms in a positive direction among symptomatic office workers.
Sjogren T, et al. Journal of Back and Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation. 2006; Vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 13-24.
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Objectives: The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of a workplace physical exercise intervention on the intensity of low back symptoms.
Methods: The study was a cluster randomized controlled trial with department (n=4) as the unit of randomization. The subjects were office workers [(n=36), mean age 47.1 (SD 8.4) years] who self-reported low back symptoms, which restricted their daily activities during the last 12 months. Low back symptoms were measured using the Borg CR10 scale. The cross-over design consisted of one intervention period of light resistance training and guidance and no training and no guidance of 15 weeks duration. Statistical analyses were based on linear mixed models.
Results: The active component of the intervention, light resistance training, resulted in a slight, but statistically significant, decrease in the intensity of low back symptoms (p=0.020). At the average training time of 5 minutes per working day (25 min/week) the average decrease during the 15-week period was 0.42 CR10 (95% CI 0.07-0.77) and 19% (95% CI 3-35).
Conclusion: A physical exercise intervention, which included daily light resistance training, conducted during the working day affected low back symptoms in a positive direction among symptomatic office workers.
Sjogren T, et al. Journal of Back and Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation. 2006; Vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 13-24.
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