What causes headaches?

- by Dr. Jean Gibson, BioVeda of Fayetteville, AR

Headaches can be caused by several different things.  Some of these causes are sinus problems, eye problems, vascular irregularities, allergies, chemical sensitivities or hypoglycemia. The most common cause of headaches is cervico-genic in origin – meaning it originates in the cervical spine (your neck). Spinal subluxation can irritate spinal nerves causing your headaches.

Muscular tension in your neck caused by stress, chronic postural strain (such as sleeping on too many pillows or spending too much time looking down at your cell phone), or traumatic injury to your neck as in a whiplash can also cause headaches.

There are several things that can be done to help your headaches without drugs. First, you need a thorough examination and x-rays from a Doctor of Chiropractic. The doctor will then develop a specific treatment plan based on the findings from your examination and x-rays

The  adjustment for the spinal regions that are subluxated can be completed either using a hands on technique or a precision instrument. The adjustment restores normal motion to your cervical spine, decreases muscle spasms and decrease inflammation in your joints and muscles.

We can assess your nervous system for negative reactions to foods, airborne particulates, chemicals, or other substances and then use Neurological Stress Reduction Therapy (NSRT).

Acupuncture can also be used to relieve your headache by helping your body produce endorphins – natural pain relievers – and by balancing energy flow.

Three Things that Could be Making Your Allergies Worse

- by Dr. Andrew Moore, BioVeda of Alamo Heights, TX

Hormones: When European researchers studied 571 women between the ages of 28 and 58, they found that more than one in every 10 tested positive on a standard measure of breathing difficulty before or during the first days of their periods. For many women, allergies and asthma get more severe right before their periods, other research has shown. Taking the Pill may help, or you may want to tweak your allergy/asthma medication around your menstrual cycle to get good control.

Stress: It can make everything worse – even allergies: an Ohio State University College of Medicine study found that in people with seasonal allergies, even moderate stress caused a more sever reaction to an allergy skin test; in the study, subjects who were asked to make a short speech had red raised bumps that were 75 percent larger than they’d been during the “low stress” portion of the study. Stress appears to increase levels of cytokines, chemicals that play a role in the body’s allergic response

Alcohol: In a 2008 study of over 5,800 Danish women, those who had more than two drinks  a day were almost twice as likely as nondrinkers to report having nasal symptoms. No one’s quite sure why, but alcohol is a vasodilator, and it may be that if you have allergies, the swelling of your blood vessels makes your nose run even more. If you notice symptoms cranking up after the cocktail hour, skip the aperitif and go right to the appetizer.

Dr. Augustine on The Power of Biological Light in Healing – Mercola

- by Dr. James Augustine, BioVeda of Cerritos, CA

A Russian scientist, Pjotr Garjajev, has managed to intercept communication from a DNA molecule in the form of ultraviolet photons — in other words, light. This won’t come as a surprise to anyone who is familiar with the biophoton work of Fritz-Albert Popp.

It is well known that if you use UV light to destroy 99 percent of a cell, including its DNA, you can almost entirely repair the damage in a single day just by illuminating the cell with the same wavelength at a much weaker intensity.

This phenomenon is known as photorepair.

Following the work of Popp, scientists around the globe have begun to consider that your body’s communication system might be a complex network of resonance and frequency.

Read more…

-Guest Columnist: Liz Hopwood,  BioVeda Health and Wellness Center

Allergists are extremely worried about how the oil spill is being cleaned up and the health risk it poses to people with serious breathing problems, like asthma.

There are several ways an oil spill is harmful to human health. When oil is burned, people can inhale volatile organic compounds and other hydrocarbons. These oil vapors can lead to headaches, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, eye and throat irritation, and breathing difficulties. When people inhale large amounts of fumes, they are in danger of a chemical poisoning called hydrocarbon pneumonia.

According to Dr. Marcel Casacant, Chief of Pharmacology and Toxicology at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.“Smoke from burning oil contains many chemicals; some are potentially lethal poisons and some are nuisance irritants, but even these nuisance irritants can trigger breathing problems in people with asthma or emphysema or other lung disease.”

In the past few days, the state health department has ordered testing of the water systems near the Gulf for oil contamination. These tests are being conducted because residents of southwestern Louisiana have complained about odors causing breathing problems, headaches, burning eyes and nausea.

Some of the fishermen hired by BP to clean up the gulf oil spill are becoming ill after working long hours near the contaminated waters, prompting Louisiana lawmaker to ask the federal government to open clinics in rural areas to treat them. The fishermen report severe headaches, dizziness, nausea and difficulty breathing. Rep. Charlie Melancon (D-La.) contacted Kathleen Sebelius,  Secretary of Health and Human Services, asking for the  agency’s help in providing medical treatment, especially in Plaquemines Parish, a southern region where many fishermen live.

If you live near or know of someone who lives near the affected areas, protect yourself by following these steps:

1. Close all windows and stay inside as much as possible
2. Use air purifiers in any space where you spend a significant amount of time.
3. If you spend a lot of time in a boat or car consider getting a portable air purifier.
4. Wear a mask.

The fact of the matter is the oil spill in the Gulf is a horrible disaster that is going to affect the lives of millions. Not only is it going to kill all the of the wildlife in the area, it is also going to cause serious health problems for the people exposed. The full impact of the Gulf of Mexico deep water oil spill will not be known for many years, but there is no doubt that it will have a major impact on the health of our eco-systems and the surrounding population!

By Dr. Eric Herman, A BioVeda Health and Wellness Center in Bethlehem

May is Lyme Disease awareness month, and for residents of Northeast PA it’s time to stretch our legs, get out into the sunshine, and enjoy this beautiful spring time weather. It is also important to know, however, that Lyme Disease is approaching epidemic proportions, increasing rapidly every year and now reported in every state as well as in Canada. Here are some other things you need to know about Lyme Disease:

You need to know that Pennsylvania is one of the most lyme endemic states in the country (see CDC map below). As you can see by the chart Pennsylvanians are at significant risk for exposure to Lyme Disease according to CDC reporting statistics. However, Lyme Disease is difficult to diagnose and is often misdiagnosed as other conditions which means the actual incidence of infection is much higher than reported by the CDC.

New England is one of the most dangerous areas of the country to contract Lyme disease, according the Center for Disease Control’s Lyme disease statistics for 2007. The states with the highest reported incidents of Lyme disease cases per 100,000 population (in order from the highest) are Connecticut, Delaware, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Minnesota.

What is Lyme Disease?

Lyme disease (LD) is an infection caused by Borrelia burgdorferi, a type of bacterium called a spirochete (pronounced spy-ro-keet) that is carried by deer ticks. An infected tick can transmit the spirochete to the humans and animals it bites. Untreated, the bacterium travels through the bloodstream, establishes itself in various body tissues, and can cause a number of symptoms, some of which are severe.

LD manifests itself as a multi-system inflammatory disease that affects the skin in its early, localized stage, and spreads to the joints, nervous system and, to a lesser extent, other organ systems in its later, disseminated stages. If diagnosed and treated early with antibiotics, LD is almost always readily cured. Generally, LD in its later stages can also be treated effectively, but because the rate of disease progression and individual response to treatment varies from one patient to the next, some patients may have symptoms that linger for months or even years following treatment. In rare instances, LD causes permanent damage.

The first symptom is usually an expanding rash(called erythema migrans, or EM, in medical terms) which is thought to occur in 80% to 90% of all LD cases. An EM rash generally has the following characteristics:

• Usually (but not always) radiates from the site of the tickbite

• Appears either as a solid red expanding rash or blotch, OR a central spot surrounded by clear skin that is in turn ringed by an expanding red rash (looks like a bull’s-eye)

• Appears an average of 1 to 2 weeks (range = 3 to 30 days) after disease transmission

• Has an average diameter of 5 to 6 inches

(range = 2 inches to 2 feet)

• Persists for about 3 to 5 weeks

• May or may not be warm to the touch

• Is usually not painful or itchy

Ticks will attach anywhere on the body, but prefer body creases such as the armpit, groin, back of the knee, and nape of the neck; rashes will therefore often appear in (but are not restricted to) these areas. Please note that multiple rashes may, in some cases, appear elsewhere on the body some time after the initial rash, or, in a few cases, in the absence of an initial rash.

Around the time the rash appears, other symptoms such as joint pains, chills, fever, and fatigue are common, but they may not seem serious enough to require medical attention. These symptoms may be brief, only to recur as a broader spectrum of symptoms as the disease progresses.

As the LD spirochete continues spreading through the body, a number of other symptoms including severe fatigue, a stiff, aching neck, and peripheral nervous system (PNS) involvement such as tingling or numbness in the extremities or facial palsy (paralysis) can occur.

The more severe, potentially debilitating symptoms of later-stage LD may occur weeks, months, or, in a few cases, years after a tick bite. These can include severe headaches, painful arthritis and swelling of joints, cardiac abnormalities, and central nervous system (CNS) involvement leading to cognitive (mental) disorders.

The following is a checklist of common symptoms seen in various stages of LD:

Localized Early (Acute) Stage:

• Solid red or bull’s-eye rash, usually at site of bite

• Swelling of lymph glands near tick bite

• Generalized achiness

• Headache

• Early Disseminated Stage:

• Two or more rashes not at site of bite

• Migrating pains in joints/tendons

• Headache

• Stiff, aching neck
• Facial palsy (facial paralysis similar to Bell’s palsy)

• Tingling or numbness in extremities

• Multiple enlarged lymph glands

• Abnormal pulse

• Sore throat

• Changes in vision

• Fever of 100 to 102 F

• Severe fatigue

Late Stage:

1. Arthritis (pain/swelling) of one or two large joints
2. Disabling neurological disorders (disorientation; confusion; dizziness; short-term memory loss; inability to concentrate, finish sentences or follow conversations; mental “fog”)
3. Numbness in arms/hands or legs/feet

Treatment:

Early treatment of LD (within the first few weeks after initial infection) is straightforward and almost always results in a full cure. Treatment begun after the first three weeks will also likely provide a cure, but the cure rate decreases the longer treatment is delayed.

For those suffering with symptoms of Lyme Disease that just are not responding to conventional treatments and therapies please consider Neurological Stress Reduction Therapy. Many of our Bioveda Wellness Doctors across the country are reporting very successful outcomes treating patients suffering from Lyme Disease.

As part of a new “Well Care” series on BioVedaWellness.com, we’ve asked our health writers to write about ingredients commonly used in every day products,that should be avoided in order to maintain optimal health and wellness.  We hope to have a new ingredient or product featured on a regular basis.  This week Liz explores the health effects of monosodium glutamate (MSG).

MSG and Its Impact on Health
-By Liz, Guest Columnist

Do you have Headaches? Does your body ache? Most of us just chalk these symptoms up to just part of life or getting older. But is it? Could these symptoms be related to what we are eating? They could be caused by monosodium glutamate or MSG!

What are the possible health effects of MSG? There are many symptoms of a sensitivity. They range from mild to severe. Some of the mild reactions would be headaches and flushing of the skin. Other more severe reactions linked to MSG consumption include: depression, rage, mood swings, hormone changes, memory loss, obesity, stunted growth, infertility, asthma attacks, paranoia, Parkinson’s, Lou Gehrig’s and Alzheimer’s disease.  Research has also shown that behavioral problems and learning disabilities in children are associated with MSG. People that are most vulnerable to the effects of MSG are elderly, children, infants and the unborn.

MSG is a food additive and is used to enhance the flavor of foods. Behind salt and pepper, it is the most commonly used flavor enhancer today. It comes from the amino acid glutamic. It has been used for decades and has become a staple in the food industry. It is found in all processed foods, Chinese food, canned vegetables, and soups. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), MSG as a food ingredient is “generally recognized as safe.” Even though the FDA takes this stance, the use of MSG remains controversial and therefore the FDA requires that it be listed on labels.

So, if MSG is a food additive that makes our food taste better, then why should we be concerned? According to the book, “In Bad Taste, The MSG Symptom Complex“, written by George R. Schwartz “The answer is plain and simple – MSG is a drug added to our food that causes wide spread toxicity.” The book cites case studies of MSG sensitive individuals and tells us where, how, and why it is being hidden in our food! Dr. Schwartz says his book will help people learn to identify reactions, and then how to avoid eating it. He adds, “Knowing how to avoid this flavor enhancer can dramatically change lives.”

Trying to eliminate MSG from your diet would be extremely hard if not impossible.  It is difficult to identify which foods contain this commonly used flavor enhancer because the manufacturers try to hide it. A label that reads “no MSG,” may not mean  it’s a MSG-free product. In certain cases, the manufacturer simply did not add MSG! Also, there are hidden names for monosodium glutamate. Some of the hidden names include: Gelatin, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein (HVP), Hydrolyzed Plant Protein (HPP), Autolyzed Plant Protein, and Sodium Caseinate.

As a busy mother, I want to ensure the best possible food is used for all of our meals. I want to feel confident that my family is not going to be harmed in any way! So, the next time you go to the grocery store, please make sure you are checking the labels for MSG! Know what you are buying and how it could affect your loved ones.

- by Jennifer, Guest Columnist

The Holidays are fast approaching, and it’s that time of year again… my sneezing, itchy eyes, and runny nose are in full effect.  From the burning of artificially scented candles to the smell of real Christmas trees, I feel like my sinuses are being assaulted at every turn.  I have suffered from allergies and asthma since I was a little girl, and the holidays have always been a difficult time of year for me.  If you add seasonal colds and flu to my allergies and asthma, it adds up to headaches and chronic fatigue, not to mention a constant feeling of stress.

To keep the holidays from triggering my asthma and allergies, we use an artificial Christmas tree in our home.  If you must have a live evergreen tree, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation offers the following tips:

If a live evergreen tree is a tradition you cannot live without, the following tips should help make this year’s tree a treasure rather than trouble.

• Wipe the trunk thoroughly with a solution of luke warm water and diluted bleach (1 part bleach to 20 parts water) to eliminate any mold.
• Some evergreens, particularly junipers and cedar, may be pollinating even in winter look for a yellowish tinge on the trunk and needles.
• Before bringing the tree inside, use a leaf blower (in a well-ventilated area away from the house or garage) to remove visible pollen grains.

We steer clear of spray-on snow and pine scented oils that some families use to make their artificial tree more life-like, as they can trigger asthma and allergies for many sufferers.  We avoid holiday flower arrangements and all artificial scents.  If I want my house to smell like cookies, we bake homemade, all natural chocolate chip cookies, rather than burning a scented candle or potpourri.  I avoid outdoor activities that may include a bon fire – no roasting marshmallows for me!  Of course, I try to get plenty of rest, exercise, and take a multi-vitamin to keep my immune system in the best shape possible.

Being so vigilant about my allergies and asthma leaves me feeling like I’m missing out on the joys of the season, so this year I’m asking Santa for something different.   I’m giving BAX 3000 Neurological Stress Reduction Therapy by BioVeda Technologies a try.  I’m hoping next Christmas I’ll be thinking about the sights, sounds, and scents of the season rather than the allergies, asthma, and headaches they bring with them!  Why not give yourself or your loved one the gift of wellness this season?  Contact BioVeda today!