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To: Your Health
Control
Your Allergy Symptoms Naturally
 When
looking to control allergy symptoms without resorting to medications, the
first step is to limit your exposure. Using an air filter, preferably one
that ties into a central heating and air conditioning system, can
drastically reduce the build-up of allergens in your home. It is also
important to focus on areas where allergens can collect. Pet areas,
carpets, rugs, and upholstered furniture should be cleansed regularly, and
bedding should be washed at least once a week.
In addition to these simple steps, you may want to look to your diet as
a means for controlling your allergy symptoms. A study of 35 patients
conducted in the Journal of Asthma found a positive correlation
between allergy relief and vegetarian or vegan diets. In a clinical
observation, 92 percent of patients who followed a vegan diet for one year
reported reduction in asthma symptoms.
Foods that have been closely linked to respiratory allergies include
dairy products, chocolate, sugar, and gluten. There is also strong evidence
indicating a connection between allergic rhinitis and intake of certain
food additives, including artificial dyes and colorants, sulfites, and benzoates.
Omega-3 fatty acids have also been shown to support healthy airways and
additionally favor the production of anti-inflammatory mediators. In a 2009
study reported in the International Archives of Allergy and
Immunology, atopic asthma patients supplemented daily with omega-3 fatty
acids improved airway responsiveness even when subjects were exposed to a
known allergen. Dietary sources of omega-3 fatty acids include cold-water
fish, flax seeds, chia seeds, and walnuts.
Increasing antioxidant intake is also essential to prevent the free
radicals that are often elevated in allergies and asthma. Vitamin C is
considered as one of the most important dietary antioxidants for the
protection of the lungs, and low levels of blood vitamin C are considered an
independent risk factor for allergic rhinitis. Other beneficial
antioxidants may include vitamin E, selenium, the carotenoids, and the
flavonoids, which all posses powerful free radical- quenching capabilities.
Why go through life suffering from allergies if you don't have to? With
a few dietary and lifestyle changes, you can face allergy season without
stockpiling allergy medications and Kleenex. Talk to your doctor for more
information about allergies and natural solutions.
Read More
Show
Me the Light: The Healing Power of Laser Therapy
 An
increasing number of doctors nationwide are offering laser therapy to their
patients. With its increasing popularity and use, that means more and more
people are probably wondering about lasers in general and some important
specifics, including how they work, how safe they are and what it feels
like to get treated. Here's a little Q & A on laser therapy.
Q: What is laser therapy?
A: Laser therapy is the application of low levels of laser light to
areas of the body that have been injured or damaged. Contrasted with
high-powered lasers used in health care that cut tissue, such as surgical
or hair-removal lasers, therapy lasers produce beneficial photochemical and
photobiological interactions that can help relieve pain and repair
injured/damaged tissue.
Q: How does laser therapy work?
A: The photons of laser light penetrate through your skin and are
absorbed by special components in your body's cells called chromophores.
Just as photosynthesis creates energy for plants, the absorption of the
photons by your cells causes increased production of cellular energy. In
areas of injury or damage, this means there is more energy available to
improve the rate and quality of healing.
Q: What does it feel like to get a treatment?
A: With very low-powered therapy lasers, you feel nothing at all.
Higher-powered (Class IV) therapy lasers produce a mild, soothing, warm
feeling. You may notice a tingling sensation in the treatment area as blood
vessels dilate, or that muscle spasms are reducing in strength and
duration. Laser therapy is a painless treatment.
Q: How do you know it not causing cancer or other tissue damage?
A: There are two ways that laser light can damage tissue; if it is
very concentrated (high power density) or if the photons are very high
energy. Therapy lasers use power densities that are far below the levels
that cause tissue damage. Ultraviolet light has very high-energy photons
capable of ionizing molecules, but therapy lasers use visible and
near-infrared light, which only cause molecular vibrations. You could argue
that therapy laser light is safer than sunlight.
Q: How can I get more information?
A: Ask your doctor! A steadily growing number of health care
practitioners are offering laser therapy to their patients. Your doctor can
determine if laser therapy is appropriate for your particular health
situation.
Read More
Four
Ways to Keep Kids Moving
 1. Lead by Example. When it comes to
exercise, an adult couch potato effectively nurtures a child couch potato,
who then becomes yet another adult couch potato years down the road - a
vicious cycle of inactivity that increases disease risk. Fortunately, the
opposite is also true, so get off the couch and show your kids the value of
an active life filled with physical activity.
2. Unplug for Awhile. Hours on end of TV, video games, and even
phone and computer "activities" like instant messaging, chat
rooms and other pursuits leave very little time for exercise. While there's
no easy solution, establishing a daily time limit on these activities is a
great start.
3. Find the Time. When we're young, we spend hours in the yard or
on school grounds playing our favorite games; then we slowly get more and
more responsibilities and somehow, the time just seems to disappear. It
happens quickly, right around the time daily homework comes along. What can
you do about it? It's the same advice, whether young or old: Find the time.
Pencil physical activity into your child's daily schedule and don't let
"life" ever erase it.
4. Make It Fun. Too often, exercise becomes more of a chore than
a pleasing activity, and this often begins at an early age, basically as
soon as children get involved in the rigors of organized sports. Sure, it's
never all fun and games, but exercise shouldn't be a dreaded activity, not
if you do it right. Be creative and teach children that active is fun at
any age.
Read More
This issue features a number of articles you will want to
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