Monthly Archives: April 2011
Avoiding The Dangers Of A Raw Foods Diet:Dr.Davenport, Jacksonville Beach Chiropractor.
| April 30, 2011 | Posted by Dr.John under PonteVedra Beach FL Chiropractor |
A raw foods diet is probably one of the healthiest diets that a person can follow, but like all restrictive diets, it has its dangers. In this article we will consider some of those dangers and how to avoid them.
Salmonella And Other Bacterial Diseases:
It is unfortunately true that raw food is more likely to carry bacteria such as salmonella, which can cause serious food poisoning. Salmonella is most often found in raw meats, eggs and dairy products. Cooking destroys it, as does pasteurization – a process which involves heating to high temperatures, which is done on most commercially sold dairy products and fruit juices, among other foods.
As a chiropractor who treats patients from the Ponte Vedra Beach, Neptune Beach, Jacksonville Beach, and Atlantic Beach FL communities, I don’t advise pregnant women to follow a raw food diet. Some of these bacteria are more dangerous for unborn infants in the womb than for adults. Therefore, you might want to reconsider following a raw foods diet if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy.
You can avoid most risk of food poisoning on a raw foods diet by following the raw vegan version, which avoids all of these foods. However, that has its own challenges – see the section on vitamin B12 below.
There have been cases of salmonella traced to other raw foods such as lettuce. Thorough washing can help, but in any case, this is a risk that applies to virtually everybody, so don’t let the cooked food fans scare you with this one. There are very few people who eat no raw food at all.
Nutritional Deficiencies and Vitamin B12:
It is important to make sure that you are getting the full range of vitamins and minerals on a raw foods diet. You need to consider whether you are getting enough calcium, iron (especially for women of childbearing age), zinc, and omega-3 fatty acids.
There are raw foods that can supply these nutrients and you will need to ensure that they are included in your diet. Having a wide variety of nuts and seeds will help to ensure that you get enough minerals, for example. Ground flax seeds can provide essential fatty acids.
The need for vitamin B12 is something that anybody following a raw vegan diet needs to be aware of. It is not an issue for those on a diet that includes raw meat or dairy products.
B12 is an important nutrient: without it, we will eventually suffer brain damage as well as other serious health problems. The human body does produce B12 but not in a way that allows us to use our own. For example, it is found in breast milk and other human secretions. But unless we happen to be consuming quantities of these, we need to get B12 from another source, and there is no vegetable source.
This means either consuming animal products or taking a supplement. Animal products are not vegan, and supplements are not raw. So B12 can be an issue for people who want to follow a 100% raw vegan diet.
However, the body does store B12. So some people, who have eaten plenty of animal products up to now and are not considering being vegan for more than a year or two, hope that they may have enough B12 to see them through. If you decide to take this risk, you should at least be tested for B12 levels before you start a vegan raw foods diet, and then annually.
If you would like to learn more about how you can get and stay healthy, Click Here to sign up for my free Health Matters Newsletter.
As natural health care provider and chiropractic physician serving the Jacksonville Beach, Neptune Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, and Atlantic Beach FL communities, I see my job as educating, coaching, and nurturing my patients to better health and wellness.
Yours In Health,
Dr. John Davenport
Jacksonville Chiropractor Says Your Mother Was Right – You Must Sit Up Straight
| April 1, 2011 | Posted by Dr.John under Jacksonville Beach Chiropractor |
Do the directives, “Sit up” or “Stand up straight!” sound familiar? Of course they do. I do not believe there is a person alive who has not heard these words from parents, and grandparents and even teachers. This is because good posture is important to your health and many times their concern comes from the pain they have suffered from the effects of poor posture over a lifetime.
Humans are bipeds (stands upright on two legs). This affords us better mobility and agility but is also increases stress on the body and its joints. In maintaining balance, the body must adapt to the day-to-day stress of gravity. Good posture allows for pain-free movement with minimal energy and is the most favorable for optimal functioning of the respiratory, circulatory and digestive systems.
Poor posture does affect overall health and as a chiropractor in Jacksonville FL I see this in my practice. For example, the spine is made up of 24 moveable joints and gives the body both strength and mobility. It supports the body and its organs. The spine houses and protects the spinal cord and nerves. In addition, muscles attach to it, providing for movement.
Poor posture compromises the spine’s ability to function properly, leading to sore, painful muscles, irritated joints and nerve tissue. It is a well-documented fact that poor posture contributes to arthritis as well as disc problems.
Another example of health problems caused by poor posture is improper breathing. Breathing requires movement of the spine, ribs and related musculature. Poor posture compromises the ribs’ ability to fully expand, thereby decreasing the lungs’ ability to supply oxygen to the body’s tissues and remove carbon dioxide waste.
Other conditions such as, myofascitis (inflammation of muscles), axillary compression syndrome (compression of the axillary artery, causing the hands to go numb) and headaches are commonly related to poor posture.
There are many reasons for poor posture and usually postural problems are the result of a combination of situations. Causes include, but are not limited to eye problems, increased weight, injury, occupational stress, emotional problems, weak muscles, muscular imbalance, foot problems, laziness and underlying congenital conditions. Improper exercise is another common cause of postural problems. If exercise is done improperly it creates an imbalance between muscle groups, strengthening some muscles and leaving others weak.
Brugger’s syndrome is a postural condition caused by working long hours on a computer. Additionally, people sleep a third of their lives, but give little consideration to both the position they sleep in and the surface they sleep on. Mothers with young children frequently develop postural problems from carrying their children. And children, who during their growth and development are required to carry heavy backpacks, are prone to develop postural problems.
Posture and self-esteem are interwoven. Posture is a body language and emotions are reflected in one’s posture. Healthy, self-assured people exhibit balanced, free-wheeling posture, while people with emotional problems seem to carry “the weight of the world” on their shoulders. The list goes on and on, but the idea should be clear that proper posture and good health go together.
To sum it up, posture is a dynamic and complex biomechanical interaction between your body and gravity. Postural abnormalities are common and do effect the overall state of your health. Many postural abnormalities can be corrected through proper exercise, while others can be corrected by making simple changes in the workplace; such as proper placement of computers and the addition of ergonomic seating. In fact, today many companies have ergonomic specialists who help design the workstations for optimal postural efficiency.
Frequent changes of position reduce strain on the body and the practice of good body biomechanics (do not slouch, lift properly etc.) helps to prevent postural problems. Good posture is defined as one in which the head is held erect, the chest is forward with shoulders drawn back and the abdomen retracted. Postural modification depends on correct diagnosis and observation. Sit up straight and remember it’s the choices we make daily that have the greatest impact on our health.
If you would like to learn more about how you can get and stay healthy, Click Here to sign up for my free Health Matters Newsletter.
As natural health care provider and chiropractic physician serving patients living in Jacksonville Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach And Neptune Beach Fl, I see my job as educating, coaching, and nurturing my patients to better health and wellness.
Yours In Health,
Dr. John Davenport
