At 95 years old, a simple fountain of youth: Daily Walks, Consistency in Diet.

from the Dayton Daily News

DAYTON -- Sarah Deets, 95, is a retired physical education and elementary school teacher who knows the value of regular exercise and diet.

What she does: Deets walks 1 to 2 miles a day around the grounds of 10 Wilmington Place to stay in shape for her beloved annual excursions across the world.

"My husband and I lived on three acres, and I walked there -- that was one of the best habits I ever got into. When we moved here four years ago, I continued to walk."

How exercise keeps her healthy: Before her husband's death in 2008, the couple traveled almost every year, visiting all states, plus trips to such places as Canada, Australia, and England.

"Friends often asked how we could afford it, but we worked our tailbones off to put money in our travel fund," Deets said.

Always ready for adventures, she continues her annual trips with her daughter, Jean Moran and son-in-law Kenneth Bar-nett. They've been to South America and to the Mediterranean, and recently returned from this year's six-week trip to Hawaii, Japan and China.

"In Beijing, we walked and walked in the Forbidden City, and when we went to the Great Wall, we had to climb tall stairs, often without a railing," Deets said. "So many Chinese wanted their pictures taken with me, especially when they found out my age. I kept up with the group, even when we walked to the top of old shrines."

In addition to Beijing, the China trip included Xi'an, Shanghai, and a cruise down the Yangtze River.

"During the entire trip, I 'walked the walk,' without assistance or a wheelchair," Deets said.

She also exercises her mind. Deets received her master's degree in education in Wright State University's first graduating class.

"I've always loved to read and learn," she said. "I'm a member of the College Women's Club, and we meet every month at the Dayton Women's Club. I still attend the meetings, and was assistant treasurer for 12 years."

And, she adds: "I still play the stock markets."

Consistency in exercise and diet: The day after Thanksgiving, when it was so cold and windy outside, Deets put on her coat, bundled up, and walked.

"I thought I'd just walk around the promenade once, but went my usual four times," she said. "I don't feel right if I don't walk every day."

She also notes, "I eat whatever I want, but don't overeat. I love salads, fruits and vegetables, but also love meat and desserts. I just stop when I'm full."

Observations from her son-in-law: "Having no or few gray hairs and a full set of healthy teeth is quite amazing at 95," said Barnett, 74. "The only thing I can think of, other than having good genes, is that she eats well and is a consistent walker. I'm trying to emulate some of her habits."

Her advice to others: "It's so simple to travel, and to love life and enjoy it. Retired folks need to get up and move every day, not just sit around and play cards. On our trip, I saw people in wheelchairs, but they were still traveling -- it's so simple to travel.

"As Rosalind Russell said, 'Life is a banquet' - you just have to get out and do it."

And, like Deets, it's best to be in shape, prepared to enjoy the feast.

New Moffitt Research: Supplements may help prevent "Chemo Brain"

Oct. 22--As an environmental consultant, Miriam Zimms was known for her iron-clad memory.

Juggling multiple projects, spreadsheets and scientific data were all in a day's work. "My clients have always said I was Fort Knox," she says.

But that all changed the moment Zimms' doctor said she had breast cancer. For a full year, the 43-year-old's world was taken over by her treatment: chemotherapy, a double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.

Fighting for survival was distracting enough, but Zimms also found herself irritated by a growing inability to hold together information in her mental vault. The frustration has grown as the forgetfulness has persisted, two years later.

"It's like someone opened my brain like a jewelry box, put in a tube and filled it with air," Zimms says. "There was a film of air between my brain and skull."

Chemotherapy is the culprit behind Zimms' cognitive struggles. The mental fogginess impairs a cancer patient's ability to process or verbalize ideas and words, for months, even years after treatment ends, says Nagi Kumar, director of nutrition research at Tampa's Moffitt Cancer Center.

"It's a serious problem. Ask any breast cancer survivor," says Kumar, who is about to launch a scientific nutritional study at Moffitt to tackle the "chemo brain" condition. "Some are almost resigned to it."

Oncologists -- and most patients -- are understandably so focused on treating tumors that addressing side effects can become secondary. But as the number of long-term breast cancer survivors has ballooned to 11.7 million, more are paying attention to a condition that affects between 30 and 80 percent of them, Kumar says.

A simple nutritional solution is at the heart of the small Moffitt study. Kumar's team created a plant-based and omega-3 fatty acid supplement they hope can improve the cognitive health of breast cancer survivors. The idea is that these supplements thought to be beneficial to people with dementia could lessen the negative effects of chemo brain.

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Acupuncture: Safe, Effective *and* Less Expensive as Treatment for Knee Pain.

According to a story in the Sept. 10, 2012 edition of Medscape Medical News, a "meta-analysis" performed by lead author Andrew J. Vickers, DPhil, attending research methodologist, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York found that "found that about 50% of patients who got acupuncture had improvement in pain compared with 30% who didn't get acupuncture and 42.5% who had sham acupuncture."

The report, Acupuncture for Chronic Pain Individual Patient Data Meta-analysis, originally appeared in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

The findings contradict a series of controversial reports in the last three years that have contended that "sham acupuncture" is as effective as real acupuncture.

However, the article notes that for other types of interventions for chronic pain "the placebo effect is typically about one third of the effect of the treatment, (but) 'in acupuncture, it looks like it's two thirds,' said Dr. Vickers. 'That's quite a large benefit and that's what the patient will actually experience in real clinical practice,' where the decision is not whether to have true or sham acupuncture but whether to get a referral for acupuncture or not."

The study itself was " a systematic review to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of acupuncture for chronic pain in which allocation concealment was determined unambiguously to be adequate. Individual patient data meta-analyses were conducted using data from 29 of 31 eligible RCTs, with a total of 17 922 patients analyzed."

It concluded that "Acupuncture is effective for the treatment of chronic pain and is therefore a reasonable referral option." It reviewed the effects of acupuncture on four chronic pain conditions: back and neck pain, osteoarthritis, chronic headache, and shoulder pain. In his interview Vickers said that acupuncture is also a cost-effective intervention. "Those studies have typically found that the health gain per dollar spent is well under the typical threshold."

Acupuncture Found Valuable in Treatment of Knee Pain

A British study, which focussed specifically on acupuncture's cost-effectiveness in treating chronic knee pain, concluded that one-third of patients with knee osteoarthritis and were candidates for total knee replacement surgery had achieved long-term symptom relief after two years. The study, published on Sept. 12, 2012, determined that the acupuncture treatments had saved at least 100,000 pounds (about $162,000) per year within the study group.

The report, "Group acupuncture for knee pain: evaluation of a cost-saving initiative in the health service," was published in the journal, Acupuncture in Medicine.

About 80% of patients with knee osteoarthritis who attended MSK CATS (musculoskeletal clinical assessment and treatment services) in 2008 and were considered candidates for TKR surgery were willing to try acupuncture first. Ninety patients were screened for acupuncture in this NHS service offering treatment in groups. Of these 90 patients, we know that at least 31 had not had TKR within the following 2 years."

Typical total knee replacement surgery in the UK costs about 5000 pounds (roughly $8100), the report stated.

It concluded: "Although TKR (Total Knee Replacement) is successful in the sense that revision rates are low, as many as 15% of patients experience severe knee pain 3–4 years later and 18% are dissatisfied with the results. Experts recommend that all conservative options should be offered before resorting to surgery.

"The evidence published on acupuncture in patients with knee osteoarthritis shows that it is safe and effective in reducing pain and improving function, thus qualifying it as an appropriate conservative treatment for this condition."

New Study: Homeopathy treatment for Hot Flashes found to be effective and have no side effects.

From: Gaia Health 

Hot flashes are the bane of many women going through menopause. They can inconvenient, embarrassing, and even crippling. They are, in fact, a primary reason that many women are willing to risk taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT). The risks that go along with HRT, though, are not necessary. A new study documents that a combination of homeopathic remedies, currently marketed in France as Acthéane, is effective.

The study is what modern medicine likes to call the Gold Standard: double-blind and both placebo and randomly controlled. It compared two groups of women over 50 years of age, who had not had periods for at least one year, and who had spontaneously complained, during routine gynecological visits, of hot flashes that had lasted for at least two years and had caused significant repercussions in their social or professional lives.

Acthéane produced a near-immediate drop in the severity of hot flashes, which continued throughout the trial. The hot flash score (HFS) after the first week was 15.3 in the Acthéane group and 12.7 in the placebo group, a difference of 2.6, or 17% lower. Both groups’ HFS scores were reduced during the course of the trial, but the difference at the end amounted to 33% – a highly significant reduction.

To see details and graphs from the study please read more here: Acthéane Homeopathic Treatment Found Effective. 

The Medical Benefits of Garlic: More than just a seasoning.

Originally cited as an ancient remedy of the Egyptians and current knowledge of it's cardiovascular benefits: garlic is much more than a seasoning. 

Garlic can ward off vampires, according to an old superstition. Modern science also ascribes protective powers to the pungent bulb -- against health problems.

"Garlic was cited as a remedy in ancient Egyptian writings as far back as 1550 BC, and it's regarded to this day as a prophylactic agent and remedy for many illnesses," noted Margret Morlo, a member of Germany's Nutrition and Dietetics Association.

Garlic owes its medicinal powers to its components. It contains many vitamins and minerals, including vitamins A, B and C as well as potassium and selenium. It also has a number of beneficial phytochemicals, such as polyphenols and sulfides, and a comparatively high content of adenosine, a biochemical compound important for cell metabolism.

"Since garlic is usually consumed in small amounts, not all of its health-promoting components carry weight," remarked Stefan Weigt, a member of Germany's Independent Health Advice Association. So it is with its vitamins and minerals, he said. To meet the daily requirement of vitamin C, for instance, a person would have to consume nearly 800 grams of garlic.

"It's a totally different matter as regards phytochemicals, though. Here the bulb is really outstanding -- especially with sulphides," Weigt said.

Sulphides are sulphur-containing compounds that "can have a beneficial effect on health in many ways. They're antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory" and thus help to guard against or fight infectious diseases, said Antje Gahl, a nutritionist at the German Nutrition Society.

Studies by the University of Arizona in the United States have shown this to be true in the case of colds. According to studies by the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom, garlic can help prevent periodontitis and other diseases of the mucous membrane of the mouth.

The sulphides in garlic have positive effects on the cardiovascular system, too. "It's been proven that they lower the levels of cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood -- blood fat levels," Morlo said.

A team at the National Cardiological Research Centre in Moscow found a 7.6 per cent drop in total cholesterol in 42 test subjects after 12 weeks of garlic therapy. This means regular consumption of garlic may help prevent atherosclerosis -- a narrowing of the arteries due to a buildup of fats and cholesterol -- "and therefore cardiovascular disorders like blood clots, strokes and heart attacks," Weigt added. Some studies have not confirmed garlic's cardiovascular powers, however.

"Garlic is also said to help inhibit cell damage and the development of tumour cells thanks to the antioxidant effects of its phytochemicals," Gahl noted. Antioxidants have the ability to neutralize free radicals, which are atoms or groups of atoms that attack cells and can cause them to degenerate.

"There's not complete certainly on this," she pointed out. "But an analysis of animal tests and statistical surveys suggests that garlic lowers the risk of cancer." This has been virtually proven in the case of stomach and intestinal cancer, she said.

To get garlic's health benefits, "it's extremely important to consume it regularly, preferably every day," Morlo said.

Acupuncture wirelessly? A new spin on an ancient treatment.

Donald Spector, a well-known serial entrepreneur inventor, has filed a patent on wireless acupuncture patches under the Intellectual Properties Policy of the College. The patches will cause electrical stimulation, either directly or by remote control, to specific acupuncture points and muscles. This stimulation will increase the muscle performance, as well as reducing lactic acid buildup and consequently reducing fatigue.

Spector stated, "While the patch provides benefits to athletes, it can also be used by patients suffering from pain and other ailments, for which acupuncture has been effective."

Dr. Mohammad Hashemipour, MD, PhD, Dean of Academic Affairs and former Olympic Team doctor, believes the new wireless electric acupuncture patch technology can reduce muscle fatigue and subsequently enhance muscle performance.

"Patients often forget or do not use acupuncture in a consistent way," stated Hashemipour. "While duplicating the advantages of leads that are temporarily connected to a patient, these patches can be left on for a prolonged period of time, including between visitations to an acupuncture specialist, during which time the chips can be programmed to stimulate at predetermined times or when needed."

There has yet to be a formal ruling on whether these patches, which may enhance sports performance, will be regulated by boxing commissions, team sports, individual sports or doping commissions. Based on current Olympic regulations, Hashemipour feels it will not be banned.

"Even though these patches will provide a significant advantage in muscle strength and endurance, I do not believe they should be outlawed under doping regulations. There are no drugs involved, except by the release of the wearer's own natural chemicals and neurotransmitters. While acupuncture has been used in the Far East for thousands of years, this patent simply makes it possible for an athlete to use electrical stimulation - often cumbersome - as a self-contained patch that can be made as a disposable product," added Hashemipour.

The wireless acupuncture patches are part of an extensive line that the College will license to third parties, providing a significant revenue stream to the College and helping it keep its tuition at less than half of other private institutionally accredited colleges of higher education. New York College had the first New York State Board of Regents approved acupuncture program and is the only private institutionally accredited college of higher education of its kind in the New York Metropolitan Area.

Using Qi gong to counteract negative stress, and boost immune function.

In a recent lecture in Phoenix, AZ at the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) Fellowship, integrative medicine pioneer Isaac Eliaz, M.D., L.Ac. discussed how negative emotions hinder immune response and fuel cancer formation and metastasis. He followed by sharing research on mind-body therapies such as meditation, yoga and Qigong which work to counteract the negative effects of stress and boost health in numerous ways. Highlighting an array of published studies, Dr. Eliaz showed how chronic stress can be deadly to lymphocytes and DNA integrity, and conversely, how mind body therapies and emotional support can ramp up immunity and provide numerous health benefits.

"The contrasts are amazing," says Dr. Eliaz. "Chronic stress significantly reduces the immune response, while something as simple as family support or mindful meditation can boost it just as dramatically."

The negative effects of stress have been studied in a variety of cancers including breast, ovarian, and digestive tract. In one study cited by Dr. Eliaz, breast cancer risk doubled for women after a divorce, separation or the death of their spouse.

In addition to reducing our body's resistance to cancer, stress, depression and isolation also increase metastasis and tumor vascularization. While these facts may be daunting, there are solutions that can make a substantial difference.

In his presentation, Dr. Eliaz discussed a variety of mind-body techniques, including meditation, yoga and Qigong -- an ancient Chinese system of mindful exercises -- that can calm stress and restore the body's healthy balance. In particular, meditation reduces cortisol levels, pro-inflammatory cytokines, systolic blood pressure, anxiety, depression and stress. It also has been proven to increase multiple areas of cognitive function, including information processing, memory and decision making.

"Study after study shows that reducing stress, and its associated negative effects, boosts the immune system and enhances brain function," says Dr. Eliaz.

Read more here: 

http://www.lef.org/news/LefDailyNews.htm?NewsID=13390&Section=DISEASE

For More information about Qi Gong classes in the Tampa Bay Area contact Classical Medicine 

TBT:How Doctors Die?

When it comes time for many people to accept that no one physically lives forever, wouldn't it be enlightening to know the perspective from a group that has to deal with this concept on a daily basis: Doctors? 

"Of course, doctors don't want to die; they want to live. But they know enough about modern medicine to know its limits. And they know enough about death to know what all people fear most: dying in pain, and dying alone. They've talked about this with their families. They want to be sure, when the time comes, that no heroic measures will happen — that they will never experience, during their last moments on earth, someone breaking their ribs in an attempt to resuscitate them with CPR (that's what happens if CPR is done right)."

Read the entire editorial here: How Doctors Die TBT Sunday