February 9, 2016
Since its publication in 2013, Grain Brain by Dr. David Perlmutter has been making waves [1]. Written by a practicing neurologist and fellow of the American College of Nutrition, this book is a well-written and compelling read from a renowned doctor with a unique combination of credentials. Grain Brain gives us a close and well-researched look at the history of food and illness, and the common denominators behind many diseases that have neurological roots. It challenges commonly held perceptions of what good food is. For many readers, it’s been a breath of fresh air. That’s not to say it hasn’t […]
February 9, 2016
They say that the only constant in life is change. During adolescence, change becomes very constant. Not only is the teenager faced with a steep social and emotional learning curve, but also with a rapidly changing biological reality that represents a constant challenge to homeostasis. Impulsivity is high during adolescence. Neuroscientists can tell us why that is. But interesting research is showing that the simple art of self-control may not only decrease stress but also increase the adolescent’s ability to handle it. Impulsivity and risk taking seem to be hallmarks of the adolescent years. From learning to drive, to navigating […]
February 4, 2016
In terms of stress and adaptation, few examples are so emotive as the currently-topical issue of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It is estimated that 1.4 million Australians have PTSD at any one time, this number making up 6.4% of the population. Not all of these cases are combat related either. In fact, they come from all walks of life [1]. Common flow-on effects of the disorder include depression, suicide or suicidal ideation, drug and alcohol problems and many social, economical and functional impacts. Current research and practice is taking us away from the idea that mental illness is ‘all […]
February 4, 2016
“Are you really allergic? Or are you just intolerant?” It’s a question often asked of a food intolerant person. It can often be disparaging, perhaps not intended to make to the sufferer defensive, but disheartening none-the-less. Oftentimes, people with food intolerances are treated as fussy eaters with no real problem. But the truth is that food intolerances are very much a physiological reality. There is a difference between a food allergy and an intolerance. Basically, food intolerances are chemical reactions, while food allergies are immune responses [1]. However, regardless of whether or not you have a ‘true’ allergy, you’ll have […]
February 2, 2016
“Neurons that fire together, wire together,” says Max Cynader, a well-regarded Canadian Ophthalmologist and Neuroscientist, as he takes the TED Talks stage. It might be a common phrase to anyone who studied psychology at school, but to scientists and researchers, its applications are far from academic. It’s all rooted in the idea that “Contiguity breeds connectivity.” We often say that the Nervous System is contiguous, that it is a vast but interconnected system where the actions of one part of it somehow touch the other aspects of the Nervous System. For Max Cynader his life’s work has meant an incredibly […]
February 2, 2016
For decades, the central dogma of genetics told us that our DNA dictated our future, that at the moment of conception our health destiny was set in stone. We believed that DNA was the molecule that controlled our life, programming us towards certain health realities. It was an inheritance that shaped our future. The DNA passed information down to the RNA which passed information to the protein. We were the protein and the expression of our genes. We couldn’t pass information back up the chain, therefore we could not impact our DNA. The implication was that we could not improve […]
January 28, 2016
Palmer College of Chiropractic recently commissioned Gallup to design and conduct a study of more than 5,000 adults aged over 18 in the USA. The purpose was to discover attitudes to chiropractic care and the chiropractic profession. The results were released on September 8 2015. This study is the first of its kind, being that it is the ‘first annual survey of U.S. adults measuring perceptions of and experiences with chiropractic care [1].’ It might not be based here on Australian soil, but it still gives us a good measuring stick on the attitudes towards the profession that may prevail […]
January 28, 2016
The philosophy of vitalism that many chiropractors subscribe to holds that the force that sustains the body, heals the body. It’s a philosophical standpoint that some love and others are neutral to. After all, we have a mounting pile of proof that chiropractic works. We have thousands of happy people leaving our practices feeling better, living better, and regaining health. Isn’t that what matters at the end of the day? Let us take pause to consider this though: if the body (and its master, the mind) can indeed heal itself, where is the evidence? According to Lissa Rankin MD, a […]
January 26, 2016
Ten short years ago, a great postural concern for chiropractors was the way backpacks were worn by students and young people. They were commonly slung over one shoulder, often heavily weighted with text books and other items. It took some time for this trend to change. In 2015, it is far more common to see the backpack worn over both shoulders – still too low in most cases, but a move in the right direction. However, a new postural concern has entered the arena, and it has to do with smartphones, texting and social media usage. According to numerous surveys, […]
January 26, 2016
The percentage of Australians aged over 65 is increasing by the year, as part of a near-global trend towards ageing populations. As this trend progresses, chiropractors may find themselves caring for an increasing number of elderly people. Gregory Petsko, an American biochemist and scholar, says the ageing population presents us with a problem: “Unless we do something to prevent it, over the next forty years we are facing an epidemic of neurological disease on a global scale [1].” “For twelve thousand years, the distribution of ages in the human population has looked like a pyramid with the oldest on top. […]
January 21, 2016
Brain plasticity, or neuroplasticity, is a topic that many neurologists, scientists and chiropractors have known about for quite some time. Todd Sampson’s ‘Redesign my Brain’ is a TV miniseries that set about trialing the concept in practical ways, making the topic easily understandable to people from all walks of life. Series one aired in 2013, featuring three episodes on creativity, intelligence and ‘mind over matter.’ Series two aired last year, and it opened on a topic close to many a chiropractic heart: adaptability. Todd Sampson is on a mission to prove that any brain can be trained to cope with the […]
January 21, 2016
For some, bedtime is relaxing. The cares of the day fall away as you are lulled into the land of nod, where you rest and recharge before awaking fresh and ready to face the new day. For many others, this scenario is but a dream. Bedtime for them is a time of frustration marred by the inability to fall asleep or stay asleep. Data now shows us that up to 35% of adults have brief symptoms of insomnia, 15-20% have short-term insomnia and around 10% have chronic insomnia [1]. Perhaps it wasn’t always so. The Hunter-Gatherer’s brain would have easily […]
January 19, 2016
“When I get sick, I’ll go to the doctor. When I have a bad back, I’ll head to the chiropractor.” How many times have you heard it said? This ill-fitting cliché around what a chiropractor does is something we battle when taking our message and the power of our adjustment to the world. We aren’t about ‘cracking’ backs. We’re about empowering wellness, changing the structure and function of the brain, and enabling the body to heal itself. We know that. Unfortunately, it can seem like the world is stuck in a sickness-centred paradigm and doesn’t quite ‘get’ us. We offer […]
January 19, 2016
Of all the organs in the body, the brain is surely the most complex. So much so that despite the all the advancements of the modern age, no computer equaling its flexibility and processing power has yet been developed. There are literally billions of neurons and synapses that make up this complex system, hence mapping it on a cellular level has been a task so big that it has not been attempted – that is until now. Imagine the potential discoveries that could be made if we could see inside the brain, and see the neuronal pathways as they crisscross […]