Archive for the ‘Stress’ Category

Acute Inflammation vs. Chronic Inflammation

Sunday, January 31st, 2010

Acute InflammationShort-tem, or acute, inflammation is one of your body’s most powerful defense mechanisms. Swelling from increased fluids protects injured areas from further harm while the body goes into overdrive to fend off bacteria, viruses, and even parasites. It not only kills off the invaders, but damaged tissue as well, until your body eventually wins the battle.

Once inflammation has served its purpose to eliminate the external nasties the healing process can begin. Sometimes though, the body fails to end the inflammatory cycle and systemic chronic inflammation results.

While acute inflammation can save your life, chronic inflammation may help end it. When chronic inflammation becomes systemic the body actually turns on itself. It leads to an increased risk of heart attack or stroke, magnifies the harmful effects of Alzheimer’s, and even promotes an internal environment favorable for cancer.

While many drugs will decrease inflammation in the body, they are not safe to consume for extended periods of time. These drugs themselves have been linked to heart attacks, strokes, and blood clots. They can also damage your kidneys and other vital organs, lead to internal bleeding, and even death.

What is needed is a safer approach to reducing both localized and systemic inflammation in the body. Fortunately there are several options. And they can be used interchangeably. The four most recommended natural methods for reducing inflammation are:

    1. Ice & Heat Therapy — Ice and heat can relieve both pain and inflammation
    2. Dietary Changes — Many foods increase your body’s inflammatory response (such as dairy, wheat, gluten, sugar, fried foods), while some other foods reduce inflammation
    3. Natural Medicines — Herbs and other homeopathic remedies can be as effective at eliminating inflammation as drugs without the harmful side effects; systemic proteolytic enzymes are also important in treating chronic inflammation as they break down harmful fibrin (scar tissue) caused by the excess inflammation
    4. Mind/Body Techniques — Stress related tension is directly or indirectly contributes to a significant number of disease states including inflammation; end the stress and help break the inflammatory cycle

This short video on fighting inflammation introduces these options.


Is Your Pain All In Your Mind?

Wednesday, January 6th, 2010

Back Pain Treatment OptionsIf you want to get someone suffering from pain angry in a hurry, just tell them their pain is all in their mind. “Baloney!” (or some stronger word) might be their response.

Saying pain is all in someone’s mind is tantamount to claiming their pain is imaginary. Clearly pain is real to any person suffering with it. However, the cause of pain very well may be from their mind.

Pain often has a musculoskeletal source. But one very common factor behind many types of pain does originate in your mind, namely stress. Even when stress isn’t the primary cause of pain, it can exacerbate existing pain from musculoskeletal causes leaving you feeling even worse.

Stress is directly related not only to pain but also numerous illnesses with no apparent biological cause. Fibromyalgia, chronic headaches, and insomnia are often tied to high levels of stress. Stress also causes our bodies to release adrenaline which is critical for responding to genuine “fight or flight” situations. Chronically high levels of adrenaline caused by repeated unresolved stress – even from situations as benign as sitting in traffic, missing a deadline, etc. – can lead to trigger pain from anxiety, muscle tension, digestive disorders, and even lead to long-term biological damage.

As a result, if you or someone you love suffers from pain, eliminating stress can play an important role in your search for lasting pain relief and better health. Here are several proven ways to reduce stress and stress-related pain:

  • Physical activity, especially rhythmic exercises like bicycling or swimming, helps burn off stress chemicals and has been proven more effective than Prozac for treating depression. Targeted exercise itself can even help relieve pain.
  • Real hypnosis (not the stage act kind!) can be very effective at eliminating stress, reducing anxiety, and improving your health.
  • Herbs such as ginseng, Rhodiola rosea, chamomile, Siberian ginseng, cordyceps, and ashwagandha are known for their ability to reduce stress and anxiety.
  • Heat therapy like a hot bath or sauna works wonders at helping your body relax. Localized heat treatments can help reduce specific areas of pain, stress and tension. Far infrared heat is a form proven safer and more effective than traditional heating pads.
  • Use mind/body approaches such as tai chi to take a multi-disciplinary approach to eliminating stress and pain.
  • Get actively involved in a community. Building a network of friends brings with it powerful allies in helping you cope with the day to day stressors of modern life.

Alkaline Diet Benefits

Saturday, December 26th, 2009

“Imagine a Diet So Simple,
It Makes You Feel Incredible
In Just 3 Days!”

Alkaline Diet and Feeling BetterHello, my name is Michael Murray. Back in the summer of 2002, there wasn’t one day where I didn’t ask myself, “Can I ever stop feeling so sick and tired?”

That was how I felt pretty much every morning at age 32!

Every joint and muscle in my body hurt as I spent hours in the gym sweating. Sure, I lost a few pounds and felt a little better… But it wouldn’t last very long. And I still felt tired every morning and afternoon, and couldn’t get myself to do anything at all when I got home from work.

I had tried everything to get back into shape. I had made drastic changes to my lifestyle to feel better and to lose weight. And I had nothing to show for it other than the emotional pain and financial waste of yo-yo dieting.

Then I went to a Tony Robbins seminar. It turns out I was not alone with how I was feeling. A serious problem common to so many people…

Most People Don’t Feel Anywhere Near As Good As They’d Like To

In fact, the vast majority of people feel that their lack of health and energy is just part of the aging process.

The Dangerous Myth That’s Eating Away At Your Life

The funny thing is, so many people I know have nagging health problems. They’re baffled why they no longer feel as good as they did when they were a child.

In fact, they haven’t got a clue. And that really makes sense when you consider the types of foods they’re eating day-to-day, and the dangerous, often toxic, medications they’ve used throughout life.

But let me ask you something: Do you think medication is the answer to health problems?

Of course not. If medication or a magic pill was the real answer, then you’d already feel as good as you want to be.

The Secret To Abundant Energy and Vibrant Health

Although for many years mainstream medicine ignored the role that diet can play in both health and disease, more recently it, too, began emphasizing the need to eat healthfully for keeping illness at bay.

In truth, the light came over the horizon more than a hundred years ago. But the radical work of some great pioneering scientists has been overlooked by a mainstream model so deeply involved in it’s own myths that is was blind to larger truths. Until now.

Recently, one of the most exciting discoveries has been the effect some foods have on the body’s acid-alkaline pH levels when digested.

A Slightly Alkaline Body Is Crucial For Good Health

Regardless of how much you work out and try to eat right, if you can’t balance the acids in your body, you’ll never feel as good as you’d like to be.

The problem is, on a whole, the average western diet is acid-producing. And when acidic wastes accumulate, they can cause organs to malfunction and break down.

We are forcing our bodies to work with less than optimal inner terrain. This creates a fertile breeding ground for various forms of chronic illness that are now experienced by more than half the population. An alkaline diet delivers so many benefits… less aches and pains, lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, more energy and on and on and on…

If you often feel tired, it’s a safe bet that you are overly acidic. The simple fact is, most people are.

Click here to learn more about how an alkaline diet can dramatically improve your health


Stress and Back Pain

Thursday, December 3rd, 2009

Don’t Let Stress Keep You in Pain

Stress can do far more damage to your health than just make your shoulders and upper back tight. Few people realize that stress can not only cause many different health ailments like back pain, but it can also keep you in pain and prevent your body from healing.

Our thoughts, emotions and beliefs literally dictate whether we are going to be sick or healthy… so if you are serious about getting rid of your pain, I urge you to learn more about the mind-body connection.

Listen to the audio interview below to learn more about stress

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After listening please post your feedback (no stupid comments, please).

Hope you find this helpful :)

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