For those of you who have known me for some time you have likely heard me talking about my mother, my personal muse of health. She is 95 years old and physically amazingly healthy, perhaps the proof of which is that the only medication she takes is OTC analgesics for her worn out joints. She has exercised every day, taken vitamins, carefully watched her diet and weight, and tried everything else she could find in her reading of the magazine, Prevention, which she has subscribed to since the 1960’s. I do remember on the 4th of July when I was 12 her appendix ruptured, necessitating an emergency appendectomy and a tense few days to make sure that the infection did not spread too far. This proved to me that even the healthiest among us get sick. You can’t prevent everything. And although we all get sick, I feel I have a responsibility to myself, my family, my children, my grandchildren, and to my patients to be as much like my mom as I can be when it comes to prevention. And in particular prevention of what I might call the top 5, the things that are most likely to kill or disable you.
To start, let’s look at the 4 largest causes of death in order: 1) Heart Disease, 2) Cancer, 3) Medical Practice (I’m not making this up), 4) Diabetes. And the condition that causes more disability than any other: 5) Degenerative Disease of the Spine. When it comes to time and money spent to help to prevent any condition that will eventually lead to your death or disability, the above are the top 5 for most of us to focus on. They are my focus, and as such, I am simply going to list what I do.
- Aerobic exercise – Get the heart rate to target rate for 45 minutes 3 times per week. This helps with all conditions above but, depending upon the type of exercise, can increase the rate of spinal degeneration. So caution. I walk/hike which poses reasonably minimal risk to the spine and other joint structures.
- Weight management – If you are losing weight through diet weigh yourself weekly. If you are losing weight through exercise, weigh yourself monthly and measure your waist weekly. If you are in weight maintenance mode, weigh yourself 2-3 times per week. This helps with all above conditions.
- Drink 64 ounces of water per day – This helps with all conditions.
- Take natural anti-inflammatories and anti-oxidants – Substances such as turmeric, omega 3 fatty acids, krill oil, vitamin D3, and vitamin E help to reduce your overall levels of inflammation and oxidative risk. This helps with all conditions above.
- Stretching/flexibility exercise – The Lindwall Disc Pump Exercises, yoga, and general stretching help to maintain joint flexibility of the spine and other joints, pumping the cartilage with food, water, and oxygen. This helps with condition 3 and 5 in particular. For more information, read my article #56 - LITERATURE REVIEW of “Chiropractic Influence on Oxidative Stress and DNA Repair.”
- Spinal adjustments – On a weekly basis to reduce inflammation, scar tissue, and nerve stress, as well as to increase motion. This helps with all the top 5 due to the causal relationship between inflammation, nerve stress, and all disease.
If you do other things, please share them with me. If you don’t, pick one or two and go for it.
To start, let’s look at the 4 largest causes of death in order: 1) Heart Disease, 2) Cancer, 3) Medical Practice (I’m not making this up), 4) Diabetes. And the condition that causes more disability than any other: 5) Degenerative Disease of the Spine. When it comes to time and money spent to help to prevent any condition that will eventually lead to your death or disability, the above are the top 5 for most of us to focus on. They are my focus, and as such, I am simply going to list what I do.
- Aerobic exercise – Get the heart rate to target rate for 45 minutes 3 times per week. This helps with all conditions above but, depending upon the type of exercise, can increase the rate of spinal degeneration. So caution. I walk/hike which poses reasonably minimal risk to the spine and other joint structures.
- Weight management – If you are losing weight through diet weigh yourself weekly. If you are losing weight through exercise, weigh yourself monthly and measure your waist weekly. If you are in weight maintenance mode, weigh yourself 2-3 times per week. This helps with all above conditions.
- Drink 64 ounces of water per day – This helps with all conditions.
- Take natural anti-inflammatories and anti-oxidants – Substances such as turmeric, omega 3 fatty acids, krill oil, vitamin D3, and vitamin E help to reduce your overall levels of inflammation and oxidative risk. This helps with all conditions above.
- Stretching/flexibility exercise – The Lindwall Disc Pump Exercises, yoga, and general stretching help to maintain joint flexibility of the spine and other joints, pumping the cartilage with food, water, and oxygen. This helps with condition 3 and 5 in particular. For more information, read my article #56 - LITERATURE REVIEW of “Chiropractic Influence on Oxidative Stress and DNA Repair.”
- Spinal adjustments – On a weekly basis to reduce inflammation, scar tissue, and nerve stress, as well as to increase motion. This helps with all the top 5 due to the causal relationship between inflammation, nerve stress, and all disease.
If you do other things, please share them with me. If you don’t, pick one or two and go for it.