Resistant Ringworm Making Rounds at Schools

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Get ready to say, “Ewwwww….” Ringworm is making a big comeback in urban elementary schools. Worse yet, this new and improved fungal infection is treatment-resistant. Eeeewwwww!

According to a recent study that looked at 10,514 children in kindergarten through Grade 5 at 44 schools across the bi-state Kansas City metropolitan area, 6.6% of them were infected with the fungus (T. tonsurans) that causes ringworm. Researchers also found that the oral antifungal medicine used to treat ringworm does not completely eliminate the fungus in many children, which means they can spread the infection to others even after treatment.

“The organism T. tonsurans has become the leading cause of scalp infection in the U.S., and we believe it is on the rise in inner city areas,” said study author Susan Abdel-Rahman, a professor of pediatrics at Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics. “This study supports what I and many of my peers are seeing, children with scaly, itchy scalps and hair loss are prevalent in metropolitan areas. If not treated, ringworm can lead to permanent hair loss, which can damage a child’s self-image. There is also some evidence that it may worsen seemingly unrelated problems such as asthma and allergic rhinitis.”

The fungus seems to have racial preferences. More than 18% of black children in kindergarten and the first grade were infected. That rate dropped to 7% by fifth grade. Infection rates were 1.6% for Hispanic children and 1.1% for white children. The reasons for the higher rate among black children aren’t clear.

Here’s what doctor Abdel-Rahman advises: Parents should “limit the sharing of items that come into contact with the scalp, such as hats, combs, brushes and pillows. Watch closely for signs of infection, such as flaking that looks like dandruff, white patchy scaling, itching, hair thinning or loss, and small pus-filled bumps, especially when your child has come in contact with another infected child. Make an appointment to see your doctor if you suspect that your child is infected and make sure to take the prescribed medicine as directed along with the application of a medicated shampoo two to three times a week.”

May I repeat, “Yuck!” If your child is in elementary school in an urban area, keep on the lookout. Kids are passing this funk between each other like wildfire. They can also get ringworm from pets, so check your critters often, and get them treated if you see a problem. Ringworm can cause permanent hair loss, so rapid treatment is of the utmost importance.

Yes, this new, improved ringworm is resilient; just keep hitting it like Manny Pacquiao–bing, bang, boom! Don’t give that fungus a chance to breathe. Oh yeah, and keep your kid away from my kids.

Drug Addicts Paid for Sterilization

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It doesn’t get any weirder than this: Drug addicts are being paid by a North Carolina charity to be sterilized or go on long-term birth control. The payout: $300.

Project Prevention, based in North Carolina, is paying addicts $100 in three installments over eighteen months to insert IUDs or have their tubes tied (vasectomies for men). The idea, according to founder Barbara Harris, is to reduce the number of drug addicted babies being born to parents that can’t care for them. Harris has first-hand experience with the issue: she has adopted four children born to the same crack-addicted woman in Los Angeles.

“Even if their babies are fortunate enough not to have mental or physical disabilities, they’re placed in the foster care system and moved from home to home,” Harris says. “What makes a woman’s right to procreate more important than the right of a child to have a normal life?”

Project prevention has worked with 3,371 addicts in the U.S. since 1997, and of those, 1,253 have opted for tubal ligations or vasectomies. The organization relies on donations to keep the operation going, and clients usually here of the program through word of mouth. However, Harris also advertises the program by driving around the U.S. in a 30-foot motor home plastered with photos of a dead infant, a razor blade, a line of crack and a pacifier, along with the message: “Some things just don’t belong together.”

The program has some health professional up in arms about the practice. Some liken it to Nazi-style social engineering and criticize Harris for implying that all addicts will become unfit parents. Many believe that the money would be better spent on educational and drug treatment programs. The most common criticism is that drug addicts aren’t in the right frame of mind to make this massive type of decision. Without a doubt, many of the addicts just spend the money on more drugs.

Harris’ reply, “If you don’t think an addict is capable of making a decision then I guess you’d agree they aren’t capable of raising a child they’ll conceive either. They’re going to do drugs with or without our money. But maybe our money means they won’t rob someone tomorrow, or maybe it means they won’t have to turn as many tricks the day after.”

I don’t know about you, but I find this type of practice right up there with selling one’s organs. With the rapid advancement of medical technology, people have come to think of their body parts as expendable. A very sad state of understanding of the human body. I would think that to violate your body in such a way would be worth well more than 300 bucks. Anybody who has ever been hooked on drugs will attest that some foolish decisions were made in the throes of their addiction. But body alteration often has no turn back.

I know in my own life I feel absolutely blessed to have my beautiful children with me now, despite what my life was like in the past. I don’t applaud this practice because I feel that every child has the chance to live a valuable life, regardless of their incoming circumstances. I’ll bet Ms. Harris four children are happy to be alive. Just a guess, anyway.

Baby Boomers Riddled with Disability

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Baby boomers are being nagged by injuries–more than the generation before them. In fact, baby boomers have more disabilities than people over age 65. What the heck is going on here?According to data from the National Health Interview Survey, conducted annually from 1997 to 2007 and including up to 15,000 individuals each year, more than 40 percent of people aged 50 to 64 reported having problems with at least one of nine physical functions, and many reported difficulty with more than one. Although health problems as a whole did not increase for this age group, physical disabilities, like trouble climbing ten stairs, did. The number of baby boomers using special equipment to get around, such as a cane or wheelchair, also increased. Hmmm…. Here’s the breakdown of the number of adults per 10,000, ages 50 to 64, who reported difficulty with various actions in the 2005-2007period and from 1997-1999 (in parentheses).

  • Stooping, bending, kneeling: 3,129 (2,875)
  • Standing two hours: 2,491 (2,321)
  • Pushing or pulling large object: 2,010 (2,024)
  • Walking a quarter-mile: 2,146 (1,954)
  • Climbing 10 steps: 1,749 (1,537)
  • Sitting two hours: 1,491 (1,445)
  • Lifting and carrying 10 pounds: 1,410 (1,387)
  • Reaching over head: 1,186 (1,149)
  • Grasping small objects: 1,128 (1,109

Experts are unclear about the cause of this trend. What’s enjoyable to read, however, are the comments posted to the yahoo news page of this report (link no longer available). Some people blame obesity, although the study makes very clear that obesity is not an important cause of the disabilities. Some think it might be processed foods, some exposure to DDT and other chemicals, while others yet to excessive television viewing by boomers. I love to see people thinking and trying to find a cause, but I have to say none of these guesses make complete sense. Here is my shot at it: Baby boomers are the first generation to really believe they can have it all–career, family, and endless health. They were the generation that pushed themselves physically, if not from day one, then by jumping on the fitness bandwagon when jogging, Tae Bo and Richard Simmons came onto the scene. Many boomers followed the trend rather than taking time to learn the proper form. This leads to injuries. Boomers also saw the greatest advances in medical technology. Hurt yourself Lambada-ing? No problem–medical science will fix it. Additionally, boomers as a whole tended to trust their medical doctors unquestionably. If Dr. Welby says to take Vioxx, then by golly I’ll do it. Um hm. So my take is that boomers pushed themselves harder physically than any generation before them (graceful agers); to that I applaud. But they relied on medical advice for their musculoskeletal issues, and as I pointed out last post, big mistake. Medical doctors are coming out of school poorly prepared to deal with musculoskeletal problems–this by their own analysis. As such, there have been oodles of surgeries–routine ones, routine ones, that’s what we’ve been told–and here we are witnessing the end result: increased disabilities. Sure one could argue that perhaps medical science saved many a crippling by this daring, if not reckless, generation. But I don’t think so. I am certain that you can have excellent function to live the life you love well into old age–I see it in my chiropractic practice every single day. So take heed Gen Xers and Millennials, take care of your bodies today–exercise, eat well, get regular chiropractic care, rest up, and minimize your intake of toxins. Learn proper form of the exercise or sport you wish to do–and learn to rehabilitate and recuperate yourself from injuries. Your physical body isn’t indestructible; it needs to be cared for like a fine-tuned machine–better than a fined-tuned machine. Educate yourself on injury prevention and proper care when you get hurt. And don’t take any one practitioner’s word as gospel. Get a few opinions and do what feels right. Lastly, don’t just choose a risky surgery because it’s sold to you as routine, even if seems like an easy way out. Conservative care can restore and preserve proper function for years to come if done right and to completion. Thank you baby boomers for paving the way through yet another uncharted territory. Younger generations listen up…and learn.

When All You Have is a Hammer…

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Well no doubt that all this talk about health care reform has brought some long overdue can-o-worm opening. Take, for instance, unnecessary surgeries: a medical nuisance of the worst magnitude, and common practice for decades. A recent report discloses that riskier surgeries for low back pain have risen in number and in cost, yet many are unwarranted. Well n-o-o-o chit! You know what they say, “When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.”

Data on more than 32,000 Medicare patients with low back pain stemming from spinal stenosis (a narrowing of the spinal canal causing a squeezing low back pressure) showed that costlier, more complex spinal fusion surgeries were recommended and performed over a six year period. Less expensive decompression surgeries, costing roughly $20K, were often bypassed for $60-90K spinal fusions, despite the more expensive surgeries having greater complications and even leading to death.

Worse yet, many a spinal fusion was lacking in evidence for appropriateness of care. You don’t say? Our doctors doing the unnecessary? Nah, not McReamy. You bet your assets they are. And I love it, because we chiropractors have known about it for years, and we haven’t been quiet about it, either. We have tried to sway the public toward more natural and highly effective treatment options, but noooo, stay away from them chiropractors, they can hurt you.

Yeah? Listen to these number:

  • Risk of stroke in a $20Kspinal decompression (part of vertebrae hacked out to take pressure off nerve): 1 in 50
  • Risk of stroke in a $80K complex spinal fusion (vertebrae connected and joint removed): 1 in 20
  • Risk of stroke in a $3K round of chiropractic care: 1 in 5.85 million

Frickin’ duh!

According to the study, more than half the patients who had complex fusions had a simple stenosis, which usually calls for decompression alone. Rates of complex fusions in Medicare patients rose 15-fold from 2002-2007, while decompressions declined, and hospital charges grew 40 percent. There have been allegations of kickbacks to spine surgeons for using products of a particular hardware manufacturer. Hey Izzy, them screws you got in ya back sent me and the missus to Reno…

Listen, I don’t really think there’s some big conspiracy here: It ain’t rocket science. The medicos are admittedly deficient in their training in treating musculoskeletal issues. Surgery is also notoriously ineffective at relieving low back pain for any significant stretch of time. So why are drugs (equally ineffective) and surgery still the treatments of choice by the cultural health authority? Simple. When all you have is a hammer…

Chiropractic in the NFL

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Are you ready for some football? Well, the NFL is ready for some hits–chiropractically speaking. According to a recent report by the Professional Football Chiropractic Society (PFCS), every NFL team currently uses chiropractic as a a form of treatment, game-day prep, and an overall health regimen. Booyah!!!

That’s right, the NFL is SMART! Professional football players know how much chiropractic can help them recover from injury, but more important they know that chiropractic helps on-field performance as well as extends careers. Think about it: Which body will handle more hits over the long run–the subluxated, beat-up, bashed in one, or the body that’s tuned up, turned on and subluxation free? Don’t worry, NFL players have already answered the question.

No doubt the NFL is leading the charge in this arena with every team carrying a chiropractor on their roster. “The robust need for chiropractic care in the NFL has been deeply driven by the players’ desire for peak physical conditioning and not simply for injuries,” states Spencer H. Baron, DC, DACBSP, immediate past president of the PFCS and Miami Dolphins team chiropractor for the past 14 years. “From the earliest years of full contact football, their bodies are subject to structural stress that doctors of chiropractic … are specially trained to care for.

Chiropractic has had a hand in the careers of many NFL legends. Joe Montana, Jerry Rice and Emmit Smith to name a few that have been outspoken chiropractic proponents. But some of today’s star players also have been singing the praises of chiropractic–Tom Brady and Maurice Jones-Drew (see video below) are just two the many. It’s the use of chiropractic by players like these that was important in the inception of chiropractic league-wide.

Again from Baron, “War stories whispered throughout our profession indicated that in the past, players who wanted chiropractic adjustments had to meet with a chiropractor in hotel bathrooms, parking lots, or back alleys.” But players get what players demand–and the players LOVE chiropractic. Who can blame them?

To see a list of NFL team chiropractors click here.

Bravo NFL!–no surprise the National Football League is the premier sports institution in the world. It takes forward thinking to be the best, and nothing beats chiropractic in aligning athletics with optimal health!


Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 10

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Finally, and probably the biggest exercise mistake of all, is using workout equipment outside of its intended use. While some off-use applications are not so bad, some are downright atrocious…and foolish most of the time, as they can lead to serious injury (or ridicule if somebody in the gym has camera):

worst exercise mistakes

Wrong! Flat out stupid…on so many levels. What next, stilts?

worst exercise mistakes

Well what can I say about this…?

Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 9

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Lunges, squats and many yoga poses (asanas) require a deep bend of the hips and legs. It is important to maintain the knee over the foot for maximum strength and stability. Allowing the knee to go farther forward than the toes can stress knee ligaments:

lunges poor form

Wrong! While the knee going beyond the toes occasionally won’t hurt you, doing so repeatedly can stress the ligaments and menisci. 

How-To-Do-Lunges Perfect Form

Booyah! Perfect…

Lunges Good Form

Right! Even if you don’t have the strength or flexibility to take a long step, a moderate step forward is sufficient, just keep the knee in line with the ankle.

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Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 8

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If you punch a heavy bag or do any kind of mixed martial arts (MMA) training, you’ll want to throw a punch correctly. Improper punching technique is the quickest way to a hand, wrist or shoulder injury. And would you like to break your hand (boxers fracture)? Punch something incorrectly and you’ll see:

poor punching form

Wrong! You can always tell an amateur fighter when you see the shoulder coming out and away from the body. This leads to stress/strain on the shoulder, and the last two digits become the main contact on the target—a high risk for boxers fracture.

perfect straight punch

Right! A perfect punch—arm straight out, leading with first two digits. That should do some damage and avoid common amateur-sustained injuries.

Proper straight punch

You want power? Twist at your hips and throw your body into the punch; keep your arm in close to the body, leading with first two digits. Knock out!


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Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 7

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One of the most common injuries I see in my sports chiropractic practice is sharp neck pain caused by doing a yoga pose called “plow”. Like all other poses and exercises, a proper plow pose requires retracted (pulled back) shoulders:

plow pose injuries

Wrong! Enjoy yer neck pain buddy.

good plow pose

Right! Shoulders pinned back and flat on mat, neck straight…bravo!

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Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 6

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Not only with weight lifting, but with yoga too, shoulders need to be retracted at all times—that is proper shoulder biomechanics. Rolling the shoulders forward can cause injury:

cobra pose poor form

Wrong! Lady pull those shoulders back…you’re going to hurt yourself.

perfect yoga posture

Right! Can you see the difference? Strength, openness, freedom…and just looks darn good.

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Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 5

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Proper shoulder biomechanics requires retracted shoulders. Allowing the shoulders to roll forward is a recipe for injury. Pull those shoulders back when doing any upper body exercise:

barbell curl poor form

Wrong! Protracted, or rolled-forward, shoulders are poor form which can lead to a number of injuries. Note how the head moves forward (B) increasing risk for neck pain

biceps curls poor form

Wrong! Shoulders rolled forward might be perfect for a hunchback, but if you want look powerful…

biceps curls good form

Right! Pull those shoulders back (retraction), and not only will you look powerful you’ll decrease the risk of injury too.

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Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 4

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Abs are endurance muscles, not muscles of mass like gluts or pecs—adding weight for resistance can lead to injury. Think reps not plates:

Weighted Crunch

Wrong! Adding weight for resistance during crunches can lead to injury.

perfect crunches

Right! As endurance muscles, reps will get you farther than weight when it comes to abs. Burn ’em baby! 

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Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 3

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Working the lower abs helps define the abdominals as they fuse into the groin, but doing so can put the hip flexors at risk for strain. Some lower ab exercises are thus no-nos when it comes to avoiding low back and groin pain:

bootcamp-leg-lifts

Leg lifts where the hip extends beyond 90 degrees is a surefire way to strain the hip flexors. Do them at your own risk.

bicycle-crunches

Bicycles are, unfortunately, not much easier on the hip flexors. Do them regularly and risk low back and groin pain from strained hip flexors.

proper reverse-crunch

Right! The correct way to work the lower abs is to pull the hip flexors (particularly the psoas) out of the equation. Notice how she maintains a 90 degree angle at the hip joints–all movement should occur at the lower abs. Bravo!

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Ten Worst Exercise Mistakes 2

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Sit-ups and crunches are phenomenal for strengthening the midsection, but a few performance SNAFUs can lead to low back pain (LBP), hip pain and/or groin pain:

Wrong! Too wide of an arc can stress the hip flexors (psoas) causing low back pain (LBP).

Proper abdominal crunches

Perfect! ~ 20 degrees is enough to work the abdominals while sparing the hip flexors and thus avoiding LBP.


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Healthy Young to Pay More for Health Care

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Ever been out to dinner with drinking friends and been expected to split the bill evenly, despite drinking no wine? Well, looks like health care is the new deadbeat dinner date. According to a new report, young adults who buy their own insurance will carry a heavier burden of the medical costs of older Americans.

By 2014, the year the new health care bill goes into effect, most Americans will be required to buy insurance or pay a tax penalty. Premiums for young adults is estimated to increase 17% or $42 per month, according to analysis by Rand Health, a research division of the nonpartisan Rand Corp. Nice! The people that use health insurance the least will be expected to pay $504 more per year. Yeah, that’s fair.

Consider 24-year-old Nils Higdon. The self-employed percussionist and part-time teacher in Chicago pays $140 each month for health insurance. But he’s healthy and so far hasn’t needed it. His insurance could go up to $182 per month–$2,184/year. Ask Nils if he’s pleased with this.

“I suppose it all depends on how much more people in my situation, who are already struggling for coverage, are expected to pay,” Higdon says. He’d prefer a single-payer health care system and calls age-based premiums part of the “broken morality” of for-profit health care.

According to Jim O’Connor, an actuary with the independent consulting firm Milliman Inc. “Young males will be hit the hardest,” because they have lower health care costs than young females and older people who go to doctors more often and use more medical services.

However, nationally representative surveys for the Kaiser Family Foundation have consistently found that young adults are more likely than senior citizens to say they would be willing to pay more so that more Americans could be insured. But whether that generosity will endure isn’t clear.

Even Higdon is okay with it overall–he says he supports the principles of the health care overhaul, even if it means he will pay more as a young man to smooth out premium costs for everyone.

Oh well, I guess youth doesn’t understand the financial impact of paying for others until they learn things the hard way–like splitting a $200 dinner bill when all they had was a burger and dinner salad.

Not Sick, Not Healthy

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Have you ever heard somebody say, “I never get sick?” Or the nonsensical equivalent, “I haven’t been sick in three years (five years, ten years, whatever).” Now is that really possible? I think those that say it have little or no understanding of human physiology.

The human immune system has evolved to distinguish self from non-self, normal and healthy metabolites from foreign invaders. When the immune system encounters a foreign substance, it goes through a cascade of responses that include humoral, cell-mediated, and non-specific immune processes. Our bodies essentially create symptoms (those things most people consider as being sick, but of which I’ll argue is really health) to fight various insults to the body, including microorganisms, toxins, and many cancers. Inflammation itself is a healing process.

To say one never gets sick in the layman’s term (and only a layman would say such a thing), means one never experiences symptoms. To say one never experiences symptoms would either mean the person never encounters a foreign substance (they must live in a plastic bubble), or she has zero healthy response to foreign invaders. Would this be healthy? Would this be possible?

Since I’ve never personally recorded a someone’s health/non-illness status who makes this claim, I have no idea if it really exists, although I’ve certainly explained why I doubt it. If it truly does exist, then I would say to that person, “Watch out–your body’s lack of healthful immune response means that it’s not doing the job it has evolved to.” It is virtually impossible for any human being to not encounter foreign pathogens. Sorry.

Interestingly, allergies are on the rise in developed countries including the U.S. One hypothesis, which I consider highly plausible, is that our drive to never encounter foreign substances (or in other words, our attempt at “never being sick”) through hyper-cleanliness and hyper-vaccination leads to an under-stimulated immune system. Preventing normal/natural exposure to dirt, germs or pathogens causes our immune system to get “bored.” As a result, the immune system begins to attack itself causing allergies (and other auto-immune disorders). This is called the hygiene hypothesis, and is merely one of many hypotheses trying to explain the increased incidence of allergies.

We have evolved an immune system for a reason–the world is filled with opportunistic organisms fighting to survive like every living thing. Our immune system is our natural defense that has allowed us to live in a dangerous world for millions of years. To suggest that one has transcended human evolution by taking supplements, exercising or any other reason people use to tell the world how healthy they are, is complete folly. It warrants a reminder: The expression of symptoms is health–therefore, no illness, no health.

Couch Potatoes Gone Global

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It’s not just American children sitting on their rumps these days–children all over the world are chronically inactive. So says a recent study that looked at over 70,000 teens in 34 nations.

Children from Argentina to Zambia are not getting enough exercise, and are spending three or more hours a day watching TV or playing on computers. Whether a country was rich or poor made no difference to the inactivity of their youth; dismal news on the state of modern culture. No knock on technology, but parents of all nationalities need to limit the amount of boob tube and web surfing their children do, and push them more toward physical activity.

The study, published in The Journal of Pediatrics, looking at 72,845 schoolchildren aged 13 to 15 from North and South America, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. The children were surveyed between 2003 and 2007. Children that spent three or more hours a day watching TV, playing on computers or chatting with friends–outside of school time or doing homework–were considered sedentary. Only 25% of boys and 15% of girls worldwide were getting enough exercise. Girls were overall less active than boys in every country except Zambia.

Some of the numbers:

  • Uruguay had the highest percentage of active boys, at 42%, while Zambia had the lowest, at 8%.
  • Girls from India were the most active, with 37% meeting exercise recommendations, while girls from Egypt were the least active, with just 4% getting adequate exercise.
  • Children in Myanmar were the least sedentary, with 13% of boys and 8% of girls classified as sedentary.
  • The most sedentary nations were St. Lucia and the Cayman Islands, with 58% of boys and 64% of girls spending at least three hours a day in sedentary activities.

Once again, parents would be wise to get the kids kicking, playing and using their bodies. Technology is a great thing; but with every great thing comes a downside, and in this case it’s the risk of becoming couch potatoes. Inactivity and the associated risk of childhood obesity is no longer an American phenomenon–it’s gone global. Time to change.

Future of Health Care Presently Experienced

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Last night I ran into a guy who ripped me off $5,000. Not one to hold a grudge, we actually had a brief conversation, in which he told me he’s having two knee operations. I told a former assistant of mine of the encounter and she asked (knowing he’s on a long collections list, including with the IRS) how he’s paying for his surgeries. I said, “I’m paying for them–$5,000!” Then it occurred to me: he Obamacare’d me before Obama ever thought of it.

Bye, Bye Doctors

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OK people–say goodbye to doctors, and hello to nurses, physician’s assistants and disease educators, because that’s what you’ll be getting under the new health care system. That’s right, primary care physicians are on their way out—in droves. But you’re not surprised, right? I told you just that in this here blog, remember? And for my fellow chiropractors, I made that very clear in my Dynamic Chiropractic article, Chiropractic Suited for Primary Care?, last year.

Awright, good, you knew…just wanted to give a heads up, because new estimates have 40,000 primary care physicians leaving practice within the next decade. That’s how money is saved in a nationalized health system. Reminds me of the time my wife’s esthetician told me that she was a doctor in Russia. “Awesome!” I said. “Not really,” she replied. “Being a doctor there is not like over here, it doesn’t pay much and the hours are long; very few people want to do it.” And now she’s giving facials in Beverly Hills. Nice.

Only 30% of all doctors practice in primary care. If you don’t know, these are the docs that see you first. Don’t know why you’re gassy all day? Primary care physician. Don’t know why your baby toe tingles? Primary care physician. Pissing fire? You get it.

Interestingly, 65 million people currently live in areas designated as having a shortage of primary care physicians, according to the government. But never fear, the new health plan will offer to pay doctors 10% more to serve in those areas. Wow! So if I were to serve in those areas, they’d pay me an additional $3.10 (Medicare pays $31.00 for chiropractic; trust me, it’s my humanitarian gift to society to treat the elderly). Love the government–they sure know how to value a service.

Not only are primary care physicians leaving practice, but when the new health care system takes off in 2014, both the newly insured and existing patients will make a mad rush to doctors’ offices, putting a strain on an already buckling specialty.

No worries, less educated physicians assistants will pick up the slack. They’ll have their government manuals telling them how to handle each condition. Who needs doctors? Differential diagnosis is soooo overated.

I just hope I never see my PCP, Dr. Weiner giving haircuts at the local Fantastic Sams—that’d be awfully embarrassing.

Vitamin D Better Than Flu Shot

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Health care trumps sick care again, but this time on the road. That’s right, health care traveled to sick care’s arena–the illness center–and beat sick care at its own game. Booyah!

A recent Japanese study showed that children taking 1,200 IU of vitamin D supplements daily during the winter and early spring helped prevent seasonal flu and asthma attacks. A timely victory in my analysis of true health care versus government-championed sick care.

Sick care pushes the seasonal flu shot, which my regular readers might recall has been fingered by experts as inconclusive in its effectiveness. Proponents of health care, on the other hand, myself included, really push upping the vitamin D intake. I think 1,200 IU is pretty good for children, and most adults need much more, like 5,000 IU per day. As we become more aware of the pervasiveness of vitamin D insufficiency in all Americans, including children, getting adequate sunlight and supplementing becomes paramount.

The study conducted at Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo showed that children taking the vitamin D supplements were almost half as likely as catching the flu as those taking placebo. And as an added benefit, children taking vitamin D were almost six times less likely to suffer an asthma attack. Holy inhalers! That’s quite a hit to pharmaceutical manufacturers. You mean, that a simple $8 bottle of vitamin D can prevent what a $30.00-$60.00 Albuterol inhaler treats. Well bless my Obamacare–I wonder if vitamin D is covered on the plan.

According to Dr. Adit Ginde, of University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine, who was not involved in the study, told Reuters Health: “This is the first time a study has been done that rigorously shows that vitamin D supplementation can reduce a type of influenza in a dedicated clinical trial.” Ginde and colleagues published a study a year ago showing that asthmatics with lower vitamin D levels were at five times the risk for colds and flu.

Take that, sick care. Another victory in the arena of truth in health. I’ll keep ’em coming.

Copyright © 2013 Dr. Nick Campos - All Rights Reserved.