| Don't miss any of Bottom Line's Daily Health News. Add our address, dailyhealthnews@edhn.bottomlinesecrets.com, to your Address Book or Safe List. Learn how here. February 8, 2011  In This Issue...
 Blood Pressure "Switch" Found on Human Body... Chicago, IL: A recent study conducted by the Hypertension Center at the University of Chicago identified a small spot (the "Atlas area") on the body that appears to control blood pressure. In minutes, a single touch lowers blood pressure back to healthy levels. Top number drops 14 points, bottom number drops 8 points. No drug on Earth can match this instant miracle. Who knew it was this simple? It’s almost like a switch that allows doctors to dial down your blood pressure in minutes. Learn more...Surgical Cure for Asthma A new surgical procedure may be life-changing -- even potentially life-saving -- for people with chronic asthma who haven’t been able to get relief from the standard treatments. Called bronchial thermoplasty, the procedure was approved by the FDA last April. It’s being done at only 23 hospitals around the country, but it is worth exploring as a treatment if you or someone you are close to is suffering recurrent asthma attacks that have not been helped by traditional treatments. Thus far, the evidence suggests that this procedure, the first nondrug treatment for asthma, dramatically reduces the occurrence of asthma attacks and improves asthma-related quality of life. It’s estimated that more than 23 million Americans (including seven million children) suffer from asthma, a chronic disease that inflames and narrows airways. Some individuals are born with a predisposition to asthma due to allergies or develop it from exposure to secondhand smoke, while in others the causes may be more unpredictable, such as viral illnesses. In people with asthma, the layer of smooth muscle that surrounds the airways becomes thicker and more reactive to certain triggers, explains Sumita B. Khatri, MD, codirector of the Asthma Center at the Cleveland Clinic’s Respiratory Institute. When a person with asthma has an attack, the muscles around the airways constrict and go into spasms, narrowing the airways and leading to shortness of breath, tightness in the chest and other distressing symptoms. reduces swelling in Airways In contrast to asthma medications that target inflammation and may secondarily reduce some of the muscle thickening, bronchial thermoplasty treats the airways directly with heat created by radio-frequency waves. The treatment is apparently quite effective. A randomized, double-blind controlled study of about 300 patients found that those who underwent bronchial thermoplasty experienced vastly improved asthma-related quality of life in the 12 months afterward, including:
Dr. Khatri told me that two years after the first clinical trials, the improvements are still in place -- including not only a reduction in symptoms overall but also in the frequency of severe asthma flare-ups and hospitalizations. Many patients also have reduced their need for rescue/emergency medications as well, she said. Treatments Aren’t Painful Bronchial thermoplasty takes place over three one-hour sessions scheduled three weeks apart. In each procedure, the patient receives light sedation -- many actually fall asleep. Each of the three treatments targets a different area of the lungs -- in the first session, the airways of the right lower lobe... in the second, the left lower lobe... and in the third, the airways in both upper lobes. What’s involved: The pulmonologist threads a long, flexible tube called a bronchoscope down the mouth or through the nose and into an airway in the lung. Inside the bronchoscope, a special thermoplasty catheter contains electrodes that are heated with radio-frequency energy. This shrinks the muscle, which is believed to prevent the extreme airway muscle contractions during asthma attacks. "This result is expected to be permanent, but there is still not enough data yet to know for sure," Dr. Khatri said. There are no pain-sensing nerves in the airways, so the application of thermal energy does not hurt, notes Dr. Khatri. Patients are monitored for several hours afterward because symptoms sometimes worsen in the short term. To reduce the likelihood that this will happen, patients take a five-day course of steroids before and after surgery. Though bronchial thermoplasty often is done as an outpatient procedure, Dr. Khatri told me that the Cleveland Clinic keeps patients overnight as an added safety precaution. She said that in the immediate post-procedure period, some patients experience discomfort similar to an asthma flare-up, requiring use of rescue/symptom relieving medications. Also, many patients have a sore throat from the bronchoscope, while other possible transitory side effects are chest discomfort or pain, partial lung collapse (serious but treatable), headaches, anxiety and nausea. Are You A Candidate? Bronchial thermoplasty is FDA-approved only for people age 18 and older with severe ongoing symptoms from asthma that are not well-controlled with regular asthma medications. It can’t be performed on smokers, people with active respiratory infections or people who have heart arrhythmias or have implanted pacemakers, defibrillators or other electronic devices. Bronchial thermoplasty is expensive -- as much as $15,000 or more -- and since it is still considered experimental, Medicare doesn’t cover it and neither do most insurers. However, Dr. Khatri told me that she expects this to change as time goes on and more and more patients experience significant health benefits after bronchial thermoplasty. To view a list of hospitals and doctors who perform the procedure, visit http://www.BTForAsthma.com/bronchial-thermoplasty/procedure-availability/. Source(s): Sumita B. Khatri, MD, MS, codirector, Asthma Center, The Respiratory Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, Ohio.  Perfect Painkillers... Work in seconds, cost 23 cents and heal your gut! We're all trying alternatives now that painkilling drugs are proving so deadly. There's got to be a better way! And now there is, thanks to a brilliant physician named Dr. Mark Stengler. In a famous case that's making fellow doctors gasp in admiration, Dr. Stengler's patient, Todd, could barely believe how fast his arthritis agony disappeared after all those drugs had failed him. Stool Testing Can Tell You Lots About Your Health Is your stool soft or hard? Brown or black? Odorless or stinky? You may feel uncomfortable talking or even thinking about it, but Daily Health News contributing editor Andrew L. Rubman, ND, points out that your stool can tell you and your doctors a lot about your health. It’s helpful to know that a normal stool is soft, medium brown, not horrendously odiferous and sinks slowly into toilet water. And if your stool gets sent to a lab for testing, its bacterial content can reveal lots of other information and identify subtle underlying issues, allowing you to know what you need to do to take your well-being to a new level. You most often hear about stool cultures (such as the fecal occult blood test and the stool DNA test) being used to detect digestive diseases such as colorectal cancer. But in my conversation with Dr. Rubman, we focused on how stool cultures can provide comprehensive insights that go far beyond your digestive health. All You Want to Know -- and More! In a stool culture, a sample of your feces is placed in a special medium where bacteria and other microorganisms are then grown. This identifies what type of flora -- good and bad -- inhabit your digestive tract. Conventional MDs generally order these tests when you have prolonged diarrhea and they suspect an underlying bacterial infection (e.g., from eating undercooked meat, poultry, eggs or other contaminated food). This is useful insofar as it goes, says Dr. Rubman, but he said that when you work with an experienced practitioner trained in the nuances of nutrition and digestive health, a stool culture also can reveal such information as: Does your diet support a healthy balance of microflora in your gut? This is a must for optimal immune function, detoxification and metabolism as well as for proper digestion and elimination. What bad bacteria lurk in your system? What good microbes are missing in action? An impairment or imbalance contributes to intestinal problems... and also to allergies, asthma, sinus congestion, fatigue, moodiness, joint aches, skin problems, hormonal imbalances, yeast infections, cold sores, urinary tract infections and more. ...Then What? If you experience symptoms such as chronic diarrhea, allergies or fatigue, ask your physician to perform a stool culture. Health insurance usually covers the cost, but always check first. If the results indicate an imbalance of bacteria, Dr. Rubman said you’ll need to shift your focus from what comes out of your body to what you are putting in it. To flip your intestinal balance of flora from negative to positive, keep these tips in mind... Garbage in, garbage out. Cut back on sugary desserts and refined white bread, white rice, etc., that encourage the growth of disease-causing microorganisms in the gut and result in difficult and often foul-smelling bowel movements. Instead eat plenty of fiber-rich ripe fruits, deeply pigmented vegetables, beans and breads that list whole grain as their first ingredient. Fiber promotes healthy flora and normal bowel movements. Pump up on probiotics. These beneficial bacteria in your digestive tract are naturally present in foods such as yogurt with live bacteria... miso (a fermented bean paste)... kefir or kombucha (these are fermented beverages)... raw sauerkraut or Korean kimchi... and pickled beets, tomatoes, carrots and other produce. When in doubt, check it out. If you experience any sudden change in bowel habits, see your doctor. Also report symptoms such as diarrhea, constipation, fatigue, allergies and frequent infections. When a stool culture shows an imbalance, Dr. Rubman prescribes dietary changes along with dietary supplements -- e.g., digestive enzymes, fiber and/or probiotics such as Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum -- to turn the situation around, creating a balanced ecosystem in the gut and resulting in better health overall. Source(s): Andrew L. Rubman, ND, founder and director, Southbury Clinic for Traditional Medicines, Southbury, Connecticut. www.SouthburyClinic.com. Be well,
Rethinking My Smart Phone After months of resisting, I finally bit the bullet and got myself a "smart phone." What pushed me over the edge was synching problems between a series of PDA (personal digital assistant) devices and my office computer that caused events to get dropped from my handheld calendar. With so many meetings, this was a big problem. Read on... You received this free E-letter because you have requested it. You are on the mailing list as healthwellness82@gmail.com. Or... a friend forwarded it to you. Click here to easily subscribe. You can easily unsubscribe by clicking here. To change your e-mail address click here To update your e-mail preferences click here Important: Help your friends live more healthfully -- forward this E-letter to them. Better: Send it to many friends and your whole family. This is a free e-mail service of BottomLineSecrets.com and Boardroom Inc. Need to contact us? Boardroom Inc. Privacy Policy: Required Disclaimer: The information provided herein should not be construed as a health-care diagnosis, treatment regimen or any other prescribed health-care advice or instruction. The information is provided with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in the practice of medicine or any other health-care profession and does not enter into a health-care practitioner/patient relationship with its readers. The publisher does not advise or recommend to its readers treatment or action with regard to matters relating to their health or well-being other than to suggest that readers consult appropriate health-care professionals in such matters. No action should be taken based solely on the content of this publication. The information and opinions provided herein are believed to be accurate and sound at the time of publication, based on the best judgment available to the authors. However, readers who rely on information in this publication to replace the advice of health-care professionals, or who fail to consult with health-care professionals, assume all risks of such conduct. The publisher is not responsible for errors or omissions. Bottom Line's Daily Health News is a registered trademark of Boardroom, Inc. Copyright (c) 2011 by Boardroom Inc. |
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