Are You an Overbreather?

Don't miss any of HealthyWoman from Bottom Line. Add our address, HealthyWomanfromBottomLine@news.bottomlinepublishing.com, to your Address Book or Safe List. Learn how here. March 10, 2011  Are You an "Overbreather"? Shocking #2 Cause of Cancer What Acupuncture Skeptics Should Know The Drugs No Senior Should Ever Take Food Intolerances that Can Strike at Any Age   Are You an "Overbreather"? We’ve all seen scary movies where panicked characters start to hyperventilate or "overbreathe" -- breathing so fast that they nearly pass out. But did you realize that there is a chronic form, called chronic hyperventilation syndrome, in which a person seems to breathe normally but in fact habitually takes in too much air? It is common -- and even can affect people who know the importance of proper breathing. Yet its symptoms often go unrecognized, even by doctors. What happens... We inhale oxygen (among other gases) and exhale carbon dioxide. But for our bodies to function normally, we must maintain a certain level of carbon dioxide in the blood. Short-term hyperventilation (for instance, during a panic attack) causes carbon dioxide levels in the blood to sink too low temporarily, bringing on a rapid heartbeat, dizziness, nausea, trembling and choking. But chronic overbreathing -- in which a person breathes too quickly most of the time -- keeps carbon dioxide levels down in the long term, according to Hunter College biopsychologist Robert Fried, PhD, author of Breathe Well, Be Well. Resulting symptoms include tingling in the hands... light-headedness... weakness and fatigue... frequent sighing, yawning and burping... constipation... irritability... and/or insomnia. Of course, you should see your physician if you have the symptoms above, Dr. Fried said, to be evaluated for various possible medical causes (for instance, diabetes). But unfortunately, when overbreathing is the real problem, it frequently goes unrecognized -- because diagnosis requires special equipment and training that doctors don’t ordinarily have. Chronic overbreathers often go from one specialist to the next in a vain attempt to uncover the true cause of their symptoms... and many are prescribed antianxiety drugs that do nothing to address the underlying physiological problem. Good news: A simple breathing technique may reduce or eliminate symptoms by correcting a tendency to overbreathe and reestablishing normal blood levels of carbon dioxide. Bonus: Proper breathing also can improve chronic medical conditions such as asthma, hypertension and migraine. "The right way to breathe is deep down in our abdomens -- just think about the way a newborn’s tummy slowly rises and falls with each inhalation and exhalation," Dr. Fried said. If you are prone to the symptoms above and your doctor has ruled out other medical causes, try the following test. Sit comfortably in a chair and put one hand on your chest and the other hand on your abdomen. Inhale. If the hand on your chest rises visibly while the hand on the abdomen scarcely rises at all, you would benefit from learning abdominal breathing -- which may naturally slow down your breathing rate. In his book, Dr. Fried lays out a detailed daily program for mastering abdominal breathing. Though he does not recommend shortcuts, you can get a sense of the techniques by trying the following exercises. If you feel dizzy, stop. Exercise 1: Imagine that your body is an upside-down eyedropper. Your mouth and nose are the dropper’s opening and your stomach is its bulb. Sit with your hands on your stomach and breathe in, imagining air filling the bulb as you let your stomach expand. Then exhale, tightening your abdominal muscles as if squeezing the eyedropper bulb. Inhale and exhale through your nose, Dr. Fried said -- mouth breathing tends to promote overbreathing. Exercise 2: Sit with a book on your lap. Without worrying about your breath, push the book out as far as you can with your abdomen. Now inhale -- as you fill with air, your abdomen should move out about as far as it did when you pushed the book. Then exhale slowly (but not so slowly that it creates discomfort), pulling your abdomen back in as far as it will go. With daily abdominal breathing practice, people often notice improvement in symptoms within a few days to two weeks, Dr. Fried said. Eventual goal: To breathe from the abdomen automatically -- at which point the overbreathing problem becomes a thing of the past. Source: Robert Fried, PhD, is a professor of biopsychology and behavioral neuroscience at Hunter College in New York City and author of Breathe Well, Be Well: A Program to Relieve Stress, Anxiety, Asthma, Hypertension, Migraine, and Other Disorders for Better Health (Wiley). Shocking #2 Cause of Cancer An official at the American Cancer Society said that it’s easy to avoid half of all cancers. However, an adviser to the American Institute for Cancer Research was even more optimistic when he said that nine out of 10 cancers are related to factors we control. Of course, their #1 piece of advice is "stop smoking." We all know that. But I bet you don’t know the #2 cause of cancer. It’s something totally under your control -- it’s much easier than quitting cigarettes -- and it’s the last thing you’d ever expect. I’ll tell you about it in a moment. Learn more... What Acupuncture Skeptics Should Know Next time you hear someone scoff at acupuncture, enlighten him or her by sharing some fascinating new information about adenosine, a compound that the body produces in response to injury and that is known to block pain-transmitting nerve signals. In a new study, scientists performed 30-minute acupuncture treatments on mice with discomfort in the right paw. Results: During and immediately after acupuncture, levels of pain-relieving adenosine in tissues near the needles were 24 times greater than before treatment... and discomfort was relieved by an estimated two-thirds (as shown by the animals’ responses to stimuli such as touch and heat). As further evidence of adenosine’s role, the researchers also showed that in mice given a drug to prolong adenosine’s presence in tissues, acupuncture’s pain-relieving effects lasted three times as long... that mice experienced reduced pain when adenosine was injected directly, without using acupuncture... and that in mice genetically designed without adenosine receptors, acupuncture did not work. Source: Maiken Nedergaard, MD, DMSc, is a professor of neurosurgery at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, codirector of the Center for Translational Neuromedicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center, both in New York, and leader of an animal study on the role of adenosine in acupuncture. The Drugs No Senior Should Ever Take In 1991, a team from Harvard Medical School identified 20 drugs too dangerous for use by elderly patients. Then they found out that 23% of seniors are receiving these very drugs. And the Journal of the American Medical Association said this study was "merely the tip of the iceberg." They were right. Now the list has grown to several dozen drugs. Congress was so disturbed it asked its watchdog agency, the General Accounting Office, to look into it. Using Medicare data, the GAO found over 17% of the elderly receive unsafe drugs. Read on... Food Intolerances that Can Strike at Any Age Chew on this -- according to a new report from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, 13% of US adults believe that they are allergic to one or more of the primary allergy-provoking foods, yet only 3% truly are allergic. One reason: People often confuse food allergy with the more common food intolerance. Results: When I asked allergist Clifford W. Bassett, MD, to explain the difference, he cited three major distinctions... Allergies usually appear in childhood and may disappear over time, whereas food intolerances tend to increase with age. With an allergy, the immune system mistakes a food for a harmful invader and creates antibodies that provoke a reaction whenever that food is consumed. An intolerance usually is primarily a digestive reaction (rather than an immune response) that occurs when a food irritates the gastrointestinal tract or cannot be properly digested. Allergy symptoms, which can range from mild to life-threatening, may include itching, flushing, hives, dizziness, nausea, facial swelling and/or difficulty breathing. Intolerance reactions typically are milder and chiefly gastrointestinal (abdominal discomfort, bloating, diarrhea), though they sometimes include skin reactions and other nondigestive symptoms. Editor’s note:Why is it important to recognize the difference? Dr. Bassett explained that with a food allergy, you must assiduously avoid the food, since just a fraction of a teaspoon may bring on a full-blown reaction... and you should keep an epinephrine auto-injector on hand to halt any potentially life-threatening reaction. If you suspect that you have a food allergy (primary culprits include shellfish, fish, peanuts, tree nuts, milk and eggs), consult an allergy specialist for testing. Referrals: www.AllergyAndAsthmaRelief.org. In the case of a food intolerance, you may be able to identify the trigger by tracking what you eat and when symptoms arise. If you try an "elimination diet" that excludes the suspect food, check food labels so you don’t unknowingly ingest something you want to avoid, Dr. Bassett said. Note: Some people with a food intolerance find that they can have occasional small amounts of that food without bringing on symptoms. Common food intolerances involve... Lactose, a sugar in cow’s milk. Up to 10% of US adults are lactose intolerant, generally because they have a deficiency of the enzyme lactase required to properly digest lactose. Symptoms typically include abdominal pain, bloating, excessive gas and/or diarrhea. Opting for lactose-free milk or lactase enzyme supplements may allow some intolerant individuals to have more normal digestion, Dr. Bassett said. Gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. Gluten intolerance appears to be more common today than it used to be. Patients often experience bloating, gas and intestinal discomfort after eating gluten grains. Be aware: Gluten is found not only in baked goods and pastas, but also in foods containing grain derivatives -- including surprising ones, such as luncheon meats, gravies, sauces, soy sauce, candy, fruit fillings, dairy-free creamer and beer -- so you need to be a "food label detective," Dr. Bassett said. Monosodium glutamate (MSG). Though best known as a flavor enhancer in Asian cuisine, MSG also appears in many frozen, canned and processed foods. Very sensitive people may experience flushing, a burning sensation and pressure in the face, neck and chest, as well as sudden headaches. Food intolerances you may never have heard of include... Sulfites, compounds that occur naturally in fermented products (beer, wine, champagne) and that often are added to dried fruit, grape juice, packaged foods, canned goods and other foods as a preservative. Ingesting sulfites may trigger nasal itchiness and congestion, hives and/or swelling. In people with asthma, ingesting sulfites may bring on an asthma attack. Check labels: Aliases include sodium or potassium bisulfite... sodium or potassium metabisulfite... sulfiting agent... and sulfur dioxide. Tartrazine, a dye (also called yellow dye #5) used in many beverages, chips, processed vegetables, candies and desserts. Some case reports suggest a link between tartrazine and a rare episodic skin rash. It had been thought that individuals most prone to tartrazine intolerance included those who cannot tolerate aspirin and those with asthma, but more recent research does not confirm this association, Dr. Bassett said. Tyramine, a naturally occurring compound in aged cheeses, avocados, bananas, beer, chocolate, red wine and tomatoes. In sensitive individuals, Dr. Bassett said, tyramine can bring on headaches, migraines and even an elevation of blood pressure. Source: Clifford W. Bassett, MD, is on the faculty of New York University School of Medicine and is medical director of Allergy & Asthma Care of New York, both in New York City. www.AllergyReliefNYC.com Tamara Eberlein, the editor of HealthyWoman from Bottom Line, has been a health journalist for nearly three decades. An award-winning author or coauthor of four books, she is committed to helping other women in midlife and beyond live healthy, fulfilling lives. Her latest book is the updated, third edition of When You’re Expecting Twins, Triplets, or Quads (HarperCollins). She is also the "chief health adviser" to her husband of 25 years, college-age twins and teenaged son. BOTTOMLINESECRETS.COM Terms & Conditions Privacy Policy About Us Contact US Bottom Line Publications | 281 Tresser Boulevard, 8th Floor | Stamford, CT 06901 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 unsubscribe. To change your e-mail address click here. To update your e-mail preferences click here. © 2011 by Boardroom Inc. All Rights Reserved.