A type of bread IBS sufferers can tolerate

The first reaction when we are in pain is often to take a painkiller.  I know from experience in clinic, when that the painkiller stops working that is when our clients book a massage.  But would exerise help?  To me it is counter-intuitive to exercise when in pain so I was interested in a recent study that looked into this. A study of 176 people investigated if the standard Fustra20Neck&Back exercise programme (scroll to bottom for full details) for reducing pain and increasing fitenss of office workers with neck or lower back pain works.  All the participants sat for at least 6 hours a day at a desk and had experienced at least 2 episodes of moderate pain in the last month before the study started.  The study participants included both men and women between 30 - 50 years old.  Half were asigned to the exericse group and half to the control group.  The exercise group carried out the Fustra20Neck&Back exercise programme for 1 hour twice a week for 10 weeks. More than 90% of the particpants in the exercise group found that the intensity of the pain and fequency of the pain decreased significantly.  Improvements in neck & shoulder flexibility and quality of life were also recorded.  However there was no significant differences in lower back pain. Reference

Fustra20Neck&Back exercise programme The programme comprised a 10 minute aerobic warm-up on a cross-trainer.  Then 10 functional flexibility exercises, four strength exercises, five core exercises and a 10 minute cool down. Click below to see the 10 functional exercises for your shoulders.      

Click below to see the strenght and core exercises.

While in Part 2 we looked at the impact of healing (Reiki) energy on cells, yeast & animals, that is not the same as on human beings.  So in this post I want to share with you some of the research done on humans.  So I want to start with looking at physical factors... Krieger (1975) carried out four experiments with the intention of raising blood haemoglobin levels in patients. The technique of Therapeutic Touch (similar to Reiki) was used, with Oscar Estebany being the healer in the first three experiments and nurses trained in the method in the fourth. Significant differences in blood haemoglobin levels were obtained in:

• 43 healed patients as against 33 controls
• 46 healed patients as compared to 33 controls, where the groups were more carefully matched

Miller (1982) undertook a double-blind study on 96 hypertension patients divided equally into experimental and control groups. The experimental patients received distant healing from eight healers, together with their normal medical treatment; the controls received no healing. The results showed a significant improvement  in the systolic blood pressure of the healed group, as compared to the controls, but no significant changes in the diastolic blood pressure. So there is clear scientific evidence that Reiki does have a desirable impact on the human body. Full References Krieger, Dolores (1975). Therapeutic touch: The imprimatur of nursing. Am. J. Nursing, 7, 784-787. Miller, R. N. (1982). Study on the effectiveness of remote mental healing. Med. Hypoth., 8, 481-490.

Continue my series (see part 1 and part 2) on swapping exotic superfoods for more readily available and cheaper but just as nutritious alternatives, this week I turn my attention to Wheatgrass.

Chickweed: The New Wheatgrass

As green as any grass you've ever seen, wheatgrass has been a main event in health food circles for decades. People will line up to pay big bucks for a small shot of the stuff, which tastes pretty much like you'd imagine, similar to the aroma of new-mown hay; as one company describes it, "unfamiliar, but not unpleasant." Several of this commodity's features include fighting aging by revitalizing skin cells, cleansing the blood and fighting tumors. Clinical studies show that it contains 90 minerals, 20 essential amino acids, 13 vitamins and 80 enzymes. But it's the 70 percent ratio of chlorophyll, structurally similar to red blood cells (hemoglobin), that makes it a superfood. World Lifestyle notes that once it's absorbed, it converts to hemoglobin, mimicking red blood cells and carrying oxygen to vital areas of your body, and may even kill off cancer cells because "cancer cells can't survive and thrive in oxygen-rich environments." But get this: Chickweed (Stellaria media) is a wild, edible plant growing prolifically in every area of the world other than those that are coldest, like Antarctica. Besides decreasing insect damage to other plants, it's chockfull of many vitamins, minerals and, like wheatgrass, chlorophyll. Chickweed stems and flowers can be used raw in salads and sandwiches, tossed into soups and stews or added to cooked dishes (but at the end as the stems and leaves are delicate). Frontier foragers learned that when they gathered chickweed, almost exclusively in the spring, it was useful as both food and medicine. As a food, Foraged Foodie observes, the raw form is covered with a fine layer of fibers, which are minimized when they're gently chopped and sautéed or wilted. Natural medicine expert Dr. Josh Axe notes:

"Chickweed is taken by mouth to treat stomach problems, intestinal complaints such as constipation, disorders of the blood, arthritis, lung diseases including asthma, kidney disorders, inflammatory conditions of the urinary tract, rabies, and scurvy or vitamin C deficiency. It is also used to relieve extreme exhaustion. Chickweed is applied on the skin relieve various skin conditions such as skin wounds, ulcers, burns, arthritis pain and symptoms of eczema."

References Dynamic Greens 2017 World Lifestyle Foraged Foodie March 3, 2016 Dr. Axe February 10, 2014