Compass Chiropractic

The minimalist footwear or no-wear movement is gaining ground amongst running at great speed.  Since the 70′s we have been using the best science we have to create the most advanced shoes imaginable, but the level of injuries has not diminished, if anything injuries have increased.  In this video from Nature, Havard Professor Daniel Lieberman demonstrates the benefits of barefoot running.  He himself is a barefoot running and can be seen in the video running outside barefoot in what appears to be the winter.

Not all of us are willing to chuck the shoes and head out sans shoes.  If your interested in running barefoot, but worry about the debris in your neighborhood you should look into the Vibram Five Fingers which provide the closest you can come to running barefoot, while still protecting your feet.  Also, another great resource for these unique shoes is www.birthdayshoes.com.

For more information about sports injuries, check out our sports injury page.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been sensitive to certain scents.  These are typically artificial scents that are found in perfumes and cleaning supplies.  One whiff of a perfume could cause a headache, cause a “foggy head” feeling or make breathing more difficult.  I’ve never been able to wear colognes and I’ve had to ask my poor wife to refrain from wearing perfumes and scented lotions.  I’ve been familiar with a condition called multiple chemical sensitivities for a number of years, but there seemed to be little science to support the legitimacy of this condition.

You start to wonder if you’re the only one who experiences this when you walk through the perfume section of a department store covering your mouth while other seem to have no problems covering themselves with these substances.

Lately I’ve been coming across more and more research that shows a correlation between exposure to some of these scents and serious health conditions.  A new report by The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics in partnership with the Environmental Working Group (EWG) looked at 17 fragranced products and found 38 chemicals that were not listed in the packaging of these products.  Some of these chemicals found in fragrances may be hazardous to your health, but  makers of popular colognes, perfumes, and body sprays often don’t disclose all the ingredients found in their products.

Of the 38 “secret” chemicals that were found, 10 have been linked to headaches, asthma and wheezing.  These are exactly the symptoms that I had been experiencing when exposed to these products.

How can the companies who make these products get away with not listing these potentially harmful chemicals?  According to the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act of 1973, companies are not required to list the individual chemicals in fragrance, instead they can simply list “fragrance.”

Whether or not you find yourself feeling sensitive to these chemicals, it is likely that they are harming your health.  Even worse these chemicals may be harming you children and pets who are closer to the surfaces where they’re applied.  One way you can limit your exposure to these chemicals is to remove the fragrance containing cleaning supplies from your home. In a previous post I put a link to a “Health Home Checklist” to help you in removing these items from your home.  I am also a big fan of TraceyClean who sells locally made non-toxic cleaning supplies.

Romaine lettuce that was sold in 23 states  may be contaminated with dangerous E. coli O145 bacteria and has been recalled.

Authorities have reported 19 cases of E. coli O145  in Michigan, Ohio, and New York. Twelve people have been hospitalized, including three with life-threatening hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) caused by the bacterium.

Several lines of evidence — including detection of bacteria in an unopened package of Freshway Foods shredded Romaine lettuce — point to Freshway Foods wholesale Romaine lettuce products.

Freshway Foods has recalled all products containing Romaine lettuce with a use-by date of May 12 or earlier. These products were sold wholesale to restaurants and supermarkets under the Freshway or Imperial Sysco brands.

The recall does not include bagged or prepackaged Romaine or lettuce mixes containing Romaine. However, the lettuce may be found in supermarket salad bars and delis.

Freshway Foods is advising consumers not to eat “grab and go” salads sold in store salad bars and delis at Kroger, Giant Eagle, Ingles Markets, and Marsh stores.

Symptoms of infection with harmful E. coli may range from none to mild diarrhea to severe complications. The acute symptoms include severe abdominal cramps and diarrhea, which may be bloody. Patients may progress to serious complications, such as kidney damage. The FDA and the CDC encourage anyone with these symptoms to contact his or her health care provider immediately.

The states in which the lettuce was sold are Alabama, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin

Spring cleaning is upon us and it is important to make sure you house is not only clean, but also healthy.  Many of the chemicals in our homes, including cleaning supplies have been shown to cause or contribute to health related conditions. In order to make sure your houses are as healthy as possible download this ewg-hht-checklist and grade your home.