Mouth breathing and tongue position: a risk factor for health
Posted: June 8, 2023 Filed under: ADHD, behavior, Breathing/respiration, cognitive behavior therapy, Evolutionary perspective, healing, health, Nutrition/diet, self-healing, Uncategorized | Tags: babies, breastfeedging, development, infants, jaw, mouth breathing, neurocognitive develoment, nose breathing, sleep, tongue-tie Leave a commentErik Peper, PhD, BCB and Ron Swatzyna, PhD, LCSW, BCB, BCN
Adapted from: Peper, E., Swatzyna, R., & Ong, K. (2023). Mouth breathing and tongue position: a risk factor for health. Biofeedback. 51(3), 74–78 https://doi.org/10.5298/912512
Breathing usually occurs without awareness unless there are problems such as asthma, emphysema, allergies, or viral infections. Infant and child development may affect how we breathe as adults. This blog discusses the benefits of nasal breathing, factors that contribute to mouth breathing, how babies’ breastfeeding and chewing decreases the risk of mouth breathing, recommendations that parents may implement to support healthy development of a wider palate, and the embedded video presentation, How the Tongue Informs Healthy (or Unhealthy) Neurocognitive Development, by Karindy Ong, MA, CCC-SLP, CFT, .
Benefits of nasal breathing
Breathing through the nose filters, humidifies, warms, or cools the inhaled air as well as reduces the air turbulence in the upper airways. In addition, the epithelial cells of the nasal cavities produce nitric oxide that are carried into the lungs when inhaling during nasal breathing (Lundberg & Weitzberg, 1999). The nitric oxide contributes to healthy respiratory function by promoting vasodilation, aiding in airway clearance, exerting antimicrobial effects, and regulating inflammation. Breathing through the nose is associated with deeper and slower breathing rate than mouth breathing. This slower breathing also facilitates sympathetic parasympathetic balance and reduces airway irritation.
Mouth breathing
Some people breathe predominantly through their mouth although nose breathing is preferred and health promoting. Mouth breathing negatively impacts the ability to perform during the day as well as affect our cognitions and mood (Nestor, 2020). It contributes to disturbed sleep, snoring, sleep apnea, dry mouth upon waking, fatigue, allergies, ear infections, attention deficit disorders, crowded mis-aligned teeth, and poorer quality of life (Kahn & Ehrlich, 2018). Even the risk of ear infections in children is 2.4 time higher for mouth breathers than nasal breathers (van Bon et al, 1989) and nine and ten year old children who mouth breath have significantly poorer quality of life and have higher use of medications (Leal et al, 2016).
One recommendation to reduce mouth breathing is to tape the mouths closed with mouth tape (McKeown, 2021). Using mouth tape while sleeping bolsters nose breathing and may help people improve sleep, reduce snoring, and improves alertness when awake (Lee et al, 2022).
Experience how mouth breathing affects the throat and upper airway
Inhale quickly, like a gasp, as much air as possible through your open mouth. Exhale letting the air flow out through your mouth. Repeat once more.
Inhale quickly as much air through the nose, then exhale by allow the airflow out through the nose. Repeat once more.
What did you observe? Many people report that rapidly inhaling through the mouth causes the back of the throat and even upper airways to feel drier and irritated. This does not occur when inhaling through the nose. This simple experiment illustrates how habitual mouth breathing may irritate the airways.
Developmental behavior that contributes to mouth breathing
The development of mouth breathing may begin right at birth when the mouth, tongue, jaw and nasal area are still developing. The arch of the upper palate forms the roof of the oral cavity that separates the oral and nasal cavities. When the palate and jaw narrows, the arch of the palate increases and pushes upwards into the nasal area. This reduces space in the nasal cavity for the air to flow and obstructs nasal breathing. The highly vaulted palate is not only genetically predetermined but also by how we use our tongue and jaw from birth. The highly arched palate is only a recent anatomical phenomena since the physical structure of the upper palate and jaw from the pre- industrial era was wider (less arched upper palate) than many of our current skulls (Kahn & Ehrlich, 2018).
The role of the tongue in palate development
After babies are born, they breastfeed by sucking with the appropriate tongue movements that help widen the upper palate and jaw. On the other hand, when babies are bottle fed, the tongue tends to move differently which causes the cheek to pull in and the upper palate to arch which may create a high narrow upper palate and making the jaw narrower. There are many other possible factors that could cause mouth breathing such as tongue-tie (ankyloglossia), septal deviation, congenital malformation, enlarged adenoids and tonsils (Aden tonsillar hyperplasia), inflammatory diseases such as allergic rhinitis (Trabalon et al, 2012). Whatever the reasons, the result of the impoverished tongue movement and jaw increases the risk for having a higher arched upper palate that impedes nasal breathing and contributes to habitual mouth breathing.
The forces that operate on the mouth, jaw and palate during bottle feeding may be similar to when you suck on straw and the cheeks coming in with the face narrowing. The way the infants are fed will change the development of the physical structure that may result in lifelong problems and may contribute to developing a highly arched palate with a narrow jaw and facial abnormalities such as long face syndrome (Tourne, 1990).
To widen the upper palate and jaw, the infant needs to chew, chew and tear the food with their gums and teeth. Before the industrialization of foods, children had to tear food with their teeth, chew fibrous foods or gnaw at the meat on bones. The chewing forces allows the jaw to widen and develop so that when the permanent teeth are erupting, they would more likely be aligned since there would be enough space–eliminating the need for orthodontics. On the other hand, when young children eat puréed and highly processed soft foods (e.g., cereals soaked in milk, soft breads), the chewing forces are not powerful enough to encourage the widening of the palate and jaw.
Although the solution in adults can be the use of mouth tape to keep the mouth closed at night to retrain the breathing pattern, we should not wait until we have symptoms. The focus needs to be on prevention. The first step is an assessment whether the children’s tongue can do its job effectively or limited by tongue-tie and the arch of the palate. These structures are not totally fixed and can change depending on our oral habits. The field of orthodontics is based upon the premise that the physical structure of the jaw and palate can be changed, and teeth can be realigned by applying constant forces with braces.
Support healthy development of the palate and jaw
Breastfeed babies (if possible) for the first year of life and do NOT use bottle feeding. When weaning, provide chewable foods (fruits, vegetable, roots, berries, meats on bone) that was traditionally part of our pre-industrial diet. These foods support in infants’ healthy tongue and jaw development, which helps to support the normal widening of the palate to provide space for nasal breathing.
Provide fresh organic foods that children must tear and chew. Avoid any processed foods which are soft and do not demand chewing. This will have many other beneficial health effects since processed foods are high in simple carbohydrates and usually contain color additives as well as traces of pesticides and herbicides. The highly processed foods increase the risk of developing depression, type 2 diabetes, inflammatory disease, and colon cancer (Srour et al., 2019).
Sadly, the USA allows much higher residues of pesticide and herbicides that act as neurotoxins than are allowed in by the European Union. For example, the acceptable level of the herbicide glyphosate (Round-Up) is 0.7 parts per million in the USA while in the acceptable level is 0.01 parts per million in European countries (Tano, 2016; EPA, 2023; European Commission, 2023). The USA allows this higher exposure even though about half of the human gut microbiota are vulnerable to glyphosate exposure (Puigbò et al., 2022).
The negative effects of herbicides and pesticides are harmful for growing infants. Even fetal exposure from the mother (gestational exposure) is associated with an increase in behaviors related to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders and executive function in the child when they are 7 to 12 years old (Sagiv et al., 2021) and organophosphate exposure is correlated with ADHD prevalence in children (Bouchard et al., 2010).
To implement these basic recommendations are very challenging. It means the mother has to breastfeed her infant during the first year of life. This is often not possible because of socioeconomic inequalities; work demands and medical complications. It also goes against the recent cultural norm that fathers should participate in caring for the baby by giving the baby a bottle of stored breast milk or formula.
From our perspective, women who give birth must have a year paid maternity leave to provide their infants with the best opportunity for health (e.g., breast-feeding, emotional bonding, and reduced financial stress). As a society, we have the option to pay the upfront cost now by providing a year- long maternity leave to mothers or later pay much more costs for treating chronic conditions that may have developed because we did not support the natural developmental process of babies.
Relevance to the field of neurofeedback and biofeedback
Clinicians often see clients, especially children with diagnostic labels such as ADHD who have failed to respond to numerous psychotherapies and pharmacotherapies. In the recent umbrella review and meta-analytic evaluation of recent meta-analyses, Leichsenring et al. (2022) found only small benefits overall for both types of intervention. They suggest that a paradigm shift in research seems to be required to achieve further progress in resolving mental health issues. As the past director of National Institute of Health, Dr. Thomas Insel pointed out that the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is not a valid instrument and should be a big wake up call for all of us to think outside the box (Insel, 2009). One factor that starts right at birth is the oral cavity development by dysfunctional tongue movements.
We want to make all of you aware of a serious issue in children that you may come across. For those of us who work with children children, we need to ask their parents about the following: tongue-tie, mouth breathing, bedwetting, high-vaulted palate, thumb sucking, abnormal eating issues, apraxia, dysarthria, and hypotonia. Research suggests that the palates of these children are so arched that the tongue cannot do its job effectively, causing multiple issues which may be related.
Please view the webinar from May 17, 2023. Presented by Karindy Ong, MA, CCC-SLP, CFT, How the Tongue Informs Healthy (or Unhealthy) Neurocognitive Development. The presentation explains the developmental process of the role the tongue plays and how it contributes to nasal breathing. Please pass it on to others who may have interest.
References
Bouchard, M.F., Bellinger, D.C., Wright, R.O., & Weisskopf, M.G. (2010). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and urinary metabolites of organophosphate pesticides. Pediatrics, 125(6), e1270-7. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2009-3058
EPA. (2023). Glyphosate. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/glyphosate
European Commission. (2023). EU legislation on MRLs.Food Safety. Assessed April 1, 2023. https://food.ec.europa.eu/plants/pesticides/maximum-residue-levels/eu-legislation-mrls_en#:~:text=A%20general%20default%20MRL%20of,e.g.%20babies%2C%20children%20and%20vegetarians.
Insel, T.R. (2009). Translating scientific opportunity into public health impact: a strategic plan for research on mental illness. Arch Gen Psychiatry, 66(2), 128-133. https://doi.org/10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2008.540
Kahn, S. & Ehrlich, P.R. (2018). Jaws. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. https://www.amazon.com/Jaws-Hidden-Epidemic-Sandra-Kahn/dp/1503604136/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1685135054&sr=1-1
Leal, R.B., Gomes, M.C., Granville-Garcia, A.F., Goes, P.S.A., & de Menezes, V.A. (2016). Impact of Breathing Patterns on the Quality of Life of 9- to 10-year-old Schoolchildren. American Journal of Rhinology & Allergy, 30(5):e147-e152. https://doi.org/10.2500/ajra.2016.30.4363
Lee, Y.C., Lu, C.T., Cheng, W.N., & Li, H.Y. (2022).The Impact of Mouth-Taping in Mouth-Breathers with Mild Obstructive Sleep Apnea: A Preliminary Study. Healthcare (Basel), 10(9), 1755. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10091755
Leichsenring, F., Steinert, C., Rabung, S. and Ioannidis, J.P.A. (2022), The efficacy of psychotherapies and pharmacotherapies for mental disorders in adults: an umbrella review and meta-analytic evaluation of recent meta-analyses. World Psychiatry, 21: 133-145. https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.20941
Lundberg, J.O. & Weitzberg, E. (1999). Nasal nitric oxide in man. Thorax. (10):947-52. https://doi.org/10.1136/thx.54.10.947
McKeown, P. (2021). The Breathing Cure: Develop New Habits for a Healthier, Happier, and Longer Life. Boca Raton, Fl “Humanix Books. https://www.amazon.com/BREATHING-CURE-Develop-Healthier-Happier/dp/1630061972/
Nestor, J. (2020). Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art. New York: Riverhead Books. https://www.amazon.com/Breath/dp/0593191358/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1686191995&sr=8-1
Puigbò, P., Leino, L. I., Rainio, M. J., Saikkonen, K., Saloniemi, I., & Helander, M. (2022). Does Glyphosate Affect the Human Microbiota?. Life, 12(5), 707. https://doi.org/10.3390/life12050707
Sagiv, S.K., Kogut, K., Harley, K., Bradman, A., Morga, N., & Eskenazi, B. (2021). Gestational Exposure to Organophosphate Pesticides and Longitudinally Assessed Behaviors Related to Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Executive Function, American Journal of Epidemiology, 190(11), 2420–2431. https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwab173
Srour, B. et al. (2019). Ultra-processed food intake and risk of cardiovascular disease: prospective cohort study (NutriNet-Santé).BMJ, 365. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.l1451
Tano, B. (2016). The Layman’s Guide to Integrative Immunity. Integrative Medical Press. https://www.amazon.com/Laymans-Guide-Integrative-Immunity-Discover/dp/0983419299/_
Tourne, L.P. (1990). The long face syndrome and impairment of the nasopharyngeal airway. Angle Orthod, 60(3):167-76. https://doi.org/10.1043/0003
Trabalon, M. & Schaal, B. (2012). It takes a mouth to eat and a nose to breathe: abnormal oral respiration affects neonates’ oral competence and systemic adaptation. Int J Pediatr, 207605. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/207605
van Bon, M.J., Zielhuis, G.A., Rach, G.H., & van den Broek, P. (1989). Otitis media with effusion and habitual mouth breathing in Dutch preschool children. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol, (2), 119-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-5876(89)90087-6
Eat what grows in season
Posted: December 14, 2021 Filed under: health, Nutrition/diet, self-healing | Tags: food, herbicide, organic foods, pesticides Leave a commentAndrea Castillo and Erik Peper
We are what we eat. Our body is synthesized from the foods we eat. Creating the best conditions for a healthy body depends upon the foods we ingest as implied by the phrase, Let food be thy medicine, attributed to Hippocrates, the Greek founder of western medicine (Cardenas, 2013). The foods are the building blocks for growth and repair. Comparing our body to building a house, the building materials are the foods we eat, the architect’s plans are our genetic coding, the care taking of the house is our lifestyle and the weather that buffers the house is our stress reactions. If you build a house with top of the line materials and take care of it, it will last a life time or more. Although the analogy of a house to the body is not correct since a house cannot repair itself, it is a useful analogy since repair is an ongoing process to keep the house in good shape. Our body continuously repairs itself in the process of regeneration. Our health will be better when we eat organic foods that are in season since they have the most nutrients.
Organic foods have much lower levels of harmful herbicides and pesticides which are neurotoxins and harmful to our health (Baker et al., 2002; Barański, et al, 2014). Crops have been organically farmed have higher levels of vitamins and minerals which are essential for our health compared to crops that have been chemically fertilized (Peper, 2017),
Even seasonality appears to be a factor. Foods that are outdoor grown or harvested in their natural growing period for the region where it is produced, tend to have more flavor that foods that are grown out of season such as in green houses or picked prematurely thousands of miles away to allow shipping to the consumer. Compare the intense flavor of small strawberry picked in May from the plant grown in your back yard to the watery bland taste of the great looking strawberries bought in December.
The seasonality of food
It’s the middle of winter. The weather has cooled down, the days are shorter, and some nights feel particularly cozy. Maybe you crave a warm bowl of tomato soup so you go to the store, buy some beautiful organic tomatoes, and make yourself a warm meal. The soup is… good. But not great. It is a little bland even though you salted it and spiced it. You can’t quite put your finger on it, but it feels like it’s missing more tomato flavor. But why? You added plenty of tomatoes. You’re a good cook so it’s not like you messed up the recipe. It’s just—missing something.
That something could easily be seasonality. The beautiful, organic tomatoes purchased from the store in the middle of winter could not have been grown locally, outside. Tomatoes love warm weather and die when days are cooler, with temperatures dropping to the 30s and 40s. So why are there organic tomatoes in the store in the middle of cold winters? Those tomatoes could’ve been grown in a greenhouse, a human-made structure to recreate warmer environments. Or, they could’ve been grown organically somewhere in the middle of summer in the southern hemisphere and shipped up north (hello, carbon emissions!) so you can access tomatoes year-round.
That 24/7 access isn’t free and excellent flavor is often a sacrifice we pay for eating fruits and vegetables out of season. Chefs and restaurants who offer seasonal offerings, for example, won’t serve bacon, lettuce, tomato (BLT) sandwiches in winter. Not because they’re pretentious, but because it won’t taste as great as it would in summer months. Instead of winter BLTs, these restaurants will proudly whip up seasonal steamed silky sweet potatoes or roasted brussels sprouts with kimchee puree.
When we eat seasonally-available food, it’s more likely we’re eating fresher food. A spring asparagus, summer apricot, fall pear, or winter grapefruit doesn’t have to travel far to get to your plate. With fewer miles traveled, the vitamins, minerals, and secondary metabolites in organic fruits and vegetables won’t degrade as much compared to fruits and vegetables flown or shipped in from other countries. Seasonal food tastes great and it’s great for you too.
If you’re curious to eat more of what’s in season, visit your local farmers market if it’s available to you. Strike up a conversation with the people who grow your food. If farmers markets are not available, take a moment to learn what is in season where you live and try those fruits and vegetables next time to go to the store. This Seasonal Food Guide for all 50 states is a great tool to get you started.
Once you incorporate seasonal fruits and vegetables into your daily meals, your body will thank you for the health boost and your meals will gain those extra flavors. Remember, you’re not a bad cook: you just need to find the right seasonal partners so your dinners are never left without that extra little something ever again.
Sign up for Andrea Castillo’s Seasonal, a newsletter that connects you to the Bay Area food system, one fruit and vegetable at a time. Andrea is a food nerd who always wants to know the what’s, how’s, when’s, and why’s of the food she eats.
References
Baker, B.P., Benbrook, C.M., & Groth III, E., & Lutz, K. (2002). Pesticide residues in conventional, integrated pest management (IPM)-grown and organic foods: insights from three US data sets. Food Additives and Contaminants, 19(5) http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02652030110113799
Barański, M., Średnicka-Tober, D., Volakakis, N., Seal, C., Sanderson, R., Stewart, G., . . . Leifert, C. (2014). Higher antioxidant and lower cadmium concentrations and lower incidence of pesticide residues in organically grown crops: A systematic literature review and meta-analyses. British Journal of Nutrition, 112(5), 794-811. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114514001366
Cardenas, E. (2013). Let not thy food be confused with thy medicine: The Hippocratic misquotation,e-SPEN Journal, I(6), e260-e262. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnme.2013.10.002
Peper, E. (2017). Yes, fresh organic food is better! the peper perspective. https://peperperspective.com/2017/10/27/yes-fresh-organic-food-is-better/
Reduce your risk of COVID-19 variants and future pandemics
Posted: July 5, 2021 Filed under: behavior, health, Nutrition/diet, self-healing | Tags: COVID-19, immune, pandemic, prevention, vitamin D 2 CommentsErik Peper, PhD and Richard Harvey, PhD
The number of hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 are decreasing as more people are being vaccinated. At the same time, herd immunity will depend on how vaccinated and unvaccinated people interact with one another. Close-proximity, especially indoor interactions, increases the likelihood of transmission of coronavirus for unvaccinated individuals. During the summer months, people tend to congregate outdoors which reduces viral transmission and also increases vitamin D production which supports the immune system (Holick, 2021)..
Most likely, COVID-19 disease will become endemic because the SARS-CoV-2 virus will continue to mutate. Already Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla stated on April 15, 2021 that people will “likely” need a third dose of a Covid-19 vaccine within 12 months of getting fully vaccinated. Although, at this moment the vaccines are effective against several variants, we need to be ready for the next COVID XX outbreak.
To reduce future infections, the focus of interventions should 1) reduce virus exposure, 2) vaccinate to activate the immune system, and 3) enhance the innate immune system competence. The risk of illness may relate to virus density exposure and depend upon the individual’s immune competence (Gandhi & Rutherford, 2020; Mukherjee, 2020) which can be expressed in the following equation.
Reduce viral load (hazardous exposure)
Without exposure to the virus and its many variants, the risk is zero which is impossible to achieve in democratic societies. People do not live in isolated bubbles but in an interconnected world and the virus does not respect borders or nationalities. Therefore, public health measures need to focus upon strategies that reduce virus exposure by encouraging or mandating wearing masks, keeping social distance, limiting social contact, and increasing fresh air circulation.
Wearing masks reduces the spread of the virus since people may shed viruses one or two days before experiencing symptoms (Lewis et al., 2021). When a person exhales through the mask, a good fitting N95 mask will filter out most of the virus and thereby reduce the spread of the virus during exhalation. To protect oneself from inhaling the virus, the mask needs be totally sealed around the face with the appropriate filters. Systematic observations suggest that many masks such as bandanas or surgical masks do not filter out the virus (Fisher et al., 2020).
Fresh air circulation reduces the virus exposure and is more important than the arbitrary 6 feet separation (CDC, May 13, 2021). If separated by 6 feet in an enclosed space, the viral particles in the air will rapidly increase even when the separation is 10 feet or more. On the other hand, if there is sufficient fresh air circulation, even three feet of separation would not be a problem. The spatial guidelines need to be based upon air flow and not on the distance of separation as illustrated in the outstanding graphical modeling schools by Nick Bartzokas et al. (February 26, 2021) in the New York Times article, Why opening windows is a key to reopening schools.
The public health recommendations of sheltering-in-place to prevent exposure or spreading the virus may also result in social isolation. Thus, shelter-in-place policies have resulted in compromising physical health such as weight gain (e.g. average increase of more than 7lb in weight in America according to Lin et al., 2021), reduced physical activity and exercise levels (Flanagan et al., 2021) and increased anxiety and depression (e.g. a three to four fold increase in the self-report of anxiety or depression according to Abbott, 2021). Increases in weight, depression and anxiety symptoms tend to decrease immune competence (Leonard, 2010). In addition, the stay at home recommendations especially in the winter time meant that individuals are less exposed to sunlight which results in lower vitamin D levels which is correlated with increased COVID-19 morbidity (Seheult, 2020).
Increase immune competence
Vaccination is the primary public health recommendation to prevent the spread and severity of COVID-19. Through vaccination, the body increases its adaptive capacity and becomes primed to respond very rapidly to virus exposure. Unfortunately, as Pfizer Chief Executive Albert Bourla states, there is “a high possibility” that emerging variants may eventually render the company’s vaccine ineffective (Steenhuysen, 2021). Thus, it is even more important to explore strategies to enhance immune competence independent of the vaccine.
Public Health policies need to focus on intervention strategies and positive health behaviors that optimize the immune system capacity to respond. The research data has been clear that COVID -19 is more dangerous for those whose immune systems are compromised and have comorbidities such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, regardless of age.
Comorbidity and being older are the significant risk factors that contribute to COVID-19 deaths. For example, in evaluating all patients in the Fair Health National Private Insurance Claims (FH NPIC’s) longitudinal dataset, researchers identified 467,773 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 from April 1, 2020, through August 31, 2020. The severity of the illness and death from COVID-19 depended on whether the person had other co-morbidities first as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1. The distribution of patients with and without a comorbidity among all patients diagnosed with COVID-19 (left) and all deceased COVID-19 patients (right) April-August 2020. Reproduced by permission from: https://www.ajmc.com/view/contributor-links-between-covid-19-comorbidities-mortality-detailed-in-fair-health-study
Each person who died had about 2 or 3 types of pre-existing co-morbidities such as cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, congestive heart failure, chronic kidney disease, respiratory disease and cancer (Ssentongo et al., 2020; Gold et al., 2020). The greater the frequency of comorbidities the greater the risk of death, as shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2. Across all age groups, the risk of COVID-19 death increased significantly as a patient’s number of comorbidities increased. Compared to patients with no comorbidities. Reproduced by permission from https://s3.amazonaws.com/media2.fairhealth.org/whitepaper/asset/Risk%20Factors%20for%20COVID-19%20Mortality%20among%20Privately%20Insured%20Patients%20-%20A%20Claims%20Data%20Analysis%20-%20A%20FAIR%20Health%20White%20Paper.pdf
Although the risk of serious illness and death is low for young people, the presence of comorbidity increases the risk. Kompaniyets et al. (2021) reported that for patients under 18 years with severe COVID-19 illness who required ICU admission, mechanical ventilation, or died most had underlying medical conditions such as asthma, neurodevelopmental disorders, obesity, essential hypertension or complex chronic diseases such as malignant neoplasms or multiple chronic conditions.
Consistent with earlier findings, the Fair Health National Private Insurance Claims (FH NPIC’s) longitudinal dataset also showed that the COVID-19 mortality rate rose sharply with age as shown in Figure 3.
Figure 3 Percent mortality among COVID-19 patients by age, April-August 2020. Reproduced by permission from: https://s3.amazonaws.com/media2.fairhealth.org/whitepaper/asset/Risk%20Factors%20for%20COVID-19%20Mortality%20among%20Privately%20Insured%20Patients%20-%20A%20Claims%20Data%20Analysis%20-%20A%20FAIR%20Health%20White%20Paper.pdf
Optimize antibody response from vaccinations
Assuming that the immune system reacts similarly to other vaccinations, higher antibody response is evoked when the vaccine is given in the morning versus the afternoon or after exercise (Long et al., 2016; Long et al., 2012). In addition, the immune response may be attenuated if the person suppresses the body’s natural immune response–the flulike symptoms which may occur after the vaccination–with Acetaminophen (Tylenol (Graham et al, 1990).
Support the immune system with a healthy life style
Support the immune system by implementing a lifestyle that reduces the probability of developing comorbidities. This means reducing risk factors such as vaping, smoking, immobility and highly processed foods. For example, young people who vape experience a fivefold increase to become seriously sick with COVID-19 (Gaiha, Cheng, & Halpern-Felsher, 2020); similarly, cigarette smoking increases the risk of COVID morbidity and mortality (Haddad, Malhab, & Sacre, 2021).
There are many factors that have contributed to the epidemic of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and other chronic diseases. In many cases, the environment and lifestyle factors (lack of exercise, excessive intake of highly processed foods, environmental pollution, social isolation, stress, etc.) significantly contribute to the initiation and development of comorbidities. Genetics also is a factor; however, the generic’s risk factor may not be triggered if there are no environmental/behavioral exposures. Phrasing it colloquially, Genetics loads the gun, environment and behavior pulls the trigger. Reducing harmful lifestyle behaviors and environment is not simply an individual’s responsibility but a corporate and governmental responsibility. At present, harmful lifestyles choices are actively supported by corporate and government policies that choose higher profits over health. For example, highly processed foods made from corn, wheat, soybeans, rice are grown by farmers with US government farm subsidies. Thus, many people especially of lower economic status live in food deserts where healthy non-processed organic fruits and vegetable foods are much less available and more expensive (Darmon & Drewnowski, 2008; Michels, Vynckier, Moreno, L.A. et al. 2018; CDC, 2021). In the CDC National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey that analyzed the diet of 10,308 adults, researchers Siegel et al. (2016) found that “Higher consumption of calories from subsidized food commodities was associated with a greater probability of some cardiometabolic risks” such as higher levels of obesity and unhealthy blood glucose levels (which raises the risk of Type 2 diabetes).
Immune competence is also affected by many other factors such as exercise, stress, shift work, social isolation, and reduced micronutrients and Vitamin D (Zimmermann & Curtis, 2019). Even being sedentary increases the risk of dying from COVID as reported by the Kaiser Permanente Southern California study of 50,000 people who developed COVID (Sallis et al., 2021).
People who exercised 10 minutes or less each week were hospitalized twice as likely and died 2.5 times more than people who exercised 150 minutes a week (Sallis et al., 2021). Although exercise tends to enhance immune competence (da Silveira et al, 2020), it is highly likely that exercise is a surrogate marker for other co-morbidities such as obesity and heart disease as well as aging. At the same time sheltering–in-place along with the increase in digital media has significantly reduced physical activity.
The importance of vitamin D
Low levels of vitamin D is correlated with poorer prognosis for patients with COVID-19 (Munshi et al., 2021). Kaufman et al. (2020) reported that the positivity rate correlated inversely with vitamin D levels as shown in figure 4.
Figure 4. SARS-CoV-2 NAAT positivity rates and circulating 25(OH)D levels in the total population. From: Kaufman, H.W., Niles, J.K., Kroll, M.H., Bi, C., Holick, M.F. (2020). SARS-CoV-2 positivity rates associated with circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels. PLoS One. 15(9):e0239252. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239252
Vitamin D is a modulator for the immune system (Baeke, Takiishi, Korf, Gysemans, & Mathieu, 2010). There is an inverse correlation of all-cause, cardiovascular, cancer, and respiratory disease mortality with hydroxyvitamin D concentrations in a large cohort study (Schöttker et al., 2013). For a superb discussion about how much vitamin D is needed, see the presentation, The D-Lightfully Controversial Vitamin D: Health Benefits from Birth until Death, by Dr. Michael F. Holick, Ph.D., M.D. from the University Medical Center Boston.
Low vitamin D levels may partially explain why in the winter there is an increase in influenza. During winter time, people have reduced sunlight exposure so that their skin does not produce enough vitamin D. Lower levels of vitamin D may be a cofactor in the increased rates of COVID among people of color and older people. The darker the skin, the more sunlight the person needs to produce Vitamin D and as people become older their skin is less efficient in producing vitamin D from sun exposure (Harris, 2006; Gallagher, 2013). Vitamin D also moderates macrophages by regulating the release, and the over-release of inflammatory factors in the lungs (Khan et al., 2021).
Watch the interesting presentation by Professor Roger Seheult, MD, UC Riverside School of Medicine, Vitamin D and COVID 19: The Evidence for Prevention and Treatment of Coronavirus (SARS CoV 2). 12/20/2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ha2mLz-Xdpg
What can be done NOW to enhance immune competence?
We need to recognize that once the COVID-19 pandemic has passed, it does not mean it is over. It is only a reminder that a new COVID-19 variant or another new virus will emerge in the future. Thus, the government public health policies need to focus on promoting health over profits and aim at strategies to prevent the development of chronic illnesses that affect immune competence. One take away message is to incorporate behavioral medicine prescriptions supporting a healthy lifestyle into treatment plans, such as prescribing a walk in the sun to increase vitamin D production and develop dietary habits of eating organic locally grown vegetable and fruits foods. Even just reducing the refined sugar content in foods and drinks is challenging although it may significantly reduce incidence and prevalence of obesity and diabetes (World Health Organization, 2017. The benefits of such an approach has been clearly demonstrated by the Pennsylvania-based Geisinger Health System’s Fresh Food Farmacy. This program for food-insecure people with Type 2 diabetes and their families provides enough fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins for two healthy meals a day five days a week. After one year there was a 40 percent decrease in the risk of death or serious complications and an 80 percent drop in medical costs per year (Brody, 2020).
The simple trope of this article ‘eat well, exercise and get good rest’ and increase your immune competence concludes with some simple reminders.
- Increase availability of organic foods since they do not contain pesticides such as glyphosate residue that reduce immune competence.
- Increase vegetable and fruits and reduce highly processed foods, simple carbohydrates and sugars.
- Decrease sitting and increase movement and exercise
- Increase sun exposure without getting sunburns
- Master stress management
- Increase social support
For additional information see: https://peperperspective.com/2020/04/04/can-you-reduce-the-risk-of-coronavirus-exposure-and-optimize-your-immune-system/
References
Baeke, F., Takiishi, T., Korf, H., Gysemans, C., & Mathieu, C. (2010). Vitamin D: modulator of the immune system,Current Opinion in Pharmacology,10(4), 482-496. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.coph.2010.04.001
Brody, J. (2020). How Poor Diet Contributes to Coronavirus Risk. The New York Times, April 20, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/20/well/eat/coronavirus-diet-metabolic-health.html?referringSource=articleShare
CDC. (2021). Adult Obesity Prevalence Maps. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/prevalence-maps.html#nonhispanic-white-adults
CDC. (May 13, 2021). Ways COVID-19 Spreads. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/how-covid-spreads.html
Darmon, N. & Drewnowski, A. (2008). Does social class predict diet quality?, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 87(5), 2008, 1107–1117. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/87.5.1107
da Silveira, M. P., da Silva Fagundes, K. K., Bizuti, M. R., Starck, É., Rossi, R. C., & de Resende E Silva, D. T. (2021). Physical exercise as a tool to help the immune system against COVID-19: an integrative review of the current literature. Clinical and experimental medicine, 21(1), 15–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10238-020-00650-3
Elflein, J. (2021). COVID-19 deaths reported in the U.S. as of January 2, 2021, by age. Downloaded, 1/13/2021 from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1191568/reported-deaths-from-covid-by-age-us/
Fisher, E. P., Fischer, M.C., Grass, D., Henrion, I., Warren, W.S., & Westmand, E. (2020). Low-cost measurement of face mask efficacy for filtering expelled droplets during speech. Science Advance, (6) 36, eabd3083. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abd3083
Flanagan. E.W., Beyl, R.A., Fearnbach, S.N., Altazan, A.D., Martin, C.K., & Redman, L.M. (2021). The Impact of COVID-19 Stay-At-Home Orders on Health Behaviors in Adults. Obesity (Silver Spring), (2), 438-445. https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.23066
Gaiha, S.M., Cheng, J., & Halpern-Felsher, B. (2020). Association Between Youth Smoking, Electronic Cigarette Use, and COVID-19. Journal of Adolescent Health, 67(4), 519-523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.07.002
Gallagher J. C. (2013). Vitamin D and aging. Endocrinology and metabolism clinics of North America, 42(2), 319–332. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecl.2013.02.004
Gandhi, M. & Rutherford, G. W. (2020). Facial Masking for Covid-19 — Potential for “Variolation” as We Await a Vaccine. New England Journal of Medicine, 383(18), e101 https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2026913
Gold, M.S., Sehayek, D., Gabrielli, S., Zhang, X., McCusker, C., & Ben-Shoshan, M. (2020). COVID-19 and comorbidities: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Postgrad Med, 132(8), 749-755. https://doi.org/10.1080/00325481.2020.1786964
Graham, N.M., Burrell, C.J., Douglas, R.M., Debelle, P., & Davies, L. (1990). Adverse effects of aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen on immune function, viral shedding, and clinical status in rhinovirus-infected volunteers. J Infect Dis., 162(6), 1277-82. https://doi.org/10.1093/infdis/162.6.1277
Haddad, C., Malhab, S.B., & Sacre, H. (2021). Smoking and COVID-19: A Scoping Review. Tobacco Use Insights, 14, First Published February 15, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1177/1179173X21994612
Harris, S.S. (2006). Vitamin D and African Americans. The Journal of Nutrition, 136(4), 1126-1129. https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/136.4.1126
Kaufman, H.W., Niles, J.K., Kroll, M.H., Bi, C., Holick, M.F. (2020). SARS-CoV-2 positivity rates associated with circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels. PLoS One. 15(9):e0239252. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239252
Khan, A. H., Nasir, N., Nasir, N., Maha, Q., & Rehman, R. (2021). Vitamin D and COVID-19: is there a role?. Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Disorders, 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40200-021-00775-6
Kompaniyets, L., Agathis, N.T., Nelson, J.M., et al. (2021). Underlying Medical Conditions Associated With Severe COVID-19 Illness Among Children. JAMA Netw Open. 4(6):e2111182. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.11182
Leonard B. E. (2010). The concept of depression as a dysfunction of the immune system. Current immunology reviews, 6(3), 205–212. https://doi.org/10.2174/157339510791823835
Lewis, N. M., Duca, L. M., Marcenac, P., Dietrich, E. A., Gregory, C. J., Fields, V. L….Kirking, H. L. (2021). Characteristics and Timing of Initial Virus Shedding in Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2, Utah, USA. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 27(2), 352-359. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2702.203517
Long, J.E., Drayson, M.T., Taylor, A.E., Toellner, K.M., Lord, J.M., & Phillips, A.C. (2016). Morning vaccination enhances antibody response over afternoon vaccination: A cluster-randomised trial. Vaccine, 34(24), 2679-85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2016.04.032.
Long. J.E., Ring, C., Drayson, M., Bosch, J., Campbell, J.P., Bhabra, J., Browne, D., Dawson, J., Harding, S., Lau, J., & Burns, V.E. (2012). Vaccination response following aerobic exercise: can a brisk walk enhance antibody response to pneumococcal and influenza vaccinations? Brain Behav Immun., 26(4), 680-687. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2012.02.004
Merelli, A. (2021, February 2). Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine is set to be one of the most lucrative drugs in the world. QUARTZ. https://qz.com/1967638/pfizer-will-make-15-billion-from-covid-19-vaccine-sales/
Michels, N., Vynckier, L., Moreno, L.A. et al. (2018). Mediation of psychosocial determinants in the relation between socio-economic status and adolescents’ diet quality. Eur J Nutr, 57, 951–963. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-017-1380-8
Mukherjee, S. (2020). How does the coronavirus behave inside a patient? We’ve counted the viral spread across peoples; now we need to count it within people. The New Yorker, April 6, 2020. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/04/06/how-does-the-coronavirus-behave-inside-a-patient?utm_source=onsite-share&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=onsite-share&utm_brand=the-new-yorker
Munshi, R., Hussein, M.H., Toraih, E.A., Elshazli, R.M., Jardak, C., Sultana, N., Youssef, M.R., Omar, M., Attia, A.S., Fawzy, M.S., Killackey, M., Kandil, E., & Duchesne, J. (2020) Vitamin D insufficiency as a potential culprit in critical COVID-19 patients. J Med Virol, 93(2), 733-740. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.26360
Renoud. L, Khouri, C., Revol, B., et al. (2021) Association of Facial Paralysis With mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines: A Disproportionality Analysis Using the World Health Organization Pharmacovigilance Database. JAMA Intern Med. Published online April 27, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2021.2219
Sallis, R., Young, D. R., Tartof, S.Y., et al. (2021). Physical inactivity is associated with a higher risk for severe COVID-19 outcomes: a study in 48 440 adult patients. British Journal of Sports Medicine. Published Online First: 13 April 2021. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2021-104080
Schöttker, B., Haug, U., Schomburg, L., Köhrle, L., Perna, L., Müller. H., Holleczek, B., & Brenner. H. (2013). Strong associations of 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels with all-cause, cardiovascular, cancer and respiratory disease mortality in a large cohort study. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 97(4), 782–793 2013; https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.112.047712
Siegel, K.R., McKeever Bullard, K., Imperatore. G., et al. (2016). Association of Higher Consumption of Foods Derived From Subsidized Commodities With Adverse Cardiometabolic Risk Among US Adults. JAMA Intern Med. 176(8), 1124–1132. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.2410
Ssentongo P, Ssentongo AE, Heilbrunn ES, Ba DM, Chinchilli VM (2020) Association of cardiovascular disease and 10 other pre-existing comorbidities with COVID-19 mortality: A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS ONE 15(8): e0238215. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0238215
Steenhuysen, J. 2021, Jan 30). Fresh data show toll South African virus variant takes on vaccine efficacy. Accessed January 31, 2021. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-vaccines-variant/fresh-data-show-toll-south-african-virus-variant-takes-on-vaccine-efficacy-idUSKBN29Z0I7
World Health Organization. (2017). Sugary drinks1 – a major contributor to obesity and diabetes. WHO/NMH/PND/16.5 Rev. https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/260253/WHO-NMH-PND-16.5Rev.1-eng.pdf?sequence=1
Zimmermann, P. & Curtis, N. (2019). Factors That Influence the Immune Response to Vaccination. Clinical Microbiology Reviews, 32(2), 1-50. https://doi.org/10.1128/CMR.00084-18
Useful resources about breathing, phytonutrients and exercise
Posted: June 30, 2021 Filed under: behavior, Breathing/respiration, cancer, Evolutionary perspective, health, Nutrition/diet, self-healing, Uncategorized | Tags: diet, exercise, immune system, nasal breathing, phytonutrients, respiration 1 Comment
Dysfunctional breathing, eating highly processed foods, and lack of movement contribute to development of illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and many chronic diseases. They also contributes to immune dysregulation that increases vulnerability to infectious diseases, allergies and autoimmune diseases. If you wonder what breathing patterns optimize health, what foods have the appropriate phytonutrients to support your immune system, or what the evidence is that exercise reduces illness and promotes longevity, look at the following resources.
Breath: the mind-body connector that underlies health and illness
Read the outstanding article by Martin Petrus (2021). How to breathe.
https://psyche.co/guides/how-to-breathe-your-way-to-better-health-and-transcendence
You are the food you eat
Watch the superb webinar presentation by Deanna Minich, MS., PHD., FACN, CNS, (2021) Phytonutrient Support for a Healthy Immune System.
Movement is life
Explore the summaries of recent research that has demonstrated the importance of exercise to increase healthcare saving and reduce hospitalization and death.
Nutrition to support the Stress Response
Posted: April 17, 2021 Filed under: behavior, Evolutionary perspective, health, Nutrition/diet, stress management, Uncategorized | Tags: food 5 Comments
Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food
-Hippocrates, the Greek physician and father of medicine.
What should I eat? More greens, more Vitamin D, more fish, no meats, no grains, or should I become a vegetarian, go on a ketogenic diet, or evolutionary diet? There are so many options. What are the best choices?
The foods we eat provide the building blocks and energy source for our body. If you eat high quality foods, the body has the opportunity to create and maintain a healthy strong structure; on the other hand, if you eat low quality foods, it is more challenging to create and maintain a healthy body. The analogy is building a house. If the materials are high quality, the structure well engineered and well built, the house has the opportunity to age well. On the other hand, if the house is built out of inferior materials and poorly engineered, it is easily damaged by wind, rain or even earthquakes.
Although we are bombarded with recommendations for healthy eating, many of the recommendations are not based upon science but shaped by the lobbying and advertisement efforts of agribusiness. For example, the scientific recommendations to reduce sugar in our diet were not implements in the government guidelines. This demonstrates the power of lobbying which places profits over health.
Officials at the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services rejected explicit caps on sugar and alcohol consumption. Although “the preponderance of evidence supports limiting intakes of added sugars and alcoholic beverages to promote health and prevent disease.” (Rabin, 2020).
To make sense out of the multitude of nutritional recommendations, watch the superb presentation by Dr. Marisa Soski, ND, Nutrition to Support Stress Response.* She discusses how and what we eat has direct impact on how our bodies manage our reactions to stress.
*Presented April 16, 2021 at the Holistic Health Series on Fridays: Optimize Health and Well-Being Lecture Series. The series is sponsored by the Institute for Holistic Health Studies and Department of Recreation, Parks, Tourism, San Francisco State University.
Reference
Rabin, R.C. (2020). U.S. Diet Guidelines Sidestep Scientific Advice to Cut Sugar and Alcohol. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/29/health/dietary-guidelines-alcohol-sugar.html
Ways to reduce TechStress
Posted: August 13, 2020 Filed under: ADHD, behavior, computer, digital devices, emotions, ergonomics, Evolutionary perspective, Exercise/movement, health, Neck and shoulder discomfort, Nutrition/diet, Pain/discomfort, posture, relaxation, self-healing, stress management, Uncategorized 5 CommentsWe are excited about our book, TechStress-How Technology is Hijacking our Lives, Strategies for Coping and Pragmatic Ergonomics, that was published August 25, 2020.
Evolution shapes behavior — and as a species, we’ve evolved to be drawn to the instant gratification, constant connectivity, and the shiny lights, beeps, and chimes of our ever-present devices. In earlier eras, these hardwired evolutionary patterns may have set us up for success, but today they confuse our instincts, leaving us vulnerable and stressed out from fractured attention, missed sleep, skipped meals, aches, pains, and exhaustion and often addicted to our digital devices.
Tech Stress offers real, practical tools to avoid evolutionary pitfalls programmed into modern technology that trip us up. You will find a range of effective strategies and best practices to individualize your workspace, reduce physical strain, prevent sore muscles, combat brain drain, and correct poor posture. The book also provides fresh insights on reducing psychological stress on the job, including ways to improve communication with coworkers and family.
Although you will have to wait to have the book delivered to your home, you can already begin to implement ways to reduce physical discomfort, zoom/screen fatigue and exhaustion. Have a look the blogs below.
How evolution shapes behavior
How to optimize ergonomics
Cartoon ergonomics for working at the computer and laptop
Hot to prevent and reduce neck and shoulder discomfort
Why do I have neck and shoulder discomfort at the computer?
Relieve and prevent neck stiffness and pain
How to prevent screen fatigue and eye discomfort
Resolve Eyestrain and Screen Fatigue
How to improve posture and prevent slouching
“Don’t slouch!” Improve health with posture feedback
How to improve breathing and reduce stress
Anxiety, lightheadedness, palpitations, prodromal migraine symptoms? Breathing to the rescue!
How to protect yourself from EMF
Cell phone radio frequency radiation increases cancer risk
Available from: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/232119/tech-stress-by-erik-peper-phd/
Do self-healing first
Posted: May 27, 2019 Filed under: behavior, Breathing/respiration, emotions, Exercise/movement, health, mindfulness, Neck and shoulder discomfort, Nutrition/diet, Pain/discomfort, placebo, relaxation, self-healing, stress management, surgery, Uncategorized 2 Comments
“I am doing very well, and I am very healthy. The vulvodynia symptoms have never come back. Also,my stomach (gastrointestinal discomfort) has gotten much, much better. I don’t really have random pain anymore, now I just have to be watchful and careful of my diet and my exercise, which are all great things!” —A five-year follow-up report from a 28-year-old woman who had previously suffered from severe vulvodynia (pelvic floor pain).
Numerous clients and students have reported that implementing self-healing strategies–common sense suggestions often known as “grandmother’s therapy”—significantly improves their health and find that their symptoms decreased or disappeared (Peper et al, 2014). These educational self-healing approaches are based upon a holistic perspective aimed to reduce physical, emotional and lifestyle patterns that interfere with healing and to increase those life patterns that support healing. This may mean learning diaphragmatic breathing, doing work that give you meaning and energy, alternating between excitation and regeneration, and living a life congruent with our evolutionary past.
If you experience discomfort/symptoms and worry about your health/well-being, do the following:
- See your health professional for diagnosis and treatment suggestions.
- Ask what are the benefits and risks of treatment.
- Ask what would happen if you if you first implemented self-healing strategies before beginning the recommended and sometimes invasive treatment?
- Investigate how you could be affecting your self-healing potential such as:
- Lack of sleep
- Too much sugar, processed foods, coffee, alcohol, etc.
- Lack of exercise
- Limited social support
- Ongoing anger, resentment, frustration, and worry
- Lack of hope and purpose
- Implement self-healing strategies and lifestyle changes to support your healing response. In many cases, you may experience positive changes within three weeks. Obviously, if you feel worse, stop and reassess. Keep a log and monitor what you do so that you can record changes.
This self-healing process has often been labeled or dismissed as the “placebo effect;” however, the placebo effect is the body’s natural self-healing response (Peper & Harvey, 2017). It is impressive that many people report feeling better when they take charge and become active participants in their own healing process. A process that empowers and supports hope and healing. When participants change their life patterns, they often feel better. Their health worries and concerns become reminders/cues to initiate positive action such as:
- Practicing self-healing techniques throughout the day (e.g., diaphragmatic breathing, self-healing imagery, meditation, and relaxation)
- Eating organic foods and eliminating processed foods
- Incorporating daily exercise and movement activities
- Accepting what is and resolving resentment, anger and fear
- Taking time to regenerate
- Resolving stress
- Focusing on what you like to do
- Be loving to yourself and others
For suggestions of what to do, explore some of the following blogs that describe self-healing practices that participants implemented to improve or eliminate their symptoms.
Acid reflux (GERD) https://peperperspective.com/2018/10/04/breathing-reduces-acid-reflux-and-dysmenorrhea-discomfort/
Dyspareunia https://peperperspective.com/2017/03/19/enjoy-sex-breathe-away-the-pain/
Epilepsy https://peperperspective.com/2013/03/10/epilepsy-new-old-treatment-without-drugs/
Irritability/hangry https://peperperspective.com/2017/10/06/are-you-out-of-control-and-reacting-in-anger-the-role-of-food-and-exercise/
Hot flashes and premenstrual symptoms https://peperperspective.com/2015/02/18/reduce-hot-flashes-and-premenstrual-symptoms-with-breathing/
Internet addiction https://peperperspective.com/2018/02/10/digital-addiction/
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) https://peperperspective.com/2017/06/23/healing-irritable-bowel-syndrome-with-diaphragmatic-breathing/
Math and test anxiety https://peperperspective.com/2018/07/03/do-better-in-math-dont-slouch-be-tall/
Neck stiffness https://peperperspective.com/2017/04/06/freeing-the-neck-and-shoulders/
Neck tension https://peperperspective.com/2019/05/21/relieve-and-prevent-neck-stiffness-and-pain/
Posture and mood https://peperperspective.com/2017/11/28/posture-and-mood-implications-and-applications-to-health-and-therapy/
Psoriasis https://peperperspective.com/2013/12/28/there-is-hope-interrupt-chained-behavior/
Surgery https://peperperspective.com/2018/03/18/surgery-hope-for-the-best-but-plan-for-the-worst/
Trichotillomania (hair pulling) https://peperperspective.com/2015/03/07/interrupt-chained-behaviors-overcome-smoking-eczema-and-hair-pulling/
Vulvodynia https://peperperspective.com/2015/09/25/resolving-pelvic-floor-pain-a-case-report/
References
Reduce the risk for ADHD: Breastfeed your baby
Posted: June 30, 2018 Filed under: ADHD, Evolutionary perspective, Nutrition/diet, Uncategorized | Tags: allergic rhinitis, asthma, breastfeeding, breastmilk, exzema, infants 3 Comments
In a superb meta-analysis, Professor Ping-Tao Tseng and colleagues (2018), found that breast feeding reduces the risk of ADHD. The longer the breast feeding was the sole food source, the lower the risk of ADHD. Read the complete article, Material breastfeeding and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders in children: a meta-analysis.
One should not be surprised by this finding– breastmilk has been the primary food source for babies since the dawn of human evolution. To accept that formula is as good as breast milk is foolish. Breast milk provides the essential nutrients for infants’ growth, contains the appropriate fatty acids for brain development, and the bioactive factors to protect the baby against disease (Oddy, 2001). It modulates the sleep wake cycle since the evening breast milk contains nucleotides that promote baby’s sleep which are different from morning breast milk that promotes wakefulness (Sanchez et al, 2009). In addition, it reduces the risk of asthma, eczema, and allergic rhinitis (Lodge et al, 2015). Despite the commercial advertisements that formal is as good as breast milk, it contributes to neural malnutrition. That babies do develop with formula is a remarkable demonstration of human adaptability.
Food is our building blocks. When we consume low quality foods, we may increase the risk of developing illness. This is analogous to using superb building materials when constructing a house as the building is more resilient and may better survive the assault from the environment such as termites, storms, or earthquakes than if built from inferior materials.
People, businesses and government have a choice. We can pay the upfront costs to support women to breastfeed their babies for a year by providing paid leave from their jobs or pay much higher long term costs to remediate and treat the deficiencies induced by not supporting breast feeding.
If you are concerned about your child’s future health and want to reduce the risk of ADHD, asthma, eczema, or allergic rhinitis there is only one recommendation: Breast feed your baby for a long time period.
References
Improve your health: Lower your carbs
Posted: January 25, 2018 Filed under: Evolutionary perspective, Exercise/movement, Nutrition/diet, self-healing, Uncategorized | Tags: diet, metabolic syndrome, obesity, Type 2 diabetes 8 Comments
How come there is no disease caused by the absence of carbohydrates? This simple observation suggests that carbohydrates are not necessary for health and are not an essential food in our evolutionary history. This is different from vitamin C or other essential nutrients whose absence will cause scurvy and eventually death.
From an evolutionary perspective, simple carbohydrates, especially sugars and high-fructose corn syrup, are significant contributing factors to the increasing epidemic of obesity, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, coronary heart disease and many autoimmune disorders. The recommended nutritional guideline of the last forty years to reduce fats and increase carbohydrates were not based upon good science but on ideology influenced by agribusiness and the sugar industry (La Berge, 2008). The recommendations were WRONG AND HARMFUL (Taubes, 2016; see also: https://peperperspective.com/2017/02/18/read-the-case-against-sugar/). It may explains why the obesity epidemic is not caused by eating or drinking too many calories but the eating the wrong type of calories; namely, those found in simple carbohydrates and overly processed foods. The increase in obesity appears highly correlated with the US low-fat diet recommendations published in 1977 as shown in figure 1.
Figure 1. Increase in U.S. obesity begins after the publication of the U.S. recommendations to eat a low-fat diet. Reproduced from National Center for Health Statistics (US). Health, United States, 2008: With Special Feature on the Health of Young Adults. Hyattsville (MD): National Center for Health Statistics (US); 2009 Mar. Chartbook
The harmful effects of the simple high carbohydrate diet amplified with a decrease in physical activity interacts with your genetics. People, with a family risk factors of metabolic syndrome (type 2 diabetes) can improve their health by eating a low carbohydrate diet with lots of vegetables, fruit and fats.
Watch the superb video lectures by Professor Timothy Noakes, an emeritus professor of exercise and sports science at the University of Cape Town and by Gary Taubes, science writer and author of The case against sugar. It may shift your perspective and improve your health.
Reference:
La Berge, A. F. (2008). How the ideology of low fat conquered America. Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences, Volume 63, Issue 2, 1 April 2008, Pages 139–177, https://doi.org/10.1093/jhmas/jrn001
National Center for Health Statistics (US). Health, United States, 2008: With Special Feature on the Health of Young Adults. Hyattsville (MD): National Center for Health Statistics (US); 2009 Mar. Chartbook
Taubes, G. (2016). The Case Against Sugar. Portobello Books. ISBN 978-0-307-70164-0