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How I Used Red Light to Speed Healing of a Bad Knife Cut

by Pain Doc | Mar 29, 2022 | Red light therapy

Recently I had been careless in the kitchen while cutting food and sustained two, pretty severe cuts on my left hand in separate incidents.

The first one occurred shortly after last Thanksgiving when I was using a very sharp carving knife to shave off the last bits of spiral cut ham off the bone. I held the knife with my right hand and gripped the ham bone with my left hand. The knife slipped and cut deep into the side of the base of my left index finger. The knife was so sharp that it left a surgical-quality incision; deep but very clean edges (not jagged). I could see the layers of epidermis and dermis with the distinctive, yellowish subcutaneous fat as the flesh separated, and seconds before the blood started to flow. The wound went down to the muscle and probably cut a few muscle fibers as well.

The image below shows the layers of skin, and the black arrow represents how deep the cut went. Below the muscle layer is bone (not illustrated):

Layers of the skin

The second, more recent one occurred while I was cutting an onion (NOTE: never cut an onion on the convex side, because not only is it uneven it is slippery and presents a high risk of knife slippage, especially if your knife is not very sharp). This time, the knife slipped and I again suffered a deep cut this time to the lateral, distal middle finger at the level of the base of the nail. This also cut past the dermis and was stopped by the hardness of the nail.

In both of these laceration wounds, there was profuse bleeding. I went through many Kleenex tissues and kitchen paper towels to stop the bleeding. Facial tissues and kitchen paper towels are good for such cuts because not only are they highly absorbent, they shed tiny fibers into the cut, which are used by the fibroblast reparative cells for scaffolding as they lay down collagen fibers to fill in and close the wound, as well as scaffolding for clotted blood that stops the bleeding. These fibers become part of the scab that eventually disappears, so no need to worry.

The main stages of wound healing. Credit to © Guniita | Dreamstime.com

When the bleeding stopped, I gently cleaned around it and put a bandage on, with firm but not too tight pressure. Then I used my red light therapy torch device to accelerate the wound healing. I took off the bandage and applied the light to the cut 2-3 times a day, for about 6-8 minutes each time. I placed the torch directly over the cut, so there was light contact. Long story short, the wounds healed completely in little over two weeks!

Mind you, these were NOT scrapes, abrasions, or superficial paper cuts. These were deep lacerations. The first one on the base of the index finger, which I should have gotten stitches or surgical glue in retrospect due to its severity, I estimated to be 1.8 cm long and 4-5 mm deep. Here’s what it looks like today:

Cut index finger healed scar

The second one was about 6 mm long and 3 mm deep, which would have been deeper if the hard nail bed wasn’t there to stop the knife, as I was putting a lot of force into cutting the onion.

For the second cut, I decided to take pictures to document the healing,

Images of my deep finger cut, treated with Red Light Therapy over 14 days

Picture taken 30 minutes after sustaining cut

1st red light treatment

Day 2 of cut finger

Day 3

Day 6

Day 6 rlt treatment

Note, I actually applied red light to the wound almost daily and include only pictures of two treatments here.

Day 8

Day 10

Day 15

You can see the dramatic changes in the way the cut healed in such a shorter period of time. The inflammation and swelling lessened; the space between the skin closed just after a few days, and the redness decreased until just the dead cut skin remained as a remnant of the cut. I’ve had these kinds of cuts before where I did not have red light therapy available, and they took about 50% more time to completely heal. So, that’s my best estimate of the benefits of using red light therapy to heal injuries—for small wounds such as these, it can shorten the healing rate by about 50%; meaning, red light therapy can accelerate healing a flesh wound to completion in 2 weeks, that would normally take 3 weeks to fully heal.

How Does Red Light Therapy Work?

I’ve written about how red light therapy works several times on this blog, and made some videos on YouTube explaining red light therapy. Basically, red light uses photonic (light) energy to modulate (control; affect) certain biological activities that occur following injury.

Photons, the smallest units of light, are packets of energy and are received by parts of cells called chromophores. Chromophores are found in DNA, hemoglobin, proteins and most importantly, the mitochondria—the components in all cells whose function is to generate energy for the cell in the form of molecules called adenosine triphosphate, better known as ATP.

Photons from red light (wavelength of 620-750 nm, or billionths of a meter) tend to upregulate (enhance; trigger) some of the metabolic pathways involved in wound healing; notably collagen synthesis, reparative cell migration to the wound area, ATP production in the mitochondria; and downregulate the inflammatory and pain-producing pathways (it helps reduce swelling and redness).

What the Resarch Says About Red Light Therapy

If you wish to read less biased, more scientifically-based information on health and therapy-related topics, which you should as the internet is full of unreliable and often downright false information, go to Pub Med. This site is basically an index of medical research produced by those directly involved in treating medical conditions (medical researchers, doctors) and evaluating certain therapeutic interventions for those conditions. Pub Med is free to the public (other medical databases require a subscription).

A quick search on Pub Med on the efficacy of red light therapy (also referred to as phototherapy and LED-Low Level Light therapy) produced a study, among many others, in the medical journal Laser Therapy

Here’s a snippet from the abstract:

“…Among the clinical applications, non-healing wounds can be healed through restoring the collagenesis/ collagenase imbalance in such examples, and ‘normal’ wounds heal faster and better. Pain, including postoperative pain, postoperative edema and many types of inflammation can be significantly reduced.”

Kim, W. Is light-emitting diode phototherapy (LED-LLLT) really effective?2011;20(3):205-15.

And as I like to mention whenever explaining the therapeutic effects of red light, it is actually common knowledge that light has beneficial effects on living tissue. Three, well-known examples are: how light catalyzes photosynthesis in plants, enabling them to synthesize sugars for their energy needs; how UVB light starts Vitamin D production in the skin; and how animals rely on the diurnal cycle of sunrise and sunset to regulate their biorhythms, the patterns of physiological activity involved in the functioning of all living organisms.

A fourth example that suggests the connection between light and health that isn’t quite fully understood by science is Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a mood disorder characterized by depression that occurs at the same time every year in regions where there is less sunlight at certain times of the year.

In summary, therapeutic red light can speed up wound healing by accelerating the metabolic pathways involved in tissue repair. It is therefore logical to conclude that red light can also help with other types of tissue healing such as bone fractures, tendinitis, muscle bruises, gum and tooth pain, vascular pain, and nerve pain. There are even red light devices to help relieve sinus pressure and improve certain gynecological conditions.

As far as red light therapy devices go, the most common types are the handheld red light torch as I mentioned in this article, which resembles a small flashlight and are ideal for focused treatment on small wounds/injuries; and the multi-LED wraps, which can be used for larger areas such as for low back (lumbar) pain and which can be wrapped around an extremity such as the knee, elbow, or shoulder. Some people even use red light LED wraps to reduce fine facial wrinkles. You can also place your feet on an LED wrap placed flat on the floor to treat plantar fasciitis or general foot aches and pain.

Finally, there are the more expensive, “industrial strength” red light panels which are popular in medi-spas for whole body red light therapy skin treatment.

Bottom Line: Red light therapy devices make a great addition to your home therapy kit and are a great investment in your health because they are relatively affordable; are safe to use; are easy to operate and portable (take to office or travel); and most importantly, are known to provide good results for tissue repair and pain reduction, and have published medical research to back their efficacy in this regard.

What is Red Light Therapy, and Can it Help Arthritis?

by Pain Doc | Feb 13, 2022 | Arthritis, Red light therapy

Red light therapy (RLT) is a type of treatment provided in clinical and cosmetic settings that incorporates red light to improve the skin’s appearance, such as reducing fine wrinkles, scars, redness and acne. It is also used in the medical setting to help reduce pain and increase healing in the joints, such as tendinitis, sprains/strains, and arthritis.

Red Light Therapy is also known as:

Phototherapy
Photodynamic therapy
Photobiomodulation
Low-level laser light therapy*
Low-power laser therapy*
Cold laser therapy*
Biostimulation
Photonic stimulation

*this is a misnomer, because red light therapy does not use laser energy.

Interest in red light therapy emerged decades ago when NASA conducted experiments on growing plants in space and healing injuries to astronauts. Results of this research pointed to a connection between red light and positive, biological effects on human tissues. This ability of light (photons) to alter biological activity in living cells is called photobiomodulation and is the means by which RLT achieves therapeutic benefit.

What is Light?

Understanding this requires some basic knowledge of how the eye works, and physics.

First of all, vision is possible only in the presence of light. This means light must bounce off objects in your visual field and enter your eye, which then “translates” the bounced light into an image that is perceived by your brain.

But how do we perceive color? White light is actually made up of wave energy that propagates in multiple wavelengths. It is this difference in wavelengths, the molecular properties of all objects, and the design of the human eye’s retina that creates the perception of color. Objects that appear a certain color reflect the wavelength of just that color into your eye and absorb all other wavelengths. For example, a red shirt reflects the red wavelengths and absorbs the blue, orange and yellow wavelengths. Altogether, these component wavelengths of white light is called the visible spectrum of the electromagnetic spectrum, which is shown here:

Electromagnetic energy exists as an electrical field with a magnetic field 90 degrees to its axis and propagates at the speed of light. The electromagnetic spectrum is the range, in wavelengths, of electromagnetic energy existing in nature, from the very tiny wavelength gamma ray (.0001 billionth of a meter) to the very long wavelength of AM radio (100 meters). Light is in between these extremes and is the only EM waves humans can see, between the wavelengths of about 380 to 700 nanometers (nm, billionths of a meter).

When light passes through a crystal prism, it bends. Since light is made up of different wavelengths, the component EM waves of white light behave differently (bend at different angles and speeds) as they enter the prism and can now be visually distinguished from one another as separate colors in a band: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet. Similarly, rainbows form when suspended rain droplets bend the sun’s light and separate it into its component colors.

RED light is the longest wavelength of visible light, while VIOLET is the shortest. As the electromagnetic wavelength increases, the frequency (the number of times the wavelength passes a fixed point, measured in hertz – Hz) decreases, and so does the amount of energy it carries. So, the very small wavelength/high frequency gamma and x-rays carry a lot of energy and are dangerous to tissues. You may have heard that ultraviolet (UV) light can cause skin cancer. This is because much of its energy is absorbed by the skin, where it does damage to cells. Red light, being the longest wavelength of light, doesn’t have the energy level of UV and therefore does not pose danger to tissue; in fact, as we will discuss later, it has beneficial effects to tissues.

How Does Red Light Therapy Work?

Red light therapy is used to:

Improve wound healing
Reduce pain in joints
Treat tendonitis
Reduce headaches
Reduce stretch marks
Reduce wrinkles, fine lines and age spots
Improve psoriasis, rosacea and eczema.
Improve appearance of recent scars
Improve hair growth in people
Improve acne

It’s well established that light can initiate biological change in living organisms. Perhaps the most well-known is photosynthesis, the series of biochemical reactions where sunlight energy catalyzes the formation of sugar (glucose molecules) in plants. Photons from light get absorbed by tiny structures in a plant called chloroplasts, which provide the biological machinery to synthesize glucose (basically, stored energy) from inorganic carbon dioxide and water.

Another example of light effecting change in living tissue is vitamin D formation, where the pre-cursor of vitamin D is created when UVB light strikes 7-dehydrocholesterol molecules in the skin

Sunlight catalyzes Vitamin D synthesis in skin

With red light, the pathway is likely similar. Many research studies have been conducted over the years to uncover the mechanism behind red light photobiomodulation; i.e. the nature of its therapeutic effects. What is definitely known is that the red light wavelength (in the 660-700 nm wavelength range) tends to get absorbed in the nucleus and mitochondria of cells, in locations called chromophores. Mitochondria (image below) are the structures where energy is generated for the cell, much like the previously mentioned chloroplasts in plant cells. The nucleus contains the DNA, which is the template for protein synthesis.

We also know that photons can “excite” electrons – the tiny charges that orbit atomic nuclei. Cells and all their parts including the mitochondria are of course made up atoms. An “excited” electron means a movement of an electron to a higher energy orbit (further from/ less attracted to the nucleus).

In short, red light stimulation increases the energy state of electrons in sick tissues, enabling faster/enhanced reaction between adjacent molecules, as electron interactions between atoms are the basis of all biochemical reactions. This may translate into the cell “speeding up” its activities, particularly respiration (ATP formation from glucose via the Krebs cycle, i.e. energy production) as well as waste elimination and gas exchange. Redox signaling is the term used to describe this activity, and is the leading hypothesis for the mechanism of red light photobiomodulation.

With enhanced cellular signaling:

If the cell is a fibroblast, it could lead to faster wound healing, as fibroblasts migrate to the injury/damaged site to synthesize and lay down collagen fibers.
If the cell is a stem cell (undifferentiated cell), it could enhance the transformation of stem cells to fibroblasts or chondrocytes, which make collagen and cartilage, respectively.
If the cell is an epidermal cell, it could mean faster cell turnover to clear out abnormal cells in skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis.

Cells are programmed to respond to specific extracellular signal molecules for development, tissue repair, immunity, and homeostasis. Errors in signaling interactions may lead to diseases such as cancer, autoimmunity (such as rheumatoid arthritis), and diabetes. Given this, it is feasible to assume that if red light therapy can enhance cell signaling, it can benefit these cellular functions and support tissue healing and pain reduction.

Red Light Therapy is Shown to Reduce Inflammation

Many studies found that red light reduced inflammation in tissues. Inflammation is the body’s response to injury or some kind of irritant and is characterized by redness, swelling, and pain. It involves a complex series of steps involving multiple protein clotting factors in the blood and tissues.

Inflammation also involves several types of cells involved in the reparative process, including macrophages (“cleaner” cells that remove debris), basophils (a type of white blood cell that secretes histamine and heparin to make blood vessels more leaky and manage clotting), and fibroblasts. It also involves cytokines—chemical signaling molecules that cells use to communicate and coordinate activities within themselves and with each other.

Inflammation often gets out of hand at the injury/ damaged tissue site and contributes to the problem by increasing pain and delaying healing. In fact, diseases like arthritis, irritable bowel syndrome, vascular disease, diabetes, and even Alzheimer’s disease involve chronic (ongoing) inflammation. This is the basis for the utilization of anti-inflammatory medications such as steroids and non-steroidal medications (NSAIDs) like Tylenol and Ibuprofen for inflammation.

The inflammation-reducing ability of red light therapy is likely due to its ability to enhance cell signaling and molecular flow in the cell. One study notes that overall reduction in inflammation is one of the most reproducible effects of photobiomodulation [from red light]. This is particularly important for inflammatory diseases affecting joints; acute trauma, lung disorders, and brain injuries resulting in inflammation.

Another proposed model to explain how light therapy works is photon-mediated ion channels in cell membranes (image below). Basically, ion channels are the passageways in membranes (think tiny gated doors) where ions flow through, which require energy to open. An electrical gradient is formed as the ion concentration differs on either side of the membrane, and this gradient can be used to drive movement of molecules into and out of the cell, very much like voltage. In fact, this is how neurons produce nerve impulses. Red light photons may be able to activate these ion channels, thereby boosting efficiency of ion flow and helping the cell maintain equilibrium.

Ion channels create energy potential in cell membranes

Should You Try Red Light Therapy for Arthritis?

Given its photobiomodulation ability, red light can be a useful, self-administered treatment for skin conditions and tissue injury/pain. It has powerful effects of improving cellular function to diseased/ injured tissues, which can improve recovery and healing. Being lower frequency, it is not harmful to the body, unlike UV light.

However, red light therapy should not be considered a “magic bullet” for “curing” things. Every person is different, and if you have complicating factors in your health and/or your condition is advanced, it may not work as well. While the human body has remarkable regenerative and healing abilities, there are limitations.

For example, in the case of advanced degenerative osteoarthritis of the knee or hip, much of the cartilage has worn away, and there are multiple areas of exposed bone. Normal, healthy cartilage that lines joint surfaces is smooth and resilient to pressure. Unlike the epidermis (skin), it does not regenerate very well, so if you lose quite a bit of it or tear it, it cannot regrow back to normal.

Osteoarthritis of the knee

But, if you are at the very early stages of osteoarthritis, red light therapy can be very helpful in arresting its progression. Arthritis usually appears mid-age, but if you engaged in heavy contact or heavy impact sports such as football and gymnastics, it may start earlier. What happens is tiny disruptions in the cartilage start to gradually separate, much like how a tiny crack in your windshield “grows” in length as your car absorbs shock from the road each time you drive. These tiny separations then form pits in the cartilage, which widen. Bone is exposed, inflammation sets in, and you’re on your way to an eventual knee or hip replacement some years later. But if you apply red light therapy to the tiny disruptions as they form, there is a much better chance of arresting their progression by stimulating cartilage growth. The red light will energize chondrocytes, the dormant cells embedded in the cartilage matrix tasked with maintaining it, and can stimulate the proliferation of chondroblasts, the cells that secrete collagen matrix.

You can still apply red light to an advanced osteoarthritic knee for palliative purposes, since red light can suppress inflammation and therefore provide some degree of pain relief. If doing so allows you to stay on your feet a couple more hours in a day, then that is definitely a positive benefit to your quality of life.

A good solution for applying red light therapy to the knee is the 120 LED wrap. It is a flexible pad containing 120 light emitting diodes (LEDs) with each diode containing one (1) 660 nm red light emitter and two (2) 850 nm infrared emitters. You wrap it around your knee and hold it in place with an elastic band that comes with it, and press a button.

Alternatively, if you are patient, you can use a red light torch device. This requires you to hold it in place for a couple of minutes. The good thing about the torch is that you can target small areas. For example, if you know you have a cartilage tear on the inside of your knee joint, you can press the torch over it and concentrate the light on that one spot. The torch is also good for small joints; i.e. knuckles.

As always, when you self-treat conditions use a multi-pronged approach: improve your diet, get enough rest, drink enough water every day (sometimes not easy to remember!), avoid ingesting toxins as best you can (nix smoking, alcohol, processed food, excessive pollution); get fresh, clean air by walking where there are lots of trees; exercise/ move often to strengthen your muscles and heart, and avoid negative thinking, which elevates stress hormones. Do all these things consistently and you can rest assured that you are giving your body its best chances for recovering from disease and pain.

The Two Essentials for a Long, Quality Life

by Pain Doc | Jan 9, 2022 | Lifestyle Modification, Low Back Pain Exercises, Nutrition

As I transition out of mid-life, I face the inevitable things that happen at this stage of one’s life: parents, aunts and uncles aging and dying; birth of grand-nieces and nephews; and subtle changes in my body and physical ability. As someone with a professional background in healthcare, I can’t help but to analyze the health aspects of these mortal events.

The first I shall mention involves my mother and aunts (her sisters). In the gene department, I’d say they acquired good ones for longevity—mom is 88, and her sisters are in their mid-90s. However, their health status is starkly different. Yes, mom is a few years younger, but in terms of physical ability and vitality it’s as if she’s 20 years younger. One dear aunt has just weeks to live. She is barely ambulatory, and she is fading. Her body is frail, and her mind is diminishing. There were beginning signs of organ system failure during the past year – wounds not healing well; constipation, and swelling in the lower limbs.

The other aunt suffered several falls in the past year, breaking her leg each time, and is experiencing symptoms of congestive heart failure—fluid in the lungs and difficulty breathing. Both aunts require 24/7 assisted living at the time of this writing.

And mom? She still drives, speaks loudly and coherently (although her hearing is declining but not terribly); is able to vacuum and clean her home where she lives alone (dad passed in 2016), and even work in the back yard raking leaves, pulling weeds, and watering plants. She watches a lot of TV in the afternoons and, after chores and dinner, late into the night, yet is able to do all these things. She shows no signs of slowing down.

All three women fortunately did not develop dementia in their advanced age. Mom shows no signs of it at all, and I am hoping and praying I have those genes!

My dad, on the other hand, developed dementia during his last five years alive, and it played a role in his passing from an unfortunate hospital accident.

I attribute my mom’s stronger vitality, compared to her older sisters, to two things:

Give to Others. Stay Socially Connected. Avoid Isolation

She sends birthday cards to all her children (four, including me) every year, ever since we moved out of the house to go to college–without fail; on-time, every time.

For me, it’s birthday card every year for the past forty years. She does the same for her grandsons (3) and granddaughter, and now great-grandson. She’s very giving and considerate of others.

If you read authors in the Self-Improvement field, such as Brendan Burchard and Steven Covey, one of the common themes is giving. Something good happens when you give. The gesture is basically about giving out love. But to be able to give love, you must first be at peace with yourself, and have abundant love for yourself and your life. It’s like money – you can’t give others money unless you have money yourself to begin with; enough to spare.

When you love yourself, you aren’t sad; you aren’t depressed and most of all you value yourself so you take care of yourself. You don’t do things that will hurt yourself in any way and as a result, you achieve mental health, which promotes physical health. So believe me when I tell you that doing something as simple as sending someone a birthday card for 40 straight years carries a lot more meaning that it appears. It’s all about your attitude and outlook in life, which drives your actions. I do believe in the power of love. It’s one of the mysteries of being human.

My aunts, however, spent most of their lives isolated. Their spouses passed away when they were relatively still young and they never remarried. They sort of grew into living mostly solitary lives, over decades. I suspect that even with losing their spouses early on, that their isolated life was mostly due to their personality—their nature, which developed in accordance with their mindset. They are not as outgoing as my mom, and appeared to not mind being alone; at least that’s what they thought.

Do Whatever it Takes to Stay Physically Active, As Long as You are Able

The second thing that separates my mom from her sisters: she was consistently physically active all her life, and still is to this day. She is purposeful about it: she plans out her day the day before and has a set agenda– visit a friend, get some groceries, buy household things, go the bank; work in the yard, clean the house, and so on. She often mentions to me how she sweats in the back yard after doing some chores (she lives in Florida where the humidity and heat can be quite uncomfortable in the summer). She delivers food to friends who live nearby, out of the kindness of her heart. And, she goes to church regularly, where she gets most of her social interaction. Bottom line: my mother likes to stay busy and enjoys doing physical work at her age.

Compare this lifestyle to her sisters: neither was physically active, aside from going out to run errands when needed. They spent hours sitting on the couch and watching TV much of their day, for decades — a wholly passive behavior (I don’t want to say activity) both mentally and physically.

Neither of them worked a job: one aunt lived with her adult children, and the other was supported by her spouse’s death benefits. Neither toiled in their back yard. I doubt if they walked around the neighborhood for exercise, either. Neither had a hobby that kept them engaged in something. Today, their health is in steep decline.

The Lesson Here

So, based on this real-life study, if you desire to live a long, quality life (not a long life being infirm) learn from my mother: it starts with your mindset/attitude. Your mindset drives your actions. Your actions directly determine your mental and physical health – it’s that simple.

When you have love for yourself and your life, you naturally want it to last as long as possible and as a result, your subconscious mind guides you in doing things that maintain your health and extend your life—avoiding destructive thoughts (envy, hate, anger, resentment, regret); eating healthy, getting enough sleep, and exercising regularly.

When you don’t have love yourself and your life; OR you fail to take a moment to affirm it often, you take life for granted. You become undisciplined with your actions. You don’t have purpose. You take unhealthy, dangerous risks – spending too much time on the internet and social media; developing addictions; eating too much sweets and junk food and not enough whole, natural foods; consuming alcohol excessively, and avoiding exercise. Perhaps drugs and tobacco enter the picture, too. Then, this lifestyle becomes entrenched and harder to get out of because you become overweight, have low energy, and are in a negative mood. Exercise and socializing with others are the last thing on your mind, and you avoid both. You eat food that may taste good, but doesn’t nourish your body. These actions stress your body, and payback is imminent. Unless you have good longevity genes like my mother and aunts, you can expect your lifespan to be shorter than what it could be; and/or, you can expect to live with chronic illness, severely impacting your quality of life — not a great way to spend your golden years.

I will add to this that one can make change for the better at any age. Of course, the sooner in life, the better. As a person ages, it is more difficult to change adverse behavior, due to the thought patterns that take root in the mind, which are basically the habits and rituals that give one short-term satisfaction. But, it’s not impossible. It just requires digging in deep, and having that desire and determination to change. Loving life, and wanting to experience it for as long as you can. For many people, a wakeup call has to occur before they take action, like a friend dying unexpectedly from a heart attack. Don’t wait for that to happen, because if you do, it may very well be your sudden illness or death that shakes a friend into action.

Once you change your mindset, the next challenge before you is execution. Here are a few tips:

Make small, gradual changes that are easy to accomplish. This sends a positive signal to your subconsciousness, and lays the groundwork to build upon. Examples: buy healthy foods for the week every Sunday at 6:00 PM; walk 3x around your block Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays; etc.
If you slip and revert to an old, unhealthy habit don’t be too hard on yourself. Definitely do not throw in the towel. Get up, and keep trying. It’s all about consistency in effort.
Create simple health routines. Routines are things you do the same time of the day, every day. Stay on a routine long enough, and you won’t have to remember to do it; it will come naturally.
For your physical activity, schedule it on your calendar. Hold yourself accountable. Better yet, recruit a close friend to be your accountability partner. He or she will have the role of encouraging you to stay on track.
20 minutes of exercise a day is better than an intense, 2 hour exercise every other week. Consistency is more important than intensity.
There are exercise options for every age and ability. Exercise doesn’t necessarily require sweating gobs of sweat; getting out of breath, or pounding your joints. You need to learn what’s right for you. Stay tuned for lots of examples of physical exercise for those over 40; those who are not physically fit; are overweight; or have some form of physical disability.

I cannot stress enough the importance of staying physically active to living a long, quality life. Humans, like all animals, are designed by nature to move frequently. When you don’t move enough, muscles atrophy and support to your spine and joints weakens, inviting injury and joint degeneration. Your heart, being a muscle, becomes weak so oxygen and nutrient delivery to your cells, including your brain cells, becomes sub-optimal. Your blood sugar rises because it isn’t being burned at a fast enough rate, leading to obesity and diabetes, and even Alzheimer’s disease.

Lack of physical activity even promotes gut disease, including constipation. Digestion benefits from physical activity, since your intestines are muscles themselves that require oxygen and nutrients delivered by your heart.

Bottom line, use it or lose it—being sedentary; failing to engage in consistent, moderate physical activity for years will cause a decline in your health that will be difficult if not impossible to reverse. Make it a priority in your life.

To complicate things, technological advancements have reduced our need to be physically active, and if it weren’t for advances in medicine and sanitation, human lifespan would probably be in the 40s especially with the abundance of and easy access to high-calorie, low nutrient processed food.

That’s it for now. It’s a new year, a time when people contemplate their lives and their future. If you are someone who needs to make a change, now is the best time. Stay tuned for more advice on staying healthy, vibrant, and out of pain and extending the lifespan of your body.

How Pulsed EMF and Red Light Can Help With Low Back Pain

by Pain Doc | Nov 29, 2021 | Low Back Pain

Low back pain affects nearly everyone at some point in their lives. Medical researchers have long known that most cases of low back pain self-resolve after a couple of days with rest and palliative measures such as application of hot packs and cold packs.

But for some, low back pain returns, and eventually becomes chronic. “Chronic” means that pain has reached a level where tissue healing has for the most part completed, but there is recurring pain. Chronic pain is usually characterized as dull, persistent pain; as opposed to the sharper acute pain, which is the type of pain associated with recent injury or major aggravation of a previous injury; characterized by heat, redness and swelling. Chronic pain is believed to be central nervous system driven; meaning that some of the pain signals are emanating from brain and spinal cord neurons as opposed to nociceptors, the special pain-sensing fibers found throughout your joints, tendons and muscles.

If you have acute low back pain– again, from a recent injury, or aggravation of a previous back injury resulting in swelling and pain, the standard protocol agreed to by most orthopedic specialists is rest, ice for the first two days, followed by an optional hot pack for the next 3-4 days. “Rest” doesn’t mean bed-ridden. When used in this context, rest means no heavy lifting, bending at the waist, or activities that place undue pressure on the spine such as running or jumping. However, you should move your body in ways you can; i.e. do not mentally “catastrophize” it because studies show that this mindset can actually lead to poorer outcomes, such as taking a much longer time for the pain to resolve, and atrophy of the back muscles which reduces support to the spine and therefore predisposes it to further injury.

If you have chronic low back pain, the goal is to manage it so that it has a minimal effect on your activities of daily living– standing, sitting, walking, bending, and other activities that require similar use of the spine. If your chronic pain is mostly central nervous system in origin, it would be worthwhile to practice mind-body techniques. This includes yoga, meditation, and practices of that nature. Having control of your thoughts can be helpful in controlling chronic pain. It’s not all about ignoring your pain, but rather, not amplifying it by mentally embracing and validating it. The best approach is to continue as best as you can with your regular life activities– the things you did before the injury event. Modify them to accommodate any physical limitation, if necessary. For example, if you used to run, try speed walking. It’s less jarring to the knees and low back, and you burn the same number of calories. What’s most important is getting out there and staying active; i.e. “move through the pain.”

You can of course try to alleviate acute or chronic low back pain by using certain modalities. The ones I recommend are red light therapy and pulsed electromagnetic field therapy. Red light (emitted by a light emitting diode, or LED) has a wavelength range of around 660 nanometers. It is electromagnetic energy at a wavelength that can influence biological activity in a positive way. Studies show that light at this wavelength gets absorbed by cell mitochondria, which respond by becoming more active. Mitochondria are the parts of a cell that extract energy from ATP, the molecule synthesized from glucose (sugar) in the diet. A recent study showed that applying red light to your eyes in the morning can even improve eyesight. If you have an injury and/or inflammation, red light therapy can be helpful in accelerating the healing rate.

If the original injury event was within a year, it is possible to eliminate your chronic pain and have it never come back again. You see, in some cases of ongoing pain, it could be that your injury still has the potential to completely heal but it just needs a boost on energy. Cells are dormant or at a low energy state and there is not much activity going on; i.e. protein (collagen) synthesis and cell division/ new cell creation. Here’s where Pulsed EMF can help. Pulsed EMF, known as “energy” medicine, is the only modality that works by increasing the action potential of cells. Like voltage that drives electrical current, a strong action potential across a cell membrane will enable the cell to improve its metabolic rate. Nutrients and oxygen will move across the membrane into the cell, while waste products and CO2 will efficiently exit the cell through the membrane. When the cells are more energized, their healing capacity increases.

To further enhance healing of an old injury, apply 30 minutes of Pulsed EMF twice a day, followed by ten minutes of red light therapy. What’s great is that you do not need to be a licensed doctor to acquire these modalities. They are safe enough to use at home and there are no studies that show a harmful or negative effect in the use of these machines. If you wish to get out of pain sooner and in the long run, you can’t go wrong with Pulsed EMF and Red Light therapy. When combined, they serve as a powerful treatment for injuries and pain.

Pulsed EMF and Red Light also can serve as maintenance therapy for those who have no health issues. Living in a modern society, our cells and tissues are constantly exposed to unnatural and even harmful electromagnetic fields from things like cell phone towers and powerful transformers in buildings (Pulsed EMF generates EM fields with the same frequency and wavelength profile as those naturally produced by the body itself, at higher amplitude). This saps our energy and weakens and drains cell energy. Applying pulsed EMF re-energizes the body very much like how you recharge your cell phone battery every day. Your body will feel the difference with the energy boost Pulsed EMF provides.

Two Modalities to Heal Low Back Pain in Half the Time

by Pain Doc | Oct 20, 2021 | Low Back Pain, Pulsed EMF, Red light therapy, Self Treatment

Hey, I know there are millions of pages on the internet on how to fix low back pain. It can be a dizzying experience searching through them. It’s information overload.

I began blogging on this site around 2010, but actually have been writing articles on things like exercises for low back pain, neck pain, sprains and strains and so forth, since about 1994 when the internet was in its infancy. Fast forward 28 years, and now there are tons of articles and videos online, including mine. Much of the online content for treating low back pain is good: well-written, easy to understand and follow, and backed by evidence. Others are mediocre; just a re-hash of old-school approaches to treating back pain (rest, ice, no heavy lifting, etc.).

If you know me, when it comes to teaching others how to self-treat pain, I like to write fresh, interesting and innovative content. I figure that there are more than enough good videos on stretching and exercising for low back pain. What I like to do is explain the etiology of pain and propose interventions to prevent that pain from developing or getting worse.

If you have acute (recent onset) low back pain, research shows that in most cases, it will go away on its own if you just take it easy for a couple of days. Sure, icing, applying hot packs and no heavy lifting are obviously recommended to prevent re-aggravating the condition. The problem is that most people can’t afford to wait that long, and don’t like being in pain. They have a job, they have responsibilities to other people, and, they want to have fun and do the things they want to do.

For these individuals, there are a couple of home therapies I recommend, to shorten the healing time.

When you have low back pain, muscles and ligaments in and around your spine are generating pain. Something was disrupted mechanically, and inflammation is going on – blood vessels are releasing histamine and heparin and the inflammatory cascade is active—heat, redness, swelling, pain. The inflammatory chemicals irritate sensory nerves, causing some of the pain; as well as the pressure from the swelling. The nerves themselves may be over-firing; generating a level of pain that is not really proportional to the amount of tissue injury.

So with that, my go-to home therapy is a combination of Pulsed EMF and Red Light. Pulsed EMF is an externally-applied, pulsed electromagnetic field. The field, which is similar in frequency to the body’s own natural EM fields, passes through your body and essentially energizes the membranes of cells.

Cell membranes let things in and out of the cell, especially synthesized proteins, nutrients, oxygen, and waste products. They do this via active and passive transport, which both rely on membrane potential—a weak voltage created by negatively charged ions on the outside of the cell, and positive ions on the inside. Like how a battery’s voltage can power a light bulb, a cell’s weak voltage along its membrane powers the exchange of molecules in and out of the cell.

When cells (in this case muscle, bone, nerve, blood vessel cells) are physically damaged or weakened, this exchange is hampered and the tissues are slow to recover and return to a normal, non-pain state. Pulsed EMF lends a boost to this energy, helping cells become more robust in their healing and recovery activities.

Red Light therapy also can energize weak cells, but via photobiomodulation. Cells absorb red light in the 660-720 nanometer wavelength (electromagnetic energy), due to their molecular composition. Photons strike the nucleus, mitochondria and membrane, which changes the oxidative state of the cell. When this happens, it triggers cell signaling pathways related to metabolism and energy production. The cells increase their ATP output, which gives them more energy to repair damaged sites and synthesize needed repair proteins.

Pulsed EMF devices for home use are very easy to operate. Usually, it’s a matter of just pressing the power button, and sometimes a Mode button and Timer button. One of the better models is the BioBalance. You can order it with a full body mat, or a pad. Simply find a comfortable place in your home such as your sofa; place the mat on it, and lie down so that your low back is directly over the mat. No need to remove clothing; the pulsed EMF field passes right through. Do it 3x day for 20-30 minutes/ day to help your body heal and recover.

Another option is the OMI full body PEMF mat. It is lower power than the BioWave, but sometimes that works just as well, as the EM fields are very subtle. You don’t want fields that are too strong. Remember, your body already produces weak magnetic fields; you just want to complement them with a boost of comparable energy.

Red Light therapy is also a great investment in your health. I recommend getting a red light LED wrap, or LED panel. The wrap is a flexible pad embedded with red light LEDs emitting red light and infrared light (660, 820 nm). The red light diodes create photobiomodulation while the infrared diodes provide deep penetrating heat to dilate blood vessels and increase oxygen delivery to cells.

Red Light panels come in different sizes. The small ones are popular for treating facial skin conditions and beautification. The larger panels are better for treating pain. You can mount or hang the panel on the wall, and position yourself so that you are exposed to the red light (usually requires standing up).

In summary, if you are prone to getting lower back pain or have chronic pain issues, Pulsed EMF and Red Light Therapy are two, powerful and safe modalities that can be used at home for self-treatment and are easy to operate. Best of all, they have a long history of medical research to support their use in treating pain and healing injury. It does require a modest investment, but what is more important to your health and well-being? Without this, nothing else matters.

Do You Burn the Same Amount of Calories Walking vs. Running?

by Pain Doc | Sep 3, 2021 | Low Back Pain Exercises

If you ran one mile, would you have burned the same number of calories as if you had simply walked?

Intuition tells us that, for equal distances, running requires more energy than walking and therefore burns more calories. After all, running is a lot more sweaty and uncomfortable!

But …does it?

In order to find the answer, we need to define three important terms and understand how they are related.

The first is Energy. In physics, energy is the quantitative property that must be transferred to something physical in order to perform work on it, or to heat it. A less descriptive definition of energy is “the ability to do work.”

Visualizing energy is elusive, like an invisible force that can change into different forms, but most of the time the presence of energy can be visualized when the transfer occurs. For example, if you burn firewood, the invisible chemical energy in the wood is converted to heat energy, which you can see as fire. With regards to human movement, energy moves through our muscles, joints and bones.

The second is Work. Work is the energy transferred to or from an object via the application of force along a displacement (distance). In its simplest form, it is the product of force and displacement: W=F*d. So, think of work as “energy in action.”

Work and Energy have the same unit, called a Joule, which is the energy required to move 1 kg a velocity of 1 meter/second. So, when you walk one mile, your musculoskeletal system is performing work (W) by moving the weight of your body (F) over one mile (d). Weight is a force, as it is the mass of your body x gravity (acceleration).

The third is Calorie. In food science, one Calorie is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of 1 kilogram of water 1 degree Celsius; hence the phrase “burning” calories. Foods that we eat contain calories, which are represented by the energy stored in the bonds of the atoms of carbohydrates, fats and proteins. One gram of fat contains about 9 calories, while one gram of carbohydrate or protein contains about 4.

Calories are important to us because they are central to fat (not water) weight gain and loss. With the overabundance of high-calorie foods, weight loss is a concern for many. And along with calorie restriction (dieting), exercise is the means by which people try to lose weight. Exercise requires energy and work, which in the human body is sourced from calories. For those wanting to lose weight, the calories that are desired for burning are not in the food from a recent meal, but rather in the bonds of stored triglycerides; i.e. fat cells. Those unwanted fat cells are the result of the surplus of calories consumed (more than your body needed) over years and years.

People wanting to lose weight are interested in the best forms of exercise that will help them burn calories and use up those unwanted fat cells.

Before we address the original question of whether or not running one mile burns more calories than walking one mile, lets first discuss the two, main approaches to exercise: cardio and resistance.

Cardio exercises are exercises that result in sustained, increase heart rate. They are characterized by continuous movement of the body. Examples include running, walking, cycling, and the many types of aerobics classes such as cardio kickboxing. The continuous movement of your muscles in cardio exercises, when done for over 20 minutes burns fat and strengthens the heart muscle. A stronger heart is able to pump more blood to cells and increase cardiovascular endurance; hence the name.

Resistance exercises emphasize placing resistance on the large muscle groups, i.e. the legs, arms, back and core. They force the muscles to generate power, which burns calories just like cardio exercises. The resistance can be weights, resistance bands, or the weight of your body (squats, planks, pull ups, crunches).

This brings us to the calorie-burning effects of running vs. walking. Let’s say Tom, who has a mass of 50kg, walks one mile in 12 minutes, then runs a mile in 8 minutes. Did he burn the same amount of calories in both miles?

Since Work=Force x Displacement, the work Tom generated in both cases was as follows:

Force=mass x acceleration (of gravity on Earth, in this case)
Force=50 kg x 9.80 m/s2 = 490.33 Newtons (the unit of force)
Work=490.33 N x 1609.34 m = 789,107.68 Joules = 789.108 kJ

Since 1 calorie is approximately .239 J, Tom burned about 188 calories walking, and another 188 calories running because in both cases, he moved the same amount of force (his body weight) over the same distance…

THEORETICALLY.

The human body’s use of energy is not as easy to calculate compared to a machine. There are many variables in human movement; particularly in the way the muscles are used.

Let’s address the critical factor that will help us answer the original question – the biomechanics of walking vs. running. Do they use the same muscle groups in the same way? Do the muscles perform more work in one vs. the other given the same distance displaced? Is energy use the same in both?

I propose that energy expenditure in running is significantly higher than in walking, and here’s my argument.

If someone walks a mile in 12 minutes, then runs one in 8 minutes, it is conceivable that he burns the same amount of calories each time, because although running burns more calories per unit time (there is more muscle twitching with running), it is over a shorter time than walking. It is sensible that walking that extra four minutes makes up the balance.

Let’s make the comparison even closer: suppose Tom walked a mile in 12 minutes and “ran” the next mile in 12 minutes as well. This can be done at a certain threshold—the point (speed) where one can still walk fast or run at a light pace. It is best realized on a treadmill, because you do not change the treadmill speed but can either walk fast, or use a running movement. You’ll have to try it to know what I mean. For me, that threshold is 4 mph. I can switch between walking fast and running at a light pace. In this scenario, the times for completing both miles are equal (walking one mile in 12 minutes, then running one mile in 12 minutes), which makes the question of which burns more calories more interesting, and definitive.

Have you tried to figure out what specifically changes when you switch between walking fast and running? Lately, I’ve been speed walking a mile using a treadmill and running a mile, at the same pace, and tried to sense what was happening as I switched between the two.

Here’s what I discovered:

I immediately sensed that running made me breathe harder. An increased respiratory rate from exercise signifies a higher metabolic rate in the muscles (more glucose being used up in the citric acid cycle, which demands more oxygen).
Running felt harder to do than walking fast. This is evidence that I was expending more energy running than walking.
My strides were the same running vs. walking. In other words, I was not taking more frequent, shorter strides during running; they were about the same length.
I was bobbing up and down more during running. This was evident from my visual field—I noticed a significant increase in the vertical up and down movement of objects I focused on (the treadmill faced an open window, with trees in the distance). I estimated it to be about 2-3” every stride.
I sensed more muscle expenditure in my lower leg (calf) muscles and foot muscles when walking, compared to running.
I sensed more muscle expenditure in my upper leg (quadriceps) when running; i.e., stronger contraction in my legs compared to walking.

My conclusion is that, although fast walking and light running were done at the same speed, there were differences in the biomechanics of the movements. Unlike walking, running involves a subtle vertical push upwards, generated mainly by the quadriceps muscle starting at the heel strike phase (leg forward position, initiation of propulsion) through the mid stance to toe-off , that lifts the entire body up about 2-3 inches, compared to walking. This was evident even as I tried my best to stay level while running.

running gait

So, my theory is that running a mile burns more calories than walking a mile, and the extra work/ calorie burning in running comes from the stronger concentric contractions (meaning, more muscle fibers firing which uses more glucose) in the leg muscles to generate that extra vertical height against gravity PLUS the stronger isometric contraction that occurs when landing from that extra height, from heel strike to mid stance. So, switching to a running gait gives you a double whammy of calorie burning over walking, even when doing it at the same pace and over the same distance as walking.

Another way to look at it is potential energy. In physics, potential energy is the potential energy associated with gravity, which is released when the objects fall towards Earth. Hydroelectric power comes from the potential energy of water stacked high by a dam, and released at a lower level. The movement of water due to gravity is harnessed by the generator, which produces electricity. This is also a good example of how energy converts to different forms; from potential to mechanical to electrical.

Potential Energy = mass x gravity x height (above ground). When you run, because the biomechanics causes your whole mass to rise 2-3” higher than when walking, potential energy builds up and then releases, which travels through your muscles and bones as a force that needs to be dampened by muscle contraction (or you would collapse), which burns more calories.

So, if you were told that walking a certain distance burns the same amount of calories as running the same distance because of the formula W=F*d, where F and d values are the same in both cases, it’s likely not true. The faulty assumption here is that your body mechanics are the same when they are not. Running 3 miles feels you are doing more work because you are. Your heart rate is faster (this alone burns additional calories), your muscles and joints ache more, and your breathing rate is higher than if you walked the same distance. It’s all because with running, you are expending more energy elevating your body an extra 2-3” with each stride. This effort requires more calories in generating that lift, and absorbing it.

So yes, running is a great cardiovascular exercise to burn calories and lose weight. It does place more stress to your joints, so make sure you can handle this; otherwise, you are better off walking for exercise. But, you will need to walk a greater distance to burn as much calories as running, so it’s going to take you more time to lose weight with walking, compared to running.

If running is just too uncomfortable for you, try speed-walking because ultimately, any movement is better than none when it comes to staying fit and maintaining a healthy weight.

Nicola TL, Jewison DJ. The anatomy and biomechanics of running. Clin Sports Med. 2012

How to Strengthen Your Joints and Avoid a Life of Chronic Pain

by Pain Doc | Jul 21, 2021 | Arthritis, Hip Pain, Knee Pain

When I talk about the nature of joint aches and pain such as hip pain, knee pain and shoulder pain, I explain that the human body is basically a biological (living) machine. Like a machine, it has moving parts comprised of levers connected by some kind of mechanism that redirects force. Think car engines, certain power tools and watches.

In the human musculoskeletal system, those levers are the long bones such as the femur and ulna, and the connecting mechanism/ force redirectors are the joints. Like a machine’s mechanical components, joints will gradually wear out with use. The more hours/years of use, the more likelihood of breakdown. Think football players and those in heavy labor jobs.

When a moving part of a machine gets prematurely damaged from an accident like dropping or overloading, it gets repaired—a replacement part is installed and/or a mechanic puts things back together and makes necessary adjustments. However, the machine is never the same. The accident typically causes moving components to misalign ever so slightly, which results in more friction and accelerated wear and tear, leading to impaired efficiency and eventual breakdown again.

Similarly, if you twist and injure your knee, hip or other joint and get it repaired surgically, or by a chiropractor or physical therapy/ rehabilitation it is never quite the same—most people will lose some degree of functionality because the natural alignment has been permanently altered. You may lose a few degrees of arc of motion; hear some clicking sounds with movement (called crepitus), and lose some strength in the affected joint. Worst case, you will experience chronic pain.

Your joint health obviously plays a huge role in your quality of life. The good things in life involve movement, which depends on joint function. Your joints must be able to first of all exist without pain. They must be able to move your body in the manner you wish to move, without mechanical limitations. And, they must be able to withstand forces while they move your body parts– jumping, climbing, lifting, carrying, etc. That’s the best case scenario.

But what if you are one of the millions of people who have some form of joint pain; either from wear and tear, or from an accident such as a sports injury, work injury, fall, or car accident? These things happen to almost everyone at some point.

It depends first of all on how bad it is. How much structural damage occurred will determine the extent to which your joint can be rehabilitated/ returned to normal.

Unfortunately, the tissues that comprise joints are of the type that do not regenerate very well. This includes tendons, ligaments, cartilage and muscle. As I wrote before, tendons, ligaments and cartilage are classified as connective tissue, which does not contain many living cells, per unit mass. They are mostly protein filaments (collagen, elastin) embedded in a special matrix whose main function is structural. The few cells found in connective tissue are mostly dormant (chondrocytes, fibrocytes) and can effect minor repairs and maintenance: tiny tears of collagen can be repaired, but large tears cannot. Tears/injury to cartilage, such as a meniscal tear or rotator cuff tear, are either repaired by surgical reattachment, or left alone to become chronic leaving the individual with a certain percent loss of function.

Compare this to skin tissue, classified as epithelial tissue, which can heal relatively fast due to the high density of cells (they divide in number to create new tissue) and blood supply. Think of the last time you got a cut– how relatively fast it healed, and is no longer noticeable.

So if you are fortunate to not have joint pain, think proactively now to keep it that way.

If you are experiencing any level of joint pain and/or dysfunction, learn things that you can do to reclaim some of that function AND slow down the progression, which is what I can help you with. Even chronic cases of joint pain can be improved, so don’t give up hope. You may not be able to make the pain go away entirely, but if you can reduce the severity of your pain by 50% and/or increase range of motion by a couple of degrees, that can translate into a dramatic improvement in your quality of life.

The Two Main Approaches to Maintaining Joint Health

Let’s review the main joints involved in everyday movement patterns.

First of all, the weight bearing joints of the lower extremities: hips, knees, ankles, foot joints. We can also include the lumbar spine (low back). These joints have the dual task of bearing the body’s weight (and more than your weight if you do high impact activities) while allowing ambulation—running, walking, climbing, etc. and are therefore larger in terms of surface area contact and number of ligaments.

Secondly, the non-weight bearing joints of the upper extremities: shoulder complex, elbows, wrists, and hands. While they don’t bear as much weight as the hips, knees, ankles and feet, these joints are involved in anything you do with your arms/ hands. They are smaller and generally have more moving parts, so these joints are vulnerable to degeneration as well, especially the glenohumeral joint of the shoulder.

The first course of action in preventing joint degeneration, which tends to start in most people around age of 40, is through diet and nutrition. Eat a wholesome diet rich in phytonutrients; i.e. plants. Phytonutrients are vitamins and minerals naturally found in plants that are important co-factors in numerous biological functions, such as enzymatic activity, tissue repair and anti-inflammation. Some like turmeric are strong anti-oxidants. Think of oxidation, or oxidative stress, as the body’s version of rust. Oxidation is what causes rust and decay in metals; oxidation in the human body damages cell membranes, proteins and DNA. It is caused by excess free radicals— oxygen-containing molecules that have an unpaired electron, making them highly reactive. They take electrons from tissues in order to return to a stable state, which damages them. In fact, oxidative stress is a leading theory of aging and joint wear and tear. Eating a diet rich in phytonutrients—green, leafy plants and plants with hues of blue, purple, and orange equips your body with the nutrients it needs to counteract oxidative stress. Thus, think of a plant-based diet as being protective of your joints.

On the contrary, eating a diet rich in processed foods and added sugar can place a burden on your body. Not only is there a lack of nutrients, there are ingredients that can raise your triglycerides and bad cholesterol; form plaque in your arteries, and even cause toxicity. They must also put a strain on your liver, lymph system and kidneys, the organs involved in detoxifying your body.

Next, move those joints! You’ve got to find the right balance between helpful movement that exercises and strengthens your joints, and the ones that can cause damage. I’m not saying to avoid things like weight lifting and running, because when done properly, they benefit your joints.

Basically, repetitive jumping activities and wrong running technique that “pounds” your knees, hips, feet and spine joints have the potential to cause tiny cracks in your cartilage, which can expand into pits and eventually tears. An example of the movement you should avoid is playing basketball often, where you run on a hard court and jump and land hard to do layups numerous times; often landing on one leg first.

Running is a great aerobic exercise, and I do it myself, being in my mid-50s. But do it wrong, and you are setting yourself up for hip, knee and foot pain. With running, first of all, I highly advise running no more than 20 miles a week. You don’t need that much cardio from running, and running beyond this point every week turns the tables, as the cardio benefit is at the expense of your hip, knee and feet joints. Long distance running is especially not advisable, as it can generate excessive free radicals, causing oxidative damage to your body. Repetitive pounding especially if you are over the age of 40 when cartilage loses its thickness and pliability can cause micro-tears which can expand as you keep doing it, like a tiny, 2mm crack in a car windshield that gradually grows into a really big crack with every bump in the road.

Also with running, definitely do not use a jumping type movement. Think more in terms of really fast walking. Keep your feet close to the ground as you run, and land on the forward half of your foot (toes, ball and arch) rather than your heel. Your head should not bob up and down as you run; or it should be minimal.

Do closed kinetic chain exercises. This means the levers involved in movement (i.e. for lower extrmities, your lower leg and foot) are secured to the ground during force generation. A perfect example are squats and lunges. With this type of exercise, you have more control, and you isolate the muscle better because your leg is secured to the ground with your weight.

For upper extremities, an example is planks and push ups. Chin ups as well — same concept, the levers are firmly secured as you exercise the muscles and joints in a controlled fashion.

Remember, joints are comprised of two bones connected by ligaments. A tendon (the ends of a skeletal muscle) crosses over the joint and connects somewhere on both bones (origin and insertion points). So when you do squats, you are strengthening the ligaments and tendons of the joint, giving it more support. With more support, the joint is more stable and able to withstand forces better; i.e. it will last longer. How does it happen? Wolf’s Law of physiology states that connective tissue increases in mass in response to repeated loads. It’s one of the body’s many survival and environmental adaptation mechanisms. The mechanical stress signals to the brain to mobilize cells to secrete more matrix and collagen to handle the load. This is why resistance exercises are highly recommended for women who are at risk for osteoporosis—it builds up bone mass and turns down bone loss.

Conversely, being sedentary leads to muscle, bone, and connective tissue atrophy. Weak joint components will increase your risk of injury.

But again, be careful not to overdo it. Do the movements slowly and controlled, and focus your mind on controlling the primary mover muscles rather than your rep goal. This will maximize joint strengthening and minimize injury.

Summary of Main Points

Proper joint function is necessary for everyday movements, and therefore is critical to quality of life.
Joints are prone to injury and degradation due to their daily use.
It is advisable to be proactive to ensure your joints stay healthy throughout your life because joint components are comprised of tissues that do not regenerate well. One major injury can mean lifetime dysfunction.
The recommended approaches to maintaining joint health are a plant-based diet rich in phytonutrients, and closed kinetic chain exercises to strengthen your joints so that they are more durable and resistant to injury and degeneration.

Next time, I will discuss more ways to keep your joints healthy, and if you already have chronic joint issues, things you can do to reclaim function.

Three Simple Ideas to Plan and Keep Your Health Goals

by Pain Doc | Jun 26, 2021 | Lifestyle Modification, Nutrition

Photo by Pexels

By Jennifer McGregor

We use a lot of statistics to determine health, but being healthy isn’t just about numbers. Yes, some numbers matter, such as your weight and your blood pressure, but how you feel matters, too. And, truth be told, the numbers and the feelings are all interconnected; if those numbers are too high or too low, it’s likely you already feel out of sorts.

Many people struggle to make physical and mental health and wellness a priority. We often set ourselves up to achieve some pretty unrealistic health goals. Not only does that hurt us mentally, emotionally and physically, but it can also damage us financially, as well. How often do you spend loads of cash on crash diets, exercise equipment, and gym memberships that go unused for the majority of the year?

You shouldn’t feel ashamed of wanting to get healthier or when those goals go unrealized. However, you should feel motivated to pick up and try again. Check out these simple tips to help you start and stick to a head-to-toe health overhaul.

Be Confident in Who You Already Are

You have value just as you are. Working on becoming a healthier version of yourself isn’t a judgment call on your worth; it’s a sign of self-respect. Start by making little changes in confidence now. For example, you can stock up on makeup, skincare, and other beauty items. Consider going on Groupon to get deals on haircuts, facials, nails, and other beauty services to help boost your confidence in the ways you already radiate health and wellness.

Be Flexible in Mind and Body

A regular yoga and meditation practice can help you build strength in mind and body. Studies show that people who take up the practice can better manage stress, reduce the risk of injury, build lean muscle mass and improve flexibility. Being flexible isn’t just about being able to touch your toes (although that is a nice side effect). It’s about being compassionate with yourself when you do lose track. Feeling guilt or shame can keep you in unhealthy patterns.

Focus on Your Dental Health

Similar to the concept of a mind-body connection, your oral health is also linked to the rest of your body. Improper dental care can increase your chances of developing diabetes, for example. Maintaining good dental hygiene can help prevent health problems such as gum disease and heart attacks. In addition to regularly brushing and flossing, it’s crucial that you assess your teeth’s alignment. If they’re misaligned, you may have a harder time keeping your teeth clean, so it’s best to look into a treatment.

When it comes to alignment treatment options, clear aligners are a popular choice since they’re more discreet than traditional braces. However, keep in mind that not all clear aligners look exactly the same. Some aligners may be slightly more visible than others based on their texture. For example, Candid has a “frosted” surface, which can make your teeth look more natural. However, if you find that a “shinier” smile is more attractive, you can go with a smooth texture like the Byte aligners. Make sure you thoroughly research your options and choose the one that will best fit your needs.

Be Conscious of Not Only What You Eat, But Also Why and How

In American culture, we frequently rush through fast-food drive-thrus or pop a frozen entree in the microwave. While doing this from time to time isn’t a crime, you’ll want to make some major changes if those options make up the majority of your diet. It might seem like buying healthier foods will inflate your grocery bill, but you can maximize your finances by joining a meal delivery service. Many of them offer a deep discount on the first month, and even if you do continue the service, the cost per meal is actually often quite cheaper. While you gently shift away from eating fast food and processed meals, be sure to keep a food journal logging when you eat and how you feel. Connecting your eating habits to your feelings, thoughts, and behaviors can help you break some unhealthy associations you have with food.

All too often we try to make big changes happen overnight, and that’s why they are so hard to keep — we often take drastic measures too quickly. So, make progress with small, intentional steps to save time and sustain your success.

If you suffer from fibromyalgia, sciatica, or another type of musculoskeletal pain, you can seek out helpful articles that discuss pain relief strategies at The Pain & Injury Doctor.

How to Manage Hip Stiffness and Pain

by Pain Doc | Jun 14, 2021 | Hip Pain, Pulsed EMF

The hip joints are a key component to stabilization and ambulation of the human frame, so if you are experiencing problems with one or both of your hips, it is going to cause some loss of basic movements required by common activities of daily living, which translates to a reduction in quality of life. It is therefore imperative that you be mindful of your hip health at all times: take care not to place excessive shock trauma and repetitive stress to your hips; engage in exercises and stretches that condition your hip stabilizers.

Hip bone, or os coxae

The hip joint, or acetabulofemoral joint is a ball and socket type joint that supports the weight of the body in a static (standing) position and ambulatory position (running, walking). Its two articulating parts are the femoral head of the femur (upper leg bone) and the acetabulum of the pelvis (coxae), a bowl-like depression lined with cartilage.

Your hips bear quite a bit of repetitious force every day, and if you run and/or play sports that involve jumping and landing such as basketball or gymnastics, then those hip joints are really taking a pounding.

mountain bike shocks

The hip/pelvis complex, like a $10,000 mountain bike, is designed to absorb shock from multiple planes while simultaneously enabling movement. A high-end mountain bike can be ridden over uneven ground and can withstand shock forces from bumpy terrain, drops and jumps thanks to a multiple- jointed frame outfitted with shock absorbers. Like the mountain bike, the hip/pelvis complex enables the human body to absorb shock while ambulating.

The hip joints are balanced under the coxae, with the femoral heads partially inserted into the acetabulae and held in tightly by strong but stretchable capsular ligaments. Smooth, nearly frictionless cartilage lines the femoral head and the acetabulum. Comprised mainly of water molecules bound by proteins, cartilage is able to absorb shock and rebound, since water is incompressible. In youth, cartilage is thicker, suppler and more resilient than in those past age 40 but as you age your cartilage thins and is less capable of absorbing repetitive shock; hence the difficulty of running for exercise as you age.

Major hip muscles

Rear view of the hip muscles.

The Ilia and ischia of the pelvis serve as broad attachment points for the hip stabilizer muscles: gluteus maximus and minimus, psoas, adductor brevis and longus, and the deep hip rotator muscles (gamellus, piriformus). These are the hip mobilizers and shock absorbers that give the hip joints their main function of propelling the body on flat and uneven ground, and stabilizing them when the upper body needs a stationary anchor such as during heavy lifting.

So what are the main types of hip problems?

The most common problem that affects the hips is osteoarthritis. With so much pounding forces absorbed daily, the hips are prone to degenerative changes more so than other joints with the exception of the knees. Tiny fissures appear in the cartilage and gradually expand over time, like a windshield crack that grows longer from the constant dips and bumps of driving. The cracks turn into pits, and the hip joint starts to lose its smooth, fluid movement; giving way to clicking, stiffness, and limited range of motion. Although osteoarthritis is often referred to as a “degenerative joint disease,” this term is not entirely accurate. There is indeed a degenerative process involving progressive loss of articular cartilage, but there is also a reparative process in response to this degeneration that involves new bone formation, osteophyte growth, and remodelling. The dynamic process of destruction and repair determines the final disease picture.

In advanced hip osteoarthritis, the pit erodes all the way down to the bone, and at that point you start getting pain in your hips, and where there is pain there usually is inflammation. The hip capsule may fill up with inflammatory exudate, increasing the internal pressure of the hip joint and adding to the stiffness.

Normal hip joint vs. osteoarthritic hip

Risk factors, or things that will increase your chances of prematurely developing hip osteoarthritis are:

Previous injuries to one or both of your hips – a fall, sports injury, car accident, etc.
Participating in sports or other activities that involve high impact landings
Being overweight for much of your adult life
Smoking, as smoking restricts oxygen to tissues which is needed for maintenance and repair
Genetic factors – having a parent who got premature hip osteoarthritis

The genetic factors likely involve protein mutations that render the cartilage’s ability to bind water less efficient, making it extra vulnerable to shocks. They may also involve abnormal production of synovial fluid by the cells of the synovial tissue that surrounds the joint. Synovial fluid is analagous to motor oil in a car’s cylinder– it minimizes friction between the moving parts, so if production of synovial fluid is low, you will get erosion of the articulating surfaces; i.e. the cartilage on the femoral head and the acetabulum, accelerating the disease process.

Iliotibial band syndrome

Another form of hip pain and stiffness may be from iliotibial (IT) band syndrome. The IT band is a broad ligament that originates on the iliac crest of the hip bone; passes over the greater trochanter of the femur (that hard bump you can feel on the sides of your hips, right underneath the skin); and then inserts into the lateral epicondyle of the proximal tibia (lower leg bone). This is a condition that some runners get, and involves strain to the ligament and tenderness at its insertions points. It most often causes pain on the side of the knee, but can also cause diffuse, broad pain over the entire hip. Tenderness and pain at ligament insertion points (into the bone) typically involve micro-tears from mechanical stress, and/or inflammation to the periosteum, the thin layer of tissue where the fibers attach to the bone.

Xray of an aneurysmal bone cyst affecting proximal femur

Aneurysmal bone cysts, a benign but potentially destructive bone tumor may occur in the femur near the hip. It involves the growth of a tumor inside the bone, filled with fluid and blood. Normal bone is replaced by the tumor, which deforms and weakens the bone, making it prone to fracture. ABCs typically start in the first 20 years of life and can remain into adulthood if not dealt with. Make sure to rule this out before doing any physical therapy for hip pain; aneurysmal bone cysts are easily identified on X-ray.

There are other pathological conditions that affect the hip that can cause pain and stiffness, such as slipped capital femoral epiphysis (another pathology common to youth), fibrous dysplasia and other bone disorders but won’t be discussed in this article. Just know that these can be a long-shot cause of hip pain, and can be usually ruled out on X-ray.

Those with hip pain or discomfort due to progressive hip osteoarthritis know the consequences:

Very stiff hips upon waking in the morning, that improves up to a point as the day goes on.
Laborious walking; takes extra effort to move your legs
Aggressive movements like jumping and running are out of the question
For some, burning pain in the hips
Can’t stand for very long; have to sit

For those who have medical insurance, it’s a matter of time before they elect to have an artificial hip inserted.

So what should you do if you have hip pain from osteoarthritis, and are years away from considering hip replacement?

Here’s what I recommend:

Change your Diet: what you choose to eat day to day has the biggest influence on your health. Make 80 percent of your diet plant-based; and of that amount, about half of it raw (uncooked). Suggestions: green leafy vegetables such as chard, collard greens and spinach for the cooked; red leaf and green leaf lettuce, red cabbage, and endive for the raw. Basically, vegetables with purple and red hues are the best as they are rich in anti-oxidants.

Include protein, about 10 ounces per day. Organic grass fed meat, deep water fish, sardines, and pastured eggs are good choices. Whey protein and pea protein powder are also good.

Include fats high in Omega 3 fatty acids, and some saturated fat. Fats are a component of cell membranes especially in nerves, and they are a needed energy source for your body. Salmon, mackerel, eggs, nuts and seeds are good choices.

And of course, drink water throughout the day to stay hydrated. We humans are almost 80% water, and you lose water from your body with every exhalation.

Reduce daily stress in your life: if your life is stressful, make an effort to remove the stress. Stress has an adverse effect on your health and well-being. It can raise blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol and cortisol levels, which promote fat weight gain.

Get some negative ions: negative ions are abundant in nature; i.e. the outdoors. They can neutralize harmful positive ions that are plentiful where there is pollution and electronics; i.e. cities. Take off your shoes and socks, and walk on grass in a nearby park. This will “ground” your body, discharging some of your positive ions and equalizing your electrical charge with the Earth’s.

Do low-impact exercises for fitness: you don’t have to go crazy to get a good workout. Using your body’s own weight is sufficient. Planks, squats, pushups, crunches, and lunges are great. For weights, use kettlebells. Cycling can be a good exercise for those with early osteoarthritis of the hip, as the pedaling moves the hip in a non-weight bearing position.

Lastly, use a Pulsed EMF mat daily. Pulsed EMF is considered “energy medicine.” It is the external application of electromagnetic fields similar to those produced by your body, to augment the potential energy the body uses to help drive biological activity; i.e. molecular movement such as blood flow and nutrient transport. This can improve blood circulation and cell membrane transport of nutrients, proteins and wastes; thus improving cell function. In weak tissues, Pulsed EMF can stimulate healing by energizing reparative cells. Can Pulsed EMF help cause worn cartilage to regenerate? Several studies such as this one found that pulsed EMF can upregulate the expression of a gene that controls cartilage production in chondrocytes. It’s definitely worth a try.

Some studies show that Pulsed EMF can help cartilage regenerate.

Go here for more info on Pulsed EMF.

To recap, your hip joints are essential to a high quality of life. They serve to ambulate you, and enable your body to perform basic movements required of daily living such as lifting, carrying, and bending. They are also prone to degeneration, so be mindful of the health of your hip joints – avoid repetitive, high-impact activities that may accelerate degeneration. If you like running, change your running stride to one that more resembles fast walking, where there is minimal to no change in height of your head as you run and therefore minimal impact to your knees and hips upon heel strike when running. In fact, if you run, focus the impact of your foot on the ball of your foot as it contacts the ground, not the heel. Running can be good for health, and your bones, when done right – not too aggressively; with moderation.

Is It Possible to Improve Long Standing, Chronic Pain?

by Pain Doc | Jan 6, 2021 | 30 Day Pain Relief Challenge

In any sport that involves executing proper form such as a tennis serve, baseball pitch and boxing right cross, it is essential to follow through with the movement. You must commit 100% to the movement the instant you initiate it. When you do this, things go well—the movement is executed with power and precision, and you’re likely to have success.

If you are hesitant, the movement collapses or comes out wrong; it is basically doomed from the start. This is why any pro athlete will tell you that concentration and focus are equally important to athletic ability. The mind literally determines success and failure. So when you throw that punch, put everything into it!

Use this sports mindset for the things you set out to do in life, especially if they involve improving yourself, and you will succeed. Commit 100%. Follow through.

Some examples:

Changing your appearance – certainly achievable. There are even “makeover” TV shows that prove it.
Changing your persona, attitude and outlook – certainly achievable. Not easy, but if you commit to it and follow through, you are likely to succeed. Lots of motivational/ high performance gurus out there to help.
Losing fat weight is certainly achievable. Again, not easy, but achievable. If you’re overweight, it’s like going through life with a backpack full of rocks. It puts a burden on you and limits what you can do. Remove that backpack you’ve been carrying around for decades, and the change will be dramatic and amazing.
Improving your health—quitting smoking, cutting down on alcohol and drugs, exercising more: definitely achievable. Commit and follow through.

If your health is not where you want it to be, don’t be passive about it – be active. Health is priceless, and the number of years you have left in this life is a finite number and decreasing each day.

Without good health, all those other plans you have in your head, short and long-term, are jeopardized. Sure, you could do without certain things due to some physical limitation; that’s fine as long as you’re happy. But what if you didn’t have to? That’s something you need to find out.

This brings us to the issue I deal with – musculoskeletal health.

Musculoskeletal is exactly what it sounds like – your muscles, skeleton, and all its components: joints, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, fascia. This system carries your body and all its other critical systems. It enables humans to be mobile and perform incredible, physical feats.

Basically, your ability to do things in life is largely dependent on the health of your musculoskeletal system.

The longer you’ve been alive, the more demand you’ve put on your musculoskeletal system and naturally, the more likely you’ve experienced breakdowns. It’s just like any machine; the more usage hours the more likelihood of parts failing.

And if you participated in contact sports; a heavy labor occupation; have a history of physical trauma—accidents, falls then chances are, your musculoskeletal health is not 100%.

Conversely, if you had a sedentary job all your life and didn’t exercise, your musculoskeletal system is likely weak in strength and responsiveness, and you also have issues – back pain, neck and shoulder pain, etc.

Musculoskeletal pain is the #1 cause of disability, world-wide. It causes billions of dollars in lost productivity and medical costs each year. Drilling deeper, pain has other negative effects such as depression and emotional stress; pain killer addiction, and stress to the people close to the sufferer, which causes more problems and adds to the cost. Low back pain is at the top. Knee pain and hip pain are also high on that list.

Getting back to the original topic, is it possible to eliminate chronic, musculoskeletal pain just as you would unwanted weight?

Obviously, there is no definitive answer because of the many variables involved. No two cases are exactly alike, because people are different. Doctors can’t make a blanket statement that “chronic pain can be eliminated;” that would be irresponsible. The answer depends on the case.

THE NATURE OF MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN

So, can your situation be improved? Let’s first discuss the nature of musculoskeletal pain so you can see what’s involved, and what needs to happen.

Acute pain from a recent injury has a very good chance of being eliminated with proper treatment/ therapy and time, as the body has amazing healing ability. However, the more extensive the injury (such as a really bad car accident resulting in a fractured pelvis, ribs and femur) the more opportunity for chronic pain to develop.

Chronic pain is a different beast. The body has gone through the normal stages of healing and repair, but something went wrong and pain persists. Cases that have reached a year of daily pain likely have crossed over to the central nervous system which is a bad thing. Generally speaking, the pain has “taken residence” in the brain and spinal cord. In other words, it’s not only being generated by the injured tissue; there is now self-running “memory” of the pain signals. It’s a very complex topic in neurology, and there is still a lot that is still unknown.

Chronic pain most often involves joints, and it’s no surprise. Joints are the stress point in a muscle-lever (long bone) system. This is where movement occurs, under a load (force). The weight bearing joints are the most vulnerable (hips, knee, feet, and lower spine) but non-weight bearing joints (hand, elbow, shoulder) can develop chronic pain from overuse/ old injuries.

Cartilage gradually wears out, and since cartilage isn’t easy to make the damage becomes progressive. The immune system begins to notice the damage and initiates inflammation. This leads to swelling and a bunch of inflammatory biochemicals that generate pain. In fact, most over-the-counter pain medications (aspirin, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory meds like Motrin and Ibuprofen) work by blocking the formation of these biochemicals.

If the pain becomes unbearable, surgery can help with artificial joints. But the drawback is that artificial hips and knees have to be replaced every ten or so years as they get loose—not a fun experience.

In some cases the patient cannot pinpoint it because it is diffuse, and appears to be generated in a broad area of muscle such as the back muscles.

Some of the factors (variables) that play a role in chronic pain are:

Age, sex and general health of the individual
History of repetitive stress to joints, or major injuries
Structures involved
Genetics
Mental health

So,

Younger people tend to heal better and more completely.
Females tend to experience more pain than males, for unknown reasons. For instance, in fibromyalgia, a condition involving widespread pain throughout parts of the body, females tend to be more affected about 60% of all cases.
Underlying health conditions such as diabetes, blood and auto-immune disorders can result in sub-optimal healing.
Your diet directly impacts your health on many levels. What you put in your body influences your digestion, mood, blood pressure, heart rate, strength, endurance, immune system and more.
Those in heavy labor (construction workers, movers, etc.) and who have a history of major injury are more likely to develop chronic joint pain.
Tendons and ligament strains have a better chance of healing than cartilage.
Genetics can be a factor in susceptibility to degenerative changes in joints. Your genes make all kinds of proteins; many of which play a role in structural integrity.
The research shows that patients who are more optimistic tend to have lower pain levels and higher function, compared to those who mentally embrace the pain, called “pain catastrophizing“ and allow it to dictate their attitude and mood. It’s validation of the brain-body connection; i.e. your thoughts can affect your body.

CAN YOU GET OUT OF CHRONIC PAIN?

Ok, now that you have a better understanding of what chronic pain is and the risk factors involved, you should have a better idea of your chances of improving your pain.

Whether you have all the risk factors, or just a few, I believe you can still improve your situation. But first we must define “improvement.”

While pain reduction is important, what’s perhaps more important is functional improvement. They tend to go hand in hand; i.e. the more pain you have, the less you are able to do (less function), and vice versa. The problem with this, though, is that chasing the pain with medication, chiropractic, acupuncture and other passive therapies without working around it and focusing on regaining your functional capacity (your ability to do certain tasks/movements) could be the wrong strategy. It traps your mind into thinking that your pain determines your ability; like a gate keeper, and as long as that pain gate keeper is there, you convince yourself that you cannot move properly. The consequences can be psychosomatic where your thoughts literally change your physiology and inhibit proper healing; and they can be limiting; causing you to avoid movement and stay bed-ridden, leading to muscle atrophy. Remember the brain-body connection—thoughts have a powerful effect on your body. Thoughts can imprison you, or they can liberate you.

Back to defining improvement. In the previous post, I introduced you to the Pain and Disability Questionnaires. This is a tool doctors use to “quasi-quantify” pain; i.e. assign a number to it. But they are so simple to use and available for free download (the links are at the end of this post), anyone can use them.

You select the pain questionnaire that applies to your condition—low back, neck, shoulder, upper extremity, lower extremity. Fill it out according to the directions and determine your “percent disability” or “percent functionality.” If you’re at 40% disability for low back pain, strive for 20% in about two months; then 10% after a couple more months. This provides something tangible to work with.

These questionnaires came about when doctors decided that improvement in common, every day movements/tasks such as walking up the stairs or raising something above your head is much more important and meaningful than improvement in pain, which is harder to measure since it is so subjective.

So, the 30 Day Challenge will focus on improving your Pain and Disability score; not so much on your pain level. As your score improves, your pain should improve anyways, but it won’t be the focus in this challenge.

Now that you know that we will be focusing on functional capacity, you can probably guess what the strategy will be to improve your pain/ disability score. The focus will naturally be on nutrition.

The fastest way a person can significantly and dramatically change his/her health metrics is through diet. The reason is simple – what you eat becomes you—the proteins, oils/fats, and fluids in your food become part of each cell in your body. Like many things in life such as clothes, shoes, houses, cars and bridges, if high quality materials are used in construction, it lasts longer. Use cheap materials, and the item will break down much earlier with use. So. eat high-quality, nutrient-dense foods, and your body will be stronger and will therefore last longer without breaking down.

Food, particularly plants, have numerous phytochemical nutrients that help your body work better—vitamins, minerals, co-factors, anti-oxidants. Eat those, and you get all these beneficial nutrients that your body needs to run its thousands of biological processes.

But as you will soon find out, it’s not just about what you eat. What if you ate the healthiest meals, but your body couldn’t absorb the nutrients very well due to a digestive problem?

Well, those nutrients will be excreted in your waste, and your body will be deficient in them. You can eat well but still be nutritionally starved.

So part of the strategy will focus on optimizing your body’s nutrient absorption potential. Think of it as flushing out your plumbing and fixing any worn out parts.

How and when you eat is also important. Should you eat three meals a day? Is it OK to skip breakfast? What’s the latest hour of the day that is OK to eat? We’ll talk about this, too.

Although it’s a 30 Day Challenge, you don’t have to start all the activities in 30 days. Try them out and implement them at your own pace. But the most important thing is to commit. Follow through. How badly do you want to get out of pain? To be able to easily do a 5-mile hike again, or go up two flights of stairs without losing your breath? Dramatic change demands dramatic commitment—perhaps a level that is new to you.

If you truly want to reduce your pain by at least 50%, you must give it your best effort, as if your life depended on it. Laser focus, ignore the nay-sayer thoughts that are bound to pop up (again, your mind can imprison you and it can also liberate you; you have the choice), and execute the plan faithfully and consistently. Do this, and you will reap the many rewards in life that better health brings.

The 30 Day Pain Relief Challenge will be based on video tutorials. Tomorrow, I will send you the first one, so keep an eye out for it in your In box.

Sincerely,

Dr. P

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Give to Others. Stay Socially Connected. Avoid Isolation

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The Lesson Here

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How to Strengthen Your Joints and Avoid a Life of Chronic Pain

The Two Main Approaches to Maintaining Joint Health

Summary of Main Points

Three Simple Ideas to Plan and Keep Your Health Goals

Be Confident in Who You Already Are

Be Flexible in Mind and Body

Focus on Your Dental Health

Be Conscious of Not Only What You Eat, But Also Why and How

How to Manage Hip Stiffness and Pain

So what are the main types of hip problems?

Here’s what I recommend:

Is It Possible to Improve Long Standing, Chronic Pain?

THE NATURE OF MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN

CAN YOU GET OUT OF CHRONIC PAIN?

The Ultimate Home Air Purifier

Want to Feel 10-20 Years Younger?

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