DocAltMed IQ Test: Mystery Man

Since its inception, the chiropractic profession has paid great attention to the nutritional needs of patients. After the AMA had annihilated the eclectic and homeopathic schools of medicine, both of which advocated replacing drug therapies with medicinal use of food and herbs,  chiropractic doctors were almost the only health professionals which kept alive the concept of  "food as medicine."

(It bears noting that, at the time the medical profession was attempting to hound chiropractic doctors out of practice for being unscientific, mercury was a common ingredient in many medicines routinely prescribed by MDs. Mercury is today recognized as a dangerous poison, to the degree that releases of small amounts of mercury have caused entire school evacuations. However, the same MDs who now understand the dangerous toxicity of mercury advocate for its continued use in vaccines administered to infants and children. Go figure.)

The medical profession's opinion of the importance of nutrition during the 20th century is well summarized by Dr. Elmer Nelson, who was the director of the Nutrition Division of the early FDA. Dr. Nelson, in court testimony, said “It is wholly unscientific to state that a well fed body is more able to resist disease than a less well-fed body. My overall opinion is that there hasn't been enough experimentation to prove dietary deficiencies make one more susceptible to disease.”

Interestingly, however, there was another profession that continued investigating the use of nutrition: Dentistry. In the interests of oral health, a few enterprising dentists continued research into nutrition's effect on disease.

One of these dentists was among the first to recognize the dangers of trans fats, excoriating the manufacturers of margarine as "food counterfeiters," who "have kept their eyes comfortably equipped with mercenary blinders."

Even more prophetically, this man recognized 60 years ago what is only now being acknowledged by mainstream medicine. This is the fact that isolated, synthetic nutrients do little to affect overall health. Nutrients work with one another synergetically. Vitamin B complex, by itself, is absorbed and utilized poorly. However, when accompanied by a number of cofactors which typically accompany Vitamin B in food, our ability to use this vitamin to fight disease is greatly enhanced.

This doctor, again writing in the 1950s, said: "The whole nutrient complex is greater than the sum of its parts. Just as no single component of a watch keeps the time, no single chemical accounts for the functional action of the entire nutrient complex. Vitamins are bundles of nutritional factors that create a vitamin effect. Only in whole, unprocessed food does the synergistic balance of nutritional components yield that vitamin effect to a living body."

In the course of developing means to healthily condense, extract, and process food, this dentist acquired almost 100 patents, developing processes that are used in supplement manufacturing to this day.

Your question this week is: Who was this doctor?

As always, the winner's of this week's quiz will receive a one-time 10% discount on an order of any size from our Dispensary. The answer will be released on this blog on Wednesday, Feb. 2. If you think you have the answer, email me. Good luck!

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

And the Answer Is...

Last Friday, I issued the first DocAltMed IQ Test, with a reward of 10% off any supplement purchase from our Dispensary. The question was:

What institution provided the first acupuncture education for doctors in the U.S.?

Before revealing the answer, I would like to first thank the many competitors who submitted a response. Your answers were thoughtful, informed, and well-researched.

This was a difficult question to answer, however, because of the many competing claims for "first." For example, one organization claims that it "has the unique distinction of being the first acupuncture course for physicians in North America," by virtue of its first course in 1979.

Wikipedia, in a marvelous display of acupuncture misinformation, reports on no postdoctoral programs whatsoever. Of course, that Wikipedia page is so filled with half-truths and innuendo that only about every third word is believable. (Overall, I have found that when it comes to Wikipedia, the entries on alternative medicine are dominated by a few skeptics lacking any credibility (and also, presumably jobs, since it would appear that their main calling in life is to disseminate crowdsourced falsehoods)).

The American Academy of Medical Acupuncturists was presented to me as a possible candidate; however, it was not formed until 1987, and restricts training and membership to a subset of physicians, as only MDs and DOs are eligible. DCs, despite being physicians, are not participants in the AAMA.

The physicians who practice acupuncture the most are chiropractic physicians, and may be board certified by two agencies. One is the recently-formed ACA Chiropractic College of Acupuncture, and the other is the International Academy of Medical Acupuncture (I am a Fellow of the latter organization, through which I obtained my postgraduate education). Interestingly, the chiropractic interest in acupuncture extends  way beyond James Reston's re-introduction of acupuncture to the West, as I described in my earlier post.

In fact, the modern founder of chiropractic, DD Palmer, mentions acupuncture in his 1910 textbook, The Art and Science of Chiropractic. Other investigators since that time have noted the coincidence of chiropractic manipulation's success with visceral diseases, and the presence of acupuncture points along either side of the spine which can influence those very same conditions. From 1910 until 1972, however, acupuncture utterly disappears from the printed page in the U.S.

It is not terribly surprising then, that chiropractors be among the vanguard of doctors who adopted this new and powerful technique. Thus, it was at the Columbia Institute of Chiropractic, in New York, which began the first postgraduate program in acupuncture in the fall of 1972. Columbia has since become New York Chiropractic College, and has moved from the city to beautiful Seneca Falls, NY.

Dr. John Amaro, founder of the IAMA, recalls it this way:

"I am personally proud to have been in that very first acupuncture certification program which was taught by masters of acupuncture who were physicians from the United States, Great Britain, The Republic of China and Japan. As few early Asian educators of acupuncture spoke English the lectures and demonstrations were translated. Chinese acupuncture practitioners from Communist People's Republic of China would not begin the introduction of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in the United States for as much as an entire decade later when communication was established. Virtually all acupuncture in North America from 1972 to 1982 was performed through Japanese or Taiwanese "Meridian Style" influences. Likewise, virtually all acupuncture in North America was performed by chiropractic and medical physicians as "acupuncturists" as a profession would not become a reality until the National Commission for the Certification of Acupuncture was established in 1985.

The Chiropractic profession had always taken the lead in acupuncture education and certification. Even though the National Commission for the Certification of Acupuncture would not become established until 1985, the State of Arizona established Board Certification in Acupuncture through the Arizona State Board of Chiropractic Examiners as early as 1983."

So, interestingly, not only did the chiropractic use of acupuncture predate any other health profession, but chiropractic doctors were the first to properly certify and regulate its members who practice the art, a full 4 years before the medical profession even started to form its acupuncture college, and 2 years before the acupuncture-only profession was created. Today, over 35,000 chiropractic doctors practice acupuncture.

Surprised? I thought you would be. Chiropractic is full of interesting history which is rarely reported or discussed.

Thank you very much to all who participated, and since nobody won, everybody is eligible to participate in next week's Alternative Medicine IQ Test.

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

The 5 Most Deadly Heart Disease Myths

If you have read this blog for more than 5 minutes, you probably already know two things:

1. I believe (because the research demonstrates) that taking control of your health care is the best way to become, and remain, healthy.
2. I believe (because the research demonstrates) that mainstream medicine has absolutely failed in the prevention and treatment of most chronic diseases.

You may not yet know that heart disease, though it is the number two killer in this country (after medicine itself, which is in first place as the leading cause of death) is a chronic disease which is comprehensively preventable. But the "pill for every ill" mindset has prevented us from addressing the problem of heart disease in any kind of effective, comprehensive way. In fact, most of what you have been told by the media and your medical doctor about the causes and prevention of heart disease is wrong.

Hopefully, I can change that in a small way, on Wednesday, February 16. That evening, I will be giving my first seminar of 2011, titled:

The 5 Most Deadly Heart Disease Myths

• Why your cholesterol levels really don't matter.

• Why the drugs you are taking may be doing you more harm than good.

• The "bad" foods that are actually good for heart health.

• The real causes of heart disease, and how you can prevent and reverse it.

• Why the heart disease statistics are fatally wrong.

Please join me on Wednesday, February 16 at 7 p.m.

Litchfield Community Center

Seating is limited -- Call or email today for reservations.

The DocAltMed IQ Test

The word "doctor" comes from the root latin word, docere, which means "to teach." So, at the heart of it, a doctor's primary job is to teach. That is one of the reasons that I started this little blog, and why I send out my monthly DocAltMed newsletter to my patients and other interested people. I try to educate people, so that they know what the research really says about mainstream and alternative medicine, as well as give some insight as to what makes a doctor working in alternative medicine tick, and how he thinks about health, his patients, and their problems.

For several years now, I have written about everything from the folly of flu vaccines to the extraordinary success chiropractors have had as primary care physicians. But there is one thing I have never done for my faithful readership which is now, I am told, quickly approaching the double digits.

I've never given a quiz.

And if my job is, truly, to teach, then one of my primary responsibilities is to test. Because, through testing comes understanding, as China knows well. And I confess that I have clearly fallen down on the job, in letting all of this time pass without administering some kind of test.

So the time has come. But rather than present some complex multi-answer multiple choice test with an added essay at the end, I have settled on something decidedly more prosaic. A single-question quiz. The topic will be, as always, related to alternative medicine. The answer may be searchable on the internet, through the auspices of Mr. Google or Cap'n Bing. But it won't be easy to find, lest the winner of the quiz simply be the person with the most Google-fu. It will help if you are a frequent visitor to this blog or you subscribe to the DocAltMed newsletter, as the answers may have been alluded to previously.

Wait. Did I say winner? In fact, I did. Because accomplishment deserves recognition, and anyone who can answer one of these quizzes correctly deserves something more than the distant approbation of one's fellow readers.

Hold up just a minute. Did I say quizzes, as in more than one? Indeed, I did. Because their will be multiple quizzes, multiple winners and multiple prizes to be handed out.

Backup a second. Did I say prizes? Quite so. Because everybody loves a prize.

So here's the deal. Every Friday around 2 p.m., I will post a new quiz; we'll call it the DocAltMed IQ Test. The quiz will remain open to answers until Wednesday, but the first person to submit the correct answer will claim the prize! I will add a post on Wednesday with the answer to the quiz.

I can hear you now, saying "Ok, doc, that's all just dandy, but get to the good stuff. What's the prize?"

If you are the first person to answer the quiz, you get a one-time 10% discount on any supplements purchased from our Dispensary. This includes supplements from any one of the following manufacturers (in alphabetical order):

• Biotics Research
• Designs for Health
• Integrative Therapeutics
• Kan Herb
• Mayway
• Mediherb
• Nordic Naturals
• Standard Process

You can purchase any amount, and any available product from one of these companies, even if I do not have it in stock at the dispensary.

Now, as with any contest, there are some rules, and those rules are as follows:

1. You can't be an employee of the Center for Alternative Medicine (sorry Teresa) or related to me (sorry, kids, but I pay for all your vitamins anyway).
2. You must claim your prize within two months of winning.
3. If you have won within the past month, give your keyboard a rest.
4. You must be a resident of the U.S. Though I know I have a small European fan club, exporting herbs is not someplace to which I'm really willing to go.
5. You must be 18 or older.

Please note that you do not have to be a patient of Dr. Jenkins in order to enter or win! You can be anybody and win!

So that's it. If you have any questions about eligibility or anything else, feel free to email me.

Now, on to the first ever DocAltMed IQ Test:

In 1972, President Richard Nixon opened diplomatic relations with China, from whom the U.S. had been estranged for the better part of its existence. As part of that process, President Nixon visited China, and of course was accompanied by a large retinue of reporters.

One of them was a rather famous reporter for the New York Times named James Reston. Mr. Reston -- to his detriment and our edification -- suffered a case of acute appendicitis on that trip, which necessitated immediate surgery. The Chinese surgery team used only acupuncture as an anaesthetic, which astounded Mr. Reston to the extent that he wrote about the experience upon his return to the states. That, coupled with the renewed interest in things Chinese in general, brought great public interest in this "alternative" health care discipline. The first acupuncturists in this country were doctors who obtained post-graduate education in the discipline.

Your question is: What institution provided the first acupuncture education for doctors in the U.S.? Submit your answer to me at alj@docaltmed.com.

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

What's In a Word?

Recent public events have tragically brought to the fore the way in which we use words, and how language affects us. There can be little doubt that our choice of language deeply influences our thoughts and emotions -- but as longstanding research in psychology and more recent research in neurology shows us, language can control our perceptions as well, and our use of language alters the neurophysiology of the brain.

I recently had a patient who had suffered a Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI). The long-term effects of mild brain trauma are only now becoming recognized, and few treatment options exist. In addition to other symptoms, this patient was having word-finding difficulties. In possession of a broad vocabulary otherwise, he would find himself stopping in the middle of sentences attempting to retrieve the appropriate word.

As many of my patients already know (having been subjected to my various diatribes on the subject), Esperanto has long been a topic of interest to me. Esperanto is an artifical language, created by Russian-Jewish opthamologist L.L Zamenhoff  in the 1880s, to be used as a universal second language. The most successful of the artifical languages, Esperanto is today spoken by one to two million people, and has an extensive literature of books that are not only translations from other languages, but written originally in Esperanto.

Esperanto, being designed as a universal second language, has a streamlined grammar and spelling system which is nevertheless as robust as any natural language.

And that was the important point for my patient, as I set before him the task of learning Esperanto. My hypothesis was that learning the language would stimulate the language centers of the brain to create new neuronal pathways as the additional vocabulary was acquired, and that this stimulation would secondarily aid the recovery of my patient's native language vocabulary. An associated benefit was that Esperanto's ease of mastery would give my patient a sense of accomplishment in an area where a great deal of self-confidence had been lost.

The treatment was successful, for over the period of six months as the patient learned the new language,  his English vocabulary improved concomitantly. He also took enjoyment in corresponding with other Esperantists around the world, reducing the feelings of isolation caused by the brain injury.

Zamenhoff developed Esperanto in order to increase harmony among the diverse peoples of the world, by giving us a common medium in which we could share ideas, emotions, and thoughts. He knew that all languages carried cultural baggage and biases with it, and that a language that was as neutral as possible would put all people on an equal footing.

What he didn't know, but which has only recently been discovered, is that our language determines what we are able to see. In an article published in 2009, a couple of Greek researchers found that the language you use determines how you see colors.

One of the researchers, Dr. Panos Athanasopoulos said that “Our language forces us to cut up the world in different ways. Greek speakers systematically use two different terms to refer to blue: the sky is ghalazio (light blue), never ble (dark blue), and a blue pen is ble but can never be ghalazio. English speakers would have no problem calling both the sky and a pen blue in an instant.”

To see whether language shapes our biological and physiological processes of colour perception, the researchers used a technique called event related brain potentials (ERPs). This technique tracks activity in the brain millisecond by millisecond.

The researchers found differences in visual processing of light and dark blues between Greek and English speakers as early as 100 milliseconds, suggesting that indeed, speakers of different languages literally have differently structured minds.

More recent research with deaf people has also demonstrated that language does not only control how we perceive things, but language is necessary and integral to sentience. That is, to be self-aware and self-conscious, the twin attributes most intimately tied to being human, requires that we have a language. Without language, there can be no self-awareness.

If language is one of the underpinnings of our humanity, it is not hard to understand the power of language to alter our behavior and sway our opinions. Edward Bulwer-Lytton's great adage, "the pen is mightier than the sword," is a concept that we should take to heart in these troubled days. Those who have a voice heard by millions must take great care in their use of language. Words alone can save lives -- or destroy them.

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

Monday Fun Facts

Here's a grab-bag full of interesting nutritional tidbits. As always, chew thoroughly before swallowing.

Sun and Supplements

Synergy is a terribly overused word, one of those very appropriate terms nearly trampled into nonsense by marketing. But synergy is exactly the right term for how one fights the risk of cancers, as shown by a recent study. According to the study, a combination of some sun exposure and vitamin D supplementation may be the most effective means of reducing the risk of breast cancer, as opposed to either one alone. If you are in the mood for some light reading, here is the report:

Source Surf and turf

It appears that there is a functional relationship between flavonoids, beneficial plant chemicals found in fruits and vegetables and omega-3 fatty acids, the type found in fish oil. A recent study demonstrates that flavonoids can actually help increase blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids thereby making these important polyunsaturated fatty acids more available for the body to use.

Omega-3 fatty acids are crucial for brain and heart health and are anti-inflammatory.

Examples of flavonoids, which possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties, include EGCg from green tea, quercetin from apples, citrus and onions and curcumin from the spice turmeric.

Source The Cardiac Surgeon's Savior

A recent medical study discovered that vitamin C can reduce the risk of experiencing a serious heart arrhythmia after heart surgery.

Atrial fibrillation is a common complication of heart surgery and increases the risk for longer hospitalizations and death. Vitamin C use, post-surgery, may significantly reduce the incidence of atrial fibrillation, according to the study.

Source

Bad Breath, Strong Bones

Diets high in garlic and other related vegetables such as onions and leeks have been shown to reduce the risk of developing the bone weakening disease osteoporosis.

Diallyl disulphide, a compound found in garlic and other related vegetables, was shown to repress the expression of certain destructive enzymes that are linked with osteoarthritis, providing a potential mechanism of action for garlic’s effect.

Source

Don't forget: Alternative medicine = scientific medicine.

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

Have a Happy -- But Not Safe -- Holiday

Christmas finds me once again sitting before a warm hearth in the early morning, the silence disturbed only by the occasional crackle of a burning log. This is one of those days I relish most -- not for presents or festivities, that's not part of this family's traditions -- but for the peace and serenity brought by the rare near-standstill of our society, and a chance to reflect in the all-to-brief silence.

Instead of vehicles rushing about, each 112 square foot, 2,000 pound behemoth belting noise and exhaust on the busy road adjoining my house, there is nothing. No cars, no trucks, no roar of passage. It is a roar I've become more acutely aware of, as over the past several years, I've begun commuting to the Center either by bicycle or foot.

I'm not cycling or walking because I lack a car, though I have little doubt that most passersby assume that. My human-powered commute takes me past a lovely marsh and across a small river, and at the slower speeds at which I travel, it is an entirely pleasant journey except for the bellowing of each car passing by. I'm sure most drivers are utterly unaware of how obnoxiously loud their vehicle is -- I certainly am, when I am driving -- but the noise can easily turn an otherwise pleasant jaunt into a sonic endurance marathon.

"My goodness," people say when I mention that I usually cycle or walk to work. "Isn't it dangerous on that road?" Or, sometimes, I'll stop on my way to talk to someone, and they will nod at the bike and say, "I would do that, except it's much too dangerous. I'm scared of being hit by a car."

It is certainly easy to see how one would reach that conclusion. Mixing it up on the road with drivers of 2-ton vehicles, many of whom might be charitably described as inattentive, would seem, on the surface of it, to be a radically unsafe thing to do.

The fact is, however, that cycling and walking is not only safe, it is life-extending. Population studies have shown that the lifespan of  cyclist is several years longer than the non-cyclist, and that city-dwellers have lower rates of obesity because they tend to walk further and more often than their suburban counterparts.

This topsy-turvy notion of what is safe and healthy is not limited to the popular view of cycling. It has grown, like a cancer, to invade the common wisdom of our culture. And I would argue that the insidious inversion of what is safe and what is not safe is, in fact, one of the causes of cancer as well as the other leading causes of death in the U.S. I'm sure everyone has heard the tagline, "Please consult your doctor before engaging in any strenuous activity." The implication is clear: If you so much as increase your pulse to the level where you actually feel it, or begin to break a sweat, you are putting your life at risk (unless you have first had an EKG and echocardiogram, of course).

But once again, the exact converse is true. The surest most direct route to an abnormal EKG is by not stressing your heart, by not breathing hard and sweating.

No. Please don't consult your doctor, even if your doctor is me. You don't need an EKG and flight clearance to exercise. What you do need is a pair of athletic shoes, an hour, and the desire to be healthy.

Similarly, please stop wiping down every hard surface with germ-killing, antiseptic wipes. Studies are now uncovering that the increasing sterility of our environment, especially that of our children, is partially causing the dramatic increase of auto-immune diseases. All you have to do to achieve maximum infection protection you learned in grammar school. Wash your hands after going potty and before eating. Don't sneeze and cough on other people. It's that simple. Not only is anything more than that overkill, it's actually detrimental.

I'm reminded of a study we once conducted in microbiology class in chiropractic school. We swabbed our skin for a sample, and then grew and identified the bacteria that were found on that sample. Our collected samples included virulent Strep bacteria, multiple bacteria which cause gastrointestinal disease, and agents of pneumonia. Yup, those were samples from normally healthy people. The point being, of course, that we exist in a world brimming with life, some of it hostile, and we are highly efficient at preventing exposure from becoming infection. We don't need to live in a sterile world. In fact, we cannot. As counterintuitive as it may seem, we would die without our bacterial adversaries.

Finally, while other doctors will advise you to avoid cold exposure, please allow me to recommend it as an excellent source of good health. You won't hear this in any public service messages, but regular exposure to cold is beneficial. Studies have found that cold exposure reduces inflammation and increases levels of pain-suppressing neurotransmitters. So if you suffer from chronic pain, one of the best things you can do is go for an icy plunge throughout the winter months.

Being out in the cold weather will also stimulate the production of metabolically-active brown fat. This is the type of fat that babies use to regulate their body temperature, but which we lose with age. Brown fat is good, as it takes the calories stored in regular fat and uses it. So being out in the cold can actually stimulate weight loss, something which many in this country dearly need -- particularly after the holidays.

If you are interested in the health of your children, one of the best things you can do is to keep the car in the garage, instead of driving them down to the end of the driveway and keeping them sitting in a warm car while they wait for the morning school bus. Both the walk and the cold weather will stimulate important health properties in your children. Better yet, let your kids walk or cycle to school, if you live within a mile or two. Such practices will dramatically increase your child's odds of living a longer, healthier life

As I finish writing this, I can see the first faint glimmer of sunrise. Soon, children will be opening presents, parents will be basking in the glow of a job well done, and everybody will be gathering about the table for a festive meal. We will have the chance to count our blessings, whether they be friends, family, shelter or health, to reflect on the year passing and the year to come. To taste that moment of silence.

Me? I'm going to savor this quiet moment by pumping up my tires and rolling the bike out of the basement and onto the road. It won't be a long trip, nor a fast one, but I will be doing the best thing I can do to ensure that I get to enjoy next  year's holiday season. And the greatest Christmas gift I could receive would be seeing others do the same.

So, to everyone who reads this blog -- all 6 of you -- have a very merry, and very unsafe Christmas!

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

When The Universe Changes

It may be entirely apocryphal, but I was once told that in ancient China, it was the practice to pay your doctor when you are healthy, and your payments would stop when you are sick. This economic model -- the wellness model -- makes far more sense than our current system, in which physicians, including myself, make more money from you being sick than being healthy.

If you look at any other industry, it is apparent that the medical habit of paying for failure is entirely topsy-turvy. Should you pay the airline for not getting you to Hoboken in time for Thanksgiving at Aunt Marcy's? Should you tip the waitress more for bringing cold coffee and yesterday's French fries? Of course not. But when it comes to health care, the sicker you are and the longer you take to get better, the more your doctor makes.

What brought this to mind recently was my daughter's acceptance into college, and the concomitant realization that I was now on the hook for a considerable annual fee to join the august club of College Student Parents. I was bemoaning my fate to a friend who also happens to be a patient. They just looked at me and said:

"You know what your problem is, doc? You get your patients better too fast."

Well now, there's a concept. In what other industry could I possibly be in where I actually hurt myself financially by improving my performance?

The medicopharmaceutical industry has neatly tied up both ends of this ribbon. On the one hand, they create new diseases, find ways of convincing you and your non-chiropractic doctors that you have it (adult ADHD, anyone?), then sell you on a lifetime of pills to fix it. The Great 20th Century Statin Deficiency is another example. Through corrupted research and savvy marketing techniques -- up to and including the use of prostitutes at medical conferences -- the pharmaceutical companies have deluded millions of healthy Americans and their medical doctors into believing that they must take their daily dose of statins to survive. Nothing could be further from the truth, of course, but there's nothing wrong with a healthy revenue stream, is there?

On the other hand, they market drugs as tools of disease prevention, all the time knowing that the nostrums they peddle do little to encourage better health. A perfect example of this are the bisphophonate drugs, such as Fosamax. We now know that bisphonates not only fail to create healthier bone, they also kill the very bone that they are supposed to strengthen.

Long before reaching that fraudulent extreme, however, there is a sound basis for wellness, or preventative care.

Both proper diet (a term I am loathe to use these days, as it has been sorely abused by the media) and exercise are, of course, the foundations of preventative care. But aside from these factors, what should be stirred into the mix of preventative care?

Here's what the research shows us:

• Seniors who receive regular chiropractic manipulation use fewer drugs, have fewer hospital stays, spend less time in rehab, and live healthier lives.
• Pregnant women who recieve regular chiropractic manipulation require fewer ceasarian births.
• It should go without saying -- but in fact, is well supported by the research -- that preventative chiropractic manipulation reduces the risk of suffering from low back pain.

And that's just chiropractic manipulation alone. What about the other services provided by chiropractic physicians?

Acupuncture is one of the therapeutic approaches I use the most for treating people with a variety of existing conditions. But does it make any sense at all to adopt a "preventative acupuncture" strategem?

The research on this topic is surprisingly vacant. While a number of studies have discussed the effectiveness of acupuncture for early intervention in disease processes, this is far from the idea of wellness. A few articles have noted that traditionally, regular acupuncture at certain points has been regarded as beneficial for seniors.

I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for some research to appear, however. Government funding for acupuncture research is only slightly higher than the homeopathic doses grudgingly dispersed for chiropractic manipulation. So how do we decide?

I remember when I posed this question to one of my acupuncture professors: How often should we have a patient return for preventative care?

He didn't break stride. "Of course," he said. "When the universe changes." And then he went on to discuss some observations of the more esoteric uses of Bupleurum.

The answer didn't make sense to me at first, but as I puzzled over it during the following week, I finally realized what he meant. The aim of acupuncture -- indeed, chinese medicine as a whole -- is to put the individual in balance with the environment. Any time that there is a change in the person's environment, they must respond by altering their metabolism and behavior. (This process is known as "homeostasis" in modern biology). Thus, when the universe changes, the individual  can use assistance that acupuncture provides in adapting to the altered environment.

When does the universe change? We need look no further than directly around us to tell. When the fresh green of springtime appears, the universe is changing. When the leaves turn brown and fall from the trees in autumn, the universe is changing. At the height of summer, as the sun ascends to its northernmost latitude above the equator, the universe is changing. And, finally, in the dead of winter when the day's length reaches its nadir, the universe is changing.

The change in seasons does, in fact, affect our health. The fluctuation in communicable diseases, mental health, and the course of some chronic disorders is profoundly affected by the time of the year.

So, from a very practical standpoint, it makes sense to evaluate and adjust your position in the universe as the universe itself changes. And in the absence of more precise clinical data, it is on that concept that I rest my recommendations for preventative -- or should we say adaptive -- acupuncture.

See you when the universe changes!

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

Must-Have Android Health Apps, Part II

It should come as no surprise that many of the free apps in the Android market are ineptly named -- after all, these are programmers doing their thing, not marketeers. Expecting a programmer to come up with a sexy title is a little bit like having a chiropractic doctor create a drug name. "Sideffecta" is the first one that comes to my mind, which is probably why SmithKlineBeechamKilla hasn't come around knocking on my door with money in hand.

Which is all a backdoor way to introduce the Center for Alternative Medicine's second winner in the Next-Year-It-Will-Be-Annual Health App Awards: Jefit

I don't know where the name comes from (somebody's android dog, maybe?) but just ignore that. This is the best app a gym rat could ask for.

Maybe a little background is in order. Back in the stone ages, I spent my summers working for the AMC Trail Crew, in the high peaks of the White Mountains. It was intense physical labor, consisting of cutting trees with axes, rolling multi-ton rocks up and down jagged slopes, and carrying ridiculously heavy loads of tools, supplies and food up steep mountain trails. And if you spent your winters as a student of the liberal and hard sciences, as I did, that first week of summer could be a real bear. So I took it upon myself to start keeping in shape during the off season.

Now this was long before gyms became the cheery, chic places they are now. At the university I attended, the weight room was in the corner of the basement of the fieldhouse, and was occupied by two groups -- the football team, and the body-builders. It smelled like stale sweat socks, or worse if somebody's lunch got the better of them in the middle of some squats, had one Nautilus machine and a bevy of free weights, bars and benches. No juice bars, no stereo, no carpeting, just a fan to blow around the stale air.

I knew little about lifting. All I knew is that I needed to be stronger than I ever had been before by the time spring rolled around. While the football squad was less than welcoming, the bodybuilders, who worked out in the odd times that I had available, were a pretty friendly crowd. They took me under their wing, and taught me a lot about lifting, in that time-honored personal transmission of tradecraft that occurred before the internet. And though some of them were assuredly juicing, I was never part of that inner circle in which the "true knowledge" was imparted.

So I learned -- the good techniques as well as the bad -- and gradually developed an addiction to the art of being strong, an addiction which has never really left me. One of the techniques that I learned was that you couldn't evaluate your progress unless you wrote it down. And as you altered your routines to combat your weaknesses, as a general might alter his troop strategy, you were lost unless you had a map of where you had been. After a while, I began keeping a small spiral-bound notebook in my gym bag in which I charted my progress. I still have a few of those notebooks tucked away up in the attic. Last time I looked at one, I could see where the ink had run from my sweat dripping on them, and the thing still smelled like that poorly-ventilated room with a wall of mirrors.

Fast-forward to the next century. I have a dedicated workout room in my house, equipped with weights, which sees heavy use in the winter as my long cycling trips become warm-weather memories. In the corner sits a stool with a 3-ring notebook, pages full of workout information -- weight, sets, reps, rest times -- the unrefined data documenting what is no longer my preparation for a season's high-altitude adventures, but is instead my fight against age and encroaching debility (not to mention my number one prevention strategy against infection, cancer and heart disease).

Until a couple of months ago, when I stumbled onto Jefit in the Android Marketplace (you were beginning to wonder if I was ever going to get around to actually reviewing the application, weren't you?). After looking over many of the purported apps for tracking exercise, none of them come close to doing as good a job as Jefit.

The opening screen allows you to define multiple routines, and assign them to particular days. You can set up a profile with measurements from weight to bicipital circumference. There are a wealth of pre-defined exercises, with visual triggers, and even animated demonstrations. You can also define your own, for those of us who have found, err, novel ways of exercising, or who employ some of the Naked Warrior training techniques which have gained popularity with the rise of the UFC.

You can also add your one rep max data, which will be tracked automatically. After setting up your routines, use is simple. You do the exercise, then use the drop down values on the screen to input weight and rep. Hit the "Save and Time" button, and your data will be logged and the timer set for your next exercise. The input fields default to your last used value, on the assumption (in my case, all-too-frequently correct) that you haven't thrown another plate on for this set. If you are proceeding to another exercise, the timer screen will tell you what it is and how much you lifted last time, so you can set up your equipment during the rest period.

When you've finished your routine, the app tells you "Congratulations" -- always a nice thing to hear, even if it is coming from your smartphone -- and gives you the option of reviewing your log or exiting.

And that's it. Jefit offers a clean, simple interface that doesn't take too much thought when your brain is awash in that pecular combination of enkephalins and Substance P that are the hallmark of a good weight-training session, and your hand is trembling too much to accomplish fine coordination skills. The app will soon have a website to which you can upload your data and track it more thoroughly, in much the same way that my previous winner, Endomondo does.

In any event, it is the perfect next-generation replacement for my old spiral-bound notebooks, and keeps my workouts incredibly productive. What more could an aging gym rat ask for?

A Girl, A Trike and A Disease

Every patient who walks into my exam room receives -- at no extra charge! -- a critical evaluation of their exercise regimen, or lack thereof. At this point, regular exercise has been proven so critical in the prevention and treatment of so many disorders, from depression to cancer to heart disease to the cold and flu, that in my not-very-humble opinion, any primary care doctor who does not investigate, evaluate and manipulate their patient's exercise program is committing malpractice. Yes, it's that important. It's like not taking a patient's blood pressure or pulse. A person's participation in exercise is one of the vital signs of wellness. Frequently, my job is to find exercises that will work within the boundaries set by a patient's existing disorder while at the same time optimizing it to reduce or eliminate the effects of that same disorder.

Among the chronic diseases, one of the most problematic in the exercise prescription department is Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Because of this cruel disease's frequently erratic behavior, coupled with its prediliction for shaving away a small slice of one's competence with each renewed assault, it is hard to find and develop good exercises for my patients suffering from this disease. What was possible last week becomes impossible the next. Problems in balance or sudden weakness can make many standard exercises impossible or dangerous. And the fear of such occurrences can negate even the most committed patient's determination and my craftiest motivation strategies.

Being a recidivist transportation cyclist,  an environmentalist, and a man with a grip on the purse that would make a Scotsman proud, it has rarely come as a surprise to my patients when I suggest cycling as a good all-round exercise. Bicycles are cheap, and every time you ride it to the grocery store, you save money, while at the same time becoming healthier and increasing your longevity. As the great Oregon Congressman Earl Blumenauer once said:

"Let's have a moment of silence for all those Americans who are stuck in traffic on their way to the gym to ride the stationary bicycle."

Cycling would be an excellent activity for my MS patients as well, were it not for the unpredictable and troubling manifestations that could make it downright dangerous.

Which is why I suggest a fun, albeit unusual, alternative: Trikes.

No, these aren't your average 4-year-old's Big Wheel. I'm talking about performance trikes, trikes that have been ridden to the furthest reaches of the Himalayas, in the fastest bicycle races in the world, and on the road. They are trikes that can be ridden every day, as fast or as slow as you want, without concern for the types of crashes that can befall you on a two-wheeler.

For that reason, I think trikes are an excellent source of rich cardiovascular exercise for my patients with MS. And here's how many have taken me up on my suggestion: 0. None. Nada.

Well, all of my patients with MS, and all of you reading this blog who have MS or have friends or relatives who are suffering from the effects of  MS, I want you to take note of this name: Denise Lanier. Denise is a writing professor at Broward College. Her poetry has appeared in Bloomsbury Review, Cake, Luna, Best American Poetry blog, and various anthologies. And she has MS.

In her blog, Wonky Woman on a Bent Trike, Denise writes about her two most powerful tools for fighting this disorder (in addition to her undeniable intelligence and phenomenal willpower): A mobility dog and her trike.

This weekend, after much training, Denise will be riding her trike in the New York City Marathon, as a disabled entrant in this world-famous race, and the first entrant to do it on a tricycle.

But is she doing it for herself? For an MS charity? Certainly not - that would be too self-serving for a woman as generous in spirit as her. Denise has chosen the Leary Firefighters Association as the beneficiary of the dollars she has raised. Go here to read what Denise has to say about the foundation. Then go here and donate.

But more important than any of that, read the words this woman has written, about herself, her MS, and her fight toward health. For anyone with a chronic disorder, she is an inspiration.

And I hope everyone reading this blog (all 6 of you) will join me this weekend in following her progress and cheering her on. In her most recent post, she suggests some ways to do it:

Here’re some ways for you to follow my progress in the marathon on race day, this Sunday, November 7th:

Online Athlete Tracker:  free race-day service, visit ingnycmarathon.org on November 7th

Text Message Athlete Alert:  sign up at ingnycmarathon.org to receive on-demand updates, one-time setup fee of $2.99

Tune In:  NBC4 New York offers live coverage of the entire race; after the race catch the 2-hour highlight special on NBC Sports

Marathon App:  for iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad, download it today!"

Then go out and buy a trike. And ride it.

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

Must Have Android Health Apps, Part I(a)

This app was not on my original list of must-haves. However, when planning a training ride the other day, I realized that none of the apps I had reviewed for cycling actually had the ability to import a gpx (route or track) file, and instead of recording where you had been, could tell you where to go. Well, ok. I have enough people telling me where to go without really wanting to add to the list. But not infrequently, I will spend some time on a site like ridewithgps.com, or gmap-pedometer.com, creating a "custom" training loop. The varied topography of Litchfield and northwest Connecticut makes it possible to design a route with the amount and type of climbing you want, depending on your climbing goals.

Unfortunately, routing apps don't work very well for creating loops, nor do they take into account your training desires in point-to-point route design. Thus the use of sites like those mentioned above to create the ride of my dreams -- or at least my dreams for that day.

And on those occasions when you are riding on a pre-planned group ride, having your route in your GPS (or in this case, smartphone) saves you from fumbling with cue sheets in the wind, rain, and at busy intersections while you try to figure out which way you are supposed to turn on Reallybighill Road. Or, better yet, prevent you from riding those extra "bonus miles" that you get awarded for veering off course. (My worst day involved 15 bonus miles, but that's another story).

Which is where Must-Have App I(a) fits in. Called OsmAnd, this app allows you to import a .gpx file, either a track or a route, and will give you on-screen or verbal directions as you move down the road.

OsmAnd is free and open source, which means a number of developers are welcome to add their coordinated input to the project. It is also intentionally designed to minimize resource use, both on your phone and in terms of internet access -- a big bonus now that unlimited service plans have gone the way of Vioxx.

Another big bonus is that OsmAnd itself is not only open source, but employs open source maps as well, from the Open Street Maps project. Which means the maps are more accurate, as a larger number of people are available to evaluate the data and make corrections. There is also the OpenCycleMap project which, while currently largely UK-based, holds the promise of creating cycling-specific maps worldwide. OpenCycleMap currently has maps for part of Litchfield County here in Connecticuty. It's an effort worth keeping tabs on, if not actively supporting.

This app does exactly what I wanted it to do. Using ridewithgps, I mapped out a short 20-mile route that would end by taking me past the farm, where I could pick up some milk and eggs on the last few miles and get them home before they spoiled (a route that also, I might add, require me to carry the groceries up a minimum of hills).

Ridewithgps created the .gpx file, which I then downloaded to my Android. I fired up OsmAnd, which on command immediately found my file and created the route. The program worked almost flawlessly, guiding me through  the unfamiliar stretches and turns. The screen updated my location on the map, and an icon in the upper left hand corner told me how far to the next turn and which direction I was headed.

As I noted in the previous review, satellite coverage in my area can safely be graded as somewhere between "less than spectacular" and "I get better satellite coverage in caves." So there were a few spots were the app wasn't quite up to speed on my current position. But it handled the confusion with aplomb, updating itself as soon as it got reacquainted with its satellites. And the constant turn reminder permitted me to estimate the location of the turn, even if the app itself was behind me.

If there are any hiccups in this app, it is only in the installation. It does not automatically create the file folder where you need to place the gpx files, though it does tell you exactly where the folder should be and what it should be named. Similarly, the voice configuration data has to be downloaded separately, from the OsmAnd website. Those sorts of issues are of little consequence, though, compared to the value of the application.

But once those two tasks are accomplished, you're ready to go. This app is not resource intensive, downloading map tiles only as needed and working offline as much as possible; nor did it seem to draw down the battery power any more than any other application using the gps features.

If you are a cyclist or runner that likes to design their own routes, then OsmAnd is the application for you. You can download it from the Android Marketplace or from the website.

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

3 Must-Have Android Health Apps, Part I

When the Verizon cellphone account headed for expiration, I decided to (a) look for a better deal, and (b) do some serious upgrading. My old folder did its job and did it well, but had gone a wee bit hinky on me over the past few months,  randomly shutting down, making phone calls on its own, occasionally beeping uncontrollably, and generally acting like a patron of the Pig & Whistle at last call on a Saturday evening. Being a fan of Open Systems software, I was naturally drawn to phones running the Android operating system, and the increasingly large ecosystem of apps surrounding it. So I ended up with a Samsung I897 smartphone. And, of course, immediately began looking at the 1.3 gazillion health and fitness apps for it.

Most of them, unsurprisingly, are less than impressive, and fall into one of several categories. There are the Body Mass Index calculators, calorie counters, weight loss trackers, and celebrity fitness apps. The first group does nothing more than a pencil and paper, hand calculator or a smart digital scale can do; the second group has utility if all you want to do is reduce input, not recalibrate your diet for a healthy intake; and the only appeal of the final group is to assure you that "YES, YOU CAN LOOK LIKE HER," or alternatively, "YES, YOU CAN GET HER," depending on your gender and orientation.

But after slogging my way through the swampland, I found what I consider to be the three Essential Health Apps. They are available for both Android and iPhone platforms, and all three of these applications have the twin advantages of Doing Something Useful and Doing What They Say They Can Do. Neither of these attributes should be taken for granted in the world of applications software.

Two of these apps are for fitness, and the third is for nutrition. All three are free. And if you are engaged in any level of healthy activities, I encourage you to download them and employ them.

The app we will review today is, to my mind, the best reason for getting a smartphone. Health App #1: Endomondo

Endomondo is an application for cyclists, runners, bladers, skiers and walkers. Like all of the other apps in this category, it uses the phone's built-in gps to track your location, and will report your speed, distance traveled, and average speed as well as other assorted data, both visually and verbally. You can look at a screen that resembles the cyclocomputer on your bicycle, or follow your progress on a map. And at user-set times, Endomondo will verbally give you your performance data. All of these are typical of the breed. However, Endomondo goes a notch higher than the competition in several respects.

First of all, Endomondo's use of the gps is far better than any of the other apps in this category that I tried (I tested the top 6.) I live in an area where gps reception is dicey. I've had $500 gps units sit in front of my house for minutes trying to get a fix on its location, only to report failure and retire from the field.

Endomondo, it seems, can variably adjust its filters on the fly to accept weak-signal situations. As soon as I punch the start button, Endomondo is ready to ride, while others -- notably SportsTracker, SportyPal, and CardioTrainer -- took several minutes to acquire a position fix. And My Tracks, allegedly a premier program, never did get a location fix over the course of a 25 mile ride.

Even with the acceptance of lower-level gps signals, Endomondo's accuracy did not notably suffer. In 25 and 30 mile rides, the app was within .05 miles accurate, as compared to a cyclocomputer which had been previously calibrated against a measured 100-mile distance, and the Endomondo distance measurement fell within the range of error of the calibrated device.

In comparison, CardioTrainer gave me an extra 5 miles over a 25-mile distance, something for which I was grateful but hesitant to accept, even though the CardioTrainer error boosted my average speed to the minor diety level.

SportsTracker can occasionally get a fix, and once fixed, would track with admirable accuracy. But before it would let you take off, you had to add a name and description to your ride. And since my rides are usually unremarkable, this feature made little sense. After all, how many times can you type in "milk run"?

SportyPal's interface was unsuitable for low-signal conditions. Until the gps would initialize, it would seize, leaving me sitting in the driveway waiting for the software to get ready. And that's just not an option in my world.

In comparison, I liked Endomondo's no-muss, no-fuss startup. You just picked your activity (surprisingly enough, the list includes "transport cycling" as an option, which pleased me to no end), pressed the "Start" button, then started. Clean and simple.

Endomondo also has the ability to gather heart rate data from a bluetooth-equipped sensor, which it will incorporate into your ride data.

At the end of your activity, you press "Stop," and all of your data is automatically uploaded to your online Endomondo account.

Online, you can look at your history, your maps, graphs of your ride data in a few different formats; but best of all, you can interact with friends. There are activity challenges constantly going on, and if you set up your phone app to do so, you can allow your friends to track you online in real time. Your friends can help you along by sending freeform text messages via endomondo, which are then read to you by the phone's text-to-speech engine. Imagine how much fun it can be, as you struggle up some desperate incline, to hear your best friend cheering you on with such encouraging phrases as "speed it up, lard butt!" or "enjoying your ice cream stop, pal?"

(Such exhortations can be made somewhat more enjoyable, I found, by equipping your phone's text-to-speech engine with a sexy British accent, making your buddy's ribbing much more pleasant.)

Although some may not like them, the social networking features of Endomondo are definitely a selling point for me. Misery always loves company. So that, plus the easy user interface and the weak-signal GPS performance make this my Number 1 health app.

NEXT UP: We take the Android to the gym and let it show its muscle.

Dr. Avery Jenkins is a chiropractic physician specializing in the treatment of people with chronic disorders. He can be reached at alj@docaltmed.com or by calling 860-567-5727.

Happy Anniversary

Fifteen years ago this week, I made the very long commute from Ansonia to Kent, and as a freshly-minted doctor, opened my doors to the public. Oh, my...if I had only known what was in store for me.

I had decided to begin practicing in the northwest corner because I knew that somewhere up here was where I wanted to raise my family, and at the recommendation of a doctor who at the time was practicing in New Milford. The good Dr. Hess has since passed away, but when I called him for advice for a place to open a practice, he said, "If I could do it all over again, I would have practiced in Kent."

So there, for better or worse, was where I started. On the largely-abandoned second floor of a building in the center of Kent, above a toy shop, as the "Kent Chiropractic Health Center," a name which to this day floats around the internet, cropping up in the search results from time to time. On that first day, I received a surprise delivery -- a ficus plant from my parents, to wish me good luck. I put it in the reception area.

Kent did turn out to be a wonderful place to start, and I developed good reputation there for treating muscle and joint problems. But my vision of being a chiropractic physician had always been broader than that, and while one might say my concept of a chiropractor as an alternative care primary care physician was forward-looking at the time, it was actually backward-looking. The early history of chiropractic is filled with chiropractors in rural America treating all manner of illness, naturally, using their hands and good food and their hearts to heal patients seeking a more humane form of treatment than the "heroic" medicine in vogue during the 20th century. It was not until the 1980s when chiropractors got painted into the back/neck corner, as mainstream medicine tried to contain the chiropractic threat to its pocketbook.

Only a few years after opening my practice, I returned to school for post-graduate education, while keeping my practice running. Those were busy years, as I hired my first employee, worked all day on Saturdays, and  spent every fourth weekend at the Long Island clinic of the New York Chiropractic College, culminating in passing my board examinations and becoming one of Connecticut's few doctors who were board certified in clinical nutrition.

I also moved my office during that time, so that I was no longer above the toy store, but in what was then Kent's bustling Medical Center building. I shared the building with two MDs and the northern branch office of a radiologist based in Danbury. The ficus plant came with me. With my additional knowledge base and growing clinical experience, I began to expand out more and more from muscle and joint problems into treating people with other health problems.

Kent is one of those small towns which, lacking a diverse employer base, goes through boom-and-bust cycles. When I had opened my practice, Kent was on the cusp of a boom cycle, riding the dot-com wave with a local internet company, Cyberian Outpost.

When the dot-com crash came, Kent suffered a bit. The bustling medical center bustled not quite so much, as the radiologist closed his satellite office, one MD retired and the other moved. For quite a while, I was the sole occupant of the building, which occasionally felt like practicing in a ghost town.

Satellite Office

During that time, I noticed that I could find some office space cheap in Litchfield, and opened a satellite office there. I was in Litchfield two days a week, and Kent the rest of the time.

The Litchfield office surprised me. With little marketing, only word-of-mouth, my practice in Litchfield grew rapidly. I had two rooms -- a consultation room and an exam/treatment room in an office complex otherwise filled with mental health professionals, and it was during that time that I gained a deep understanding and respect for psychologists and clinical social workers. They, too, were drug-free professionals like me, choosing to treat people with mental illness with skill and finesse instead of the blunt tools of psychiatric medications. My association with this group led to my lecture presentation at the 40th annual meeting of the Connecticut Psychological Association.

And, of course, running two offices and lecturing weren't quite enough to keep me happily busy, so I continued with my education. This time, I added to my arsenal by pursuing postgraduate board certification in medical acupuncture, giving me what turned out to be a perfect trifecta in natural medicine -- chiropractic, herbs/nutrition, and acupuncture -- the 1-2-3 punch which has served my patients well ever since.

To reflect the growing cachement area of my practice, I again changed names, this time to "Northwest Chiropractic Health Center." After a few years in Litchfield, and after having moved my family here, I realized that in all likelihood, the future of my practice was going to be in this town. The Litchfield practice continued to grow, and I was increasingly stealing time from Kent to support my patient load in Litchfield. The Kent office's days were numbered, despite my enjoyment of that small, quiet town.

Opportunity struck when, of all things, a local veterinarian decided to move across the street. When I found that this office, on Route 202 only a mile from my house, was for sale, I knew where I wanted to be.

So I took a deep breath and jumped in. Of course, after the purchase, extensive renovations were required. I really didn't think my patients needed kennels, or a place to be hosed down after their treatment here. With much thanks to the now-retired Paul Mattson, who broke every rule in the contractor rulebook by finishing the project in budget and on time, I was ready to move my practice for the fourth -- and presumably final -- time.

That's not to say that there weren't a few hiccups along the way. I learned that any time your contractor calls and says "we need to have a meeting with the plumber," it's going to be an expensive meeting. I also learned that zoning regulations can be as obscure, dated and nonsensical as any New England blue law.

I once again changed corporate names, again for the last time. The change reflected the slow but inevitable transformation in the nature of my practice, as what had once been the Kent Chiropractic Health Center became the Center for Alternative Medicine.

Opening the new Center was an exercise in blindfolded tightrope walking, as I was simultaneously closing the Kent office. Trying to ensure a seamless transition, I closed down operations in Kent on Monday, and with the help of the entire Tuz family, moved everything to Litchfield in the space of two days. I was ready to begin seeing patients -- indeed, had already scheduled them -- except for the small but vitally missing Certificate of Occupancy.

On Wednesday, the Building Inspector came to his final inspection, during which he deemed one of the outlets in one of the treatment rooms too close to the sink. It must be converted to a special GFCI outlet before the CO would be issued.

I called Paul in a panic. His office assured me that this sort of thing happened all of the time, and I was not to worry. Again, it was a testament to Paul's prowess as a general contractor that he had the electrician out on Thursday morning to fix the outlet. The building inspector returned on Friday at 10 a.m., and certified the building. Minutes after he left the building, my first patient arrived.

I had expected to lose some of my patients as a result of the move, and for a time, I did. But over the past few years, more and more of those patients have returned to my care, and I am always glad to see one of my patients from Kent. We swap stories about the old days, and they bring me up to date on the happenings in Kent.

Another milestone was passed shortly after I opened the Center, as I suddenly realized I had begun treating the third generation of a family who had began seeing me in my early days in Kent. The adolescent children I had seen back then had grown to young adulthood and begun families of their own. Realizing that this entire family had depended on me for care through so many changes was enlightening. I was finally beginning to understand the richness and depth that being a family doctor brings. I didn't have to ask these patients about their family health history. I already knew it, and had participated in it.

The Center for Alternative Medicine also brought to fruition one of my long-held goals to bring multiple health disciplines under one roof, as Dave Pavlick, one of New England's experts in EEG neurofeedback moved his offices to the building. Once again, having a mental health professional, especially one of Dave's stature, has added an interesting dimension to my professional alliances.

The thread running through this history has been my patients. The woman with asthma, who was in the midst of an attack and had no inhaler. The man in the middle of a heart attack, who had just left his MD's office after receiving a diagnosis of a cold, and who told me "something just doesn't feel right." The patient with anorexia, whose last visit was less of a discharge than a sad goodbye, as we both knew she had utterly succumbed to this most awful disease. The patient who hugged me and said, "Thank you for giving me my life back."

It is not only those dramatic moments, but also the smaller, simpler ones -- when someone sits up on the adjusting table, rotates their head in directions impossible just minutes before, and says, "thanks a lot, Doc." Or who looks at me after I take the last acupuncture needle out and says, "that feels really good."  It is really those times that keep me coming back to the office morning after morning and staying through the evening hours.

The warp to that woof is the learning. Being a doctor, especially the kind of doctor that I am, means that my education never stops. When I first began practice, nutritional analysis was in its infancy, and we had to rely heavily on questionnaires and history to deduce our patient's problems. Now nutritional doctors have an array of laboratory tests available to reduce the guesswork. And each patient visit, regardless of the problem or whether I have seen them before,  is a 30-minute postgraduate course in health, if I only have the eyes to see and the ears to hear.

With 15 years of experience under my belt, and my first book on its way, I feel that I am poised on the precipice of what will be a second half equally as exciting as the first. I am excited about the new patients that I will see, new associates I will greet, and new challenges that I will meet (so long as they don't involve plumbing).

But most of all, I am thankful. Thankful to have had 15 years to serve my patients to the best of my ability and knowledge, and grateful to have received the trust of so many.

Though my parents have long since passed away, the ficus tree remains with me. It, like all other living things, has gone through periods where it hasn't been so healthy, was dropping leaves and looking barren. But with care and attention, it has always returned to health and continued to thrive. These days, it spends its summer next to the bench and the front door, and winters in the reception room, a reminder to me of that day long ago when a much younger doctor unlocked the door to all that would follow.

Annual Fear Campaign Set To Begin

The annual Fear Campaign is about to begin, as everybody with a pulse will have it hammered into their heads that if they don't get a flu shot, They Will DIE! Remember the swine flu campaign of last year? It turned out, as I predicted, that the projected swine flu pandemic was vastly overrated, and was primarily a marketing campaign, as opposed to a public health campaign.

Epidemiological research has consistently shown that flu shots are minimally effective and do very little to influence the course or spread of the disease -- as this picture so aptly demonstrates.

Fortunately, 2010 will see the return of the Center's Alternative Flu Clinic. Details to come soon.

Dr. Avery Jenkins is the president of the Center for Alternative Medicine in Litchfield, CT. You can email him at alj@docaltmed.com.

The Map of Human Health

On the surface, it was just another typical moment in a chiropractic physician's office. I was walking down the hall from one treatment room where I had just left a patient with an injured knee, to check on another patient who was receiving care for a painful shoulder. But on that short walk down the hall, I was actually walking the long divide between two health care paradigms. While the patient with shoulder problems was receiving what would normally be considered "standard" treatment -- heat, ultrasound and chiropractic manipulation -- the patient with the bum knee had several acupuncture needles inserted around her knee and ankle.

In one room, the basics of applied physiology were being utilized: Heat was being used to perfuse the injured area with blood, bringing with it oxygen, nutrients, and other supplies for healing, and taking away the detritus of repair. Ultrasound was altering the permeability of the cell membranes, allowing the injured tissues to more readily imbibe the blood's bounty. And joint manipulation was restoring normal physiological shape and function to the ligaments surrounding the joint.

But in the other room, a completely different process was apparently taking place: The normal flow of qi, a nebulous "life energy," was being restored. Excess yang, represented by the heat of inflammation, was being quenched by employing the water principle of the body, as water is always used to put out a fire; meanwhile, meridians controlling the patient's earth energy were used to nurture the damaged tissues.

How do I, as a doctor trained in both eastern and western medicine, reconcile these two utterly divergent approaches? One is so clearly logical and wrapped in the science of the west, while the other explodes with image and allegory, as if the needles tell a parable of health in their placement and actions.

And with increasing frequency, I find that I not only combine these disparate therapies in my practice, but in the treatment of singular patients. Some patients receive both chiropractic and acupuncture. Some are treated with eastern herbs and western physiotherapy. Others are treated with western nutrition and acupuncture.

"Do I contradict myself? Very well then I contradict myself," said the poet Walt Whitman. "I am large, and contain multitudes."

Perhaps the best way of uniting these two approaches to human health which do not speak the same language either literally or figuratively is to apply the principles of scientist and philosopher Alfred Korzybski which can be best summed up by this statement:

The map is not the territory.

Too often, Korzybski argued, we look at a thing and we conceptually "map" it. We assess its shape and weight, its color and texture, and assign those properties to that object, forgetting that it may have other properties of which we are not aware -- or that it may not always have those properties which we have assigned to it.

That's a mouthful, I know. An easier way to understand the concept is to imagine two maps of the same place, for example Ansonia, Connecticut.

One map is a road map.  It clearly shows all the roads in the area, what their names are, and where they go.

The second map is a topographic map. This map does not show the roads so clearly, but it does give us other information that the road map does not. Through the use of contour lines, it shows us the hills and valleys of the terrain, where the swamps are, the steepness of the slopes.

Both maps show us the exact same territory. But they provide us with entirely different types of information.

In the pursuit of understanding, we all too often forget that the theories and hypotheses that we make -- the maps, as it were - are only maps. They are not the territory itself. The map of the human body developed by western medicine is certainly not the only map, nor is it the "true" map. It is merely a map that shows us certain characteristics of that territory. Imagine the arteries and veins as roads, the organs as cities and villages, the nerves as railroad tracks...you get the picture.

The map developed by Traditional Chinese Medicine shows us different features of the human body. Instead of roads and tracks, we see the swamps and the forests, the peaks and the valleys. Entirely different information, but also of great value as I help my patients navigate their way back to health.

Is one more valid than the other? I think it would be the height of arrogance to claim that the western medical map was superior to the eastern. After all, 100 years ago, the eastern map of human functioning was already highly detailed and had been refined for centuries, while western medicine was still scrawling  "here be dragons" on the margins of its crudely-drawn understanding.

I employ both, because I find both to be useful. They help me and my patients reach their destination. And as I continue to proceed along the twin paths of east and west, I find that I can increasingly see one in the other. From the road I see the hills, and from my path in the hills I can hear the hissing of cars on the road. I think -- I hope -- that my patients will be the beneficiaries of this understanding.  As the wise Siddhartha said, "In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true."

Violation of an Oath, a Person, and a Profession: Erin Vaught and Ball Memorial Hospital

At the beginning of every physician's career, there is a moment in which we commit ourselves irrevocably to the wellbeing of our fellow humans. At that moment, when a physician takes his oath of responsibility -- whether it is the Hippocratic Oath of the medical physician or the Chiropractic Oath of the chiropractic physician -- we become responsible to a good far broader than our petty, individual prejudices. From the moment I took my oath to the present day, I have striven to uphold its tenets. Whether it is navigating the thickets of a patient's privacy requirements to ensure that they receive the best care, or challenging health insurers whose policies would require me to commit malpractice, I have always held in mind the obligations of this oath.

So I am understandably sickened when I come across examples of other doctors who not only ignore their moral obligations, but actively violate them to the detriment of their patient. Of course, the Josef Mengele wannabees who conducted the Tuskegee Experiment immediately come to mind.

But not far behind is the as-yet unnamed doctor and his employer, Ball Memorial Hospital, who recently threw a critically ill woman out of their emergency room because she is a transsexual woman. But the expulsion only occurred after several hours during which hospital patient Erin Vaught, vomiting blood and suffering from intractable pain, was subjected to ridicule and derogation at the hands of other hospital employees, being referred to as a "he-she" and being entered into the hospital database as a male, even though her ID card clearly identified her as a female.

Here is part of what happened, in her own words:

They completed my regestration [sic] and I saw that had put "M" as my gender. I pointed out that my ID says female. She looked annoyed and the lady next to her snickered. She told this jock type triage person to take my vitals; he glared at me for a second and turned his head and said, "Remember payback sucks."

You can read her full account here.

Those of you who read my blog regularly know that I have previously written extensively about how transgender people should be treated by doctors, and that I hold in low esteem those who discriminate against people with gender variations.

I fully understand that sometimes people do hurtful things to others out of ignorance. But in this day and age, there is no excuse for any health professional to be unaware of the needs of this demographic. In addition, and quite clearly, the activities of Ball Memorial Hospital and its employees went far beyond those which can be written off as ignorance.

They were words and actions intended to hurt. Intended to humiliate. Designed to violate the very core of the oath that those physicians had taken on the day they became doctors.

I am absolutely appalled, yet at the same time, relieved. I am appalled that the incident even occurred, and even more stunned at the hospital's decidedly pusillanimous response. And I am at the same time relieved that I do not belong to a profession which indulges and condones such bigotry.

Regardless of what unethical behaviors that chiropractic physicians have been accused of over the years, none of it even approaches the level of disregard for patients and their rights which is a standard feature of mainstream medicine. From selling confidential patient data to pharmaceutical companies to denying medical care to black men to watch them die from untreated syphillis, my profession has never come close to the level of depravity demonstrated so often by mainstream medicine.

I hope Ms. Vaught and her family find the courage to sue Ball Memorial Hospital. Though such a suit will likely not touch the individuals who perpetrated the crime, it will be as close as anyone gets to a reprimand.

Otherwise, the same reprisal that was visited upon the Tuskegee doctors will also befall the Ball doctors.

That is, nothing. Nothing at all.

What To Do When The Drugs Don't Work

I'm kicking off this year's fall/winter lecture series with what I think may be one of my best -- and most important -- lectures ever. It will be held at 7 p.m. at the Litchfield Community Center, on September 22. The title of the lecture is What To Do When The Drugs Don't Work, and will discuss the ways that alternative medicine can assist people suffering from chronic illness.

From diabetes to heart disease to osteoporosis, 45% of Americans suffer from one or more chronic diseases. Chronic diseases cause 7 out of every 10 deaths; they significantly impair your quality of life; and they account for 81% of all hospital admissions.

The bad news is that these diseases are poorly managed with drugs, and even when they are, the side effects can make the 'cure' almost as bad as the disease.

But the good news is that many chronic diseases can be prevented or controlled without drugs.

It will be a 90-minute lecture, and at the end, you will learn how to take control of your health and prevent or manage your chronic illness without becoming dependent on medicines. Using research and science-based strategies, Dr. Jenkins will demonstrate why non-drug therapies are more effective, less expensive, and better for your health.

All seminar attendees will receive a workbook which will help them develop a custom health plan that matches their needs. Attendance is free of charge, but registration for the seminar is required. Call 860-567-5727 and ask Teresa to reserve your seat.

Good News For Chiropractic Patients!

For most of the past 100 years, chiropractic physicians and their patients were the only torch-bearers for safe, patient-centered alternative medicine. During the anti-alternative purge of the 20th century, homeopathy was all but wiped out in this country, surviving only on the fringes in Europe for 60 years. Osteopaths, once allied with chiropractors in their unique approach to health, threw in the towel and were co-opted by mainstream medicine; today, the difference between an osteopathic doctor and a medical doctor is indistinguishable except for the initials after the name. Providers of nutritional and herbal medicine such as the Thompsonians and Eclectics were all but exterminated, and by the 1950s, chiropractic was the only profession left that could provide patients with informed, educated, alternative medicine.

Even then, the level of harassment was formidable. The chiropractic doctor who treated me as a child was -- unbeknownst to me -- one of the leading forces in the fight for chiropractic equality. Dr. Reeve, of Dayton Ohio, was jailed no fewer than 6 times for "practicing medicine without a license," during his struggle to obtain licensure for chiropractic doctors.

Slowly, the tide has turned. Chiropractors are the first and only alternative medicine doctors to obtain licensing in all 50 states. And although few people know this, it was at a chiropractic college that acupuncture first found a home in this country, as New York Chiropractic College was the first college in the U.S. to offer training in acupuncture for doctors.

We are, in a way, accepted by medical insurers. But on a very limited basis and at rates that are prejudiced against chiropractic doctors and their patients. So much of what I could offer patients is denied because their insurance companies refuse to pay for procedures which are medically necessary and part of my scope of practice. And even if they were to pay, the reimbursement offered to a chiropractic doctor runs from 10% to 40% of what a medical doctor is paid for the same procedure -- despite our superior skills and training in many procedures.

But that's all about to change.

TheNational Association of Chiropractic Attorneys (NACA) has announced that it has issued a proclamation recognizing “the historic and profoundly positive legal ramifications for the chiropractic profession and the patient community it serves in Section 2706, ‘Non-Discrimination in Health Care,’ recently enacted as part of the federal ‘Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.’”

The provider non-discrimination provision says that “A group health plan and a health insurance issuer offering group or individual health insurance coverage shall not discriminate with respect to participation under the plan or coverage against any health care provider who is acting within the scope of that provider’s license or certification under applicable State law.”

Once in full effect, health insurance companies will no longer be able to deny my patients their right to receive coverage for their acupuncture treatment, their nutritional therapies or the many other medically necessary services which I provide but which insurers routinely reject.

The provision has long been championed by the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) and members of the Chiropractic Summit. It was achieved primarily due to collaboration with Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and help from other key players such as Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.). Although he did not support the final bill overall, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) also lent his support for the advancement of the non-discrimination provision. ACA will continue to fight for proper implementation during the regulatory process.

“It is important to recognize this provision as a historic first for the chiropractic profession. We now have a federal law applicable to ERISA plans that makes it against the law for insurance companies to discriminate against doctors of chiropractic and other providers relative to their participation and coverage in health plans,” said NACA Vice President Mike Schroeder. “While there is still much work to be done in the regulatory process, we are encouraged by the fact that Congress has finally acted to end provider discrimination based on one’s license.”

It is also important to note that Section 2706, and its assurance of non-discrimination in terms of participation and coverage, effectively requires that doctors of chiropractic be allowed to provide any“essential benefit” that is within their scope of practice. This will prove to be a particularly significant victory as the essential benefitspackage under the health care reform law is defined over the next couple of years.

“As significant as Section 2706 is to the chiropractic profession, it is possible to lose ground during the regulatory drafting process,” said NACA President Paul Lambert.

Believe me, the opponents of chiropractic care will work long and hard to keep chiropractic patients out in the cold. In fact, the American Medical Association has already begun attacking the provision, once again fearing the economic competition that chiropractic physicians represent.

To support the work being done to ensure the proper implementation of the provider non-discrimination provision, please add your voice to the thousands demanding full and fair insurance coverage at www.chirovoice.org.

Beyond Avandia: Diabetes Treatment Without Drugs

Even if you don't follow health news closely, it would have been hard to miss the recent headlines as the diabetes drug Avandia went "on trial" before the FDA.

The problem was simple: Avandia tends to kill the people who take it by giving them strokes and heart attacks. So some intelligent people thought it should be taken off the market.

Before all was said and done, it was revealed Avandia's maker GSK had manipulated  risk analysis data, one of the panel's scientists was on the payroll of a GSK competitor, and in the end the FDA figured that killing off some people with diabetes wasn't so bad after all and let Avandia stay on the market.

Missing from the whole discussion was the idea that you don't need Avandia or any other drug to treat type II diabetes!

Type II diabetes is a nutritional and lifestyle disease. The best way of combating any disease, whether it is cancer or the common cold is by addressing it at the source, not by tossing drugs at the symptoms. And the best way of addressing diabetes is by the selective use of foods that help your body naturally regulate your blood sugar, and through exercise routines specifically designed to keep blood sugar levels within a target zone.

Which is how my patients with diabetes improve their health. Of course, I can't say that anything but a drug can cure diabetes, even though the research clearly demonstrates effective diabetic management through exercise and nutrition. I'll leave the quack claims of "cure" to the makers of drugs like Avandia, who are quite willing to sacrifice your health for their profits.

But here's the key fact: It can be more effective, safer, and less expensive to use non-drug therapies to improve the health of people with type II diabetes. And even if you are already taking drugs for diabetes, alternative therapies can still assist your health.

Thus, if you are one of the many thousands of Americans with no health insurance, you have a choice: You can pay a considerable percent of your monthly income on Avandia and its brethren (a one-month supply of Avandia typically costs $170), or you can see me (New patient examination and in-house labs: $150) and I'll help you develop a plan that will allow you to manage your diabetes. You will be in control of the treatment and its costs.

Even if you have insurance that would cover the costs, would you prefer to run the substantially increased risk of death by treating the disorder with drugs? Or would you prefer to take a safer path to better health?

Everybody deserves a choice. The problem is, there aren't many doctors offering one.

I am offering you a choice. A safer, more cost-effective choice. If you want to talk to me about diabetes, click here.

The Power of Touch

While on vacation last week, I had the opportunity (and the need) to do something I rarely do at home: Get a chiropractic adjustment. The need was spurred by a headache subsequent to a 100-mile bike ride that saw me traverse Cape Cod from outermost Provincetown to downtown Hyannis, and back again. It was a pleasant trip, though exceedingly hot. And even though I ride a recumbent bicycle, which is far more comfortable for the neck over long distances than a standard upright, the recumbent in the extremely laid-back configuration can produce significant neck strain over time.

I was greeted on the morning following my ride, by a classic cervicogenic headache -- that is, a headache caused by the vertebrea in the neck becoming fixed in position. This is the cause of most headaches, which in the popular literature are often referred to as "tension headaches."

I had been needing an adjustment for some time, but like the average bad patient, I kept putting it off. In part, because most other chiropractic physicians work the same hours as myself, and in part because I've just been too busy. Sound familiar?

I was fortunate, however, to find that Dr. Donna Heitzman, in Provincetown, would have a few minutes to see me that afternoon. As Dr. Heitzman, a delightful woman with a puckish sense of humor, treated me, I was reminded of just how powerful the act of simply touching someone can be.

Arguments for the healing power of touch sends skeptics into paroxysms of denial, as healing touch is often so closely associated with fundamentalist religious practices, and the denial of the spiritual aspect of humanity is a fundamental tenet to the skeptic's belief system.

Nonetheless, there is a significant body of research which demonstrates the power of touch. Most recently, researchers found that the quality of objects that people were touching -- heavy vs. light, hard vs. soft, rough vs. smooth -- caused people to form unconscious associations between what they were touching and unrelated experiences. For example, rough objects made social interactions more difficult and hard objects made people more rigid in negotiations.

Massage has been shown to prime the brain for release of oxytocin, commonly known as the "empathy" hormone, making people more capable of bonding with and trusting others.

But touching is even more powerful than that. Touch has been shown to reduce cardiac arrythmias in ER patients, and even have beneficial effects on the red blood cells of comatose patients. Touch also increases one's overall sense of well-being and reduces blood pressure.

Of course, chiropractic adjustments are all about touch, and I am very conscious of the quality of my touch when I am treating patients. Not infrequently, patients will experience an overwhelming emotional response to a chiropractic adjustment. Crying, laughing and sudden relaxation are all common responses to a chiropractic adjustment. Part of it is due to the neurological and biochemical changes which adjustments create, and part of it is simply due to being touched.

Which brings us back to Dr. Heitzman's office. Immediately after being adjusted, my headache disappeared, which is a common response to chiropractic treatment of tension headaches. But more surprising to me was the overwhelming sense of relief I felt. In addition to the emotional relaxation, I felt the muscles of my upper back and shoulders let go of tension that I didn't know they held.

Dr. Heitzman and I spent a few more pleasant minutes talking shop, and then I proceeded to hop on my bike and ride an easy 7 miles back to the house where I was vacationing. A long nap that afternoon ensued, unusual for me.

It was good to be reminded in such a direct, clear way of the powerful treatment that I can offer to my patients. When the "Gee, thanks Doc, that feels a lot better" response becomes commonplace, it is all too easy to forget the powerful sensations lying behind those words, the power of a chiropractic adjustment and the power of a healing, caring touch.