Wellness Solutions

Study Links Enzyme Disorder with Neurological Health

When Little Johnny Shouldn’t Drink Milk…

(6/15/08, Manhattan). The results of a decade long study conducted in the Norwegian town of Stavanger offers this simplistic option to parents with children suffering from hyperactive disorders including ADHD: Change their diet.

23 children from Norway’s southwestern region — ages four to 11 and all diagnosed with hyperactive disorders — were put on milk-free and/or gluten-free diets based on theories developed by Dr. Karl Ludvig Reichelt. Reichelt believes that children afflicted with such disorders suffer from a metabolic problem that hinders the adequate breakdown of certain proteins. So, eating certain foods like milk and gluten may accelerate ADHD (and other disorders) because these children lack an enzyme that breaks down proteins like casein (which is found in milk and enables milk-clotting to make cheese). Reichelt felt that reducing the intake of foods containing proteins would assist proper digestion thus allowing the patients’ hyperactivity to be controlled.

22 of the Norwegian children taken off milk products and other foods containing casein showed an almost immediate improvement in their mental health (including overall behavior), an enhanced attention span plus increased learning capabilities. But, the symptoms returned as soon as the foods were reintroduced into their diets. Most of those involved in the study had been taking medications like Ritalin to treat their diagnosed disorders prior to changing their diets. However, after adjusting their food intake, they were soon taken off the medicine.

Long-term monitoring of these children has found their disorders to be manageable while the challenges they once faced have virtually disappeared.

The study’s result came as no surprise to Dr. Josh Handt, a Manhattan-based chiropractor. “There are three types of stress that impact how our bodies perform. Psychological stress is commonly enhanced by money problems, struggling relationships or issues at work. Our ability to deal with those problems has a positive impact on our bodies. Physical stress is remedied by how we care for our bodies through exercise, etc. The children described in the study battled bio-chemical stress fueled by what they put into their bodies. The food and medicines we intake directly affect how we function,” states Handt.
Similar international research has already linked the protein disorder with autism and schizophrenia. Now, this study points to ADHD and its kind stemming from the same digestive disorder.

“Be fit. Eat right. Think well. That’s the road towards good health. Like those 22 children in Norway, it is often enough to simply adjust our diets before administrating any medications. The old cliché, ‘You are what you eat,’ is a fairly accurate statement,” concluded a smiling Handt.

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Reference:
“Diet Changes Give Hyperactive Kids New Taste for Life in Norway,” by Nina Larson, AFP and Yahoo! News, Feb. 24, 2008.

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Study Shows Chiropractic Care Quiets Crybabies

A Simple Adjustment Could Mean No More Tears

(7/15/2008, NYC).  Research out of Great Britain offers hope to parents across the globe whose weary morning appearance is caused by a crying infant at home. Baby’s tears not only concern mom and dad about his/her health, they often disrupt the entire family – and in worst case scenarios may impact postnatal depression and lead to Shaken Baby Syndrome.

Where should parents turn? Well, research authored by Joyce Miller of the Anglo-European College of Chiropractic at the University of Bournemouth details that an excessively crying baby drives 21% of families in the UK to seek care. She found that pharmaceutical, dietary and behavioral interventions most often provide no comfort to the infants – or anyone in the family.

But, a trip to the chiropractor offers relief to crying babies and those living under the same roof.

Miller’s work, entitled Cry Babies: A Framework for Chiropractic Care, notes that persistently crying infants are traditionally diagnosed with colic – defined in 1954 by Dr. M.A. Wessel as “bouts of crying amounting to more than 3 hours a day, 3 days a week, for more than 3 weeks.”  A useful description for research, but not very consoling to distressed parents. Furthermore, the diagnosis of colic implies gastro-intestinal disorder. Yet, out of the approximately 5,000 infants brought to the University’s teaching clinic in one year’s time, only 7% presented with digestive issues. 63% of these infants were brought to the clinic due to excessive, unexplained crying.

“Perhaps the term ‘colic’ should be abandoned,” writes Miller.

Why did chiropractic succeed where other options failed to sooth the seemingly inconsolable child?

Chiropractic care is primarily aimed at correcting biomechanical and neurological fault. Miller’s writings offer ever-increasing evidence that antenatal and natal factors contribute to irritability in infants.

“Pre-natal constraint – pressure in the womb, trauma during birth, the use of forceps or other extraction devices – may be the underlying cause for the discomfort of the crying infant,” according to Dr. Josh Handt, a Manhattan-based chiropractor whose has seen a sharp increase in his pediatric patients in recent months.

Miller’s research established protocols that many doctors, including Handt, are following.

“After ruling out other diseases and clinical conditions that could cause gastro-intestinal disorders – and after interpreting the baby’s growth chart for consistent development – I have found that manual spinal adjustments bring about a significant reduction in an infant’s crying, followed by better sleeping patterns and an improvement in posture,” continued Handt.

And, while tranquility leads to a happy household, pediatric chiropractic care offers long-term benefits as well.

“Chiropractic provides a maintenance program for one’s nervous system that allows the human body to operate at peak efficiently,” states Handt. “If the body is free of nerve interference, it promotes health. Providing chiropractic to an infant and continuing through adulthood is the true definition of health care – taking steps to ensure health instead of waiting for pain or illness,” added Handt.

“I guess it’s fair to say that if you’re not bringing your baby to a chiropractor, it’s a crying shame,” concluded a smiling Handt.

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Reference:
Joyce Miller, “Cry Babies: A Framework for Chiropractic Care,” The Clinical Chiropractic (2007) 10, 139-146.

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