Did you know more than 6 million children suffer from asthma? That's a crazy high number - and doesn't even include the 14 million adults who suffer! As parents, we want to protect our children from hazards in life whenever possible. Thankfully, death due to asthma are very rare in children under 18 but parents need to be aware of asthma and seek treatment when necessary. You are the expert on your child and know him/her best so keep watch for abnormal behavior. Signs of a possible asthma attack include fatigue that is not play-related, wheezing, unusual paleness or sweating, and an anxious look when the child is trying to take in more air. It's important to keep the child calm so as not to exacerbate the attack. Even better is to get help to treat the cause of the asthma attack. Chiropractic works with the nervous and immune systems to allow the body to correctly identify dangerous invaders while also correctly fighting those invaders. Children and adults suffering from asthma benefit from chiropractic care! Remember - you know your child better than anyone else so be aware of abnormal behaviors. Let us help you learn about asthma and how chiropractic can help you and your child treat this symptom.

REMINDER: The office will be closed Monday, May 28th for the Memorial Day holiday. Dr. Moss will be out of the office Tuesday, May 29th through Friday, June 1st. He will be attending the annual International College of Applied Kinesiology seminar in Texas. Rachael and Wendy will be in the office working as usual. Please feel free to call them with any questions you may have or if you need to pick up supplements, receive scans, or schedule your appointment. The office will be back to normal operation on Monday, June 4th.

"Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts."

Thich Nhat Hanh

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For your health,

Dr Moss, Angi, Wendy & Rachael

ASTHMA DRUGS MAY CAUSE 80% OF ALL ASTHMA-RELATED DEATHS

A recent study published in Annals of Internal Medicine has found that bronchodilators of the “beta-agonist” class, the inhalers used by asthma patients, may be responsible for 4,000 of the 5,000 asthma-related deaths that occur in the United States each year.
The 2006 study analyzed two of the main drugs used in asthma inhalers in children and adults, salmeterol and formoterol. The study reviewed the results of 19 different trials performed between 1966 and 2005 covering 33,826 participants, and found an increased risk of hospitalization for life-threatening asthma attacks and asthma-related deaths among both adults and children.
Another study, the Multi-center Asthma Research Trial (SMART), followed more than 26,000 participants for 6 months and found a four-fold increased risk for asthma-related deaths with the use of these drugs.
Controversy has surrounded the use of beta-agonists ever since their introduction more than 50 years ago. Beta-agonists are medicines that open the airways by relaxing the muscles around them that tend to tighten during an asthma attack. Numerous studies have consistently shown that regular use of these drugs carries an increased risk of life threatening and fatal asthma attacks. In May 2005, the FDA requested manufacturers of these medications (Advair Diskus, Foradil Aerolizer, and Serevent Diskus) to update their product warning labels that these products “increase the chance of severe asthma episodes, and death when those episodes occur.”
Yet prescriptions and sales of brochodilators has remained a multi-billion dollar industry.
Doubles the Death Rate for COPD Patients
Beta-agonists are also widely used to treat Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, or COPD. A recent analysis of 22 randomized trials, which followed more that 15,000 COPD patients, found that beta-agonists doubled the respiratory failure death rate.
Regular use of beta-agonists has been shown to increase bronchial hyperactivity regardless of some degree of bronchodilation. This effect, along with the reduction in response to later rescue beta-agonist use “may worsen asthma control without giving any warning of increased symptoms.”
Asthma deaths increased worldwide in the 1960s when beta-agonists were introduced onto the market. In New Zealand, asthma-related deaths increased when the beta-agonist drug fenoterol was introduced. Asthma-related deaths rapidly decreased when use of the drug was severely cut back. “If long-acting beta-agonists were removed from the market in the United States, we might witness a reduction in asthma mortality rates here.”
Asthma sufferers would do well to investigate drug-free, alternate approaches to therapy, such as Chiropractic or Acupuncture, both of which have been proven effective in relieving the symptoms of asthma.

SOURCES: Annals of Internal Medicine, June 2006; Health Sentinel, January 2, 2007;
http://www.healthsentinel.com/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=a...

Just a few years ago, it was rare to hear about a child with type 2 diabetes. It used to be thought that if diabetes occurred in childhood, it was type 1, or juvenile-onset, diabetes. Not anymore. Now, according to the CDC, over 186,000 people under the age of 20 have diabetes -- both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, formerly called adult-onset diabetes. The single greatest risk factor for type 2 diabetes is excess weight. In the U.S., almost one out of every five children is considered to be overweight. Once a child is overweight, chances are more than doubled that the child will develop diabetes. As parents we need to be diligent in making sure our children are eating a healthy diet, getting plenty of exercise on a daily basis, and are sleeping well. Today, with so many crazy schedules, it can be very easy to overlook differences in our children's behaviors. Distraction with work or domestic problems can cause what should be quite obvious clues to be missed. All parents should make themselves aware of diabetes symptoms so they can respond quickly in the event that their child develops this disease. The earlier treatment is sought, the less damage is done. If your child is having some of the symptoms we listed last week in our health report please let us know. We are here to help you in any way possible.

CELEBRATE: Dr. Moss and his family welcomed a baby girl - Inara Grace - to the family on April 20th. Inara was born at 12:57am, weighed 6 lbs 11 oz, and measured 20 inches. Check our Facebook page for a picture after her first adjustment!

Do you know someone who has recently had a baby? Let them know how chiropractic care can help baby start life in the most healthy way possible - tell them about our office.

"While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about." ~Angela Schwindt

JUVENILE DIABETES IMPROVES WITH CHIROPRACTIC!
Vol. 3 Issue 111

“Melissa was diagnosed with Type I Juvenile Diabetes in February 1999. We were told she would be insulin-dependent for the rest of her life. Melissa was coming out of what is called the ‘honeymoon’ period in August. Her blood sugar levels were increasingly high with no pattern.
“The only way to deal with these ‘highs’ was to increase her insulins. She went from 2 insulins twice a day to needing a shot in the middle of the day also.
“Melissa never felt good. She suffered stomach problems and constant stomach pain from the time she woke up until well into the night. She had constant headaches and extreme mood swings. Her life became one battle after another. By God’s good grace we received a phone call from a chiropractor, explaining what chiropractic is and how he felt he could help Melissa. I felt
we had nothing to lose. “After Melissa’s first adjustment, I made the mistake of giving her 12 units too much of Lente (a long-lasting insulin). Her diabetic team told me to be prepared for her to plummet and have her glucagon ready. After monitoring her all night, there was no low. Her morning blood sugar was normal also. Her body seemed to be compensating for the extra insulin.
“After getting adjustments for one month, Melissa’s blood sugars are stabilizing. She is off one of her insulins completely. We have been consistently lowering her insulin requirements. Before Juvenile Diabetes Improves with Chiropractic treatment, Missy was getting 10 Lente and 4 Humalog in the morning and 9 Lente and 5 Humalog at night. Currently she takes 12 units of Lente in the morning (no Humalog) and 1 Lente at night (no Humalog). She rarely has mood swings and her stomach is almost completely better. Our goal is to have Melissa’s pancreas do the work of producing insulin. We are in the process of this becoming a reality thanks to chiropractic and Dr. Zembroski.”

— Debra de Bara, mother

SOURCE: Specific Chiropractic of Darien, Robert Zembroski, D.C., Debra de Bara.