Chiropractic OnLine Today's
HealthBeat

    Welcome to COT's HealthBeat Podcast
        Chiropractic OnLine Today is pleased to present a
    Chiropractic "Radio" Segment to the Health Community.
               Return to HealthBeat main page

Please Vote for HealthBeat on Podcast Alley!
         

HEALTHBEAT SHOW NOTES .... Episode #14 - Recorded October 14, 2005

Welcome to HealthBeat Podcast #14, recorded October 14, 2005.  HealthBeat is Chiropractic OnLine Today’s radio program, providing current news and commentary about Chiropractic and Health. 

Update to Free Medicare Software

And in another strange twist to a story that HealthBeat has been following, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released an evaluation version of VistA-Office Electronic Health Record (Vista-Office), an adaptation of the Veterans Health Administration electronic health record (EHR) technology. This version will allow for an assessment of its effectiveness in private physicians offices.

The modified Vista-Office retains existing VistA functions of such transactions as order entry, documentation templates, and clinical reminders, and is enhanced with other important functions including physician office patient registration, and reporting of quality measures, amongst other functions.

Physicians and clinics interested in participating in the program as an evaluation site should visit www.vista-office.org. More information about the vendor training and a list of qualified vendors can be found at www.worldvista.org.

Migraine Headaches and Ovarian Hormones

A recent study investigated whether the attack characteristics of migraine differ between different intervals of the menstrual cycle.  According to the study, the mechanisms through which migraines are influenced by ovarian hormones remain unclear. No previous studies until now have identified "hormonally defined" time intervals within the female menstrual cycle and compared headache outcome measures among these intervals in female migraineurs.

The study concluded that Migraine headache is more severe, disabling, and frequent during the menstrual intervals of the female reproductive cycle than during mid-luteal or mid-cycle intervals. Progesterone metabolites may play a role in modulating migraine headaches during luteal intervals of the menstrual cycle.

For more information, surf to the Journal of Face and Head pain at – www.blackwell-synergy.com

http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1526-4610.2005.00242.x

Oregon governor nixes chiropractic bill

Chiropractors in Oregon will not be allowed to serve as attending physicians for injured workers.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski vetoed legislation which would have allowed Chiropractors to be attending physicians and care for workers covered under the state Workers Benefit Fund. Although proponents of the bill showed the benefits of chiropractic care, including its cost-effective approach to medical management, the governor said that the workers’ compensation program already offers sufficient access to chiropractors.

For more information, visit - www.oregonlive.com

Exercise slashes risk of fatal heart disease

According to a new study reported by HeartCenter Online, being physically fit can greatly reduce the risk of dying from heart disease, even when cholesterol levels are high.

Within the various risk categories, physical fitness was linked to more than a 50 percent decrease in mortality, according to the researchers. Fitness was defined as 30-minute segments of activity four or five times a week.

As always, COT’s HealthBeat recommends discussing any Exercise programs or modifications with a qualified healthcare provider.

For more information, surf to http://circ.ahajournals.org/

http://heart.healthcentersonline.com/newsstories/exerciseslashesriskfatalheartdisease.cfm?nl=2

Health Literacy

A recent study in the Archives of Internal Medicine looked at Individuals with limited health literacy.  These individuals were presumed to have

• less health knowledge

• worse self-management skills

• lower use of preventive services, and

• higher hospitalization rates.

Health literacy was measured using the short form of the Test of Functional Health Literacy in Adults.

The conclusion of the study revealed that among community-dwelling older adults, inadequate health literacy was independently associated with poorer physical and mental health.

For more information, go to the September 26th issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine:

http://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/165/17/1946

Codex and Nutritional Supplements

The Codex Alimentarius Commission, or Codex, was created in 1963 by two U.N. organizations, the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization. Its main purpose is to protect the health of consumers and to ensure fair practices in international trade in food through the development of food standards, codes of practice, guidelines and other recommendations. Codex standards and guidelines are developed by committees, which are open to all member countries. Member countries review and provide comments on Codex standards and related texts at several stages in the development process. In the United States , public meetings are held to receive comments on Codex drafts and comments are invited from all interested parties (See U.S. Codex Office web site). Codex standards and related texts are voluntary; member countries are not bound by or required to adopt them.

According to a newsletter flash from the NJ group, the ANJC, an update from the American Chiropractic Association, Members continue to express concerns about the Codex standards and the impact they might have on the use of vitamins in the United States . Certain organizations continue to make claims that the standards established internationally would infringe upon our rights as doctors to distribute vitamins and other supplements.

The ACA recently received further confirmation that this policy hasn’t changed. Dr. Dick Clark, delegate from Georgia , asked Rep. Charlie Norwood (R-Ga.), to look into the situation. His response to Dr. Clark included the following: I want to assure you that the United States participation in existing and proposed international trade agreements has been carefully gauged to protect our citizens access to dietary supplements.

In ratifying various trade agreements, Congress has made an effort to make sure that our domestic laws will not be affected. Simply put, if standards for vitamins and minerals are adopted by international groups such as the Codex Alimentarius Commission, they will not be binding in the United States . For a complete copy of the report, go to:  http://www.acatoday.com/pdf/DickClarkLetter.pdf

For more about Codex, surf to the Food and Drug Administrations’ web site at - http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/dscodex.html

New Junk Fax Law

According to an article from AOL News, a new law has gone into effect, as of July 9, 2005, that places limits on faxing material to potential patients, etc.

Under this new Federal law, a junk fax is an "unsolicited advertisement," meaning "any material advertising the commercial availability or quality of any property, goods or services which is transmitted to any person without that person's prior express invitation or permission, in writing or otherwise."

Even if your faxed message can be considered a junk fax under the new law, you are still allowed to send unsolicited faxes to anyone with whom your business has an "established business relationship," or EBR.

An EBR is defined as "a prior or existing relationship formed by a voluntary two-way communication between a person or entity and a residential subscriber with or without an exchange of consideration, on the basis of an inquiry, application, purchase or transaction by the residential subscriber regarding products or services offered by such person or entity, which relationship has not been previously terminated by either party." You should consult with your business attorney if you're unsure whom you're allowed to send unsolicited advertisements via fax to.

Even if your business has an EBR with a customer or prospect, the  new law now requires that on the first page of every fax solicitation you send, you must tell the recipient how to "opt out" of receiving future fax solicitations from your company.

The new law allows anyone who has illegally received a junk fax to sue for and recover $500 to $1,500 or more per junk fax violation.

The new federal law doesn't supersede current or future state laws that govern junk faxes. To be on the safe side, be sure to check the laws of your state and any state into which you send faxes before hitting the "Send Fax" button.

For more information, surf to our Show Notes for the full AOL News Link - http://www.aol.entrepreneur.com/aolsb/article/0,4558,323554,00.html

Global Day Against Pain

The International Association for the Study of Pain has designated October 17th as a Global Day Against Pain in Children.  Each year, this organization attempts to raise awareness of different aspect of pain.

For more information, surf to - http://www.iasp-pain.org/

http://www.iasp-pain.org/GlobalDay-2005.htm

Chiropractic Corner – In this edition of HealthBeat’s Chiropractic Corner, we introduce a new Leadership series.  Chiropractic Corner will periodically interview those leaders in the Chiropractic Profession, who continue to strive to push the Chiropractic and Health message forward. 

In this episode, HealthBeat interviews renowned Chiropractor Dr. Richard Carnival.

 Thank you for listening…. As always, We Want to hear from you.  Please send us emails…. Simply surf to our Web Site at ChiropracticRadio.com and click on the Email link.

You can also leave us Voice Mail…. Simply open up your Skype and type in “healthbeat”, all in small letters.

If you have an idea for a Health Segment, please feel free to contact me directly via email …. The address is: healthbeat@chiro-online.com

We also would appreciate your vote at Podcastalley.com.  If you are enjoying these podcasts, please surf to our HealthBeat homepage at Chiro-online.com and click on the Podcast Alley link.

Also, if you have a Web Site for your practice and you would like to add personalized HealthBeat segments to your site to attract more traffic, please send me an Email and I will forward information to you.

Finally, I leave you with the following quote:

"Everywhere is within walking distance if you have the time."

- Steven Wright

For Chiropractic OnLine Today’s HealthBeat, This is Dr. Todd Eglow.

Please Vote for HealthBeat on Podcast Alley!