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HEALTHBEAT SHOW NOTES .... Episode #34 - Recorded March 3, 2006

Hello and welcome to this week’s edition of HealthBeat, Chiropractic OnLine Today’s Health, News and informational Podcast.

In this week’s news:  We’ll Look At –

• Employees respond to wellness benefits

• Lack of Exercise and Childhood Obesity

• Heart Risk and Lifespan

• Final HIPAA Enforcement Rule Published

• Delaying Decision Making for Complex Problems

• Back Pain and Acupressure

• Update to NJ Scope of Practice

• And finally, Health Corner looks New Health Technologies

For HealthBeat, This is Dr. Todd Eglow.

Welcome to HealthBeat Podcast #34, recorded March 3, 2006.  HealthBeat is Chiropractic OnLine Today’s radio program, providing current news and commentary about Chiropractic and Health.

This week’s Episode is sponsored by DaVinci Laboratories.  Please surf to our web site at ChiropracticRadio.com and click on the DaVinci link for your Health and Nutritional needs.

As a quick reminder, please remember to surf to our parent web site, Chiropractic OnLine Today, located at http://www.chiro-online.com
We have many articles from some of the leaders in the Chiropractic and Health profession, including articles from Dr. L. John Faye, Dr. Louis Sportelli, Dr. Jan Corwin, Dr. Donald Murphy and Dr. David Lemberg, to name a few.

We also have a Chiropractic Referral Directory and a Classified Advertisement section.

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And Now for some news ….

Employees respond to wellness benefits

According to latest results from the Principal Financial Well-Being Index, 47 percent of workers surveyed agree that wellness benefits encourage them to work harder and even perform better, while 48 percent said wellness offerings would encourage them to stay in their current employment situation.

Employees not only ask for wellness benefits but take advantage of employer offerings. As employer wellness programs evolve, employees who are offered these programs are responding by participating at work in blood pressure checks (81 percent), cholesterol screenings (73 percent) and by taking online health screenings (72 percent). In addition, 82 percent of those who are offered health education tools utilize them, while 68 percent whose employers offer wellness seminars attend.

Since 2000, the Principal Financial Well-Being Index has surveyed employees at companies ranging from 10 to 1,000 employees and releases results quarterly through the Principal Financial Group and Harris Interactive. For more on the most recent Principal Financial Well-Being Index, visit

http://www.principal.com/wellbeing/index.htm

http://www.chiroeco.com/news/2006/February/Wellness.php

Lack of Exercise and Childhood Obesity

According to the journal Pediatrics, lack of access to exercise facilities, particularly in low-income areas, is one force that's driving the obesity epidemic that's endangering America 's children.

According to one of the study’s authors, our country faces a serious obesity problem -- one that disproportionately impacts poor, minority individuals and communities.

The number of overweight American children has more than doubled in the past 20 years. In 1980, about 7 percent of kids were overweight; by 2002, that number had climbed to 16 percent, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The reason for the increase is both simple and complex. The simple reason is that today's children are consuming more calories than they are expending. But there are many factors driving this change in behavior, and the two new studies sought to define or discredit some of the suspected forces behind childhood obesity.

Not surprisingly, the lack of places to exercise had on effect on both activity levels and the prevalence of overweight.

The key is prevention. With children, the younger the child starts developing healthy lifestyle habits, the easier it is to keep them in good shape.

As always, COT’s HealthBeat always recommends discussing any Dietary and Exercise lifestyle modifications with a qualified healthcare professional.

For more information, surf to our show notes for a link to this study - http://www.drkoop.com/PrinterFriendly/93/530776.html

Heart Risk and Lifespan

A study in the American Heart Association’s journal, Circulation, reports on a study where the number of cardiovascular risk factors people have at age 50 can have a dramatic impact on their life expectancy.

The findings, based on a large, long-running U.S. study, suggest that 50-year-olds who are free of major risk factors like high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes and high cholesterol are unlikely to suffer coronary heart disease or stroke in their lifetime.

The study focused on major, modifiable risk factors for atherosclerosis, the formation of artery-clogging plaques that is the most common cause of heart disease and stroke.

The risk factors were

• being overweight

• smoking or having diabetes

• high blood pressure or

• high cholesterol.

Among men who were free of these risk factors at age 50, only 5 percent developed atherosclerosis-related heart disease or stroke by the age of 95. That compared with 69 percent of men who had two or more risk factors at age 50.

The difference was substantial among women as well - 8 percent, versus 50 percent.

Alternative healthcare providers, such as your Doctor of Chiropractic, have been promoting the concepts of Prevention for over 100 years.  Contact an alternative provider for more information.

Surf to our Show notes for a link to this article - http://heart.healthcentersonline.com/newsstories/cuttingheartrisksearlycouldaddyearslife.cfm

Final HIPAA Enforcement Rule Published

On February 16, 2006, the Final Rule on HIPAA Enforcement was published in the Federal Register.  HIPAA refers to the HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 1996.

The Final Rule adopts the complete regulatory structure for implementing the civil money penalty authority of the Administrative Simplification part of HIPAA (SSA, section 1176), completing the structure begun when the Privacy Rule was issued in 2000 and expanded by the interim final procedural enforcement rules issued in 2003.  The Final Rule covers the enforcement process from its beginning, which will usually be a complaint or a compliance review, through its conclusion. 

A complaint or compliance review may result in informal resolution, a finding of no violation, or a finding of violation.  If a finding of violation is made, a civil money penalty will be sought for the violation, which can be challenged by the covered entity through a formal hearing and appellate review process.

These rules apply to covered entities that violate any of the rules implementing the Administrative Simplification provisions of HIPAA.

Surf to our Show Notes for a link to this Final HIPAA Rule - http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/

http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/FinalEnforcementRule06.pdf

Delaying Decision Making for Complex Problems

According to an article published in the February 16, 2006 edition of the New Scientist, complex decisions are best left to your unconscious mind to work out, as the article suggests that over-thinking a problem could lead to expensive mistakes.

Thinking hard about a complex decision that rests on multiple factors appears to bamboozle the conscious mind so that people only consider a subset of information, which they weight inappropriately, resulting in an unsatisfactory choice. In contrast, the unconscious mind appears able to ponder over all the information and produce a decision that most people remain satisfied with.

The full study was published in the journal Science, volume 311.  See our Show Notes for a link to this article - http://www.newscientist.com/channel/being-human/dn8732.html

Back Pain and Acupressure

A recent study in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of Acupressure.

Acupressure, the practice of applying finger pressure to specific acupoints throughout the body, was used in China as early as 2000 B.C., pre-dating the practice of acupuncture. Acupressure is widely practiced both professionally and informally throughout Asia for relaxation, for the promotion of wellness and for the treatment of disease. These techniques are growing in popularity in North America and Europe . Numerous trials in humans suggest the effectiveness of various acupressure points.

Shiatsu is a Japanese form of acupressure.  Shiatsu emphasizes finger pressure not only at acupoints but also along the body's meridians. (In traditional Chinese medicine, the meridians are channels in the body believed to conduct chi, or elemental forces.) Shiatsu can also incorporate palm pressure, stretching, massage and other manual techniques. A nationwide survey in England found that shiatsu practitioners most commonly treat musculoskeletal and psychological conditions, including neck, shoulder and lower back problems; arthritis; depression; and anxiety.

The study concluded that “Acupressure was effective in reducing low back pain in terms of disability, pain scores, and functional status. The benefit was sustained for six months”.

Surf to our Show Notes for a link to this free BMJ Study - http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/abstract/bmj.38744.672616.AEv1?hrss=1

http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/8513/34968/358869.html?d=dmtContent

Update to NJ Scope of Practice

In an update to an earlier HealthBeat story, NJ chiropractors are eagerly awaiting news of the recently revised scope of practice that has been submitted to the NJ state legislature.

According to the NJ Group, the ANJC, this will be the first major change to the New Jersey scope of practice since the 1953 practice act.  The current scope has been described as the “most restrictive scope in the country,” and New Jersey chiropractors have been unable to do what they were trained for in chiropractic college and in continuing education seminars and programs.

The proposed scope of practice will provide for the following:

• Defines subluxation. The proposed scope defines subluxation and prohibits anyone but a DC from performing a spinal adjustment or manipulation on an individual to correct a subluxation, essentially protecting chiropractors from encroachment by another profession.

• Restricts opinions to Chiropractors. It also states that only a New Jersey-licensed DC can provide an opinion on the course of care for a chiropractic patient in New Jersey .

• Requires CE. Each licensed chiropractor would need to complete 24 continuing education credits during each two-year registration period.

• Expands practice capabilities. While the proposed scope continues to allow subluxation, chiropractors with a broader focus will be able to practice in their specific areas of interest and expertise.

Specifically, the revised scope of practice includes language that allows New Jersey chiropractors to prescribe, administer, dispense and sell nutritional supplements and provide nutritional counseling; perform school sports/pre-employment physicals and certify temporary and permanent disability; perform acupuncture; treat extremities; practice what they have been taught in school and tested on by State Board of Chiropractic Examiners.

For more information, contact the ANJC at info@anjc.info

As always, please surf to our Podcast Show Notes at ChiropractiRadio.com for a full listing of web references mentioned in today’s show.

And remember - COT’s Healthbeat always recommends discussing any nutritional or exercise lifestyle modifications with a qualified healthcare professional

In this edition of HealthBeat’s Health Corner, we look at some recent trends in treatment.  To begin, from the Healthcentral.com site, a discussion of the usage trends for Back Surgery in the United States .  Other research trends include the use of Stem Cells and also Treadmills.

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.

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Finally, I leave you with the following quote:

"Don't throw away the old bucket until you know whether the new one holds water." 
- Swedish Proverb

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

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