Being and staying healthy is one of the greatest challenges we face today. We all live in a world filled with toxins and chemicals, some added to our food as preservatives, others taken in the form of pills to cure some ailment, and yet others we simply can't avoid and breath in every day. These toxins and chemicals along with everyday movements in life put incredible stress on our bodies and in particular our spines. I have mentioned before that there are alternatives to going straight to a medical doctor to fix a problem we have with our bodies. There are many holistic and natural methods to heal the body from acupuncture, to yoga, to chiropractic.
Some of you may now be saying, "Here is just another quack pushing chiropractic care as a replacement to a medical doctor." Well, as quacktastic as I may sound, I have done research and I have heard amazing stories about chiropractic. In addition I currently see a chiropractor once to twice a week and the results have been amazing. Let me first start by saying that not all chiropractors are the same. Before I started seeing my current one, I had been to at least 2 others which I didn't care for. The reason I started going back to a chiropractor was due to headaches (you are only supposed to get 2-3 a year) and backpain that were getting worse and worse. Within a few weeks of getting adjusted twice a week, my headaches were gone and backpain diminished greatly.
So what is the deal behind chiropractic? Chiropractic's main purpose is the alignment of a person's spine. Their philosophy (which I agree with) is that the human body is capable of healing itself provided that all neural pathways are functioning. A human body's every function is controlled by the brain which sends signals out via the spinal column through the nerves. These nerves travel to every organ and muscle in the body. If a person's spinal column is moved even slightly (called a subluxation in chiropractic terms), then the nerve traveling through that section of the spine will be negatively impacted and won't be able to communicate fully with the organ or muscle it is traveling to. If you get your spine adjusted so that it is in proper alignment, then the nerve is free to communicate and send signals. The unfortunate part is, out of all the nerves traveling through our body, 90% don't feel pain or react in a way that we know something is wrong. The symptoms usually manifest themselves in the form of some malady that we would normally go to a medical doctor to fix.
I have mentioned before that if medications made you healthy, then it would be reasonable to assume that the person on the most pills would be the healthiest person alive. Most of us know this is never the case. My current chiropractor worked with a woman taking 38 pills a day and unable to move from her wheelchair. To make a long story short, within a few years of treatment, she was down to under 10 pills a day and able to walk with the help of a cane. The only thing that changed in her life was the addition of chiropractic. All the medical doctors who had treated her previously had given up and referred her to a chirpractor to "ease her pain". Well, it ended up doing more than that. The only thing the chiropractor did was adjust this lady's spine so that it was in perfect alignment, nothing more, nothing less. Her body did the rest of the work. For another amazing story involving Dr. Palmer (the son of the founder of chiropractic) and Dr. Mayo (the founder of the Mayo clinic), click here.
Some people may counter all this by saying that chiropractors can cause a stroke or death by adjusting the spine. This is all fabricated in an attempt to discredit the chiropractic industry by the medical profession. If this were actually true, then chiropractors would have to pay hefty malpractice insurance. As it is right now, medical doctors pay tens of thousands of dollars in malpractice insurance. The cost for a chiropractor is around two thousand. Malpractice insurance is based on the probability that the doctor will do harm. If you look at the numbers, chiropractic wins out.
Other people may say that chiropractic is not for everybody. Well, every person's spine is fundamentally the same, therefore, chiropractic is for everyone who makes the choice to explore it. Chiropractors make no claim to a quick and speedy recovery. That is all based on your body's ability to restore itself to health. There is no overnight remedy; it could take weeks or months. People don't have patience, however, and want the quick fix that will get them going immediately. Sometimes it is worth it to wait longer to recover, than damaging your body in the healing process with medications.
There is a lot of info on chiropractic out there. Before going to a regular medical doctor next time, (they only treat the symptoms), check out a chiropractor (treating the cause). I myself have not taken any pills (including advil, tylenol, etc.) in over two years. My wife who had severe seasonal allergies and had inhalers, pills, and allergy shots, is now allergy free after seeing a chiropractor. Ultimately, the decision is yours as to how you take care of your body. Chiropractic is a much healthier option than a regular medical doctor (obviously if you have a broken bone, a chiropractor can't help with that). Do yourself a healthy favor and look into it. There is a plethora of information available on the internet if you take the time to do some research. If you want more direct info without trying that hard, follow this link to my chiropractor's web page.
Stay healthy, stay positive, and most of all be patient. There is no need to rush through life, we all know what lies at the end. Cherish every moment for you never know which moment will be your last.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Japan teaches Patience
Every day the media bombards us with depressing news. There seems to be an overt focus on playing to the fears of people. I watched World News with Diane Sawyer last night, something I rarely do because I would much rather pick and choose which depressing articles to read. In any case, throughout the course of the half hour show, 25 minutes were spent on the tragedy in Japan, visiting the country, showing the devastation, re-playing clips of the tsunami over and over again, and also talking about the "worst case scenario" with the nuclear power plant. It was only in the last five minutes that my attention was actually engaged and I was fascinated by what I saw. Despite all the destruction and loss of life, there was no pandemonium or chaos, only patience and sharing.
As I watched the last five minutes, I thought back to the previous 25 minutes and what I had seen. As American reporters surveyed the damage and talked to the locals in the area, there was an overwhelming sense of calm coming from the Japanese. The reporters looked aghast at the long food lines, the long gas lines, the utter destruction of cars and homes, yet whenever they approached the locals with this imbued sense of fear, the locals showed no reciprocal fear (for the most part). The Japanese waited patiently in gas lines, no honking or yelling, just waiting. The same went for the food lines, parents holding their babies for hours, not a complaint uttered or person pushed out of the way. Even with the destruction of the homes, one elderly couple was already scooping up mud into wheelbarrows, determined to get their small store and home up and functional again.
The most amazing part of this ordeal that they are going through is the fact there has been no looting or vandalism. Even with the nuclear power plant unable to produce electricity, instead of a mandatory blackout to conserve power, people willingly turned off all non-essential electrical devices, even lights, to help out the community. Now for a quick comparison, lets jump back 5-6 years to Hurricane Katrina that hit New Orleans and the gulf coast. After the flooding and destruction in our own country, a whole different scenario played out. There was massive looting, vandalism, and a certain lawlessness that invaded until the floodwaters receded and the city was secured again. Our country and many others would do well to take a longer look at the Japanese and see how they can keep it together in the face of tragedy.
From the 5 minute segment on the patience and civility of the Japanese after this tragedy, there was a lot to be learned. Their whole society, mostly Buddhist and Confucist followers, have an entrenched sense of community. They are there to help others out and rebuild their towns and lives together with the help of others. There generosity is amazing. When Diane Sawyer approached a small group eating together on the side of a road, they immediately began offering her food, despite the fact that they did not have much. They would not accept a refusal of the food saying that they had enough for them. There was no hoarding mentality or selfishness, just giving and kindness. If we have a desire to change the status quo and dig ourselves out of our own little foxholes, then we would do well to study the Japanese way of life.
I have alluded to the importance of community in the past and the Japanese are excellent examples of how a tight knit community can overcome odds and still remain positive. We are all more than the sum of our parts. The more involved we become with community, the stronger we become both individually and as a whole. Simply knowing that there are strangers out there who are willing to jump in and help regardless of the circumstances has a calming effect and can dispel depression and anxiety. If we have community to fall back on, then we need have no fear of what the future holds. However, most people don't recognize this simple concept. We are all in this together, this rollercoaster called life, and we can not travel the road alone. (OK, so we technically could, but it would be very depressing and difficult). Maybe it is time we reached out to others in our communities, shared our stories and listened to theirs. We all have unique traits that when combined with others, can produce fantastic results. Do you have a community to fall back on? Are there people willing to go out of their way to help you? If not, start building your community around you. Talk to your neighbors, friends, fellow townspeople. The larger a community we have supporting us, the more balanced and worry free our lives will be. (At least thats my take on it.) Smile, for today is a blank page waiting; only you can determine what gets written down.
As I watched the last five minutes, I thought back to the previous 25 minutes and what I had seen. As American reporters surveyed the damage and talked to the locals in the area, there was an overwhelming sense of calm coming from the Japanese. The reporters looked aghast at the long food lines, the long gas lines, the utter destruction of cars and homes, yet whenever they approached the locals with this imbued sense of fear, the locals showed no reciprocal fear (for the most part). The Japanese waited patiently in gas lines, no honking or yelling, just waiting. The same went for the food lines, parents holding their babies for hours, not a complaint uttered or person pushed out of the way. Even with the destruction of the homes, one elderly couple was already scooping up mud into wheelbarrows, determined to get their small store and home up and functional again.
The most amazing part of this ordeal that they are going through is the fact there has been no looting or vandalism. Even with the nuclear power plant unable to produce electricity, instead of a mandatory blackout to conserve power, people willingly turned off all non-essential electrical devices, even lights, to help out the community. Now for a quick comparison, lets jump back 5-6 years to Hurricane Katrina that hit New Orleans and the gulf coast. After the flooding and destruction in our own country, a whole different scenario played out. There was massive looting, vandalism, and a certain lawlessness that invaded until the floodwaters receded and the city was secured again. Our country and many others would do well to take a longer look at the Japanese and see how they can keep it together in the face of tragedy.
From the 5 minute segment on the patience and civility of the Japanese after this tragedy, there was a lot to be learned. Their whole society, mostly Buddhist and Confucist followers, have an entrenched sense of community. They are there to help others out and rebuild their towns and lives together with the help of others. There generosity is amazing. When Diane Sawyer approached a small group eating together on the side of a road, they immediately began offering her food, despite the fact that they did not have much. They would not accept a refusal of the food saying that they had enough for them. There was no hoarding mentality or selfishness, just giving and kindness. If we have a desire to change the status quo and dig ourselves out of our own little foxholes, then we would do well to study the Japanese way of life.
I have alluded to the importance of community in the past and the Japanese are excellent examples of how a tight knit community can overcome odds and still remain positive. We are all more than the sum of our parts. The more involved we become with community, the stronger we become both individually and as a whole. Simply knowing that there are strangers out there who are willing to jump in and help regardless of the circumstances has a calming effect and can dispel depression and anxiety. If we have community to fall back on, then we need have no fear of what the future holds. However, most people don't recognize this simple concept. We are all in this together, this rollercoaster called life, and we can not travel the road alone. (OK, so we technically could, but it would be very depressing and difficult). Maybe it is time we reached out to others in our communities, shared our stories and listened to theirs. We all have unique traits that when combined with others, can produce fantastic results. Do you have a community to fall back on? Are there people willing to go out of their way to help you? If not, start building your community around you. Talk to your neighbors, friends, fellow townspeople. The larger a community we have supporting us, the more balanced and worry free our lives will be. (At least thats my take on it.) Smile, for today is a blank page waiting; only you can determine what gets written down.
Monday, March 14, 2011
The Future of Nuclear Power
Following the tragic earthquake in Japan on Friday, a nuclear power plant lost power, essentially disabling its cooling capabilities, and measures are currently being taken to try and avert a complete meltdown of the reactor core. The loss of life from the earthquake and ensuing tsunami were tragic enough, but if scientists are not able to keep the nuclear power plant out of a complete meltdown, the tragedy will increase a thousand fold. As it is, since all power systems at the plant have failed due to the flooding, the measures being taken to keep the reactor cool require some radiation to be expelled into the atmosphere. The radiation being expelled is carried by steam, the result of alternative cooling measures, into the atmosphere. The linked article goes into much more detail about this tragedy.
Nuclear power plants are an excellent way to produce electricity. They use far less fuel and produce greater amounts of electricity than a coal or gas powered plant. However, with the production of so much electricity, there also comes an increased potential for tragedy. Most of the time, when there are issues at a nuclear power plant, there are redundant safety measures that kick in to avert a meltdown, (the worst outcome of a tragedy, i.e. Chernobyl). Aside from the normal operating procedures at a plant, there is also the issue of the waste that is produced from the plant and its lingering radioactivity. In the overall course of nuclear history, problems with actual production have been limited. There has been only one complete meltdown (Chernobyl), and all the other problems have been caught before they could cause serious damage.
Leaving the problem of spent fuel rods alone for now, it seems more pressing to discuss how to avoid production problems like the one currently unfolding in Japan. The issue in Japan was ultimately caused by nature, flood water damaged electrical circuits and disabled back-up generators. But there are lessons to be learned from this tragedy. The earthquake was the strongest ever recorded in Japan producing a tsunami that breached the flood barriers surrounding the nuclear power plant. Now while a quake and tsunami of this proportion were not planned for, maybe it is time to re-examine the safety measures at other nuclear power plants to make sure that they are adequate to protect against a natural disaster of this proportion. The weather across the globe is producing stronger storms more regularly and is becoming increasingly erratic. 100 year storms seem to have the probability of occuring more frequently than previously expected. These storms alone could have a greater negative impact on our power plants if we don't start planning now.
In Japan, the flood barrier was thought to be high enough. Consequently, the back-up generators were placed in a low-lying area that was flooded soon after the water breached the barriers. Similarly, the main electrical connections were in a basement room of the power plant that was also flooded with water rendering them useless. These two issues alone caused a majority of the problems currently unfolding at the nuclear plant today. In addition, it is feared that some of the gauges on the reactor were damaged by the quake and they are not getting proper readings. Simple planning for larger floods and proper placement of electrical equipment and backup generators could have averted this current problem. While it may be costly to re-work some of the existing nuclear power plants around the globe, it would be well worth it in the long run if it could avert tragedy.
Ultimately, it is tragedies like the one in Japan that draw out the skeptics of nuclear power. They will campaign against building new nuclear power plants and call to an end to the ones already in existence. For all its shortcomings, nuclear power has numerous benefits. The biggest benefit in this day and age is its limited atmospheric polution. Whether or not you are a believer in global warming, it is a fact that regular power plants fueled by coal or gas, produce atmospheric pollution. New power plants produce less, but it is still produced. With an every increasing global population, more power plants are needed, and more pollution is produced. Nuclear power can produce that electricity with potentially far less pollution in the short run. If there was an efficient way of disposing of the radioactive waste safely, it would be an even more attractive solution to producing power.
Do I support nuclear power plants? Partially. I love the idea, but I am also aware that we need more safeguards and more attention needs to be paid to disposing of the nuclear waste. My solution would be to retrofit the nuclear power plants still operating with more extensive safeguards and divert the money that would be spent on new ones to developing more effecient ways of harnessing "green energy" such as wind power and solar power. With the increase in strong storms, there is also in increase in wind which could be harnessed to produce power. The problem is, people would rather have a nuclear power plant hundreds of miles away rather than a wind farm closer to their house. In this day and age, we can not simply look at the aesthetics of power, we must also look at the potential for harm that each one produces whether it be pollution or nuclear radiation.
This tragedy in Japan, while it may not affect all of us directly, has dire implications. Nothing can be done to reverse what happened, but we can learn from mistakes in planning and design to try and avert this type of disaster at other nuclear power plants in the future. This could offer the impetus needed to divert more money to develop more efficient "green power" technology, a far safer bet than any coal, gas, or nuclear power plant. We can no longer simply look at the short term solutions for our energy problems. We must look at our increasing population and what it means for energy production and, conversely, energy conservation. We can all do our part starting with energy conservation, using less electricity by simply changing light bulbs, recycling more, and watching what appliances we keep running. Lets all start small by minimizing the amount of electricity we use and supporting green energy alternatives. Till next time, turn off the light when you leave the room, it all helps.
Nuclear power plants are an excellent way to produce electricity. They use far less fuel and produce greater amounts of electricity than a coal or gas powered plant. However, with the production of so much electricity, there also comes an increased potential for tragedy. Most of the time, when there are issues at a nuclear power plant, there are redundant safety measures that kick in to avert a meltdown, (the worst outcome of a tragedy, i.e. Chernobyl). Aside from the normal operating procedures at a plant, there is also the issue of the waste that is produced from the plant and its lingering radioactivity. In the overall course of nuclear history, problems with actual production have been limited. There has been only one complete meltdown (Chernobyl), and all the other problems have been caught before they could cause serious damage.
Leaving the problem of spent fuel rods alone for now, it seems more pressing to discuss how to avoid production problems like the one currently unfolding in Japan. The issue in Japan was ultimately caused by nature, flood water damaged electrical circuits and disabled back-up generators. But there are lessons to be learned from this tragedy. The earthquake was the strongest ever recorded in Japan producing a tsunami that breached the flood barriers surrounding the nuclear power plant. Now while a quake and tsunami of this proportion were not planned for, maybe it is time to re-examine the safety measures at other nuclear power plants to make sure that they are adequate to protect against a natural disaster of this proportion. The weather across the globe is producing stronger storms more regularly and is becoming increasingly erratic. 100 year storms seem to have the probability of occuring more frequently than previously expected. These storms alone could have a greater negative impact on our power plants if we don't start planning now.
In Japan, the flood barrier was thought to be high enough. Consequently, the back-up generators were placed in a low-lying area that was flooded soon after the water breached the barriers. Similarly, the main electrical connections were in a basement room of the power plant that was also flooded with water rendering them useless. These two issues alone caused a majority of the problems currently unfolding at the nuclear plant today. In addition, it is feared that some of the gauges on the reactor were damaged by the quake and they are not getting proper readings. Simple planning for larger floods and proper placement of electrical equipment and backup generators could have averted this current problem. While it may be costly to re-work some of the existing nuclear power plants around the globe, it would be well worth it in the long run if it could avert tragedy.
Ultimately, it is tragedies like the one in Japan that draw out the skeptics of nuclear power. They will campaign against building new nuclear power plants and call to an end to the ones already in existence. For all its shortcomings, nuclear power has numerous benefits. The biggest benefit in this day and age is its limited atmospheric polution. Whether or not you are a believer in global warming, it is a fact that regular power plants fueled by coal or gas, produce atmospheric pollution. New power plants produce less, but it is still produced. With an every increasing global population, more power plants are needed, and more pollution is produced. Nuclear power can produce that electricity with potentially far less pollution in the short run. If there was an efficient way of disposing of the radioactive waste safely, it would be an even more attractive solution to producing power.
Do I support nuclear power plants? Partially. I love the idea, but I am also aware that we need more safeguards and more attention needs to be paid to disposing of the nuclear waste. My solution would be to retrofit the nuclear power plants still operating with more extensive safeguards and divert the money that would be spent on new ones to developing more effecient ways of harnessing "green energy" such as wind power and solar power. With the increase in strong storms, there is also in increase in wind which could be harnessed to produce power. The problem is, people would rather have a nuclear power plant hundreds of miles away rather than a wind farm closer to their house. In this day and age, we can not simply look at the aesthetics of power, we must also look at the potential for harm that each one produces whether it be pollution or nuclear radiation.
This tragedy in Japan, while it may not affect all of us directly, has dire implications. Nothing can be done to reverse what happened, but we can learn from mistakes in planning and design to try and avert this type of disaster at other nuclear power plants in the future. This could offer the impetus needed to divert more money to develop more efficient "green power" technology, a far safer bet than any coal, gas, or nuclear power plant. We can no longer simply look at the short term solutions for our energy problems. We must look at our increasing population and what it means for energy production and, conversely, energy conservation. We can all do our part starting with energy conservation, using less electricity by simply changing light bulbs, recycling more, and watching what appliances we keep running. Lets all start small by minimizing the amount of electricity we use and supporting green energy alternatives. Till next time, turn off the light when you leave the room, it all helps.
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