Do You know What Runs Through My Mind?

Nutritional Considerations for a Healthy Pregnancy

2011-07-06T15:09:00.000-07:00

Inflammation is central to reproductive success. Normal ovulation's, menstruation, implantation and parturition are all inflammatory processes. In contrast, conditions of pregnancy represent an exaggerated inflammatory response (systemic or localized), including spontaneous abortion, preterm labor, preterm pre-labor rupture of the membranes (PPROM), preeclampsia, and other "great obstetrical syndromes."
Clearly, pregnancy females and those who wish to be pregnancy should pursue an anti-inflammatory lifestyle that includes exercise, a healthy diet, and healthy thinking. An operational goal should be to maintain a normal inflammatory state, so that both mother and developing child can get through the initial nine month process in a healthy fashion, which should then be followed by a healthy recovery for the mother and a healthy developmental process for the newborn.
Regarding diet, researchers coined the term "fertility diet" to describe the diet that is most conducive to a healthy pregnancy, which is very similar to the Mediterranean-like, anti-inflammatory diet that I have described previously in many TAC articles. Regarding the Mediterranean diet, preterm birth was reduced in Danish woman who adhered to such a diet.

Useful Nutrients during Pregnancy
A prenatal vitamin supplement is very common; however, research suggests that there are additional nutrients to consider as possible supportive measures.
Dietary fiber from food or supplements may be advised. Adequate dietary fiber intake has been associated with a reduced expression of gestational diabetes and pre-eclampsia.
Maternal omega-3 fatty acid supplementation during late pregnancy and lactation decreases the risk of developing food allergy and IgE associated eczema in infants during their first year of life. Published papers outline an omega-3 plan during pregnancy.
Adequate vitamin D intake is crucial for maternal and the health of the developing infant. Recent evidence indicates pregnant and lactating women may need as much as 7,000 IU's of vitamin D per day.
When women supplement with probiotics, such as Lactobacillus GG, before and after pregnancy, there is a reduced expression of eczema in their children.

Summary
A healthy nutritional approach for mothers and their developing child is very straightforward and supported by clinical research. Consideration should be given to an anti-inflammatory diet that is supported by fiber, a multivitamin, vitamin D fish oil, and probiotics.
There is an additional concern that should be considered if infertility is a problem. Silent celiac disease can manifest as infertility in some women and this has been suspected for many years.

-This artical was written by Dr. David Seaman.
Dr. David Seaman is a Professor of Clinical Sciences at National University of Health Sciences - SPC campus and is a consultant for Anabolic Labortories. He has written numerous articles on the treatment options for chronic pain patients, with a focus on nutritional management.

The 10 Principles of Strength Through Motion

2011-06-17T16:55:00.000-07:00

The Egoscue Method defines the laws of physical health utilizing custom-designed therapies to reintroduces the laws that will return the body to its natural state of health -- free from pain and limitations.

"All of the steps in this ten-stop process are personalized to the specific needs of each participant. There are no manipulations or artificial simulations. The dynamic program becomes a process of transformation in harmony with the body's changes as the laws are applied and reestablished.

This personalized program usually extends to eight weeks with a follow-up for reinforcement or the development of a maintenance program.

The Three Forces

1. The Force of Movement
In order to maintain optimal overall health and keep our vital physiological systems functional, we need to have consistent movement in our daily routine. If we don't, we suffer from motion starvation and our bodies will begin to reflect the dysfunctions that are being created -- pain, illness, and structural defects. Motion is a renewable resource that must be replenished constantly and responsibly.

2. The Force of Psychology
How we view our bodies and the beliefs we have about the body's complexity and capabilities will either result in a fully functioning body moving with easy fluidity or one without structural support, little energy, and far less physical ability and agility. Therefore, we need to take responsibility and create a lifestyle that includes proper exercise. In turn, we'll be able to do whatever we choose knowing that our bodies will be able to support us.

3. The Force of Stimulus
The body requires constant input i order to maintain its systems and functionality, and to continue to replenish itself from the cells up. Otherwise, the body becomes stagnant, we become lethargic, intellectually lazy, and unable to respond to the demands of our daily lives with efficiency and elegance. a body that is stimulated is alive, energetic, and continually growing."

-Pete Agoscue Unleash the Power Within

Understanding Stress

2011-05-31T10:53:00.001-07:00

Understanding Stress

Stress is something that we all talk about and experience but don’t really understand……… or want to. Most people don’t want to talk, much less learn, about stress and it’s effects because it’s a subject that we try to avoid at all costs. That’s why so many of us just hide from it or “soften” it when it stares us in the face. However, if you actually understood what was going on you would be able to not only cope with stress but overcome it. So, I decided to blog a step by step guide to what stress really is and what it does to you. If, you bear with me through this process I promise you will not only come out of this happier but healthier too or your money back!!

First off before you start to yawn and your eyes start to glaze over just give me a moment to give you a foundation to work with, o.k.? Alright then, here goes. Stress can be defined as “the body’s inability to cope with its environment”, now the environment is the total surroundings of body. For now I’ll just leave it at that. We’ll go into more detail later on after you have a firm foundation.

Next, we have to understand the General Adaptation System (or G.A.S.) principal that was brought to us from the father of stress, Han Selye basically he’s the Michael Jordan of stress. Through his studies we learned that the body goes through 3 stages in dealing with stress:

1. Alarm reaction: this is the “fight or flight” reaction that you go through when you are scared or surprised.

2. Adaptation: this is how you change to meet the needs of the environment.

3. Exhaustion: This is not the exhaustion we talk about after a long tough day at work, this is the exhaustion that kills you and is very serious matter.

Now, we have to know the 3 ways that we can experience stress and we will have pretty much the basics down. These are:

1. Physical: This is easy to understand, something physically happens to you to stress you out.

2. Emotional: This is the “stress” most people relate to the topic, financial, kids, spouse, ect it is the “feel” when we are not happy with life.

3. Chemical: This type of stress is one that is not even on most people’s radar, chemical stress can come from poisons (large and small), food addatives, even chemicals you make in your body as a reaction to …..you guessed it, stress. Yes, stress can cause stress.

The interesting thing about these 3 stressors is that the body reacts the same regardless of which types of stress or which combination of stressor might be dealing with.

You now have the basics of stress (that wasn’t so bad was it) it’s like learning the alphabet before you can read, you could memorize a few words and be able to recognize or you learn the basics and read any book you want. Now you know:

What stress is?

3 reactions to Stress (GAS)

3 types of stress (physical, chemical, emotional)

Next time, Is Stress Real?

Improve your health with the proper pillow

2011-05-20T16:42:00.000-07:00

These days, life seems to rush along at an increasingly fast pace while appreciation of proper sleep habits seems to diminish at the same speed. We start our day with too much caffeine and end it with too little sleep. The natural consequence of this is insomnia and other sleep problems. Chiropractors have all likely seen their fair share of patients with stiff necks, shoulders or backs due to "sleeping funny." This can be a double whammy, as an uncomfortable pillow may not only exacerbate existing sleeping problems, but also can undo all the good done by an adjustment. In an effort to help you experience a more restful night.
Often times a persons current pillow may be so familiar to them that they have no idea how much better they could feel with a new one that properly supports them. As Lisa Lounsbrough of Pivotal Health Solutions located in Watertown, S.C. noted, Keep in mind that if people have been sleeping on an old filled or flattened-out pillow, a more supportive pillow may take several nights to get used to as the body readjusts to correct alignment. They should begin getting adjusted by their doctor prior to using their new orthopedic pillow.
Kend Greenawalt, president and CEO of Roanoke, VA- based Foot Levelers, agreed that it may take time for a person to get used to a new pillow. As he explained, A pillow with proper corrective support may initially feel less comfortable than 'old squishy,' but the benefits of improved sleep posture by way of a properly supported cervical pillow will reveal themselves to the person in due course.
As you know, people come in all shapes and sizes, as Charles Halley, DC, with Heavenly Pillow and Mattress in Tampa, Fla., explained that the person's height will determine the best contour pillow to suit their needs: "The average person will take a 4 1/2-inch-thick pillow; that is usually somebody from 5'6 to 5'll. Taller people will take a 5-inch pillow and people shorter than 5'6' will take a 4-inch pillow. This is all based on your height being relative to the width of your shoulders. This is not always true, but it does hold 90 percent of the time."
Leslie Edwards of Therapeutica, based in Ontario, Canada, explained that two of the biggest culprits for many of these conditions are immobility and gravity. According to Edwards, this becomes important when trying to explain things in terms people will understand.
She explained, "A good portion of your day is spent immobile. If you add the hours you spend sleeping, sitting at the office, travelling to work, sitting at mealtimes and in front of a television or computer, you will get a number between 20 and 22 hours per day. Immobility is not in itself bad; everyone needs to physically rest. The issue is that our backs were designed to support the survival of an active individual. Thwenty hours a day of immobility was never in the plan. Gravity bears down on us 24 hours a day whether ware mobile or immobile. Damage is caused by the cumulative stress from incorrectlyu positionaing our back during the meany hours we are immobile."
Of course people will want to know exactly what conditions might be helped by trading in their favorite pillow for a brand- new one. As Nagel explained, There are many conditions a proper orthopedic pillow can help resolve, but the first consideration is ensuring that people can have a resful and god night's sleep. Proper and adequate sleep will help restore energy and allow a body to heal naturally. Conditions that may be helped or improved byuse of an orthopedic pillow include
-general neck pain/stiffness
-sleep apnea
-snoring
-whiplash
-breathing difficulty
-acid reflux
-blood circulation issues
-back pain
-shoulder injuries
-sciatica
-tension headaches
and more.
Experts recommend sleeping on the back or side, rather than face down.
As Edwards (Therapeutica) noted, Your sleep environment is essential to quality sleep. Some of these things can be easily addressed; the amount of light, noise and temperature in you're room. Your mattress and pillow play a vital role in the quantity and quality of sleep you achieve. People should be educated to understand this value. A pillow that offers no support to the neck or upper back is an impediment to quality sleep.

Artican by DCPI Staff

5 Truths About Wellness Care

2011-05-13T15:34:00.000-07:00

5. Symptoms are not the problem, but an alert to an underlying cause and should be heeded, not silenced with chemicals (medication).

4. The body has an inborn ability to restore itself and will adapt to outside stressors, whether they are physical, emotional or chemical. When these stressors become too much, the body will eventually wear itself down trying to maintain balance; this results in an absence of health and wellness.

3. Wellness practitioners do not diagnose or treat conditions and diseases, but instead identify and remove outside stressors.

2. Wellness care focuses on improving function rather than hiding symptoms.

1. Doctors of chiropractic recognize the value of preventative care compared to symptom-based care. With regular adjustments, spinal health is maintained, encouraging proper nervous system function and allying for the body to perform at its best.

This article was written by:
Claudia Anrig, DC, practices in Fresno, Calif., and is on the board of directors of International Chiropractic Pediatric Association

Diabetes 1 to 3

2011-05-09T16:11:00.000-07:00

Forty years from now, what will you be doing? Whatever your age by then, do you think you will be enjoying life? Chances are life won't be easy if you're one of the millions expected to be suffering from diabetes.

According to the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, between one in three and one in five U.S. adults will be diabetics by the year 2050. If we consider the one-in-three estimate, that means nearly 80 million adults will suffer from a condition whose symptom's range from unusual thirst, hunger, weight loss and fatigue to frequent infections, blurred vision tingling/numbness of the hands/feet and slow wound healing. In the worst-case scenario, diabetes can lead to deep skin ulcers necessitating limb amputation, blindness, stroke, kidney disease and eventual death.

Not a pretty picture, is it? Certainly not what you envision for you or your children within 40 years. Fortunately, there is a simple strategy to help reduce your risk of developing diabetes in the vast majority of cases: According to the American Diabetes Association, "You can prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes through a healthy lifestyle. Change your diet, increase your level of physical activity, maintain a healthy weight.. with these positive steps, you can stay healthier longer and reduce your risk of diabetes." Your doctor can give you information on diabetes prevention and assess your risk. Do it today.

-Toyourhealth.com January 2011

The Backpack Dilemma

2011-05-06T17:35:00.000-07:00

This article was written by George Le Beau, D.C. is Clinical Associate Professor, (Chiropractic) and Clinic Director at the International Medical University (IMU), in Kuala Lumpur, Malasia.

The controversy and dialog about the problem with backpacks has raged for decades. Many groups have don "studies" to determine the extent of continuing trauma to young people literally saddled with carrying numerous books in backpacks that can easily weigh as much as 15% or more of their total body weight. Organization such as The American Chiropractic Association and the American Orthopedic Association have sponsored and performed numerous studies to determine the long term effects of heavy backpacks on the musculoskeletal frame of children. The results of these studies have been published almost continuously in national and international journals. Everyone agrees that the "Back Pack Syndrome" (Figure #1) IS A real and threatening danger to the structural health of children in their formative years. The degree of threat varies from one "report" too another with some going as far as saying it can contribute to "Developmental Scoliosis." The preponderance of information available on this subject shows no good evidence in support of this theory. However, the occurrence of back pain symptoms in children who carry a high percentage of body weight in their backpacks is supported by numerous studies published in high-quality journals from around world. There is no doubt that the problem exists. The dilemma is.. what do we do about it? All sorts of suggestions have been presented from proper weight distribution (not carrying the pack on both shoulders equally) to designing a more ergonomic backpack, (Figure #2). To have a better understanding about the confusion surrounding this problem, perform a Google search of "Images, Backpacks." Daunting, to say the least. Of the dozens of pictured suggestions there are arguments for the adoption of each one in eliminating the problem. However, none of these suggestions eliminates anything. At best, they "accommodate" the child to the pack. We, as chiropractors, are always telling our patients that we treat the "cause" of the problem, not the "symptom." Designing a better backpack treats the symptom ! To eliminate the "cause," we simply need to get rid of the backpack entirely. One suggestion for this is "wheeled" (or in Europe and Asia, "trolley") backpacks. I believe the airline industry was first in connecting "continuing trauma" workers compensation disability claims with heavy backpacks. The solution reached by their research department was to require the use of special wheeled cases for their pilots and flight attendants. While this approach may take the weight off the child's shoulders and back, putting it onto the cart, other issues then come into play. Probably the most serious for young people, especially boys, is teasing and harassment from peers about being a sissy, weakling or any number of inventive, disparaging remarks their "friends" ca come up with. Another problem is the issue of stairs. Most schools from kindergarten to universities abound with stairs of every type and description. As a result, we not only have the weight problem to contend with, we also have the awkward and unwieldy (no pun intended) handle and wheels to lug up those pesky stairs. Yes, the handle retracts and there are straps on the trolley, but how many kids are going to bother with that when the bell rings and their in a rush? Others are still promoting the re-institution of school lockers. However, there are n a number of inherent problems with school provided lockers in every part of the world; for instance, cost, danger (e.g., drugs, weapons, pornography), graffiti, continuous abuse, damage and repair and last, but not least, hiding younger classmates for later release at the most embarrassing moment.
In today's digital age, and advanced computer technology, a possible solution to this widespread and potentially disastrous problem exists. It is possible put every word of every book in existence into electronic format. Indeed, this "paperless revolution" is already being done by just about every publishing house in the world expect, for some reason, the educational materials publishers. How simple it would be to take those very heavy textbooks and transfer that material onto a CD or post it on a password protected website. Teaches could hand out assignments via email or on a thumb drive. Students would then upload the information to their computer (Do you know any student who does not own one?), follow the "menu" to the appropriate chapter and study directly from their computer. Most of them do this anyway, even though they still have to lug the physical books around. This solution eliminates all but the smallest pack that would be used to hold and transport the CD's. With the tens of billions of dollars spent each year on school books, the savings to Government and State Education Departments would be enormous. Maybe this is part of the problem. With the incredible profit margin made by the educational publishing houses, I'm sure the publisher's lobby would surely do everything possible to block this advancement. Where are the environmentalists, "Tree Huggers," when you NEED them?

10 Keys To Lower Spinal Stability

2011-05-04T17:05:00.000-07:00

This article was written by Brian D. Jensen, D.C.

1. Inflammation- Inflammation can be the result of acute trauma or it can be the result of chronic dietary choices. The acute inflammation in some ways is much easier to treat and can result in dramatic symptomatic changes quickly. The chronic inflammatory condition can have more profound effects to overall heath and will require the patient to make some serious changes in their lifestyle, but the benefits are certainly worth the effort. Simple dietary changes to eliminate the inflammatory foods from the diet will make a dramatic difference, while failure to address this can lead to major frustration for the patient and doctor alike.

2. Muscle Spasm- Acute spasm is often associated with acute inflammation and responds relatively well in the early stages of care. Chronic spasm may be less painful and may require a more through palpatory examination. Associated findings that may affect how quickly a patient responds are:

3. Myofasical trigger points and..

4. Adhesion's- Both of these findings are long standing problems that, if left unaddressed, will inhibit the patients progress. The idea is that muscles hold bones, and tight muscles hold bones tightly- not to mention that the presence of a trigger point increases the likelihood of another injury at some point. Soft tissue management is very important to optimal patient outcomes. It is something that the patient can actively participate in away from the office with stretching protocols or the use of a muscle management device.

5. Degenerative Arthritis- Any degenerative joint disease (DJD) tells me that the patient already has a degree of limitation and always will. I believe that we can help these people, but we have to be realistic with the limitation of these tissues. You can't "unboil" a hard-boiled egg, and symptomatic relieff is only part of the story for someone with degeneration. X-ray findings of DJD are often discounted because they don't cause a lot of pain for the most part, so we really don't pay too much attention to them. But they are important because they tell a story. All of these asymptomatic findings are results of trauma or gradual degenerative changes because of postural stress, and they are very important because they help us anticipate what will happen in the future. These problems don't go away or improve with age, making it all the more important that we manage them properly.

D.C. Products review - October 2010 17

Rumbly Tumbly -by toyourhealth.com

2011-04-20T17:23:00.000-07:00

Children who receive antibiotics during their first year end up with inflammatory bowel disease - what a coincidence.

    Let's start with a few facts: Antibiotics are medications that fight bacterial infections. That means if your doctor ever prescribes an antibiotic to fight your child's cold, flu, cough (in most cases) sore throat (unless strep) and even bronchitis- all of which are caused by viruses - the antibiotic won't do any good and will be exposing your child to an unnecessary drug with potential side effects. Unfortunately, studies have shown that doctors do prescribe antibiotics for viral infections, and that sometimes, it's to appease the parent, who doesn't want to hear that their child's malaise will improve on its own in a few days or so.
    Between unnecessary prescribing for viral infections and appropriate prescribing for bacterial infections, children can end up taking several courses of antibiotics in their early years. That can be a problem for several reasons, not the least of which is that, as a recent study suggests, they can end up with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) later in life. While researchers did not find a clear cause-and-effect relationship between antibiotic use in year one and IBD in childhood, they did notice that children diagnosed with the condition were more likely to have taken antibiotics (one or more courses) in their first year compared to children without IBD.
    If you don't know what inflammatory bowel disease is, trust us, you don't want your child to ever suffer from it. IBD is a chronic disease that causes inflammation of the intestines and symptoms almost too painful to mention - painful ulcers in the lining or inner wall of the intestines that cause bleeding, diarrhea, abdominal cramping, weight loss and anemia. Bad enough if your child ever were to develop IBD; worse still if antibiotics were to blame.

The 5 Most Important Concepts to Understanding the Truth about Health and Illness

2010-12-17T20:00:00.000-08:00

The following concepts were first brought together by Dr James Chestnut who shines a light on the natural physiology of our bodies and the current destruction of health that is occurring in our society today. If you understand these concepts you will be armed with the ability to make health care choices that are based in logic and not on mass marketing, whether it's the "vaccine of the month" or the latest fad diet.

1. Our genes are programmed for health. It is toxicity and/or deficiency affecting gene expression that leads to sickness NOT faulty genetics. In other words don't just lay there and blame your parents.

2. Our genes do NOT differ from our paleolithic, hunter-gatherer, pre-agricultural, pre-industrial ancestors.

3. Our ancestors, and surviving tribes that model their lifestyles, did NOT die from the diseases of lifestyle like heart disease, hypertension, cancer, diabetes and stroke or suffer from the degenerative or autoimmune diseases like arthritis, lupus, M.S., chronic fatigue, low fertility, and depression like modern humans do.

4. The only difference between our healthy ancestors and our sick society is toxicity and deficiency. The genes are the same.

5. Modern illness is due to environmental NOT genetic factors. Modern illnesses are AVOIDABLE!! Modern health is ATTAINABLE!!

Bottom line here is that we haven't changed as humans, we have only changed our environment. Once we begin living like we were intended we will obtain health.

Most Dangerous Driving Day of the Year

2010-12-15T18:13:00.000-08:00

Researchers at AllState Insurance dubbed today the "most dangerous driving day of the year". Yup, December 15th Mars and Venus align perfectly on this day to make the magnetic energies of large vehicles collide. Why this always happens on December 15 is way beyond me.....fact is that it does.

If you are unfortunate enough to be one of the folks caught up in a car boo boo, you must visit your Chiropractor that is specially trained in the whiplash (spinal trauma). There is a lot more to spinal injuries than just your pain level and the amount of damage done to your vehicle. Many people will not experience symptoms until weeks or months after an injury, some people will just put up with pain expecting it to "just go away" on it's own, and others will rely on pain pills, anti-inflammatory, and muscle relaxants (what we call the "triple threat") thinking that chemicals will be the answer to a mechanical problem.......it won't. In fact, between 42%-62% of the people injured in rear end auto accidents will have permanent damage that affects their daily life.

If you're local to Yorba Linda call my office 714-777-2500 and get a detailed examination, if you're not local call my office and I'll get you a referral to someone else that knows what their doing.

WooHoo!!, I Got Paid Big Time!!

2010-11-19T18:50:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone,
I wanted to share the wealth and the blessings that I received with anyone interested in listening (or reading). Several months ago I was reading a prayer chain that one of my patients sends out (thank you Mrs. Johnson). This particular chain had a request for prayers for a little boy (9years) that was having intractable grand mal (the big ones)seizures (30-40/day), he had been to several "specialists" including a UCLA (Go Bruins:) neurosurgeon that had localized the origination point and wanted to take it out..........brain surgery!!! Obviously, the boy's parents did not want their son's brain dissected with the "chance" that it might help his seizures. The little boy, Richard, was taken out of school, unable to play like the other kids, and was walked around exhausted all the time because seizures and of the many drugs that he was taking to try to control the seizures.
I answered the request with the understanding that I don't have a "cure" for epilepsy but if there was any pressure or interference on the nervous system that could be removed with the Chiropractic adjustment the body will heal itself. I'm not an "expert" on epilepsy but I have more first hand knowledge than most because I was in a similar situation growing up. And it was the help that I received from Chiropractic that allowed me to function normally (those of you that know me can argue what "normal" is but, at least I'm me).
I offered to give it my very best with no promises of a cure. Doctor's don't heal, people do. They have been to many different doctors that were asking the same question "how do I get rid of this boy's seizures?". If you ask the same question to people that are trained the same, think the same, and have similar treatment options you will get basically the same type of answer. I asked a different question, "How is this kid functioning?" and by addressing this question, I got a different answer.

I found various areas of spinal pressure and related symptoms and took care of them. After only 2 adjustments, seizures reduced to 15-20 a day, after another week he had 2 seizures THE WHOLE WEEK, and by the 3rd week NO SEIZURES. 4th week he began decreasing his medications, praise the Lord.
When Richard came into the office he was so lethargic that he could barley stand, mumbled when he talked, and couldn't follow directions because of the heavy doses of medications. Well, Richard came back into my office a couple of days ago, it's been a couple of months since I've seen him, and he was AWESOME!! He had gained about 17lbs, he was talkative, smiling, happy, and a bit of a smartass.....just like a normal little boy.
His parents brought me a box of chocolates, a beautiful thank you card, and a $50 gift certificate for PF Changs, I had not charged them for any of my services or time that I had put into Richard;s case, as a thank you for helping their son. They also wrote a wonderful testimonial for Chiropractic care that I could share with others. This family did everything that I asked of them and never missed an appointment (even though it was a 70 mile round trip from their house), and they got the results that they were looking for.

As I said, I didn't charge them for any of my services but I got paid well with their gratitude.....I couldn't have asked for more.

Techology and the Diabetic Monkey

2010-11-08T19:54:00.000-08:00

Ok World here it is................my first blog. I never thought I'd get to this out with all my technical skills and great fear of computers or anything with a button. I've had lots of firsts this year. First smart phone (now I just have to learn how to use it), First, email account that I actually use (sometimes), first, thing in my ear for cell phone, first, facebook (now I have like 10), first, text, first trip to Starbucks, and now my first blog. I am now offically cool.

I didn't know what to write on this thing, I have lots of thoughts running through my mind (constantly) but they don't translate well to the written word although it might make a very interesting cartoon. I do think alot........that consipated look I often have is just my ponderings of philosophy and logic. Mostly I just think about how to get people to value their lives a little more than actually do. I see people everyday that just don't seem to care about anything other than what's happening to them at this very moment. They don't realize that whatever they're experiencing right now was a result of the choices that they made yesterday. Which brings me to my diabetic monkey.

I took the family to San Deigo Zoo this past weekend. Amelia (my daughter) had her 6th birthday and wanted to see a Tucan (no she doesn't eat FruitLoops). So, Stephanie (my wife) brought her best friend and Amelia brought her best friend so they could enjoy the day together. I, on the other hand, .........brought an iPod (my best friend). My best friend helped drowned out the sound of .........well, let's not go there.

First place we go is the monkey cage. Monkeys are cool. We watched them do their thing and were entertained for a while. Then there was a "zoo lady" there to answer any questions that we might have about the monkeys. Another little boy asked what the monkeys ate. The "zoo lady" proudly stated that they have a great variety in their diets they eat fruits and veggies and they give them treats like Honey Nut Cherrios and BBQ sauce. My head spun around like a top, I asked the lady to repeat herself because I know I couldn't have heard what I thought I heard....but, I did. "Are you f#*%ing kidding me?" I began to pepper the lady with questions like where in nature are Cherrios found? did they discover that monkey's do have the enzymes to breakdown all that crap? How fat and sick does the zoo want these monkeys to be? Is the zoo making all of the monkeys diabetic or just this one? Is the BBQ sauce the cancer causing kind like we eat or the healthy kind that the monkeys make themselves in Africa? What kind of Beer does he like with it? There is an endangered species sign in fron to his cage, is that for the whole species or just the ones you guys feed?

The "zoo lady" assured me that they have a nutritional "expert" on staff to look after all of the animals........I really wanted to meet this "expert" but I had a couple of 6 year olds tugging at my leg..........really? Cherrios and BBQ sauce?

In nature, there is no cancer, heart disease and diabetes these are all lifestyle diseases that only occur when we mess with God's plan. I don't know of anything that has been improved my our meddling in nature.

By the way, the only other animal I saw being fed was the polar bear, they were feeding him lettuce and carrots, they said that that they give him 5% fat in his diet because of the weather in San Diego. How often does a polar bear see a head of lettuce or a carrot in Alaska? Don't they eat fish and seals (aka fat)?.....As long as they're experts

Dr J