Total Health Breakthroughs: Free Natural Health Newsletter and Alternative Health Articles

You don’t need to be a scientist to know that chronic back pain can have a negative impact on your life, often bringing with it anxiety and depression. It can affect your ability to work, sleep, and perform other daily activities.

Until recently, it has been assumed that whatever changes occurred in the brain as a result of chronic back pain were only temporary and that the brain would revert to a normal state once the pain stopped.

Recent findings by researchers from Northwestern University have turned this assumption on its head. What they found was that chronic back pain — defined as pain lasting six months or longer — can cause significant and long-lasting damage to the brain, aging it up to 20 times faster than normal.¹

The Northwestern study is consistent with other research on chronic pain and cognitive ability.

Evidence of a link between chronic pain and brain function comes from a study done at Keele University in the United Kingdom. Scientists compared the “prospective” memory — such as remembering to pick up groceries or keep a doctor’s appointment — of 50 subjects with chronic back pain to the memory of 50 subjects who were pain-free.

Investigators used something called the Prospective Memory Questionnaire, a self-rating scale that requires users to record the number of times their prospective memory fails in a given period of time. The scale measures three types of prospective memory: long-term habitual, short-term episodic, and internally cued.

Are you one of the 100 million Americans struggling through life with a “broken brain?” Do you suffer from any of the following?

Depression
Anxiety
Bipolar disorder
ADD
Autism
Dementia
Alzheimer’s disease
More subtle symptoms like mood swings, sleep problems, poor concentration, and brain fog

If you have been coping with conditions like these, you are not alone. We are seeing a rising tide [...]

I was on a secret conference call the other day that included doctors and association executives in the field of Alzheimer’s research. The question came up about what a particular industry executive should say when asked about topics in Alzheimer’s research.
The first suggestion had to do with drug trials and how to get more people [...]

It seems that everywhere we turn, we’re told about the toxins in our environment that can cause us harm and disease.

Yet I believe we may be ignoring the number one toxin of all. This is the toxin that will put an end to your productivity. It will make you miserable and it will take you down if you let it.

If you are not careful and you do not keep your guard up, it will have a greater influence on your life, your success and even your health than any toxin in your food or water.

The toxin I am talking about is the negative people in your life.

If you had a brand new Ferrari, you probably would not give the keys to just anyone. You would be careful how you took care of it and who you let borrow it, drive it, or even ride in it. You probably wouldn’t let anyone eat or drink in it. Yet you freely give away “the keys” to more precious possessions every day — your mind and your attitude — when you let negative people decide what goes in your head and what you listen to.

Your morning cup o’ joe may protect you from one of the most dreaded diseases of our time. A new study says that drinking five medium-sized cups of coffee a day could lower your chances of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.¹

The study followed mice that were bred to develop Alzheimer’s. After two months of drinking water with 500 mg of caffeine added — the equivalent of five 8 oz. cups of coffee or two venti hot coffees from Starbucks — the mice performed much better on memory and thinking tests compared to mice that were given only water.

In Friday’s issue I told you about a study that showed up to 96,000 Americans die each year from a lack of omega-3 fats in their diet. On the heels of this study comes news of a new way to test your omega-3 levels.

The extroverts have it —at least when it comes to living to a ripe old age. Scientists say that people who are outgoing are 50% less likely to develop dementia. They’re even more likely to live to be 100.

It’s a fact — the longer you live, the more your sex hormone levels will drop, causing a change in your quality of life and increasing your risk for chronic illnesses. Sex hormones begin to drop at about age 40 in both men and women. This means most of us will live nearly 40 years past the time our hormones start to noticeably decrease.

In 1979, Norman Cousins wrote a groundbreaking book. He claimed the best medicine for his painful arthritis was 10 minutes of hearty laughter every day watching Marx Brothers movies. It gave him two hours of pain-free sleep every night.

Getting your teeth straightened isn’t something just for teenagers anymore. Many adults just like you who have felt uncomfortable with their smiles, now have straight, healthy teeth.

You may have worn braces when you were younger, but because you stopped wearing your retainer at some point, your teeth have relapsed overtime. So now they are a little crooked — this is a very common problem in adults.

Or, if you weren’t able to get your teeth straightened when you were younger, now is the time to find out more about the Invisible alternative to metal braces and wires.