Resolution Keeper
Q: I really want to keep my New Year’s resolution this year to exercise more. What can I do to be successful?
A: One answer is to find an exercise buddy. Talk to your friends and find someone who wants to exercise and is willing to be your exercise buddy. On days that you may not feel like getting out there, your buddy will cajole you into it. Of course, there will be days that they don’t feel like it and turn about is fair play. A number of studies showthat this is an effective way to increase physical activity. Project IMPACT studied college students and found that their levels of physical activity increased significantly when they had to keep a record of their activity and they had an exercise buddy.(1) Another study of telephone-assisted physical activity promotion program for older adults in California showed that even a telephone buddy was helpful in increasing physical activity.
Many work places have health promotion groups to increase physical activity. We are lucky that here in Portland, OR, there are a number of great groups, such as the Wonders of Walking, Portland Fit, and Team in Training, that meet on a weekly basis and hold you accountable to your goals. However if a group is not for you, all you need is one good buddy.(2)
— Arianna Staruch
Funny Tape
Q: What was that funny-looking tape on the shoulder of women’s volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh during the summer Olympics? As a walker with occasional lower leg pain, I don’t like wearing braces of any sorts. Can this tape help me?
A: This is called Kinesio Tape. A Japanese chiropractor, Dr. Kenzo Kase, developed it more than 25 years ago. Dr. Kase created it with the desire to send patients home with something that offered, or maintained, a therapeutic affect.
Jim Wallis, head athletic trainer (ATC/R) at Portland State University’s Sports Medicine program, was instrumental in bringing Kinesio over from Japan in the mid-1990s. Jim was familiar with the various forms of athletic tape used for supporting joints of athletes during competition and their rehabilitation. When he first examined Kinesio tape, he noticed it had almost zero supportive properties. In fact, he could easily tear with his hands. Curious, he went to the source to learn about it.
Kinesio has the elasticity of the epidermis (top layer of your skin). It is lightweight and, when applied properly, the patient doesn’t “feel it” on their skin. It is waterproof and typically worn for two-to-four days before being removed. As for its physical properties, that’s it. There are no medicinal substances on the tape, only a hypo-allergenic, heat-activated adherent. What makes Kinesio effective is the manner in which it is applied.
Proper application assists with draining lymph edema (swelling of the body), acute or chronic pain management, neuromuscular re-education, and mild proprioceptive support. Understanding human physiology, and the different taping techniques, make health care professionals credentialed in Kinesio the practitioners of choice.
Make sure your therapist is credentialed in Kinesio and get back to enjoying the activities of life you enjoy.
— Greg Lekas
The Skinny on Vitamin D
Q: I’m interested in keeping healthy bones and have seen a lot of new information on Vitamin D; what’s the story behind Vitamin D?
A: Vitamin D has vitamin and hormone-like activity. Vitamin D is critical to bone health and preventing osteoporosis, and maintaining mental/emotional well being. It also protects against certain cancers and autoimmune conditions, and helps cardiovascular health.
The body makes Vitamin D with exposure to sunlight, and the preferred form for supplements is Vitamin D3.
Since Vitamin D is fat soluble, it has gotten the bad rap of potentially being toxic, since it can accumulate in the body. The problem is that we need sunlight to make the biologically active form in the body, but with the rise in skin cancers we can’t very well tell people to go lay out in the sun to get their daily dose of Vitamin D.
Food sources of Vitamin D include eggs, cod liver oil, fish, oysters, fortified cereals, and dairy products.
To find out your Vitamin D status level a simple Vitamin D, 25-Hydroxy blood test can be ordered. Supplementation of Vitamin D should be based from identifying a deficiency first.
— Lindsey Nelson
1 J Health Psychol. 2008 Nov; 13(8): 1207-12 Project IMPACT: brief report on a pilot programme promoting physical activity among university students.
2 Ann Behav Med. 2005 Jun; 29(3): 155-65 The California active aging community grant program: translating science into practice to promote physical activity in older adults.
This Issue’s Experts
Arianna Staruch, ND, is a naturopathic physician focused on women’s health issues and can be reached at 503-279-0205 or arianna@clearh2o.org.
Greg Lekas, DC, is a chiropractic physician, nationally certified athletic trainer, and strength and conditioning specialist who works with patients of all athletic levels and abilities. He can be reached at gregl@clearh2o.org.
Lindsey Nelson, ND, is a naturopathic primary care physician and can be reached at 503-279-0205 or lindseyn@clearh2o.org.
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