09/10/13

Ulnar Nerve Entrapment

Wikipedia: Ulnar_nerve: Ulnar_nerve_entrapment

Ulnar Nerve Routes

Laser Spine Institute: Spine Conditions: Nerve Root: 'Ulnar Nerve Roots'

8/09/13

This link contains a number of stretches and exercises. I’ve found latissimus dorsi stretch to be most useful.

Creative Bloq: Design: How To: 'Desk exercises: 10 easy routines for designers'

6/27/13

External-validation addiction

·         http://www.scottliddell.com/2011/05/the-internet-and-external-validation-addiction/

Approval Addiction

·        http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-06-26/features/ct-tribu-weigel-approval-addiction-20120626_1_latest-book-approval-facebook

9/12/12

Bad posture (e.g. sitting with the head tilted downward) can exacerbate things such as:

·        Eyestrain,

·        TMD/TMJ,

·        Breathing

Relevant Links

·        The Posture Theory by Max Banfield (website)

·        Antiaginghacks.com: 'Six Tips For Fighting Bad Posture' (includes “Posture Theory” diagram)

5/29/12

The following article contains some interesting information about behaviors that many people may not realize are making them tired.

Behaviors such as leaning against the back of a chair might be keeping you awake, or leaning on an elbow and using the hand to support the head. Pressure keeps you awake.

By avoiding things like this, creating a sensory deprivation, health and behavior may be improved.

Article:

MyAdrenalFatigue.com: '7 Simple Mistakes That Are Making You Tired Everyday'

01/11/12

Sensory Overload and the Asian Concepts of Yin and Yang

Note: Additional information about Yin can be found in a post from 08/07/11 and 06/11/11

·        The VisionHelp Blog: The Yin and Yang of Visual Streams

(also contains a link to the article The Illusion of Independent Visual Streams – Cognitive Neuroscience 2010)

·        Article:  'Christian Yin Yang' from Sharp Iron (a blog)

10/06/11

Benefits from Placing Your Hands in Your Pockets

·        Stretch your chest,

·        Open up your lungs, and

·        Breathe more easily.

Posture: Rounded Shoulders: Effects (‘Putting Hands in Pockets’)

·        Reduce arm tension

Muscle Tension: Arm Tension                                  

09/22/11

Problems caused by too much lateralization (e.g. exercising one side of the body more than the other):

·        Suggestions: Sensory Processing: Laterality: Too Much Lateralisation

·        Suggestions: Other Suggestions: Keeping a Checklist: Backsliding

08/07/11

Sensory Overload and the Asian Concept of Yang

“…Our modern world is completely out of balance with the natural way of Yin and Yang, it is far too Yang; constantly striving to go faster and further, filling everything with more and more content. (This of course produces huge amounts of negative Yin energy in terms of depression, apathy and devitalized food and air. But that’s another story…). The end result is that we become stuffed with too much input and become ill, tired, stressed-out, distorted and unhappy. Overloaded by Yang (negative) we naturally become Yin (negative).

     ‘Letting go’ is a positive function of Yin energy, a bit like releasing the pressure on a pressure cooker. We just let the pressure flow out and do nothing to stop it. We stop ‘holding on’. This is called Wu Wei in Chinese, or ‘action in non-action’. It means actively yielding or choosing non-resistance as a positive choice. It is sometimes described as "investing in loss". We use the negative (Yin) to achieve something positive (harmony), we let go. We learn to trust our Tao or ‘nature’. We trust that it will balance us; we let go of our fear and relax.”

Spiritual Dawn: 'Tai Chi & Letting Go'

“Yin is characterized as slow, soft, yielding, diffuse, cold, wet, and passive; and is associated with water, earth, the moon, femininity and nighttime.

Yang, by contrast, is fast, hard, solid, focused, hot, dry, and aggressive; and is associated with fire, sky, the sun, masculinity and daytime.”

Wikipedia: Yin and yang

06/11/11

Article:

·        Stepcase Lifehack (blog):   Topics:   Productivity:   'Routing the Yin and Yang of Attention and Distraction' by Joel Falconer

03/30/11

Blinking reduces information overload

“The volunteers were found to blink more when they weren’t paying attention.

   ‘What we suggest is that when you start to mind-wander, you basically close your eyelid so there’s less information coming into the brain,’ said Dr Smilek.”

Mail Online: Science & Tech: 'Are you listening to me? Scientists find blinking eyes mean the mind is wandering'

“Make sure that as you use the computer, you blink softly.  Try blinking with the rhythm of the cursor as you type from time to time.  Don’t forget to breathe deeply as you blink.

This important exercise bathes and massages the eye, rests it from the work of focusing for near vision, relieves tension around the eyes, and breaks up the habit of staring, which is harmful to the eyes.  Most people with bad eyesight have lost the ability to blink easily and often; when you see someone wearing thick glasses, you’ll notice that they tend to stare without blinking.  They’ll also frown and squint with effort.  Dr. Bates says that you can either squint or see well.”

Blinking | The School for Self-Healing

·        Suggestions: Sensory Processing: Vision: The Bates System of Better Eyesight without Glasses: Blinking and Breathing

03/26/11

Reposted from 6/05/05:

Virtual Reality (VR)

*Playing computer games in third person mode (able to see your character) causes highway hypnosis and problems with mobility/ocular motility?

*Playing computer games in first person mode (looking through your character’s eyes) reduces eyestrain?

12/20/10

Research Topic: Mouth Breathing

“Often mouth breathing children, who do not receive sufficiently restful sleep, display frustration, anger and reduced attention spans. As such, they are frequently misdiagnosed as suffering from ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder).”
eHow: Effects of Mouth Breathing

Wikipedia: Mouth breathing

Research Topic: Danger of Suppressing Yawns

“’[We yawn] To prevent airways in the lungs from collapsing by stretching the lungs and nearby tissues. "This could explain why yawning seems to occur around the time of shallow breathing (when tired, bored or just arising from bed),’ Shmerling writes.”

answerbag: Why is Yawning So Contagious?

12/13/10

New theory:

People are attracted to bright computer screens and exciting computer games, that create adrenaline and drama, for

·        fun or stimulation, or  

·        because they’re bored, or

·        because they’re trying to improve their concentration and tune-out distractions.

Over time these activities can make a person dependent on computer use to improve concentration, and also make them less able to tune-out distractions. Their concentration becomes more marginalized to myopic and “near work” activities such as computer use. They experience sensory overload. Their sense of space or spatial awareness decreases. People may be attracted to other activities that increase their adrenaline such as by leaning on their elbow.

Vision improvement interventions like the Bates method seem to improve spatial awareness. In exercises like sunning and swinging a person moves while focusing on an object. Other Bates activities like blinking and breathing and palming seem to only rest and rejuvenate the eyes. But other Bates activities such as distance viewing may also be helpful.

Other interventions such as EMDR may improve spatial awareness.

Meditation, or the Bates palming exercise, or simply clearing your mind, may be helpful for dealing with sensory overload.

Activities such actively listening or viewing sounds and objects in  your environment may help to improve concentration by focusing on things that may be distracting.

11/21/10

New research topics:

Health Benefits of Eating Rice Cakes

·        Health Benefits of Mochi

·        Simon and Schuster: Tips on Healthy Living: '6 Snacks to Attack Insomnia'

Celiac disease (food elimination diet [e.g. eating rice cakes], symptoms)

·        American Diabetes Association: Celiac Disease

Celiac disease and cognitive dysfunction or “brain fog”

·         The Center For Development: 'Brain Fog' by Lawrence Wilson, MD

·        Wikipedia: Cognitive dysfunction

·        my adrenalfatigue.com: '18 Symptoms of Brain Fog'

11/04/10

Research Topic:

Is it possible that pressure to parts of the face (such as from supporting one’s head or sleeping on one’s side) can lead to canker sores/mouth ulcers, and to increased permeability of the mucosal membrane of the mouth?

Could this action cause substances such as allergenic foods, or salty toothpaste, or lipophilic opioids (that are between the cheek and gums), to be absorbed into the bloodstream? Could this cause hyperactivity?

09/12/10

Topic:

The Brain: Endorphins: An Excess of Endorphins (Endorphin Addiction)

Articles:

·        Yahoo! Health : Health and Wellness: 'Great Breakfast Choices If You Have Hypoglycemia or Low Blood Sugar Problems' by Sabrina Young

·        Wellsphere: Green Living: 'Don’t lean on your elbows' by Tara Burner

09/01/10

If you drink coffee to wake yourself up, and you put a dairy product in your coffee such as milk, you should consider the possibility that the warm milk may be making you tired instead of waking you up.

I posted some information about the benefits of coffee on 01/07/10.

5/31/10

Additional information about tactile defensiveness from the web site ‘The Sensory Processing Disorder Resource Center’:

·        The Sensory Processing Disorder Resource Center’ (main page)

·        Adult with Tactile Defensiveness

·        Tactile Defensiveness (information about children)

·        Creating A Home Sensory Diet

05/30/10

Some symptoms of sensory and tactile defensiveness:

“Misinterpretation of sensory events

Irritated by sensory input that others easily ignore

Exaggerated avoidance responses

Touch is interpreted as painful, harmful, or a threat

Seeks unusual forms of tactile stimulation

Lashes out or threatens others to avoid approachment

Illogical preferences and clothing habits

Once aroused, difficult to calm

Disruptions in self care

Unusual pain responses

Unpredicted emotional outbursts

Avoids crowds and lines in stores

Hyper-vigilant

Unusual eating habits, dislike of mixed food textures

Social withdrawal

Dislike of fast moving visual input, become carsick easily

Balance problems and dislike of motion

Self-injury

Strong need for routine

Upset by loud noises or background noises such as a light buzzing”

The Sensory Connection Program: Sensory Defensiveness (PDF – Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)

Article: ‘Virtual Personalities or Nobodies’

“But what does that do to our real personality? Is our real personality the sum of all our personalities in all of our environments, both real and virtual? Certainly, all of our interactions influence us in some form, but the level of control we have over our virtual interactions effectively insulates us as individuals, and in a real sense we can now choose how to react without the pressure of real time.”
Blogcritics: Culture: Virtual Personalities or Nobodies
 

05/23/10

Article:

wikiHow.com: Categories: Health: Sleep and Dreams: Better Sleeping: Bedtime Routine : How to Go to Bed Early

04/29/10

This page lists some more acidic beverages. Maybe you might want to dilute some of these beverages with water or ice cream:

Fit4Maui.com: Soda pH Chart

04/20/10

It seems that dehydration may increase the permeability of tissue, such as tissue in the lower esophagus, and that drinking acidic, carbonated beverages may exacerbate this condition, making it more likely for foreign substances to be introduced into the bloodstream. Similarly, cankers might also exacerbate this condition (more information about cankers in the 12/23/09 posting)

03/15/10

The following article has helpful information about improving posture and breathing, and helping to reduce stress:

HealthScout News: 'Don't Suck In That Gut'

02/26/10

It seems that slouching while sitting, and then leaning back on a chair, can allow pressure from the chair to be distributed onto the rib cage and lungs, and seriously restrict breathing.

Posture

01/07/10

“For those of us who are healthy and not pregnant, caffeine is not the bugaboo that some have painted it. On the contrary, it appears to offer significant health benefits when consumed in moderation.

     For the sake of overall health and well-being, stick with a limit of 300 milligrams of caffeine per day. An 8-ounce serving of coffee contains about 150 mg of caffeine, while the same size serving of tea has 40 to 120 mg. A 12-ounce serving of cola has 35 to 54 mg, as do some non-cola soft drinks, such as Mountain Dew, Dr. Pepper and Sunkist Orange Soda. Meanwhile, coffee-flavored ice cream has between 50 and 84 mg of caffeine, and a 1.5-ounce serving of dark chocolate has 31 mg.”

Live Right Live Well: Food Channel: Caffeine's Surprising Health Benefits

12/23/09

Mouth Sores, Food Allergies, and an excess of endorphins (Endorphin Addiction)

“…Our brains naturally release endorphins in our bloodstreams and the sore is numb afterwards for about 1/2 hour.”

Grandma's Home Remedies: Home Remedies for Canker Sores

“When you bite your cheek or tongue, you create a small wound that's exactly the same as a canker sore.”

MotherNature.com: Symptoms, Their Causes & Cures Cheek and Tongue Biting

Canker sore: Causes - MayoClinic.com

A relationship between amalgam mercury fillings and canker sores?

“My name is Harry Dingey, I am a retired Industrial Engineer from Rockwell International and I moved to the Philippines 5 years ago from the USA. About 20 months ago they did a root-canal, filled my teeth with Amalgam mercury fillings and crowned my two back teeth. Then few months later, I start to get a bald spot on the right side of my tongue.
     I did some research on the internet and discovered I had what was called Geographic Tongue. Then about 18 months ago a started getting these recurring canker sores (also called aphthous ulcers), they would never completely heal up and was always located on the exact same location as the Geographic Tongue (bald spot).”

Canker Sores - My Home Remedies

Endorphin Addiction (this site)

12/05/09

When people become tired while sitting in front of a computer screen, sometimes they rest one of their elbows on their desk/table and support their head with their hand. This pressure on the head causes eyestrain. This pressure may also increase circulation to that part of the face, which may be disadvantageous if, for example, you are right handed/right eyed/right ear dominant and you are resting the left side of your face on your left hand while resting your elbow on a desk/table.

Additional actions may cause difficulty with vision and hearing attenuation, such as tilting your head toward the side of your non-dominant ear. This might possibly exacerbate conditions such as amblyopia and hearing difficulties such as the ‘cocktail party’ effect.

11/08/09

If you’re nearsighted (having blurred distance vision), and you wear your glasses while using a computer, this can lead to eyestrain and can also lead to bad habits like slouching, to move further away from the computer, and also pushing the computer screen farther away.  The computer screen should be at about an arm’s length distance.

08/09/09

I’ve recently been doing an improvised stretch (please keep in mind that I’m not a physical therapist). I sit in a chair and reach over with my left hand, across my chest, to grab the back of the chair, reaching over the top of it. (The top of my chair is below shoulder height). Next I lean slightly forward and to the right, and cradle my right arm on top of my left arm at the left wrist, as I am using the mouse with the right hand.

This stretch appears to be similar to the left and right shoulder stretches on the following page:

Stretching Exercises for Stress Relief | Winter Health Guide | Reader's Digest (this is the printable version of the page)

Note: the shoulder stretches mentioned on this page (above) are posterior shoulder stretches, and should be done with the stretched arm parallel to the floor, as is noted at this link:

Louisiana National Guard State Wellness and Fitness Plan: Training: Session 1: Enhanced Physical Readiness Program: Physical Training: Warm-up Instructions

This page also includes neck rotation stretches. These stretches are done when sitting, unlike the one mentioned here on 08/07/09 which is done when lying down. I’ve personally found the neck rotation stretches to be more effective when lying down.

08/07/09

The following exercise might be helpful in reducing stress and eyestrain. While doing this exercise try focusing on a point in the distance after you  turn your head to a side, but don’t strain your eyes:

"Neck Rotation

Stretches Neck Muscles

1. Lie on your back.
2. Turn your head from side to side, holding position each time.

Lie on the floor with a phone book or other thick book under your head, then slowly turn your head from side to side, holding position for 10 to 30 seconds on each side. Your head should not be tipped forward or backward, but should be in a comfortable position. You can keep your knees bent to keep your back comfortable during this exercise. Repeat 3 to 5 times.”

University of Buffalo: Aging & Technology Research: Health Info: Stretching Exercises

07/22/09

Muscle tension in the contralateral (opposite side of the body) latissimus dorsi muscles, and other side muscles, may occur when using a computer mouse or if you lean on your elbow and supporting your head with your non-mouse hand. This may also occur when carrying loads with one arm, such as a shopping basket.

This muscle tension may lead to a decrease in breathing and an increase in eyestrain.

ExRx.net: Back Exercise Menu: Latissimus Dorsi & Teres Major

01/27/09

Xylitol

Medical Applications

“Dental care

Xylitol is a ‘tooth friendly’ sugar. Early studies from Finland in the 1970s found that a group chewing sucrose gum had 2.92 decayed, missing, or filled (dmf) teeth compared to 1.04 in the group chewing xylitol gums.[10] In another study, researchers had mothers chew xylitol gum 3 months after delivery until their children were 2 years old. The researchers found that the xylitol group had "a 70% reduction in cavities (dmf)."[10] Recent research[11] confirms a plaque-reducing effect and suggests that the compound, having some chemical properties similar to sucrose, attracts and then "starves" harmful micro-organisms, allowing the mouth to remineralise damaged teeth with less interruption. (However, this same effect also interferes with yeast micro-organisms and others, so xylitol is inappropriate for making yeast-based bread, for instance.)

     Xylitol based products are allowed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to make the medical claim that they do not promote dental cavities.[12]

     A recent study demonstrated that a water additive for animals containing xylitol was effective in reducing plaque and calculus accumulation in cats.[13]

Diabetes

Possessing approximately 40% less food energy,[14] xylitol is a low-calorie alternative to table sugar. Absorbed more slowly than sugar, it doesn't contribute to high blood sugar levels or the resulting hyperglycemia caused by insufficient insulin response.

Osteoporosis

Xylitol also appears to have potential as a treatment for osteoporosis. A group of Finnish researchers has found that dietary xylitol prevents weakening of bones in laboratory rats, and actually improves bone density.[15][16]

Ear and upper respiratory infections

Studies have shown that xylitol chewing gum can help prevent ear infections[17] (acute otitis media); the act of chewing and swallowing assists with the disposal of earwax and clearing the middle ear, whilst the presence of xylitol prevents the growth of bacteria in the eustachian tubes (auditory tubes or pharyngotympanic tubes) which connect the nose and ear.[18] When bacteria enter the body they hold on to the tissues by hanging on to a variety of sugar complexes. The open nature of xylitol and its ability to form many different sugar-like structures appears to interfere with the ability of many bacteria to adhere.[19] Xylitol can be applied nasally through a saline solution containing xylitol.

     When applied nasally to 21 subjects in double-blind randomized controlled trial, it significantly reduced the number of nasal coagulase-negative Staphylococcus bacteria compared to the saline control. The researchers believe that it increases the effectiveness of endogenous (naturally present in the body) antimicrobial factors.[20]

Infection

Xylitol has been found to increase the activity of neutrophils, the white blood cells involved in fighting many bacteria. This effect seems to be quite broad, acting even in cases such as general sepsis [21]

Candida yeast

A recent report suggests that consumption of xylitol may help control oral infections of Candida yeast; in contrast, galactose, glucose, and sucrose may increase proliferation.[22]

Benefits for pregnant or nursing women

Xylitol is not only safe for pregnant and nursing women, but studies show that regular use significantly reduces the probability of transmitting the Streptococcus mutans bacteria, which is responsible for tooth decay, from mother to child during the first two years of life by as much as 80%.[23]”

Xylitol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Safety

“Xylitol, like most sugar alcohols, has a laxative effect, because sugar alcohols are not fully broken down during digestion. It has no known toxicity, and people have consumed as much as 400 grams daily for long periods with no apparent ill effects.[24]

     Dogs which have ingested foods containing high levels of xylitol (greater than 100 milligram of xylitol consumed per kilogram of bodyweight) have presented with low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia) which can be life-threatening.[25] Low blood sugar can manifest as loss of coordination, depression, collapse and seizures as soon as 30 minutes after ingestion.[26][27] Intake of very high doses of xylitol (greater than 500 - 1000 mg/kg bwt) has also been implicated in liver failure in dogs, which can be fatal.[28] These are points of controversy, however, as earlier World Health Organization studies using much higher doses on dogs for long periods showed no ill effect. [29]”

Xylitol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dietary Use Worldwide

“In 2004, popular North American Trident gum was reformulated to include xylitol, but not as the main sweetener (which are still aspartame, sorbitol and maltitol). The green apple flavor can be found without aspartame. It is also found in Smokey Mountain Snuff,[9] and IceBreakers brand Ice Cubes Gum from Hershey. A discontinued sugarless gum, Carefree Koolerz, was sweetened exclusively with xylitol. Xylichew, made in Finland (available in US), is also sweetened exclusively with xylitol.

Altoids brand gum has been sweetened with xylitol in order to reduce sugar content.

     In 2006, William Wrigley Jr. Company reformulated their Orbit gum to contain xylitol and released it under the name "Orbit Complete". Critics have noted that the amount of Xylitol in some chewing gums is small, and other sugar alcohols may be used in larger amounts. Xylimax gum and mints have 1 gram of xylitol per piece, and xylitol is the only sweetener. (available in USA)”

Xylitol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“Xylitol is widely used in Finland, its "home country". Many Finnish confectioneries employ xylitol, or have a xylitol version available. Virtually all chewing gum sold in Finland is sweetened with xylitol.[7]

The formerly Spanish company Chupa Chups, now Dutch-Italian, makes a xylitol-based breath mint, Smint, that it markets worldwide.

     In China, Japan, and South Korea, xylitol is found in wide assortment of chewing gums. There is a brand of gum named "Xylitol" in all three countries. Japan also has a brand called "Xylish". In addition, when Extra introduced xylitol-containing products to Hong Kong and Guangdong, the word "xylitol" is transcribed into Cantonese as "曬駱駝" (Jyutping: saai3 lok6 to4), which literally means "suntan camel", and the camel is used as a figurative icon in its advertisements.[8]”

Xylitol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

01/06/09

Article:

Zen-Moments: 'Reject Emotional Drama and Become Motivated Again' by John Rocheleau