The Hidden Dangers Inside Energy Drinks

You’ve heard their promises of keeping you alert with no afternoon crash, improving performance and reaction speed, and increasing concentration. They are marketed to all of us who dream of being rock stars or super athletes. Energy drinks are the newest health concern to avoid FDA insight and infect the shelves of every grocery store, corner market, and gas station in the country. So what’s wrong with a little pick-me-up in the afternoon to help get us through the day? Well, those little pick-me-ups are really more like a toxic chemical hurricane wreaking havoc on your brain chemistry, adrenal glands, liver, heart, immune system, and blood pressure.

The deleterious effects processed sugar poses to our health are well documented: It contributes to weight gain and obesity, feeds cancer cells, alters brain chemistry and nerve function, depletes the immune system, creates addiction, taxes the pancreas and insulin production which can create conditions favorable to diabetes, and contributes to chronic adrenal fatigue. Rockstar carries 62g of sugar/16 oz can; the same amount of sugar found in 6 Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnuts. Wow!

Next on the list is caffeine. Consumers of energy drinks, looking for an instant high, may not realize it but the zap of caffeine found inside that aluminum can is the beginning of a rollercoaster ride of jittery peaks and fatigue filled valleys. Caffeine stimulates the adrenal glands to turn on and produce adrenaline. Adrenaline gears our body up to face great stress by raising our heart rate, increasing respiration, dilating the pupils, slowing down digestion and allowing our muscles to contract. Adrenaline makes our heart pound when we hear skidding tires or a fire alarm. It brainwashes the passer-by to run into a burning building and rescue a trapped child. All of these changes in our normal physical state prepare us to face danger head-on…which is completely useless while we’re just sitting at a desk. This adrenaline high is short lived as the body discovers that there is no real danger. It quickly wears off leaving us with a headache, confusion, or irritability. Prolonged abuse of the adrenal glands can create chronic fatigue syndrome.

Caffeine is a diuretic. Using energy drinks as a pre-workout ritual will not replace vital electrolytes lost through sweating but will further enhance dehydration. Excess caffeine consumption can create an irregular heartbeat, insomnia, agitation, panic attacks, elevated blood pressure, irritability, and seizures.

The average cup of coffee has approximately 100 milligrams of caffeine, compared to 160 milligrams in a 16-ounce energy drink. Ounce-for-ounce, the caffeine in 5-Hour Energy is 9 times as concentrated as in coffee. Rockstar Punched carries an inconceivable 360mg of caffeine in their 24 oz. can!

If that caffeine wasn’t enough, guarana is also added to these drinks. Guarana seeds are one of the richest sources of caffeine, containing up to three times the amount as coffee beans. The amount of caffeine in guarana doesn't have to be listed on energy drinks so its contribution to the jitters is above and beyond the stated amount of caffeine on the can.

Like other stimulants, guarana may negatively affect the cardiovascular system. The high levels of caffeine in guarana can increase blood pressure and cause abnormal heart rhythms. The fatal dose of guarana is estimated to be 100 g, or roughly 10 g of pure caffeine. Young kids may be at an increased risk for overdose due to their small body weight.

Taurine is our next target. It is an amino acid found naturally in foods and also manufactured in the body from the amino acid cysteine. Since taurine is created naturally in the body, a good diet supplies all you need. The taurine in energy drinks is synthetic which makes it incompatible with the human body. It was initially thought that taurine was a stimulant but new research would suggest that instead of being a pick-me-up, the taurine actually would have more of a sedative effect on the brain. As science is still debating on the effects of taurine, do we trust it as an additive of any kind?

Studies have implicated synthetic taurine in illnesses ranging from high blood pressure to strokes and seizures to heart disease. Now, if I am claiming that these energy drinks are not the best choice to supplement our “down time,” what else can we do? Fresh, filtered, clean water with a lemon wedge squeezed into it will do more for to boost our energy and supplement our health than any chemically laden, adreno-toxic beverage will ever do. A tablespoon of Bragg’s apple cider vinegar in 6 ounces of water will give a kick to the system as well. Green leafy vegetables will produce natural healthy energy so go eat a salad. Chiropractic adjustments are also an accomplice in providing energy. Drop the synthetic chemicals and try natural health. You’ll be glad you did.

The Best Kept Secret on Earth

The majority of Americans have come to understand and accept that chiropractors can help relieve back pain. This limitation of chiropractic was created by those who fear the truth inherent in the principles of its discovery. As long as the medical and pharmaceutical establishments control the governing bodies that dictate health care, the truth about chiropractic will remain one of the best kept secrets on earth. 

In 1895, in Davenport, Iowa, chiropractic was born. While examining Harvey Lillard, a deaf janitor in the building in which Dr. Palmer worked, Dr. Palmer noticed that Harvey had a vertebra in his back that did not line up with the others. As legend has it, Dr. Palmer “wracked” the vertebra back into position. When Harvey rose from the table, he could hear the clacking of horse’s hooves on the cobblestone street below the open window. His hearing had been restored. Shortly after Harvey’s relief from deafness, Dr. Palmer had a similar case involving a heart condition. Two diseases, so dissimilar, that were improved after spinal manipulation must have a common ground. This common ground was found to be nerve tension and the cure was created through the chiropractic adjustment. 

Our nervous system is comprised of the brain, spinal cord and nerves that stem from it. These nerves branch and weave their way through our entire body. Our brain runs the business of our life by sending and receiving messages through this network of nerves to and from all the organs, tissues, joints, and assorted parts of our body. It is the role of our nervous system to coordinate, control, and regulate EVERY function of the human body. A severed nerve creates paralysis. A pinched or stressed nerve creates “half” paralysis or dysfunction. 

The squeezing of the intestines to move along the digested matter, the collapsing of the diaphragm which allows air to rush into our lungs, the release of bile from the gall bladder, insulin from the pancreas, and adrenalin from the adrenal glands is all under direct supervision of the nervous system. Without our nervous system our stomach does not work, our liver does not balance cholesterol, and our muscles do not contract to allow us to put our arms around our children. Our body cannot regulate blood pressure, open the bronchial tubes effortlessly, create antihistamines, cortisone, or new bone cells to mend a fracture unless our nervous system is operating properly. It is nerve tension that is the basis of functional activity and the difference between health and disease. By manipulating the bones of the back, or any bone of the body for that matter, a skilled chiropractor can influence the tension on the nerves and restore their innate function. 

The AMA’s Home Medical Encyclopedia states “The overall function of the nervous system is to gather information about the external environment and the body’s internal state, to analyze this information, and to initiate appropriate responses.” Inappropriate responses equate to dysfunction and disease. So why hasn’t medicine put more focus on the state of the nervous system as a factor in health? 

Now I must ask, can headaches be related to the ability of the nervous system to regulate some bodily function? Why do some suffer from headaches and others do not? Is it because some people are deficient in Ibuprofen? Did they not get their RDA of Tylenol? Wait! There is no RDA for Tylenol. Why does my body adapt to changes without producing a headache and yours does not? Can it be that the nervous system is under stress and therefore it cannot create the proper functions in the body that are needed to adapt to change? Could it really be that simple? Yes it can! 

That spark of life, originating in the hands of God, flowing from above to down and from inside to outside is consigned to the structures we call the nervous system. This very framework enables us to hear the purr of a kitten, view a rose bedecked with dew, and feel the wet sand from the shoreline slip between our toes. The nervous system is the greatest magician on earth as it can recast a green pepper into human life by merely tickling the digestive system with action. This anatomy we call the nervous system is responsible for accepting the Creator’s inspiration for perfection and transforming it into physical existence. We hold this anatomy accountable for directing the orchestra of our lives. It tells our heart to beat, our kidneys to filter, and our blood vessels to constrict and dilate. It tastes the sour berries and feels the warmth of the sun on our faces. It sparks our legs to ambulation. This precious entity that we call the nervous system is the interface that moves human experience. 

Chiropractic is a healing art that dances with the part of our anatomy in which the very force of life is transformed into matter. It is our breath, our thoughts, our passion, our life. As all of nature is bound by certain cycles, patterns, and laws, so too is our existence and that existence is controlled, coordinated, and regulated by our nervous system. The chiropractic adjustment is about removing the barriers that inhibit our physical expression with its true source. The adjustment will liberate the nervous system, and therefore our spirit, from the stranglehold of dis-ease (not being at ease with one’s self) and allow our body’s innate intelligence to once again manifest through our flesh and blood. Our nervous system is the metaphor that binds spirit and heaven into matter and earth. It is said that our life is God’s gift to us and what we do with it is our gift back to God. Don’t let nerve stress interfere with that. 

The chiropractic adjustment is a telescopic connection to the Big Picture. Removing nerve stress restores life not by replacing with implants, controlling with machines, or chemically altering with drugs, but rather by allowing, freeing, and innately accepting the ability of the body to regulate itself. The chiropractic philosophy is hopeful of possibilities and pursues what is right within the body, not fearful of probabilities searching for what is wrong within the body. Chiropractic exercises the body’s wisdom in contrast to exorcizing the body’s failures. Chiropractic moves by experience, intuition, and spirit, not by scientific dogma and outdated tradition, for the miracle of life cannot be truly explained scientifically. One cannot dissect love, grow the breath in a laboratory, or capture the sunshine in a test tube. Chiropractic focuses on health not disease, the whole body not parts, and promotes life rather than avoids death. 

The proof that chiropractic is a legitimate healing art can be found in the fact that it exists and continues to do so in spite of the overwhelming opposition by the medical community. Chiropractic has stood in the flames of slander and libel for over 100 years and has lived to tell its own story. What established chiropractic as the largest natural healing art in this country was not its relatively small lobby groups or its national associations but rather its ability to create clinical success stories out of medical failures. By adhering to the tenets of nature’s perfection, the patient heals what was once declared incurable. Chiropractic is not part of medicine and was never meant to be. It is a philosophical approach to life that is bound by the laws of nature. Now do you still want to relegate chiropractic healing to relieving back pain?

My Favorite Nutritious Foods: Honey

Honey’s prestigious history as a medicinal superfood predates written history as 8,000 year old cave paintings have been found depicting its harvest. Its religious significance runs deep. Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, and Buddhism all revere the sweet nectar’s power. Hippocrates and Aristotle agreed honey prolonged life. Mythology tells us that Zeus was raised on honey.

 

Honey’s incredible antimicrobial (kills bacteria, virus, and fungus) and antioxidant properties make it the only food that never spoils. It promotes digestion and aids constipation. Raw honey can heal ulcers in the stomach. It increases calcium absorption. Honey can help fights colds and respiratory infections of all kinds. One of my favorite remedies for that pre-cold scratchy throat is a teaspoon of raw honey sprinkled with cinnamon. Applied topically, raw honey can heal cold sores, wounds, insect bites, and rashes. 

One of its best known attributes is its ability to help reduce and eliminate seasonal allergies. Though the exact mechanism in which this is accomplished is not known, it is believed that the honey, with its trace amount of pollen, acts as a “natural vaccine.” In my practice I have seen many people recover from seasonal allergies by using raw honey. 

One study conducted at Xavier University in New Orleans produced notable results. Participants were divided into groups: seasonal allergies, year-round allergies, and those without allergies. These groups were further divided into three subgroups with some people taking 2 teaspoons of local honey per day, others taking the same amount of non-local honey each day, and the final subgroup not taking honey at all. After six weeks, allergy sufferers from both categories suffered fewer symptoms and the group taking local honey reported the most improvement.

Raw honey is mostly natural/good sugar and water. It has a healthy glycemic index. Honey’s sugars are gradually absorbed into the bloodstream and do not create a sugar spike. This makes it a good energy source. The vitamins and minerals found in honey are B6, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, choline, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, zinc. 

Commercial brands of honey are often heavily processed and chemically refined. Excessive heat destroys honey’s nutritional matrix including the vital enzymes that aid digestion. Filtering honey eliminates many of the beneficial phytonutrients including pollen and enzyme-rich propolis. Raw organic honey is never strained, filtered, or heated. 

Take it straight off the spoon or mix it into your oatmeal, cottage cheese, or tea. Spread it on toast with cinnamon. In a glass of water, mix raw honey with one teaspoon of Bragg’s apple cider vinegar. This is a delicious, quenching, nutritious drink. 

Do not feed honey to infants less than one year of age. Honey may contain spores and toxins that can cause infant botulism, a life-threatening paralytic disease. As the digestive system matures, children older than 12 months can consume it without worry.