In this 15‑minute YouTube health briefing, Dr. David Koivuranta (Toronto Neck and Back Pain Clinic) delivers his regular “daily health update” covering six distinct wellness topics, each anchored in recent peer‑reviewed research. He begins with a disclaimer that the video does not diagnose or treat any condition, then proceeds: 1. Environmental toxins – a March 2021 Journal of Perinatal Medicine study links household flame‑retardant chemicals (polybrominated diphenyl ethers, PBDE) to a 75 % higher risk of preterm birth and to infertility, highlighting the impact of indoor chemical exposure. 2. Colon health – the American Cancer Society (April 2021) recommends a plant‑based, high‑fiber diet, limiting red meat and added sugars, to reduce risk of ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, and irritable bowel syndrome. 3. Brain health & fitness – a Journal of Gerontology study of 220 type‑2 diabetics shows that higher daily step counts correlate with better cognitive test scores and larger hippocampal volume on MRI, underscoring the mind‑body connection. 4. Fall risk in seniors – research from Psychology, Health, and Medicine (March 2021) finds that older adults with both depression and mild cognitive impairment are significantly more likely to experience serious falls. 5. Eye health – the American Academy of Ophthalmology (April 2021) outlines preventive measures: sunglasses, smoking cessation, nutritious diet, regular eye exams, protective eyewear, family‑history awareness, proper contact‑lens use, and regular breaks from screens. 6. Adolescent neck pain – a São Paulo Medical Journal (Feb 2021) survey of 1,600 teens reports that 50 % experienced neck pain in the past year, with those using electronic devices ≥3 hours/day 54 % more likely to have pain, emphasizing ergonomics and break habits. Dr. Koivuranta wraps up by encouraging viewers to seek the written version, share the information, and stay engaged with the weekly updates. The video blends concise literature summaries with practical lifestyle tips, aiming to inform the public about emerging health evidence.
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Hello everyone, it's Dr. Dave. Hopefully you're all doing well, having a wonderful week as usual, taking care of yourself and those around you. Coming at you today on behalf of Toronto Neck and Back Pain Clinic with your daily health update. It's Thursday, April 15th, 2021. Gonna look at 6 areas of health and wellness today as per usual, and somewhere around this video you can read through all 6 areas of what we're going to talk about today. And if you would like a copy, you can DM us on social, send us an email, give us a call at the clinic. We'll we'll be sure to get that to you. Not going to treat, diagnose, prevent, or cure any illness or disease with our time together today. However, we do promise to share with you the latest and greatest in the research and literature when it comes to some of the new health and wellness information out there so that it can pique your interest in taking care of yourself and those around you, which is always time and effort well spent. So the Journal of Perinatal Medicine, March 2021, has a very specific a piece of research that they looked at and information. They looked at preterm births and how they can be tied to household chemical exposure, especially flame retardants. And these are chemicals called polybrominated diphenyl ethers, P— ethers, or ethers, PBDE. And they're finding that it can have an impact on childbirth if a mom is exposed to them early on in the pregnancy or throughout the pregnancy. And it just goes to show you that our environment plays a strong role in our health and wellness. So infertility actually has been linked to chemical exposure like this and increased environmental toxins around the globe. So there are many ways to take care of ourselves, but knowing what we're getting exposed to every day is a bit challenging, but worth looking into, especially if you're gonna prepare yourself to bring someone into the world. There's a 75% greater risk of going into early labor with exposure to some of these chemicals like the flame retardant we talked about today. So interesting, maybe not specifically related to each one of us, but interesting to extrapolate further to know that the chemicals we're exposed to every day. For example, if you are in a newer office building or your business, your company that you work with or for has recently remodeled or done some renovations, there are toxic chemicals in some of the materials they use to renovate those commercial spaces. The same can be said for our residential spaces as well. And there are potentially healthier ways to do it. And it's good to know for yourself, especially if you're going to do any of these changes in your environment, which options there are to choose. In fact, I think in California, I may be wrong, I'm just guessing, but just as an example, they prohibit, I think, or it's, I can't remember, one state is either mandatory or they prohibit the flame retardants in the mattresses. I think because of smoking in, in, in If you are a smoker, you need to, obviously wanna have a flame retardant mattress, but those chemicals in there that make it safe can also be bad for us. So there's a lot of choices in order to make what we do every day safe and how we do it, and it has implications. So no answers, just very interesting to talk about, something for you to think about and to look into. There are some good books out there about environmental toxins and how to clean up your home and/or workspace to make it a little more environmentally friendly, not only for the environment, environment, but for you and your body's environment. All right, so that's a happy start to our daily health update today. The American Cancer Association, April 2021, talked about eating for a healthier colon. Uh, they want you to avoid things like ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, and irritable bowel. So they want you to add plant-based foods to your diet, limit your red meat consumption, avoid added sugars, increase your fiber intake, and choose whole grains. Sounds like a great strategy overall for not only many health conditions, but also just preserving health and wellness. To preserve your brain health, the Journal of Gerontology says, uh, you should stay fit and have some fitness in your life. They looked at 220 type 2 diabetics, and it revealed that those who took more steps per day performed better on cognitive assessments and exhibited greater hippocampal volume on MRI scans. So not only did they do better on cognitive assessment, but parts of their brain seem to remain, uh, with less atrophy or deterioration because of their fitness. So engaging your body will engage your mind, and it's all connected and a good way to take care of yourself. That brain health can also affect your fall risk. According to the journal Psychology, Health, and Medicine, March 2021, injuries from falls dramatically reduce the mobility and independence of older adults. They looked at 147 senior and it revealed those with a combination of depression and mild cognitive impairment were more likely to suffer a serious fall. So taking care of your mind and your mental health is worth not only your ability to stay on the ball, if you will, but also to help you avoid a fall later on in life. Another thing you'd like to preserve is probably your vision. The American Academy of Ophthalmology, April 2021, says that although not all eye diseases can be prevented, They think that to protect your eyes, there are many things you can do to try and decrease the risks, like wear sunglasses, don't smoke, eat a healthy diet, get regular eye exams, use eye protection, know your family history for ophthalmological disorders, practice safe use of contact lenses, and avoid eye fatigue with frequent breaks from computer use. That's a big one. Um, and finally, neck pain, according to the São Paulo Medical Journal, February 2021, is common in teenagers. Interviews with over 1,600 adolescents revealed that almost 50% had experienced neck pain in the previous year. Further analysis showed that teenagers who used electronic devices for 3 hours or more each day were 54% more likely to have neck pain than their peers who use their computer, tablet, or smartphone less often. So those gadgets are useful. We need them in our society these days to get some things done, and they're very useful. But we wanna watch how we're using them and how long we're using them without taking breaks. Hard on our neck, hard on our eyes, hard on our head with some headaches potentially, and on the repetitive use in our hands and upper extremities. So improving our awareness of how much and how long we're using those types of devices is good for us overall. So some great information today to take into consideration for your own health and wellness and for the health and wellness of those around you. Hope you enjoyed it. It's the last video for the week. Catch up with you Monday next week with the next video, but we will have a written format for you tomorrow. Keep an eye out for that and feel free to share it with those people you know, especially these videos. They're not that long and you don't need to catch it every day, but as many days as you can throughout the week, or catch up on a couple on the weekends and stay plugged into that health and wellness information. It'll motivate you, inspire you, perhaps maybe entertain you, but at least get you thinking about your own health and wellness, which is always a good thing to think about. All right, enjoy your Thursday, enjoy the rest of the week, be well, and we'll catch up with you soon. Take care.
