In this short video, Dr. Dave (Dr. David Koivuranta) of the Toronto Neck and Back Pain Clinic delivers a daily health update for Tuesday, August 17, 2021. After a brief disclaimer that the segment is informational and not a medical diagnosis or treatment, he highlights six recent research findings relevant to everyday health decisions. First, a July 2021 JASN report warns that even low levels of lead in drinking water can be harmful to dialysis patients, underscoring the importance of lead‑free water per the Safe Drinking Water Act. Second, a Cell July 2021 study shows that regular consumption of fermented foods (e.g., cottage cheese, kombucha, kefir, kimchi, sauerkraut) enhances gut microbiome diversity within ten weeks, supporting metabolic and immune health. Third, a May 2021 Scientific Reports analysis reveals that elite runners exhibit stiffer leg biomechanics and spend more time airborne, effectively “bouncing” between strides, which contributes to their speed. Fourth, an Environmental Research July 2021 investigation links prenatal exposure to airborne polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons to poorer inhibitory control and lower academic performance (spelling, reading, math) in children during adolescence. Fifth, a July 2021 JAMA Ophthalmology article introduces a genetic test for early glaucoma detection, offering a pathway for early intervention in families with a genetic risk. Finally, a July 2021 study in the Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association demonstrates that the Mulligan mobilization technique reduces pain intensity and improves neck extension range of motion in patients with nonspecific neck pain. Dr. Dave concludes by encouraging viewers to stay proactive about health, offering contact information for the clinic, and promising more updates the following day.
Chapters
Hello everyone, it's Dr. Dave. Hopefully you're all doing well. You had a nice start to your week. Looking forward to your day today. Let's make it a healthy one. Coming at you on behalf of the Toronto Neck and Back Pain Clinic with your daily health update. It's Tuesday, August 17th, 2021. Gonna look at 6 areas of health and wellness news and information. Somewhere around this video, you can read through all 6 areas. If you would like a copy or you have any questions, you can DM us on social, give us a call here at the clinic, or even send us an email at and we would be happy to get back to you. Always a pleasure to help. Not gonna treat, diagnose, prevent, or cure any illness or disease with our time together today. However, you just never know what good things can happen to that body of yours when we give it a good environment. And some of the information we share with you will help create that environment based on the decisions, choices, and actions you take each day when it comes to your health and wellness. Now, if you know somebody who unfortunately is a dialysis patient, then they may want to know that even a little lead in their drinking water could be potentially harmful according to a report from JASN in July 2021. And they are looking to keep water lead-free as per the Safe Drinking Water Act. And you can read about that if you like. It's in the Daily Health Update. The journal Cell, July 2021, looked at fermented foods and how they benefit your microbiome. According to a recent study, adding fermented foods such as cottage cheese kombucha, kefir, kimchi, and sauerkraut to the diet can improve diversity in the gut microbiome within 10 weeks, which can benefit the metabolic and immune systems. So taking good care of that gastrointestinal tract and getting all those microorganisms in there nice and healthy, uh, all that probiotic supplementation, but even eating the right foods, especially those fermented ones, can really help keep that environment healthy. Scientific Reports in May 2021 has an interesting perspective on running and how elite runners, those who are really quick, uh, can bounce when they run with the use of a specialized piece of equipment. Researchers have observed that elite runners exhibit stiffer biomechanics in their legs, and they spend more time in the air than non-elite runners, almost as if they are bouncing from stride to stride. So no wonder they're so quick. Just an interesting perspective on running mechanics. Air pollution is linked to poor academic performance, according to the Environmental Research Report from July 2021. Using data from a long-term study that included over 200 mother-child pairs, researchers report that greater exposure to airborne polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, a form of air pollution that can result from the incomplete combustion of gasoline and other hydrocarbons, during the third trimester is associated with poor inhibitory control in late childhood and poor academic performance on spelling, reading comprehension, and math assessments in early, early adolescence. The interesting thing about this study is how detailed it is based on that unique correlation between the environment and the development of that child through the years. So air pollution, not good, basically. And we kind of probably knew that, but now we know some specifics on how it impacts health in an individual at a young age. Journal of the American Medical Association Ophthalmology, July 2021, talks about a new test to spot glaucoma. Early intervention, early detection, early treatment, uh, is all beneficial when it comes to certain conditions, uh, even glaucoma, because it can lead to a vision-saving treatment. So, uh, the test is genetic in nature. You may want to read about that as it pertains to you, especially if there's a familial or maybe known genetic genetic component in your family, then that might be of benefit to you. Finally, the Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association, July 2021, looks at mobilization for neck pain. Among a group of 56 patients with nonspecific neck pain, researchers observed that the Mulligan mobilization technique was effective for reducing pain intensity and improving functional status and neck extension range of motion. This form of treatment is one of several techniques that many manual practitioners employ in the management of nonspecific neck pain. And regardless of the type or nature of mobilization and/or manipulation, the research shows that nonspecific neck pain does benefit from a biomechanical perspective, trying to determine if there's a loss or change of function in the neck, things are not sitting and moving right, and employing some measure to recover that function, get it sitting and moving better, which equates to it feeling better and quite often recovering that function so that in the future you're less likely to have a neck pain or problem. So seek out some of that if you're having some neck concerns. All right, that's your daily health update for Tuesday. We'll catch up with you again tomorrow, middle of the week, sending you some good, some more good new health information to keep you thinking about your own health and wellness as we like to do here on the daily health update. Make it a good day everyone, have some fun, get out there and do what you need to do, but create some awareness around you, how you're doing it, and make sure you're always thinking about your health and wellness in perspective. What you are doing and what you need to do so that, uh, you're doing it in a healthy way to support those positive experiences you're trying to create every day. Good luck with that, and we'll catch up with you tomorrow. Take care.
