In this solo video, Dr. Dave of the Toronto Neck and Back Pain Clinic delivers a daily health update covering six recent research findings and practical health tips. He first highlights a BMJ Open Respiratory Research review linking obstructive sleep apnea to a 74% higher risk of sudden death in older adults, urging diagnosis and CPAP treatment. Next, he discusses a European Society of Endocrinology pilot study where an 800‑calorie ketogenic diet raised testosterone and reduced weight in obese men, suggesting dietary intervention may aid low testosterone. He then summarizes an Obesity Reviews meta‑analysis of 16 animal studies showing exercise preserves memory in at‑risk subjects, reinforcing brain‑health benefits of regular activity. A Nature Neuroscience analysis of over one million records identified 178 gene variants associated with major depression, pointing toward future genetic risk scoring while noting environmental influence. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s summer bicycle safety checklist is presented, covering helmet fit, bike setup, visibility, and night‑riding lights. Finally, a European Journal of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine trial demonstrates that combining the Graston soft‑tissue technique with specific cervical exercises yields greater reductions in neck pain and cervicogenic headache frequency than either modality alone, supporting multimodal therapy. Dr. Dave concludes with encouragement to stay active, seek appropriate care, and look forward to the next update.
Chapters
Hello everyone, it's Dr. Dave. Hopefully you're all doing well, you had a nice start to your week, you're looking forward to a happy and healthy and fun Tuesday. Coming at you on behalf of the Toronto Neck and Back Pain Clinic with your daily health update for Tuesday, June 22nd, 2021. Gonna share with you 6 areas of health and wellness news or information based on the latest research and literature or articles out there. Not gonna treat, diagnose, prevent, or cure any illness or disease with our time together today. However, we promise to stimulate your own thoughts regarding deciding what you decide to do for your health and wellness today. And hopefully we can keep you headed in a good direction. If you'd like a copy of the Daily Health Update or you have any questions, you can DM us on social, send us an email, or give us a call here at the clinic. We'd be happy to help you out. So let's see what we have for you today. The British Medical Journal Open Respiratory Research from June 2021 talks about sleep apnea and sudden death risk. A review of data from 22 studies found that obstructive sleep apnea is associated with up to a 74% increased risk for sudden death in older adults. So very good to know if someone's told you, or maybe, um, someone, or you know already yourself that, uh, you may some, at some point at night stop breathing while you're sleeping and/or you're a heavy snorer, you may have obstructive sleep apnea and you'd want to get that checked out and get under some, usually some positive airway pressure while you're sleeping. And that will help your long-term comorbidity status, meaning you're less likely to develop some other conditions along the way if you take care of that obstructive sleep apnea, if you have it. So sometimes asymptomatic, you may not realize it, but especially if you have disrupted sleep, not good sleep, and/or you know because you've caught yourself somehow, or someone has told you especially that you stop breathing while you're sleeping intermittently throughout the night, good to get that checked and taken care of. Get on that CPAP machine. Not the most fun from what patients tell me, but, uh, definitely worth the health implications to have that treated. All right, so that's your big one for today, big news article. If you have any problems with sleep apnea, be sure to get that checked. All right, the European Society of Endocrinology, May 2021, talked about a low-calorie ketogenic diet that can help increase testosterone levels. Following a 1-month pilot study that included 17 obese men on an 800-calorie-per-day ketogenic diet, researchers observed that participants experienced an increase in testosterone levels along with a significant decrease in body weight, fat mass, and body mass index. Larger studies are needed to confirm these findings and to determine if such a diet may serve as a treatment option for obese men with low testosterone. Course, with gentlemen over time, sometimes those testosterone levels do drop and you would want to seek out appropriate guidance. Sometimes cleaning up your diet can help your body function better and those levels may improve naturally. Certain foods may also help promote or encourage the production of testosterone in the body. So good to seek out perhaps the help of a naturopath, for example, in those situations. Obesity Reviews, June 2021, looks at brain health effects of exercise. Of course, we know the many benefits of exercise in the that activity should be a part of our day, but adding to a growing body of research in the brain health benefits associated with exercise, a meta-analysis of data from 16 animal studies found that exercise training, regardless of the type of exercise, can help to preserve memory in subjects at risk for cognitive impairment. So those risks may be, um, congenital, they may be familial over time, they may be based on our exposure to the environment and things that have changed with our health, over the years. So hopefully exercise can help mitigate the effects of all those and preserve some of the cognitive function that we'd like to maintain. So activity is good for your mind. Good to get out there and stay active. The Nature Neuroscience report from May 2021 looked at genetics and its involvement with depression. Based on analysis of genetic and health records of over 1 million people, researchers identified 178 gene variants linked to major depression. In the future, This information may be helpful in the development of genetic risk scores to identify individuals at risk of developing major depression and related psychiatric disorders. So a good genetic component sometimes can, uh, play a factor in some of the conditions that arise. However, the debate is how much genetics actually forces the body to play out and whether or not those genes may be there, but do they get turned on or expressed? And sometimes stress from our environment, depending on our overall health and function, may help to turn on or off those genes and their expression. So it's a, it's a complicated journey that we're on with our health, even when it comes to our genetics and how our body operates from the inside out. And we just want to support it and give it a good environment. Sometimes the body doesn't need any help, it just doesn't need that interference. So your lifestyle factors are a very large component of ensuring your body can focus on doing what it's designed and created to do without that extra barrier or stress, right? So, uh, summer is here. Yesterday, uh, into today, longest days of the year, most sunshine or most, uh, daytime hours. And the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that there are certain things you should be aware of when riding your bicycle this summer. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that you should wear a properly fitted bicycle helmet, adjust your bicycle seat and handlebars to best fit your body, make sure the tires are properly inflated and that your brakes work, wear highly visible clothing, always Always ride with two hands on the handlebars, pay attention to your surroundings, and follow applicable traffic laws while also avoid riding at night. And if you do ride in the dark, as it is the case here in Toronto, you do need to have lights, I believe, on both the front and back of your bicycle. Very good idea. Okay, so bike safety tips for the summer, and, uh, it's good for the young people to make sure they're encouraged to follow some of those tips as well so that it becomes a habit later on in life. Finally, the European Journal of Physical and Rehab Medicine, May 2021, looked at soft tissue techniques plus exercise benefits for cervicogenic headaches— headaches that arise because of dysfunction in the neck. And cervicogenic headaches are described as headaches caused by dysfunction in the neck. Funny that we just said that. In a recent study involving 60 cervicogenic headache patients who received 3 treatments per week for 4 weeks, those who received a combination of a soft tissue technique known as Graston involves the use of a stainless steel instrument to help work out those soft tissues. Specific cervical exercises included with that Graston Technique, they had greater improvements in neck pain and headache frequency and duration than participants, participants in manual therapy only or exercise only groups. So again, the focus of that study is that combination therapies that address the multiple components that are involved in those conditions like cervicogenic headaches or headaches that involve the neck, the more likely you are to have a positive outcome. So it's good to have combination therapy. Sometimes single therapists can provide those, but often it's a matter of seeing multiple therapists for those different needs. For example, manual therapist who focuses on the joint function in combination with another manual therapist who focuses on the soft tissue and connective tissue, uh, can be a good combination for you. So for example, chiropractic and/or osteopathy with massage and even acupuncture. And each of those therapists may work on both areas, soft tissue and joint, but they may have a different focus or intent. And in combination, uh, with even if there's overlap, you're just more likely to probably see a good clinical outcome with those conditions. So don't be hesitant to mix and match. And I would be wary of anyone who says that the combination of therapy is not needed and that you could just see one person. I think most people that we've seen over the years certainly prefer multiple approaches. They find that there's a distinct benefit from each one and that the overlap is very helpful. Alright? So that's your Daily Health Update for Tuesday. A bit longer, thanks for hanging in there. Hope you have a wonderful day. Enjoy yourself. Get through the middle of the week and you'll have another summer weekend coming up this week. We'll help you do that tomorrow on Wednesday with the next Daily Health Update. Look forward to chatting with you then. Take care.
