Are There Toxic Chemicals in Your Deodorant?

http://www.achooallergy.com/article-toxic-chemicals.asp

In Tim Burton's 1989 movie Batman, the villainous Joker describes himself as "the world's first fully functional homicidal artist" and attempts city-wide genocide by poisoning millions of personal care products with toxic chemicals. When two famous models unexpectedly die, news reporters attribute their deaths to "a violent allergic reaction." In the following scene of the movie, a young man watches the newscast as he dresses for a date. He's about to spray aerosol deodorant under his arm when he stops, suddenly unsure about the safety of his deodorant.

Then the Joker interrupts the news broadcast to address the television audience: "I know what you're saying. Where can I buy these fine new items? Well, that's the deal, folks. Chances are…you've bought 'em already!"

Tim Burton's movie is set in an imaginary world, but in reality, many personal care products actually contain toxic chemicals, and chances are…you've bought'em already! They may not cause you to collapse on the floor in a fit of writhing convulsions like the victims in the movie; however, continuous intimate exposure to toxic chemicals may lead to allergic reactions or other diseases like Alzheimer's and cancer. Most conventional deodorants contain aluminum chlorohydrate, parabens, propylene glycol, triclosan, TEA, DEA, FD&C colors, and quaternium 18, among other toxic chemicals. Check the label on your deodorant.

Aluminum is not only a common skin irritant; it is also a poisonous neurotoxin that accumulates in the body. The World Health Organization has linked exposure to aluminum to Alzheimer's disease, with higher frequencies of deodorant use corresponding to higher risks of developing Alzheimer's. Abnormal accumulation of aluminum has been found in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease, and when aluminum is injected into the brains of laboratory animals, the animals develop a neurological disease similar to Alzheimer's.

Cancer researcher Philippa Darbre, PhD, of the University of Reading, says evidence is mounting that the aluminum-based active ingredient in antiperspirants can mimic estrogen in the body.

"Lifetime exposure to estrogen is the risk factor which is tied most strongly to breast cancer," says Dr. Darbre. "I stopped using these products eight years ago."

Parabens also increase the risk of breast cancer my mimicking estrogen, according to some experts. Researchers have found parabens inside autopsied breast tumors. Dr. Darbre comments on the study: "Parabens are used as preservatives in thousands of cosmetic, food, and pharmaceutical products, but this is the first study to show their accumulation in human tissues. It demonstrates that if people are exposed to these chemicals, then the chemicals will accumulate in their bodies." Parabens can also cause allergic reactions or contact dermatitis.

Propylene glycol is as a humectant, which means it keeps substances from drying out, and it was originally developed as an anti-freeze. Today it's used in paint, dog food, floor wax, and you guessed it, many deodorants. Propylene glycol is neurotoxin known to cause contact dermatitis, kidney damage, and liver damage. In the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for propylene glycol, the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety warns workers to avoid skin contact with the toxic chemical, and yet millions of people apply it under their arms every day. From the MSDS: "May cause eye irritation, skin irritation. Chronic exposure can cause gastro-intestinal disturbances, nausea, headache, vomiting, and central nervous depression."

TEA and DEA are hormone disruptors that are known to form carcinogenic (cancer-causing) chemicals. In 1997, the U.S. Toxicology Program found that repeated skin application of DEA causes liver and kidney damage in animals. TEA can cause contact dermatitis.

FD&C colors are made from coal and have been shown to cause cancer in animals; they also often cause allergic skin reactions. Triclosan can be absorbed through the skin and causes liver damage in some lab animals, and quaternium compounds are the number one cause of preservative-related contact dermatitis. About 5% of the population is extremely allergic to quaternium compounds, which can cause asthma-like symptoms and even respiratory arrest when inhaled.

Dr. Samuel Epstein, MD, specializes in environmental medicine and points out, "Not a single cosmetic company warns consumers of the presence of carcinogens in its products."

Indeed, it seems like the best way to get cancer is to smoke cigarettes, eat processed foods, and use mainstream personal care products on a daily basis. What's going on here? Why is anti-freeze in my deodorant? Has the villainous Joker set up another one of his insidious plots, or was Tim Burton trying to tell us something in Batman? Please find out for yourself by doing your own research about the toxic dangers of personal care products. The only thing you have to lose is your health.

If you'd like to avoid the accumulation of toxic chemicals in your body, or if you're allergic to conventional deodorant, here are some great options that you can find in your local health foods store, co-op or online at Amazon.com or DrugStore.com:

·        Crystal Body Deodertant (spray, roll-on or stick):  100% natural mineral salts eliminate and prevent odor-causing bacteria; Fragrance-free, hypo-allergenic, leaves no white residue.

·        The Original Terra Naturals (roll-on or stick):  aluminum free - petroleum free - no animal testing - organic active ingredient - organic extracts - antioxidants - immune activating ingredients

·        Jason Natural Cosmetics Deoderant Stick:  Pure, Natural & Organic.  Longer Lasting Protection. Energizing Freshness.  No Mineral Oil - No Alcohol or Aluminum Chlorohydrate - No Animal By-Products - No Animal Testing - No Synthetic Fragrance

·        Nature’s Gate Organics Deoderant: No Propylene Glycol - Paraben free - No Aluminum Chlorohydrate -  With Baking Soda to help Neutralize Odor - produced without animal testing and with no animal by-products - Gentle, Effective Protection - Hypo-allergenic

·        Naturally Fresh Deoderant Crystals (spray, roll-on, stick): Hypoallergenic, Paraben/PG Free, No Aluminum Chlorohydrate, Made is U.S.A. - Cruelty Free

Antibacterial Overkill

The swine flu scare of 2009 has amped up people’s fear of bacteria and viruses.  Anti-bacterial wipes and lotions sit by every cash register.  Handy dispensers are in our schools, our workplaces and at grocery store entrances.  Soaps, laundry detergents, household cleansers, anti-bacterial vacuum bags, bedding, toothbrushes, food containers and even chopsticks—people are arming themselves with the chemical equivalents of face masks and surgical gloves with frightening results. 

Three-quarters of the soap sold in the US has antibacterial components, even though there is no evidence that they prevent the transmission of disease.

This false bubble of protection, in fact, contributes to the formation of superbugs and the reduced functioning of our immune systems.  Having germ phobia actually makes you (and your children) sicker!

Interestingly enough, older people seem to be more resistant to the swine flu. Why? Having contracted other strains of the flu imbues them with natural antibodies. Children and young adults have proved more susceptible to the swine flu because their immune systems are not armed to combat the virus. Vaccinations produce the wrong immune response in our bodies and provide only a temporary buffer from health threats: actually contracting a disease naturally or being exposed to bacteria or viruses arms our immune systems with real weapons of defense.

We’ve all heard about how antibiotic over-use has contributed to the development of superbugs. Antibiotics in our animal products, abuse of antibiotic prescriptions and vaccinations-gone-wild has increased the prevalence of antibiotics in our bodies, water and food supply. 

A 2004 study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine investigated household use of antibacterial products and the incidences of bugs like the common cold. The researchers found that people who used antibacterial products developed just as many colds, runny noses, sore throats, fever, and stomach bugs as did people who didn’t use them.

Superbug Development

The resistance that bacteria and viruses have developed against antibiotics and antibacterials is now considered a global health crisis.

Bacteria and viruses propagate very rapidly with many genetic mutations.  Environmental stressors (such as antibiotics and antibacterials) increase the likelihood of survival of specific mutations.  Overexposure increases the amount of bacteria and viruses that are resistant to antibiotics and antibacterials.

Food-borne bacteria like Listeria have become increasingly resistant to the active components in antibiotics and antibacterials, and Staphylococcus bacteria have morphed into highly antibiotic-resistant bacteria because of overexposure to such components (like the recent prevalence of MRSA.)

The Hygiene Hypothesis

In 1989, researcher D.P. Strachen posed the “hygiene hypothesis.” He believed that the widespread use of antibiotics and vaccinations led to an increase in allergic diseases. Asthma cases, for instance, have more than doubled in past decades. 34 million Americans have asthma and 8 million of these are children.

David C. Sloane, a medical historian, explains how the importance of cleanliness emerged in the 1800’s, as public baths and water supplies were constructed.

Water sources were still limited, however, throughout the 19^th century and many families still lived in homes with dirt floors.

The construction of cities and ideas of cleanliness were linked to civilized society in the 20^th century, Sloane says, and adds: “This campaign had tremendous benefits, the most important of which has been the understanding and eradication of cholera and gastrointestinal disease linked to materials that can be found in dirt."

Now, says Sloane, “researchers are beginning to believe that there may be negative consequences from that and are arguing that our immune systems aren’t as strong as they would be if children were interacting with more dirt.”

Dr. Robertson Parkman, who focuses on bone marrow transplantation and immune deficiencies, agrees with these researchers. He points out that in Third World countries; many people develop immunities to serious diseases because of their exposure. “In America,” Parkman says, “we immunize people.”

A study conducted by the University of Arizona in 2000 found that children who had many siblings and who attended daycare (increasing their exposure to germs) were less likely to have chronic respiratory issues.

Asthma is considered an “atopic” disorder. Atopy refers to allergic reactions and hypersensitivity to common substances.

Research has found higher rates of atopic disorders such as asthma, hay fever and skin diseases in those who have been overprotected from microorganisms.

Children who grow up on farms, for example, experience much less incidence of atopic disorders.

The development of the immune system can be likened to that of the brain. It needs exposure, exercise and education.  

There is evidence that people who suffer from asthma, for instance, have immature and highly reactive immune systems.

When a child is born, their immune system is wired to react to anything (in the same way that they are wired to learn any language).  Their immune system cells are wildly sensitive and over the top in terms of readiness to learn.  

In just the way neural pathways for language-learning decays once a child has learned a primary language, so too do immune system cells calm down once they’ve developed defenses against common invaders.

When antibacterials and antibiotics prevent this learning and the maturation of the immune system, the cells remain highly reactive. Worse, the window closes on this maturation, the same way it does for easy absorption of languages (neural pathways degrade from non-use after the age of five.) The cells of the immune system remain highly reactive after a certain age, no matter the exposure that occurs in later years.

Antibiotics and antibacterials alter the levels of naturally-occurring (and helpful) bacteria that exist in the body. They alter the immune response and reduce the maturation of T-helper cells.

Your body has two immune responses known as TH-1 and TH-2. A certain balance between TH-1 cells and TH-2 cells must be achieved to help the development of antibodies. Those with atopic disorders have imbalances of the two. 

Researchers theorize that diet and sterile conditions increase the risk of atopic diseases and found that "hygiene and a westernized, semi-sterile diet may facilitate atopy by influencing the overall pattern of commensals and pathogens that stimulate the gut-associated lymphoid tissue."

They conclude that an "antigenically rich (dirty) environment may be essential for normal immune maturation preventing atopic disease."

Recent research by Northwestern University has found a link between reduced childhood exposure to antigens and the development of a number of diseases in adulthood.

"Contrary to assumptions related to earlier studies, our research suggests that ultra-clean, ultra-hygienic environments early in life may contribute to higher levels of inflammation as an adult, which in turn increases risks for a wide range of diseases," says Thomas McDade, lead author of the study.

McDade points out that in decades of antibiotic and antibacterial use, inflammatory disorders and disease have thrived.

The study focused on CRPs, C-reactive proteins, which are an integral part of the immune system and high levels of which have been linked to a variety of disorders and disease. It followed Philippine mothers from the time of their pregnancy throughout their children’s lives for 5 years.

Philippines’, the researchers concluded, have 5-7 times a lower average of CRPs than Americans, even though they have higher rates of childhood disease.

"In the U.S we have this idea that we need to protect infants and children from microbes and pathogens at all possible costs," lead researcher McDade concluded. "But we may be depriving developing immune networks of important environmental input needed to guide their function throughout childhood and into adulthood. Without this input, our research suggests, inflammation may be more likely to be poorly regulated and result in inflammatory responses that are overblown or more difficult to turn off once things get started." 

Researchers at the University of California San Diego have come up with similar results.

They found that “too-clean” kids lack the normal skin bacterium that prevents inflammation.

"These germs are actually good for us," said Professor Richard Gallo, who led the research. Common bacterial species, known as staphylococci, which can cause inflammation when under the skin, are "good bacteria" when on the surface, where they can reduce inflammation.

Triclosans

Recent research has been investigating the role of triclosans in antibacterial products. Triclosans are the most prevalent antibacterial killer in most products, but it also kills human cells.

A recent study found that bacterium such as E. coli had common genetic mutations that easily dealt with tricolosan’s killing ability.

The mutant E. coli had 100 times the ability to resist triclosan than the strains that it was formulated for.

Most importantly, recent research has found that triclosans don’t protect people from disease and disorder any more than simple soap does.

The Bottom Line

Balance is everything. Germ-phobia prevents immune systems from developing warrior cells. Antibacterials and antibiotics leave the immune system highly reactive and unarmed.

Do you want your kids to dive into piles of dung? Absolutely not. Do you want them exposed to germs?  Absolutely yes.

Dave’s Action Steps

1. Stay away from antibacterial gels, lotions and soaps.  Use a brand of soap with natural ingredients.  My favorite is MiEssence’s foaming handsoap: http://revolutionwellness.mionegroup.com/.  It is certified organic and has natural GOOD, healthy bacteria in it that eats away at bad bacteria your skin.  Wonderful for hygiene health and also very moisturizing, especially in this dry winter weather.
   
   
2. Allow your children (and yourself) some exposure to germs and viruses. Your immune system is a powerful fighter, but it needs time to build up strength and practice--just like a boxer who needs to train before being thrown in the ring.  For more tips on strengthening your immune system naturally, call us or email any time.  The first action step is getting adjusted – one adjustment can boost your immune system 200%!  We have many more tips for you if you’re ready for change!

Energy Drinks: Ingredients & Dangers

By BrianX | November 23rd, 2004

Since the 1990s, energy drinks have gone from being the latest craze and fad to a permanent fixture in our culture. Given the various seemingly exotic ingredients, here’s a general introduction to the various energy drink dangers and advantages. I won’t go into great biological detail since you could probably write a book about the energy drink craze. Instead I’ll provide you with some information that should let you be a more informed consumer when it comes to energy drinks.

What are Energy Drinks?
An energy drink is a beverage that contains some form of legal stimulant and/or vitamins which are meant to give consumers a short term boost in energy.

The “Magical” Ingredients
In general, these drinks have one thing in common: They all contain a lot of sugar and/or caffeine. These could be considered the “active ingredients.” So before you go bragging about how powerful a certain drink was and how its natural ingredients helped you wake up in the morning or dance all night, consider that you probably got more of a sugar rush than anything else.

Energy Drinks & Marketing
The “thing” about energy drinks is that they are marketed as being all-natural energy boosters loaded with exotic ingredients that popular culture believes to be healthy. Energy drinks are generally marketed towards younger crowds, especially those who go to raves. People are buying energy drinks in record numbers, even at an incredible $2-3 for a can smaller than an average soft drink can. Just FYI, the energy drink industry is worth over a billion dollars in sales annually. Note that Red Bull energy drink leads the way. While Red Bull may have lame TV commercials, energy drinks tend to have cool logo colors and fonts, modern can or bottle shapes, and a “high energy” feel surrounding them. It’s a marketing company’s dream come true!

The Dangers of Energy Drinks: Side Effects & Long-term Effects
I’m just scratching the surface with what I have written here so let me give you some food for thought. When you are considering consuming energy drinks:

Make a mental note that while the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is allowing companies to sell and market their energy drink products, there is still very little research that has been done on them. I suspect the FDA allows them to be added simply because they do not pose any immediate danger to energy drink consumers.

The long-term effects of energy drink ingredients, if any, are still not known meaning that drinking a lot of these drinks on a consistent basis may or may not harm you in ways that have yet to be researched.

Energy drink labels are frequently misleading or at least they are so ambiguous that when you buy them you simply believe what you want to believe. Remember that in most cases, the claims being made have not been proven.

It remains unknown as to whether any medical conditions and related prescription medication will interact with energy drinks. If you try an energy drink and react poorly to it, consult a physician.

Body Chemistry
Energy drinks all try to stimulate something in your body that leads to your awakening and feeling as though you have more energy. One big mistake that most people make is that energy drinks will have the same effect on them, regardless of the choice of drink, and ignoring an individual’s unique body chemical make-up.

Think about it this way: We know that alcohol has a unique effect on everyone who consumes it (some people get drunk faster, have different allergic reactions to alcohol, etc), so there is no reason to believe that these drinks will have a different result among various consumers.

Sugar
Many raves don’t sell alcohol but in fact focus on water and energy drink sales. While gaining energy from sugar in and of itself is not such a bad thing, be warned that drinking lots of sugar can make you feel full. Carbonation, which can come from soft drinks as well, also makes you feel full. Ravers who become ill frequently keep dancing or remain active, and fail to re-hydrate as they should, in part because they think they’re full. What ends up happening is that their body shuts down due to the lack of fluids, and they collapse.

Are Energy Drinks Addictive?
Since consumption of energy drinks is so prevalent among youth and frequently associated with raves and the nightclub scene, many wonder about their addictive properties. In fact, the only truly addictive part of energy drink ingredients appears to be caffeine. So if you drink enough cans, you may become addicted to caffeine and ultimately suffer from the effects of the addiction.

Energy Drinks, Alcohol & Death
Bars around the world mix vodka with energy drinks, especially Red Bull. This is mixing a depressant (alcohol) with a stimulant (the energy drink). This can have an effect on your heart and claims have been made that this combination has lead to death. As such, some countries in Europe have banned Red Bull and other energy drinks.

Creatine
SoBe is a popular drink. It contains creatine in such minute amounts that it probably doesn’t have any effect. Same with Ginko.

Taurine
The peculiar thing about taurine is that nobody really knows what it does! There is apparently no evidence that it has any major influence but it is possible that it does indeed have some effect on the body which leads to the feeling of having more energy.

Taurine & Caffeine are Key
One must also account for the mixed effects of the different energy drink ingredients. Consider that drinking different types of alcohol during a night of partying can leave you with an awful hangover. (Of course, you could try the anti-hangover pill). In an energy drink such as Guru for example, it is possible that the taurine enhances the effects of caffeine, giving you a slightly larger boost than if you had drank only one of the ingredients. This is just a theory however since it has yet to be scientifically tested.

Vitamins
Some energy drinks offer a variety of vitamins. It’s important to note that your body will take what it needs and pee off the extra vitamins. So this isn’t a major health booster.

Popular Terms
The most popular energy drinks include Red Bull, Monster, XS (get it - excess), Boost, Crunk, Rockstar, Crunk Juice, Full Throttle, Spark, Amp , Rush, SoBe, Pimp Juice, Shark, Piranha, Red Line, Bookoo, Socko, Fuze, Hype, Guru, and Atomic X.

Update
This BrianX Magazine exclusive article was published in 2004 and since then, a lot of email has come in, mostly from parents who were desperate to get information on energy drinks. In most cases, their children were in the hospital or at least at home with severe issues related to energy drinks. Based on these emails, it would appear that the actual number of people suffering from the adverse effects of these drinks is larger than might be gathered from hospital reports.

RESEARCH ON THE ATLAS & AN ADJUSTMENT

*Special ‘Atlas Adjustment’ Lowers Blood Pressure Better Than 2 Blood Pressure Medications Combined. “This procedure has the effect of not one, but two blood-pressure medications given in combination,” study leader George Bakris, MD, tells WebMD. “And we saw no side effects and no problems,” adds Bakris, director of the University of Chicago hypertension center.

*The more SUBLUXATED the Atlas, the less energy we have for metabolism, healing and thinking –Sperry 1982 NPP

*Research shows that a loss or increase in spinal curves, increases mortality (speeds up death) and takes up to 14 years off your life J. BONE JOINT SURG. AM 1981 JUN;63(5):702-12 Weinstein Sh, Zavala DC, Ponseti IV idiopathic Scoliosis: Long-Term follow-up and prognosis in untreated patients

*Occult Spinal canal stenosis due to C-1 hypoplasia in children with Down Syndrome. Subluxation of the C1 puts pressure brainstem by narrowing the spinal canal. J Neurosurg (6 Suppl Pediatrics) 107:457–459, 2007

*Uncorrected cervical subluxations cause the patient to suffer from loss of balance, along with additional side effects (Cailliet and Gross, 1987)

*The study, published in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, says that out of 1250 infants chosen at random, 211 of them suffered from nervousness, vomiting, muscular abnormalities, tremors and insomnia. 95% (200) of those children had abnormal cervical (neck) muscle strain indicating vertebral subluxation. When the subluxation was adjusted and the muscle strain removed, an immediate calming often resulted, the children’s crying stopped, the muscles relaxed and thechildren fell asleep. (Relations of disturbances of cranio-sacral mechanisms to symptomatology of the newborn. Fryman V. JAOA. 1966;65:1059)

*Gottfried Gutman, MD addressed what he called "Atlas Blockage" (ANVS) and stressed the importance of having the atlas area of infants examined after birth, especially if the birth was difficult. He treated over 1,000 infants and documented the positive clinical results derived from correction for "Atlas Blockage" by performing specific light force adjustments to the atlas vertebrae. (http://www.icpa4kids.org/research/articles/childhood/ADD_ritalin.htm)

*Atlas malpositions blocks normal neck motion and DRAMATICALLY reduces the amount of endophin production!!! With inadequate endorphin production, pain INCREASES THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE BODY! In many studies, this has been found to be the major cause of fibromyalgia (Davis 1996; Molina and Wyke 1965)

*Atlas subluxations can cause eye problems, affect ability to speak, taste, smell, execute speech, ability to swallow, and balance (Raymond, 1977; Molina and Wyke, 1965; Cailliet and Gross, 1987)

*The loss of cervical lordosis & (ATLAS SUBLUXATION) reduces the patients lung capacity by up to 30% (Davis, 1996; Korr, 1975; Bernini, Wiesel and Rothman,1982)

*Atlas subluxations affect ORGAN FUNCTION. These phenomena have been demonstrated in such sites as the gastrointestinal tract, urinary bladder, adrenal medulla, lymphatic tissues, heart and vessels of the brain and peripheral nerves. (J Nanipulative Physiol Ther Nov-Dec; 18 (9): 597-602 1995)

*People with Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI’s) (in the Atlas area, emphasis. mine) causes supressed immune function J Spinal Cord Med 2000 Summer:23 (2);111-20

* Immune System boosting effects of chiropractic care: T and B lymphocytes numbers, natural killer cell numbers, antibody levels, phagocytic activity and plasma endorphon levles are positively influenced by spinal correcting adjustments (CJA 1993)

*Blocked atlantal nerve syndrome in infants and small children. Gutman G. ICA Review, 1990; July:37-42. Originally published in German Manuelle Medizin (1987) 25:5-10.

• From the abstract:

Three case reports are reviewed to illustrate a syndrome that has so far received far too little attention, which is caused and perpetuated in babies and infants by blocked nerve impulses at the atlas. Included in the clinical picture are lowered resistance to infections, especially to ear-, nose-, and throat infections, two cases of insomnia, two cases of cranial bone asymmetry, and one case each of torticollis, retarded locomotor development, retarded linguistic development, conjunctivitis, tonsillitis, rhinitis, earache, extreme neck sensitivity, incipient scoliosis, delayed hip development, and seizures.

*Absence of T-cells, immune dysfunction, has colds all the time. International Chiropractic Pediatric Association Newsletter. November 1996

·         Male child - Age 5 from a central American country. Prior diagnosis: malformation of cervical spine, severe scoliosis, occiput position severely anterior to cervical spine. Not vocalizing well. Absence of T-cells, immune dysfunction, has colds all the time. Surgery had been considered to correct skull positioning. In the first series of adjustments, we adjusted the lad in a sitting position utilizing the infant toggle headpiece. The Atlas was adjusted ASL. Child was reevaluated in native country and medical staff stated that everything was now normal. Child returned to U.S. for care 6 months later. Vocabulary was now normal. Head position -normal. No colds evident during these months. Scoliosis was greatly reduced.

*Autism, Asthma, Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), strabismus and illness susceptibility: a case study in chiropractic management. Amalu WC. Todays Chiropractic. September/October 1998. Pp. 32-47.

• A 5-year-old female with autism, asthma, allergies, irritable bowel syndrome and left-sided strabismus who was experiencing 25 violent temper episode per day, with each episode lasting up to 20 minutes was referred for care. She also exhibited three episodes each day of self-inflicted violent behavior, which included biting her arm, slapping her head and repeatedly banging her head against a full-length mirror. She also had at least one episode of violent behavior each day - hitting people, especially her mother. Speech was limited to a few words such as "mama, dada, milk and walk."
• Chiropractic Management consisted of correction of the atlanto-occipital subluxation with the patient adjusted in the knee-chest posture with contact to the posterior arch of atlas.
• First week of care: After the first adjustment, patient had her first good night's sleep since her mother could remember. Violent temper episodes had reduced to 15 per day with de-crease in intensity. Self-inflicted violent behavior was decreased in frequency. Her speech, vocabulary and sleep patterns had improved.
• Second week: one adjustment. Violent temper episodes at five per day. Right eye showed no more signs of strabismus. Patient began speaking in sentences for the first time. Mother reported a marked decrease in hyperactivity along with a desire to be touched and hugged.
• Third week: One adjustment. Violent temper episodes 2 per day with decreased intensity. Mother stated there was little hyperactivity. Self-directed or outward violent behavior have ceased. Irritable bowel syndrome was much improved.
• Fourth week: no adjustments. All temper episodes, hyperactivity, violent behavior have stopped. Sleeping through the night. Patient was evaluated by two therapists who declared the diagnosis of autism was "incorrect."
• Week 5- 8: a mild return of symptoms, an adjustment was given, and symptoms abated.
  
• Weeks 9-12: no adjustments. The IBS had almost completely resolved. Patient continued to improve over next 8 months; no more asthma attacks.

The Chiropractic Story of Masha and Dasha

The new mother was told that her twin babies had died after birth. However the truth was far different: they were sent to an institute near Moscow to be studied. This was to be the fate of "Masha" and "Dasha", one of the most unusual sets of "Siamese" or conjoined twins ever born.

Identical twins are formed when a fertilized egg divides into two eggs. The two eggs grow into two babies that are identical in every respect. Conjoined or Siamese twins are formed in the same way as identical twins but the eggs, for some reason, don't completely separate; instead, they remain partially attached. It was the unique way in which the twins were connected that caused Soviet scientists to take such an interest in them.

Although Masha and Dasha have four arms, they have only three legs. They stand on two of their legs, one controlled by Masha, one by Dasha (they were five before they learned how to walk) while a third, vestigial leg remains in the air behind them. Their upper intestines are separated but they share a single lower intestine and rectum. They have four kidneys and one bladder, and often disagree on when to urinate. They have a common reproductive system.

Although Masha and Dasha have four arms, they have only three legs. They stand on two of their legs, one controlled by Masha, one by Dasha (they were five before they learned how to walk) while a third, vestigial leg remains in the air behind them. Their upper intestines are separated but they share a single lower intestine and rectum. They have four kidneys and one bladder, and often disagree on when to urinate. They have a common reproductive system.

Because their circulatory systems are inter-connected, the twins share each other's blood. Therefore, a bacterium or virus that enters one twin's bloodstream will soon be seen in the blood of her sister. Yet surprisingly, illness affects them differently. Dasha is short-sighted, prone to colds and right-handed. Masha smokes occasionally, has a healthier constitution, higher blood pressure than her sister, good eyesight and is left-handed.

The twins differing health patterns present a mystery. Why did one become ill with a childhood disease, like measles for example, while the other did not? The measles "bug" was in both of their bodies, in their collective bloodstream; so why didn't both get the measles?

Evidently there is more to "getting the measles" than having the measles "bug". This phenomenon was seen over and over again with the girls (flu, colds, other childhood diseases were all experienced separately). If germs alone had the power to cause infectious diseases, why would one of the twins be disease-free while the other was ill? What was it in their makeup that differentiated one from the other?

The answer was not far to seek. Although Masha and Dasha had common circulatory, digestive, excretory, lymphatic, endocrine and skeletal systems (they were joined at the hips), they had separate spinal columns and spinal cords. This was the only important difference between the two girls.

In Masha and Dasha, nature's "laboratory" devised an experiment that no human researcher could ever duplicate. These extraordinary twins are an invaluable example confirming that there is much more to "catching" a disease than simply breathing in germs; germs can make you sick if and only if your body provides fertile ground to grow in.

The state of your nervous system can determine whether you have high or low resistance to disease. If you are suffering from disease, the health of your nervous system will play a decisive role in whether or not (and how rapidly) you will recover. By keeping your spinal column and nervous system free from subluxation stress, chiropractic care keeps you in a higher state of health.

Masha and Dasha became celebrities when they appeared on a popular national television program in Russia. They were reunited with their mother (their father had since died) and are hopeful: "The past forty years haven't been so good, but things are looking up for the next forty," said Dasha.