Dear Readers

There are two articles on pain relief in this issue of Natural News: one on general pain relief for arthritis, back pain and headaches, and another one specifically on help with period pains. It is so important to look at natural ways to relieve pain, because it is becoming more well-known that painkillers can actually be causing more pain rather than relieving it.

I have seen a number of patients in the clinic whose repeated headaches are being caused by the painkillers. The longer the pills are taken, the more resistant the body becomes to their effects and so the person needs to take more or even has to have a stronger painkiller. As the medication wears off there is a withdrawal effect, known as a ‘rebound’ headache, which means that more painkillers need to be taken and so that person is stuck in a vicious circle.

For those of you who are suffering with hay fever I hope you find the article on this subject helpful in reducing the symptoms. 

Do let me know if there are any topics you would particularly like me to cover – and remember to send in your favourite recipes and keep your questions coming!

Kind regards

 

Marilyn Glenville

A new study (by Japanese scientists in the British Journal of Sports Medicine) suggests that playing ball games like tennis and netball in your teens can make women’s bones stronger forty years later. The scientists interviewed post menopausal women about the kind of exercise they took in their teens and it appears that the more weight bearing exercise a girl takes between the ages of 12 and 18 the more her bone density is likely to be protected after the menopause. High impact sports like sprinting can also be beneficial.

People who sleep less than six hours a night are at greater risk of blood sugar problems that can lead to diabetes, according to research presented by scientists at the University of Buffalo in New York. They found that those who lose sleep during the working week are five times more likely to develop blood sugar problems.

It’s thought that hormonal changes caused by too much or too little sleep can affect the body’s metabolism and appetite control. The study found that those sleeping fewer than six hours a night from Sunday to Thursday over six years were 4.5 times more likely to develop the blood sugar abnormality known as impaired fasting glucose compared to those sleeping between six and eight hours. The condition – which is often called pre-diabetes – is caused by the body not producing enough insulin causing blood sugar levels to rise above normal in the morning. The findings could not be explained by genes and scientists believe they are most likely due to lack of sleep.

 

Around a third of British adults regularly sleep for five hours or less a night. The healthiest amount of sleep, according to researchers, is seven hours a night.