Since my chiropractor is still currently banning me from most training that I'm used to (lifting, karate, running) I have noticed that my normally happy attitude isn't quite as buoyant as it is with exercise so I've found myself turning more and more to nutrition to do what I can until I get a green light to be more active.

Also, with somewhat synergistic timing, I had my second full evaluation with my chiropractor yesterday. The evaluation assessments are very throughout and consist of a questionnaire consisting of 114 questions and a battery of test which measure the same aspects covered in the questions. These questions and measurements cover physical, bio-chemical and the psychological aspects of a person's life. Creating Wellness is the theme behind this care (www.creatingwellness.com)

....OK, slight tangent here but, there's a picture of the CEO of the Creating Wellness concept, Dr. Patrick Gentempo on that website I just mentioned. He's from New York but I got a chance to meet the guy and hear a talk of his out in St. Louis this past December - a gist of his talk was that we don't have health care in this country we have sick care.

One point that really stuck with me was when he mentioned that StarBucks spends more money each year in employee health care than they do in coffee beans! ...amazing

OK, back to our regularly scheduled program ...

Anyway - one of the 114 questions ask how often I eat Cold Water Ocean Fish. I had never heard this question or category of food before so I had to do some research online to learn more. It seems cold water ocean fish includes salmon, haddock, sardines, cod, mackerel, herrin, tuna, etc. and contains high levels of essential fatty acids EPA and DHA that work to protect the membranes that cover brain cells as well as helping to lower blood pressure and reduce heart disease risk.

If I have four servings a week it can help improve my evaluation results so I figure I can get in two tuna sandwiches, a serving of salmon and I'll give sardines a shot ...

In my research I also found a nice article from Men's Fitness on "8 foods you must eat" I'll summarize the eight foods below and put a link to the full article for anyone interested. The article seemed very much in line with what's being recommended by my chiropractor.

1. Soy Burgers for heart and prostate health (basically Boca Burgers)
2. Cherries for pain relief. (a study at Michigan State University found that eating tart cherries could relieve inflammatory pain as capably as aspirin or ibuprofen, but with less potential stomach irritation.)
3. Sardines for Brain Function
4. Olive oil for vascular protection
5. Broccoli for DNA protection
6. Dark Beer for the heart. Apparently dark beer has a higher concentration of flavonoids which is a heart-friendly antioxidant chemical also found in red wine. My medical doctor had already advised me to drink beer because he said it's the easiest way to raise high density cholesterol levels so maybe I'll finally give this a shot ...seems darned expensive though
7. Low-Sugar whole grain cereals for heart and colon health
8. Dark Leafy Greens for eye health

the full article is available at
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1608/is_5_19/ai_100545104/pg_1