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Physical Activity: The Young Brain's Best Healer
By Dr. Robert
Zembroski
Originally printed in Natural Awakenings
Magazine, Fairfield County, August 2006 Edition
It’s
Summertime, when the living is breezy and we’re taking it easy.
As relaxed as we are, however, this is also a very good time to
focus on our free-range children in action, observing them in a
thoughtful and well-informed way.
As a
chiropractic neurologist, my mission is to educate those
concerned with the health and welfare of children about the
preventable and correctable health problems today’s children are
often prone to. Whether these health problems are caused by
developmental weaknesses in the nervous system and brain, poor
nutrition, biochemical or nutritional deficiencies, or exposures
to toxic substances such as food dyes, my goal is to empower
parents and others to take action— without drugs if possible—to
prevent and correct them.
Recent
advances in brain research and imaging strongly support the
specialty of chiropractic neurology, which focuses on evaluating
the function of the brain and nervous sytem. Once a deficit has
been diagnosed by observation and our state-of-the-art
technology, a noninvasive, nonsurgical, drug-free protocol is
prescribed.
Mapping
ADHD & Dyslexia
Today’s
parents and caregivers are bombarded with so much information
and misinformation about children’s health care that they are
frustrated and confused instead of enlightened. So let’s begin
to clear up the fog.
A child’s
health is determined by the fundamentals of breast feeding and
the sort of nurturing that promotes emotional, mental, and
physical growth. As children develop and grow, the greatest
influence on their health becomes their level of physical
activity and the quality of their nutrition.
Earlier, as
the brain and nervous system develop in utero, many are exposed
to some form of prenatal stress—whether in the form of a
hormonal change or a biochemical stressor—that causes one
hemisphere of the brain to become weaker than the other. This is
known as brain asymmetry. With this weakness developing, we
begin to see subtle symptoms that lead to more noticeable and
chronic problems. This neurological weakness may present itself
as a cognitive challenge, such as ADD/ADHD, dyslexia, a learning
disability or perhaps poor motivation or aggression. Along with
these cognitive issues, we also often see problems of balance,
postural muscle weakness, poor hand-eye coordination and
problems of visual perception.
These
neurological weaknesses all can be addressed and corrected
without the use of psychostimulant medications such as
Ritalin, Concerta, or Stratera.
Activity and
Nutrition As Healing Factors
You may
notice that after being physically active children often find it
easier to focus, read, and retain information. You may also
notice an improvement in their behavior, their posture, and
coordination at that time. Movement, after all, was what enabled
their brains to develop from a crawl to the ability to walk and
run. With each joint movement, with the contracting and relaxing
of muscles, constant signals are sent to the brain, cerebellum
and spinal cord that keep these structures healthy. It is
through our children’s movement and exercise that their nervous
systems become more efficient.
“You are what
you eat” isn’t just an old-fashioned truism, since many health
problems have been linked to nutritional deficiencies. Cognitive
problems such as ADD/ADHD, for example, stem from a dysfunction
in the dopamine- and norepinephrine-producing pathways of the
brain’s right cortex and the cerebellum. Research shows that a
lack of specific nutrients and amino acids causes this
dysfunction in the nervous system. The same is true for the
causes of depression, dyslexia, and other cognitive challenges.
The Shocking
Ingredient in Food Colorings
Nutritional
supplementation is paramount to resolving many of our children’s
health challenges. But it is important to be specific to your
child’s individual needs, because to randomly give nutritional
support without a higher understanding of their needs isn’t the
best approach. In general, however, the isotonic-formulated
co-enzyme Q10, grape seed and pine bark extracts (OPCs), and
omega-3 fatty acids have been found to have the greatest
influence on neurological health.
One of the
prominent causative factors for childhood ailments, when it
comes to toxicities, is food dyes. Dyes such as FD&C yellow #5
and 6, blue #1, red #2, #3, and #4—to name just a few that are
commonly put in foods and certain vegetables—have a negative
impact on our children’s health. Many artificial food colorings
are made from petroleum—yes, oil products! These
chemicals are toxic to us all, have been known to cause
hyperactivity, and are a big factor in the production of asthma.
Food additives have also been linked to allergies, rhinitis,
nasal congestion and neurological problems. Aspartame/Nutrasweet,
by the way, is one of the biggest toxins on the market!
Move the Body to
Benefit the Brain
All health
issues, whether in children or adults, have underlying causes.
Understanding the neurological and the biochemical reasons
behind health problems makes correcting them a lot easier. Just
as there are ways to test body chemistry to uncover nutrient
deficiencies, neurological evaluation— including the use of
infrared camera technology such as videonystagmagraphy— is
considered the best way to identify brain asymmetry. Once
weakness in the brain is located, specific treatment that may
include manipulation of the joints and spine, interactive
metronome therapy, vestibular rehabilitation, hemifield
stimulation through the use of computer programs, and so on, is
implemented to correct the problem.
While all
these are highly effective, remember that simple physical
activity is the best way to improve your children’s brain
function! |
