Have you ever sat
down to taking medications
00:00:14.94\00:00:17.18
and wondered -
"How did I get here?"
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Do you wish you could reduce
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your need for
prescription medications,
00:00:20.82\00:00:22.15
and prevent further disease?
00:00:22.18\00:00:23.85
On today's program, Dr.
Marcum will be answering
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some of the most commonly asked
questions that he receives,
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and sharing ideas that
you can use to improve your
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health today no matter
where you're starting from.
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"The Ultimate
Prescription" starts now...
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Thanks for joining us today
on "The Ultimate Prescription,"
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a program dedicated to
helping us better understand
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God's design for our lives
and experience better health
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by following His plan.
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I'm your host, Nick
Evenson, and I'm joined by
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Dr. James Marcum for
an excellent program today
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in which we're going
to answer some of the most
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commonly asked questions that
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you receive
through the website, right?
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Um hm, and Nick this is
going to be a fun program.
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It's always fun to answer
people's questions and I do
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this in the office every day
as a practicing cardiologist,
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and I get some very
interesting questions...
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And I'm going to write a
book someday about the most
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interesting questions I've
every received, okay. Yeah!
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This is sort of off
of the beaten path here,
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before we answer the
questions that come in.
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But one of the
questions asked said...
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"The nitroglycerin patch that
I was prescribed by my doctor
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doesn't seem to be
helping me very much.
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In fact, I've had lots
of sickness at my stomach
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since taking it," and
he says, "Do I have to
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swallow this thing every day?"
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And you assume people
understand and know things,
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but I had to explain to him that
this is a patch - you wear it,
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you don't swallow it. Right.
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So his doctor did not explain
to him that the patch was
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something you wore on
yourself and you didn't swallow.
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So, unfortunately, he was
swallowing the nitroglycerin
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patch and becoming
sick at his stomach.
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So every question is
important and every question
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has value, and we could
learn from every question.
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I pretty much learn something
from every question I receive.
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Sometimes I have to look
it up in the medical books...
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Well now, we don't have
books, we have the internet now,
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and sometimes I have
to go to multiple sources,
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and people that I
really trust and people that I
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don't trust because, like I
say, I have to learn as we go.
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So people go into our
website, HeartwiseMinistries.org
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and after doing
this for so many years,
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I get the same
questions frequently...
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So that's why I thought maybe
we could have a "Frequently
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Asked Questions Program,"
and I can help some people
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out since these
questions are asked many times,
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and they are
important questions.
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But I assume... never
assume! I try never to assume,
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and questions are the way
we learn, so ask questions!
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And I try to apply that
to my spiritual life too.
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I don't understand
things and I ask God... I say,
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"God, I don't understand this,
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I don't understand this
medically," and I pray for my
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patients for wisdom.
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I say, "God, can You
help me understand this?"
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And sometimes He says, "Well,
I can help you understand it."
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Sometimes He says, "Well, no
this not the time or you're too
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feeble, I'm not
even going to try this."
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Remember that text
in James, "If any of you
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lack wisdom,
let him ask of God."
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I lack a lot of
wisdom, so I'm asking God
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a lot of the times for help.
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But when He answers my
prayer, I'm pretty excited!
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You know, because I see things
a little bit differently now
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and I can apply that to
my practice and sometimes I
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can use it to
help other people out.
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So that's pretty neat,
so that's why we're talking
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about frequently
asked questions today,
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and I know we can't get
through all of the hundreds
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we get but maybe we
can get a few that apply
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to a lot of people today. Yeah!
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Well let's jump
right in here... Yeah!
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The first
question on our list is:
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"What's a good treatment
for migraine headaches?"
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Ooo, that's a good one and
I get the migraine headache
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a lot and first of all...
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You get the headache
or you get the questions?
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Well I get the questions a lot.
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So when a person has a migraine
headache, first of all...
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I want to ask - "Why do
they have migraine headaches?"
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And sometimes there can be a
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food trigger -
that's very common.
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Food triggers - sometimes it's
dairy; sometimes it's things
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like MSG.
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Different things in
our environment can trigger
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migraines but if you
can't figure out a trigger,
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you can't reverse it -
one treatment that works very,
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very well is ginger, okay?
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In fact, they've done
some studies that compared
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ginger versus the most
common medical prescription,
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Imitriptan and they found that
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ginger works as good as
Imitriptan for migraines.
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So at the onset of a migraine,
throw some ginger down,
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that can help that symptom
out and continue to search
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what might be the
trigger for your migraine.
00:05:07.20\00:05:09.60
Now, you mentioned a
lot of times it can be food.
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Is this something you can
get tested for to see if it's...
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Is it like an allergy?
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No, it's not an allergy,
it's different than allergies.
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But certain types of food
can trigger a migraine headache.
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And people that have tons
of migraines, sometimes they
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can figure out what
foods to stay away from,
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sometimes they can't.
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And sometimes stress and the
combination of food will do it,
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so it's lots of different
factors and the current
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theory is - migraine is a
vascular event that causes the
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vessels to change the way they
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dilate and that
triggers all the pain.
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And migraines can be devastating
for people - you get sick
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at your stomach;
sometimes you can't function;
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sometimes it even
mimics a stroke, you know,
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so people think they
might be having a stroke.
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So migraines are very
devastating - so that's sort of
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a pathway that might
help some people that are
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with chronic migraines.
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And some people that
have chronic migraines,
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I might tell them to take
some ginger every day as a
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way maybe to
prevent migraine headaches,
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especially if they
can't find out what's
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triggering the headache. Yeah.
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All right, there are some
good answers in there, I'm sure.
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"What can be done
for muscle cramps?"
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I know sometimes I get
exercise-induced muscle cramps.
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It's easy to figure out how
to stop that - just rest and
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don't exercise so much but for
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other folks,
what's a good solution?
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Well, again, it's find
out the cause and this is
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a common sense thing, okay.
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For instance... My
feet cramp sometimes if I
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wear tight shoes, so
it might be the position
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your putting your muscle in.
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It's not a natural
position, so the muscle goes,
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"I'm not happy," so it wants
to be relieved of that position
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so a nerve is fired and
says, "I'm cramped." Okay?
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It might be something
like not having enough water,
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since 70% of your
muscles are water.
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You see that in a
football field, you know,
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"He's dehydrated," he
is pulling up with a cramp.
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Sometimes it's
because they're dehydrated.
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It might be from a deficiency,
an electrolyte deficiency
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like magnesium, potassium
- some of the trace elements
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because their muscles need that.
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It might be some more
complex medical issues,
00:07:07.86\00:07:10.66
but for people that have
cramps, a couple of things:
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Make sure your clothes
are nice and comfortable,
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especially your shoes;
do some stretching exercises
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to loosen the muscles
up; try drinking more water;
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and eat some fruits
and vegetables every day
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to get some of
those electrolytes and see
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if it doesn't improve.
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Those are some simple
things we can do that will
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take care of most muscle cramps.
00:07:31.18\00:07:34.05
Now, I had one person
that had lots of muscle cramps,
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and he was causing it by
his exercise that he was doing.
00:07:37.25\00:07:40.26
He was putting his muscle
in such a position that it was
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causing the cramp. Yeah
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And when we pointed that
out, the cramp always seemed
00:07:44.43\00:07:46.53
to be under this
situation, that did it.
00:07:46.56\00:07:48.70
Another person said they
were always getting a cramp
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in their neck and it ended
up being the position they were
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putting their neck in at night.
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They got in a funny
thing, it caused a cramp;
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they got that changed
and it got much better.
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So there are lots
of different things.
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One person I run into
had leg cramps at night,
00:08:01.44\00:08:04.55
and it ended up
being sleep apnea.
00:08:04.58\00:08:06.51
They weren't getting
enough oxygen to the muscle,
00:08:06.55\00:08:08.82
and, therefore, it cramped.
00:08:08.85\00:08:10.52
So there are lots of different
things that cause leg cramps.
00:08:10.55\00:08:13.29
Those are some of the
more frequent ones I've seen.
00:08:13.32\00:08:15.59
So the key is to identify the
cause and then make a change.
00:08:15.62\00:08:18.63
Exactly! All right!
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We have another
person who writes in:
00:08:20.40\00:08:23.40
"How can I improve my
memory as I am getting older?"
00:08:23.43\00:08:26.90
What? Memory?
Memory! Yeah, yeah!
00:08:28.44\00:08:31.47
Can you repeat that question?
No, no, I'm just kidding.
00:08:31.51\00:08:33.98
I'm just kidding, good.
00:08:34.01\00:08:35.64
There are lots of little
memory aids we can and the thing
00:08:35.68\00:08:39.18
I tell people - "If you
don't use it, you'll use it."
00:08:39.21\00:08:41.25
What does the mind
need to function optimally?
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It needs good nutrition;
specific foods that help
00:08:45.19\00:08:48.82
the brain as are antioxidants.
00:08:48.86\00:08:51.39
Berries - blueberries have been
00:08:51.43\00:08:53.56
studied very well -
of helping the brain.
00:08:53.60\00:08:56.06
Omega 3 fatty acids can
help, you know, like nuts,
00:08:56.10\00:08:59.60
walnuts and almonds
can help because it gives
00:08:59.63\00:09:01.87
the substrate the
brain needs. Right.
00:09:01.90\00:09:03.51
Improving the
circulation with exercise.
00:09:03.54\00:09:06.51
Seventy percent of the
brain is water - make sure you
00:09:06.54\00:09:09.14
get enough water.
00:09:09.18\00:09:10.51
I also think reading
the Scripture out loud
00:09:10.55\00:09:13.65
for 10 minutes a
day; some people have said
00:09:13.68\00:09:15.78
that helps quite a bit as well.
00:09:15.82\00:09:17.72
I would also like to add
worship to that study since
00:09:17.75\00:09:20.96
worship turns off the stress.
00:09:20.99\00:09:22.62
Stress chemistry causes
brain inflammation and if you
00:09:22.66\00:09:26.43
think about it, anything
that lowers stress in the body
00:09:26.46\00:09:29.86
should help the brain
improve to some degree. Yeah!
00:09:29.90\00:09:32.93
So those are some
simple things that we can do
00:09:32.97\00:09:35.14
to help our brain to
slow down the ageing process.
00:09:35.17\00:09:37.74
All right, now
I've got to ask you...
00:09:37.77\00:09:39.11
Not long ago, I heard on
the news about, I think it was
00:09:39.14\00:09:43.11
an online brain game and
it was exercises that were
00:09:43.14\00:09:47.15
supposed to help you be
able to improve your cognition
00:09:47.18\00:09:49.65
and memory and that kind of
thing as you age, have you heard
00:09:49.68\00:09:52.15
about those kind of
things and what do you think?
00:09:52.19\00:09:53.52
No, I haven't heard about
them, but I would think anything
00:09:53.56\00:09:55.99
that would exercise the
brain, keep the brain working,
00:09:56.02\00:09:58.69
and figuring out
things, I've heard people that
00:09:58.73\00:10:00.20
play games like
chess, put together puzzles,
00:10:00.23\00:10:03.23
those are useful - I'm sure
that follows the same lines.
00:10:03.26\00:10:05.97
I think one of the worse
things you can do is do nothing
00:10:06.00\00:10:08.80
or paralyze your brain.
00:10:08.84\00:10:10.31
I have some people that
say, "Well Uncle Joe is losing
00:10:10.34\00:10:13.64
his memory," I say, "What
does Uncle Joe do all day?"
00:10:13.68\00:10:15.88
"Well, he sits in his
chair and he watches the same TV
00:10:15.91\00:10:18.41
program over, he
doesn't interact with friends
00:10:18.45\00:10:20.55
and neighbors; he
eats a lot of inflammatory
00:10:20.58\00:10:23.65
foods; he doesn't exercise."
00:10:23.69\00:10:25.09
Well that's going to accelerate
00:10:25.12\00:10:26.49
the ageing process
and the brain atrophy.
00:10:26.52\00:10:29.86
Another thing that
will make the brain worse is
00:10:29.89\00:10:31.39
alcohol; certain
drugs can make it worse.
00:10:31.43\00:10:34.93
There are lots of
things that hurt the brain too;
00:10:34.96\00:10:36.87
falling down - I have
some elderly people that
00:10:36.90\00:10:39.20
fall down a lot and
bump their brains. Yeah.
00:10:39.23\00:10:41.44
That can sort of hurt things
as well as far as the memory.
00:10:41.47\00:10:43.97
So there are lots of different
practical things we can do
00:10:44.01\00:10:46.71
not only to protect the brain,
00:10:46.74\00:10:48.38
but help it slow
down the ageing process.
00:10:48.41\00:10:51.11
All right, here's another
common question that you get:
00:10:51.15\00:10:53.65
"I have a lot of aches, pains
and just general inflammation,
00:10:53.68\00:10:57.59
what can I do to reduce this?"
00:10:57.62\00:10:59.05
Yeah, inflammation is a problem.
00:10:59.29\00:11:01.79
Sometimes inflammation
can be genetic-related;
00:11:01.82\00:11:05.19
sometimes it can
be trauma- related;
00:11:05.23\00:11:08.13
sometimes it can
be pain- related.
00:11:08.16\00:11:11.33
So lots of things can cause
the inflammation in the body.
00:11:11.37\00:11:14.90
It can be an injury -
sometimes inflammation
00:11:14.94\00:11:17.34
can be a sign that we're sick.
00:11:17.37\00:11:18.71
You know, for instance,
you catch a cold and you have
00:11:18.74\00:11:20.91
inflammation in the nose and
00:11:20.94\00:11:22.28
you start running
and that kind of thing.
00:11:22.31\00:11:23.65
Well inflammation can
occur in joints and other parts
00:11:23.68\00:11:26.31
if sometimes we have
conditions like arthritis;
00:11:26.35\00:11:29.65
we have conditions like
lupus, Sjogren's; it's medical
00:11:29.68\00:11:33.02
things that have happened...
00:11:33.05\00:11:34.39
But sometimes people just get
00:11:34.42\00:11:35.76
old and have diffuse
inflammation just from the
00:11:35.79\00:11:37.99
wear and tear of life. Yeah.
00:11:38.03\00:11:40.30
I have inflammation in my
body, so what I do to help
00:11:40.33\00:11:43.93
inflammation is - I
make sure I get enough water;
00:11:43.97\00:11:47.44
I go through my
stretching every day;
00:11:47.47\00:11:50.21
I make sure I don't eat
foods that cause inflammation,
00:11:50.24\00:11:53.74
and acidic foods tend
to promote inflammation.
00:11:53.78\00:11:57.25
Now, I don't eat acidic
foods but people eat lots of
00:11:57.28\00:11:59.88
animal-based products that
tends to make inflammation;
00:11:59.91\00:12:03.62
processed foods
turn on inflammation.
00:12:03.65\00:12:06.05
There are some supplements
that are anti-inflammatory.
00:12:06.09\00:12:09.89
We know that, of
course, fruits, vegetables,
00:12:09.92\00:12:11.69
nuts and grains help, but
also there have been studies
00:12:11.73\00:12:14.16
with things like ginger
helps with inflammation;
00:12:14.20\00:12:17.17
turmeric helps
with inflammation.
00:12:17.20\00:12:19.50
Those are two supplements
I take to treat a specific
00:12:19.53\00:12:22.60
condition of
inflammation in my body.
00:12:22.64\00:12:25.77
So everyone has a
certain degree of it that we get
00:12:25.81\00:12:29.68
with our ageing - some
people have more than others.
00:12:29.71\00:12:32.55
The dangerous thing
about inflammation is sometimes
00:12:32.58\00:12:35.45
it keeps us from doing
the things we need to do most
00:12:35.48\00:12:37.82
which is move! Yes.
00:12:37.85\00:12:39.35
So as you get inflammation,
what you don't want
00:12:39.39\00:12:41.52
to do is quit moving.
00:12:41.56\00:12:42.89
You know, people with arthritis,
they have to keep moving
00:12:42.92\00:12:45.36
the joints and sometimes
that in itself helps the
00:12:45.39\00:12:47.86
stiffness of life go on.
00:12:47.90\00:12:49.50
If you don't move a
party part, you lose it.
00:12:49.53\00:12:52.43
It malfunctions quicker,
so everything in our body
00:12:52.47\00:12:55.24
we have to be smart
about and keep moving it. Yep.
00:12:55.27\00:12:58.21
Sounds like some
good suggestions there on
00:12:58.24\00:13:00.08
keep moving and reducing
inflammation through that.
00:13:00.11\00:13:02.24
We're going to take a
quick break, but if you have a
00:13:02.28\00:13:04.91
question like some of
these that we have been going
00:13:04.95\00:13:06.78
through here, go to:
HeartwiseMinistries.org
00:13:06.82\00:13:09.25
and ask you question
there and be sure to sign up
00:13:09.28\00:13:10.95
for our
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00:13:10.99\00:13:12.39
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00:13:12.42\00:13:14.26
Dr. Marcum and
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00:13:14.29\00:13:16.56
to live in better harmony
with God's design for our lives.
00:13:16.59\00:13:19.56
Stay with us... we'll
be back in just a moment.
00:13:19.59\00:13:21.36