Hospice of the Valleys (Dr. Laurence Boggeln, Medical Director, Terry Azkoul, Executive Director, and Susan Cordts, RN Liaison) had the privilege of touring the new Loma Linda University Medical Center – Murrieta (LLUMC-Murrieta). In a rare opportunity, Dr. John Piconi, Chairman of the Board, was there as our distinguished tour guide.

As we walked through the impressive, state-of-the-art structure, we were acutely aware of how LLUMC-Murrieta was literally laying down roots in our community and how valuable this new premier health care provider will be to its residents.

During the tour, we kept hearing words like “no compromise,” “faith-based healthcare,” and “collaboration.” We were impressed with LLUMC-Murrieta’s intent to raise the quality of healthcare in our area and how even before the building opens, they are deeply involved in supporting and uniting area businesses.

As the community eagerly awaits the opening of LLUMC-Murrieta in Spring, 2011, Hospice of the Valleys is pleased to announce our shared vision with LLUMC-Murrieta of providing the highest quality, best-practice palliative care services to patients with serious illness.

by Lisa Musick

Many of you recognize magnesium as a dietary supplement.  You see it mostly associated with its public relations complement, calcium.  But did you know that magnesium is essential in activating over 300 different enzyme systems critical to life, more than any other dietary mineral? 

Let’s take a look at just a few.  Firstly, it is essential to the cycle that converts sugar into bioenergy.  It helps stabilize ATP (adenosine triphosphate - molecular units that facilitate our body’s cellular signaling) and is a major controller of the ionic channels that govern the flow of sodium, potassium and calcium in and out of cells.  While calcium influences muscle contractions, magnesium stabilizes that effect to relax them. Wow! That sounds fairly important to our health.

Dietary magnesium is not what it used to be.  A recent study noted that the intake of magnesium has declined in the US from 475-500 mg/day in 1900 to about 250 mg/day in 1990.  This is possibly due to an increase in consumption of processed foods.   The recommended daily allowance has been set at 400 mg making it rather difficult to get enough through diet alone.  Boiled vegetables can lose up to 50 percent of their magnesium content and brown rice can lose up to 80 percent when refined into white rice. Finally, magnesium is rarely added back to the soil in modern synthetic fertilizers, thus lowering magnesium levels in food. 

by Dr. Tina Gottlieb

Picture your kids when they bound in the door after school. Notice their posture. Are their shoulders hunched forward and their heads facing down to support the weight of their backpacks? If so, have any of your children complained of back pain?

Studies link heavy backpacks to poor posture and back pain in school children. The first study, published in the May 2003 issue of the leading industry journal, Spine, found the use of backpacks during the school day—and the weights of the backpacks—are associated with back pain. A later study by researcher Dr. Heidi Orloff presented at a meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine concluded that children often hunch their bodies forward and lower their heads to accommodate the burden of heavy backpacks. This can alter the way children move and hold themselves, impacting the biomechanics of the spine.

The biomechanics of the spine have a significant effect on the nervous system, which affects the entire body. Children’s bodies and spines are still growing even in the high school years. If damage is done to the spine at any time during the growing years, it can result in both immediate and future problems.

Take a few minutes to teach your children some simple precautions which can avoid significant problems:

∙     Backpacks should weigh no more than 10% of a child’s bodyweight

∙     A backpack should never hang more than 4 inches below the waistline

∙     Use smaller notebooks and carry only what is needed each day, rather than carrying a

      large, heavy binder filled with paper

∙     Use a backpack with individualized compartments and distribute the contents evenly

Remember the adage, “A stitch in time saves nine.” The same principle applies to backpacks: The right use of a backpack can save your child from problems now and later. 

Dr. Tina Gottlieb is an upper cervical chiropractor in Temecula. She can be reached at www.drtinachiropractic.com or 951-699-5161.