Breaking News

Health

Health Matters: The mystery of neuropathy

ESCANABA — Nerves are interesting structures with a unique function and very special physiology. Their ability to transmit information nearly instantaneously is unmatched in the biological world and it’s essential for mammalian life. This capacity for nerve impulse transmission is what allows us to walk and talk, to think and see, to hold a cup of coffee, and so much more. How these thin-walled, delicate structures are able to do so is fascinating, and incorporates such sundry topics as physics, chemistry, and, of course, biology. But going into any detail is beyond the scope of ...

Health Matters: Too many living with low back pain

ESCANABA — Pain, an unpleasant sensation, is part of the human existence. Everyone is subject to it at some point in their life. The why and where of pain naturally varies, with low back pain apparently the most common location. As to why so much discomfort is generated by this part of the body is the million dollar question. Certainly there are numerous causes of pain from this region, with its complex anatomy and extreme physical tasks. But with the number of individuals afflicted, more than half of older adults according to some reports, this is a huge issue in both healthcare ...

Inflammation important for health

ESCANABA — Instinctively, most people think of inflammation as something bad, something to get rid of. We usually choose to medicate our pain or stiffness with drugs to relieve the discomfort. However, what you might not know is that inflammation is a critically important part of our defense mechanism. It is a normal part of the healing process. Inflammation is one of the body’s most important defense mechanisms. Without it, we would not be able to fight bacterial infections, injuries, and destruction of tissues. To some extent, inflammation is just a part of life, the inevitable ...

Health Matters: Healing benefitted with prolotherapy

ESCANABA — Some say our healthcare system needs to make a U-turn, a radical shift in its approach. Are we curing hypertension with our medications? Our approach to many musculoskeletal problems consists of masking symptoms, which is generally what’s happening with an anti-inflammatory, orally or injected. In effect, we’re hoping that mother nature will eventually heal the problem so the patient can discontinue the drug. Pharmaceutical use, in general, exemplifies our approach, in which medications are able to control the condition or relieve symptoms, but without having any ...

Health Matters:

By Dr. Conway McLean, FAPWHc, DABFAS ESCANABA — Pain is a common sensation, experienced by most of us at some point in our lives. When the discomfort lasts more than 12 weeks, it is classified as chronic, experienced by about 20 percent of the population. 50 million US citizens live with it…..but how much do we really know about chronic pain? The answer may lie in how well we (don’t) deal with it. Most people when asked will say pain is an undesirable sensation, which is an understandable sentiment. Yet, this is not always the case: pain has numerous functions in the human body. ...

Health Matters: Ball of foot pain is sometimes a mystery

ESCANABA — There is an abundance of unexplained medical conditions in the world, although our understanding has advanced tremendously. There is much we don’t know about the human body and don’t let anyone pretend otherwise. How about an explanation for “Stiff Person Syndrome” or Morgellon’s with the strange skin fibers? We don’t even understand something as common as migraine headaches. Schizophrenia and many disorders of the brain remain a mystery. How about the one where an adolescent suddenly develops pain in the ball of the foot for no reason and without injury? In ...