Important Health Facts

1. Church Attendance: Extends life 7-14 years
2. Physical Fitness: Extends life 3-to-5.1 Years
3. Dental care: Extends Life 6.4 Years
4. Nutrition: Increases longevity by 20 years or more
5. Health Care Providers: Add 10 Years to Your Life
6. Weight Control Adds an Incredible Number of Years to Life
7. Ongoing learning Increases Longevity: 18 MO per every Year of Increased Learning

1. Church Attendance: Extends life 7-14 years:

A 28 year follow up of 5,286 people, those who attended religious services weekly or more were 25% less likely to die than infrequent attendees. (Strawbridge, W.J. et al., 1997, Frequent Attendance at Religious Services and Mortality over 28 years, American Journal of Public Health, 1997; 87 (6): 957-61)

"1,931 people aged 55 years or older were followed for nearly five years." "Attending religious service was one of the significant factors in predicting survival." "For each sex, weekly attendees had the lowest mortality and non-attendees had the highest mortality." (Oman and Reed, 1998)

"Attending religious services more than once a week stretched lives an average of 7 years for whites and added a potential 14 more years for African Americans in a U.S. study in Demography which tracked a national sample of more than 21,000 U.S. adults for 9 years." (Hummer R.A., el al., Religious Involvement and U.S. Mortality, Demography, 1999, 36 (2): 1-13)

2. Physical Fitness: Extends life 3-to-5.1Years

(Live Science, By Robert Roy Britt Live Science Managing Editor, April 03, 2006 as taken from the Journal of the American Board of Family, Volume 19, Issue 2, Pages 103-109, March/April 2006) "75% of people in the U.S. are considered sedentary–engaging in irregular or no physical activity". (Harvard Medical School's Consumer health Information as published by Aetna InteliHealth Inc., March 16, 2004)

"We found in our study that walking will increase the volume of the brain, increase the efficiency of the brain and increase improvements in the number of cognitive functions such as memory and attention," says Professor Arthur Kramer of the University of Illinois in Urbana, Ill.
(Jan. 18, 2007, CBSNEWS. Com.)

3. Dental care: Extends Life 6.4 Years

"As research continues to strengthen the links between periodontal disease and heart disease, diabetes, respiratory disease and pre-term births, it's important to spread the message that periodontal disease is far from being just an oral health problem. It represents a significant health risk to millions of people." (American Academy of Periodontology, AAP and Surgeon General Share Common Goals, Chicago-May 26, 2000)

The 2002 Surgeon Generals report that focused on oral health sensitized the nation to the connection between oral health and a systemic disease and the reality there is a silent epidemic of oral diseases. Cleaning the Sulcus area (the area between the tooth and gum) is critical in maintaining good health.

"Subjects who reported gum disease were 64% more likely to have pancreatic cancer." "Scientist suggest that long-standing gum infections trigger a body-wide immune response: Inflammation. Inflamed tissues give off chemical signals that promote tumor growth." (Source: Dominique S. Michaud, ScD, and colleagues at Harvard School of Public Health. Jan. 17, 2007 issue of the National Cancer Institute, vol. 99: pp 171-175)

"Fifty percent of all American Youth ages 17 and under have had caries in their permanent teeth." "Almost fifty percent of all Americans do not receive regular oral health care. Oral health [is] an element in life threatening health problems responsible for deaths of millions of Americans each year". (American Dental Hygienists' Association)

4. Nutrition: Increases longevity by 20 years or more.

The USDA has reported that only 10% of Americans have a "Good Diet". (Huntington College of Health Sciences, Knoxville, Tenn, 2005)

About $25 Billion (dollars) are spent annually on food and drink advertising. "Estimated annual amount spent on food advertising at U.S. Children: $10 Billion Dollars" "Number of food ads viewed by the average child each year: 10,000." "Percentage of these that advertise fast food, soft drinks, candy, or sugared cereals: 95%." "Amount that one soft drink per day increases a child's risk for obesity: 60%." (Children's Hospital Boston, Epidemic At-a-Glance, Optimal Weight for Life (OWL) Program, Harvard Medical School, Children's Hospital is the pediatric teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School)

The two US Industries that consume the most money are as follows: The Food Industry (over a trillion dollars annually) and the Health Care Industry (over 2.4 trillion dollars this year). This represents a little over 25% of the U.S. gross domestic product! There maybe a correlation between these two.

"Every ailment, every sickness and every disease can be traced back to an organic trace mineral deficiency." Linus Pauling Twice awarded the Nobel Prize in medicine.

"There is only one major disease and that is malnutrition. All ailments and afflictions to which we may fall heir are directly traceable to this major disease". (D.W. Cavanaugh, M.D. of Cornell University)

"Simply stated, food crops grown on depleted soil produce malnourished bodies, and disease preys on malnourished bodies." (Empty Harvest, Dr. Bernard Jensen, 1990)

Plants like humans require chemical elements to grow from seed to completion of their life cycle: Plants need nine macronutrients and at least 8 micronutrients. However, more than 50 chemical elements have been identified among the inorganic substances present in plants, but scientists feel that all are not essential.

Richard Drucker, PhD. In his article Depleted Soil and Compromised Food Sources: What You Can Do About it, says "There are more than 70 trace minerals necessary to produce healthy, nutrient-rich crops, yet most current farming methods routinely put back only three to five of them. And he continues by explaining Inorganic (synthetic/dead) Ammonium-based fertilizers, along with herbicides and pesticides, kill the precious micro-organisms in the soil that are essential to the creation of organic (carbon-based/living) mineral complexes.

"The alarming fact is that foods – fruits and vegetables and grains – now being raised on million acres of land that no longer contains enough of certain needed minerals, are starving us, no matter how much of them we eat." (U.S. Senate Document 264, 1936)

USDA figures demonstrating a decline in mineral and vitamin content of fruit (Oranges, apples and bananas) and vegetables (Carrots, potatoes, corn, tomatoes, celery, romaine lettuce, broccoli, iceberg lettuce, collard greens and chard) between 1963 and 1992.

A USDA study in 1936: 100 grams of fresh spinach had 158 milligrams of vitamins and minerals. New USDA study performed in 1965: 100 grams of fresh spinach had reduced the vitamins and mineral content to 27 mg.

Many health problems are either caused or aggravated by nutritional deficiencies. If you don't eat the right foods and if you don't take vitamins, you will be at greater risk for ergonomic problems (heart disease, cancer, brittle bones, etc). (N.C. State University IES White Papers: The Importance of Nutrition for Solving Ergonomics Problems, By Joe Davis PhD., Engineering ergonomics/Biomechanics)

5. Health Care Providers: Add 10 Years to Your Life!

"Every guy over the age of 20 should have at least some idea of these basic health measurements. We're talking blood pressure, HDL and LDL, cholesterol levels and triglycerides. Don't know yours? Find out, Stat!" (Christopher Heward, Ph.D, President of Kronos Science Laboratories, a Phoenix-based longevity research Center)

It is necessary that Health care providers provide ongoing preventive health care assessments, which must include periodic examinations, consultations and make constructive health maintenance recommendations.

One such health care practitioner, Chiropractic, has proven itself to be of exceptional value. In a recent study from the University of Chicago Hypertension Center, Chiropractic Cuts Blood Pressure, finds that a "Special Chiropractic Atlas Adjustment" lowers blood pressure better than two blood pressure medications combined. (Study leader George Bakris, M.D., By Daniel J. Denoon, reviewed by Louise Chang, M.D., WebMD.)

"This procedure has the effect of not one but two blood pressure medications given in combination," Study leader George Bakris, M.D. tells WebMD. "And it seems to be adverse-event free. We saw no side effects and no problems," adds Dr. Bakris, director of the University of Chicago Hypertension Center. (Source: Bakris, G. Kournal of Human Hypertension, advance online publication, March 2, 2007).

It must be kept in mind when blood pressure is reduced: heart attacks, strokes, aneurysms, kidney trouble, hardening of the arteries, dementia, and other life threatening diseases are greatly reduced.

6. Weight Control Adds an Incredible Number of Years to Life

"CDC reports that type 2 diabetes (caused by excess fat) hastens heart disease and shortens lives by about 8 years" (WebMD by Miranda Hitti, June 24, 2008)

"According to the British National Audit Office, being obese can take up to nine years off a person's lifespan. It makes them more likely to develop a range of health related problems such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, osteoarthritis, high blood pressure, gallstones, infertility and depression." (Guardian.co.uk, Obesity is not gluttony – it may be in your genes, James Randerson, Science correspondent, The Guardian, Friday, April 13, 2007.)

"Even moderate weight excess (10 to 20 pounds) for a person of average height increases the risk of death particularly among adults aged 30 to 64 years of age." (U.S. Surgeon General)

Researchers say obesity kills 400,000 people a year and other researchers put the number of people killed at 300,000 a year. 62% of the present population needs this service now. Being overweight creates more health problems and cost more money than any other compromise in health.

"Obesity has increased 70 percent over the last decade alone." ("The Economics of Obesity." Eric Finkelstein, Ph.D., Health Economist, Division of Health Economics Research, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, N.C.)

"A waistline larger than 35 inches in women and 40 inches in men increases the risk for a variety of health conditions, including heart disease and diabetes." (American Dietetic Association, AOL Diet and Fitness, Blast the Belly Fat: Lose That Spare Tire!, Sept. 21, 2006)

7. Ongoing learning Increases Longevity: 18 M0 per every Year of Increased Learning

"Education is the best provision for old age," said 3rd Century BC philosopher Aristotle

Adriana Lieras-Muney a Columbia University grad student focused her dissertation on the 1969 research by three economists who found that when people reached age 35, their life expectancy was increased by 18 months if they completed an extra year of education.

Lieras-Muney's findings were supported by research conducted by Princeton's Anne Case. Case reported "each additional year of schooling for men in the U.S. is associated with an 8 percent reduction in mortality.

Kolata, Gina "A Surprising Secret to a Long Life: Stay in School." (The New York Times, January 3, 2007 by Gabby Hyman)