I R O N B R I D G E I N S I G H T

DR. FRANK PUGH, JR

2930B WEST HUNDRED RD, CHESTER, VA 23831

WWW.IRONBRIDGECHIROPRACTIC.COM

A newsletter dedicated to strengthening positiveattitudes, action, and knowledge of health awareness.

By: Dr. Frank Pugh, DC, FIAMA

Did you know that magnesium is one of the most essential minerals that the body needs to perform optimally everyday?

Not only does magnesium regulate heart rhythm and improve sleep, it makes blood vessels more elastic and pliable while helping with brain function.

What most people don’t realize is that magnesium is also crucial for our muscular systems to perform optimal-ly. One reason we become deficient in this mineral is because we tend to eat foods that aren’t grown in mag-nesium rich soil and consume only foods that are processed. Before the rise of processed foods in the 1950s and 1960s, most people had access to whole foods because they grew them themselves. However, with the growth of the population and the advancement of technol-ogy, our meals have become more processed and have lost their enrich-ment in the vital minerals our bodies need.

We also lose a lot of magnesium when we sweat, which is another rea-son to replenish magnesium during the summer. Athletes especially need to supplement with it to help retain muscular tonicity, since magnesium

2930B WEST HUNDRED RD,

CHESTER, VA 23831WWW.IRONBRIDGECHIROPRACTIC.COM

When your family can’t get enough pizza, but you want to mix things up a bit, this adaptable and fun take on the classic pie is just the thing! The subtle sweetness of the squash, salti-ness from the pesto, and creamy mild cheese come together to create a delicious main dish for the family.

Adapted from Jean Kressy on myrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into ¼-inch-thick slices

• Olive oil or cooking spray• ½ cup of shredded gouda*• 1/3 cup classic pesto

• ½ cup grated parmesan**• 1 (14.5 oz.) can finely diced toma-

toes, drained• ½ teaspoon dried oregano• Pepperoni or ham (optional)• Chopped onion (optional)• ¼ cup mozzarella (optional)• Pizza dough

* or fontina** or romano

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°

Prepare squash: Spread a small amount of olive oil or cooking spray on a cooking sheet. Place the slices of squash on the cooking sheet and

drizzle with olive oil or cooking spray.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the squash is tender. Place slices in a bowl and mash.

Increase oven temperature to 450°.

Sprinkle gouda (or fontina) over the dough. Spread mashed squash, tomatoes, and oregano over the cheese. Drop pesto by teaspoons onto the mixture, and sprinkle with parmesan (or romano). Add optional toppings to preference.

Bake at 450° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.

March 2018

Why Most Americans Are Deficient in Magnesium

is an unsung hero when it comes to muscle cramping because of its relationship with both sodium and potassium. As a chiropractor, I am frequently recommending it when I see severe muscular spasms in my patients.

People with chronic headaches also tend to be deficient and can benefit from taking magnesium, as it helps with relaxing the blood vessels in the skull and the rest of the body. Like-wise, magnesium helps with cardio-vascular function and regulating the heart rate. In fact, most people who experience cardiovascular events (heart attack, congestive heart failure, etc.) show a deficiency in magnesium.

As a general rule, I always recom-mend starting with a dose of around 500 mg of magnesium at night. In some cases, magnesium can cause an upset stomach and loose stools, which is why I recommend taking it in the evening. Magnesium can also have a relaxing effect and help im-prove sleep patterns.

In addition to taking a magnesium supplement, you should try eating magnesium-rich foods like nuts and seeds to improve your health. Keeping your magnesium levels in the normal range can only do wonders for your body and help you perform optimallty.

Hello, my name is Dr. Frank Pugh, and on behalf of our office, we hope you enjoy our newsletter.

The articles in this newsletter are to help educate, inspire and stimu-late your brain (and also make you laugh!)

Our office is a Chiropractic and Acupuncture clinic geared to help improve the functionality in our pa-tients. We are committed to helping our patients get out of pain, stay out of pain and live an optimal, healthy life.

If you know of anyone who could benefit from Chiropractic or Acu-puncture care, our office number is 804-717-5881 and our email is info@ironbridgechiropractic.com.

We look forward to helping you, and your friends and family!

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BUTTERNUT SQUASH PESTO PIZZA

A Note fromDR. FRANK PUGH

B u i l d i n g t h e B r i d g e t o B e t t e r H e a l t h

WHEN TO EAT VS. WHAT TO EATBetween the countless diet plans and prepackaged meal services, a lot of fuss is made over what we should be eating to maintain a healthy weight and lifestyle. And this is important — the typical exercise regimen is not enough lose weight and keep it off. Diet and portion size are vital to the success of any campaign to get on a healthier track. But when we eat can also be a crucial part of staving off those extra pounds.

WE ARE CONSTANTLY CONSUMING CALORIES

Think about this: how often do you eat per day? You probably think you eat two or three meals with two or three snacks. But if you change the definition of “eat” to “consume calories,” your answer will probably change quite a bit. One study in 2015 tracked reported eating patterns and revealed that most Americans are literally eating all day long. The “eat-ing” sessions were defined as partak-ing of a food or drink of at least five calories. Those who had the fewest number of eating sessions clocked in a 3.3 sessions per day, but those with the highest number of sessions ate something 10.5 times per day (Source: National Institute of Health). If you put aside eight hours per day for sleep, you end up with many Americans consuming calories every hour and a half each day.

Not only do we eat all the time, the majority of us also have erratic eat-ing patterns throughout the day and night. Our weekend eating habits show a marked delay — we push all

of the eating later as we spend more time in bed in the morning. We know eating late at night isn’t good for us, but when our schedules are out of whack on weekends and vacations, we end up eating later and later.

WHAT CAN WE DO ABOUT IT?

If you commit to a routine and prac-tice greater awareness of how often you consume calories, the timing of your consumption can be an easier path to weight loss than relying on just diet and exercise. The tracked-eating study revealed that after an “intervention,” participants who started only eating inside of a 10–12 hour range every day and were given feedback about their eating habits (but no recommendations) saw both weight loss and improved sleep over the next 16 weeks.

One note to consider is that because everyone is different, there is no golden meal schedule, but there are parameters to work with. For exam-ple, a study in Spain between 2007 and 2008 found that those who had their main meal later in the day lost less weight and had a slower weight-loss rate than those who ate earlier in the day, even though the late-eaters skipped earlier meals like breakfast more often. Thus, it is a good idea to plan on having your main meal earlier in the day. And, of course, always choose something with no calories, like water, when drinking to quench thirst.

ANOTHER SODA POP WARNING!We say it when we’re about to have a good time, or more specifically, “go out and enjoy oneself flamboy-antly.” Painting the town red gener-ally involves some behavior that is out of the ordinary and, more than likely, pretty wild. But where did the paint come from? And why red? The origin story is disputed, though it is agreed upon that it started sometime in the 1800s.

By some accounts, the phrase start-ed in the Old West, when drunken cowboys threatened to “paint the town red” with the blood of anyone who tried to stop them. However, there is a different tale told across the pond in the UK, where one ori-gin possibility is from the legends of the “Mad” Marquis of Waterford and his riotous friends who alleg-edly painted Leicestershire town buildings red in 1837. While this is supported by paintings printed in newspapers later on, there is no specific mention of the phrase itself at the time.

The UK may have some claim to the phrase, but there is a somewhat stronger case for American origin: the first use of the phrase in print was in 1883, in a New York Times article:

“Mr. James Hennessy offered a resolution that the entire body proceed forthwith to Newark and get drunk…and being wafted into Newark proceeded, to use their own metaphor, to ‘paint the town red’.”

There are other theories as well, ranging from a reference to the red-ness of a flushed face while drink-ing, the color of the sky when lit by firecrackers, the color of building’s walls in the glow of a nearby bon-fire, or even people behaving as though an entire town were a “red light district.” There has always been an element of rowdy, wild behavior to this phrase’s mean-ing. After all, it was Oscar Wilde who claimed the phrase was from Dante’s Inferno: “We are they who painted the world scarlet with sins.”

WHY DO WE SAY IT?Paint the Town Red

It’s become such a common refrain that it’s easy to tune out: we are drinking too many sugary beverages. We hear it so often that our response is “yeah, yeah, I know,” and it doesn’t shock us into action, even as two-thirds of children drink a sugary beverage — and 30% of children drink two or more — every day (Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).

We’re desensitized partially because we don’t fully under-stand the weight of the issue. Researchers have performed many observational studies as they continue to see the correlation between our soft drink consumption and rising rates of obesity and diabetes. But because clinical trial data is scarce, most of the warnings issued have to come with a qualifier that excess sugar may, can, probably, and likely causes or contributes to long-term weight, dental, and cardiovascular problems. There is even emerging evidence that sugar may be linked to early puberty in girls and increases their risk of developing breast cancer — but there is: it may be linked.

Because the long-term effects are still under review, we can focus on the short-term effects. Of the two types of sugar: naturally occurring and added sugar (or “free sug-ar”), it is the latter that is a topic of concern. Free sugars cause a burst of energy, but it ends very quickly and then we experience a sudden crash. We have all felt this and witnessed it (what grandparents among us are not guilty of loading the kids up with sweets before sending them back to their parents!). This sharp rise and decline in energy is thought to affect our hunger patterns, behavior, and ability to concentrate.

The current recommendations of the World Health Orga-nization are that the “free sugars” you consume should be 5% or less than your daily calorie intake. This is about

7 teaspoons or 30 grams for an average adult. The daily recommendation for children is:

• 4–6 year olds – 5 teaspoons/19 grams

• 7–10 year olds – 6 teaspoons/24 grams

• 11 year olds – 8 teaspoons/30 grams

This is the kicker: if you pay attention to Nutrition Facts labels, you will see that the standard serving of a soft drink is 8 ounces, so the 20-ounce cup of regular soda has a total of 65 grams of sugar, not 26 grams (although that is already too much for one beverage!).

If adults make sugary beverages a special treat instead of an every day thirst-quencher, we just might be able to beat back the rising tide of health and behavioral issues.