Yonemoto Physical Therapy has been in business now for 32 years. It’s hard to believe that time has gone by so quickly. Lots of changes have occurred in that time and more changes are in store. That is the nature of life.

Medicare rules and requirements are changing weekly and other insurance coverages are also changing. One insurance study is showing that allowing patients to access physical therapy first for musculoskeletal problems, even before a doctor, results in 50% less cost and shorter delays in care. This is something that pleases both the insurance companies and patients. Even Medicare is allowing patients to see physical therapists without a medical referral.

At any rate, in order to stay in business in today’s healthcare climate, Yonemoto Physical Therapy is reducing the size of its facility. The lease has been renegotiated and all equipment, furniture and staff will be located under one roof at its 55 S. Raymond  Ave, Suite 100, Alhambra location. This means that our gym is smaller but adequate. Unfortunately, we had to give up our pool. At this time, it is not certain who will be taking over the 25 S. Raymond Ave, Suite 100 space, but we are recommending patients contact the Rose Bowl Aquatic Center, local gyms with pools and the YMCA for their therapeutic pool needs.

We thanks you for your patronage and hope to continue servicing your physical therapy needs. We also hope to expand services to you that will optimize your health with the qigong (chi gong) classes (an ancient Chinese exercise to improve organ health and longevity), our weight loss program, our detoxification and nutritional services, and our allied services of acupuncture and facial/body wraps to enhance detoxification and health.

The goal of Yonemoto Physical Therapy is to provide physical therapy services to optimize movement and function for enhanced living as well as transitioning a practice that has focused on body repair to now include a focus on maximizing wellness. It is our belief that life is better when you are full of vitality and that it is possible to lead a full and happy life with a healthy lifestyle.

“Why bother worrying about what we ate? Nothing is safe. Everything is bad for you.” Is it any wonder people feel this way? Articles on tainted lettuce, toxic chemicals in our drinking water, steroids and antibiotics in dairy and meat products, preservatives in foods and many other discouraging topics fill our magazines and newspapers.

Unfortunately, we live in a world relying heavily on chemical interventions to make products more convenient and easier to store, with a longer shelf life and the ability to ship farther from their place of origin, supposedly making our lives “better.” Along with the benefits, chemical additives also bring dangers – a higher incidence of cancer, an earlier onset of puberty, congenital deformities and lowered immunity, to name a few.

What about the air we breathe and the various chemicals in household cleaners, soaps, fabrics, building materials and personal hygiene products? Electronic devices and man-made electromagnetic currents also produce harmful effects. Negative thoughts and emotions likewise take a toll on the body by putting stress on the immune system and eventually may lead to heart disease, digestive disorders, mental distress and caner.

All of this makes one feel quite powerless. Fortunately there are things you can do to improve your quality of life. There is hope. Some general guidelines for minimizing toxicity overload include:

• Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, preferably organic.
• Start reading labels. The less chemicals and processing, the better.
• Avoid processed sugars. Refined sugar, a neurotoxin, has adverse effects on the nervous system. Use honey, maple syrup or sweeteners such as stevia (a natural sweetener from plant sources).
• Drink green tea (more whole leaf and the higher grades) for its detoxifying ability and antioxidants plus other good nutrients.
• Drink whole organic milk for its fatty acids to help the nervous system.
• Eat foods high in Omega 3 oils, otherwise known as fish oils from cold-water fish such as salmon and mackerel. Omega 3 oils can be purchased in capsule form. Flaxseed is a good source of this type of oil.
• Sweating helps eliminate toxins. Engaging in exercise that makes you sweat, even lightly, is good. Saunas also promote sweating (done safely, ensuring you don’t get overheated or dehydrated). Bouncing on a trampoline seems to help lymph movement but, again, emphasize safety.
• Lympho-massage and massage in general helps release toxins from the soft tissues.
• Avoid taking in toxins by mouth, ears, eyes and skin.
• Drink plenty of good filtered water (six 8 ounce glasses a day) to flush out toxins from your body and to hydrate your cells.

Many other avenues help reduce the risk of toxicity. These are just a few. You can make a difference and improve your health merely by educating yourself and incorporating new habits into your lifestyle. You may also find you start to think more clearly and your appearance may improve. You could have a much more enjoyable life.

Approximately 33% of Americans produce more insulin than is healthy to maintain normal blood sugar. The National Institute of Health reports about 60% of Americans are overweight. These statistics could be lowered by simply eating healthier foods to break this cycle of increasing blood sugar thereby increasing insulin release, which produces fat storage and increases the appetite, which goes back to increasing blood sugar.

Sugar makes you fat, so avoiding foods that create high blood sugar such as Halloween candy and cookies, potatoes, white rice, sweetened cereal, soda and white bread, will decrease fat production and use up fat stores more effectively.

Exercise, particularly walking, helps utilize fat as a fuel. Fat is a very concentrated fuel source and needs lots of oxygen to break it down. Trick-or-Treating can be good exercise for you and your kids. Walking one mile, no matter how fast you go, burns 100 calories. A pound of fat produces 3500 calories. So you can burn off a pound of fat in 17.5 miles of walking.  Walking 2 miles per day, you can lose a pound of fat in about 9 days.

Eating the right foods can also minimize excess fat storage and unhealthy food cravings. An article in the Journal of the American Medical Association stated:  “In 2010, more than one third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese.” This might be a good time to add a few non-candy items to the kiddies’ treat bags to help reduce the temptation to pig-out on sweets.

If you do choose to give out candy, choose non-chocolate varieties with fewer calories like hard candies or licorice. Try raisins, pretzels, juice boxes, mini water bottles, plain cookies and crackers, popcorn and low fat granola or cereal bars.

A trip to the party store can yield numerous non-food items that kids love. Look for small inexpensive gadgets and things kids collect such as pencils, rubber balls, erasers, small toys like ghosts, goblins, witches, or maybe waxed lips, glow sticks, stickers, key chains, bubbles and art supplies like chalk, coloring books and crayons.

Making some changes on this fun holiday might lead to better health habits all year long.

Do you know someone over 80 years old who still participates in sports, does regular physical activity, is mentally sharp, still working or doing community work, and continues to be outgoing and social? I have seen those who were surfing, bicycling, driving or dancing into their seventies. I can think of a few 90-year-olds who are still quite active and look 20 years younger. My son-in-law’s grandmother is just shy of 100 and still travels to Europe, drives a car and maintains an office in New York City.

Apparently, staying active and mentally sharp is one of the top concerns of the “Baby Boomer” generation. They expect to work longer. Some don’t even plan on retiring and they strive to remain healthy their entire lives.

One of the major complaints of Western healthcare is that, despite great strides in technology and life saving procedures, this hasn’t helped with living long healthy lives. We would all rather be healthy until the day we die, and it would also be cheaper on our pocketbooks. That money could be used to help build a future rather than supporting a miserable demise.

The following statistics are ones which we would probably want to reduce:

One in eight older Americans has Alzheimer’s Disease, about 5.4 million people, and the projected number by 2050 is 16 million. It is now the sixth leading cause of death, and one that most say doesn’t have a cure. If the numbers turn out as predicted, by 2050 the costs for treating Alzheimer’s alone is expected to be over $1 trillion.

There are an estimated 15 million Alzheimer’s and dementia caregivers, amounting to 17 billion hours of unpaid care, valued at over $200 billion.

If we could get our aging population to be independent in their homes for just one additional year, we could save an estimated $26 billion in care-giving and healthcare per year.

So, how do we change these statistics or prevent this from happening? I believe it is never too late to make changes. I always tell my patients that as long as there is life in the body, there is always the possibility to make positive change. Here are my recommendations:

1) Eat healthy. Add more vegetables and fruits, mostly organic, fresh and raw, to your diet. Chew food 30-70 times per bite. Eat when relaxed and happy. Eat at regular intervals. Don’t skip breakfast. Avoid processed sugar, animal protein raised on unnatural diets like corn instead of grass, and fried foods.

2) Drink water, preferably before or after you eat and NOT with meals. Stop drinking sodas and sugary drinks. Think about how much caffeine you ingest. One cup of coffee contains approximately 150 mg of caffeine, a therapeutic dose, and black tea has about 85 mg, while green tea has only 15 mg, plus it is full of antioxidants.

3) Supplement your diet with fish oil that has been purified of heavy metals, take multivitamins, antioxidants and other supplements as needed. Coconut oil is good for the brain, as are fish oil and probiotics.

4) Move more frequently. Life is movement. Find an activity that gives you joy and makes you feel better. Not everyone is meant to run. Some like to dance and others like to walk. Do what you enjoy.

5) Laugh more. Laughter stimulates good chemicals in the body and makes you healthier.

6) Make new friends, cultivate stronger healthier relationships and do good things for others. No one likes to hear complaints, judgments or orders. Be nice to others.

7) Learn something such as another language or a new skill. Read a book, do a puzzle, play cards and engage yourself in community activities.

Life is too short to be waiting for things to happen or postponing activities until you have more time or money. Be proactive and create a life full of great times and great adventures. You are capable of making masterpieces come to life.

Qigong, an ancient Chinese exercise and treatment, benefits both health and longevity. It involves mind and body coordination to improve the flow of the body’s vital life force. Although similar to acupuncture in moving the qi (also called chi), qigong doesn’t require needles and also helps improve organ health. There are a number of schools and approaches to qigong, from exercises you can do yourself, to having work done to you by qigong practitioners.

One simple way to improve your immune system is to improve salivation in your mouth. Doctors and dentists know that saliva helps reduce dental cavities. People with poor salivation tend to have more dental cavities and poorer immune function.

Here is a simple qigong exercise to increase salivation. Clack your teeth together 12 times, move your tongue up and down 9 times, then move your tongue from left to right 9 times, and finally move your tongue out and in 9 times. You should notice increased saliva in your mouth. Swish the fluid around your mouth and swallow it in 3 amounts. You will notice even more saliva afterwards.

Improving the lymphatic flow in the body also improves the immune system. The lymphatic system is similar in structure to the circulatory system but with much smaller vessels. If the blood vessels were the size of straws, then the lymphatic vessels would be the size of silk threads. The lymphatic system removes waste material. Sometimes, if there is a lot of material to remove, congestion occurs, resulting in swelling, heaviness and decreased immunity. Even bone dust from certain surgical procedures can clog lymph nodes and vessels.

Using shaking machines or vibrators or jumping on trampolines can help move the lymph fluid. A simple qigong exercise involves doing mild shaking while standing and relaxing all joints in the body including the jaw, so that when you shake, your teeth clack. Imagine all of the water in your body, which is about 70% of your body composition, moving as a single unit, creating a tidal wave moving waste material out of the cell and driving in nutrition, including oxygen. Also imagine the various types of tissues gliding smoothly as separate units, unsticking any scar tissue that may have developed from trauma, infection or disuse. Your fingers, shoulders, vertebrae, skin and muscles should bounce or move as a wave or flap like a flag blowing in the breeze. The action should appear graceful and flowing, with movement occurring at each separate joint. Care has to be taken to shake at an appropriate speed so you don’t hurt yourself.

From a qigong point of view, this is the only exercise I know of that benefits the hormonal or endocrine system. The endocrine system could be described as the “mobile” messenger system, versus the nervous system which could be described as the “landline.” The endocrine system communicates messages that help with energy production (thyroid, adrenal), digestion (salivary), sexual function (prostate, ovaries), sleep cycles, growth, and coordination of all bodily functions.

As a child, I watched my grandparents doing a Japanese exercise called nishishiki. They would shake their arms and legs while lying on their backs. My grandmother lived to 88 and my grandfather to 97. Later, a 92-year-old Japanese patient told me to shake my hands to stay healthy. Even while playing sports, if a team member missed a point, everyone said, “shake it off.”  Shaking seems to lead to better health and performance.

What differentiates living from non-living things?  Movement.