Real Support, Health and Healing for Our Children

Most parents want their children to grow up in a healthy and active environment, playing outdoor games, rolling in the grass with their friends, laughing, socializing and learning to be a part of their natural surroundings. According to a survey conducted by the National Trust, nine out of ten parents would like their children to have a close connection with their friends outside and spend more of their time in nature.

Shockingly, change suggests that modern children spend half the amount of time playing outdoors than their parents did, shifting their time to technology, thereby living exponentially more in an isolated virtual world. Sadly, an average child in the US spends only four hours per week outside!

This societal lifestyle shift has unfortunately promoted an epidemic of depression within our children and youth. However, acknowledging this truth, combined with courage and the fortitude to make the necessary positive changes for the next generation, will be the catalyst that sets them free.

Depression is manifested in the adverse effects of this virtual and post-pandemic isolated world from a 22.7% decrease in child and adolescent attention spans, climbing childhood nutritional deficiencies, childhood diabetes and obesity. Low self-esteem, with a social dependence upon a digital highlight reel versus real interactions, is grievously perpetuating isolation and a false sense of self. The suicide rate has now risen to the second leading cause of death in our youth.

Depression is the leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide, affecting an estimated 380 million people globally and 17 million Americans. Prevalence was more than three times higher during the COVID-19 pandemic with a 27.6% increase in depression in children and adolescents since the COVID-19 pandemic according to the World Health Organization. "Although the determinants of mental health are complex, the emerging and compelling evidence for nutrition as a crucial factor in the high prevalence and incidence of mental disorders, suggests that diet is as important to psychiatry as it is to cardiology, endocrinology and gastroenterology."

Vitamin D deficiency is a direct consequence to this societal lifestyle change. And in children, an association between vitamin D deficiency, nutritional rickets (a bone disease in early childhood), respiratory infections and depression, are strongly related as reported by Sayer Ji at www.greenmedinfo.com. Vitamin D is ideally obtained via sun exposure and can also be supplemented. I will reference a trusted source later in this article.

Omega-3 fatty acids are essential for brain health, blood clotting, muscle activity and more. Deficiency contributes to mood disorders, including depression. High omega-3 foods include flaxseeds, chia seeds, fish, walnuts, tofu, shellfish, navy beans, brussels sprouts, and avocados.

Both vitamin B12 and folate have been described as antidepressant nutrients; folate is found in dark leafy greens like spinach and avocados, while Vitamin B12 is found only in animal foods such as grass-fed meat, eggs, dairy and wild-caught seafood.

Ensuring that our youth are eating healthy diets rich in folate and vitamin B12, as well as optimizing their vitamin D and Omega-3 fatty acid levels, may go a long way toward bolstering their mental health!

Other studies have also shown that unprocessed foods, especially fermented foods, help optimize gut microbiome, thereby supporting optimal mental health, whereas sugar, wheat (gluten) and processed foods have been linked to a greater risk for depression and anxiety. Low levels of vitamin D and vitamin B12 may play a critical role in depression among children and adolescents as reported by Dr. Mercola at www.mercola.com in his article Real Food Is a Potent Ally Against Depression dated May 10, 2022. Dr. Mercola further states “Your gut communicates to your brain via your vagus nerve and the stress pathway in your endocrine system, and by producing mood-boosting neurotransmitters. These links help explain why your nutritional and gut health has such a significant impact on your mental health”.

Daily exercise, ideally combined with sun exposure, will greatly contribute to the reduction in the climbing pediatric obesity rate. According to research presented in a 2020 issue of the journal Pediatrics, from the years 2015 to 2019, 32% of children ages 6 to 18 years qualified as abdominally obese, according to their waist-to-height ratio. Obesity, isolation and depression were further exasperated during the COVID-19 pandemic based on the June 2021 issue of the same publication.

REAL HEALTH, REAL SUPPORT and REAL HEALING are as close as REAL Sun Exposure, REAL Nutrition, REAL Movement, REAL Connection, Interaction and Love, REAL and Trusted Supplementation where needed and REAL Partnership with Life's Balance.

Dr. Joan Housley, D.C. specializes in Neuro Emotional Technique Therapy (NET), functional analysis, chiropractic care and is a certified Standard Process practitioner licensed to provide Standard Process supplemental products. Please click here to contact her directly https://www.newbalancedlife.com/contact.

Her message to you is…

The human body is infinitely more than the physical attributes we perceive. Oftentimes, an individual may recognize that something is amiss with their body but is unable to pinpoint the issue. Walking into Life’s Balance, is the first step towards wholeness and healing! An overall sense of peace permeates each session conducted by Dr. Joan Housley, as she identifies areas of imbalance. She is able to locate and remove the imbalances, then creating physical, emotional and chemical wellbeing for each patient. Whether it is tapping into and unblocking a life experience that may have had a negative influence in a patient’s life, analyzing lab tests from a functional perspective, or freeing the body from a subluxation, Dr. Joan has the capability of releasing the restraints that have been a roadblock in the achievement of optimal, life-long health. Although physical, chemical and emotional breakthroughs are no doubt important, Dr. Housley offers so much more… A look of genuine concern, a voice of comfort and clarity, a vision and a plan as struggles are shared, and a new season of life unfolds. The delight of having a knowledgeable doctor asking your body what it needs is priceless.. no more trial and error, no more guessing! Healing the body from the inside out paves the way for an amazing and abundant life! Once you have experienced the comfort and fullness of, “A Balanced Life”, you are sure to return, and to guide your loved ones along this path as well… Together we grow, heal, love, encourage and celebrate!

Dr. Joan Housley, a 20-year veteran in chiropractic, specializes in natural healing. She has a passionate heart for witnessing the restoration and wholeness of her patients, helping them realize and live in their full potential. Joan provides a powerful and multifaceted approach to health through several portals of entry: physical, chemical, emotional, energetic, and spiritual.

After spending her high school years abroad in England, Dr. Joan pursued a Bachelor of Science degree from Florida State University, a Doctorate Degree from Life University, and has received thousands of graduate and postgraduate hours in emotional healing, whole food and herbal nutrition, as well as many physical modalities. Dr. Joan possesses the innate ability to uncover the root cause of issues; she then assists in their uprooting, and helps empower each individual to make choices that lead to the freedom and restoration of hearts, souls, and lives.