footprints extra email newsletter of The British Reflexology Association Issue 6 – January 2014 The British Reflexology Association Admin Office: Monks Orchard Whitbourne Worcester WR6 5RB 01886-821207 [email protected]www.britreflex.co.uk President : Princess Elaine Galitzine In this Issue: From the BRA Chair AGM Lecture Day report – Women’s Health - Using Nutrition to Balance Hormones with Marilyn Glenville From the BRA Admin Office BRA Merchandise Offer Points of Interest Question Time News from BRA members CNHC News PGIH meeting reports Events Diary Answers to Question Time From the BRA Chair – Nicola Hall Welcome to the sixth issue of footprints extra, the e-mail version of the BRA newsletter I shall start by wishing everyone a happy and healthy New Year. Also an apology that this newsletter is going out a little later than anticipated but the end of 2013 and start of 2014 have been thwart with technology hitches which hopefully have now been mostly resolved and the year will continue less testing ! Another current test is the weather and I hope that not too many of you have been affected by the strong winds and flooding. In the latter part of last year we were very sorry to learn that Philippe Mathon was resigning from the BRA Board and his roles as BRA Treasurer and Lecture Day Co-ordinator. Philippe will be greatly missed as he carried out these roles with great ease but he has agreed to help with specific projects if necessary in the future for which I am very grateful. As a thank you for all the work done for the BRA, a presentation was made to Philippe at the Autumn Lecture Day. (He was given a wine cooler and wine glasses plus a bottle of wine at the following Board meeting!). In response to the advertisements for replacements I am very pleased to announce that we have appointed a new Lecture Day Co-ordinator and hope also to be able to appoint a new Treasurer very shortly. The new Lecture Day Co-ordinator is Nick Pivot from Croydon in Surrey. Nick has extensive experience in running courses particularly through his previous work in administering the Macmillan Cancer Support Courses and I am sure will do an efficient job. His first appearance in this role will be at the Spring Lecture Day to be held in London in February and we look forward to seeing many of you at this event. I will take this opportunity to again remind members of the importance of wording used in any advertising and on a website. As you will be aware the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) are continuing to target the websites of reflexologists who are not compliant with the CAP code and this problem is unlikely to disappear in the foreseeable future so do take note. In September last year I was re-elected as one of the four members of the CNHC Profession Specific Board (PSB) for Reflexology. Thank you to
Transcript
footprints extra email newsletter of The British Reflexology Association
Issue 6 – January 2014
The British Reflexology Association Admin Office: Monks Orchard Whitbourne Worcester WR6 5RB 01886-821207
AGM Lecture Day report – Women’s Health - Using Nutrition to Balance Hormones with Marilyn Glenville
From the BRA Admin Office
BRA Merchandise Offer
Points of Interest
Question Time
News from BRA members
CNHC News
PGIH meeting reports
Events Diary
Answers to Question Time
From the BRA Chair – Nicola Hall
Welcome to the sixth issue of footprints extra, the e-mail version of the
BRA newsletter
I shall start by wishing everyone a happy and healthy New Year. Also an apology that this newsletter is going out a little later than anticipated but the end of 2013 and start of 2014 have been thwart with technology hitches which hopefully have now been mostly resolved and the year will continue less testing ! Another current test is the weather and I hope that not too many of you have been affected by the strong winds and flooding.
In the latter part of last year we were very sorry to learn that Philippe Mathon was resigning from the BRA Board and his roles as BRA Treasurer and Lecture Day Co-ordinator. Philippe will be greatly missed as he carried out
these roles with great ease but he has agreed to help with specific projects if necessary in the future for which I am very grateful. As a thank you for all the work done for the BRA, a presentation was made to Philippe at the Autumn Lecture Day. (He was given a wine cooler and wine glasses plus a bottle of wine at the following Board meeting!). In response to the advertisements for replacements I am very pleased to announce that we have appointed a new Lecture Day Co-ordinator and hope also to be able to appoint a new Treasurer very shortly. The new Lecture Day Co-ordinator is Nick Pivot from Croydon in Surrey. Nick has extensive experience in running courses particularly through his previous work in administering the Macmillan Cancer Support Courses and I am sure will do an efficient job. His first appearance in this role will be at the Spring Lecture Day to be held in London in February and we look forward to seeing many of you at this event.
I will take this opportunity to again remind members of the importance of wording used in any advertising and on a website. As you will be aware the Committee of Advertising Practice (CAP) are continuing to target the websites of reflexologists who are not compliant with the CAP code and this problem is unlikely to disappear in the foreseeable future so do take note.
In September last year I was re-elected as one of the four members of the CNHC Profession Specific Board (PSB) for Reflexology. Thank you to
those who voted for me and I think it is useful for the BRA to be involved at this level with CNHC. The BRA was also recently reinstated as a CNHC verifying organisation following some amendments that were required now that the CNHC register has been approved as an Accredited Voluntary Register (AVR) by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA).
I look forward to seeing many members throughout the year at the various BRA events and one of my New Year resolutions is to embrace Facebook ! I realise that a number of members have been using the BRA Facebook page and we must all support this more during the coming year.
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Autumn Lecture Day – ‘Women’s Health – Using Nutrition to Balance Hormones’
with Dr Marilyn Glenville PhD Dr Marilyn Glenville PhD is the UK’s leading nutritionist specialising in women’s health. She is the Former President of the Food and Health Forum at the Royal Society of Medicine and the author of a number of internationally best selling books including ‘The Natural Health Bible for Women’, ‘Getting Pregnant Faster’ and ‘Natural Solutions to the Menopause’. Dr Glenville runs a number of women’s health clinics in London, Tunbridge Wells and Dublin. She also gives regular talks on radio and has often appeared on television and in the press.
Report by Philippe Mathon, BRA Lecture Day Co-ordinator
The Autumn Lecture Day was held on Sunday 27th October at the Park Crescent Conference Centre, near Regents Park in London. There was an excellent turnout of colleagues who came up to attend the last lecture day of 2013 with 36 in total -23 BRA Members and 13 non Members. The day was very information heavy and Dr Glenville was going through her slides at a very fast pace. New presentation slides kept popping up on the screen at the rate of knots. I took 12 pages worth of typed notes, so summarising this lecture day will prove a bit of a challenge. So, I am afraid, you are probably in for a longer than usual summary…
We first looked at Xenoestrogens (literally means foreign oestrogen), which are a type of xenohormones that imitate oestrogen. Dr Glenville mentioned that around the 1900’s, puberty happened around 15, now it can be as young as 8. This generally means that women are having more cycles, hence more exposure to hormones. There could consequently be a possible link to higher incidence of cancer. Other conditions might be affected by the fact that women are having more cycles than in past such as fibroids and endometriosis as both conditions are oestrogen sensitive.
Fibroids: they can be in different places in the uterus and extend into the uterine cavity. They could also be intramural (within the uterine wall), subserol (outside the uterus) or pedunculated (attached either
to the inside or the outside of the uterus). A lot of women experience no symptoms but the fibroid(s) could be pressing on the bladder causing frequent urination or on the uterus and be causing more blood flow in periods.
Endometriosis happens when the endometrium grows outside of the womb. Endometrial implants can also grow in the pelvis, fallopian tubes, ovaries, bowel and bladder. Those can cause inflammation and pain and blood can flow in strange places during periods eg nose bleeds. One theory is that it can already be forming during the embryonic stage and fully develop during puberty. Endometriosis could be also because the immune system is not powerful enough to get rid of dead tissue (more likely to be during the embryonic stage). Symptoms can include heavy or irregular periods, nausea, bowel symptoms, dyspareunia, back pain, infertility, fatigue, dysmenorrhoea.
50% of women with fibroids and endometriosis will have fertility problems. Fibroids can be diagnosed on a scan, endometriosis cannot (possibly on ultrasound but not necessarily). A myomectomy or uterine artery embolisation can be performed to remove the fibroids. Dr Glenville followed by mentioning ‘dioxins’. These are a class of xenoestrogens derived from pesticides, plastics, detergents, toiletries, lubricants, artificial musks, cosmetics, perfumes, fabric conditioners, air fresheners, tin cans, baby bottles, plastic containers, water bottles, paint, pesticides and deodorants. They can increase infertility. Some we cannot avoid but we can make an informed decision to avoid others.
Xenoestrogens are lipohilic (they like fat). We can control them somewhat by reducing our intake of saturated fats, avoiding plastic where possible, using organic food, buying natural cleaning products and toiletries. In any case, as 60% of what is rubbed into the skin is absorbed inside the body, it would be best to only use natural products.
Dr Glenville followed by mentioning Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin (SHBG). This is a glycoprotein that binds to sex hormones (both androgens and oestrogens). Other steroid hormones such as progesterone, cortisol, and other corticosteroids are bound by transcortin. They are produced mostly by the liver and released into the bloodstream. Other sites that produce SHBG include the brain, uterus, testes, and placenta. Testes-produced SHBG is called androgen-binding protein.
SHBG controls oestrogen and testosterone. SHBG has both enhancing and inhibiting hormonal influences. It decreases with high levels of insulin, growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), androgens, prolactin and transcortin; high estrogen, and thyroxine can cause it to increase. Phytoestrogens also stimulate SHBG, which is important for women with PCOS. Lignans in flaxseeds stimulate SHBG, remove oestrogen via increased retention in the gut for elimination in the faeces as digestive health is important generally speaking for hormonal health. Eating cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, etc) is also very beneficial. Lacking essential fatty acids significantly increases endometriosis symptoms in patients. Women who eat meat once a day are more likely to have symptoms compared to vegetarians. Eating red meat regularly seems to increase the risk of endometriosis by 80-100%.
Diet and fibroids: meat eaters are more likely to have fibroids and
saturated fats increase concentrations of serum oestrogen. Fat is a big factor in levels of oestrogens. Also, eating more than one or a half servings (4.5 ounces) of red meat daily can double the risk of breast cancer. Heterocyclic amines (HCAs) are carcinogenic chemicals formed from the cooking of muscle meats. Frying, grilling and bbq’ing produce the largest amounts of HCAs. Highest risks are breast and colon for women, prostate and colon for men. Gut bacteria and hormone balancing play a big part in detoxification. Probiotics can lower the enzymes causing the deconjugation of hormones in the colon and preventing their enteropathic resorption. Consequently a good quality probiotic support would be highly beneficial.
Problems of deficiencies: over the last century, our diet has become very deficient in omega 3 fatty acids. This lack of omega 3 can increase inflammation in the body. Endometriosis is an inflammatory condition; arthritis, bowel, anywhere in the body can be exacerbated by the imbalance between omega 3 & 6 and consequently could be helped by an increase in omega 3 intake. DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid) is an omega-3 fatty acid found in cold water fatty fish, such as salmon. It is also found in fish oil supplements. DHA increases the binding of oestradiol to oestrogen receptors, thereby helping to reduce age-related macular degeneration and Alzheimer’s. Dysmenorrhoea and Omega 3: significant reduction of pain symptoms over time. Vitamin B1 can also help a lot with dysmenorrhoea. Antioxidants can also help with endometriosis: vitamin C, E and zinc.
Dr Glenville thought the notion that a well-balanced diet should cover all our nutrient needs is a myth. The current quality of food is probably not good enough to meet our minimum requirements. When compared with the 1930’s, fruits and vegetables have on average 20% less minerals and nutrients today than then. However, the quality and the form of the supplements is very important. They will determine how much the body will absorb.
PCOS and fat around the middle: PCOS affects between 5-10% of women. It is caused by a hormonal imbalance preventing women from losing weight, even on a calorie restricted diet. Half the women with PCOS do not have any weight problem but will have some insulin imbalance. Blood sugar levels important to control PCOS. Insulin receptors become resistant to insulin.
It is important for women to keep their ratio fat in the middle around 0.8%. Above that, the fat becomes toxic and starts acting as an endocrine organ. This will produces inflammation, hormone changes, affect the clotting agents, blood pressure and change hunger control (vicious circle). Losing fat is not just a cosmetic issue. Blood sugar levels also play an important part. Once you stabilise blood sugar levels, most of the symptoms will go. Trying to make the body more alkaline, rather than acidic, through eating the ‘right’ foods is vital. Insulin is the fat causing factor, not good fat intake. So, it is all about eating foods that will help stabilise blood sugar and provide loads of nutrients to the body. Eating essential fats helps overcome insulin resistance by increasing cell membrane responsiveness to insulin.
Age affect women’s muscle mass: after the age of 40, women can lose about 225g of muscle a year. Between age of 40 -50, they can lose 2.5 kg of muscle. Interval exercise helps a lot: burns fat, reduces negative effects of both cortisol and insulin, increases muscle mass, prevents and reverses insulin resistance.
The Menopause is a natural stage in a woman’s life, not an illness.
Women are born with 2 million egg follicles, by puberty there are around 750k left. With every passing year, women lose eggs until they run out. When all of their eggs are gone, they have reached menopause. The follicles are also responsible for the production of oestrogen and progesterone. In other words, female hormone production and egg development are inseparable.
HRT increases the risk of breast cancer (26%) by stimulating Alpha (the bad ones) & Beta (the regulating ones) receptors. It is commonly thought that excess oestrogen can cause breast cancer but progesterone (given to woman with hot flushes) can too by promoting angiogenesis and helping breast cancer cells survive. Progesterone in any case does not benefit bone density and has side-effects such as womb cancer, breast tenderness, bloating, depression, skin rashes, weight gain.
Women eating a diet rich in phyto-oestrogens have significantly fewer hot flushes and balance Alpha & Beta receptors: Soya, legumes, fennel, celery, linseeds, wholegrains, garlic, parsley, hops, etc.
Osteoporosis: 1 in 2 menopausal women get osteoporosis. A woman’s peak bone density happens between the age 25 to 30. Bone density then plateaus and decreases after 45. Women with a family history (high genetic component), premature menopause, smoking, long term steroids use have a higher chance of osteoporosis. None of the drugs treatment generally offered by doctors are really satisfactory as they all have bad side-effects.
One of calcium’s roles in the body is to act as a neutraliser. When you eat too much acid food your body calls up calcium reserves from your bones to counteract the acidity. We know that women who consume the most acid-producing diets have four times as many hip fractures as those whose diets are the least acid producing. One of the most highly acid-forming substances, which cause most calcium to be leached from your bones, is protein, particularly in red meat. Also, caffeine and sugar cause more calcium excretion, reduce bone density. Avoid soft, fizzy drinks, as they are very acidic. The most important nutrients for your bones are, without doubt, calcium, magnesium and vitamin D and, if you find it difficult taking supplements, be sure that you eat foods rich in these nutrients. It is important to take in calcium from a different source than dairy. The form of the calcium is important. Calcium carbonate is chalk, which we would never eat in a natural way. Calcium citrate is almost 30% absorbable.
Fertility: Over the past twenty years, fertility problems have increased dramatically. One in six couples now finds it difficult to conceive and a quarter of all pregnancies can end in a miscarriage and more and more couples are turning to fertility treatments to help them have a family. Sperm count has reduced by 50% in the last 20 years and men are showing increasing numbers of sperm abnormalities. Consequently, the problem needs to be tackled by addressing the man’s health as well as the woman’s. Couples need a three month programme as it takes 90 days for an egg to mature and 100 days for sperm. You can change the quality of the egg with the right programme. It is healthier and cheaper than resorting to IVF (success rate of IVF is 25%).
Zinc is the most important component of genetic material and plays a vital role in cell division. It can cause a decrease in sperm count if low. Also when given antioxidants, an 82% improvement in male fertility is
shown.
Vitamins C and E can help older women where the number of eggs produced in an IVF cycle may be less. Vitamin C protects against DNA damage to sperm and improves sperm damage to already damaged sperm and increases sperm count by a third. When given omega 3 fish oil, 99% patients with persistant antiphospholipid syndrome got pregnant (no baby under 2.5 kg).
As you can see from this summary, the information given by Dr Glenville on the day kept flowing in our direction. There was more and this summary has been heavily truncated. I would highly recommend to anybody who has not been to one of her workshops to investigate when her next one will take place and book themselves in as she is a highly articulate and informative speaker. Her website contains a lot of useful information and articles: http://www.marilynglenville.com
Our next lecture day will take place in London on Saturday 22nd February 2014 and the topic will be the Bowen Technique. Information and application forms are available on the BRA website.
Wishing you all a happy and prosperous 2014.
N.B. The above summary of the Lecture Day organised by the BRA does not necessarily reflect BRA endorsement of the lecturer’s approach or viewpoint and is only meant as a summary of how the day was spent.
From the BRA Admin Office
The membership renewals were due, as you are aware, on 1st January so for those who have not yet sent in a membership form and subscription do get this to us straightaway. If you insure under the BRA Block Scheme you will have received a reminder from Balens and this too needs immediate attention.
With the membership renewals starting to come through in December, we had an irritating time since none of the printers in the office would, this year, print the membership certificates. We have two printers that we can usually use for this but neither would oblige so after trying numerous things to enable this to happen we just had to give up and resort to writing in the members name by hand. They do not look too bad and we hope will be acceptable to members.
Also another reminder about CPD – Continuing Professional Development. The CPD Handbook, which includes the recording log, can be found in the members zone of the website and we will be continuing to carry out random audits of members requesting to see their CPD log.
We still wait to hear from someone who would like to volunteer to take on the role of updating the Footprints index. In the interim period, Diane Morgan, the Footprints Editor will be doing this but it would be good for someone else to offer to help with this. Let us know if you would like more details.
As always thank you to those who responded to our request for copy for this issue of footprints extra and we do hope to hear from many more of you in the future with short or long articles which may be of interest to other members.
The small Silver Feet Pin is an excellent way to draw attention to the fact that you are a reflexologist ! Wear one yourself and people may well comment on it and you can then tell them about reflexology. Give one to your loyal clients to wear and this may help promote you as their reflexologist.
Normal price £2.50 each plus postage £1.00. Special offer price - buy 9 and get 1 free and with free postage. You pay £22.50 instead of £35.00 - A GREAT OFFER !
Offer ends on 12th February 2014.
Points of Interest
SIGN recommends acupuncture SIGN national clinical guideline on the management of chronic pain was launched in December 2014 in Scotland. This guideline provides recommendations based on current evidence for best practice in the assessment and management of adults with chronic non malignant pain in nonspecialist settings, including self management, pharmacological, psychological, physical, complementary and dietary therapies.
The main guideline is accompanied by a patient version and three treatment pathways: Chronic pain assessment, early management and care planning in non-specialist settings; Patients with neuropathic pain; Using strong opioids in patients with chronic pain.
After much campaigning, for the first time in Scotland, complementary and alternative therapies are first line treatment recommendations in the NHS – in this case, for chronic lower back pain, neck pain and osteoarthritis. This means that now, when clinically relevant, GPs are encouraged to refer patients for the recommended CAM treatment and patients will be able to have an option to the usual pharmacological interventions. The full guideline, quick reference and other documents can be found on http://sign.ac.uk/guidelines/fulltext/136/index.html (It also includes a 'Patient Booklet' explaining everything in simple lay terms).
A chronic pain website for patients and health professionals was also launched and can be found on www.chronicpainscotland.org
Thanks to Mariette Lobo in Fife for sending through the above update for Scotland
Penny Brohn Cancer Centre A report published in 2013 and showcased at the 4th Living Well Conference held at the Centre in Bristol is also highlighted on the website for the British Society for Integrative Oncology (www.BSIO.org.uk). The report was titled ‘Penny Brohn Cancer Care - Service Evaluation of 'Living Well with the Impact of Cancer' courses.
The service evaluation followed 171 participants through 12 months after they attended a 2 day support and education course - the Living Well course - at Penny Brohn Cancer Care. The results demonstrate that participants experienced immediate and more lasting benefits in a variety of dimensions of health related quality of life, as well as in
The aim of the evaluation was to measure the benefit that participants were receiving from the Living Well course and to identify how the course was performing in relation to key aspects of the National Cancer Survivorship Initiative strategy (Vision, 2010). The Evaluation used a mixed methods approach in order to collect data that have revealed some of the key factors that affect why people struggle to maintain healthy lifestyle changes. The results also focus on demonstrating the range of benefits experienced over the course of a year when positive lifestyle changes were initiated and sustained. www.pennybrohncancercare.org/livingwell-fullreport
Nicola’s Question Time Take the first letter of the answers to each of the following and these letters when rearranged will give a word beginning with the letter ‘G’ which is the name of a hormone produced by the pancreas.
1. This is an enlargement of the thyroid.
2. This is the part of the larynx associated with voice production.
3. This is an end waste product of protein metabolism excreted in the urine.
4. This is pain in the distribution of a nerve.
5. This is the third cranial nerve which moves the eye and supplies the upper eye lid.
6. This is a local dilation of a blood vessel, usually an artery, due to a local fault in the wall.
7. This is another name for the white blood corpuscles.
8. This is a benign tumour of cartilage.
Answers can be found at the end of the newsletter.
News from BRA Members
From Rita Davis, Calgary, Canada:
My Reflexology practice in Canada
I do enjoy reading Footprints and receiving details of reflexology in UK. If I were in the UK I would most definitely want to be involved with the Healing Hands Network. Currently, when not in the clinic space, I do a ‘pay it forward day’ here at the house, seeing people who are financially challenged, single moms, unemployed, those who have been failed by the medical profession, etc. Now, after reading the articles, I am thinking how great it would be to extend that to war veterans.
My Practice is super busy. I have people who say to me that they have had reflexology before - then, as soon as I start to work down the spinal reflex they often then make the comment ‘No I’ve not had reflexology before’! Finding good practitioners to work alongside is often challenging here since there are some who are practising after completing a weekend course!
At some point I will try and put together an article on some of the people I have treated. I am also a member of the Reflexology Association of British Columbia and our oldest member who still practises on Van Island is 98! No need to think of retirement yet !
Camexpo was held at Earls Court exhibition centre, London from 5th/6th October 2013. The promotion stated there were 48 taster hands on workshops, 22 Keynote seminars, an interactive demo theatre, a Hot Topic Desk and the all new Natural & Organic Products Live- Autumn.
I have been to this exhibition before but my visit this time was a little disappointing as in the exhibition hall there were almost no treatments being given and there were very few therapies and details about training courses. There was a strong emphasis on tablets of every kind and merchandise including a range from the Nutricentre and lots of stands selling coconut oil! It seems though that the therapy side was more linked to the workshops and demo theatre so not so readily accessible. However, I did have a good chat with Pauline Wills (BRA member who runs The Oracle School of Colour) who was selling her new book and to Marilyn Glenville (the Lecturer at the BRA Autumn Lecture Day) who was selling her books well discounted. (Apologies for the very short report – I was not expecting to write this but the BRA Board member who was to attend was not able to at the last minute so Nicola asked for a few words!).
In 2014 with the closure of the Earls Court exhibition centre, camexpo will be at Olympia, London from 4th/5th October 2014.
From Barbara Scott, Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire:
Reproductive Reflexology – Reproflexology TM
I am sure that many of you work with clients who have come to see you because they are experiencing difficulties with fertility. Many of them have heard that reflexology can be helpful to them in terms of trying to conceive. In fact, there is much anecdotal evidence to support this.
We now have in this country 1 in 6 couples who are finding it hard to conceive; included in that we also have a falling rate of male fertility. Male fertility has declined by approximately 50% in the last 25 years in the UK alone. Statistically, fertility issues are attributable, a third to female factors, a third to male and a third joint, this means that men and women are equally involved in terms of the causal factors. It is important not to apportion blame, merely to understand that there are many different reasons why a couple can fail to conceive, and those reasons can be male or female related. Therefore, it makes it vitally important that you gather not only the correct information, but information from both parties at initial consultation. Sometimes it can be the smallest thing that can make all the difference and identifying what that might be can be the key to the appropriate treatment.
I began my training with Nicola, almost twenty years ago, and after completing my course, my very first client was someone who was suffering repeated miscarriages alongside fertility issues. I now know that these two conditions can be linked. Little was I to know that my career path had been set. As a result of seeing this one client many more came with similar issues, and I set about researching medical
information and liaising with other more experienced practitioners than I was at the time.
After many years of research, I developed a range of protocols, specifically for correcting the menstrual cycle in women and improving semen analysis reference ranges in men. These appeared to work well in my practice, so I spent a year trialling a training course that I had put together for other practitioners to see if the techniques would work for them too. This proved successful, and we are now into our 6th year of delivering the course and numbers of trained therapists are growing all the time.
In 2011, we formed the Association of Reproductive Reflexologists with some very clear aims in mind. We wanted to provide a specialist professional body to support practitioners who wanted to work in this field, as it is complex and at times challenging to say the least. More than that, we wanted to continue to develop our knowledge, and start to collect some evidence of how effective this is as a form of treatment.
What has now made this possible is that we have a body of practitioners all using the same very specific protocols; this makes it easier to measure what we are doing as it provides some consistency. At our last lecture day we were fortunate enough to have Dr Sheryl Homa lecture for us on male fertility and we announced the results of our latest data collection results, which were very interesting.
DATA COLLECTION We found that in using the protocols that we achieved the following results: Of 180 cases 68% of clients conceived after suffering a wide range of conditions. We also extracted some further data on conditions treated and success rates and I have listed a few of them below: Endometriosis - 68% conceived Unexplained Infertility - 70% conceived Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome - 72% conceived Secondary Amenorrhea - 91% conceived Sperm Motility Issues - 100% conceived
Clearly we have a long way to go and our aim now is to be able to find some funding to enable us to carry out some more formal research. However, we do feel that we have achieved a lot in two years and are committed to continuing to promote reflexology as form of treatment for infertility. This initial data collection does suggest that reflexology has a role to play in treating both men and women who are experiencing difficulties with fertility.
If you would like further information on the work that we are undertaking please do view our website www.reproductivereflexologists.co.uk or for information on training www.serennaturalfertility.co.uk
From Debbie Philipps, Worcester:
I am very busy with my reflexology and still loving it! I work at Healing Touch Complementary Therapy Centre, Worcester, I do home visits and treat some clients at my home. I am also quite busy at various events - sometimes I do well at them and others it seems a complete waste of time but it is a chance to network with other therapists and make new friends/contacts. We tend to stay in touch and help each out from time to time. I also hold Pamper Parties and seem to be doing a lot more of these recently.
The first Maternity Reflexology CPD course held at Body in Balance Therapies Training Centre in Fife in November 2013 was a great success. Body in Balance Training – recognised as a training centre for the Bayly School of Reflexology – creates courses on demand and delivers training courses that are specifically tailored to meet the needs of students.
I designed the Maternity Reflexology course with Annette Lobo, my sister, who is both a clinical reflexologist and Consultant Midwife for Fife. Together we created a CPD course for qualified reflexologists which has been approved by the Complementary Therapists’ Association (Ref: C1284) for 10 CPD points.
The course is designed to give reflexologists the skills required to gain confidence in treating maternity clients. It is suitable for qualified Reflexologists or students who are competent with their Reflexology sequence. The two parts are delivered on 2 consecutive days (usually the weekend) and combine theory and practice with case study scenarios which form part of the assessment for the certificate.
‘Just finished the Maternity Reflexology CPD course with Mariette and Annette. Content was really informative, very well prepared and delivered by two people who really know their stuff. All this in such a beautiful setting too. Can't wait to start using my new found knowledge! Thank you again. EM.’
The next Maternity Reflexology course will run on Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th March 2014. Further details are available at www.mariettelobo.com
From Sylvia Whyte, Chertsey, Surrey:
Pain Relief and Stress
It was with interest that I recently read about the research carried out at Portsmouth University into whether reflexology can help pain relief. The co-author of the study, Dr Carol Samuel, said ‘As we predicted, reflexology decreased pain sensations. It’s likely that reflexology works in a similar manner to acupuncture by causing the brain to release chemicals that lessen pain signals. It looks like it may be used to complement conventional drug therapy in the treatment of conditions that are associated with pain, such as osteoarthritis, backache and cancers.’
Having been a trained reflexologist for over 17 years this was indeed positive news. Ever since I fell in love (yes, head over heels!) with reflexology, sceptics have often asked me where the proof was? How can “massaging” the feet possibly have any effect on the rest of the body? How can touching specific parts of the feet relate to a part of the body?
Well, I know it’s difficult for anyone who hasn’t received a reflexology treatment to believe that it could possibly work. In fact in the early days I used to get laughed at and indeed someone actually called me a witch (that was, unfortunately, a bad witch not a good one!) but things have moved on somewhat over the years and complementary therapy has become more mainstream and accepted – be it by a minority of the public.
Small pockets of research exist but they are few and far between and, due to costs, involve limited numbers of patients. Hardly numbers that will stand up and convince the government that money should be spent
However, I am one of the lucky ones! I have seen for myself the effect treatments can have on individuals. I have experienced “crunchy” thoracic reflexes when someone suffers from back pain; I have felt the “clicky” neck reflex when someone suffers from stress or anxiety or has been in a car accident and suffering from whiplash; I have treated the endocrine system to some subtle balancing when there has been PMT or menopausal issues; I have stroked the lymphatic system to rid the body of toxins; I have worked the areas of the adrenal gland to help calm and relieve inflammation. In fact I have seen and worked with hundreds of pairs of feet, all of which I have thoroughly enjoyed.
Hand on heart I can honestly say that the majority of people receiving treatment have walked (or even skipped!) away with a smile on their face having found some inner peace during their treatment session. They have nearly all said how wonderful it was, some have wished they had a third foot so it could go on longer! I believe that most clients go away after treatment feeling relaxed and experiencing a general sense of wellbeing. This is so important as it helps to aid recovery from all sorts of ailments.
Relaxation can help control pain by helping muscle release and enables the breathing and the heart rate to slow down. It allows the mind to become calm and distracted from the pain sensations by focusing elsewhere.
Too much stress in our lives plays such a key role in a lot of diseases and health problems including the ability to be able to cope with pain. It is not a coincidence that our health generally improves when we are away on holiday (of course other factors do come into play here as well like eating fresher food and vitamin D from the sun) but there is also the link with women who try for a long time to have a baby who become pregnant after they have given up or after they have decided to adopt instead. Stress is often caused by our lifestyles, including pressurised jobs and family life. Whilst reflexology cannot change these stress factors it can help the individual have some important “me” time so that they can cope easier when the stress points hit. Many a time I have clients who fall into a deep sleep and some have reported a meditative state. This sometimes surprises me when it is with a client whom I have only just met and just proves how relaxing the treatment can be.
Chris Woollams, in his book “The Rainbow Diet” refers to American 2011 clinical trials on how stress management techniques can increase cancer survival times. It is so important for all health problems to try and reduce stress levels. I believe that reflexology can play a key role in this and I am sure that a lot of my patients will agree.
Editor’s note: Thank you very much to those members who have sent through copy for this newsletter. We would like to hear from lots more of you for future issues! As an incentive, remember we are offering one lucky contributor from each issue a voucher for £10.00 off the cost of a future BRA lecture day.
CNHC News – December 2013
Update on Cancer Act 1939 This is a reminder that CNHC produced guidance earlier this year to support registrants who wish to advertise services for work with cancer patients. This is available on the CNHC website as CNHC
Guidance - Cancer Act 1939 by looking under Publications / Guidance Sheets. CNHC registered practitioners can download it by logging in to My CNHC – just click on ‘CNHC Resources’ then ‘Guidance Documents’.
The Act applies to all forms of advertising, including paper, online (websites, facebook, twitter and other social media) plus the spoken word, so comes into force if you are speaking to patients over the phone or in person about your therapies before they book a session.
All CNHC registered practitioners who mention the word ‘cancer’ in any form of advertising should check this guidance urgently.
Job and volunteer roles Make sure you check CNHC’s facebook page and website for details of job and volunteer roles for CNHC registered practitioners:
Final reminder of HMRC campaign to get your tax affairs in order As set out in our October 2013 and November 2013 newsupdates and Snippets practitioners have until 31 December 2013 to contact HMRC if they are behind with their tax. Please check https://www.gov.uk/voluntary-disclosure-health-wellbeing for more details.
CNHC registered? Is it time to renew? Many practitioners will be due to renew their CNHC registration during December and January. If you are CNHC registered make sure you keep your registration up to date by taking the following steps: o Check the date you are registered ‘until’, which appears on your
entry on the public register (Search the register at www.cnhc.org.uk )
o Make sure CNHC has your current email address. o Look out for the CNHC renewal reminder emails which will be
sent to you one month ahead of your registration expiry date.
For more information about CNHC renewals please check CNHC’s website under: Current Registrants / Renew your registration
For further information about the CNHC and how to register or renew call 020 3178 2199, email [email protected] or visit www.cnhc.org.uk
Parliamentary Group for Integrated Healthcare (PGIH) Meeting held on 22nd October 2013
Report by Nicola Hall Presentation by Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer
The Chief Medical Officer of England acts as the Government’s principal medical adviser and the professional head of all directors of public health in local government. Sally Davies is the first woman to fill this post and according to the BBC Women’s Hour list of 100 most powerful women in the UK today, Sally Davies is ranked 6th. In her advisory post she guides government decisions on diverse subjects such as superbugs, drug trials and obesity. She developed the National Institute for Health Research in 2006 with a budget of £1 billion. She is an Emeritus
She started work in paediatrics but then became a haematologist with specialist research interest in sickle cell disease and has worked with chronic disease and self management of sickle cell disease for 20 years.
Prof Davies spoke of the need for patient based research in order to improve the health of the public. There is growth working with industry on clinical trials so best new treatments can be available - Best Research for Best Health.
In her role as CMO she produces an annual report. Volume 1 was on the state of the nations health, Volume 2 (to be released the day following the presentation) was an in depth look at a subject with the first subject being infection. Key points mentioned were: 43% of the population died from sepsis prior to antibiotics - 7% died from sepsis after antibiotics; 20 extra years of life due to antibiotics; no new classes of antibiotics since 1987; 25,000 deaths from anti-microbial resistance; need to improve hygiene; need to find funding for antibiotic research (antibiotics only taken for up to 10 days whereas other drugs taken daily); antibiotics given to animals and fish in their feed; tetracycline in some paint used on warships against barnacles; most antibiotics are from nature and are not synthetic.
Research is being done to develop the difference between viral and bacterial infections and this would help decrease usage of antibiotics. RCT’s essential. There is shortly to be a launch of the need for research
about health of children and the need to integrate services.
The presentation was more about the content of the shortly to be released annual report and there was little mention of CAM. Apparently the CMO had made a rather dismissive comment about homeopathy in the press and it did seem she was only willing to give consideration to CAM disciplines where there was sound scientific evidence to support the efficacy.
Parliamentary Group for Integrated Healthcare (PGIH) Meeting held on 10th December 2013
Report by Roberta Sale, MBRA Health and Wellbeing Boards : One Year On - A Report by The Kings Fund Presentation by Richard Humphries, Assistant Director of Policy This presentation was concerned with giving feedback on progress with the Health and Wellbeing Boards one year on. In October 2012, John Wilderspin, the National Transition Director for Health and Wellbeing Boards, gave a presentation to the Parliamentary Group and my report on this meeting was in the January 2013 issue of footprints extra.
Health and Wellbeing Boards are an important feature of the reforms introduced by the Government in the Health and Social Care Act 2012. The King’s Fund has now published a report ‘Health and Wellbeing Boards: one year on’ (available on their website) which is based on a survey of nearly half of the 152 Health and Wellbeing Boards across the country. This report analyses what progress has been made in the past
year and what needs to be done going forward for the Health and Wellbeing boards to deliver tangible outcomes.
Richard Humphries is co-author of the report. He joined the King’s Fund in 2009 to lead on social care and work across the NHS and local government. He is a recognized national commentator and writer on social care reform, the funding of long-term care and the integration of health and social care. He is leading the Fund’s work on Health and Wellbeing Boards.
Health and Wellbeing Boards were established initially as Shadow Boards in 2012 to promote integrated services in local populations and they became fully operational on 1st April 2013. The Boards bring together those who buy services across the NHS including social care, children’s services, public health etc. to ensure there are no artificial divisions between services. Membership of Boards includes directors of adult social care, children’s services, public health plus at least one elected member, plus representatives from clinical commissioning groups and Healthwatch.
Richard Humphries reported that progress had generally been good. Relationships between clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) were improving but most Boards recognize they have to move beyond where they are currently. There is a great variation between Boards in pace and progress and the Boards recognize they need to change gear and most want a stronger role in commissioning but this has major implications for roles of individual professional membership of Boards.
There were a number of challenges identified by the speaker some of which are as follows:
By 2015 the Boards wish to address problems between A and E and social care with integrated care which is difficult because the money has already been allocated.
Activating the patient voice and therefore choice is a challenge for Boards who have been set up by local authorities in a very traditional environment with formal meetings etc. There is the need to encourage and engage with the people who use the services.
How to pick up the Boards that are failing ? It is sink or swim at the moment.
Quality of local leadership can vary and GPs are only on some Boards.
Elderly people and those with mental health issues particularly require an integrated approach to health care and their needs must be represented on the Boards.
The Boards need to address the fundamental flaw in the perception of the population that we need to go into hospital to get our health fixed.
The Boards are trying to build an alternative for the 25% of patients who have multi-prescriptions i.e. five or more drugs. Many of these people are never well again and there is a need to examine the use of other therapies when people begin to get unwell while it is still possible to change the picture. Prescription bills can be reduced by the provision of complementary therapies.
The survey suggests that the Boards have generally made a good start but they probably need to take a more strategic view of issues facing local health and care systems to reflect local demographic changes, illnesses, etc. and to improve public engagement by reaching out to local communities by social media etc. Boards also seem keen to play a strategic role in commissioning services and care.
To read the report in full please visit www.kingsfund.org.uk
As always thanks to David Tredinnick MP, Chair of PGIH, for arranging this presentation and to Matthew Williams for the use of his introductory notes.
2014 Events Diary
BRA LECTURE DAYS (click here for application forms)
Saturday 22nd February Spring Lecture Day in London (Park Crescent Conference Centre) ‘An Introduction to The Bowen Technique’ with Matthew Morris
Saturday 10th May AGM Lecture Day in London (Park Crescent Conference Centre) ‘An Introduction to Bach Flowers for Reflexologists’ with Anna Jeoffroy-Salmon
Sunday 29th June Regional Lecture Day in Rugby, Northampton (Holiday Inn hotel) ‘Limbic Reflexology’ with Hamish Edgar
Sunday 25th October Autumn Lecture Day in London (Park Crescent Conference Centre) ‘Nerve Reflexology’ with Nico Pauly
COURSES/CONFERENCES/EXHIBITIONS
25th/26th January Reflexology Workshop - Round about: Neck & Shoulder with Dorthe Krogsgaard & Peter Lund Frandsen Venue: Columbia Hotel, London W2 Details: [email protected] / www.touchpoint.dk
24th March How can you make a living as a complementary therapist ? Speaker: Dr Nicola Gale (Dr Gale from University of Birmingham secured a grant from the Economic
and Social Research Council to investigate this issue) Venue: Winterbourne Botanical Gardens, University of Birmingham Further details from : Marie Crook at [email protected]
9th/11th May 8th European Conference of Reflexology ‘From the Top of your Head to the Tip of your Toe’ Venue: Funchal, Island of Madeira www.8thconferencereflexology.com
