The Benefits of Using Collagen For Your Joints
Painful joints complicate even the simplest activities. Walking up a flight of stairs, bending or even rising from a seated position is much more difficult when your joints become stiff and painful. Collagen supplements promise to ease your pain naturally, but do they work?
What is Collagen?
Collagen is a natural protein produced by your body. It's essential for:
What Are Collagen Supplements?
Collagen supplements are intended to replenish your body's natural supply of the protein. Available in pill, powder, gummy or liquid form, the supplements are readily available in grocery stores, pharmacies, and from online stores. Type I and III collagen supplements are recommended if you want to improve the condition of your skin, while Type II collagen supplements are used for joint pain.
Can Collagen Supplements Ease Joint Pain?
Supplements can be helpful but not everyone notices a difference in joint pain after taking them. If your joint pain is due to osteoarthritis, the supplements are worth trying. They may help tighten the muscles and tendons that hold your joints together, improve muscle mass and rebuild cartilage.
In an article review published in the Journal of Arthritis, researchers evaluated clinical evidence and studies that explored the effectiveness of collagen supplements. They noted that collagen may be helpful in treating osteoarthritis joint pain, although more research is needed.
Other studies considered the effectiveness of bioactive collagen peptides (BCP) in treating joint pain in both athletes and non-athletes. After taking BCP daily for knee pain, athletes reported a 37.5 percent decrease in pain.
The non-athletes experienced similar results after taking the peptides for 12 weeks for hip and knee pain. Activity-related pain improved by 38 percent, while at rest pain improved by 39 percent.
Bone strength may also be improved by collagen supplements. Taking collagen regularly can help you avoid painful fractures by increasing the density and strength of your bones.
Collagen supplementation, coupled with chiropractic treatment, offers a natural way to treat joint pain. Your chiropractor can correct misalignments and muscle imbalances that cause or worsen joint pain. Treatments also reduce stress on your joints, promote healing, ease stiffness, and improve range of motion.
Are your joints stiff and achy? Chiropractic care can help you reduce your painful symptoms. Contact our office to schedule an appointment.
Sources:
Arthritis Foundation: Are Collagen Supplements Helpful for Arthritis?, 4/4/19
Penn Medicine: 4 Head-To-Toe Ways That Collagen Can Improve Your Health, 11/4/18
How to Stay Healthy Mentally and Physically When You're a Caregiver
Taking care of others can be hard on your own health. In fact, 17 to 25 percent of caregivers say their health is fair or poor, according to the Family Caregiver Alliance. That statistic isn't surprising. Whether you're caring for young children or elderly relatives, caregiving is a demanding, stressful job. Following these tips will help you avoid injuries and health issues while also reducing stress in your life.
Stay Active
Lack of exercise is a common issue among caregivers. At the end of a long day, it can be hard to find the energy to work out. Yet, inactivity can increase your risk of developing a variety of health problems, including:
Exercise offers a simple way to reduce your risk of developing these diseases and conditions. Even 10 or 15-minute exercise sessions can help you stay healthy. You don't have to visit a gym or even leave the house to enjoy the benefits of exercise. Walking up and down the steps repeatedly, exercising to a video or jogging in place will get your blood flowing and help keep your heart, muscles, and bones strong.
Don't Neglect Your Interests
You may have given up your favorite hobbies and leisure activities after you began caring for a friend or family member. Although your dedication is certainly commendable, you may soon feel depressed or stressed if your life only involves caregiving.
Find time to watch a favorite TV show, try the new restaurant in town or finish your woodworking project. If the person you care for requires 24-hour supervision, ask a friend to take over for you for a few hours or find out if home health agencies in your area offer respite care.
Make Your Health a Priority
You can't take care of other people if you're sick. Has your diet suffered since you became a caregiver? Eating a balanced diet is a crucial factor in good health. Make sure your meals include options from the major food groups and avoid carbohydrate-laden or sugary snacks.
Make (and keep) appointments with your doctor when you don't feel well. The longer you put off receiving medical care, the worse your illness or condition can become. Visiting your doctor promptly will help you ensure that you're well enough to care for your family member or friend.
Use Safe Lifting Techniques
Poor lifting techniques can cause injuries that make it difficult or impossible to care for your relative. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 17 percent of caregivers reported that they experienced 14 or more physically unhealthy days over a month's time span.
Lifting with your legs while keeping your neck and head aligned can help you avoid injury, as can using a lifting belt to help transfer a person from a wheelchair or bed. No matter how cautiously you move, injuries can still happen. Don't be reluctant to ask for help if you don't think you can move the person safely.
See Your Chiropractor
It's not unusual for caregivers to develop stiffness and pain, particularly in their necks and backs. Ignoring your symptoms may worsen pain and decrease your range of motion.
Regular visits to your chiropractor help you reduce pain and other symptoms. Using spinal manipulation, soft tissue mobilization, massage, and other techniques, your chiropractor can realign your spine, decrease muscle stiffness and pain, and speed healing of injured areas by increasing blood flow.
Both you and your family member or friend benefit when you take care of yourself. If caregiving is taking a toll on your body, we can help. Contact us to schedule your chiropractic appointment.
Sources:
American Heart Association: Top 10 Caregiver Tips for Staying Healthy and Active, 6/30/17
Family Caregiver Alliance: Caregiver Statistics: Health, Technology and Caregiving Resources
Medline Plus: Health Risks of an Inactive Lifestyle
Can Chiropractic Treatment Improve Your Digestive Health?
Chiropractic treatment doesn't just ease aches and pains in your joints and muscles. The therapy may also offer an effective treatment option if you have frequent stomachaches, reflux, constipation, and other gastrointestinal conditions.
How Chiropractic Treats the Source of Your Gut Problems
Your nervous system controls every part of your body, including your gastrointestinal system. A collection of nerves branches out from the lower part of your spinal cord and travels to your stomach and intestines. Nerves carry messages from one part of the body to another and play an essential role in digestion, movement of food through the gastrointestinal system, absorption of nutrients and minerals, and removal of waste products via the intestines.
Misalignments of your vertebrae, known as "subluxations," interfere with the way nerves function. When the vertebrae aren't properly aligned, bones or spinal discs can press against nerves, pinching or compressing them. This can cause the organs to malfunction, resulting in heartburn, gas, cramping, diarrhea, constipation or other symptoms. Muscle tension in your abdomen can also contribute to digestive problems, whether it occurs due to stress or as a result of sitting for hours every day.
Chiropractic treatment is aimed at relieving pressure on your nerves, joints, and muscles by realigning the vertebrae in your spine. Spinal manipulation or mobilization are two techniques that are commonly used to improve the alignment of your spinal column. Quick thrusts realign vertebrae during spinal manipulation, while slower, gentler movements are used during mobilization. Massage and other therapeutic techniques may also be part of your treatment plan.
Chiropractic Care Is a Good Option for GERD, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and Other Digestive Conditions
Digestive problems are particularly common in the U.S. and affect 60 to 70 million people, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases' Digestive Disease Statistics for the United States report.
Twenty million people experience reflux, a common symptom of gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD), at least once a week, the report notes. GERD affects both children and adults and can cause heartburn, chest pain, sore throat, nausea, belching, and difficulty swallowing. Reflux occurs when stomach acids travel out of the stomach and into the esophagus.
Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are a type of medication often used to treat GERD symptoms. The medication works by reducing acid production in the stomach. Unfortunately, PPIs can cause unpleasant side effects including diarrhea, constipation, headaches, abdominal pain, fever, nausea, and vomiting. You may also be more likely to fracture a bone if you fall because PPIs may interfere with your body's absorption of calcium.
Even more concerning is the potential long-term effects on your stomach, heart, and kidneys. A recent study conducted by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine and Veterans Affairs St. Louis Health Care System uncovered a link between PPI use and chronic kidney disease, stomach cancer, and fatal cases of cardiovascular disease.
Reflux and other GERD symptoms can occur if nerves that serve the stomach and esophagus malfunction and irritate these organs. Chiropractic treatment relieves irritation and restores normal functioning.
Chiropractic care can also help you manage the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). In a Chinese study, IBS patients who received spinal manipulation treatment five times experienced a significant reduction in the severity and frequency of their symptoms.
Chiropractic treatment is an excellent choice no matter what type of gastrointestinal issue you have. It may reduce flare-ups of Crohn's disease, help relieve chronic constipation, decrease abdominal pain and bloating, and even ease colic in infants.
Don't let digestive issues affect your quality of life. Chiropractic treatment can help you control your symptoms and may even allow you to reduce your dependence on medications. Contact us to schedule an appointment.
Sources:
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases: Digestive Disease Statistics for the United States
https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-statistics/digestive-diseases
Washington University School of Medicine: Heartburn Drugs Linked to Fatal Heart and Kidney Disease, Stomach Cancer, 5/30/19
NCBI: Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine: Irritable Bowel Syndrome Treated by Traditional Chinese Orthopedic Manipulation, 12/12
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23427390
The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association: What Effect Does Chiropractic Treatment Have on Gastrointestinal GI Disorders: A Narrative Review of the Literature, 6/15
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4486990/
How Meditation Contributes to Overall Health
Meditation offers many benefits for your mental and emotional health. Regular meditation reduces stress and anxiety, improves your mood and decreases symptoms of depression. Adding meditation to your daily schedule may also help you lower your risk of some health conditions and diseases.
Asthma Attacks May Decrease
Strong odors, smoke, and illnesses often trigger asthma flares, but emotions can play a role too. If you're stressed or upset, you're more likely to experience asthma symptoms. Meditation can help you calm yourself when you begin to feel worried, stressed or anxious. Practicing meditation every day is a simple way to avoid flare-ups and keep your asthma under control.
Your Blood Pressure May Lower
Your emotions can also be a contributing factor if you have high blood pressure. The more stressed or agitated you become, the more your blood pressure soars. Unfortunately, uncontrolled high blood pressure can increase your risk of heart attack, heart disease, kidney disease, stroke, and other health problems. Meditation, along with a healthy diet, regular exercise, and medication, can help you keep your blood pressure at a safe level.
After reviewing 19 clinical studies on the effects of medication on hypertension, researchers concluded that non-transcendental meditation was a promising treatment option for high blood pressure. Their meta-analysis appeared in the April 2017 issue of the Journal of Hypertension.
Tired of Living with Menopausal Symptoms? Try Meditation
Menopause is referred to as "the change of life" for good reason. The end of your menstrual cycle is just one of the many changes you can expect during this time. Hot flashes, irritability, difficulty sleeping, brittle nails and itchy skin are among the symptoms that can accompany menopause. Meditation may improve your moods, decrease insomnia and reduce the number and intensity of hot flashes.
Meditation May Offer a Solution for Chronic Pain
Chronic pain can be very difficult to treat. Medications wear off quickly, can be addictive, and often have side effects. People who have chronic pain may have decreased levels of body awareness, according to a group of researchers who studied the effects of mindfulness on chronic pain and depression.
Body awareness refers to the ability to understand how the parts of your body function together and how your body occupies the space around you. The research, which appeared in Frontiers in Psychology, demonstrated that mindfulness can improve body awareness. Once awareness improves, pain may decrease.
Meditation May Decrease Inflammation Responsible for Multiple Conditions
It's hard to overlook a red, inflamed wound, but inflammation isn't so obvious when it occurs internally. Chronic inflammation may cause or contribute to a variety of diseases and health conditions, including Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, irritable bowel syndrome, hay fever, cancer, hardening of the arteries, rheumatoid arthritis, and gum disease. A reduction in inflammation just may be one of the most important effects of meditation.
Meditation Offers a Simple Way to Prevent Respiratory Infections
Would you like to avoid colds and the flu? Regular meditation may reduce your risk of developing acute respiratory infections (ARIs), according to research conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. ARIs are colds, flu, and flu-like illnesses.
Participants aged 30 to 69 were divided into three groups during the study. One group practiced mindfulness meditation, another participated in an exercise program, while a third group served as the control group. Throughout the four-year study, 120 people in the exercise group and 134 in the control group had ARIs, but only 112 people in the meditation group suffered from respiratory infections.
Practicing meditation, in addition to receiving chiropractic care, can help improve your mental and physical health. Are you ready to take advantage of the many benefits of meditation? Contact us for more information on how meditation may reduce your risk of some health complications.
Sources:
Journal of Hypertension: Meditation and Blood Pressure, 4/17
University of Wisconsin-Madison: Exercise and Meditation Appear to Reduce Common Colds and Flu, 7/3/18
https://www.med.wisc.edu/news-and-events/2018/july/exercise-meditation-reduce-common-colds-flu/
Mayo Clinic: Meditation: A Simple, Fast Way to Reduce Stress
https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/meditation/in-depth/meditation/art-20045858
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health: 8 Things to Know About Meditation for Health
https://nccih.nih.gov/health/tips/meditation
Scholar.Harvard: Frontiers in Psychology: Effects of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy on Body Awareness in Patients with Chronic Pain and Comorbid Depression
Prevention: 7 Science-Backed Health Benefits of Meditation, According to Experts
https://www.prevention.com/health/a22679621/health-benefits-of-meditation/
Chiropractic Treatment Can Help Ease the Pain of Spondylosis
Aches and pains in your back or neck could be caused by spondylosis, a condition that occurs after years of wear and tear on your spine. Although popping a few pain relievers can decrease your symptoms, the relief is only temporary and can be accompanied by unpleasant side effects. Chiropractic treatment eases your pain naturally and offers longer-lasting relief of symptoms.
Spondylosis Explained
Spondylosis, commonly called arthritis of the spine, occurs due to several age-related changes in your spine. Thirty-three bony vertebrae support your body, making it possible to stand, bend and lift heavy objects. Small fluid-filled discs located between vertebrae absorb shock, cushion the joints and help the spine maintain its structural integrity.
As you age, the discs begin to dehydrate and shrink. As a result, they can't absorb shock quite as well as they could when you were younger. Your disks begin to gradually change around age 40, although you may not notice any differences for years.
The dehydration process can cause cracks or tears in the outer layer of disks, increasing your risk of herniated disks. Herniations happen when the soft, gel-like center of the disc protrudes and presses on spinal nerves, causing pain.
The space between the vertebrae gradually narrows as the discs flatten due to dehydration. When this occurs, painful bone spurs may form at the ends of vertebrae.
Age-related changes can also wear away the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of the vertebrae and stiffens the ligaments that hold the vertebrae together, resulting in pain and stiffness when you bend and move.
Common Spondylosis Symptoms
It takes many years to notice the effects of spondylosis. You may only experience occasional symptoms in your 40s and 50s. Your back or neck may hurt or feel a little stiff after you spend the day weeding your flower beds or participating in a 5K. These changes can occur even if you've been healthy and active all of your life and practice proper lifting techniques.
Your risk of spondylosis increases significantly with age. The Mayo Clinic notes that more than 85 percent of people over age 60 experience spondylosis in their necks.
Severe neck and back pain can occur if your condition worsens. You may notice that it's difficult to move or walk and may experience weakness or tingling sensations in your arms or legs.
How Your Chiropractor Can Help You
Chiropractic treatment can relieve pain, improve your range of motion and reduce pressure on your spinal nerves due to herniated discs or bone spurs. After performing an examination and conducting a few diagnostic tests, your chiropractor may recommend one or more of these treatments:
Don't let spondylosis pain take over your life. Chiropractic treatment offers a safe, natural way to control your symptoms. Contact us to schedule your appointment.
Sources:
Mayo Clinic: Cervical Spondylosis
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cervical-spondylosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20370787
Arthritis Foundation: How Chiropractors Can Help Arthritis Pain
American Chiropractic Association: Neck Pain and Chiropractic
https://www.acatoday.org/patients/health-wellness-information/neck-pain-and-chiropractic
American College of Physicians: American College of Physicians Issues Guideline for Treating Nonradicular Low Back Pain, 2/4/17
How Nightly Routines and Relaxation Techniques Can Improve the Quality of Your Child's Sleep
Unlike adults, children don't always appreciate the benefits of a good night's sleep. While parents look forward to slipping under the covers at the end of a long day, kids find plenty of creative excuses to delay bedtime. Unfortunately, bedtime delays can decrease the quality and duration of your child's sleep and affect his or her behavior and performance at school. Following a few of these suggestions can help you ensure that your child gets enough rest at night.
Pay Attention to Sleep Recommendations
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends the following daily sleep totals for kids:
Even slight sleep deficits can affect your child's grades. A Savvy Sleeper survey revealed that high schoolers who got 8.1 hours of sleep received mostly As, while their peers who only slept for 7.3 hours got Cs.
Control the Environment
Sleep environment plays a crucial role in sleep quality. Your child may have difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep if he or she doesn't have a dark, quiet place to sleep. The National Sleep Foundation reports that the 60 to 67 degrees Fahrenheit is the optimum temperature for quality sleep.
It can be difficult to sleep if your blanket is scratchy or your bed is too small. Kids can outgrow cribs or toddler beds quickly. Make sure your child's bed is at least a foot longer than his or her height. Soft bedding and a supportive pillow (if your child is 2 or older) will help keep your child comfortable during the night.
Ban Digital Devices and TV Before Bed
Blue light from smartphones, laptops, tablets, and TVs can interfere with your child's ability to fall asleep and stay asleep. Ask your kids to turn off devices at least an hour before bed to prevent sleep quality problems.
Set a Bedtime
Kids are more likely to get the recommended amount of sleep when parents set and enforce bedtimes, according to a Canadian study. In fact, both kids and parents benefit when they go to bed and wake up at the same time every day. Ideally, sleep and wake up times should be approximately the same whether it's a weekend or weekday.
Limit Caffeine
Chances are you would have trouble falling and staying asleep if you downed a big cup of coffee in the evening. Kids may have just as much difficulty if they drink caffeinated drinks in the hours before bedtime. Water or milk are better, healthier options.
Embrace Routine
Routines help your child wind down at the end of the day and set the stage for sleep. For younger children, the bedtime routine may include a bath and story, while older kids may enjoy board games, free play or reading a favorite book 30 to 60 minutes before turning the lights out. Starting routines early may even help prevent bedtime struggles as your child grows older.
Help Your Kids Relax
Stress doesn't only affect adults. Worries about grades, friends or the monster under the bed can trigger stress and anxiety that make it hard for children and adolescents to fall asleep. Teaching your child meditation, calming yoga poses or progressive relaxation techniques can help them learn to relax at bedtime. Progressive relaxation involves tensing then relaxing muscle groups, starting with the lower part of the body first.
Does your child have sleep issues? We'll find the source of the problem and offer suggestions and treatments designed to improve sleep quality. Contact us to schedule an appointment.
Sources:
National Sleep Foundation: Find Out What the Ideal Thermostat Setting Is to Help You Snooze Longer
https://www.sleep.org/articles/temperature-for-sleep/
BMC Public Health: Do Parents’ Support Behaviours Predict Whether or Not Their Children Get Sufficient Sleep? A Cross-Sectional Study
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5442855/
National Sleep Foundation: Children and Sleep
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/articles/children-and-sleep
Healthy Children: Healthy Sleep Habits
Savvy Sleeper: Costing Kids Sleep, 7/7/19
https://www.savvysleeper.org/costing-kids-sleep/
Could Flexion-Distraction Therapy Help My Pain?
Most of us experience pain in our muscles and joints occasionally. If we're lucky, the uncomfortable symptoms subside after just a few days. For some people, pain becomes a chronic condition that lasts months or years.
Although pain medication can be helpful, it often causes nausea, dizziness and other unpleasant side effects that can make it difficult to drive or keep up with your usual workload. Flexion-distraction therapy, a natural, non-surgical technique offered by your chiropractor, provides an effective, alternative pain relief option.
What Is Flexion-Distraction Therapy?
Flexion-distraction therapy is performed on a segmented table that moves as your chiropractor slowly manipulates your spine. The manipulations, combined with the movements of the table, stretch and decompress your spine, relieving your back, leg, neck, or arm pain.
As your chiropractor performs the gentle manipulations, a section of the treatment table drops or moves, changing the positioning of your body. When your body drops slightly, gravity enhances the effects of treatment and helps realign your spine.
What Are the Benefits of the Treatment?
Flexion-distraction therapy can:
In a study published in The Journal of Physical Therapy Science, researchers examined the effects of flexion-distraction manipulation on patients with lumbar spinal stenosis. The condition occurs when the spinal canal narrows and presses against the nerves that serve the lower back and legs, causing pain, weakness, numbness, and cramping.
Study participants who received flexion-distraction manipulation as part of their therapy experienced a greater reduction of their painful symptoms than those patients whose treatment did not include the technique.
Will Flexion-Distraction Help Me?
In addition to improving spinal stenosis symptoms, flexion-distraction can also be used to treat many other types of back pain. It may reduce pain and stiffness associated with osteoarthritis and improve spinal movement in patients who have scoliosis.
Flexion-distraction therapy can be helpful if you have sacroiliac syndrome, ankylosing spondylitis, sciatica, spondylolisthesis, sprains, and strains. It's also very effective in treating muscle spasms or low back pain unrelated to a specific condition.
The technique is gentle enough to use after spinal surgery and can be an important part of your recovery treatment plan. If you have osteoporosis or another condition that affects your bones, some treatments may be too risky. Luckily, flexion-distraction is gentle enough that it can be a safe therapy option for people who have brittle bones or are frail.
Flexion-distraction therapy may even be helpful in treating knee pain. In a study published in The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, patients who had either acute or chronic knee pain received flexion-distraction therapy for two to three weeks. At the end of the treatment period, the mean pain scale score dropped from 7.7 to 1.8. Patients who suffered from chronic knee pain maintained their results by receiving the therapy once every month.
Are you tired of living in pain? Flexion-distraction therapy may offer the ideal way to relieve your symptoms, whether you've been experiencing pain for a few days or weeks, or you have a chronic condition. Call us to schedule your appointment.
Sources:
NCBI: European Spine Journal: The Global Spine Care Initiative, 9/27/18
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29480409
NCBI: Journal of Physical Therapy Science: Effects of Flexion-Distraction Manipulation Therapy on Pain and Disability in Patients with Lumbar Spinal Stenosis, 6/30/15
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4500015/
Chiropractic Economics: The Extensive Benefits of a Chiropractic Flexion Table, 9/15/16
https://www.chiroeco.com/chiropractic-flexion-distraction-tables/
NCBI The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association: Innovative Application of Cox Flexion Distraction Decompression to the Knee: A Retrospective Case Series
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5596966/
How Dehydration Affects the Body
Healthy nutrition includes drinking at least 4 to 8 glasses of water every day. Admittedly, this is a wide range, but 4 8-ounce glasses of water represents the minimum intake for adult men and women. A useful frame of reference is the presence or absence of thirst. Optimally, you should never feel as if your mouth and throat are dry and that you "need" a drink of water. For example, hikers are frequently reminded by trail guides to drink water continuously throughout a hike. Experienced trail guides add the friendly warning that "if you feel thirsty, it's too late" to ward off a headache and other symptoms of dehydration such as dizziness and confusion.
Sufficient water intake is critically important in maintaining normal physiological processes and eliminating metabolic waste products. All cells are aqueous environments. Drinking appropriate amounts of water every day aids each and every one of your body's cells in performing its numerous functions so that you remain healthy and well. Also, water is a key component of the intervertebral discs. These shock-absorbing cartilaginous structures assist your spinal column in supporting the weight of your head and torso and distributing mechanical loads so that you can effectively perform physical tasks such as carrying weights.
The intervertebral discs consist of a fibrocartilaginous outer ring (the annulus fibrosus) and a gelatinous center (the nucleus pulposus). Water is a significant component of both structures, especially the nucleus pulposus. Intervertebral discs begin to degenerate by the age of 4, and begin to gradually lose their blood supply, turgor, weight-distributing, and shock-absorbing capabilities. If dehydration has affected the intervertebral discs and has begun to result in clinically significant degeneration of a disc or discs, a person may experience back injury, and ultimately chronic back pain. Thus, for many reasons, ensuring optimal daily hydration is critically important for all members of the family, including children, adults, and older adults.
Sufficient daily water intake should be accompanied by the components of a healthy diet, including eating regularly from a wide variety of food groups, including fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, and possibly dairy products. For example, all family members should eat at least 5 servings of fresh fruits and vegetables every day. As well, a complete healthy lifestyle includes regular vigorous exercise. Five sessions per week of at least 30 minutes per session is recommended. Regular exercise provides mechanical challenges to bones, joints, intervertebral discs, and other musculoskeletal soft tissues, enabling these structures to obtain and maintain optimal strength, flexibility, and resilience.
Regular chiropractic care helps coordinate all your healthy lifestyle activities. By detecting and correcting spinal misalignments as well as removing sources of nerve interference, regular chiropractic care helps all members of the family get the most out of their nutritional and exercise programs. As a result, regular chiropractic care assists children, adults, and seniors to achieve long-term health and well-being.
Huang YC, et al: Intervertebral disc regeneration: do nutrients lead the way? Nat Rev Rheumatol 10(9):561-566, 2014
Amin DB1 et al: Effect of degeneration on the six degree of freedom mechanical properties of human lumbar spine segments. J Orthop Res 34(8):1399-1409, 2016
Von Forell GA, et al: Low Back Pain: A Biomechanical Rational Based on "Patterns" of Disc Degeneration. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 40(15):1165-1172, 2015
What is Your Posture Telling You About Your Health?
Most of us started hearing about posture way back in grade school when our parents and teachers began to tell us to "stand up straight". We were told to have "good posture", often with the implication that such an achievement was associated with strength of character, discipline, and definiteness of purpose. But, typically, the means of accomplishing good posture were never exactly disclosed, other than the child's being encouraged to "suck in your stomach" and "pull your shoulders back". Unfortunately, these directives did not result in a pleasing, biomechanically effective, natural posture. Rather, these commands caused children to develop tight muscles. Fortunately, it is possible to attain good posture in ways that support a person's well-being.
A person's posture is primarily associated with the function of her or his spine. The adult human spine is most commonly composed of 26 movable segments. The neck contains 7 vertebrae, the mid back contains 12 vertebrae, the lower back contains 5 vertebrae, and there is 1 sacrum and 1 coccyx. The neck (cervical spine) is normally convex to the front, the mid back (thoracic spine) is normally convex to the rear, and the lower back (lumbar spine) is normally convex to the front. The sacrum and coccyx are oriented convexly to the rear. These alternating curves from top to bottom create biomechanical balance and participate in creating spinal flexibility. As a result, the spine is able to distribute biomechanical loads effectively and efficiently, resulting in ease of motion and strength throughout the course of one's daily activities.
But various musculoskeletal habits, physical and mental stress, diet and nutrition, injury, and spinal biomechanical dysfunction can all impact a person's posture. Over time, any and all of these circumstances can diminish the degree of curvature of affected spinal regions, reducing the normal biomechanical curves of the spine. Most typically, the spinal curvatures are flattened, resulting in loss of the normal curves in the neck, mid back, and lower back. The straightened regions of vertebrae lose their biomechanical resilience, with accompanying muscle tension, muscle spasms, and pain in various regions of the spine. As well, seemingly innocuous movements such as bending over to pick up a dropped pen or pencil, or bending over to place groceries in the trunk of one's car, may result in sudden, significant pain and injuries lingering for 2-3 weeks or more.
Regular chiropractic care provides substantial assistance to all members of the family regarding restoring and maintaining graceful, functional posture. Improved posture enables us to perform smoothly our activities of daily living. By detecting, analyzing, and correcting spinal biomechanical dysfunction and nerve interference, regular chiropractic care helps reestablish normal spinal biomechanics and improve physiological function and performance throughout the body. As a result, regular chiropractic care helps the entire family achieve higher levels of long-term health and well-being.
Yoganandan N, et al: Fatigue responses of the human cervical spine intervertebral discs. J Mech Behav Biomed Mater 69:30-38, 2017
Mörl F, Bradl I: Lumbar posture and muscular activity while sitting during office work. J Electromyogr Kinesiol 23(2):362-368, 2013
Żak M, Pezowicz C: Analysis of the impact of the course of hydration on the mechanical properties of the annulus fibrosus of the intervertebral disc. Eur Spine J 25(9):2681-2690, 2016
What's the main difference between wellness care and standard medical care? Wellness care seeks to turn on the natural healing ability, not by adding something to the system, but by removing anything that might interfere with normal function, trusting that the body would know what to do if nothing were interfering with it. Standard medical care, on the other hand, seeks to treat a symptom by adding something from the outside - a medication, a surgery, or procedure.
If a patient has high blood pressure, a standard medical approach would be to choose a drug that lowers blood pressure, and ask the patient to take the drug. This may serve to lower the blood pressure, but ignores the underlying cause that is making the blood pressure high, and runs the risk of side effects complicating the person's recovery. Whether it's a nutritional issue, faulty control by the nerve system or a manifestation of stress, the medication could decrease the blood pressure, leaving the problem causing the symptom of high blood pressure unaddressed.
Wellness is a state of optimal conditions for normal function… and then some. The wellness approach is to look for underlying causes of any disturbance or disruption (which may or may not be causing symptoms at the time) and make whatever interventions and lifestyle adjustments would optimize the conditions for normal function. That environment encourages natural healing, and minimizes the need for invasive treatment, which should be administered only when absolutely necessary. When the body is working properly, it tends to heal effectively, no matter what the condition. When the body heals well and maintains itself well, then there is another level of health that goes beyond "asymptomatic" or "pain-free" which reveals an open-ended opportunity for vitality, vibrant health, and an enhanced experience of life. This is true for mental and emotional health as well as physical health. While some people may suffer psychological disorders, creating an atmosphere of mental and emotional wellness will address all but the most serious problems.
