During pregnancy your center of gravity shifts forward into the front of your pelvis, this increase of weight on new areas also increases the amount of stress on your joints.  As your baby begins to grow extra stress is placed on your spine, changing the normal curvature and causing low back pain, instability and posture imbalances.

To help with all the discomforts of pregnancy, try exercising!  Gentle stretching and light exercise 3x a week can greatly reduce muscle discomfort.  However, if you weren’t exercising before make sure to get your Dr’s approval before starting any extensive workouts!

Many pregnant women have found that chiropractic adjustments can provide relief from the increased low-back pain brought on by pregnancy. Chiropractic manipulation is safe for the pregnant woman and her baby and can be especially attractive to those who are trying to avoid medications in treating their back pain.

Chiropractic care can also be a major benefit following childbirth. In the eight weeks following labor and delivery, the ligaments that loosened during pregnancy begin to tighten up again. Ideally, joint problems brought on during pregnancy from improper lifting or reaching should be treated before the ligaments return to their pre-pregnancy state-to prevent muscle tension, headaches, rib discomfort, and shoulder problems.

If you don’t think you have any foot imbalances, think again. Eighty percent of people develop some type of foot imbalance by the age of 20, and virtually everyone has foot imbalances by the age of 40. After years of standing, walking, and wearing shoes, the arches of your feet gradually weaken and are not able to provide the necessary support for your body.  This is where chiropractic comes in!

There are different types of misalignments that your chiropractor can detect.  The first, pronation, which is the inward rolling of the foot, particularly the heel and arch, as the heel contacts the ground.  Then the second, supination, which is the outward rolling of the foot as the heel hits the ground. These conditions when left untreated can lead to poor posture tilting of the hips, uneven shoulder heights and shortening of one leg!

After your chiropractor has evaluated your misalignments and structure defects he can correct the problem by developing a specific chiropractic treatment plan with you.  As well as using chiropractic adjustments specified for your bodies needs along with a personalized conditioning program to help you keep your body in top working shape.  If your body is still needing a little extra boost to keep your feet where they need to be, custom-made orthotics can be made for you by your chiropractor as well!

Because it is often seen in older people, many believe it’s merely the normal aging process. It is not. This progressively worsening, degenerative condition is the result of uncorrected spinal misalignment. Spinal decay is how your body deals with the stress of gravity.

It just so happens that most people have spinal problems that they’ve ignored for years.

The Normal Phase the disc spaces are equal and there are no visible signs of degenerative changes.

When Phase 1 occurs the alignment of the spine is altered.  However, the disc space remains normal.  Symptoms and degenerative changes may be present.  Nerve tissues become irritated.

During Phase 2 the alignment continues to deteriorate, and disc narrowing is present.  Degenerative changes progress and bone spurs are present.  Nerve tissues are irritated and being to atrophy.

In Phase 3 the joint space is no longer visualized.  Bone spurs progress to fuse the involved joint.  Nerve tissue atrophy occurs as well.

During the fourth and most advanced stage of degeneration, the postural imbalance is severe and motion is limited. There is extensive nerve damage, permanent scar tissue is formed and bones may begin to fuse. Individuals experience pain, various degrees of physical or mental disability and continued loss of energy and height. At this stage, the condition is considered irreversible, although chiropractic care may give some symptomatic relief.

What kind of therapy are you using to cure your aching body?

A national phone survey of over 2,000 random Americans was performed to ask what types of treatments people use to cure their aching bodies.  Not surprising to us, Chiropractic was the most used therapy with over 20% of people using the natural approach.  Overall, complementary medicine was used far more than conventional medicine (54% vs. 37%). Perhaps more importantly, chiropractic was considered more helpful than conventional medicine. Over 60% of sufferers considered chiropractic “very helpful” for treating back and neck pain, compared to 27% for conventional providers.

A multitude of studies have shown that chiropractic and other so-called alternative therapies, such as massage, are highly effective for musculoskeletal pain.  So if you haven’t already started using alternative therapies, call us today to set up a New Patient Exam or your first massage treatment!!

One of the biggest problems with posture is the loss of the natural curve of the spine.  Ideally, we should have a 40-45 degree curve in our neck that helps protect the brain stem and the spinal canal for the spinal cord and nerves that travel to every region of our body.  However, subluxations occur when bad posture is involved and causes irritation of the nerve pathways affecting the way your body responds to everything including illness.  Subluxation patterns such as forward head posture and loss of the neck curve are often created by poor posture.  This could be due to the fact that our society now spends multiple hours slumped over a computer, sitting in front of a tv or texting on a phone.  All of these activities cause the head to shift forward and create a pattern of forward head posture.

Forward head posture can add up to 30 lbs of abnormal pulling on the entire spine and can result in a 30% loss of lung capacity.  Making the amount of oxygen your body is receiving significantly less.  This decrease in capacity also disables the oxygen flow to your muscles that they need to properly function.

So next time you get a glance at yourself in the mirror, check out how your posture looks!  Roll your shoulders back, stand up straight and do your body a favor!

Pump up your endorphins with a little exercise!

Physical activity helps to bump up the production of your brain’s feel-good neurotransmitters, called endorphins. Although this function is often referred to as a runner’s high, a rousing game of tennis or a nature hike also can contribute to this same feeling.  If you’re not an athlete or even if you’re downright out of shape, you can still make a little exercise go a long way.  Take a walk during your break with a co-worker, take stairs when possible and park farther away at the store to get an extra couple steps in for the day!

Exercise is meditation in motion.

After a high impact work out session or a nice, brisk walk around the neighborhood you’ll often find that you’ve forgotten your daily stresses and concentrate more on your surroundings and body.  Making these exercise habits part of your daily routine will help get rid of those daily stressors through movement and physical activity. Through this you may find stressful tasks aren’t quite so stressful.  Your daily exercise habits may start resulting in productive energy and optimism!

Be Happy!

Regular exercise can increase self-confidence and lower the symptoms associated with mild depression and anxiety. Exercise also can improve your sleep, which is often disrupted by stress, depression and anxiety. All this can ease your stress levels and give you a sense of command over your body and your life.

Information from : http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/exercise-and-stress/SR00036

In a recent study, 10 children wore backpacks loaded to 0%, 10%, 20% or 30% of their body weight for 30 seconds to determine the amount of pressure under the backpack’s shoulder straps. While wearing the backpacks, the children were to report if they felt any pain and where the pain was coming from.  Pressure beneath the shoulder straps was significantly increased when the backpack was loaded at 10% body weight or higher.

The long term effects of these “back heavy” backpacks could alter the curvature of the spine and produce back pain.

Based on the results of the study, backpack wearers are encouraged to do the following:

1. Position the backpack high on the back
2. Use both shoulder straps
3. Minimize backpack weight
4. Purchase backpacks with wide straps

Doctors of chiropractic who treat children should advise their patients (and their patients’ parents) about the importance of proper backpack use and keeping the weight in a child’s backpack to a minimum.   Not sure if your child is wearing their backpack correctly?  Ask our Dr about a backpack consultation to ensure the proper positioning!

If you seek out a medical doctor for your back pain you more than likely will be referred to over the counter pain medication to temporarily relieve the pain.  Then after seeing no improvement they may even consider you a candidate for spine surgery!  These surgeries can be too costly and very ineffective leading to only more fusions and surgeries.  Here is a look at cost for each of these back related surgeries ( which do not contain hospitalization, imaging and medications!)

• Anterior cervical fusion: $44,000
• Cervical fusion: $19,850
• Decompression surgery: $24,000
• Lumbar laminectomy: $18,000
• Lumbar spinal fusion: $34,500

Then there’s chiropractic, which research and experience show is the safest, most effective option for most cases of back pain. Unfortunately, too many people end up in a medical doctor’s office instead of a chiropractor’s office.  The truth is now emerging and there is broad agreement internationally that surgery should not generally be considered until there has been a trial of conservative nonsurgical care.  So next time your back starts aching call us for a chiropractic assessment and save yourself from surgery and the millions spent on spinal surgeries!

In a recent trials investigation of 24 people following medical orders to stay on bed rest after a medical procedure no patients improved significantly and eight stated that their symptoms significantly worsened!  In another study of 15 trials investigating bed rest as a primary treatment for back pain and muscle strain, no patients stated that their condition improved and nine stated their condition significantly worsening!

So what should you do to help yourself?  Stay active!  There are many noninvasive ways to keep your muscles moving that will actually help you recover faster, rather than laying in bed.  Consult with Dr Paul for more information on how to take noninvasive approaches to managing your pain.