In general, I would consider myself a good eater. I am definitely not perfect, but my wife and I focus on eating a lot of organic foods and getting a good variety of fruits and vegetables every day. I tend to eat good during the week and then splurge a little on the weekend with a pizza or a burger or some ice cream and maybe some wine or beer. So the detox is definitely a little challenging for me, but it really does help to refocus my brain and body.
In previous posts, I have talked about the 21-day purification/detox program that I offer to my patients. You can read some more about it here. I like to do the program 1-2 times per year to help detox my liver, clean up my gut, increase my energy, and just get me back on track with eating better. And it is always nice to lose a few pounds in the process. Well, I started the detox today and I plan to describe my first week to give you an idea of what I am eating and how I am feeling. I just got over a pretty good 2-day cold, so it is good timing for the detox.
I did all my shopping yesterday and bought all organic fruits and vegetables. (The first 10 days of the detox is only fruits and vegetables.) I also spent about an hour chopping and preparing all the veggies, so that can just put together a meal quickly each day.
Breakfast: Fruit shake. (I actually have this for my breakfast when I am not doing the detox)
Fruit Shake:
1/2 cup filtered water
1/2 cup organic unfiltered apple juice
1/2 cup frozen organic blueberries
1/2 cup frozen organic spinach
1/2 organic banana
2 rounded scoops of SP Complete Powder (included in the detox kit)
1 Tablespoon of Whole Food Fiber (included in detox kit)
1 teaspoon fish oil
Mixed in a blender
With the shake, I took 7 of the SP Cleanse pills (included in the detox kit).
Before lunch: Pear and some carrots. Green tea and filtered water.
Lunch: Big salad with romaine lettuce, kale, broccoli, carrots, radishes, tomatoes, and alfalfa sprouts. Dressing of olive oil, apple cider vinegar, tumeric, and sea salt.
7 SP Cleanse pills
Afternoon: More carrots and an apple. Filtered water.
Dinner: Spaghetti squash topped with tomato paste, broccoli, zucchini, onions, sea salt and organic butter.
7 SP Cleanse pills
After dinner: Fruit Shake with blueberries and mango.
How I am feeling:
Usually the first 3 days I tend to feel a little tired. Today, I had a lot of energy, but this could be do to me just getting over my cold and getting a lot of sleep the last 2 nights. I did not feel too hungry. Believe it or not the 7 SP Cleanse pills three times in a day help to fill you up. I will get into what is in the pills and the shakes over the next couple days. Just know that it is made up of real, whole foods such as juniper berry, buckwheat juice, barley grass, and others.
Continued tomorrow...
Live Well.
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Friday, September 25, 2009
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Are you inflamed?!
What comes to mind when you think about inflammation? Hot and red swelling? Maybe a sprained ankle, or a hurt knee, or possibly even the swollen ankles you pregnant ladies might have had? What you might not realize is that inflammation is involved with most if not all of the disease processes. Some inflammation related to local injury can be good for the general healing process. However, most of the inflammation in the body is problematic.
The suffix "-itis" denotes inflammation, so any condition or disease ending in "-itis" is specifically related to inflammation. i.e. bronchitis (inflammation of the air passages in the lungs), sinusitis (inflammation of the sinuses), arthritis (inflammation of the joints), diverticulitis (inflammation within the digestive tract), prostatitis (inflammation of the prostate). However, if a condition does not end with this suffix it does not mean that inflammation is not involved. Here is a list of just a few diseases and conditions that are or can be caused or promoted by inflammation...
acne
allergies
asthma
cancer
chronic pain
diabetes
endometriosis
fibromyalgia
headaches
heart disease
high blood pressure
injury
...and this is just a small sample of the conditions related to inflammation.
After seeing this list, don't you think it would be a good idea to try to avoid things that promote inflammation in the body? The good news is that there are some simple changes you can make with your diet and lifestyle that can help decrease overall inflammation. Whether or not you already suffer from one of the conditions above, your current and future health will benefit from less inflammation.
Next time, we will review some things that you can do to help decrease inflammation.
I hope you are all having a wonderful summer!
http://www.acucaretotalhealth.com/
Live Well.
The suffix "-itis" denotes inflammation, so any condition or disease ending in "-itis" is specifically related to inflammation. i.e. bronchitis (inflammation of the air passages in the lungs), sinusitis (inflammation of the sinuses), arthritis (inflammation of the joints), diverticulitis (inflammation within the digestive tract), prostatitis (inflammation of the prostate). However, if a condition does not end with this suffix it does not mean that inflammation is not involved. Here is a list of just a few diseases and conditions that are or can be caused or promoted by inflammation...
acne
allergies
asthma
cancer
chronic pain
diabetes
endometriosis
fibromyalgia
headaches
heart disease
high blood pressure
injury
...and this is just a small sample of the conditions related to inflammation.
After seeing this list, don't you think it would be a good idea to try to avoid things that promote inflammation in the body? The good news is that there are some simple changes you can make with your diet and lifestyle that can help decrease overall inflammation. Whether or not you already suffer from one of the conditions above, your current and future health will benefit from less inflammation.
Next time, we will review some things that you can do to help decrease inflammation.
I hope you are all having a wonderful summer!
http://www.acucaretotalhealth.com/
Live Well.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Shopper's Guide to Pesticides
In a perfect world, we would all be eating only organic foods. Foods with no hormones, pesticides, anti-biotics, or any other chemicals. Hopefully, someday it will be the only option. But for now, we still have to choose. Unfortunately, the healthier option is still more expensive, but I still highly recommend shopping at Trader Joe's. The organic foods are very reasonable in price compared to any other grocery store I have visited. (I should ask for a stipend from Trader Joe's for the amount I promote them!)
I have a lot of people who tell me they want to start buying some organic foods, but can't afford to do too much. Last year, I gave a top ten list of foods that you should try to buy organic. Recently, I found a good list from the Environmental Working Group that shows different types of produce with the highest and lowest amounts of pesticides. If you can try to buy organic produce from the list that contains the highest pesticides, you will help to cut down your exposure to these chemicals. Here is the list.
Just remember, a little change in your diet, household items/products, or daily environment can go a long way in the health of you, your family, and future generations.
Live Well.
I have a lot of people who tell me they want to start buying some organic foods, but can't afford to do too much. Last year, I gave a top ten list of foods that you should try to buy organic. Recently, I found a good list from the Environmental Working Group that shows different types of produce with the highest and lowest amounts of pesticides. If you can try to buy organic produce from the list that contains the highest pesticides, you will help to cut down your exposure to these chemicals. Here is the list.
Just remember, a little change in your diet, household items/products, or daily environment can go a long way in the health of you, your family, and future generations.
Live Well.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Vitamin D...Part 2
After quite a long break from blogging, I am back. At least I have a good excuse for not posting...After issues with infertility and waiting on the adoption list, Dawn and I are finally parents!!! Zachary William was born on St Patrick's Day and weighed 5 lbs 1 oz and was 17.5 in. We now know why we had to wait for so long. Zack is truly a blessing and we couldn't imagine our lives without him! He is now 3 weeks old and we are having so much fun spending each and every day watching our son grow!!
Now back to the business at hand. Considering I started giving you information about Vitamin D about 2 months ago, I'm guessing you are more than ready for me to finally finish the topic. In the first post about Vitamin D, I talked about the importance of Vitamin D and health issues that have been associated with Vitamin D deficiency. All that information is great, but you are probably wondering how you know if you are Vitamin D deficient and what you should do about it.
Finding out your Vitamin D level is as easy as a simple blood test. You can have your blood drawn at your doctor or at our office or there is even at-home Vitamin D test kits that you can order on the web. However, you need to make sure you get the right type of Vitamin D levels checked. 25-hydroxyvitamin D or 25(OH)D is the proper form of Vitamin D that is best used to check for Vitamin D deficiency. If you go to your doctor, make sure you ask for this form of Vitamin D to be tested and not 1,25-dihydroxy-vitamin D. Normal, healthy levels of 25(OH)D is between 50 and 80 ng/mL. Any levels below 50 ng/mL may be considered deficient.
Fortunately, if you find out you are deficient or if you live in areas of little sun, you can supplement your diet with Vitamin D to improve your level. Vitamin D3 is the most useable form of Vitamin D in humans, so make sure you supplement with Vitamin D3. The FDA suggests supplementing with 400-600 IU of Vitamin D daily, but studies have shown that higher doses are needed to achieve optimal levels. Here is what Dr. John Jacob Cannell MD, the director of the Vitamin D Council, suggests...
"If you have little UVB exposure, my advice is as follows: healthy children under the age of 2 years should take 1,000 IU per day—over the age of 2, 2,000 IU per day. Well adults and adolescents between 80–130 pounds should start with 3,000 IU per day while those over 130 pounds but less than 170 pounds should take 4,000 IU per day. Those over 170 pounds should receive 5,000 IU per day. Two months later have a 25-hydroxy-vitamin D blood test, either through ZRT or your doctor."
With springtime hopefully around the corner, do your best to try and get 15-20 minutes of sun exposure per day. If not, you should consider supplementing your diet with Vitamin D3.
Live Well.
Now back to the business at hand. Considering I started giving you information about Vitamin D about 2 months ago, I'm guessing you are more than ready for me to finally finish the topic. In the first post about Vitamin D, I talked about the importance of Vitamin D and health issues that have been associated with Vitamin D deficiency. All that information is great, but you are probably wondering how you know if you are Vitamin D deficient and what you should do about it.
Finding out your Vitamin D level is as easy as a simple blood test. You can have your blood drawn at your doctor or at our office or there is even at-home Vitamin D test kits that you can order on the web. However, you need to make sure you get the right type of Vitamin D levels checked. 25-hydroxyvitamin D or 25(OH)D is the proper form of Vitamin D that is best used to check for Vitamin D deficiency. If you go to your doctor, make sure you ask for this form of Vitamin D to be tested and not 1,25-dihydroxy-vitamin D. Normal, healthy levels of 25(OH)D is between 50 and 80 ng/mL. Any levels below 50 ng/mL may be considered deficient.
Fortunately, if you find out you are deficient or if you live in areas of little sun, you can supplement your diet with Vitamin D to improve your level. Vitamin D3 is the most useable form of Vitamin D in humans, so make sure you supplement with Vitamin D3. The FDA suggests supplementing with 400-600 IU of Vitamin D daily, but studies have shown that higher doses are needed to achieve optimal levels. Here is what Dr. John Jacob Cannell MD, the director of the Vitamin D Council, suggests...
"If you have little UVB exposure, my advice is as follows: healthy children under the age of 2 years should take 1,000 IU per day—over the age of 2, 2,000 IU per day. Well adults and adolescents between 80–130 pounds should start with 3,000 IU per day while those over 130 pounds but less than 170 pounds should take 4,000 IU per day. Those over 170 pounds should receive 5,000 IU per day. Two months later have a 25-hydroxy-vitamin D blood test, either through ZRT or your doctor."
With springtime hopefully around the corner, do your best to try and get 15-20 minutes of sun exposure per day. If not, you should consider supplementing your diet with Vitamin D3.
Live Well.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Resolution Time
Happy New Year!
It is that time of the year again when you go to workout at your gym and you can't use your favorite cardio machine because there are so many people working out. Yep, it's resolution time! As you probably know, some of the more popular resolutions for the New Year are: losing weight, start exercising, spending more time with friends and family, quit smoking, get out of debt, etc. A common theme to all of these is living a better, healthier life.
I think having a New Year's resolution is great...if you can keep it. Everybody can make a change for a month and then go back to the old habits, but making a lifestyle change and staying committed to your resolution, your health, and yourself is the ultimate challenge. The biggest problem that most people have with keeping their resolutions is that they get burnt out. Determined to get in shape, they go from being a couch potato to working out 7 days a week and go right back to the couch within a month because they can't handle the load.
As with most things in life, moderation is key. Don't just hit the ground running. Take baby steps. Instead of going on a crash diet and cutting out all junk food, maybe just start by avoiding foods with high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated oils or add an extra fruit and vegetable to your daily diet. Then as you get used to this change, go a step further and try to avoid sugar and white and enriched flour while adding another fruit and vegetable and some fish to your diet.
As far as exercising goes, if you haven't been to the gym for a year, don't go every day. The best way would be to get a personal trainer to start you on a good program. If a trainer is not an option for you, here are some tips. Maybe start by going 2-3 times per week and walking on the treadmill for 15 to 20 minutes and increase the time as you get comfortable with the cardio. After a couple weeks, add some weight training by doing 10 to 15 minutes with weights. Then as you get comfortable with this, add another day or some more time or a fitness class. The biggest thing to continue to exercise and stay in shape is to keep it fun. Change up the workouts and try different machines and/or classes. But most of all, HAVE FUN!
For those of you who already have a good diet and workout regularly, but may have gained the "holiday" weight, a really good way to get the push in the right direction is with a detox. I recommend a detox at my office that I really like. It is a 21 day purification program that really focuses on eating the right things, not on losing weight. (Although everyone that does it, loses weight.) The first 10 days you only eat fruits and vegetables along with drinking a whole food nutritional shake and taking whole food supplements. Then on Day 11 you can add chicken and fish for the next 11 days. It may sound very difficult, but honestly after the first 3 days you really start to realize that you don't need or crave the pasta or the sugar. Plus, you start to realize how good you feel with more energy and better digestion. Personally, I do this twice per year to "detox" myself. If you are interested in this, the cost of the detox is $250 (supplements, shakes, recipes, education). If not, I would recommend to just focus on eating fruits, vegetables, and lean meats (chicken and fish) as much as possible.
Click HERE for a small study that shows imporvement of cholesterol levels with the purification program.
Whether you have a resolution or not, try to make small changes over the course of this year that will help create a healthier lifestyle. I will do my best to continue to give you useful and practical ideas on how you can make these changes. As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me here or at drmcgowan@acucarechiropractic.com. I don't use outlook, so please e-mail me through your own e-mail.
By the way, for those of you who are annoyed by crowded gym...Don't worry, you will have your favorite machine available within a month!!
Live Well.
It is that time of the year again when you go to workout at your gym and you can't use your favorite cardio machine because there are so many people working out. Yep, it's resolution time! As you probably know, some of the more popular resolutions for the New Year are: losing weight, start exercising, spending more time with friends and family, quit smoking, get out of debt, etc. A common theme to all of these is living a better, healthier life.
I think having a New Year's resolution is great...if you can keep it. Everybody can make a change for a month and then go back to the old habits, but making a lifestyle change and staying committed to your resolution, your health, and yourself is the ultimate challenge. The biggest problem that most people have with keeping their resolutions is that they get burnt out. Determined to get in shape, they go from being a couch potato to working out 7 days a week and go right back to the couch within a month because they can't handle the load.
As with most things in life, moderation is key. Don't just hit the ground running. Take baby steps. Instead of going on a crash diet and cutting out all junk food, maybe just start by avoiding foods with high fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated oils or add an extra fruit and vegetable to your daily diet. Then as you get used to this change, go a step further and try to avoid sugar and white and enriched flour while adding another fruit and vegetable and some fish to your diet.
As far as exercising goes, if you haven't been to the gym for a year, don't go every day. The best way would be to get a personal trainer to start you on a good program. If a trainer is not an option for you, here are some tips. Maybe start by going 2-3 times per week and walking on the treadmill for 15 to 20 minutes and increase the time as you get comfortable with the cardio. After a couple weeks, add some weight training by doing 10 to 15 minutes with weights. Then as you get comfortable with this, add another day or some more time or a fitness class. The biggest thing to continue to exercise and stay in shape is to keep it fun. Change up the workouts and try different machines and/or classes. But most of all, HAVE FUN!
For those of you who already have a good diet and workout regularly, but may have gained the "holiday" weight, a really good way to get the push in the right direction is with a detox. I recommend a detox at my office that I really like. It is a 21 day purification program that really focuses on eating the right things, not on losing weight. (Although everyone that does it, loses weight.) The first 10 days you only eat fruits and vegetables along with drinking a whole food nutritional shake and taking whole food supplements. Then on Day 11 you can add chicken and fish for the next 11 days. It may sound very difficult, but honestly after the first 3 days you really start to realize that you don't need or crave the pasta or the sugar. Plus, you start to realize how good you feel with more energy and better digestion. Personally, I do this twice per year to "detox" myself. If you are interested in this, the cost of the detox is $250 (supplements, shakes, recipes, education). If not, I would recommend to just focus on eating fruits, vegetables, and lean meats (chicken and fish) as much as possible.
Click HERE for a small study that shows imporvement of cholesterol levels with the purification program.
Whether you have a resolution or not, try to make small changes over the course of this year that will help create a healthier lifestyle. I will do my best to continue to give you useful and practical ideas on how you can make these changes. As always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me here or at drmcgowan@acucarechiropractic.com. I don't use outlook, so please e-mail me through your own e-mail.
By the way, for those of you who are annoyed by crowded gym...Don't worry, you will have your favorite machine available within a month!!
Live Well.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Healthy Home Tips for Parents...or anyone!
I found a list that was put together by the Environmental Working Group (a non-profit organization that focuses on protecting public health and environment) that I wanted to share with you. Although it says it is for parents, it really is a useful guide for anyone! I have already talked about many of the things on the list in previous posts, but it is a good guide to print out and hang on your fridge. If you have questions about any of the tips, refer back to my previous posts for more information on the topic or just post a response with your question.
Click HERE for the guide!
Have a great week!
Live Well.
Click HERE for the guide!
Have a great week!
Live Well.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Prevent It!!
Hi everyone! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and are enjoying this holiday season! Sorry it has been so long since I have done a post, but I'll try to make it up to you with this one! As you know, I use this blog to try to give you practical tips and general information you can use to be as healthy as you and your loved ones can be.
Over the Thanksgiving weekend, Dawn and I flew out to Denver to spend time with my sisters and their families. While we were at the airport waiting for our flight, a title of a magazine at a stand caught my eye entitled, "The Sorry State of American Health." I read a lot about health and alternative health, so at my office I probably would have just put this in my "to be read" stack. However, when I realized it was a TIME magazine, I was caught off guard and immediately purchased it.
The reason I was surprised is because rarely do we see a main stream publication talking about the problems of our health care system. We read, hear, and see so much about the pharmaceutical industry with the newest drug on the market or the latest drug study and are lead to believe that we, as a nation, are healthy. We are inundated with drug ads on tv and in magazines. However, according to an article in this Time magazine, although the U.S. spends the most on health care out of any other nation in the world and has superior medical resources, we rank only 34th in the world in life expectancy and 29th in infant mortality rate. A couple more alarming statistics is 40% of Americans NEVER exercise, two-thirds of adults are over-weight with one-third being obese, and 17% of children are overweight! With all the money we spend and resources we have, I know I would expect these numbers to be much better.
I think what this shows is that we focus too much on sick care and not enough on preventative care. People tend to take their health for granted and rely on the latest medical advances once they do get sick instead of relying on themselves to keep from getting sick. They would rather continue to eat McDonald's and avoid exercise and just take medications for their worsening blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar while probably becoming overweight than to eat a healthy diet of fruits, vegetables, and lean meats and getting the right exercise to live a longer and healthier life. I am not talking about those of you who are on medications for high cholesterol, etc. because of hereditary reasons. My whole point is that we try to prevent problems with our cars by getting oil changes and we try to prevent cavities by getting dental cleanings and we try to prevent weeds on our lawn by using fertilizers, so why shouldn't we do everything we can to try to prevent disease, illness, and injury with ourselves?!!!
As you can probably tell, I am very passionate about the subject of preventative health care. I just hope that I can continue to effectively give you a few things that you can easily do to improve your health and to best PREVENT problems from happening in the future.
In my next post, I will be giving a list of healthy home tips for parents!
Live Well.
Over the Thanksgiving weekend, Dawn and I flew out to Denver to spend time with my sisters and their families. While we were at the airport waiting for our flight, a title of a magazine at a stand caught my eye entitled, "The Sorry State of American Health." I read a lot about health and alternative health, so at my office I probably would have just put this in my "to be read" stack. However, when I realized it was a TIME magazine, I was caught off guard and immediately purchased it.
The reason I was surprised is because rarely do we see a main stream publication talking about the problems of our health care system. We read, hear, and see so much about the pharmaceutical industry with the newest drug on the market or the latest drug study and are lead to believe that we, as a nation, are healthy. We are inundated with drug ads on tv and in magazines. However, according to an article in this Time magazine, although the U.S. spends the most on health care out of any other nation in the world and has superior medical resources, we rank only 34th in the world in life expectancy and 29th in infant mortality rate. A couple more alarming statistics is 40% of Americans NEVER exercise, two-thirds of adults are over-weight with one-third being obese, and 17% of children are overweight! With all the money we spend and resources we have, I know I would expect these numbers to be much better.
I think what this shows is that we focus too much on sick care and not enough on preventative care. People tend to take their health for granted and rely on the latest medical advances once they do get sick instead of relying on themselves to keep from getting sick. They would rather continue to eat McDonald's and avoid exercise and just take medications for their worsening blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar while probably becoming overweight than to eat a healthy diet of fruits, vegetables, and lean meats and getting the right exercise to live a longer and healthier life. I am not talking about those of you who are on medications for high cholesterol, etc. because of hereditary reasons. My whole point is that we try to prevent problems with our cars by getting oil changes and we try to prevent cavities by getting dental cleanings and we try to prevent weeds on our lawn by using fertilizers, so why shouldn't we do everything we can to try to prevent disease, illness, and injury with ourselves?!!!
As you can probably tell, I am very passionate about the subject of preventative health care. I just hope that I can continue to effectively give you a few things that you can easily do to improve your health and to best PREVENT problems from happening in the future.
In my next post, I will be giving a list of healthy home tips for parents!
Live Well.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
What's Your Number?
Plastics are definitely a hot topic. Plastics are not only bad for the environment, but can also be bad for your health. There are different types of plastics and they are labeled by a number of 1 through 7. You can usually find the number inside a small triangle on the bottom of the plastic item. No plastic is completely safe, but the soft plastics labeled 1, 2, 4, or 5 are the safer forms. Number 7 hard plastics have been shown to contain BPA (bisphenol-A). BPA has been linked to some cancers and infertility.
Unfortunately and unbelievably, the 5 gallon water cooler jugs that many people use at home and at work and some children's toys are made of number 7 plastic! Dawn and I had been using a water cooler at home for years until about a year ago when I learned of BPA. We have since gotten rid of the water cooler and installed a reverse osmosis filter under our kitchen sink for drinking water. We installed it ourselves and it cost about $200 compared to the $25 a month we were paying for the water cooler and water delivery. Another easy way to avoid the water cooler is to put a water filter directly on your faucet. As far as the toys go, try your best to avoid toys that your child puts into their mouth that are made with the number 7 plastics.
Here's a few other helpful tips to avoid plastics...
1. Use glass storage containers for food instead of plastic
2. Use glass baby bottles instead of plastic (http://www.newbornfree.com/)
3. Avoid reusable plastic water bottles. Instead use stainless steel bottles (http://www.kleankanteen.com/)
4. Avoid using plastic containers or plastic wrap in the microwave
5. Use reusable or paper grocery bags instead of plastic
Yes, glass is more expensive than plastic, but you get what you pay for, so just do what you can!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or comments.
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.
Live well.
Unfortunately and unbelievably, the 5 gallon water cooler jugs that many people use at home and at work and some children's toys are made of number 7 plastic! Dawn and I had been using a water cooler at home for years until about a year ago when I learned of BPA. We have since gotten rid of the water cooler and installed a reverse osmosis filter under our kitchen sink for drinking water. We installed it ourselves and it cost about $200 compared to the $25 a month we were paying for the water cooler and water delivery. Another easy way to avoid the water cooler is to put a water filter directly on your faucet. As far as the toys go, try your best to avoid toys that your child puts into their mouth that are made with the number 7 plastics.
Here's a few other helpful tips to avoid plastics...
1. Use glass storage containers for food instead of plastic
2. Use glass baby bottles instead of plastic (http://www.newbornfree.com/)
3. Avoid reusable plastic water bottles. Instead use stainless steel bottles (http://www.kleankanteen.com/)
4. Avoid using plastic containers or plastic wrap in the microwave
5. Use reusable or paper grocery bags instead of plastic
Yes, glass is more expensive than plastic, but you get what you pay for, so just do what you can!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or comments.
Reduce. Reuse. Recycle.
Live well.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Your eyes will get stuck that way!
Our moms always told us not to crack our knuckles because it would cause arthritis. Well, that was just a creative way of them not having to hear the kids cracking their knuckles all the time. In fact, the opposite is actually true as far as joint health is concerned. A healthy joint should have movement in it. Lack of movement in a joint can lead to scar tissue and calcium build up which can cause osteoarthritis. Our spine is made up of many vertebrae which help protect our spinal cord. We have 7 vertebrae in the neck (cervical spine), 12 vertebrae in the upper back (thoracic spine), and 5 vertebrae in the low back (lumbar spine) . The joints that connect these vertebrae (facet/zygapophysial joints) are what allow our spine to move and twist. Sometimes, through injury, repetitive movement, bad posture, or general daily activities, a vertebrae can become stuck out of the normal position (known as a subluxation). Most of the time, this causes no pain or symptoms. However, it can cause a pinched nerve, muscle tightness, scar tissue, calcification, and can put pressure on the intervertebral disc. Therefore, by helping to correct the positioning of the vertebrae, it can help reduce the symptoms by addressing the problem...
Welcome to a chiropractic manipulation. You may also have heard it called a chiropractic adjustment or "crack". After finding the "subluxations" in your spine, a chiropractor then uses a gentle hands-on approach to help reposition the vertebrae and take pressure off of the surrounding nerves and soft tissue. Yes, it does make a "cracking" noise, but that is just gas bubbles being released from the normal fluid that allows your joints to move. Someone with arthritis in the spine usually doesn't get that "cracking" sound because the fluid and mobility in the joint has been lost. Keeping the joints healthy and mobile is very important to keeping your entire spine and you healthy!
BTW, feel free to continue to use the cracking the knuckles story with your kids, but just as cracking your knuckles is safe, so is chiropractic care for you and your kids!!
Here is a good link to let you get a good visual of the anatomy and function of the spine...http://images.chiromatrixbase.com/3d_spine_simulator/nerve_chart/index.htm.
As always, I love to read comments, so please feel free to leave a comment, question, topic for another discussion, chiropractic experience, or just to say hello!
Happy Weekend!
Live well.
Welcome to a chiropractic manipulation. You may also have heard it called a chiropractic adjustment or "crack". After finding the "subluxations" in your spine, a chiropractor then uses a gentle hands-on approach to help reposition the vertebrae and take pressure off of the surrounding nerves and soft tissue. Yes, it does make a "cracking" noise, but that is just gas bubbles being released from the normal fluid that allows your joints to move. Someone with arthritis in the spine usually doesn't get that "cracking" sound because the fluid and mobility in the joint has been lost. Keeping the joints healthy and mobile is very important to keeping your entire spine and you healthy!
BTW, feel free to continue to use the cracking the knuckles story with your kids, but just as cracking your knuckles is safe, so is chiropractic care for you and your kids!!
Here is a good link to let you get a good visual of the anatomy and function of the spine...http://images.chiromatrixbase.com/3d_spine_simulator/nerve_chart/index.htm.
As always, I love to read comments, so please feel free to leave a comment, question, topic for another discussion, chiropractic experience, or just to say hello!
Happy Weekend!
Live well.
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