Summer Seminar Series

Next week in our paper newsletter we will announce the Summer Seminar Series here at Back Experts. As a subscriber to our site, you get first crack at registering (notice chiropractic humor). You can register for free at backexperts.com/seminars.

Every Tuesday starting July 1st, we will offer free seminars. These 30 minute sessions cover topics on chiropractic care, running a 5K, home exercises, losing weight and much more. The are not only informative but we mix a little humor along the way. Of course refreshments will be provided.

I would like to bring to your attention to a couple special programs. On July 29th I’ll present “Couch to 5K”, If you have never exercised and are a specialist at sitting on the couch it’s time to get off the couch and 13 weeks later run the Race to Cure Lymphona in St. Charles November 8th. We’ll have a great time getting in shape and running (or walking) the 5K together.

The other special event is September 30th. I’ll discuss the nature of disc herniations and ways you can recover and regain a normal life without surgery. We see success over and over with patients. This workshop will cover lifestyle modifications that will prevent relapse and nutritional considerations for the health of the disc.

Forward this to everyone you know who eats food, moves their body or is breathing.

Don't forget to view all our topics and register here: http://backexperts.com/seminars

Thanks.

Ice or Heat?

You just felt something snap in a muscle. You fall to the ground and the pain and swelling begin. What do you put on the injury? Heat or Ice?

There has always been debate on this issue. After 14 years of studying the matter here is my conclusion.

• Always put ice on an injury, 15 minutes per hour as many hours as you like.
• Use heat if you have a old chronic injury.
  
• When in doubt, ice.

When you first have an injury there is swelling, ice helps the swelling. Use a gel pack or bag of ice cubes and apply to the injures area. Putting it over a shirt of thin towel will help keep the skin from getting too cold. Make sure to limit the ice to 10-15 minutes. More than that can do damage to small capillaries and nerves in the area.

When using heat it must always be moist heat. Adding moisture will prevent local dehydration which increase muscle spasm. Remember, don't use heat on a new injury.

Post a comment on this page if there are any questions, glad to help.

For more information...

• Ice therapy: how good is the evidence?
• Arthritis Patients Choose Chiropractic
• Why are you walking on your knees?
• Exercise page at Back Experts
  

Considering Exercise? Start running.

I had the opportunity to run my first 1/2 Marathon a few weeks ago. The thing about that...I'm not a runner. I always played around with the idea of running but was never able to incorporate exercise into my life.

A year ago this month, after climbing a single flight of stairs from my basement, it hit me. The 13 steps from my basement to my first floor challenged my cardiovascular system so much that I felt out of breath, winded and woefully out of shape.

Being healthy is not about how you look, it about how you work.

Avacado: The Perfect Food.

If you have attended any of our talks on nutrition you know about the benefits of avacados.

Autonomics Hold Key to Good Health

There is system in your body that controls how fast you digest your food, your heart rate, the amount of mucus your nose secretes. It's called the autonomic nervous system.

The chart to the right shows how your spinal cord connects to the organs of your body. Chiropractic for years have used this mechanism to aid in restoring patients health. Subluxations

Chiropractic for Military

Chiropractors and the Military

“H.R. 5658 is a bipartisan bill that explicitly states that chiropractic is an integral component of the Pentagon’s health care delivery system, and it is the committee’s intention that this language will increase access to chiropractic care at more facilities worldwide,” said ACA President Glenn Manceaux, DC.

Should you seek out doctors who are physically active?

Dr. Ronald Davis, president of the American Medical Association, thinks that may be wise. He cites a study by Dr. Erica Frank, which seemed to show that doctors who are physically active are also more likely to provide meaningful advice on exercise.

Doctors who are athletes are less likely to give untoward advice, such as saying that running destroys the knees or that you need an electrocardiogram before you can exercise. Athletic doctors are also less likely to tell an active person who is injured or ill to stop exercising.

Read More...

Americans Taking Prescription Drugs in Greater Numbers

Here's an indication of our declining health as a country, Americans buy more medicine per person than any other county in the world. Why aren't we the healthiest country in the world? - Dr. A
--

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- For the first time, it appears that more than half of all insured Americans are taking prescription medicines regularly for chronic health problems, a study shows.

The most widely used drugs are those to lower high blood pressure and cholesterol -- problems often linked to heart disease, obesity and diabetes.

The numbers were gathered last year by Medco Health Solutions Inc., which manages prescription benefits for about one in five Americans.

Experts say the data reflect not just worsening public health but better medicines for chronic conditions and more aggressive treatment by doctors. For example, more people are now taking blood pressure and cholesterol-lowering medicines because they need them, said Dr. Daniel W. Jones, president of the American Heart Association.

In addition, there is the pharmaceutical industry's relentless advertising. With those factors unlikely to change, doctors say the proportion of Americans on chronic medications can only grow.

''Unless we do things to change the way we're managing health in this country ... things will get worse instead of getting better,'' predicted Jones, a heart specialist and dean of the University of Mississippi's medical school.

Americans buy much more medicine per person than any other country. But it was unclear how their prescriptions compare to those of insured people elsewhere. Comparable data were not available for Europe, for instance.

Read the whole article at the New York Times

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: May 14, 2008

Posture, more important than you think.

You know the person who is hunched over all the time, always looking at the floor. Their spine simply does not allow them to stand up straight. How does this happen? If your answer is osteoporosis, then you are only partially right.

The forward posture of the head is caused by years of stretching of the ligaments that support the spine. Yes, osteoporosis (the condition that causes bone weakened and small fractures throughout the spine) can be a major factor. But what most people do not realize is that forward posture is actually caused by repetitive micro trauma.

Small traumas throughout out the day that allows your ligaments to stretch. Maybe you drive all day flattening out the curves in the lower back or maybe you are hunched over a computer all day stressing and straining your neck. These stresses on your spine will eventually take its toll on your spine and result in poor posture.

The solution to aging gracefully is to have good habits and a very important habit is watching your posture.

Posture is not just about looking good. Abnormal posture is a serious health condition. The American Journal of Pain Management says that "posture affects and moderates every physiologic function from breathing to hormonal production. Spinal pain, headache, mood, blood pressure, pulse and lung capacity are among the functions most easily influenced by posture."

If you look in the mirror and see a shoulder low or your head jetting forward the process has begun. Stop it before it become permanent with chiropractic care, postural exercises and rehabilitation. Call our office for more information, simply exercising 5 minutes a day may make the biggest difference in your health.

Exercise Helps Make Insulin

Our bodies were made to move. Here is another story about the benefits of exercise, this time with sugar regulation, the great thing is the effects were seen after one week. Diabetics (or those who are on their way) have take note. - Dr. A
--

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Sedentary older people at risk of developing diabetes showed significant improvement in the function of their insulin-making beta cells after just one week of exercise, University of Michigan researchers found.

Beta cell function is known to decline with age, although it is not clear why, Drs. Cathie J. Bloem and Annette M. Chang explain in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

As people age, they may also become less sensitive to the blood sugar-regulating effects of insulin and develop impaired insulin secretion, the researchers add. And while short-term exercise boosts insulin sensitivity, it has not been clear how it might affect beta cell function.

To investigate, Bloem and Chang had 12 sedentary individuals aged 60 and older perform an hour-long workout every day for a week. The exercise sessions, consisting of stints on a treadmill, exercise bike and cross-training machine, required study participants to work out at 60 percent to 70 percent of their maximum heart rate capacity.

After the exercise period, study participants' sensitivity to insulin had increased by 53 percent, on average, while a measure of beta cell function called the disposition index had risen by 28 percent. However there were no changes in their fat mass, levels of fat in the blood, or other factors that might explain the effect of exercise on beta cells.

"Longer-term exercise training studies are required and are currently in progress to evaluate further exercise training effects on beta cell function in age-related glucose intolerance," the researchers note.

SOURCE: Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, February 2008.

Why are you walking on your knees?

I came across a guy named Ben last week who was walking on his knees. Yea, he decided that walking on his feet wasn't for him so he would bend his legs and actually walk on his knees. It turns out that by walking on his knees he didn't need to bend as much making his back feel better. He also noticed that his feet didn't hurt him like they use to.

Every few days Ben's knees started hurting so he would walk upright for that day. He would put ice on them and take some Tylenol, that always fixed it. Then back to the knees. He has been using his knee strategy for a few years and it's working out great. A great conversation starter.

It's too bad, Ben's knees are going to deteriorate and he is oblivious. Knees are not made to work that way.

I used this fictitious little story to help you get a glimpse into my world. I see people abusing their bodies everyday. I tell these real life "Bens" to "walk on their feet" but they are just fine taking a Tylenol every morning to "fix the problem".

Most spinal problems never have to be. With early education and proper maintenance, your spine should easily last 100 years. Unfortunately preventative maintenance of the spine is often lacking in our symptom based world.

So the next time you see someone "walking on their knees":

• Bad posture
• Lifting with their legs
• Talking a Tylenol or other pain medication for pain that keeps coming back

Send them to your chiropractor.

Have a great weekend,
Dr. A

A Kitchen Oil Fire

A patient of ours sent me a link to this video. It's from a British fire safety awareness group. Very Interesting... Dr. A

akitchenoilfire.wmv

Are Growth Hormones in Milk Bad?

There has always been some concern and debate about the safety of growth hormone in milk. Nothing has been demonstrated conclusively as a fact sheet from Cornell University outlines. Consumers don't want growth hormone in their milk and Walmart is responding. Starbucks, Kroger and Safeway have also begun the switch. I personally don't give my children milk from cows that have been given these growth hormones.

Decide for yourself:
Growth Hormones in Milk is...
no problem - Cornell University
may be a problem - Natural News

Knee Pain and Chiropractic Adjustment

That pain in your knee is often what doctors call patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS). Simple activities such as running, jumping, or going up and down stairs can contribute to knee pain, which means that most of us will eventually suffer from some form of PFPS.

It has been suggested that PFPS can be relieved by sufficient stretching and lengthening of tight structures around the patella (the kneecap). A study in the Journal of the Neuromusculoskeletal System investigated this potential intervention in 30 patients with PFPS. Patients were divided into two groups: The first group received "patella mobilization" (extension of the knee with pressure and movement applied for 10 minutes, followed by patellar adjustment in the direction of restricted movement); the second group received detuned ultrasound as placebo (five minutes of ultrasound, but with the intensity set at zero).

Patients receiving mobilization had positive improvements in PFPS symptoms compared with the placebo group. The authors note that this type of conservative care may be useful when combined with other treatment options such as exercise, orthotics and activity modification. If you're suffering from knee pain and would like to know more about nonsurgical approaches to relieving your pain, contact us.

Rowlands BW, Brantingham JW. The efficacy of patella mobilization in patients suffering from patellofemoral pain syndrome. Journal of the Neuromusculoskeletal System: Vol. 7, No. 4, pp142-49.

Kids Need Breakfast

We all need a good breakfast. It provides the fuel for our day and helps us stay healthy.

The journal, Pediatrics reported a study of 2216 children over 5 years. They looked at eating and exercises habits among these kids. The study found that skipping breakfast in children leads to weight gain. They also found that girls were more likely to skip this critical meal.

Moral of the story, eat your breakfast. Even if it's just a quick bowl of cereal. - Dr. A

Anatomy Resource

I'm a fan of anatomy. Anatomy hasn't changed in many years. There are new discoveries and understanding of the human body but overall it's constant.

There are many fascinating things about our body. How our body temperature is regulated. Our ability to push our physical limits and come back stronger. How the brain (a 3 pound mass in your head) controls and coordinates every bodily function.

Unlike a machine, the more we use our bodies the better it gets. We see this with exercise, sports, even mental endeavors. If you don't use it you loose it.

Our body is amazing. Seemingly unconnected things like good posture and heart function are linked. I've always wondered, why do our ears keep growing throughout our lives? Your ear will be one inch longer when you reach 100!

If you're interested in exploring anatomy, I found a website that offers a very comprehensive look at human anatomy, it's called www.visiblebody.com and it's free.

In Health,
Dr. A

VIDEO: Dr. Anderson Discusses Scoliosis

Fish Oil Good for Stroke Prevention

A report in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests that fatty fish and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid may be as effective at reducing the risk of thrombotic stroke.

Investigators tracked 79,839 female nurses. At the onset of the study, the subjects ranged in age from 34 to 59 years. Food frequency questionnaires were used to ascertain the women's intake of fish oil and Omega 3's.

After controlling for various risk factors of cardiovascular disease, investigators found that, compared with women who ate fish less than once a month, women who ate fish one to three times a month had a 7% reduced risk of stroke; women who ate fish once a week had a 22% risk
reduction; women who ate fish two to four times a week had a 27% lower risk; and women who ate fish five or more times a week had a 52% lower risk.

JAMA;285:304-12.
http://jama.ama-assn.org/

Catalyn: The Ultimate Multiple

I have used Catalyn in my practice for 10 years and it's my most recommended multiple vitamin. It's based on a whole food theory of vitamin supplementation: smaller dose, more available to your body, found in nature and not artificial.

The manufactures web site describes Catalyn as a "food-based package of nutrients in the most potent and bioavailable form." If you would like more information visit Standardprocess.com. Catalyn is an inexpensive way to ensure you are getting essential nutrients. - Dr. A

Order 90 Count Bottle, $10.00 from Back Experts

Would You Like 20% More Energy? Exercise.

It seems too good to be true.

Our bodies were made to move. Today we call it exercise; 150 years ago they called it living. Today we can spend hours sitting, fixed in a chair; 150 years ago they were working the land or building a railroad.

If you don't move you will eventually have to deal with aches, pains, arthritis, weight gain, fatigue, sluggish bowel function, lower test scores, depression, osteoporosis, loss of focus, back pain, fibromyalgia, bad attitude, bounced checks, hangnails, yellow teeth, loss of friends, foreclosure on your house, restless legs syndrome, restless arm syndrome, buck teeth, excessive nose hair, you name it!

Ok, I may have exaggerated a bit but you get the point. If you don’t use it you lose it. Last week a nice research study came out of the Journal, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics and reported by Web MD the benefits of low-intensity exercise.

"Too often we believe that a quick workout will leave us worn out -- especially when we are already feeling fatigued," researcher Timothy Puetz, PhD, says in a news release. "However, we have shown that regular exercise can actually go a long way in increasing feelings of energy, particularly in sedentary individuals."

The study had participants ride a stationary bike for 20 minutes three times a week at a low intensity. After 6 week their energy was up 20%. Not bad.

If you haven’t incorporated exercise into your life yet, start today.