Fibromyalgia - Chiropractic Care and Pain Relief 

Fibromyalgia is becoming a very common occurrence in today's medical world.  What was previously dismissed as a psychological issue has now become a very convenient diagnosis.  Fibromyalgia is a condition that primarily affects women and can be seen as an increased sensitivity to pain, touch and temperature, coupled with extreme fatigue.  There is new research that shows how chiropractic care can help alleviate the symptoms of fibromyalgia and how a chiropractor may be the best choice to "quaterback" the overall care of the patient affected with fibromyalgia.    

Learn more by going here: http://suburbanchiro.com/symptoms.htm

Are You Sitting Yourself to Death?

Do you sit all day long, or for a good portion of your day? If you do, then you are going to want to pay attention to what I am going to say! It may be a matter of life and death. Literally. According to cancer.org: "A new study from the American Cancer Society researchers [found] it's not just how much physical activity you get, but how much time you spend sitting that can affect your risk of death.  Researchers say time spent sitting was independently associated with total mortality, regardless of physical activity level.  They conclude that public health messages should promote both being physically active and reducing time spent sitting."

This is important because going to the gym after work or going for a run before dinner does not seem to make up for sitting all day long at work. According the study, the researchers "found that more leisure time spent sitting was associated with higher risks of mortality, particularly in women.  Women who reported more than six hours per day sitting were 37% more likely to die during the time period studied than those who sat fewer than 3 hours per day. Men who sat more than 6 hours a day were 18% more likely to die than those who sat fewer than 3 hours per day.  The association remained virtually unchanged after adjusting for physical activity level.  Associations were stronger for cardiovascular disease mortality than for cancer mortality.  When combined with the lack of physical activity, the association was even stronger.  Women and men who both sat more and were less physically active were 94% and 48% more likely, respectively, to die compared with those who reported sitting the least and being most active."

Not only should an individual be getting the proper amounts of exercise each day, but if you do have a job where you have to sit for long hours, make sure you get up from your desk and move around when you don't have to be seated.  The less time seated and the more active you are, the better off you will be.

What's The Real Take Home Message?

There is a lot of information at your fingertips and there is no way you can sift through everything.  The purpose of this blog is to help bring you, the reader, a few prime points from the healthcare world that will not only be interesting, but points that will help you lead a healthier and happier life.

If I could get ONE BIG important message across to you about living a healthier and happier life it would be this....

Achieving true health and happiness is not about tricks or fads, or even some new discovery.  On the contrary, it's about consistently doing the small, correct things over a long period of time.

For example, most people who get back pain think it suddenly started that day. Unless you were in an accident or had some other injury, that is most likely not the case. Back pain usually comes on after long-term micro-traumas.  Micro-traumas are small, often undetectable forces that cause slight injuries.  Over years and years, these micro-traumas add up and "suddenly" your back goes into spasm.

The same is true with many common health problems.  For example, most cases of adult onset diabetes comes from years and years of "micro-trauma" caused by poor nutrition.

The real take home message is that eating right, exercising and reducing stress is one of the most powerful health formulas you will ever discover.

Try to do all the small things right, every day, for the rest of your life and you will be rewarded with a healthier, happier life.  Forget about short cuts and quick fixes!

Chiropractic In the NFL

Most teams in the National Football League utilize a Doctor of Chiropractic to treat their players during the week in between games, and some teams, such as the New York Giants, have one on the sidelines to treat players during the game.  This hasn't always been the case.  The San Francisco 49'ers were one of the first teams to utilize chiropractic care.  The video below is a bit older, but it showcases Joe Montana, Jerry Rice and Roger Craig getting chiropractic adjustments and how it helped them on the field.  Enjoy!

Back Pain Relief With Core Strengthening Exercises

Lower back pain is one of the most common injuries that I see in my office. Most people who suffer with this ailment have weak core muscles. What are your core muscles? Your core muscles consist of your abdominals, hamstrings, hip flexors and lower back muscles. Most people have weak abdominals and lower back muscles, while the hamstrings and hip flexors tend to be tight and spasmed. When these muscles are not working the way that they should be, extra pressure is put onto the lower back and it can lead to pain, tightness and muscle spasm across that area of your spine.

Recently, I joined Mike Womer, owner and head trainer at 1614 Fitness and Aerobics, to walk us through some core strengthening exercises that you can do at home or at the gym to help alleviate and even prevent some lower back pain.

Chiropractic Featured on Dr. Phil!

Make sure you tune into the Dr. Phil Show today. He does a feature on chiropractic care and the benefits one can achieve by receiving treatment on a regular basis. It's great to see chiropractic becoming more main stream.

Can Your Purse or Handbag Be Too Heavy?

Many of my female patients will ask me if I think that their purse or handbag is the cause of their neck pain or lower back pain. In many cases, it is not the primary cause, but the type of bag and the weight of the bag can be a contributing factor to discomfort in the spine. Recently, Oprah's magazine interviewed a New York City based chiropractor to ask her opinion on handbags. Some of her answers in the article will intrigue you. So, if you're in the market for a new purse or your current purse is causing you discomfort, you may want to read this!