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Lawhorn ChiropracticArticles by: admin
By admin

4 Ways To Sneak In Some Exercise Into Your Daily Routine

As you should already be well-aware of at this point in time, exercise is of utmost importance in your daily life. In fact, you should be exercising for a minimum of 20 minutes a day in order to stay healthy and fit. It’s not about maintaining or attaining those abs or that dream figure. You should realize by now that staying fit isn’t about attaining a particular goal – it’s a lifestyle. It is something that you should always be striving for so that you can live a long, fulfilling and meaningful life – free from diseases and disorder. At least, that is the theory.

Unfortunately, for many of us, no matter how pumped up you might be to get some exercise in, there is simply no time in our busy schedules to fit in any time for exercise. In fact, our work loads are often so busy that by the time we reach our homes, it’s straight to the shower and off to bed to prepare for another busy work day. For some of us, work extends all the way home in terms of meeting fast approaching deadlines. So how do you fit in any time to exercise amidst your busy schedule? Well, there are ways.

Exercise While Doing Something Else

You CAN fit exercise into your daily schedule if you don’t try to take any exclusive time just to exercise. Remember that the point of exercise is just to get your body moving in a specific way and you don’t really need a room full of different exercise machines such as in a gym environment just to do this. For example, if your workplace isn’t that far away, you can try jogging to work or using a bike. This is good cardio and you can just bring a spare set of clothes so that you don’t show up for work all sweaty.  In fact, just simply walking vigorously from one place to another works wonders.  Need to work on some core training? Try doing some leg lifts from your chair. Your co-workers might find it a bit strange, but you can just claim you’re doing some stretching to get your blood circulating. Actually, you should be doing some stretching every now and then if you work in an office environment. Deep vein thrombosis is a silent but deadly killer.

Workout While Doing Chores

Need to clean up around the house? Do some aerobic stretching while sweeping that floor. Lift those heavy water jugs as you would curl weights inside a gym.  Finished mopping? Try doing some push-ups off of the floor and test just how clean you’ve made it.  Also, don’t forget to wash your car. Make like the Karate Kid and do the whole hand-waving “wax-on, wax-off” routine. Be creative in doing your chores and try to sneak in some workout opportunities and you’ll always have time.

Jumping Jacks Are Amazing

You might think of jumping jacks as something you liked to do as a little kid but is pretty silly for a full-grown adult outside of a gym – well, why? If you need to get your blood pumping, then doing jumping jacks for a minute or so is one of the most effective ways to do it. It’s good cardio that gets your whole body moving. The best part is that you don’t even need a whole lot of space to do it. Think about all those Zumba dance sessions, the real point of those is just to get the body moving. What difference does it make if you do jumping jacks within a one square meter radius?

Use The Stairs

How many floors up do you need to go to in order to reach your apartment? 7 floors up? Why not take the stairs to get there? Going up and down stairs is excellent for the heart.

By admin

Things You Need To Know About Chiropractic

Does Chiropractic Actually Help?

While Chiropractic practice has gone a long way since the days when people thought of chiropractor as nothing more than glorified quack doctors. There is still a lot of misinformation going around about chiropractic and how clients can benefit from this non-invasive form of treatment. From the treatment of lower back pain to injury recovery and even aiding in restoring mobility and flexibility, people from all walks of life stand to benefit greatly from a chiropractic adjustment – that is, if they are willing to give it a try.

Is Chiropractic Pseudo Science?

This is a very damaging myth that must be quickly dispelled. Many people claim (and without proof merely stating an assertion) that chiropractic is not a recommended form of medical treatment because it is simply pseudo science.  However, nothing could be further from the truth. The whole practice of chiropractic is based upon adjustments in the spine of the body using external, non-invasive maneuvers.

A licensed chiropractor is trained to find subluxations or irregularities in the alignment of the spine. It is based on the theory that a sound muscoskeletal structure results in sound health over-al. A healthy spine leads to a healthy body and it also helps in the body’s natural healing process. Chiropractic is not a pseudo-science because chiropractors actually spend up to four years in college studying the anatomical structure, particularly, the muscoskeletal structure of the body. This is the same anatomy that biologists, nurses, and doctors are required to study as well.

What Is Chiropractic Good For?

As far as effectiveness goes, chiropractic is best used for people with joint pain, neck pain, and lower back pain. By using precise spinal manipulations, chiropractors are able to realign the spine and bones of the body without resorting to invasive surgery. Furthermore, as far as pain relief goes, chiropractic is a far safer alternative to taking pain relievers such as mefenamic acid because it does not involve taking anything into the body at all.

Of course, no licensed chiropractor will just jump right in and give you a spinal manipulation right away. It is important for your chiropractor to be informed about your medical history and whether you may have particular sensitive bones or any problems with your joints. Furthermore, a preliminary examination of your condition is necessary before your chiropractor will proceed with any spinal manipulation.

Is It Painful?

It may look painful, but chiropractic is actually surprisingly satisfying. There may be a sudden jolt or shock as it involves the use of a sudden burst of force in order to set any spinal subluxations back into place, but it is very rare for even the most sensitive clients to complain about any actual pain.

Who Should Avoid Chiropractic?

If you have thinner bones due to oesteoporosis or if you have a history of problems with your spinal cord, as well as inflammatory arthritis, then chiropractic care could be risky for you. In any event, as long as you get clearance from your medical doctor first, you should be safe to undergo chiropractic adjustment.

By admin

Chiropractic Practice Around The World

While chiropractic practice is largely regulated and standardized in the US, not all countries have the same view on what should be considered as appropriate for inclusion in chiropractic practice. In fact, there are many practices in the field of chiropractic that a lot of people here in the US would find strange. In some countries, chiropractic is still largely connected to mysticism and even the belief in magic.

With that said, we took a look at some of the most interesting instances of bizarre or just somewhat interesting chiropractic practice from all around the world.

Unregulated But Effective Chiropractic Work In The Philippines

In the Philippines, both massage and chiropractic practice are heavily linked to Chinese mysticism and the belief in chi or that inner heat/source of energy that revolves all around a person’s body. This is why when you go to get a massage in the Philippines, the therapist you have been assigned to will try to find all the muscle knots in your body and to free the trapped heat and allow it to escape through your head. Believe it or not, you can actually feel heat escaping your head this way – whether this is can be explained by simple anatomy or if it is a product of the inner force called “chi” is really up to you. Regardless, you will find that massage therapists in the Philippines are very efficient at giving you a relaxing, deep tissue massage.

The same process is applied in chiropractic work. The chiropractor may have come from a family of chiropractors with no actual formal training or in recent times, from a vocational school founded by a traditional chiropractor and subsequently sanctioned and licensed through government accreditation. In any case, expect to find some mysticism mixed in with actual sound science whenever you get chiropractic care in the Philippines.

Chinese Chiropractic For Foot Pain

While here in the US, we are used to categorizing reflexology as a whole different practice, in many parts of the world, chiropractic in general is the term applied to the use of massage-like maneuvers to treat all kinds of joint pains from the ankle to the back, neck and arms. One very interesting chiropractic practice of Chinese origin is for pain in the ankle due to dislocation or just general joint pain in that area. It actually works like a home remedy because you can give it a try by yourself without having to rely on the expertise of a chiropractor. All you need is a relatively large bottle such as a 1L bottle of soda (preferably hard plastic or glass) and a flat surface to place it on.

Simply roll the bottle to its side and then place your foot on top of it and start rolling the bottle with your foot. Try to bear the pain as much as you can, but don’t strain yourself. Do this for about five minutes and you should notice a huge difference – chances are that your dislocated ankle will pop back into place.

Exercise Caution


Of course, you should always exercise caution when trying out chiropractic maneuvers. It is always in your best interest to schedule an appointment with a professional.

By admin

What Is Chiropractic Practice?

Are you suffering from aches and pains in your joints? Do you have chronic back pain that seemed to just develop one day? If so, then you might want to consider seeing a chiropractor for relief.

In fact, because chiropractic practice deals directly with the muscoskeletal structure and the spine using massaging maneuvers, many people report experiencing almost instant relief from their symptoms upon seeing a chiropractor. Of course, the problem is that many people still hold the common misconception that chiropractic practice is akin to seeing a quack doctor and that it is not a valid, legitimate scientifically-based profession. This is not true at all.

Chiropractic Treatment is Alternative Treatment

What is true about chiropractic practice is that it is a form of alternative treatment. Without using x-rays or any invasive surgical procedures, the chiropractor works from outside of the body using massaging maneuvers in order to set the bones of the body into place.

The American Chiropractic Association

The leading organization for chiropractic practice in America is the ACA (American Chiropractic Association). The association is actively involved in chiropractic practice all across the US and has members across all 50 states wherein chiropractic practice is licensed. The ACA is actively involved in educating its members, lobbying for positive legislation in favor of chiropractic practice in the US, as well as engaging in meaningful research in the field of chiropractic practice. An ACA chiropractor therefore, is your best bet when you are searching for a professional chiropractor.

Chiropractic Practice Is A Licensed Practice

As mentioned before, while chiropractic practice is considered to be alternative treatment, it is not some hocus pocus with no scientific basis. This is why chiropractic practice is licensed across all 50 states in the US and in 30 countries worldwide. Of course, because the practice is licensed differently across the different states, there are variations in the level of training of licensed chiropractors depending on which state you are in. California also has its own chiropractic licensing board whose rules and regulations can be perused right here: http://www.chiro.ca.gov/laws_regs/regulations.pdf

In the State of California, licensed chiropractors need to undergo 4400 hours of education and training in a board-approved chiropractic school before they can be allowed to take the licensure exam and become a licensed chiropractor.

Scientifically Proven Benefits Of Chiropractic Treatment

But in case you think that chiropractic treatment has no approved therapeutic claims, then you would be quite wrong in your assumption. There are actual proven benefits of getting chiropractic treatment and these include:

  1. A Natural Remedy For Sciatica

Studies have shown that instead of relying on costly medical treatment, a chiropractic adjustment is a more natural remedy for inducing relief from back pain. Clinical trials have been reported to have a 72% success rate in relieving back pain as reported in published findings by the European Spine Journal. In contrast, physical therapy with drug use only reports a 20% success rate. Meanwhile, corticosteroid injections have a more sizable 50% success rate. Clearly, the more natural method of chiropractic adjustment has a significant edge.

  1. Neck Pain

In an independent study on subjects with neck pain, the patients reported a whopping  96% “very satisfied” rating while 98% indicated that they would definitely choose chiropractic treatment/care again to relieve their symptoms.

A 2003 study yielded favorable results for neck pain as well. The British Medical Journal published this study and it was found that out of 183 subjects with neck pain who were randomly allocated to manual therapy, exercise, or general practitioner care involving counseling with education and drugs over a 52-week period resulted in a faster recovery period for those who received manual therapy or chiropractic adjustments than either exercise and general practitioner care.

  1. Lower Back Pain

Several studies across 2008 to 2011 show that spinal manipulation using chiropractic techniques is effective for treating lower back pain. More details on the studies can be perused here: https://nccih.nih.gov/health/pain/spinemanipulation.htm#science.

Furthermore, when performed by a licensed practitioner, scientists conclude that spinal manipulation for lower back pain is relatively safe with the most common side effects being merely temporary soreness.

 

By admin

Doctorate Degree In Chinese Medicine

Ever thought that traditional and alternative medicine was dying out with all the newfangled medical breakthroughs in the realm of regular medical science? Well, it turns out that at least some universities actually recognize the value of alternative medicine with Northwestern Health Sciences University announcing that it will offer a doctorate degree in Chinese medicine to its students. Naturally, you don’t have to be Chinese to take up this doctorate degree. Basically, the course will blend in traditional approaches to medicine with actual modern techniques and applications. In other words, blending in the old with the new. If you are an enthusiast of chiropractic techniques and treatment, this is probably nothing new to you. After all, chiropractic practice may have its roots in traditional medicine, but several scientific research studies have already shown how effective and safe it can be as an alternative treatment for headaches, backaches and other aches and pains.

The Chinese Medicine Doctorate program will be offered in Minnesota and of course, it is the first of its kind. According to Christina Jonovic, DC, the program director for acupuncture and Chinese medicine program, ““We’re seeing a great interest in understanding and applying the tools of traditional healing, especially in combination with modern health-care services offered in clinics and hospitals.”´

You may probably be aware of acupuncture from media and even from old Chinese movies. Similar in origin to the cupping technique featured in the iconic movie, “The Karate Kid,” acupuncture makes use of sterilized needles which are pierced into the skin into various parts of the body – essentially making the patient look like a human pin cushion. It might look dangerous, painful, and definitely scary, but it is actually relatively safe as long as the practitioner is aware of what he/she is doing.

Acupuncture has actually been known to cure anything from a stuffy nose and headaches to high blood pressure. The traditional explanation for acupuncture involves the flow of the energy of life called “chi” inside the body and how the needles are used to activate meridian points in order to facilitate the flow of chi and restore balance to the body. In this sense, it is a bit like chiropractic treatment wherein the goal is to restore balance to the body and enable it to heal itself by removing any subluxations in the spine.

However, a more scientific reason also exists. Neuroscience may be used to explain the benefits of acupuncture treatment and why it works. By stimulating certain points in the nerves and connective tissue, blood flow can be restored into affected areas and it also induces the body to produce some of its natural painkillers.

In any case, in Bloomington, MN, the Northwestern Health Sciences University is set to start offering its new Doctor of Chinese Medicine program starting January of next year.

By admin

Guidelines For Going Vegetarian

Planning to go for an all veggie diet? If you have been hooked onto the appeal of the vegan trend lately, then you are not alone. More and more people are engaging into healthier lifestyles and eating clean, whole, plant-based foods. In this day and age, it has become trendy to be healthy – and that’s a good thing. After all, with all the stress that we all have to deal with in our daily lives from the traffic going to and from work, the daily office grind, and the threat of impending deadlines and quotas to be met, you do need to keep fit and healthy or else your body’s systems could break down resulting in hospital bills and more sources of stress.

With that said, while a vegetarian diet can indeed be healthy, it is important to keep watch of your daily nutritional needs so that you don’t eat yourself to the grave. Because you will not be consuming meat and/or animal-based products (depending on how strict your vegetarian diet will be. Some vegans even shun cheese, butter, milk and other animal-based products completely), you need to be able  to find an alternative source for the proteins that you would normally acquire from these animal-based foods with some vegan-friendly source. If you are at a loss as to how this can be done, then keep reading, because we have some recommendations for helping you achieve that well-balanced vegan diet.

The Basics

In a vegetarian diet, you don’t have to limit yourself to just apples, oranges, grapes and veggies such as potatoes, carrots and tomatoes. There are many more plant-based food sources that you should be looking into such as grains, beans, nuts and if you’re not that strict about it, include some dairy products as well for the added protein.

The Right Portions

Personalizing the food that you take in as a vegan is a good way to ensure that you have a balanced diet that is just right for you. If you try to be all mathematical about it and refer to all the different guides out there based on your age, height, weight, sex, etc. you may very come up with a well-balanced diet, but just how practical is it really to run through all these numbers on a daily basis? Unless you plan to become some kind of glorified food accountant, going by numbers isn’t exactly the best plan of action. So how do you do it?

Simple, there are ways to get the roughly correct measurements for you just by using some of your body parts. So let’s get started.

First of all, you will need some carbs, which you can get from grains, pasta, rice and of course, the ever-popular potato. Do remember not to peel your potatoes and wash the skin but keep it on when you cook to maximize the amount of nutrients that you get. In any case, for carbs, you should include at least a fistful at every meal – and this means your fist and not someone else’s.

Secondly, some plant proteins are in order. A serving of rice and any type of beans will actually form one complete protein. Other plant-based sources of protein include tofu and pulses. Include a portion the size of the palm of your hand with each meal.

Third, nuts and seeds add some much-needed micronutrients to your diet. Include at least a handful at each meal.

To supplement your meal with additional protein and micronutrients, peanut butter and other plant-based spreads work very well. Include a portion about the size of the tip of your thumb.

Finally, you can add some desserts such as brownies every now and then but not at every meal. Take in no more than the size of 2 of your fingers.

Snack items like cheese, popcorn, and rice crisps may also be taken on occasion, but try to keep things in moderation and don’t exceed more than two handfuls of these when you do have them.

 

By admin

5 Top Health and Fitness Tips

It cannot be emphasized often enough that shaping up and becoming healthy is not goal, but a lifestyle. What this means is that you shouldn’t be attempting to be healthy, but that you should make living healthy your daily habit. This means that you shouldn’t be aiming for these so called “body goals” or anything superficial like that. What you need to do is to inculcate within yourself the will to live life the healthy way. Once you do this, the path towards becoming a truly healthy and fulfilled individual will simply open up for you.

Of course, the usual question would be “where do I start?” In your case however, perhaps “how do I start?” would be the better question. Naturally, we have quite a few effective healthy living tips for you right here. These are listed in no particular order and we believe that they are all equally effective.

Be Consistent

If you have decided to eat healthier and get in shape by working out, then be consistent about it. While it is recommended that you engage in at least 20 minutes to an hour of exercise every single day, this is actually just generic information based on the average individual. You should go to the gym and consult with a personal trainer there if you want to know just how much exercise you need to do. They may also recommend a specific diet to get you in shape.

In any event, whatever your healthy living routine might be, just try to be consistent and don’t stop after a week or so.

Change It Up

Yes, of course. If there is one thing that is constant in this world, it would be change. With this in mind, we realize that trying to stick to a single routine every single day can be quite boring. The human mind needs plenty of stimulation to keep it going. In fact, sticking to the same routine every day could easily cause depression – and that’s definitely not a healthy state of mind to be in. Therefore, we recommend changing up your healthy lifestyle routine at least once every two weeks. It’s important to be consistent, but it’s also important to keep yourself motivated by refreshing your daily routine.

Eat Up After A Workout

After an intensive workout, you might be tempted to think that you shouldn’t eat so that you don’t gain back all the calories that you have lost, but this is the wrong mentality. You should have a filling recovery meal after your workout. You need to load up on proteins and carbs to allow your body to recover and to help it put on some lean muscle mass. Try to eat a good recovery meal within 30 minutes after your intensive workout session.  Your body will thank you for it.

Take More Steps When Running

If you have particularly long legs, you may be tempted to just take it easy and bounce along with long, graceful strides as you run. This is all well and good if you are trying to cover a specific distance and you want to conserve your energy. However, if you want your cardio to be effective, then you should try to step it up a bit. Take short, powerful strides and run faster than normal. A high rate of steps is the key to a good workout and a more balanced stride when running.

Don’t Go For Starvation Diets

Trying to starve yourself towards weight loss or trying to subsist on just juices isn’t as effective as you might think. Your body will become loaded with cortisol or the stress hormone and with elevated levels of stress, your body will actually be prone to gaining more weight.

 

By admin

Lesser-Known Benefits Of Massage

At this point, you are probably already well aware of the many benefits of massage therapy – or at least some of them. After all, there is nothing like a good, relaxing massage on the weekend or even during the weekdays after a hard day put into the daily grind at the office. With that said, you might not be aware of some of the more subtle benefits of massage. It definitely does way more good for you than just helping you to relax and sleep well at night. If you are not already enthused to get a relaxing massage every now and then, well you should be after reading this article. Here are some of the more subtle, often understated benefits of massage.

Easing Muscle Pain

Muscle pain caused by stress and repeated strain on a particular body part can actually be relieved by a simple massage. As long as you are not suffering from any pinched nerve, which is really within the realm of chiropractic treatment, then getting a good massage for something like a stiff neck or sore shoulders can actually be quite therapeutic. The reason for this is the gentle maneuvers used in massage helps in blood circulation and in effect, relieves pain. It’s very much like how when you rub your knee after scraping it against something, it helps to ease the pain. Furthermore, in a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, it was found that massage is actually just as effective as other forms of treatment for back pain.

Immunity Booster

As hard as it might be to believe, a simple massage can actually boost your body’s natural immune function. When you undergo a massage, the process actually boosts your body’s white blood cell count. This is documented in a study published in the Journal of Complementary and Alternative Medicine. In fact, it has even been found that massage has immune-boosting benefits.

Relieving Headache

There’s nothing like a good massage to ease the tension in your neck and shoulders. Also, did you know that a massage can help to get rid of a headache.  The next time that you experience a headache, don’t be so quick to take those painkillers. Instead, try scheduling a massage with a massage parlor. Depending on your massage therapist, you may be able to specific which parts of the body to focus on. If possible, tell the massage therapist that you have a headache and therefore, you want the focus of the message to be on the head, neck and shoulder area. A good head massage should also involve the bridge of the nose, the sides of the face and the eyes (keep them closed, of course).

Massage has been proven to be very effective for relieving tension headaches in particular.

Relieving Shoulder and Neck Stress

Because you probably sit down in front of a computer in an office environment most of the time (most of us do), you are probably prone to experiencing stiffness and tension in those areas. A good massage can help to relieve this and also correct your posture. Pain or weakness in the lower back area can be the result of staying in a sitting position seated in front of a desk all day. Fortunately, a nice, relaxing massage can melt all that stress away.

Easing Anxiety and Depression

While many people are still dismissive about anxiety and depression, if you have experienced it before, then you should know how real it can get. Because of the therapeutic benefits of simple human touch, massage therapy has been shown to ease anxiety and depression particularly in women who have breast cancer and who are prone to being irritable and angry.

By admin

3 Awesome Whole Foods Supermarket Hacks

If you read a lot of stuff about good nutrition, then you are probably aware of the fact that you need to eat whole foods in order to stay healthy. It’s pretty simple, really. Try to avoid processed food and go for whole food as much as possible. Still, buying whole foods at the supermarket can be quite a daunting task. For one, some of the healthier options are usually pretty expensive.  This is a given considering the healthy living trend that’s been sweeping the entire world in waves right now.

In fact, the Milennial generation is probably the most health-conscious generation to date. Almost every other person goes to the gym nowadays and people are now a lot more aware of healthy living. This is why many fastfood chains are dying out in favor of salad cafes and other similar places that sell healthy food products.

Again though, healthy living can equate to expensive, high end living unless you live close to a farm or even grow your own food in some kind of backyard garden.

With that said, there are some things that you can do in order to be healthy and still save up on your groceries. Here are a few whole foods hacks that grocery store owners don’t want you to know about.

Use The Salad Bar Wisely

Nuts are a good addition to any healthy diet since they are loaded with micronutrients and even contain some degree of healthy cholesterol and protein. Nuts can help to balance out your daily meal plan and even add a lot of flavor to an otherwise bland meal. With that said, if you think buying in bulk at the filling station is the best way to go about it, then you are making a mistake. The way to go is through the salad bar. You can actually get more nuts per weight at the salad bar and even create your own trail mix of sorts. Try it out the next time you are  at your favorite grocery store and you would be surprised at the results.

Fill Up On Beans and Grains

Of course, the salad bar doesn’t exactly contain all the whole foods that you might want. If you need beans and grains, then this is the time when you should rely on the bulk filling station. This time, it is generally cheaper to go to the bulk filling station and fill up on as much as you need of whole grains, beans and oats. This is generally a cheaper option than buying them in those sacks put out by different suppliers and sold by package/weight.

One good reason to stock up on beans and grains is that they have an extra-long shelf life. Some are believed to be able to last for 20 years with proper, moisture-free storage. Even preppers recommend stocking up on these staple whole foods.

You Can Have Your Meat Cut The Way You Want

At the butchery section of the supermarket, you will usually find a section with whole meat that hasn’t been cut up yet as well as meat that’s already been cut up in a certain way such as steaks, cubes, even meatballs. Here’s a little something that most people probably didn’t know: you can actually buy a whole piece of meat by the kilo and then have them cut it up the way that you want. The same is true for fish. You can have your fish filleted and deboned at the grocery. Generally, there is no extra charge for this service. Of course, your mileage may vary and some shops have discontinued this practice as it’s too time-consuming to cater to everyone in an already busy section.

By admin

What Chiropractors Can Do for You (and What They Can’t)

Have you ever heard of chiropractic treatment for back, neck, and joint pain? Have you ever had any chiropractic adjustments done on you? If you haven’t, then you should seriously consider paying a visit to a licensed chiropractor the next time that you suffer from back pain. In this article, we will discuss some of the many things that a chiropractor can do for you. Also, we will cover the things that your chiropractor cannot do for you.

Let’s get started:

What Is Chiropractic?

Chiropractic treatment or chiropractic adjustment is a form of alternative medicine that consists primarily of spinal adjustments after an initial diagnosis stage that consists of feeling out the joints and determining the source of the problem.

The practice deals with the muscoskeletal system and can be historically traced all the way back to ancient China

In modern times, chiropractic care is based on sound medical science and takes the patient’s medical history and preexisting medical conditions into account. Evidence-based research on chiropractic care has also repeatedly revealed that it is safe for the treatment of lower back pain.

What Can A Chiropractor Do For Me?

Chiropractors align your spine through various techniques involving spinal adjustments. The most common technique used in chiropractic care is what is known as an HLVA (High Impact Low Velocity) thrust. This is done by placing the hand on the area where the spinal adjustment is to be done and using a quick, controlled thrust in order to align the spine. The HLVA thrust is generally administered by hand, but it can also be administered more accurately by using a device known as an activator. Spinal adjustments made using a manual HLVA thrust and an activator prove to be equally beneficial to the patient.

Spine journal published a 2008 study which revealed that  87% of patients with back-related pain or sciatica (caused by a pinched nerve in the lower spine that translates into leg pain) found chiropractic treatment worthwhile. Therefore, at the cornerstone of most chiropractic adjustments it the treatment of lower back pain, but this is not the only thing that a chiropractor can do.

Digestive issues may also be treated through spinal manipulation. Chronic abdominal pain may actually be caused by thoracic disc herniation. By relieving the pressure from a trapped nerve in the thoracic spine, a chiropractor can actually relieve these symptoms.

Finally, a study from the Annals of Internal Medicine revealed that spinal manipulations can also ease neck and joint pain just as effectively as home exercise. A chiropractor can assess where the source of the neck pain might be. It could originate either from the neck or from the shoulders and appropriate spinal adjustments can then be made.
You may also see a chiropractor to relieve minor headaches as well as to help lower your blood pressure. Chiropractors in the US also undergo a nutrition course and can advise you on how to live a healthier lifestyle.

What Can I NOT Expect From A Chiropractor?

A licensed chiropractor will always ask to have you undergo some diagnostic scans if you complain about having sustained certain types of injuries. This is because bone fractures and actual internal damage to the muscoskeletal structure is outside the range of chiropractic practice.

Sports-related injuries that may require invasive surgery based on x-ray and imaging scans cannot be treated by a chiropractor. In fact, insisting on undergoing spinal adjustment when the injury is a severe fracture may just do more harm than good.

Internal organ malfunctions due to disease are also outside of a chiropractor’s specialization.  Fortunately, many chiropractors nowadays have a wide network of specialists in other fields who can compensate and treat the problems that they cannot. Therefore, even if your problem is outside of a chiropractor’s specialty, he/she may still be able to refer you to a specialist who can treat your problems.