- by Dr. Jean Gibson, D.C. BioVeda Health & Wellness Center of Fayetteville, AR

Have you experienced neck pain after a long day at work? There are many cause of neck pain, but one of the most common causes is related to poor posture, muscle fatigue and stress while in front of your computer or while at your desk. Your head, which weighs approximately 10 pounds, is balanced on your cervical spine (the neck) and is controlled by muscles, tendons, and ligaments. It’s like balancing a bowling ball on a broom stick using dental floss and twine – if you don’t keep the bowling ball perfectly balanced on the stick, the ball will pull on the floss and twine, which will stretch and ultimately the ball will not stay in place! While your head will not fall off your neck, the damage done to the muscles, tendons, and ligaments by poor posture does require intervention. Many of us have our work stations set up for us by either our employer or the previous person in the office. We never think to personalize the placement of our computer keyboard, mouse, monitor and telephone to fit our body. Just a few changes in the set up of your office can make a big difference in your neck pain:

1. Make sure your desk, chair, table and work station are at the right height for you.
2. Position your computer at eye level or just below eye level. You do not want to be looking up at the screen or looking down at a sharp angle at the screen.
3. Keep all paperwork as close to eye level as possible. Try not to look up or down at sharp angles or look to the side and back at the monitor.
4. Take frequent breaks from your work station. Get up, stretch tired muscles and allow your eyes a rest from your monitor.
5. Use a hands free headset or speaker phone. Cradling the phone between your ear and shoulder quickly tires shoulder muscles and leads to issues with not only your neck, but your shoulder also.

If you are already experiencing pain in the shoulder or neck, treatment is necessary. Pain relievers only mask the problem, and you may inadvertently aggravate the problem because your body’s warning system – pain – has been temporarily turned off. A Doctor of Chiropractic will incorporate various techniques to fix any issues with your cervical spine, as well as the muscles and ligaments involved. They can also advise your on stress reduction and posture issues to help your body to function at its peak.

- by Dr. Fred Southard, BioVeda Health & Wellness Center of Hamilton, OH

Often throughout my career I have been asked what is the difference between a herniated and a bulging disc. The way that I like to explain the difference is to compare the discs, or the cushions between the bones in your back, to jelly doughnuts (had one at the Y this morning after I finished my workout. One of the guys who comes in to the Y brought in some doughnuts to celebrate his return to health and I couldn’t resist replacing the calories I had just spent approximately an hour exercising off!). To get back to business, the annulus, or wall of the disc though much harder and much firmer, is like the dough of the doughnut. Inside the annulus, or wall of the disc, is a gel material, the nucleus of the disc, which, again, is much harder and much firmer than the jelly inside the disc. For numerous reasons, the wall of the disc develops a small tear and that tear grows and grows due to the strains associated with everyday life. Gradually, the nucleaus, the gel inside the disc, fills in the tear and such simple things as coughing or sneezing cause the tear to become bigger and thus more of the gel fills in the enlarged tear. Gradually, over a period of time, the tear works its way from the center to the outer edge of the wall of the disc and causes the outer wall of the disc to bulge, thus what is known as a bulging disc. Or, for comparison to the jelly doughnut, as long as the jelly in the doughnut is contained within the dough of the doughnut, but the outer part of the dough is stretched or distended, it is a bulging doughnut! When the gel breaks all of the way through the wall of the disc, or the jelly begins to leak outside of the doughnut, it is known as a herniated disc. Either way, a foreign material, either the wall of the disc or the nucleus (gel) of the disc,  may enter into the opening where the nerve exits from the spinal cord, causing a pressure to be placed on the exiting nerve.

There are many effective treatments for both bulging and/or herniated discs, and the neuritis (neur = nerve and itis = inflammation or inflammation of the nerve) or neuralgia (algia = pain, nerve pain or pain in the nerve) associated with the bulging or herniated disc. Treatments range from conservative care all the way to surgery. That will be the topic of another blog, but as a chiropractor I would encourage anyone to try conservative care before resorting to surgical intervention. I will just mention here that through the more than thirty years that I have been in practice we have had a very high success rate with the conservative care that we provide in our office. We now use the most incredible technology that I have seen for the treatment of lower back (lumbar spine) herniations, that being spinal decompression with the DRX9000. I have available for viewing pre and post MRI’s of one of our patients who was treated with the DRX9000 and the associated reports from Fort Hamilton Hospital which show the largest herniation I have seen in my years of practice on the pre spinal decompression treatment with the DRX9000 and show the herniation being essentially gone on the post MRI. I also have the patient’s permission to show his MRI’s to anyone who would like to see them. But, as I said, that is the topic for another blog.

- by Wendy Butler, D.C. BioVeda Health & Wellness Center of Albany, GA

Thirty-five year old Tracy had tried everything: monitoring her cycles through body temperature, over-the-counter fertility predictors and finally, fertility-enhancing drugs and in vitro fertilization.  But after three years of trying, she still wasn’t pregnant. She began to think she was “too old” to have a family, though she was seemingly in great physical shape.

Tracy is not alone.  Thousands of women go to fertility specialists each year.  “After fertility treatments fail many women are told ‘no’ [about having children] because of their age.”  But chiropractic may offer hope.  At least one recent study showed that, after receiving chiropractic care, previously infertile women were much more likely to become pregnant (Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research, 2003).  And while reasons behind chiropractic’s success in treating infertility aren’t certain, there’s a number of possibilities why it may work.

Proper alignment works in several ways to increase the likelihood of becoming and staying pregnant.  Chiefly, improper alignment of the cranial, spinal and  pelvic bones can hinder the nervous system, which controls a woman’s reproductive system, causing imbalances and hampering her ability to get and stay pregnant.

Distortions of the sphenoid bone in the skull- which can result from passage through the birth canal or from accidents later in life- are particularly problematic, since misalignments there can affect the cranial nerve and pituitary gland.  The pituitary gland is the regulator of a number of hormones important to fertility, including the follicle-stimulating hormone, estrogen, and progesterone.  If any of these are out of balance, it can be very difficult to get pregnant.

Like Tracy, many patients have tried everything  They come to chiropractic as a last resort.  Discussions cover menstrual health history, noting signs of imbalance, which have often been problematic since the onset of menstruation, including heavy cramping,  mood swings, and missing periods.  “We balance the body through chiropractic and Neurological Stress Reduction Therapy (NSRT^SM)”.  NSRT removes physiological stress from the body using Meridian Energy Stress Assessment and low level light therapy (cold laser).  Where indicated, customized energy medicine is also prescribed to feed the tissues.  This technology can determine which substances cause physiological stress and conditions the body to associate a positive stimulus with those items – to no longer see them as harmful.  Ultimately it is designed to detoxify the body, boost the immune system and increase core level energy.  Patients follow the NSRT protocol and receive chiropractic adjustments, on average three times per week to start.  After adjustments start to hold, patients visit once or twice a week depending on patient response to treatment.

How long should chiropractic take to work?  “We give it three months.  Often women will become pregnant in the third or fourth month of treatment.”

- by Andrea Dobrich, D.C.  BioVeda Health and Wellness Center of Harrisburg, NC

Hypertension (high blood pressure) seems to be an ever evolving healthcare crisis in the U.S. This progressive disease is also known as “the silent killer” because there are not always noticeable symptoms associated with hypertension until it has been chronic and organs become diseased. High blood pressure can affect your blood vessels, heart, brain, kidneys and eyes. Chronic hypertension left untreated can lead to headaches, eye/vision damage, aneurysms, kidney failure, heart attack and stroke. However, there are a number of holistic approaches to effectively bring your numbers down naturally before resorting to prescription medications.

Dietary approaches are recommended by both mainstream and integrative medical practitioners as a first-line approach to manage hypertension. A diet high in vegetables, fruits, and other nutritious foods that are rich in potassium, calcium, and magnesium is suggested. People should also decrease saturated fats and replace them with foods high in monounsaturated fats and omega 3 fatty acids (like those found in fish.)

Lifestyle changes that have been proven in eliminating hypertension and bringing your numbers into the normal range are exercising, quitting smoking, losing weight, chiropractic care, and using natural supplements (i.e. Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Magnesium, Potassium, Calcium, Garlic, Black Cohosh, Cayenne, Valerian Root and Kelp). Salt restriction is also necessary and should not exceed 2400 mg or 1 tsp per day.

Chiropractic care is a gentle and natural therapy that has helped lower blood pressure to normal. As one Dobrich Chiropractic patient states, her systolic reading (top number) dropped from being in the high 150′s to now consistently being in the low 130′s just with chiropractic care alone. Her diastolic (bottom number) is now in the 55-60 range consistently…..10 points lower then before treatment with chiropractic care.

- by Dr. Ray Nannis, BioVeda Health and Wellness Center of Richardson, TX

Japanese researchers have found home-based exercises to be more effective in the treatment of chronic low back pain than prescribed NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). While NSAIDs can reduce inflammation and pain, they are a form of passive care that fails to address functionality issues such as limited motion, muscular weakness and muscular imbalances, not to mention the many negative side effects associated with NSAID use. Home-based exercises are not only natural and far safer, they specifically address functional issues and deficiencies in a proactive manner. And thus, it goes to reason that both men and women (mean age of approx. 42 years) who participated in the home-based exercises versus the NSAIDs during the 12-month study experienced more significant improvements in both reported low back pain and overall disability.

If you’re not sure of what type of home-based exercises you should be doing, consider visiting a Chiropractor for guidance. Of course we think of visiting a Chiropractor when we have an injury or pain in our lower back or neck. We also tend to think of them following an automobile accident.

While these are all great reasons to schedule your visit with a Chiropractor, there are also many other reasons we should be considering Chiropractic care.  Every practitioner is different and specializes in different types of treatment options.

There are many reasons to visit a Chiropractor aside from spinal related items; however I want to share just a few of them with you.

• Fertility- That’s right. Fertility. When trying to conceive a child there are many things you need to focus on to allow your body. If you prefer a more natural, holistic way to help your body become pregnant, than ask around and find out if your local Chiropractor specializes in Fertility. If he/she doesn’t they would be happy to refer to you to a Chiropractor who does.
• Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes. We should remember that issues with shoulders, knees, hips and basically all moveable joints can be treated by your Chiropractor. If you are living with pain or numbness in any of your joints, please discuss them with your Chiropractor.
• Weight Loss- Many Chiropractors have received training on weight loss programs and can assist you with meeting your weight loss goals. By developing a custom training program and discussing nutrition, your Chiropractor can help you with safe weight loss and help you learn better habits.
• Quit Smoking- Ready to give up the ghost and stop smoking? You can visit your primary care doctor and receive a nicotine patch or prescription drugs, however have you thought about asking how your Chiropractor might be able to help and help you stay away from the prescriptions? When you are ready to stop smoking, please talk with your Chiropractor or contact a BioVeda Health and Wellness Center to learn more about our proprietary Just Stop Smoking Program.
• Sports Performance or General Well Being. If you are an athlete or just want to feel your best while running, biking or playing with your children or grand children, then a routine schedule of Chiropractic care should be part of your schedule. Keeping your spine in proper alignment not only reduces your chance of injury, but keeps your body operating at its full potential.

Remember, Chiropractors can help with many of your needs. They work hard to resolve these issues in a variety of natural methods.

Dr. Andrew Moore, BioVeda of Alamo Heights, and Dr. Eric Herman, BioVeda of Bethlehem, explore back pain relief this week on their BioVeda blogs:

Although chiropractors care for more than just  back pain, many patients visit chiropractors looking for relief from this pervasive condition. In fact, 31 million Americans experience lower back pain at any given time.

• One half of all working Americans admit to having back pain symptoms each year.
• Back pain is one of the most common reasons for missed work. In fact, back pain is the second most common reason for visits to the doctor’s office, outnumbered only by upper-respiratory infections.
• Most cases of back pain are mechanical or non-organic-meaning they are not caused by serious conditions, such as inflammatory arthritis, infection, fracture or cancer.
• Americans spend at least $50 billion each year on back pain- and that’s just for the most easily identified costs.
• Experts estimate that as many as 80% of the population will experience a back problem at some time in our lives.

What causes back pain?
The back is a complicated structure of bones, joints, ligaments and muscles. You can sprain ligaments, strain muscles, rupture disks, and irritate joints, all of which can leas to back pain. While sport injuries or accidents can cause back pain, sometimes the simplest of movements- for example, picking up a pencil from the floor – can have painful results. in addition, arthritis, poor posture, obesity, and psychological stress can cause or complicate back pain. Back pain can also directly result from disease of the internal organs, such as kidney stones, kidney infections, blood clots, or bone loss.

How do I get relief from back pain?
In May of 2009 the highly-respected Consumer Reports featured an article titled “Relief for Aching Backs,” which ranked the top five treatments for back pain according to a recent patient study. This was not a small survey, as it was based on feedback from 14,000 consumers who suffered from back pain and ranked practitioners based on overall satisfaction. [A complete review of this survey appeared in the May 20 issue of DC. See "Consumer Reports Survey Rates DCs Higher Than MDs" online at www.dynamicchiropractic.com.]

According to the survey, 59 percent of patients were “highly satisfied” with the chiropractic care they received (tops among all health care professionals) also disclosed that 54 percent of patients surveyed found exercise helpful, making it the top self-help measure, and 58 percent of respondents wished they had done more exercise to strengthen their backs.

The survey reached beyond practitioner care and assessed feedback from those who had undergone back surgery. Only 60 percent of those surveyed were completely or very satisfied with the results of their back surgery, compared with 82 percent who were satisfied after a knee or hip replacement. More than half of the patients reported at least one problem with recovery, finding it lengthier and more painful than they anticipated; 16 percent indicated their back pain didn’t improve following surgery, and 50 percent said it grew worse. Interestingly, the Consumer Reports article also suggested that if back surgery is recommended, the patient should seek another opinion from a nonsurgical practitioner.

The last part of the Consumer Reports article warned about taking narcotics to treat back pain. The survey found that more than 50 percent of those given a prescription received a narcotic. While clinical trials have shown that narcotics reduce low back pain more than a placebo, the side effects – including respiratory issues, depression and significant gastrointestinal problems – can be extremely troublesome.

With so many repercussions associated with drugs and surgery, no wonder patients surveyed were so highly satisfied with chiropractic treatments for back pain. I’m not saying that drugs are ineffective or that surgery is unnecessary, but simply that patients are recognizing they may have other options. We know through research that the low-force approach to chiropractic adjusting is safe, comfortable and effective in many cases, without the risks of side effects or complications from major surgery.

This was, without a doubt, one of the most even-handed articles about chiropractic that I have ever read in the popular press. Because it centered on patient feedback, and reflected opinions from the people who trust our methods and speak the truth, our approach to healing was treated equitably. And that’s good news indeed.

- R. Ray Nannis, A BioVeda Health and Wellness Center in Richardson

Wednesday, March 31, 2010. Researchers at the Hypertension Center at the University of Chicago Medical Center are reporting stunning reductions in the blood pressure of patients afflicted with hypertension following simple and painless chiropractic care.

In the study – published in the March 2, 2007 issue of The Journal of Human Hypertension and featured on WebMD – 50 patients with hypertension were divided into two groups of 25 each. One group of 25 received a specific light force chiropractic adjustment (administered by a chiropractor) to the atlas vertebra (uppermost bone in the neck). This vertebra holds up the head and only relies on soft tissue to maintain alignment. Misalignment, also known as subluxation, usually goes undiagnosed and causes no pain or discomfort. The other group of 25 received a similar procedure but with no adjustment being given. Researchers called this procedure the “sham adjustment.” Since the type of adjustment given was very light force, the patients involved in this study did not know if they were receiving the real or sham adjustments.

After 8 weeks of care, the 25 people in the group receiving the real chiropractic adjustments all showed a significant reduction in blood pressure compared to the group that received the sham adjustment. Those patients who got the real adjustment showed an average of 14 mm Hg greater drop in systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood pressure count), and an average of 8 mm Hg greater drop in diastolic blood pressure (the bottom blood pressure number) over those who got the fake or sham adjustment. “As noted by the chiropractor who performed on the study team, at the base of the brain are two centers that control all the muscles of the body. If you pinch the base of the brain – if the atlas gets locked in a position as little as a half a millimeter out of line – it doesn’t cause any pain but it upsets these centers.  X-rays confirmed that the chiropractic adjustments actually changed the position of the atlas vertebra among those in the study group. “The study leader reported that the procedure had the effect of not one, but two blood pressure medications given in combination. And, his team reported no side effects whatsoever from the adjustment.   Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is widespread among adults in the United States. And, if uncontrolled, it can lead to heart and kidney failure or a stroke.

According to the American Heart Association, nearly one in three adults suffers from hypertension. However, many are unaware that they are afflicted – making high blood pressure the ‘silent killer.’  This study offers so much hope.   Even with the overwhelming results, the authors of the study posed several questions of their own in the WebMD interview. They wanted to know why blood pressure was reduced. What caused the reduction? What is the relationship between the misaligned atlas vertebra and hypertension?

“Chiropractic care is a maintenance program for the nervous system. If the nervous system is free of stress and operating at peak efficiency, it can lead the body to do incredible things. This study begs for further research. While man struggles to create new and better technologies on a daily basis, we continue to find that the human body is the greatest technology on today’s market – let’s take good care of it,” concluded a smiling Dr. Nannis.

-by Dr. Ray Nannis, A BioVeda Health and Wellness Center in Richardson

Wednesday, March 31, 2010.

A study authored by Dr. Madeline Behrendt – Chairwoman of the World Chiropractic Alliance Council on Woman’s Health – links chiropractic care and the ability of previously infertile woman to conceive a baby and carry the fetus full term.

Behrendt’s work, entitled: Insult, Interference and Infertility: An Overview of Chiropractic Research, was published in the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research. The study tracked 15 women, ages 22-65, who had a history of fertility problems – some for as long as nine years. Eight of the women had previously undergone unsuccessful fertility treatments. These 15 woman entered chiropractic care. “Each was determined to close the gap between how her body was designed to function and the reality of how her body was functioning,” stated Dr. Behrendt. The results were incredible. 14 of the 15 women became pregnant following the start of chiropractic adjustments. The 65-year old woman had ceased having a menstrual cycle at age 18 following a traumatic fall. Then, nearly five decades later – and little more than a month after starting chiropractic care – her cycles resumed. Although she did not get pregnant, she was advised to use birth control. “Some of the case studies are remarkable,” noted Dr. Ray Nannis, a Richardson-based chiropractor.

A 32 year-old woman described in the study, had no menstrual cycle for 12 years. She had attempted multiple fertility treatments with no success. After two months of chiropractic care – with attention to the lumbar regions – menstruation started. And, after four cycles, unassisted pregnancy occurred. “I’m not saying that chiropractic is a specific cure for infertility, but I will point to the concept that interference within your nervous system can disrupt normal body functions,” says Dr. Nannis. Also detailed was the plight of a 26 year-old woman who suffered from severe scoliosis with a Cobb’s angle of 58 degrees. She too was infertile despite numerous medical treatments to assist conception. After six months of chiropractic care – with adjustments applied to the sacrum, lumbar and cervical regions – the Cobb’s angle decreased to 47 degrees. One month later, unassisted pregnancy occurred.

The study offers hope to infertile women and an alternative to fertility drugs. There are 40,000 births in the U.S. each year that are achieved using assisted reproductive technologies.  But, there are yet to be studies as to the long-term effects of these drugs nor has there been a uniform tracking of birth defects among children conceived using these methods. The study also defines the chiropractic profession. Chiropractic in itself is not a cure for what ails you, but a means of allowing the human body to operate as it was designed. And, when operating at peak efficiency, the human body can do great things. When you cut yourself – you heal. When the climate changes – your body adjusts. In short, chiropractic care is a great vehicle to improve your general health and function. Dr. Behrendt’s research is wonderful news for couples trying to start a family. It also serves as further evidence that regular spinal adjustments can have benefits far beyond those that the public normally associates with chiropractic care.

Thank you to Access Wellness at Hirsch-Starr Chiropractic a BioVeda Health & Wellness Center of Roswell, GA for posting the following article to the BioVeda of Roswell blog.

Chiropractic has received much recognition in treating low back pain. Much chiropractic research has been published showing evidence that treatment of low-back pain using chiropractic adjustments is safer, effective, and less expensive than the traditional allopathic medical treatments. Also, chiropractors receive extensive training during their course of study in the area of muskuloskeletal management. It has come to the forefront that there is new evidence showing that chiropractic goes beyond the treatment of low-back pain.

According to Mercola.com, current research is now pointing to the fact that chiropractic adjustments affect the chemistry of biological processess at the cellular level. What this simply translates to is that chiropractic care could positively effect the the body’s chemistry by reducing the levels of oxidative stress and promote DNA repair.

What is oxidative stress? Is cellular stress that leads to oxidate damage that has been implicated to lead to certain diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s. Oxidative stress is also recognized as having an impact on the body’s aging process. Oxidative stress within the body happens naturally due to the body’s own metabolic waste, producing free radicals. However, sources outside the body that include exposure to cigarette smoke and other environmental toxins lead to an added amount of free radical formation in the body that when out of balance can lead to disease and inflammatory reactions.

Sources: Mercola.com