Table Talk

Did you know there are 3 things you can do today to start getting your plantar fasciitis under control.
1.) Stop wearing high heels or flip flops. If you have your heels on, this will add additional pressure the the plantar fascia and to the calf as well. Flip flops tend to aggravate individuals with flat feet which further stretches out the fascia under the foot.
2.) Proper soft tissue care. Once you have plantar fasciitis, it will take some effort to get it under control. You can roll your foot out with a tennis ball applying gentle pressure and massage the fascia. I would recommend icing afterwards to minimize inflammation. You can also use a frozen water bottle and roll out the foot too.
3.) Chiropractic adjustments to the foot can help mobilize the 27 bones in the foot which will optimize your feet and your gate. Other treatments can include STIM and/or Ultrasound to the calf and some of the surrounding soft tissues.

Myth: I you don't see any damage done to the vehicle, that mean there are no injuries either. This is FALSE. There are plenty of studies that support, low speed impact can and do cause injuries. This is why is wise to seek a health evaluation soon after a motor vehicle accident, the sooner the better too. Many factors need to be considered with the mechanism of MVA related injuries, such as road conditions (wet/dry), was the car stopped at the point of impact, what was the orientation of the head at the time, wearing a seat belt of not, head hit the head rest or not and other factors too. Get an evaluation with your chiropractor to see if treatment is appropriate for your case.

Did you know that in my experience as a chiropractor, I have seen and treated hundreds of patients with scoliosis. There are 2 common causes of scoliosis in my opinion. 1.) It mainly genetic. I have seen time and time again, parents that have scoliosis tend to have grandparents, parents and kids who also have some form of scoliosis. And the degree of scoliosis varies from one family member to the next. 2.) There may have been damage to the growth plate, namely the knee and/or femur. Anatomically short legs can and often will cause a distortion in the spine leading to scoliosis. Luckily, if caught soon enough, scoliosis can be corrected or reduced through chiropractic treatments and with the appropriate scoliosis treatments often referred to as "Bio-Physics". This is a process and does take a few months to accomplish. Not all offices offer such services so be sure to ask around if that is what they specialize with to make sure you find the right fit for you or your kids. Lastly, there is a critical time or "Goldie Locks" time to correct a scoliosis. That is between the ages of 12-35 (Can be done before or after those ages, but I see better results in these perimeters. I have found that the closer to 12 years of age we can start treatment the more probable the outcome of correction will be.

Did you know that your disc and joints really don't have a good blood supply and that they are dependent on the joint range of motion for their nutrients. Imagine how losing that full joint range of motion over time will negatively effect your health. It can cause disc and joint disease, AKA arthritis to accelerate. Over time this can lead to the joint completely wearing out and the need for a surgery for hip or knee replacement.

Stop living with frequent headaches. More than 80% of all headaches originate from the neck. More specifically how the nerve effect the arteries in the neck as it goes to the back side of the brain. Headaches can be debilitating as you may know. There are no such thing as a normal headache. If you are experiencing headaches more than 1x/month, this would be a good opportunity to get it checked by a chiropractor and keep your headaches away. I have personally suffered from headaches in my 20's due to a biking accident. Now I have the under control and can live my life to the fullest.

Did you know that the second most common reason to see you medical doctor, is something that the chiropractor specializes in? That's right, there are three major systems in your body that help keep you healthy, such as: Nerves, muscles and joints (aka: bones, disc and cartilage).

In this weeks episode we discus why it is so important to consider having your kids that were in an motor vehicle accident with you checked by your local chiropractor for injuries. Uncheck and unmanaged sprain/strain injuries (aka: Whiplash) can cause a variety of problems for them in the years to come. Likewise, children can get concussion injuries from their heads whipping around back and forth. Concussions need to be managed and some, if left unmanaged can persist and cause problems for decades before being detected. If you don't know what you are looking for, you might just miss it. Kids all too often have symptoms in the form of stiffness. Some children are too little to communicate that they are injured. If you ask a kid if they are injured or have pain, some will say no. Stiff muscles isn't really pain to them. Kids are also more likely to adapt to their discomfort and symptoms and learn to live with it. Pain can go away but the underlying destructive forces of degeneration and joint disease is set in motion as an accelerated rate, usually manifesting 10-20 years later as seen on films. I can't tell you how many times I've x-rayed a patient and asked the question, "Have you had any head trauma in your past." Most say no until they remember being in an auto accident years ago as a child.

In this episode we discuss 3 great exercises for low back pain. One of the biggest problems that we are facing these days is bad posture. This can be due to too much sitting from driving or working or both. Sitting for extended periods of time deactivate the core muscles in the lower back causing it to stiffen up the paraspinal muscles to support it. Likewise, our hamstrings will become very stiff due to the glutes not firing properly. When we sit for too long, our bodies develop muscle memory and bad habits start to form. This means when we stand, those muscles that are tight want to remain tight and the muscles that are disengaged want to remain off. These exercises focus on the muscles that are weak and need to be engaged and strengthened, namely: Glutes, multifidus and abs.