Tampa Chiropractor

At times, it can seem exhausting making an effort to keep up with a five-year-old. If you have an active child of this age, or if you’ve ever been around one for any length of time, you may have found yourself wishing that the kid would just stop moving for a little while. But, new research is affirming the long-term health benefits of this whirlwind of activity. In fact, according to a new University of Iowa study, instead of making an effort to slow these little ones down, five-year-olds ought be aided in being as active as possible. Why? “Because it pays off as they grow older,” said Kathleen Janz, lead author of the study and professor of health and sport studies in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Being active at age five assists kids in staying lean as they age even if they don’t stay as active later in childhood. “We call this effect ‘banking’ because the kids benefit later on, similar to having a savings account at a bank. The protective effect is independent of what happens in between,” Janz went on to say.

The UI team tested the body fat and activity level of 333 kids at ages five, eight and eleven using a special scanner that accurately measures bone, fat and muscle tissue, and an accelerometer that measures movement every minute. Rather than depending on kids or parents to track minutes of exercise, the kids wore accelerometers to record their activity level for up to five days.

Even when controlling for their accumulated level of activity, the study (published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine) indicated that kids who are active at age five end up with less fat at age eight and eleven.  The average five-year-old in the study got thirty minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise per day. For every ten minutes on top of that, kids had one-third of a pound less fat tissue at ages eight and eleven.

Although further investigation is necessary to determine what happens to the bodies of the active kids that keeps them in better shape down the road, Janz said that it could be that the active 5-year-olds didn’t develop as many fat cells, improved their insulin response, or that something occurred metabolically that provided some protection even as they became less active.

Weight moderation, however, isn’t the only benefit of early exercise. As a chiropractor I have observed in my own practice that active kids have far less ordinary childhood health challenges, such as catching colds and the flu. Chiropractic treatment is, without a doubt, extraordinarily beneficial in helping kids to stay healthier. But, in addition, the stimulation to the brain that happens during activities, especially those that require “cross pattern” motor movements of the larger muscles, i.e., right hand/left leg and left hand/right leg, such as crawling, running, climbing, and skipping, also boosts the autoimmune system and keeps kids healthier.

Many children nowadays are overweight and unhealthy. Though part of the problem is an inappropriate diet, inactivity is also a major contributing factor. If you have a five-year-old who prefers to watch television or play video games rather than participating in more active play, help your child to get up and get moving into healthier activities. Moderate to vigorous exercise will not only benefit your child now, but will aid in building a healthier future. You can bank on it!

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We all know that movement is good for the whole body, right? From our head to our toes, our good health is determined by how much physical activity we get on a regular basis. So, why do so many people suffer from aches and pains in their feet? After all, aren’t our feet made for walking? Yes, but they weren’t designed for abuse. The average, healthy person takes 3,000-5,000 steps each day, not including activities such as running and aerobic exercise. But, often those steps are made by people walking incorrectly, with poor gait patterns and bad posture. In addition, a large number of people wear badly-designed, poorly-fitting shoes. Moving the body through space incorrectly on feet that are inhibited from functioning correctly cannot help but to cause aches and pains not only in a number of places in our feet, but in other parts of our body.  For example, if an individual over-pronates (walks like a duck) in a pair of poorly made or unevenly-worn shoes, or in a pair of high heels, that person is not only likely to develop foot and ankle problems, but will probably experience problems of the back, knees and legs.

One of the most well known foot problems is Plantar Fascitis (heel pain), which is usually caused by inflammation of the plantar fascia. The plantar fascia is a wonderful, multi-tasking band of connective tissue that encircles the muscles on the bottom of the foot, adheres the heel bone to the ball of the foot, supports the arch, protects the foot, and absorbs shock.

There are many factors that contribute to the development of Plantar Fascitis. One such factor is short and tight calf muscles. When calf muscles get short and tight they exert a strong pull on the back of the heel bone, producing undue stress on the smaller and weaker plantar muscles and fascia. How do calf muscles get short and tight? In addition to running and jumping activities such as aerobics, volleyball, running, basketball, and tennis, the wearing of high heels can cause the problem.

Other factors that contribute to Plantar Fascitis include sudden strenuous activity after a period of prolonged inactivity, abnormal walking patterns (such as over-pronation), improper footwear, walking on hard or uneven surfaces (especially barefooted), and obesity.

Once an individual develops Plantar Fascitis, the condition is frequently not easy to manage and can become intensely painful and persistent. If you are suffering from heel pain, your chiropractor will be able to determine the cause of your problem and what chiropractic management is best suited. Such care might include ultrasound therapy, laser, joint manipulation, muscle stretching and strengthening exercises, special taping and, in some cases, orthotics.

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I just read about a recent Consumer Reports survey of its readers that I, as your chiropractor, found “highly satisfying.” The survey, which included 14,000 Consumer Reports subscribers, found that “hands-on” therapies, led by chiropractic care, were the top-rated treatments for people suffering from back pain. In fact, chiropractors were given the highest “satisfaction with care” ratings, well above those given to medical doctors who administered various forms of care to back pain sufferers

The survey, reported in the publication’s May 2009 issue, found that more than half of the respondents had “pain (that) severely limited their daily routine for a week or longer, and 88 percent said it recurred throughout the year.” The report stated that while many go to a primary care physician first for diagnosis and treatment, the majority were disappointed with the results.

On the other hand, 59 percent reported that they were “highly satisfied” with the care they received from chiropractors. The next highest rated practitioners were physical therapists (55 percent) and acupuncturists (53 percent), followed by “specialized” physicians (44 percent) and primary care physicians (34 percent).

Respondents were also asked to rate the types of treatments they received. Again, chiropractic/spinal manipulation got top honors, with 58 percent rating it as “helping a lot.” Spinal injections were next highest, rated at 51 percent, followed by massage (48 percent) and physical therapy (46 percent). Other highly rated treatments included prescription medications (45 percent), yoga (44 percent), movement therapy and acupuncture (both 41 percent).

According to a Dynamic Chiropractic article on that report, “Chiropractic ranked first out of 11 treatments, including massage, acupuncture, and exercise, in its ability to treat back pain. More readers said that chiropractic ‘helped me feel much better’ than any of the other therapies.” Prescription drugs and over-the-counter drugs ranked eighth and 10th, respectively.

So, if you’ve been “highly satisfied” with your chiropractic care, you’re not alone! In fact, more and more people are turning to chiropractic treatment not only for back pain relief, but for a wide variety of painful conditions from sports and repetitive stress injuries to arthritis.

A public version of the report can be found on the Consumer Reports Web site

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Everyday life can be miserable if you suffer from allergies. Unwelcome symptoms such as itchy eyes, a runny nose, sneezing, or a skin rash can be the consequence of a simple walk in the garden, a play date with Fluffy, a seafood pasta, or even something as small as a nut. To make things worse, for some of us allergic reactions can go from just plain irritating to dangerous and life-threatening as our air passageway constricts and we have a problem breathing. If you have allergies, it may seem that, from time-to-time, your environment is a intensely hostile place and that the world around you is, in fact, out to get you!

Why does your body react, or rather overreact, to the environment with such an extreme allergic reaction while other individuals seem unaffected? It’s a good question. The answer is because some people, like you, have a hyperactive immune system that virtually “freaks out” when they encounter everyday substances such as pollen, dander, shellfish, or nuts.

Can your chiropractor help with your allergy symptoms? The answer may surprise you. Even though chiropractic care doesn’t treat allergies, quite a few men, women, and children notice that they experience ease from their allergy symptoms after getting chiropractic adjustments. This relief occurs because chiropractic treatment affects the complete nervous system, including the autoimmune system. When there’s an impedance in the nervous system, along with other problems, the autoimmune system, whose responsibility it is to assist us in adapting and responding appropriately to our environment, can become under-active or overactive. In the case of your allergies, the breakdown is the latter. Since chiropractic manipulations reduce or eliminate disturbances in the nervous system and bring back balance and harmony to the body, the manipulations provide that same homeostasis to the auto-immune system as well. A healthy immune system responds appropriately to commonly named allergens in the environment.

So, as explained above, your chiropractor doesn’t directly treat allergies. You could say, rather, that ease from your allergies is merely a part of a well-adjusted nervous system. Make an appointment, today, to see your chiropractor and get back into harmony with your environment.

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Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) affects an estimated 90% of women, at one time or another, and nearly 20% of those women afflicted undergo severe to disabling symptoms. Suggesting to a woman that her PMS is “just in her head” can be not only just plain dangerous, it’s also just plain wrong! There are physiological causes of PMS in the majority of cases, including one that might surprise you — spinal misalignment. That’s right. Your back could actually be the culprit. Spinal subluxations, expressly in the lower back, can commonly produce a complex variety of female health problems in addition to Premenstrual Syndrome, such as pelvic pain, sexual dysfunction, incontinence, and even infertility.

Are you wondering how chiropractic can relieve the symptoms of PMS? Chiropractic adjustments get rid of nerve impingement in your body. Your nervous system governs and regulates every cell, fiber, tissue, organ, and system in your body. This includes your reproductive system. If your reproductive system isn’t functioning properly due to nerve disturbance, it can generate a variety of symptoms such as those analogous with PMS. You would most likely experience agitation, pain, heavy bleeding, or severe cramping if your reproductive system were overactive. Under-activity can cause missed periods or infertility. The good news is that if nerve impingement is creating your PMS symptoms, then chiropractic treatment can help because spinal manipulations restore unimpeded activity to your nervous system and, as a result, assisting it in functioning more normally.

Many women find an improvement in their reproductive health, along with improved general health, while under chiropractic care. So, if you’ve been thinking that your PMS is just in head, think again! Then call your Tampa Chiropractor. Chiropractic care is  an all natural answer for PMS that could assist you in avoiding periodic misery, without medication, and keep you healthy and energetic all month long.

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Have you heard that chiropractors treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)? Well, that’s not entirely accurate. Chiropractors don’t “treat” ADHD. But, nonetheless, chiropractic care can definitely help children, and adults too, who suffer from it. The reason why chiropractic treatment is helpful is because ADHD is a neurological disorder. Chiropractic manipulations not only help to reduce nervous system impedence in general, but an adjustment can be intentionally directed to stimulate under-active areas of the brain and calm over-active areas as well. A large number of parents are choosing chiropractic care over the common medical practice of giving children Class 2 psychotropic drugs that in many instances have dramatic side effects including personality changes and permanent alterations in the brain. The chiropractic approach to ADHD is natural and drug-free. Nearly all of parents who’ve looked to chiropractic treatment for their children have noted incredible behavioral changes as a result.

Due to the differences between the manner in which boys and girls employ the two hemispheres of their brain, ADHD appears to afflict more boys than girls and, additionally, is often more obvious and easily discernible in the behavior of boys rather than of girls. Prominent symptoms include a hard time concentrating and sitting still, inability to control impulsive thoughts and behaviors, easily distracted by noises and activities, incessant movement of fingers, hands, arms, feet, or legs.

Quite a few children who display ADHD symptoms are hypersensitive to certain foods, such as dairy or gluten products, and sugars and artificial sweeteners. Additionally, they commonly have a hypersensitive reaction to additives in foods, herbicides and pesticides used to grow non-organic fruits and vegetables, and laundry products such as detergents, fabric softeners, and other chemicals. Often, the removal of these environmental factors can go a long way in reducing ADHD symptoms.

Determining the presence of spinal abnormalities and express responses to specific neurological tests are part of the complete examination given by your Tampa Chiropractor.

You may be able to help your child to get his or her life back in balance through natural, safe chiropractic care. Before taking drastic pharmaceutical measures, if your child exhibits the symptoms of ADHD, make an appointment with your chiropractor for a complete evaluation. Call today for the health of your child!

Technorati Tags: ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, chiropractic, chiropractor, drug-free, natural

If you’ve been driving around in a big tank-of-a-car and you’ve been in an auto accident, it’s easy to think that you haven’t been injured if your car doesn’t look “hurt.” After all, isn’t that why you’re driving a big vehicle? It’s for safety, right? Then you might be surprised to learn that research has shown that occupants of vehicles, both large and compact, can be hurt far more than might be anticipated from a minor auto accident. In fact, as far as your body goes, there’s truly no such thing as a “minor fender bender.”

Let’s face it. There are going to be reverberations when your body is forced to stop abruptly and without warning. An emergency room attendant may give you a clean bill of health because you haven’t broken any bones, and you might be given a prescription for drugs to relax the muscle spasms that you are undoubtedly experiencing due to the structural changes in your neck or lower back that you sustained from the impact. But, unless you’re actually treated for the bodily trauma you’ve sustained, your situation can go from bad to much, much worse. In fact, many people experience problems years after a car accident as the consequence of their not getting the help they required in the first place.

Your Tampa Chiropractor unequivocally knows what your body undergoes during an auto accident. Chiropractic techniques include treatment for soft tissue injuries and spinal bio-mechanics impairment. And

If you’ve encountered a minor auto accident, you are more likely to need more repair than your car. Neck and back traumas are not only painful in the places in which they happen, but they can also produce pain, tingling, and numbness in your arms and hands and create headaches days, weeks, even months after an accident occurs.

Chiropractic care will provide you with a drug-free, natural road back to feeling good again.  It will assist in putting the trauma of your accident where it belongs – in the past. In addition, because your chiropractor has experience dealing with insurance companies and lawyers, not only will you undergo less physical stress, but less emotional stress, as well!

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You’re not alone if you’re feeling low back pain. Low back pain afflicts many people, a surprising 80% in fact, making it second only to the common cold in its pervasiveness. However, unlike the common cold, waiting for your back pain to “run its course,” and taking prescription or over-the-counter remedies while you wait, is not the answer. The majority of back pain won’t go away by itself. Frequently, if your pain goes away, it is often due to the fact that your body has compensated for the problem, thus producing new conditions. Low back pain is nothing to sneeze at! You need to seek the advice of a back pain expert, like your chiropractor, if you’d like to defeat your back pain permanently!

Oftentimes back pain is a mystery to most people who suffer from it, and chiropractors are skilled in solving that mystery. Sufferers want to know why it is that they have not had any trauma, accidents, or major injuries prior to the onset of their condition? The answer is that the cumulative effects of unsuitable sitting posture, poor work habits, improper lifting, lack of regular exercise, and other unhealthy lifestyle-related factors create most back pain. These factors eventually add up and create stresses and imbalances on the spine creating subluxations that can become serious back problems. The process is similar to the front end of your car being out of alignment. When you persist in driving anyway, there is disproportionate wear and tear on your tires. If you choose not to get the problem fixed, the situation could worsen until a tire “blows.” When the spine is misaligned, the health of the spine is put at risk. It’s not only a problem waiting to happen, so to speak, it’s a problem waiting to get worse. And then, something as simple as bending over to pick up a piece of paper can be the “final factor” that produces back injury. The surrounding back muscles go into spasm when thistakes place to protect the stressed or injured tissues of the back.

When it comes to dysfunctions of the spine, chiropractors have more education, training, and experience than medical doctors. They provide highly qualified diagnosis and experienced treatment for all muscular-skeletal dysfunctions. In addition to offering welcomed relief to individuals suffering from back pain, but they are aware of what will help you to avoid further back pain. As an adjunct to effectual adjustments and other productive chiropractic therapies, your chiropractor will provide you with a personal exercise plan and recommend additional healthy lifestyle changes that will keep you well-adjusted and pain-free in the future.

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