Archive for hand pain

Don’t Let ARTHRITIS Slow You Down!

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 9, 2014 by chiropracticdouglasville

Arthritis is one of the most common disorders seen in today’s society and can decrease quality of life and function. Some arthritis is a result of old age, while others result from an improperly functioning nervous and immune system. If left uncorrected, arthritis can cause increasingly painful and debilitating movement as the disease progresses. Although there are many great natural or pharmaceutical options to treat the symptoms brought on by arthritis, improving the structure of the body can actually get to the underlying cause.

Arthritis can be broken down into two basic categories: inflammatory and degenerative. Inflammatory arthritis includes Rheumatoid Arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, Lupus, and others. These conditions are caused by an autoimmune reaction in the body that causes inflammation in joints of the hands and feet and may eventually spread to the knees, hips and neck. Degenerative arthritis, on the other hand, is abnormal gradual wearing down of the cartilage within the joint usually from structural abnormalities and repetitive trauma such as work related activity, sports, or from major trauma such as falls and auto accidents. Degenerative arthritis usually affects the large weight bearing joints such as the spine, knees, hips, and ankles but, can also affect smaller joints as well. Degenerative arthritis also produces inflammation but because of wear and tear.

 What are your treatment options?

Traditional doctors have been successful prescribing medicine to treat the symptoms of arthritis and control pain. Although traditional treatment is not correcting the underlying cause of arthritis, it does ease the suffering for a short period of time. As the arthritis progressively gets

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severe enough, surgery may be warranted.

A structural chiropractor, on the other hand, will use safe, effective, and non-invasive methods to manage arthritis. Structural chiropractors are trained to identify and correct primary conditions such as structural abnormalities within the spine that cause secondary conditions like arthritis. A properly functioning spine and nervous system will increase mobility within the joints, decrease the stress placed on them, and restore function to the nervous system.  A properly functioning nervous system has been shown to increase immune system function, which can aid in inflammatory arthritis. In inflammatory arthritis, the body is actually fighting itself because of poor communication between the cells. Since the nervous system is responsible for communication between all the cells of the body, it is it is important to maintain a healthy spine to ensure optimal immunity.

Structural chiropractors can also help degenerative arthritis as well. Degenerative arthritis causes a painful lack of motion in the affected joints, as well as inflammation and neurological interference. The spine is commonly affected by degenerative arthritis and can cause dysfunction within the nerves coming from the spinal cord, itself. A structural chiropractor can help by increasing mobility within these joints and at the same time restoring function to the nervous system so that the rest of the body can function at an optimal level.

 

 

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ARE PROLONG PERIODS OF SITTING, INJURING YOUR BACK?

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 14, 2014 by chiropracticdouglasville

Long hours of sitting over time can lead to many health conditions; including Arthritis, degenerative changes in the spine and pinched nerves. These lead to many other diseases caused by lack of activity including weight gain, heart disease, stroke, cancer, and diabetes.  The diseases usually take years of prolonged sitting to develop, however, in the meantime, warning signals of damage develop such as  neck and back pain, headaches, fatigue, problems in the arms and hands, and lack of concentration.

When we sit all day, we place a lot of stress on our spines.  Improper sitting to look at the computer screen, phone or TV  all day causes our heads to move forward, and our backs to hunch over. The bad position leads to structural shifts in the spine causing the development of ANTERIOR HEAD SYNDROME (AHS).

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Did you know that every inch our head moves forward from of our shoulders, 10 extra pounds of stress is placed on our spine?  So a person that has an AHS of 3-5 inches is putting 30-50 pounds of extra pressure on their spine. Within 2 weeks of developing AHS our spines start to deteriorate. A deteriorating spine directly affects our nerves, compromising the messages that travel from the brain to the different parts of the body. All communication from the brain to the body happens through the nerves so AHS disrupts total body function.

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It is very important, in order to avoid AHS that we practice proper ergonomics especially if we are going to be sitting for long than 30 minute periods.

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Proper sitting ergonomics include the following, the head should be straight and NOT in a down position most of the time. The back should be straight or tilted 10-15 degrees. The arms should be at 90 degree angles and the wrist should be slightly flexed. The legs should be either right under the knees or a few inches forward. It is a bad habit to tuck your feet under the chair.

Due to fact that most people have not practiced proper ergonomics, they have already developed structural shifts in their spines. It is the primary purpose of a Structural Chiropractor to locate these structural abnormalities.  Once a structural problem has been found, Correctional Chiropractic Care specializes in restoring normal structure and function to the spine and to all the nerves that control the rest of the body.  The correction of the underlying problem causes many of the structural abnormalities that sitting all day have caused to be resolved and  the entire body functions at an optimal level. When the spine and nervous system are working better, the rest of the body will also work better.

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THE HUMP ON YOUR BACK

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 28, 2013 by chiropracticdouglasville

normal-structure-webIt is a sensitive subject with many but it is also very misunderstood. Many have blamed old age on this problem yet we are finding this condition in younger people too. The research is now showing that Dowager’s hump or Granny’s hump is a secondary condition resulting from a primary condition called the Anterior Head Syndrome. There are many documented secondary conditions that are caused by Anterior Head Syndrome (AHS), these include Dowager’s hump, neck, arm and hand pain, headaches, numbness in the arm and hands, nerve impingement Syndrome, muscular tension and spasms, Compressed (degenerated) disc, damaged (degenerated) spine, degenerative arthritis and many more.   Although most traditional doctors treat these secondary conditions, our focus at Planet Chiropractic is find the underlying cause or what is the primary condition an correct it.

 There are many lifestyle factors (physical, emotional and chemical) that cause the development of Anterior Head Syndrome.  A physical trauma like a fall, any type of accidents, sitting or standing in the same  position for long periods of time… can cause an abnormal position in the spine and over time that develops into the Anterior Head Syndrome. The use  of technology is causing many of us to look down all day either at a computer, phone, games, etc. Being in this abnormal position from prolonged periods will worsen  the Anterior Head Syndrome. Emotional stress causes people to go into a protective hunched position and unknowing to themselves they are developing AHS. Even Chemical stress from the air you breath to the environment around you can indirectly cause  the development of this structural abnormality. By the time a person noticeably has Anterior Head Syndrome the damage is already there and professional  intervention from a Structural Corrective Chiropractor is needed to discover the severity of  the structural abnormality and how to properly corrective it.

There is lots of research from the top researchers in the field of human anatomy that have discovered the normal alignment of the spine. There are  ranges of normal throughout your body. There is a normal range for body temperature, blood pressure, heart rate… and there is also a normal range  for your spine. For the spine to be structurally normal it has to be straight from the front and from the side, a person should have a curve in their  neck, mid and low back. The neck curve can be observed from the side, the top of your shoulder and the hole in your ear should be aligned. If the  person is suffering from the Anterior Head Syndrome in their spine than their ear would be more forward compared to their shoulders. Overtime as  the pressure from the Anterior Head Syndrome increases the body starts to develop muscle in the upper back to support the abnormal pressure.  Research shows that for every 1 inch your head moves forward from its normal position equals to fifteen pounds of extra pressure on your upper  back. The development of this extra muscle overtime, is what many have observed to be a hump on the person’s back and is many times referred to as  ‘granny’s hump’. The development of the Anterior Syndrome is primarily a Structural abnormality and not due to the age of the person.

Anterior Head Syndrome is one of the health problems that our office checks everyone for regularly. Our comprehensive structural examinations  helps us measure the amount of Anterior Head Syndrome and allows us to to determine if it is correctable.

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