Posts Tagged ‘headaches’
The Importance of Good Posture
It’s a great time to be alive, isn’t it? Science and technology have literally put the world at our fingertips. And, in addition to the unlimited access we all have to information and communication, there are computer games, video games, and round-the-clock TV shows. Unfortunately, the “pros” of most things arrive hand-in-hand with the “cons.” Now, there are plenty of “cons” to be addressed here, but as a chiropractor, I’m going to focus on the adverse effect that our bad posture is having on our musculoskeletal system, not only while we’re engaging in these activities, but even after the work and play is done. All you need to do is to take a look at the majority of teenagers to see that posture, in general, is in a slump.
Why is posture so important? Poor posture causes headaches, neck pain, and back pain, just for openers. And, since the back bone is (eventually) connected to the hip bones and knee bones, bad posture can create a lot of painful movement from your head to your toes.
Joe Donofrio, dean of clinical services at Sherman College of Chiropractic in Spartanburg, offers some great posture tips. Check them out at goupstate.com
Good Hydration Is a Key to Good Health
Chiropractors, like your Santa Barbara Chiropractor, are real “fanatics” when it comes to making our patients aware of the importance of drinking enough water daily. The mantra is “Hydrate! Hydrate! Hydrate!” Water, second only to air, is fundamental for human survival. Survival instincts, then, would presumably guarantee that we would drink enough water as instinctively as we breathe in air. (Most individuals are not breathing enough either, but let’s talk about why staying well-hydrated is so important.) You you cannot maintain or regain good health without drinking a sufficient quantity of water. Drinking plenty of water helps every cell, tissue, and organ in your body and maintains the proper function of every system. Your saliva, and the fluids surrounding your joints, are fundamentally water. Water regulates the temperature and metabolism of the body, and keeps the blood circulating. The improvement of nutrient absorption and toxin removal, as well as the reduction of heartburn, hypertension, exhaustion, and headaches have been attributed to consistent hydration.
Athletes are distinctly at risk when it comes to problems produced by dehydration. “Physiologically, their core body temperature could be higher than it should have been if they were hydrated. Their heart rate will be higher, and they’re going to perceive that they’re working harder than they actually are,” said Susan Yeargin, assistant professor of athletic training in Indiana State’s College of Nursing, Health, and Human Services. A high percentage of collegiate and professional athletes begin the season dehydrated, putting their health at risk even before they begin strenuous workouts, according to researchers at Indiana State University. In fact, Pre-season physical examinations, in fact, found that 80 percent of football players exhibited dehydration.
Wondering how much water is enough water? Chiropractors, like the majority of other health care professionals, advise at least eight, 8-ounce glasses of water per day for quite a few of our patients, though for our patients who are athletes, or for those who carry around excess weight or exercise or work in a hot environment, we propose even more. How can you tell if you, personally, are drinking an adequate amount of water? Your urine color is a good gauge. You’re well-hydrated if it comes out a light, pale yellow!
Chiropractor Santa Barbara Can Help If You Suffer From Tension Headaches or Migraines
If you regularly experience tension headaches or migraines, Chiropractor Santa Barbara can help to decrease their incapacitating impact on your life.
Tension headaches: Like it or not, life can be a pain, on occasion, and end up as a tension headache. The majority of people have been impacted by more than one. If you’ve had a tension headache, then you know that it often feels like a dull, painful ache in your head that is sometimes accompanied by a feeling of tightness or pressure along your forehead or on the sides and back of your head. Occasionally, you might feel a tenderness of your scalp, neck and shoulder muscles, and periodically you may lose your appetite.
Tension headaches are generally characterized as mild to moderately intense. The severity of the pain varies from one headache to another in the same person, as well as from one individual to another Tension headaches can happen infrequently or you may have them regularly. If your headaches take place fifteen or more days a month for a minimum of three months, they’re considered chronic. If tension headaches are interferring with your life, chiropractic management may be the remedy. Contact your chiropractor today.
Migraine Headaches: Migraine headaches are different from the common tension-related headache. As reported by the National Headache Foundation, migraines generally take place on only one side of the head. The throbbing or pulsating pain is accompanied by nausea or vomiting. Auras, visual symptoms an hour before a migraine attack, and disturbances such as pulsating light, lines or dots, are experienced by one-fifth of migraine sufferers.
Do you experience the painful symptoms of migraines? If you do, you know the upsetting, debilitating effects that this sort of challenge can have on your life. The pain of a migraine headache can sideline you for hours, for days, for a lifetime, and conventional over-the-counter medications are not only ineffective but, like prescription drugs, they all too often have alarming side effects. It’s time to eliminate the pain and get your life back! Chiropractic treatment has been shown to be highly effective in relieving and eliminating migraine headaches. Get in touch with your chiropractor today!
Chiropractor Santa Barbara Knows That Minor Car Accidents Can Make a Big Impact on Your Health
Chiropractor Santa Barbara knows all too well that even a minor car accident can cause whiplash injury. If you’ve been driving around in a big tank-of-a-car and you’ve been in an auto accident, if your car looks “uninjured,” it’s easy to presume that you are not hurt, either. After all, isn’t that the reason you’re driving a big vehicle? It’s for protection, right? Then you might find it a bit disturbing to learn that research has revealed that occupants of vehicles, both large and compact, can be injured far more than might be anticipated from a minor auto accident. In fact, as far as your body is concerned, there’s really no such thing as a “minor fender bender.”
Let’s face it. There are going to be consequences when your body is compelled to stop suddenly and unexpectedly. You might be handed a clean bill of health by an emergency room attendant if you haven’t sustained any broken bones, and you may be given a prescription for drugs to relax the muscle spasms that you are surely 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 condition can go from bad to much, much worse. In fact, quite a few people encounter problems years after an auto accident because they didn’t get the help they needed in the first place.
Your chiropractor truly knows what your body undergoes during an auto accident. Chiropractic therapies include treatment for soft tissue injuries and spinal bio-mechanics abnormalities. And your chiropractor is an expert in rehabilitation strategies.
If you’ve been in a minor auto accident, although your car may not require much repair, more than like you do. Neck and back traumas are not only painful in the places in which they happen, but they can also generate pain, tingling, and numbness in your arms and hands and cause headaches days, weeks, even months after an accident occurs.
You can get back on the road to feeling good again with drug-free, natural chiropractic care. It will go a long way in putting the trauma of your accident where it belongs – behind you. In addition, because your chiropractor has experience dealing with insurance companies and lawyers, not only will you experience less physical stress, but less emotional stress, too!