Tag Archive for: Chiropractic

What Causes Neuropathy and How to Fix It Before Its Too Late!

Neuropathy is damage, disease, or dysfunction in one or more nerves, especially of the peripheral nervous system (arms and legs). Common symptoms of peripheral neuropathy are burning or shooting pain, numbness, tingling, or muscle weakness. Neuropathy is often degenerative, and is usually caused by injury, infection, disease, drugs, toxins, or vitamin deficiency. Let’s take a look at what the 3 most common causes of neuropathy are.

Diabetes is one of the most common causes of neuropathy. It has been known that two thirds of the population with diabetes are also affected by diabetic neuropathy. Diabetic nerve pain occurs when high blood sugar levels damage the nerves. The nerves’ ability to send signals to other areas of the body are prohibited by high levels of blood sugar. The capillary walls of the blood vessels are also weaker with high blood sugar, this results in the nerves not getting adequate amount of nutrients and oxygen due to lack of blood flow.

Another common cause of neuropathy is vitamin deficiency, more specifically, vitamins such as B1, B6, B12, and vitamin E. Alcoholism is a common reason for vitamin deficient neuropathy. The reason why alcoholism can lead to vitamin deficiency is because it is assumed that they are not eating a complete or healthy diet. Alcohol also effects the body’s ability to absorb vitamin B1. People that have a vegan diet also need to be careful about their vitamin intake. Vitamin B12 is naturally only found in animal-based foods. Vegans are highly encouraged to supplement vitamin B12 into their diet to help avoid vitamin deficient neuropathy.

The third common cause is the herpes zoster virus; the virus that is responsible for chickenpox in kids. This virus lays dormant in the body after adolescence and can be reawakened many years later, due to age or stress, and presents itself as shingles. The virus attacks the nerves and can cause itchiness, rashes, and pain into the nerves.

If the symptoms of neuropathy start to present themselves, it is important to take action as soon as possible before the symptoms progress! Schedule an appointment with us to have a neuropathy exam performed. We will determine if your condition is true neuropathy and come up with a treatment plan for you so we can start to reduce the progression of your neuropathy! Help us help you!

Is Homeschooling Right for You and Your Family?

With so much going on in the world, many parents are left wondering what their options are in regards to sending their kids to school. Watch this video to learn more about homeschooling, the different options that come with it, and to find out if it might be the right fit for you and your kiddos!

No More New Year’s Resolutions!

What is the most common question you get asked going into a new year? For most people, it’s usually along the lines of “What are your New Year’s resolutions?”. It’s a common tradition passed on through the years that people use the “new year” as a starting point for their new goals and lifestyle practices. Why wait until New Year when you can start now?

 

If you put your goals off until the new year, you have to ask yourself how much of a priority they were for you in the first place? Are you using the holidays as an excuse to binge and fall further behind on your goal before you face it head-on in January?

 

Let’s say you make a set of resolutions going into the next year. You are really consistent and on top of all of your goals for a month or maybe even more! Inevitably, life gets in the way and excuses start coming up and you begin to lose the motivation you once had to stay consistent with your resolutions. Then, eventually, there are too many “reasons” as to why your goals are not your priority anymore, and pretty soon you are no longer progressing on these goals at all.

 

But, wait! At this point, it’s almost January again! You can just start your resolutions again next year! This is going to be the year you actually accomplish your goals!

 

And again, the cycle starts right back over.

 

If this cycle sounds familiar to you, I challenge you to ask yourself, “Why am I waiting to start my goals?”

 

Whatever it is that you may want to introduce in your life, it can always be started now. Do you want to start exercising more? Join the gym today. If you are already paying for it, why wouldn’t you go? Do you want to eat healthier? Throw out the junk food! Out of sight, out of mind. With little to no junk food in the house, you will have to force yourself to be creative and make healthier meals using the more nutritious items you might already have or that you purchase to help yourself accomplish your goal!

 

It’s important to remember that baby steps are better than no steps at all. Sometimes life really does get in the way, but it rarely ever completely prevents you from doing what you want to do. Even when things seem to be difficult and you start to lose motivation, try and take a step back and decide how you can accomplish this goal now!

 

For example, maybe you were going to the gym 5 days a week for 30 minutes each day. Something happens and now you are unable to commit to going as frequently as you were before.

 

Instead of using this as an excuse to just stop, take a step back and ask yourself how much you can reasonably commit to right now. Can you find 2 days in the week that you can spare 30 minutes to devote to exercising? Maybe even 3? Working out 2-3 days isn’t as often as 5, but it’s definitely better than 0. Just by setting aside this 1 hour out of your whole week, you just saved yourself from potentially giving up on your goal completely.

 

In addition to this, it is also important to set reasonable goals in the first place. If you try and set resolutions that you know you are not able to commit to 100%, you are setting yourself up to fail and who would want to do that? Instead of telling yourself, you are going to lose 100 pounds this year, knowing you are not the type of person who has hours and hours to commit to the gym each week, start smaller by trying to lose 20 pounds in 6 months. If you find that you really are consistent and on track, then think about raising it to 30 or 35 pounds in that 6-month time frame.

 

Not only will this be healthier for your body, but it will also be healthier for your mind. Pacing yourself and setting realistic standards for yourself can drastically change your attitude when going into a goal! Plus, an added benefit is that if you are able to easily crush each smaller goal, it won’t feel like it was such a struggle to get to the bigger one! We get more out of life when we keep the commitments we make to ourselves.

 

As Hillel, the Elder once said, “If not now, when?” I challenge you to start those New Year’s Resolutions today.

 

Understanding Sciatica

The Sciatic nerve is a nerve bundle running down the back of your leg with nerves from the lower part of your spine (L4-S3 nerve roots).

The sciatic nerve has two primary functions, controlling the muscles and the sensations to the skin in the leg.

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Chiropractic Versus Pharmaceuticals for Headaches?

In the US, headaches are responsible for more than 18 million office visits annually, and are the most common reason for using over-the-counter medications.

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Is there another option for seizures?

Epilepsy, which affects about 2.9 million Americans, is a neurological condition that is characterized by recurring seizures, brief involuntary body movements, which may also be accompanied by loss of consciousness and loss of bowel and/or bladder control

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Glaucoma and Chiropractic?

Glaucoma is a slow progressive eye disease and develops asymptomatically for years until visual deficits and irreversible impairment to the retina occur.

Early detection and treatment to lower the intraocular pressure can slow, or even terminate, the progression of the disease.

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Chiropractic vs Muscle Relaxers

Low back pain is very common, affecting somewhere between 75% and 85% of adults.

It can be detrimental to many areas of life, including recreation, family time, and work.

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Don’t Forget to Stand Up Tall and Breathe!

Proper structure of the thoracic spine (middle back) ensures optimal lung function!

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