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Infant Chiropractic Adjustment

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Infant Chiropractic AdjustmentLast week I was visiting my family in New York City. My sister had her third child, beautiful and healthy baby boy – Gabriel. As soon as I saw my nephew my professional eye has noticed that his head was bent to the left at all times. Either he was laying down in his bed or held in hands the position of his head would not change. I could not help myself but perform a digital palpation of this one month old baby and figure out what was happening.

A little bit about the birth history. The first two children were born normally without any complications. However, the third child was born via C section. It is kind of strange because statistically the second and the third child should be relatively an easy birth. Unfortunately for my sister the last addition to the family was positioned wrong and normal delivery via birth canal would not be possible at all. This prolonged abnormal positioning in a mother’s womb was the cause of the left lateral neck tilt.

During digital palpation I have noticed that the paraspinal musculature on a right side of Gabriel’s neck was very tight. He also had very limited ROM when I tried to bend his neck to the right side. After I have finished my examination I figured out that his C6 vertebral level was out of alignment. The newborn’s vertebrae are not ossified and are very small. The best way to adjust and palpate this tiny spine is by using small fingers of both hands.

I guess one video will replace thousand words. Below is a video of an Infant Chiropractic Adjustment.

Right after Chiropractic adjustment I have rechecked Gabriel’s cervical spine and noticed that he had improved range of motion in his cervical spine. You can see at the end of this video a happy smile on his face. I guess it is a sign of my nephew saying: “Thank you uncle.”

This is an article from Parents magazine about Chiropractic Care and Children written by Holly Pevzner who is a mother of two boys.

My dad sees a chiropractor. Some of my runner friends do, to. But babies? And  for crying? It’s true.  “Today about twenty percent of my pediatric patients come in because if colic or digestive issues,” says Elise G. Hewitt, a board- certified pediatric chiropractor in Portland, OR. Baby chiro care is not as scary as it may sound. The adjustments involve short, quick impulses delivered to the spine with hands, as well as using very light touch on the bones of the skull. It’s quite comfortable for the child and can be done while he lies on parent’s lap or chest. “babies often fall asleep during treatment,” notes Hewitt.

Why it may work for you: Soon-to-be published research found that parents were eight times as likely to report a significant reduction in crying when the baby was treated with chiropractic care three or four times over a ten day-day period than if the baby wasn’t, says lead researcher Joyce Miller, associate professor in clinical sciences at the Anglo-European College of Chiropractic, in Bournemouth, England. The theory behind it: The practice helps alleviate tightness and joint issues that were caused by cramped position in utero or during birth. To find a chiropractor experienced with infants, talk to you pediatrician or go to  the website of the American Chiropractic Association

The Cost of a Caffeine Buzz

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COFFEEMajority of the people all over the world rely on at least a small  amount of caffeine in order to Charge the battery during busy work days ( which is pretty much every day). While caffeine in moderation  has some benefits – provides extra energy for a workout and keep one alert – it can also quickly become the cause for many health related  problems. So, how much is too much caffeine?

4 to 5 cups can cause nervousness, insomnia and irregular heart beat.  That is  a lot of wear and tear for a system that already deals with a lot of stress on daily bases. 3.5 to 4.5 produces higher insulin levels and reduces insulin  sensitivity, increasing diabetes risk. Diabetes could lead to many other health related problems.

2.5 to 3.5 cups of coffee increases the risk of miscarriage and low  birth-weight babies – if pregnant. Talk to your local Doc for additional information

2 to 3 cups of coffee significantly increases blood pressure,  potentially shortening your life span by five years. Five years is a long period of time. I certainly don’t want to shorten my life. Do you?

1.5 to 2.5 cups of coffee gives one more staying power for the run.  The cost – drained adrenal glands.

1 to 1.5 cups of coffee boosts your  alertness and mental performance.  That could provide short term benefit during final exam or top peak performance. If applied on regular bases one enters danger zone.

My advice: replace caffeine intake with 30 minutes of cardiovascular  exercise and you will pretty much achieve the same result with great health benefits. For those who absolutely must have caffeine in the  system I would suggest to race coffee with a green tea. Less caffeine  and more antioxidants. Last month I have written a post – “Busy Business Executives, Chiropractic and Other Healthy Tips” which is also describing the negative impact of excessive coffee intake.

Question: How many cups of coffee do you drink a day? Do you still want to drink excessive amounts of coffee?

3 New Reasons to Quit Smocking

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SmockingA better mood: A study from Disease and Prevention finds that smokers are at a higher risk of being depressed than none smokers. This research is not completely clear whether it is a depression that leads a person to smoke or the puffing that leads to it, or it is a combination of both.

Clean Genes: it is a known fact that people who smoke have a higher cancer risk. A research from the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine proved that exposure to any amount of smoke could cause genetic alterations in lung cells, thus lead to malignancy over time

No scale shock: Any health care practitioners advice against of quit smocking and dieting simultaneously. Research from a journal Addiction proves that combination of both makes those who try successful at both. You can maintain your weight after smocking as the thing of the past.

Here is a very interesting link with a time table of what is happening to a body after one quits smocking – Stop Smocking Recovery Table. Below this table there are many different free download PDF reports that might be helpful to anyone who tries to quit smocking.

Quit Smoking after 30 years of Addiction and the Power of Chiropractic

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SmockThis is a true story about my father who was a chain smoker for over thirty years. He came to visit me in California and stayed with me for one month while I was in my last  year of Chiropractic College.

The health of my dad was in a very bad shape. He would be taken to a Hospital by an ambulance about 15 times a year because of his blood pressure which at times could jump so high that he could not even see straight. Medical Doctors would prescribed him a large variety of medications for lowering his blood pressure. At one point he had over twenty different bottles on a table. This amount of medications could easily kill a horse if given to one. Even my dad sometimes was wondering why was he given so many different medications for one problem. Why Doctors don’t tell him the cause of the problem. A simple advice for quit smocking and diet could have easily improved his condition. However, it was a chase for a symptom improvement but not the cause.

I had all the necessary tools and enough knowledge about anatomy and physiology of the body to figure out how to fix the problem. After reading PDR (Physician Desk Reference) I could not  believe how ignorant his doctors were. All of his prescribed blood  pressure medications had serious side effects. During a prolonged period of time taking these numerous blood pressure medications my dad has developed a variety of other problems.

One of the most serious symptoms was failing kidneys. His kidneys were leaking protein into a blood. I am not going to go into the significance of this pathophysiological effect, but the long term outcome was fatal. Yes, my dad was going to die if things would not be stabilized in his system any time soon. The main reason why he stayed with me for the entire month was because he thought it would be our last time together.

I had a huge poster in my room of a human body and how nervous system controls every single organ in our body. I knew that it would be a good starting point of educating my dad how smoking is effecting his health. Every day for thirty days I would take a cigarette from him, bring to the mouth on the poster and explained to him how damaging it is  to his health and how each organ is be stressed because of him smocking. I told him that if he continues this way he might not have much time left in this world. Believe it or not he listened to every word  that I was telling him. I have ordered special supplements for kidney support for Standard Process (Nutritional Company) and I have also changed his diet. I have also provided chiropractic adjustment to his spine every other day. As you already know a good functioning nervous system makes your system work better.

After about five days of education my dad  did not light up the cigarette for the entire day. When I got home from school he told me that it was
the most difficult day in his life. Yes, he had nicotine withdrawals.  I have informed him that each day it will get easier if he keeps it up this way. His desire to live life was stronger than the desire to smoke another cigarette. He understood what I was saying to him every single time while he was staying with me in California. When the time came for him fly back home to New York City he felt much better, refreshed, hopeful, happy, and energized with a new hope and a new chapter in his life. He was looking for forward to a new beginning.

I was afraid when he gets back home he will start smocking again.  During conversation with my mother I asked her if dad had been
smocking. She informed me that he can not even look at cigarettes and hates when someone smokes around him. Every time I come to visit my parents in NYC I jokingly asked my dad if he wants to smoke. He replies: “I don’t understand how people can hold that disgusting poison in their mouse. It is a slow death.” These words came from a guy who smoked for 30 years.

This event took place over ten years ago. Ever since my dad quit smocking he has not been taken to a hospital E.R at all. The health has normalized and his kidneys function have returned  to normal. I could probably say that Chiropractic saved my dad. I am writing this post from NYC from my parents home while I am visiting them. The photo above is the real photo of my dad that was taken  from my I Phone about an hour ago.

Question: Do you want to quit smoking? What stops you? How does smoking affect your life?