Back Pain

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Over 31 million Americans experience back pain at any given time, and low back pain is the number-one cause of disability worldwide. The United States alone spends over $50 million a year for back-pain-related issues. In fact, low back pain is the second leading cause of doctor’s visits, behind only upper respiratory problems.

Due to the frequency of low back pain, there have been hundreds of research studies that prove the benefits of chiropractic. For example, one study examined 101 patients with acute low back pain and divided them into three groups. Group 1 receive chiropractic adjustments, Group 2 received pharmaceuticals, and Group 3 was a control group that received no treatment. Almost all of the participants in the control group dropped out of the study because they could not deal with the pain. Both Groups 1 and 2 showed improvement, though Group 1 (the chiropractic group) showed

A new research study actually reveals that back surgery fails in 74% of cases. Researchers reviewed records from 1,450 patients in the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation database who had diagnoses of disc degeneration, disc herniation, or radiculopathy, a nerve condition that causes tingling and weakness of the limbs. Half of the patients had surgery to fuse two or more vertebrae in hopes of curing low back pain. The other half had no surgery, even though they had comparable diagnoses. After two years, just 26% of those who had surgery had actually returned to work, compared to 67% of patients who didn’t have surgery. In what might be the most troubling finding, researchers determined that there was a 41% increase in the use of painkillers, specifically opiates, in those who had surgery.

Any type of back pain is a warning sign of internal body issues that need to be corrected. Subluxation-based chiropractors focus on getting to the root of the problem so your body can recover, heal, and work the way it was designed to.

Sciatica

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The standard medical approach for sciatica varies depending on how severe it is. Treatment can range from muscle relaxers, pain killers, and NSAIDs, to rest and physical therapy. These treatments have proven ineffective at times, often requiring surgery, which also does not have the best success rate. While surgery has a time and a place, it should be a last resort, and even then it should be made through informed decision-making. In fact, the medical community has even coined the term ‘failed back surgery syndrome’ because of how common surgical complications have become.

Chiropractors have helped millions of people with low back and sciatic pain in a natural, non-invasive way. This is accomplished by realigning the spine to take pressure off the nerve causing the pain. The sciatic nerve originates in the lumbar spine, and although sciatic pain can radiate down the leg and possibly to the toes, most chiropractors focus on the low back to treat the condition at its source.

A case report conducted on two patients with sciatic neuropathy and confirmed disc herniation were treated with low force chiropractic treatment. Follow-up CAT scans in the first case revealed complete absence of disc herniation. Follow-up CAT scans on the second case revealed the continued presence of a silent disc bulge at the L3-4 level and partial decrease in a herniation at the L4-5 level. The bulge appeared to have shifted away from the nerve root. Both patients declared a decrease in pain levels from severe to minimal. The patients regained the ability to stand, sit, and walk for longer periods without discomfort, and lifting tasks also became easier. The patients were able to return to full work capacity at three and nine months, respectively.

Chiropractic consultation is a prudent first step for anyone suffering from sciatica. According to research, it has proven to be the most effective source of treatment for low back pain and sciatica. One study compared 700,000 people who were under regular chiropractic care and found that these people had saved an estimated $16 million on health care costs.

Could you be wasting money on all the healthy organic food you are eating?

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I want to start off by saying I cannot tell you how many people I have met that lead very healthy lives for the most part and just don’t understand why they still get sick or are still in pain. There are 5 pillars of health…the average person does about 2 of them and most healthy people do about 3-4 of them. Now I want to ask you a question. If you are doing 4 out of 5 of them that is 80% health. I don’t know about you but I want the full 100%. Your health is nothing to mess around with and is by far your greatest asset in life. Some people think their cable and internet bill is more important and we send those people to the Chiropractor down the street who also believes that (be careful who you trust your health with). Practice members at Apex Chiropractic understand where true health comes from and have their priorities straight so we are all on the same page.

The 5 Pillars of Health:

Exercise
Depending on your age you should be getting at least 20 minutes of cardio exercise 5 days a week. I am not saying you need to get out there and do cross-fit 8 days a week. Humans have 2 feet and we were meant to walk. If you want to start by walking 20 minutes a day that is wonderful and a great place to start!

Sleep
Get 7-8 hours of sleep every night. You should be sleeping on your back or on your side with a pillow in between your knees and a pillow that keeps your head level with your spine. No stomach sleeping!

Proper Mental Attitude
I cannot stress the importance of this one enough. Negative attitudes and a negative outlook on life are literally killing people. You need to do your best to keep a positive outlook on life on a day to day basis. Yes, stuff happens and it is OK to get sad, depressed or have anxiety in certain situations. These feelings are normal and good to have every now and then but overall you need to keep a happy outlook on life. Let me give you an example. Two 12 year old boys are diagnosed with a life threatening cancer. The doctor tells them they have two weeks to live. One of the boys get very sad and discouraged and dies in two weeks. The other boy says I am way too young for this and there is no way I am going to let this cancer beat me. He rises above it and is still living to this day cancer free. The only difference was their mental attitude on the situation.

Eating Healthy
I am not going to get into what you should or shouldn’t eat because most people have a good idea of that already and if you need help in this area there are millions of trained professionals out there. One question I do want to ask you is if the nerves going to your stomach and intestines are not working the correct way how do you think you might be digesting your food? Maybe you are taking top of the line supplements and buying all natural organic food from Whole Foods or Alfalfa’s. What if you are wasting your money because your body is not capable of absorbing the nutrients the right way do to an improperly functioning nervous system? Think about it…

100% Functioning Nervous System
This is the pillar that even most healthy people are lacking. Less than 3% of the people in this world are under Principled Chiropractic care. The brain and the nervous system control and coordinate all organs, structures and functions of the human body. It doesn’t matter how well you eat or how much you exercise, if your nervous system has any type of interference your body will not be functioning at 100%.

If the nerves going to you or your child’s heart or lungs were not working properly when would you want to find out?