Chiropractic For Seniors Seven Outstanding Benefits

Brought to you by: Mendez Chiropractic Center

Many seniors are unaware of the outstanding benefits that are possible through regular chiropractic care. I have compiled a list of seven of the most frequent benefits that chiropractic care provides for seniors.

1. Pain Relief

Chiropractic care is one of the most effective and safest forms of health care to treat pain due to spinal related conditions. Chiropractic is so effective because most causes of spinal disorders are related to abnormalities of the spine and the surrounding soft tissue structures. Doctors of chiropractic are specifically trained to identify and treat subluxations (misalignments of the vertebrae) and their subsequent effect on the central nervous system. Anti inflammatory medication and pain relievers merely mask the symptoms and have many undesirable side effects.

2. Increased Range of Motion of the Spine and Extremities

Chiropractic care has been shown repeatedly to increase not only the range of motion of the spine but also in the extremities. Increasing a person's range of motion can positively and drastically affect lives in many ways. For some, an increased range of motion means being able to bend down to pick up their grandchildren. For others, it means they can garden without pain or get an extra 40 yards of distance out of their driver on the golf course. In many cases, an increase in range of motion immediately follows chiropractic adjustments. This is one of the reasons why many top professional sporting teams have team chiropractors.

3. Increased Balance and Coordination

Many problems in balance and coordination in the aging population have been shown to come from injury or degenerative changes to the cervical spine (neck region). Structures known as mechanoreceptors are located in the posterior (back) joints of the cervical spine and are responsible for providing the brain with essential information important for balance and coordination. Mechanoreceptors in cervical posterior joints provide major input regarding the position of the head in relation to the body. With aging, mild defects impair mechanoreceptors function and results in a loss of proprioception (sense of body awareness). With decreased proprioception, body positioning in space is impaired and the patient becomes reliant on vision to know the location of a limb. To compensate for the loss of proprioception (sense of body awareness) in the legs, the feet are kept wider apart than usual. Steps become irregular and uneven in length. As impairment increases, the patient becomes unable to compensate. With severe loss of proprioception, the patient is unable to get up from a chair or rise after a fall without assistance.

Studies have shown that chiropractic care can help restore balance and coordination by stimulating the joint receptors (mechanoreceptors) in the cervical spine. This stimulation is thought to restore or normalize joint receptor functioning which leads to improvements in balance and coordination. (Caranasos, MD, Isreal, MD. Gait Disorders in the Elderly. Hospital Practice. 1991; June 15:67-94.Guyton, MD. Textbook of Medical Physiology. 9th edition. WB Saunders, Philadelphia 1996; 714.)

4. Decreased Joint Degeneration

A subluxated (misaligned) spine is much like a misaligned wheel on an automobile. This misalignment will cause the spine (and the wheel) to wear out prematurely. Since all moving parts will eventually wear down over time, it is very important to get your spine aligned periodically. Chiropractic care decreases spinal degeneration and other arthritic changes by normalizing the spinal alignment and reducing spinal stress.

5. Increased Health and Well-Being

We commonly ask our patients what changes they notice once they are put of pain. Here are some regular responses we hear every day:
I feel great!

I can sleep through the night!

Now I can play in the garden!

I have so much energy!

Life is worth living now!

Yes, chiropractic is far more than mere pain relief.
Feeling good, staying healthy and doing the things that make us happy are what keeps us looking forward to each new day. Regular chiropractic care increase the quality of life and increase health and well being.

6. Decreased Incidence of Falling

Injuries due to falling are extremely common in the elderly population. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are responsible for 90% of the 850,000 bone fractures which occur annually among Americans past the age of 65. Chiropractors reduce the risk of falls by normalizing the mechanoreceptors of the cervical spine by administering chiropractic adjustments. They also prescribe stretching and exercise programs to increase strength, flexibility, mobility, balance and coordination.

7. Keeps Seniors Out of Nursing Homes

While studying at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, I had the opportunity of meeting the president Dr. Ian Coulter. Dr. Coulter was involved with many research projects studying the benefits of chiropractic care and exercise.
In 1996, he published an interesting study in the Journal, "Topics of Clinical Chiropractic" called "Chiropractic care for the Elderly."
The key points he noted in this study were:

* 44% of those who used chiropractic care reported having arthritis compared with 66% in the non-chiropractic care group

* those who used chiropractic care were more likely to do strenuous levels of exercise

* at three years follow-up, less than 5% of those who used chiropractic care lived in a nursing home while a staggering 48% of those who did not use chiropractic care did live in a nursing home

* at three years follow-up, only 26% of those who used chiropractic care were hospitalized compared with 48% of those in the non-chiropractic group

There is no need for seniors to suffer needlessly. Chiropractic provides amazing benefits and has an outstanding record of safety and effectiveness. Ask your family and friends for a chiropractor that they recommend. Take action now and make an appointment to see if chiropractic can help you!

Talking Chiropractic on the "Dr. Phil" Show

On the morning of Feb. 23, 2012, history was made when Dr. Fabrizio Mancini, a doctor of chiropractic and the president of Parker University in Dallas, Texas, and Dr. Patrick DeFazio, a Los Angeles doctor of chiropractic, were filmed for an upcoming episode of the "Dr. Phil" show at Paramount Studios in Hollywood, Calif.  

This was chiropractic's first appearance on the popular daytime talk show, which is broadcast on 220 television stations across the U.S. and in more than 40 countries worldwide. Nearly 21 million viewers tune in weekly to hear the advice given by Dr. Phil McGraw, a clinical psychologist with 25 years in practice, and the show's online presence is over 2 million unique viewers/followers per day.

The segment, which airs this Wednesday, March 14, began with Dr. Phil introducing Dr. Mancini as his chiropractor for 14 years and author of the book The Power of Self-Healing: Unlock Your Natural Healing Potential in 21 Days! This introduction set the stage for Dr. Mancini to talk about his book and the concepts of chiropractic. He stated that "the only way to truly fulfill your life potential is to fulfill your health potential." Dr. Mancini added that the difference between chiropractic and what he called the "sick care system" in the U.S. is that "we see patients as [people, not just diseases]."

Dr. Phil reinforced this notion, telling viewers, "I got chiropractic treatment from you [Dr. Mancini] 2 or 3 times a week." He went on to introduce his current personal chiropractor, Dr. DeFazio, who was given an opportunity to talk more about chiropractic and how it can, among other benefits, help relieve stresses on the body.
The show took an interesting turn when a man named Joe was introduced and came out in a wheelchair. Joe was only 5 years old when a drunk driver crashed into the family car, killing his father and sister, leaving both his legs paralyzed. It was clear that Joe was still very hurt and angry about the accident, particularly toward the woman who had caused him and his family so much pain.

After hearing Joe's story, Dr. Phil asked Dr. Mancini how he would approach Joe's situation using the concepts from his book. Dr. Mancini talked about the importance of chiropractic care for Joe, as well as the need to forgive the drunk driver. (At this point, the conversation addressed Joe's emotional and psychological issues, consistent with the typical focus of the program.)

As the show wound down, Dr. Phil thanked both Dr. Mancini and Dr. DeFazio for taking care of him over the years. He then thanked the audience and let them know they would each receive a copy of Dr. Mancini's book, which elicited a huge cheer from the audience.

After the show, a number of people working on the set asked about how to find a local chiropractor or remarked how much they had learned about the value of chiropractic. This was in addition to the many members of the audience who talked about chiropractic and asked Dr. Mancini to autograph their copy of his book.
This was an important positive event for chiropractic. The audience heard about chiropractic, the wellness philosophy and that Dr. Phil sees his doctor of chiropractic more than once a week. They were also taught that chiropractic can play a role in the health of everyone, including someone who is paralyzed. With its March 14 airing, a global audience will have the opportunity to learn about the power of chiropractic care.

Car Accidents and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Brought to you by: Mendez Chiropractic Center

When you woke up today, you thought this was like any other Monday. You’re on your way to work, and traffic is flowing smoother than normal.  Suddenly, someone crashes into the back end of your car and you feel your head extend back over the headrest and then rebound forwards, almost hitting the steering with your forehead. It all happened so fast. After a few minutes, you notice your neck and head starting to hurt in a way you’ve not previously felt.   When the police arrive and start asking questions about what had happened, you try to piece together what happened but you’re not quite sure of the sequence of events.  Your memory just isn’t that clear. Within the first few days, in addition to significant neck and headache pain, you notice your memory seems fuzzy, and you easily lose your train of thought. Everything seems like an effort and you notice you’re quite irritable. When your chiropractor asks you if you’ve felt any of these symptoms, you look at them and say, "…how did you know? I just thought I was having a bad day – I didn’t know whiplash could cause these symptoms!" 

Because these symptoms are often subtle and non-specific, it’s quite normal for patients not to complain about them. In fact, we almost always have to describe the symptoms and ask if any of these symptoms “sound familiar” to the patient.

As pointed out above, patients with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) don’t mention any of the previously described symptoms and in fact, may be embarrassed to discuss these symptoms with their chiropractor or physician when they first present after a car crash.  This is because the symptoms are vague and hard to describe and, many feel the symptoms are caused by simply being tired or perhaps upset about the accident.  When directly asked if any of these symptoms exist, the patient is often surprised there is an actual reason for feeling this way.

The cause of MTBI is due to the brain actually bouncing or rebounding off the inner walls of the bony skull during the “whiplash” process, when the head is forced back and forth after the impact. During that process, the brain which is suspended inside our skull, is forced forwards and literally ricochets off the skull and damages some of the nerve cells most commonly of either the brain stem (the part connected to the spinal cord), the frontal lobe (the part behind the forehead) and/or the temporal lobe (the part of the brain located on the side of the head). Depending on the direction and degree of force generated by the collision (front end, side impact or rear end collision), the area of the brain that may be damaged varies as it could be the area closest to initial impact or, the area on the opposite side, due to the rebound effect. Depending on which part of the brain is injured, the physical findings may include problems with walking, balance, coordination, strength/endurance, as well as difficulties with communicating (“cognitive deficits”), processing information, memory, and altered psychological functions.

The good news is that most of these injuries will recover within 3-12 months but unfortunately, not all do and in these cases, the term, “post-concussive syndrome” is sometimes used.