The Last Man Standing

By Dr. Dave Edenfield

Anyone who has ever suffered through the debilitating pain of a lower back injury understands the importance of maintaining a healthy back.  The problem is that automobile accidents and unexpected falls are not the only way in which to injure your lower back.  Sad to say it but the biggest cause of back injury has to do with an occupational hazard that is all too common: Sitting. 

Many of us work in offices or from home where our nine-to-five jobs require us to sit for eight or more hours at a time.  Especially if your business consists of working at a desk for most of the day, this can cause a great deal of strain on your lower back. The human body was never designed for extended sitting.  It was designed for bipedal motion required to hunt and gather food and flee from predators.  It was not created for being a couch potato. 

Worse still is the fact that many people go straight home after sitting for eight hours only to resume the position in front of a TV for another four hours.  It’s a wonder most people can walk at all.  The spine has a hard time dealing with the unnatural position that being seated creates.  Other than the added pressure to your disks and strain to e muscles created by forcibly bending your back when you sit, the electrical activity in your muscles also slows substantially.  What this leads to is a reduction in the muscles ability to burn fat and process blood sugar.  Over time this will affect your body’s ability to do simple things like walk and climb stairs. 

Because of these factors, sitting for long periods of time can lead to weight gain and bone loss, neither of which is going to help your back.  According to a report by the Surgeon General, up to one percent of bone mass can occur by sitting for as little as six hours per day. 

Adults can benefit from exercise as well. Studies show that spine loading exercise (e.g., rowing, upper-body lifting) increases bone density by 2% to 3%; use of a weighted vest combined with impact exercise increases hip BMD by 2% to 3% and also improves lower body strength, balance, and power; controlled impact exercises such as jumping increase hip BMD by 3%; and step aerobics and jumping increase spine and hip BMD by 1% to 2%. In some cases, these benefits can accrue with as little as 5 to 10 minutes of exercise, 5 days a week. That said, adults must continue exercising if they want to maintain these benefits. Studies show that adults lose 1% to 3% of bone mass within three to six months of ending an exercise regimen. As Dr. Snow noted, “if adults don’t use it (bone mass), they lose it.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK44683/

These Boots Were Made for Walking

When it comes to exercise, you don’t have to enroll in a gm.  Actually one of the best exercises for spine health is walking.  The spine is naturally designed for walking. This is where it is at its best. Simply going for a walk every day in the morning or after work can have tremendous benefits for your back.  Plus it can pay BIG dividends for your heart and weight as well.  This is one of the reasons that dog owners have fewer back issues.  They are forced to walk their pets several times each day.  As a result not only does Fido get a chance to answer nature’s call, but his or her owner also gets a chance to stretch their legs as well.

Speaking of stretching, another important factor in maintaining a healthy back is to stretch every day.  While some people are into Yoga and Tai Chi, both of which are excellent stretching routines, simple stretching of the calves, backs of the thighs and front of the legs can help to keep the back strong and flexible.  Stretching also helps your muscles avoid the shock of stressful activity.  (This is the main reason that athletes stretch before they engage in sports.)

 While chiropractic care can help you recover from back injuries, the best way to avoid going to the doctor’s office is the make subtle changes in your lifestyle that will help you keep your back happy and healthy.  This way when those around you succumb to the stresses of modern life, you can be the last man (or woman) standing.

Dr. Dave Edenfield  and Dr. Steven Warfield are part of the team of doctors and therapists at http://chiropractic-jacksonville-fl.com and http://endyourpain.org who are dedicated to helping you and your family lead  healthier, happier and pain-free lives. 

Leading a Well-Balanced Life

By Dr. Steven Warfield

When most of us talk about leading a well-balanced life we are usually referring to a healthy division of work and play.  It’s a remix of the old saw, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”  However, when a chiropractor talks about leading a well-balanced life, he or she is usually being literal in that a person’s sense of balance or lack thereof is vital to their overall health. 

While a sense of balance is something that most of us take for granted, what many people do not realize  is that the body’s ability to balance itself is part hard-wired and part learned.  Watch any infant take their first steps or observe a toddler trying to make its way across the room and you will get some idea of the fact that while all the mechanical elements are in place, the art of bipedal locomotion isn’t something that works right off the bat.  (This in itself seems strange, since many quadrupeds can not only walk, but run within hours of being born.)

Loss of balance many times can also come to those in later years.  Even though they have spent seventy or eighty years walking upright, all of a sudden they find themselves stumbling for no apparent reason, or they begin bumping into things.  If left to their own devices, these balance anomalies can result in tragic falls that can sometimes break bones. What’s even more tragic is the fact that if this loss of balance is reported early then many times more serious consequences can be avoided down the road.

A Balancing Act

To gain an understanding of what causes loss of balance it is important that you understand the fact that balancing on two legs is a complicated process that has many components. 

Wikipedia states that, “Balance is the result of a number of body systems working together: the eyes (visual system), ears (vestibular system) and the body's sense of where it is in space (proprioception) ideally need to be intact. The vestibular system, the region of the inner ear where three semicircular canals converge, works with the visual system to keep objects in focus when the head is moving. This is called the vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR). The balance system works with the visual and skeletal systems (the muscles and joints and their sensors) to maintain orientation or balance. Visual signals sent to the brain about the body's position in relation to its surroundings are processed by the brain and compared to information from the vestibular, visual and skeletal systems.”

If any one of these elements is impaired then it can affect the body’s ability to successfully navigate 

Vestibular System (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

from Point A to Point B.  Many times the symptoms that appear are subtle.  We’re not talking drunken 

sailors here.  Worse still is the fact that some of these symptoms are indicators of more serious health issues, while others are easily correctable.  While inner ear or vision abnormalities can be the root cause of loss of balance, the spine can also be to at the heart of balance issues. In the first place a healthy spine is the key to balance since all the mechanics of walking are carried via the spinal column.  Anything that interferes with nerve impulses can impede balance.  People with poor posture or low back pain don’t realize how the muscles, tendons, and ligaments control their ability to walk upright until they find themselves having trouble getting out of bed or they take a tumble after missing a step due to their spinal issues.  Any trauma to the lower back or spine can also severely hinder your sense of balance.

Toeing the Line

One of the simplest tests you can perform to see if your sense of balance is impaired is

US Navy 110520-N-ZK021-009 Master-at-Arms 2nd Class Jerry Cotter, left, from Belding, Mich., assigned to base security, performs a mock field sobri (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 to make like a traffic cop carrying out a field sobriety test.  Find a straight line on your carpet or tile floor and walk it, noticing if you start to diverge from the straight and narrow.  Next, stand still and then extend one leg forward and hold this position for a few seconds.  Then extend one leg sideways.  When you do this are you able to easily compensate as far as balance is concerned, or do you almost immediately begin to lose your balance?   If the cop insde you would not let you get back into your car if you were so impaired, then it’s time you admit to yourself that you need to seek professional help before you wind up as a statistic.

In 2002, the National Safety Council cited falling as the leading cause of injury related deaths in older adults. In fact, one third of the people, age 65 years and older, have at least one fall a year. In the United States, there are 35 million older adults, that calculates to more than 10 million falls a year in this country alone. The leading cause of sensory loss in older adults is Peripheral Neuropathy. Called the "silent" epidemic, Peripheral Neuropathy comes on so slowly that many people don't even notice the changes that are happening. Then the symptoms take hold and before you know it, the person takes a fall. http://edmontonchiropractor.com/2011/loss-of-balance/

Symptoms of balance disorders can include:

1.      Vertigo

2.      Sweating

3.      Ringing in the Ears

4.      Nausea

5.      Difficulty Speaking

6.      Bumping into Objects

7.      Disorientation

How Do You Restore Balance?

Currently there is no pill that can cure balance disorders or vertigo.  The only way to correct the problem is to identify the underlying causes.  Chiropractic treatment can help identify and treat many factors that can cause a loss of balance.  Treatment begins with an examination that can detect anomalies and imbalances of the spine.  Even if the root cause of the imbalance does not have its basis in the spinal column, a chiropractor can help pinpoint the problem.  Your chiropractor can also bring a number of treatments to bear including spinal alignments, exercise, diets and supplements that are designed to get to the bottom of your problems and help you reestablish a well-balanced life.

Dr.’s Steven Warfield and Dave Edenfield offer the most advanced treatments for back pain, sciatica, neck pain, whiplash and headaches. They also treat auto accident victims with state-of-the-art technologies.  For more information visit http://endyourpain.org or http://chiropractic-jacksonville-fl.com

The Human Body: A Structure That Would Make Any Architect Proud

By Dr. Dave Edenfield

When people discuss world famous architecture, the names of Frank Lloyd Wright, Antonio Gaudi and IM Pei come to mind since they are responsible for creating some of the most iconic buildings ever constructed.  Yet even these rock stars of the world of architecture would admit that when it comes to spectacular structures, nothing can compare to the human body.

Perhaps it’s due to the fact that we inhabit them that most people do not realize how truly incredible the human body really is.  So in order to provide you with a few benchmarks from which to compare, allow me to point out the following:

1.      If you measured all the paved and unpaved roads in the US you would discover that they total 4,058,347 miles.  That’s a pretty impressive number.  But that’s nothing compared to the number of neurons (100 billion) and synapses (100 trillion) in the brain. (Even more incredible is the fact that the supercomputer in your head operates on only 10-watts of power.)

2.      Speaking of highways, while the speed limit on most interstates is 80 mph, that is nothing compared to the speed at which nerve impulses travel through the brain.  (They move as fast as 170 MPH.)  If we could all travel that fast just think of how short that would make the typical morning commute.

3.      Just like the reciprocal engine in your car, the human heart fires on average 100,000 times per day while pumping 1,900 gallons of blood.  Best of all, you never have to change the oil or rotate the tires.

4.      Stomach acid is not only strong enough to digest food, its strong enough to dissolve razor blades. (Don’t try this at home kids.) Relying on hydrochloric acid to do the dirty work, what’s even more incredible is the fact that the stomach doesn’t digest itself.

5.      Your nose can remember 50,000 scents.  Don’t gloat, because a dog’s nose is close to a million times more sensitive than a human’s. Smells are also associated with everything from taste to memories.

6.      It takes 200 muscles to take a single step.  Pound for pound the strongest muscle in the human body is the tongue.  

7.      Your body gives off enough heat to bring a half gallon of water to boil in 30 minutes. This is chiefly due to the fact that it takes a considerable amount of calories to maintain our 98.6 degree body temperatures.  (It also gives a whole new meaning to the term hot-blooded.)

8.      Other than primates, koalas are the only other creatures on the planet with fingerprints.  While fingerprints are used in modern society as a form of identification, their true purposes are to improve both grip and tactile sensation. 

While I could go on and on about the incredible properties inherent in the human body, I think you get the point.  Although the majority of the body has the ability to heal itself (with the exception of the 

teeth), that doesn’t mean that any of us should neglect to keep it well fueled and maintained.  In fact, it’s the body’s innate propensity to adjust to its environment that can cause us to experience problems from time to time.  For instance, astronauts in orbit experience weightlessness.  This causes the body to begin to decalcify the bones, since they are not needed in orbit.  As a result, astronauts who remain in orbit for extended periods of time are forced to exercise for several hours daily.  Even then virtually all astronauts wind up with bone structures that take on the appearance of those of 70 year olds.

Of course, you don’ have to ride a booster into outer space to have the body begin to reconfigure itself.  All it takes is a bit of stress here and an imbalance or injury there to cause real problems.  Many people who spend their days toiling in front of a computer can experience the phenomenon known as head forward syndrome, which causes the head and shoulders to slump and the posture to appear decades older. This syndrome is caused by the muscles and other soft tissue attempting to adapt to a changing center of gravity caused by the unnatural head down position that many people assume when they read from a computer, laptop or tablet.

  

Likewise, many forms of neck and back pain are caused by the body making gradual adjustments over time to spinal column that while subtle can over time produce chronic and even debilitating conditions.  The architecture of the lower back is much more complicated than most people realize.  Spinal vertebrae along with their associated discs form a framework over which are attached the tendons, muscles and soft tissue.  All of these structures are controlled and monitored by a series of highly sensitive nerves that travel from the lower back down the legs and into the feet.  Damage to any of these structures can cause pain not only in the damaged areas, but this pain can also radiate to other parts of the body.  

If you or anyone you know is experiencing back or neck pain, have them talk to a doctor of chiropractic to discuss treatment options.  Like any building, a structure such as the human body  is only as strong as its foundation.

Dr. Dave Edenfield  and Dr. Steven Warfield are part of the team of doctors and therapists at http://chiropractic-jacksonville-fl.com and http://endyourpain.org who are dedicated to helping you and your family lead  healthier, happier and pain-free lives. 

Is There Light at the End of the Carpal Tunnel?

Dr. Steven Warfield

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) is another debilitating malaise of the modern age.   The condition wasn’t even reported until the late 1880’s and the first surgery performed to correct it wasn’t until 1933.  This repetitive stress injury which was literally borne of the industrial revolution is still alive and well in today’s technological age.  Literally anyone who uses a computer, hand tools or works on an assembly line can succumb to this painful condition.  Studies have also linked CTS to everything from rheumatism and arthritis, to diabetes, hypothyroidism, menopause and pregnancy.

While the causes of the affliction are many, the underlying problem centers on the bones of the wrist (named carpals) which form a tunnel through which the median nerve travels from the forearm to the hand.  Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is any injury pertaining to this area of the body.  While most people who have CTS only experience it in one wrist, some people have both wrists involved. 

Everyone from hairstylists and dental hygenists to electricians, roofers, golfers and tennis players can experience Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Caused predominantly by repetitive tasks (such as using a computer keyboard or mouse), symptoms can

English: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. Animated explanation. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 include everything from pain or numbness in the index, middle finger and thumb, to tingling in the hand or pain that radiates from the wrist to the arm.  It can also cause sufferers to lose fine muscle control in their hands, causing them to have problems gripping objects.  Once CTS takes hold, the condition can be further aggravated by continuing the repetitive motions that caused it in the first place.  This in turn causes swelling in the tendons of the wrist which then pinch the nerve in the carpal tunnel.  While many people combat the discomfort of CTS with pain killers, if left untreated the syndrome can become so acute that surgical intervention can be the only solution.

Signs of CTS:

1.      Being awakened in the dead of night by painful tingling in the hands.

2.      Daytime tingling in the hands.

3.      Inability to hold objects.

4.      Loss of strength in the hands or thumbs.

5.      Shooting pain radiating from the hand up the arm.

Can Chiropractic Care Cure CTS?

Any chiropractic treatment for CTS will be based on the severity of the condition.  Along with adjustment and manipulation of the hand, wrist and forearm, chiropractic treatment for CTS can also 

A rigid splint can keep the wrist straight. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

include joint and soft tissue manipulation of the shoulder and neck along with a regimen of exercises of the neck, arm and hand.  (Arm, wrist and finger stretches before beginning repetitive tasks are highly recommended.)  Your chiropractor can also recommend dietary supplements and vitamins that are known to reduce inflammation. Massaging the area and putting ice on your wrist may also help alleviate the symptoms.  Immobilization of the affected wrist(s) may also be recommended while you sleep.

Women are more than twice as likely to develop CTS as men.  People in their 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and 60’s are most vulnerable to contracting CTS.

Most importantly, your chiropractor can also help you modify your environment to minimize the factors that tend to aggravate the condition.  If your computer keyboard or mouse is to blame, there are modifications that can be made to your system, including a padded wrist rest or an adjustable keyboard table.

Above all, the most important factor to seeing the light at the end of the Carpal Tunnel is to take corrective action and seek treatment before the condition completely derails your active lifestyle. 

  Dr.’s Steven Warfield and Dave Edenfield offer the most advanced treatments for back pain, sciatica, neck pain, whiplash and headaches. They also treat auto accident victims with state-of-the-art technologies.  For more information visit http://endyourpain.org or http://chiropractic-jacksonville-fl.com

This FM Doesn't Play the Tunes You Like to Hear

by Dr. Dave Edenfield

Fibromyalgia otherwise known as FM is a painful condition that affects the muscles and soft tissues of the body.  Afflicting some 5.8 million Americans, everything from chronic muscle pain to joint stiffness, fatigue and sleep related disorders can be attributed to this syndrome. Many sufferers report localized tenderness, difficulty swallowing and even bladder and bowel complications.  While the exact cause of this malady is unknown, there is evidence that everything from environmental factors and psychological issues to genetic predisposition and neurological factors can be at the heart of FM.

Affecting nine times as many women as men, those who experience the condition may not even be

English: The location of the nine paired tender points that comprise the 1990 American College of Rheumatology criteria for fibromyalgia. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

aware they have FM due to the fact that symptoms often overlap with other maladies and/or diseases.  Most commonly it presents itself as body-wide pain and tenderness in the joints, muscles, and tendons.  Those who suffer from FM sometimes liken it to experiencing a toothache over their entire body. 

“In a study of 94 adolescents with JFM and 33 healthy controls, researchers found that symptoms in patients persisted into adulthood in more than 80% of cases. Data also show that more than half of the JFM patients met American College of Rheumatology criteria for adult fibromyalgia within 6 years, at a mean age of 21 years. Compared with controls, JFM patients had significantly more pain, worse physical function, more anxiety, more depression, and more medical visits at 6-year follow-up, and only 14 of the 94 patients were free of pain.” 

While this syndrome has been known for at least three hundred years, it wasn’t even recognized by the American Medical Association as an affliction until 1987.  In fact the disorder is still hotly debated to this day, especially among physicians, many of whom point out that there is still no definitive test that can categorically diagnose FM  However those who suffer from fibromyalgia know all too well how debilitating the condition can be.

What is known is that a number of other conditions can be associated with this syndrome, including depression, hypothyroidism, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, physical or emotional trauma, sleep disorders, arthritis and even Lyme disease.  While the syndrome is often considered to be related to arthritis, it does not cause joint or muscle inflammation as does arthritis.  However, it can cause significant pain and has been known to interfere with a sufferer’s lifestyle.

Turning Down the Music

Unlike other strictly physical conditions such as arthritis or carpal tunnel syndrome, FM has a strong association with the central nervous system. As such a person so afflicted tends to have a heightened nervous system response that produces many of the syndromes symptoms. .  (A recent discovery is that many people with FM have an overabundance of a chemical in their cerebrospinal fluid that transmits pain.) While science continues to strive to better understand fibromyalgia, those afflicted are interested in stopping the pain.  

Traditional medicine relies for the most part on a combination of analgesics and Non-steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) to relieve the symptoms.  While affective over the short term, the long term use over-the-counter analgesics can cause stomach irritation, while long term use of NSAIDs has been known to adversely affect kidney function. For more on this go to http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_info/Fibromyalgia/default.asp#e

Diagnosing FM

Of course, before FM can be treated it needs to be diagnosed.  To do so, chiropractors will typically perform a physical assessment that will take into consideration a patient’s spinal alignment, along with the 18 pain points typically associated with the syndrome.  Those who have fibromyalgia will usually experience pain when much less pressure is applied to some or all of these spots.  It is this heightened sensation of pain that is a real clue that FM might be to blame for a patient’s discomfort.  (Studies have shown that those with FM have anomalies with the production of neurotransmitters or even in some cases of nerve growth.)

Based upon the chiropractor’s evaluation, treatment begins by first correcting any spinal misalignments that can cause central nervous dysfunction.  Add to this other healing therapies such as massage, cold laser treatment, along with exercises and possible alterations in diet. Once the pain has been reduced, your chiropractor will also address any other problems you are experiencing such as fatigue or sleep-related problems and/or depression. 

Worst of all is the fact that FM can go untreated for years because of misdiagnosis.  More than half of those misdiagnosis result in needlessly invasive treatments such as surgery, most of which provide little or no relief.  One of the reasons that so many fibromyalgia patients suffer needlessly has to do with the fact that the disorder affects every patient differently.  If you feel you or someone you know has FM, make an appointment to see your local chiropractor as soon as possible.  Especially if you or they have been to other physicians who do not recognize or know how to treat this debilitating syndrome, the best way to turn down the volume on FM is to find someone who knows this tune by heart.

Dr. Dave Edenfield  and Dr. Steven Warfield are part of the team of doctors and therapists at http://chiropractic-jacksonville-fl.com and http://endyourpain.org who are dedicated to helping you and your family lead  healthier, happier and pain-free lives.