Compass Chiropractic

Back pain is a big problem and a complicated problem.  Like most things there is not a simple solution to this problem that costs consumers 30 billion dollars in 2007.  For most people curing their back pain involves a number of modalities and lifestyle modifications, one change that is not commonly discussed in the treatment of back pain is the the relationship that food has with this pain.

How can food help low back pain?

The pain that you experience when you have back pain is due to inflammation.  This inflammation can be caused by repetitive stress to the muscles and joints or could be due to a single event.  Inflammation plays an important role in the healing process, but it often continues beyond its helpfulness. Food can aide in decreasing this unhealthy inflammatory response by removing the elements that create the inflammation.  Just as there are food that can aide in fighting inflammation there are also foods that can increase inflammation see the list below for food to eat and foods to stay away from.

Below is a list of foods you should eat more of to prevent and help treat back pain:

• Cherries. One study showed that drinking 12 ounces of tart cherry juice twice a day for eight days reduced muscle pain and strain. Fresh or canned tart cherries are also helpful.
• Olive oil
• Canned salmon, sardines packed in water or olive oil, mackerel, albacore tuna, flaxseed, and walnuts—all good sources of omega-3 fatty acids
• Vegetable protein (such as soy)
• Vegetables and fruits of every hue (canned or frozen are fine, as long as they’re not packed in heavy syrup or loaded with salt)
• Nuts of all kinds
• Green tea
• Ginger. Try steeping a bit of grated root in boiling water for tea.

Here is a list of foods to stay away from:

• Certain vegetable oils such as corn, safflower, sunflower, cottonseed, or “mixed” vegetable oils
• Margarine and vegetable shortening
• Processed foods
• Products containing high-fructose corn syrup
• Foods high in saturated fat, including meat, tropical oils, and full-fat dairy products
• Foods made with trans fats

We’ve all been in a confined space with someone who is talking entirely to loud on their cell phone, and if you’re anything like me you get extremely annoyed in these situations.  I like to think that I follow a live and let live philosophy, but this is one situation where I’m not the bigger person.  Well, according to a new study from Cornell University I’m no the only one and there is a good reason for my inability to ignore these conversations.

Researchers asked subjects to listen to two types of conversations: one where they could hear both people talking and another where they could only hear one side of the conversation.  They found that listening to half of a conversation required much more concentration and therefore was more distracting.  Listening to the one-sided conversation took more concentration because the brain  attempts to figure out what the other person is saying.

Personally I would be happy if cell phone conversations were treated like smoking; not inside especially if people are eating.  Next time your phone rings in a crowded room, think of all the brain power you will be draining from the room with you one-sided conversation and maybe let it go to voicemail.

In recent years the level of competition in high school athletics has dramatically increased and with this new level of competition has come an increase in the number of injuries.  Injuries are not only painful but can be demoralizing causing a negative impact on grades, attitude, health and potential scholarships.  Once an injury has occurred there is a lot we can do to rehabilitate the athlete, but they will most likely be out of the game for at least four to six weeks, which is an eternity for a high school athlete.

For years chiropractic has been used by college and professional teams to not only treat injuries but to keep athletes at their peak in order to prevent injuries.  The following is a list of a few athletes who use Chiropractic: all 32 NFL teams, most NBA and NHL teams, Tiger woods, Michael Jordan, Maurice Jones (video), Barry Bonds, Joe Montana, Wade Boggs, Mark McGuire, Arnold Schwartzenegger, Charles Barkley, Evander Holyfield, John Smoltz, Trevor Hoffman, Irving Fryar, Fred Funk, Jose Canseco, Dan O’Brien (video) and the U.S. Olympic Team all use chiropractic care.

Chiropractic has been shown to increase athletic performance and prevent injuries.  High school athletes face increasing demands on their bodies along with a developing skeletons, which make them more susceptible to injuries. Chiropractic can help these athletes as they develop by correcting any spinal misalignment and balancing muscle function.

We have helped a number of high school athletes with injuries they have sustained and helped them prevent injuries in the future.  We have an Athletic Trainer on staff that has worked with the majority of IU teams, to learn more about her click here.

To learn more about the sports injuries we treat at our office click here.

August was a very exciting month for all of us here at Compass.  We added not only a new team member, but  a new service for our patients.  With the addition of Katie we now have the ability to provide comprehensive functional rehabilitative care for our patients.

Our patients know that our focus is to not only help them get well, but stay well.  In order to accomplish this goal it is important to make sure our patients have the tools they need to be self sufficient once they finish with care.  Lifestyle modification, at home exercise and stretching programs are part of this process.  Katie works with our patients to determine their particular goals and develops an program that will help them accomplish their goals.  She may start with something as simple as teaching a patient to relearn how to breathe or squat correctly using an exercise ball.  These initial steps are crucial in building a good foundation for future progress. If your nice she might even let you play on the Wii Fit.

Here is a little information about Katie

Katie Culver is originally from Evansville, IN and graduated from Indiana University with a degree in Athletic Training. Her time at IU provided experience with both Bloomington high schools as well as seven of IU’s varsity sports teams. She was additionally a member of Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. After graduating, Katie worked for two years in Ohio doing Christian ministry and moved to Indianapolis in June of 2009. She worked for one year with a not-for-profit in Indianapolis before beginning with Compass. Katie loves helping others and finds great joy in assisting in the recovery and rehabilitation of each Compass patient.

The long-term use of oral bisphosphonate drugs for osteoporosis such as Actonel, Boniva, and Fosamax may be associated with a doubling in esophageal cancer risk according to a recent study from Oxford University.  Patients taking these drugs over  a five year period were twice and likely to develop esophageal cancer. The risk for developing esophageal cancer is 1/1000 for the general public and 2/1000 for patients taking these medications.  Two in every thousand doesn’t sound too bad, but 2000/100,000 vs 1000/100,000 does.  Researchers from this study still maintain that the benefits outweigh the risks, but I’m not convinced.

If the use of these medications to develop bone mass was our only option then I might be able to appreciate the risk/benefit argument, but there are other alternatives to these medications that should be explored before taking a medication that doubles the risk of cancer.

What is the cause of osteoporosis?

There are a number of factors that are thought to be associated with osteoporosis, but the most common is genetic.  This model is advantageous to the companies who manufacture these drugs because it promotes the notion that osteoporosis is out of your control and the only way to prevent your skeleton from disintegration is to take one of these medications.  SNL did a great parody of drug commercials for osteoporosis that you can see at Hulu.com by clicking here.

Genetics do play a role in our bone structure, but there are other factors that we can control which will prevent bone loss, namely inflammation.  When we think of inflammation we typically think of acute inflammation that we experience following an injury or a trauma.   Acute inflammation is one type of inflammation, but we can also experience chronic systemic inflammation (CSI).  CSI occurs throughout the body at a much lower level than acute inflammation and often goes unnoticed because it is not painful.

How does inflammation related to osteoporosis?

Bone is a very valuable resource to the body.  One of its functions is to decrease the acidity of the internal environment of the body.  When the body becomes inflamed, the acidity increases or lowers the pH.  The body wants to do everything it can to keep the the pH at neutral, so it pulls calcium from the bones to “cool” the systemic inflammation.

How do we prevent chronic systemic inflammation?

This is a big topic and will be discussed in the second part of this series.