With temperatures dipping, local trees have sprung to life in shades of yellow, orange, and red, while the cool autumn breeze has strewn the leaves on our lawns.  Before you suit up to go out and gather the colorful foliage, I have a few precautions for you to bear in mind.

Playing in the Leaves is Fun, Raking Can Be More than a Chore

Raking leaves is one of those one-sided, repetitive activities that could upset the usual, happy balance in our backs.  Muscles in our back fire in unison to maintain our posture and allow us to do work, but toil in a manner that overworks one side, and this could lead to a real stiff back.

• First, beware working predominantly on one side of the body, like when raking, digging, loading the dishwasher, placing groceries in your car, or putting a child into a car seat.  If you are raking or digging, try to periodically switch the side of your body, where you are working. If you are raking, specifically, alternate between raking front to back and side to side (across your body), to prevent any one group of muscles from fatiguing.
• Split loading activities like packing the car’s truck or bagging those colorful leaves into separate squatting and bending movements.  Avoiding motions that simultaneously twist and bend the low back can help you steer clear of back pain.  Bending and rotating at the same time puts the spine in a position of weakness and increases the chances of injury – this is the mechanism that leads to many disc injuries.
• When bending or lifting, bend your knees to lift with your legs.  The legs are the strongest muscles in your body and using the legs can save your back.

If you should happen to upset the delicate balance of muscles, joints, ligaments and tendons that allow for all our movements, remember I’m here at Matthews Chiropractic Center to help make everything work better again.  And, if just the thought of raking your leaves makes your back ache and pain-free is not your status quo, then chiropractic care could be your remedy.

It seems like it’s hard these days to select a dish soap, hand soap or household cleaner that doesn’t tout anti-bacterial properties.  Check the active ingredients and you will likely find triclosan.  This compound is very useful for eliminating germs in hospitals, but many worry that widespread use will hamper its efficacy and contribute to further antibacterial resistance^[1].  For regular household use, antibiotics in these products are unnecessary.  Washing our hands with soap and water alone has been shown to remove dirt and germs alike and is supported by the Mayo Clinic^[2].

Overuse of Antibiotics Leads to Ineffectiveness

Of course, antibiotics have there place and can be invaluable in countering bacterial infections, but increasingly, they are losing their effectiveness.  Stronger and stronger medications are needed as patients and their doctors are faced with growing numbers of antibiotic-resistant superbugs.  Reasons for this problem include, but are not limited to, the unnecessary use of antibiotics in household products, antibiotic prescriptions for non-bacterial infections, and the use of antibiotics in food animals.  Repeated overuse of antibiotics selects for more virulent, drug-resistant strains of the organisms that we are trying to eliminate.

When you shop for hand soap, bath soap, hand lotions, dishwashing detergents, surface cleaners, toothbrushes, linens, towels, children’s toys and more, try to select items that are free of antibacterial agents (and possibly even environmentally friendly).  Sometimes it can be hard to find soaps, cleaners, and household goods untainted by antibacterial agents, but if you look carefully you can find them…

Know Your Food

Now, another place where you might not expect to find antibiotics is in your meat products.  Commercially raised chickens, pigs, cattle, dairy cows, and others contain antibiotics in their feed as part of their normal diet.  Buying locally raised meat and chicken at a local farmers’ market is a good way to avoid antibiotics, as well as, growth hormone and other fillers.  Visit the Matthews Community Farmers’ Market on North Trade Street, in Downtown Matthews, NC for fresh, locally produced free-range eggs, pastured pork, grass-fed beef, produce, and more.  Come shop with your neighbors, support the local community, and save antibiotics for treating bacterial infections.

1. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol7no3_supp/levy.htm [↩]
2. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hand-washing/HQ00407 [↩]

Image by Adria Richards

Very often after reviewing x-rays where I have identified and measured postural imbalances, patients will ask how these changes could have come about.  They are curious why a hip is higher on one side, curvature in the low back is exaggerated, or the head is held forward.  Time and again I tell patients that have no history of an accident or injury that the position of their spine is largely related to their posture.  Sometimes the possible cause of a patient’s postural distortion is elusive and other times the cause is right before our eyes.

4 Common Causes of Postural Problems:

1. Side carrying

One cause of postural distortion is due to weight being carried more on one side of the body.  Common occurrences are carrying children on the hip, schlepping heavy pocket books and frequent use of heavy duffle bags and briefcases.  My best advice in these instances is to lighten the load when possible (I understand that children only grow), haul items in a neutral posture with chest/back carriers, backpacks or rolling luggage.  And when you have no choice but to sling over a shoulder, alternate shoulders while toting and lay the strap over the opposite shoulder (across the chest).

2. FWIRP – Fat Wallet in Rear Pocket

Ever notice on a pair of men’s jeans that one of the back pockets is stretched out or the material bears a faded, rectangular pattern.  If sitting with FWIRP can change denim this way, what is doing to our spines?

Imagine sitting all day long with a brick under one side of your backside.  The unleveling causes torsion (twisting) of the pelvis and the spine to bend sideways so we can keep sitting upright, instead of leaning.  These changes all happen automatically, so we are not even conscious of the changes taking place.  Now, a brick is an exaggeration for most, but illustrates how a thick wallet in your back pocket can affect the body.  Especially for desk workers and long distance drivers, slimming your wallet and storing it in your front pocket is a good way to avoid FWIRP syndrome.

3. Sleep Posture

If you are a side-sleeper and not using a pillow or cushion between your knees at night, then you are likely contributing to pelvic torsion.  While side-sleeping, if your top knee and leg are not resting on their counterparts below, then the knee is rotating forward, pulling the hip and pelvis into a twisted position.  Eight hours every night (hopefully) and it is easy to see how one hip might find itself higher than the other.  If you sleep side-lying, consider keeping your hips aligned with a pillow between your knees.

4. High Heels

I would be remiss if I failed to address this phenomenon.  Wearing high heeled shoes, especially over 2 inches and worn throughout the day, has a clear effect on low back posture.  Heels cause the pelvis to tilt forward and a corresponding increase in the low back curvature.  Reduce the effects of these changes by wearing shorter heels (2 inches or less) for less time.

So, hopefully you aspire to better posture and can find a way to incorporate some of the recommendations above.  If you have tried some of my suggestions and are still uncomfortable, please call Matthews Chiropractic Center at 704.841.3833 to schedule a consultation and exam.  Better spinal health could be just a call away.

With the summer upon us it’s a good time to review safety in the sun.  June was National Skin Cancer Awareness Month, but it’s never too late to start to protect your skin from the sun and its potentially harmful ultraviolet radiation.

Though the skin is our largest organ, it is often overlooked when we consider keeping healthy.  Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States and while skin cancers, particularly melanomas can be more aggressive, cancers of the skin are highly curable when detected early.  The most common forms of skin cancer rarely spread and can usually be treated successfully.  Still, the best medicine is prevention.

Protect Yourself from the Sun

Here are some quick tips for protecting yourself from the sun:

1. Seek shade, especially during midday hours (10am – 4pm) when the sun’s rays are strongest and the most potentially damaging.
2. Cover up with clothing instead of leaving skin exposed.
3. Wear a hat with a wide brim to shade your face, nose, head (scalp), ears, and neck.
4. Grab sunglasses that wrap, providing the most coverage, and as close to 100%  UVA and UVB protection as possible.
5. Apply sunscreen early and often.  Remember that sunscreen should absorb before exposure, so plan ahead, especially before going swimming.  Read labels and aim for UVA and UVB protection.

For the best possible protection, combine some of the tips above.  Enjoy your sunny, summer activities and stay healthy.  For more information, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website.

Runny nose; itchy, watery eyes; sneezing; itchy throat or nose… do these symptoms sound familiar? Well, for seasonal allergies, it’s that time of year again. Unfortunately, many of my patients are among the sufferers. And, most of those patient have mentioned how adjustments have helped them reduce sinus pressure, breathe easier, and generally cope with seasonal allergy symptoms. The recent regularity of these discussions prompted me to do a little digging (research, not yardwork… the pollen bothers me too) and share.

Make Breathing Easier

Easier breathing following chiropractic treatments in patients with asthma has been demonstrated for many years^[1][2]. The mode by which chiropractic helps those who suffer from seasonal allergies is more complicated. In the body, all of our involuntary functions, like breathing and digestion, are controlled by the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The ANS in turn is composed of two divisions, the sympathetic nervous system, credited with the fight or flight response, and the parasympathetic nervous system, which operates more when the body is calm and at rest.

Calm the Inflammation

Research on the causes of allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis (inflammation of the nose) indicate that an imbalance in the ANS is a factor^[3]. Just as histamine increases in response to higher concentrations of allergens (pollen, mold, grasses, etc.), the sympathetic nervous system can become over-excited (reacting to inflammation and irritation of the sinuses) by the same irritants^[4]. Certain levels of the spine correspond to the sinuses, and chiropractic adjustments to these areas can help to calm the over-stimulated nervous system response just as anti-histamine would help to reduce the body’s response to pathogens, but without the medication of course^[5]. The take home message being that adjustments don’t just help the spine move better, but areas related to certain spinal levels can see improvements as well.

Thank you Matthews Chiropractic Center patients who have shared their treatment benefits beyond the more common improvements in neck and back pain, headaches, and other spinal conditions. If you have question’s you would like me to answer just let me know.

1. Miller WD. Treatment of Visceral Disorders by Manipulative Therapy in The Research Status of Spinal Manipulative Therapy; 1975 Goldstein M, NINCDS Monograph, Bethesda: US Dept Of Health, Education and Welfare, pp295-301. [↩]
2. Hviid C. A Comparison of the Effect of Chiropractic Treatment on Respiratory Function in Patients with Respiratory Symptoms and Patients Without; Bul Eur Chiro Union; 1978; 26:17-34. [↩]
3. Editors. Autonomic abnormalities in asthma. Lancet;1982;1:1224-1225. [↩]
4. Korr IM. Sustained sympatheticotonia as a factor in disease. In: Korr IM, ed The neurobiologic mechanisms in manipulative therapy. New York, Plenum Press, 1978:229-268. [↩]
5. Patterson M. The spinal cord: participant in disorder. J Spinal Manip 1993;9(3):2-11. [↩]