Archive for November 2017
The Developing Spine: Unique Risk Factors Facing our Youth
Can you remember a time before back pain?
For many of us, it is a struggle just to keep the pain down, let alone achieve fulll range of motion in our spinal joints. But there was a time not long ago when we could do seemingly anything without even giving a thought to back pain. Chances are your kids are living through these halcyon days right now, blissfully unaware of how much strife back pain causes. Unfortunately, since the technology boom, our youth are facing more risk factors than ever when it comes to maintaining the health of their spines.
Sarcopenia Does Not Have to Define Your Life as a Senior
Why we should take the loss of muscle mass seriously
At some point in our thirties, we begin to lose muscle mass slowly but steadily. This process begins to accelerate as we reach seniority, between the ages of 65 and 75. Along the way, the rate of loss is affected by how active you are: in the beginning, muscle loss may be negligible for active people; for non-active people it can be as much as 3-5% each year. Losing muscle poses a threat to your well-being in the following ways:
- Contributes to frailty
- Makes us less able
- Increases vulnerability to injury
- Reduces our activity levels
Sciatica in Westwood
Sciatica is widespread in Westwood
Sciatica is a widespread condition that is experienced in wildly different ways by those affected. One person may experience burning, sharp and prickly pain while another may feel only a dull aching; one person may feel it only intermittently while the other has symptoms constantly. Other characteristics of sciatica include:
- Feelings of numbness in the extremities
- Radiating pain
- Lost range of motion
Sciatica is a symptom
Of nerve compression to be precise. The sciatic nerve is the longest and largest spinal nerve in the human body, which means that when it is put under pressure, the ripple effect can be enormous. As we age, our spines are more likely to move out of alignment. This may not cause you any problems until it starts to impinge on the sciatic nerve; we implore you not to let it reach this point. Chiropractic is as much about prevention as it is about reactively treating pain. Maintaining spinal alignment But if you are already in the grips of sciatic nerve pain, read on to find out how we go about treating it.
Treating sciatica in Westwood
Restoring spinal alignment is the quickest way to start pushing back against sciatica. By returning the misaligned vertebral bodies to a state of balance, we alleviate compression from the nerves, immediately making a difference in your pain. We then focus on strengthening and stretching that muscles that matter to keep your spine aligned; in this way, we prevent sciatica from recurring. If you are interested in treating your sciatic nerve pain in a natural and efficient manner, give our office in Westwood a call to schedule an appointment today.
Successfully Treating Back Pain Begins with an Informed Decision
Too many traditional treatments are falling short when it comes to treating back pain
That is because so many of these treatments fail to address the complexity of the back pain phenomenon. Back pain is not simply the acute effect of an injury; it is a more interconnected biological experience that takes into account your biomechanical being, musculoskeletal health and neurochemistry. What’s more, so much of our health industry is focused on treating back pain reactively as time and again it is proven that the best way to treat back pain is through prevention.
Improving Your Spinal Health Through Awareness
The first step for improving spinal health is awareness
Awareness that this is the one and only spine you will get; awareness that every movement you make has an impact, for better or worse, on your spine. We often only become aware of our spine when our backs are in pain- this is indicative of a wider scale mentality in the health industry in America. Rather than focusing on prevention, we wait for pain, injury or illness to strike before we recognize something is wrong. At OFW Chiropractic, we want to flip this script and help you take charge of your spinal health today.