Disc Herniation's

What can be done to help with a Disc Herniation?

A recent research study reviewed records from 1,450 patients in the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation database who had diagnoses of disc degeneration, disc herniation or radiculopathy, a nerve condition that causes tingling and weakness of the limbs. Half of the patients had surgery to fuse two or more vertebrae in hopes of curing low back pain. The other half had no surgery, even though they had comparable diagnoses.

After two years, just 26 percent of those who had surgery had actually returned to work. That’s compared to 67 percent of patients who didn’t have surgery. In what might be the most troubling study finding, researchers determined that there was a 41 percent increase in the use of painkillers, specifically opiates, in those who had surgery.

“The study  provides clear evidence that for many patients, fusion surgeries designed to alleviate pain from degenerating discs don’t work”, says the study’s lead author Dr. Trang Nguyen, a researcher at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine.

So if surgery is not that effective for correcting a Disc Herniation what are some of the alternatives?

·         Medications- such as NSAIDs, pain killers, and muscle relaxers.

·         Injections-Steroid injections into the back in the area of the herniated disk may help control pain for several months. Such injections reduce swelling around the disk.

·         Non Surgical Spinal Decompression and Life Style Modification.

Medications and Injections definitely have their place in treating musculoskeletal conditions such as Disc Herniation’s because they can reduce soft tissue swelling around the Disc.  They can also give relief to patients in which the pain is unbearable.  The problem is this only masks the pain and without any outside correction will lead to further injury.  This is why at my practice for this condition I recommend Non Surgical Spinal Decompression along with life style modification (losing weight, exercising, proper ergonomics etc.)

What is Spinal Decompression you ask?  Decompression is a form of therapy that relieves pressure that builds up on the discs and nerves. The task of relieving pain comes about as a result of drawing areas of herniated disc back into place.

Decompression achieves this by creating negative pressure within the disc, referred to as negative intra-discal pressure. This creates essentially a vacuum to draw the bulging and herniated disc material back into the disc space and relieves pressure.  As the ligaments that hold disc material in place become stretched or torn due to bulging and herniation, decompression strengthens the ligament bands that hold the disc material in place to heal & prevent future recurrence.  The Decompression Table is computerized and the procedure is relatively pain free with many patients falling asleep due to the relief they feel during the procedure.

In most cases the healing process requires only a few weeks of treatment on an out-patient basis. Patients come to us to return to a normal pain free life.  While no treatment is full proof and Disc Herniation’s can take months or even years to heal.  Spinal Decompression offers patients a better non-invasive alternative from traditional surgery to correct  Disc Herniation’s.

Grains Inflame Part 2

6. Grains aren’t good for your joints.

Due to their inflammatory nature, grains – even   whole grains – are linked to joint pain and arthritis.     Grain’s amino acid composition mirrors that of the soft tissue in your joints.   Because both synovial tissue and grains are chemically similar, your body has difficulty differentiating between the two.   So, when your immune cells get all hot and bothered by inflammation caused by grain and begin to attack it as a foreign invader, they also begin to attack the soft tissue in your joint – leading to pain, autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and, of course, more inflammation.

7. Poorly Prepared Grains prevent mineral absorption.

When improperly prepared as they most often are, grains can inhibit vitamin and mineral absorption.   Grains contain substances like phytic acid which binds up minerals and prevents proper absorption.   Essentially, though your diet might be rich in iron, calcium and other vital nutrients if you eat improperly prepared grain, you’re not fully absorbing nutrients from the foods you eat.   However, please note that souring, sprouting and soaking grains neutralizes phytates and renders the nutrients in grain more absorbable.

8. Grains are bad for your teeth.

Due to those high levels of phytates in grain, grain is linked to dental decay.   With high levels of mineral-blocking phytic acid coupled with low mineral absorption rates and plenty of starches for bacteria to feed on, grain contributes to dental decay.   Anthropological records of our pre-agricultural ancestors indicates very little to no tooth decay; however, that changed after the dawn of agriculture.   Indeed, some anthropologists use the presence of tooth decay is an indicator of an agricultural society.

9. Grains aren’t good for your skin either.

Grains have a very high carbohydrate content, and while the carbohydrates in grain are complex they are still broken down into sugars nonetheless. These sugars instruct your body to produce more insulin and insulin-like growth factor (IFG-1).   Elevated insulin levels lead to a cascading hormonal response and these hormones activate the sebum-producing glands in your skin – encouraging them to produce more oil.   IFG-1 is also linked with the increased production of keratinocytes which also contribute to acne.

10. Eating grain makes you crave grain.

You know how the smell of bread creates a longing in.  Or consider a plate of cookies set in front of you.   Foods rich in carbohydrates give you quick energy, but that energy wears off just as quickly as it came. Since grains break down into sugar, they create a rise in insulin levels when those levels fall you crave more grains and, thus, the vicious cycle continues.

Why You Should Go Grain-free Part 1

Why You Should Go Grain-free Part 1

1. If you can get it from grain, you can get it elsewhere.

The big heroes of most grains’ nutrient profile are dietary fiber and B vitamins.   Take heed, every grain is different and different grains offer different nutrient profiles.   Yet, one thing remains constant: if you can find the nutrient in grain, you can find the nutrient in better quantities in other foods. For example, 100 grams of whole wheat flour contains 44 mcg of folate; however, a 100-gram portion of lamb liver will give you 400 mcg of folate and a 100-gram portion of yardlong beans will give you a whopping 658 mcg per 100-gram portion.   Similarly with the B Vitamins niacin and thiamin, while a 100-gram whole wheat flour contains 30% of the RDA for niacin and 32% of the RDA for thiamin, you can find these nutrients in higher quantities in other foods – namely flaxseeds and sesame seeds.   Whole grains are often touted as health foods for their fiber content, but you can find dietary fiber in better quantities in other, more nutrient-dense foods.   For example: 100 grams of cooked brown rice offers up 1.8 grams of dietary fiber; by contrast, a 100-gram serving of cooked collard greens offers 2.8 grams; 100 grams of raw fireweed contains a whopping 11 grams of dietary fiber and even green peas contain about 5 grams of fiber per serving.

2. Grains aren’t good for your gut.

Intestinal health is critical to your overall health.   If you’re gut isn’t healthy, you can’t absorb nutrients from the foods you eat.   If you can’t absorb nutrients from the foods you eat, your body is malnourished and is more prone to disease.   Grains are associated with a condition called leaky gut syndrome.   Tiny particles of grains, when ingested, can slip through the intestinal walls causing an immune response.   With your immune system excessively taxed by constantly attacking these out-of-place particles of grain, it cannot effectively fight against true threats like pathogens.

3. You’re probably gluten-intolerant.

If you’re white, there’s a good chance that you’re gluten-intolerant to some degree.   Current research estimates that about 1% of the population suffers from celiac disease, an auto-immune condition related to the ingestion of gluten-containing grains like wheat and barley; however, some researchers on celiac disease and gluten intolerance estimate that 30% to 40% of people of European descent are gluten-intolerant to some degree.   That’s a lot of people who are regularly consuming a food that makes them sick.

4. Grains cause inflammation.

Due to a high starch content, grains are inflammatory foods.   The more refined the grain, the more inflammatory it is.   For example, unbleached white flour is more inflammatory than whole grain flour; however, whole grains are still moderately inflammatory foods and certainly more inflammatory than other foods like fresh vegetables and wholesome fats.   Chronic inflammation is linked to a myriad of degenerative, modern diseases including arthritis, allergies, asthma, cardiovascular disease, bone loss, emotional imbalance and even cancer.   Unbleached white flour earns an inflammation factor of -421 or strongly inflammatory on NutritionData.com while whole wheat flour earns an inflammation factor of -247 or moderately inflammatory.   Similarly, whole cooked millet earns an inflammation factor of -150 and cooked brown rice earns an inflammation factor of -143 – also moderately inflammatory.

5. Grains are fairly new on the scene.

While still a traditional food, grains are, nonetheless, the new kids on the block.   Prior to the advent of agriculture, humans relied on hunting and gathering for their foods.   They foraged for wild greens, berries, fruits and other plants.   They hunted wild animals.   They fished for wild fish.   They didn’t plant a garden, or grow any amber waves of grain or, for that matter, drink dairy from domesticated animals since there simply wasn’t any domesticated animals.   Humans survived like this from the development of the appearance of the first homo sapiens sapiens about 47,000 years ago to the advent of agriculture some 10 – 12,000 years ago. So, for the better part of human existence grains did not comprise any notable portion of the human diet. In essence, what has become the bulk of our modern diet was missing from the diet of our prehistoric ancestors.

New PIP Law

In early 2012, Florida Legislature made sweeping changes to the Florida’s no-fault automobile insurance law at the urging of Governor Rick Scott.  Most significant were changes to the personal injury protection (PIP) component of your coverage that protects you should you be the victim of an auto accident.  While all Florida drivers will still be required to carry PIP coverage, the new law signifacantly alter how you will be able to seek and obtain medical care for your injuries following an accident. 

New Time Limit

Unlike the current law which allows a patient to seek treatment for injuries following an accident with no time frame,  the new law only gives a patient 14 days to file a claim to use their PIP coverage.  If you do not file a claim within this time frame you loose your right to use PIP coverage to cover your health care.

Changes in Coverage and Treatment

While you will continue to be required to carry and pay for insurance premiums for a full $10,000 of PIP coverage, in certain situations you may only be entitled to up to a $2,500 reduced benefit.  The new law requires you have a determination of an “emergency medical condition” to gain access to the previously normal $10,000 in PIP coverage.  This could cause problems as a normal hospital visit can run through your benefits quickly if there in only $2,500 in benefits now available.  You still have direct access to a chiropractor however PIP coverage no longer covers massage therapy and accupuncture.  This also could be an issue as alternative medicine is no longer redaly available to auto accident victims.  This could unfortunetly lead to more people seeking drugs and pain management first.

Impact to Your Insurance Premiums

While the Legislature’s stated goal of these benefit reductions is to attack fraud and reduce costs, there is no requirement within the new law that inusurance companises reduce costs for these newly reduced benefits.  Carriers were asked to consider a 10% reduction in premiums by their rate fillings in October 2012 however, the majority chose not to comply.  You may want to monitor your renewal premiums closely this year, as we have heard from several patients their rates actually have increased despite the insurance companies not having to pay for the same coverage.

When The New Law is to Take Effect

The major changes take effect January 1, 2013.  You can expect a lot of controversy over the interpretation of this new law because of its vagueness and because it has potential to decrease your PIP coverage by 75%.

Neck Pain and Arthritis

When we say the word “arthritis,” many images pop up in our heads. Some people think of crippled hands or perhaps Mr. Smith who talks about his bad hip being, “…bone on bone!” Or, how about the neighbor who has a bum knee and walks with a limp and a cane? Rarely do we think about the neck being associated with “arthritis.”

Before we go too far into this discussion, we should define the term, “arthritis,” which means joint (“arth-“) swelling (-itis). Simple enough, right? Wrong! Without getting too complicated, we must realize there are MANY different types of arthritis such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, gouty arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, etc. To narrow this down a bit, we will limit our discussion to osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative joint disease.

Degenerative joint disease or DJD, is the most common type of arthritis that EVERYONE eventually ends up with – whether we like it or not. That’s because, over time, our joints wear out and become “arthritic.” While it’s true that weight bearing joints wear out quicker (like hips and knees more so than elbows and shoulders), DJD can affect any joint. There are many causes of DJD, including a genetic or hereditary tendency but the most common cause is wear and tear over a long period of time. Of course, the rate of acquiring DJD in the neck (or anywhere else for that matter) is directly related to how “nice” we have been to our body, in this case, the neck. For example, after a car accident, a common injury to the neck is whiplash. This occurs because we literally cannot control the speed of the head as it rapidly moves forwards and backwards upon impact and it’s all over within 600-800 milliseconds! Since we can’t voluntarily contract a muscle that fast and when joints move beyond their normal stretch length, the ligaments – those non-elastic, tough tissues that securely holds bone to bone – will only “give” so much and then tear, which is technically called a “sprain.” This leads to an accelerated rate of degeneration.


Blood tests are negative with DJD (unlike many of the other types of arthritis), and an x-ray can help determine how “arthritic” the joint is and whether the smooth, silky ends of the joint (called hyaline cartilage) are worn down and if bony spurs are present. In the neck, DJD can create a lot of symptoms which may include pain and stiffness, especially in the mornings after laying still and not moving during the night. After we get up and move around, “…it loosens up.” As the condition advances, neck movements become tight and restricted with pain, which further limits movement, and sooner or later, the patient must rotate their whole body to look to the side. If the arthritis hits or bumps into a nerve as it exits the cervical spine, neck soreness, and numbness/tingling may radiate down an arm, at times to the hand, usually only affecting certain fingers. Headaches, especially in the back of the head, can also occur from the reflex muscle “splinting” due to the pain associated with arthritis. As Dr. Peter Ulrich, MD points out (http://www.spine-health.com/conditions/arthritis/cervical-osteoarthritis-neck-arthritis) chiropractic adjustments, “…help control chronic symptoms or provide relief for more severe episodes of pain from osteoarthritis.”

We at Heathrow Chiropracticrealize that you have a choice in where you choose your healthcare services. If you, a friend or family member requires care for neck/arm pain, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services and look forward in serving you and your family presently and, in the future.

Are all Supplements Created Equal?

Supplement Quality--What's the Deal?

In the United States alone there are approximately 1,000 supplement manufacturers. These companies can be anything from a mom and pop operation putting raw materials into capsules in a garage to a multimillion dollar lab with high tech equipment comparable to some of the large pharmaceutical companies. And there's no government regulation of the supplement world. This often leads the consumer to question the purity and manufacturing process of what they see on the shelves, as they should. All supplements are definitely not created equal. But just because the government doesn't regulate the supplement industry (which is good, because they would probably make it worse) doesn't mean the industry doesn't have some internal regulation.

I now direct you to the Natural Products Association, a company that, among other things, has a "Good Manufacturing Process" seal of approval available to supplement companies that pay to have their labs audited. If the supplement company goes for it, and passes, they get to put the "GMP" stamp of approval on their products. I already mentioned that there are 1,000, give or take, supplement companies in the U.S. There are only 77 companies that have made it through the process and sport the GMP label.

And of the 77 that have made it that far, only one company can claim that they also, in fact, manufacture actual pharmaceuticals, and therefore have inspectors and auditors of various natures in their facilities on a very regular basis. And that supplement company is Anabolic Labs--the guys I deal with.  Not just because of their level of quality; their actual line of products is congruent with my thinking about what people need less of: inflammation. They're making it easy these days by putting 30 day packages together of the four supplements I think most people should take: vitamin D, magnesium, fish oil, and a multivitamin that contains no iron (more on that in a future post). The clinical results from a low inflammatory diet (more on that, too) and the addition of the aforementioned supplements can be impressive.

I'm not telling you not to take the stuff they sell at your corner vitamin/supplement store, I'm just telling you to be aware that there are quality control measures in place. There are some good companies that aren't participating .   The one company that I personally have always trusted is Anabolic Laboratories!

Office workers and their Necks

More people than ever sit in front of a computer for a living these days, and if you're reading this it's likely that you're one of them. So before you get back to being productive for your boss, let's review some ways you can spare your neck in the process.

First, the basics: Your head weighs, on average, about 12 pounds. You have a fairly complicated series of joints and muscles holding that weight off your shoulders and giving you the freedom to look around. Like every other complicated system, the more moving parts to deal with, the more likelihood for something to go wrong. Some of the muscles that get tweaked and stretched when your head moves too far forward (the classic computer posture) are the deep flexor muscles. That would be these guys:

These muscles work in concert with others in the posterior part of your neck to give both stability and freedom of movement to the head. They also get beat up when we get our heads too far forward and keep them there all day, like you may very well be doing right now. Interesting fact--every inch forward your head moves takes three times more power to support the weight. Makes sense--if you hold a bowling ball close to your body it's easier to support than holding it out in front. And your head weighs about the same as a bowling ball. No disrespect.

Eventually, certain muscles get too tight which causes others to turn off ("reciprocal inhibition," again). This happens because muscles activated on one side of a joint cause the muscles on the other side of the same joint to become inhibited--when you flex your bicep, your tricep has to turn off so you can perform the movement. Your neck is no different, and when it happens for hours on end in only one direction neck pain is often the result. This is sometimes referred to as "upper crossed syndrome." It looks like this:

Upper crossed syndrome can lead to a wide variety of pain and instability problems, including shoulder pain, pain around the shoulder blades (especially at the upper, inside border), and, of course, neck pain. None of which is very fun. 

Incidentally, the shoulder pain I just referred to is more than just pain, it's lack of stability. The shoulder blades are essentially the reason your shoulders move the way they do, and the serratus anterior muscles you can see in that picture (the ones that get inhibited) are important when it comes to stabilizing your shoulder joint. If they get turned off and you go try throw a softball around or swing a racket of some kind you could be in for some shoulder issues. More on that in a future post.

An ounce of prevention, as they say, so let's look at the exercise I give every patient with neck pain who walks in the door here: The Brugger. This is done while sitting on the edge of your chair. Step one--tuck your chin straight back while keeping your eyes nice and level. This will create a really nice double chin that you can be proud of. Step two--try and keep your head in position while placing your palms in a a forward facing position with your arms slightly bent and back a little. You should feel a nice stretch where your chest connects to your shoulders.You'll be in this position at the end of the movement: Hold this position for three deep breaths and then go on about your business.

Sometimes the neck pain associated with the upper crossed syndrome is due to joint restrictions in your neck. Static postures held for hours on end can cause the joints to stop moving like they should, which can often lead to pain. Classically, the base of the neck (where your neck connects to your body) gets locked up, and when the muscles of the shoulders join the party to protect the compromised joint, the combination drives people to my office. The joint right at the base of the skull is another key location for dysfunction, and the combination of those locations can cause blistering headaches with a fairly predictable pattern, such as this:

Fortunately, those headaches respond quickly to manipulation of the affected joints, especially when combined with soft tissue work to release the trigger points in the muscles. I recently had a patient leave the office with tears of joy welling up in her eyes because her chronic headache had disappeared for the first time in about a year. 

So do your Bruggers, and take your eyes of the screen and focus on something on the other side of the room while you do them. This will help your back, neck, shoulders, and your eyes, too. Why don't you start now? And if the headaches have already begun, and this doesn't make them go away, come see me at Heathrow Chiropractic. Tell 'em the blog sent you!