Suffering from headaches is not a fun thing. Many people suffer from migraine and tension headaches everyday and don’t know how to fix it. People take all forms of medication to combat against a painful headache. Curing migraine headaches naturally is quite possible with a few simple tips and tricks.

Some people believe the headaches are all in the mind. Our body is feeling pain in the head because something isn’t right in there. There are tips and tricks aren’t some magic cure to your migraine but it will help you get rid of the pain you are experiencing.

Similar to when people wear something on their head, like a pair of glasses for a very long time, they soon forget about it. Many people get used to the pain and don’t bother to fix it. The body is so used to it being there, that when they take it off, their body feels strange without it.

Some doctors can’t provide much help to solving this common problem. Headaches can be stress related and spine related. For stress related headaches, we should control our stress levels to minimize the onset of painful migraine headaches. That’s why you have to go to a chiropractor who specializes in headaches.

Doctors usually recommend that headache victims get more rest and take headache medication. This is just temporary relief because the cause of the problem still exists. A poor diet can also cause headaches and so can low or elevated blood pressure. There are so many reasons to why a migraine headache can occur. The simple solution is to eat healthy and do plenty of exercise.

More information about headaches can be found at http://www.BackCareTreatment.com and other health related web sites. Curing migraine headaches naturally is possible with a few simple diet changes and getting plenty of exercise.

Discover the latest research about chiropractic. Visit the New Century Spine Centers website to learn about spinal decompression therapy to get rid of back pain.

One of the common causes of pinched nerves in the low back and neck is disc degeneration. Disc degeneration is caused by wear and tear over the years with the disc getting thinner which narrows the vertebral spaces. This can cause the nerves to become pinched and irritated. This may then be followed with tingling and numbness in the shoulders and neck. Tension, stress, whiplash and other injuries can all contribute over time.

With the growing use of computers in the office and at home there has in turn been a growing problem with pinched nerves as a result of poor posture during frequent computer use. Usually just a few minor adjustments to your computer area can improve your online posture.

Chiropractors frequently use spinal decompression and neck traction to bring relief for muscle spasms and pain from nerves. This lifts the weight of your head up off the neck allowing the nerve roots to be temporarily decompressed. Your chiropractor may recommend cervical traction device following treatment. Pinched nerves can also cause neck pain. Neck pain from pinched nerves can be treated in a variety of ways. If it is caused by an injury or accident the typical care includes wearing a neck collar, ice pack, and bed rest.

If you are using a pinched nerve spinal decompression traction device at home you will need to keep visiting your chiropractor for adjustments. Use this spinal decompression therapy in combination with chiropractor visit for effective pinched nerve treatment. A pinched nerve spinal decompression device can be used to bring relief to neck discomfort and pain from misalignment of the spine. Misalignment occurs when your spine curvature is shaped differently than it is suppose to be. This causes nerve pressure and pain.

Muscle spasm and pain can be helped by use of a spinal decompression system in San Diego at New Century Spine Centers. New Century Spine Centers is located in the Mission Valley area of San Diego. Loss of cervical spine curve is caused by severe trauma and affects a vertebral group in the spine. Activities can also cause us to maintain abnormal positions by keeping your head lower or protruded more than it would be in its normal position. This can lead to long term problems in the neck. Spinal disc decompression can provide relief to the discomfort and pain of a misaligned spine.

Spinal decompression therapy works for pinched nerves, sciatica, leg pain, disc bulges and more. To learn about spinal decompression therapy, contact New Century Spine Centers in San Diego at 619-630-9153. Their chiropractors have treated thousands of patients with back and neck pain.

Discover the latest research about chiropractic. Visit the New Century Spine Centers website to learn about spinal decompression therapy to get rid of back pain.

What is more important, nature or nurture? This argument has been going on for decades. In other words, are you strictly the end result of your upbringing and actions or are you simply a product of your genes? As a chiropractor in San Diego at New Century Spine Centers, many people wonder if their back and neck pain is due to bad genes.

A safe bet to the above is that we are a combination of both upbringing and genes. Our genes give us a blueprint with both positives and negatives and our actions either maximize or minimize the hand we’ve been dealt in life. But, a new science has thickened this plot and made it more interesting. The new science is called “Epigenetics” and it attempts to explain how the environment can modify our genes. That’s a unique twist to this debate in many ways.

So what does all this have to do with you? On April 14th, 2009 Science Daily reported on an epigenetic report published in a Journal that found that you are what your mother ate during pregnancy. In the report, scientists from the University of Utah showed rats that received poor nutrition in the womb genetically altered themselves to be born into a nutritionally deficient environment afterwards.

What’s that mean? The rat fetuses’ genes actually changed to prepare them for the environment they were going to be born into. Since there was poor nutrition in the womb, the rats were likely to grow to smaller sizes when compared to others born to “normal” nutrition levels.

Being smaller was not the only negative side effect. The rats also had a higher risk for many health problems throughout their lives. They had higher risk of such diseases like diabetes, growth retardation, cardiovascular disease, obesity and neuro developmental delays. But These Are Rats! How Are Humans Affected?

According to Science Daily, “Although the study involved rats, the genes and cellular mechanisms involved are the same as those in humans.” Also according to Science Daily: “The new ‘epigenetics’ has taught us how nature is changed by nurture,” said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal. “The jury’s in and, yes, expectant moms really are eating for two. This study shows not only that we need to address problems such as preeclampsia during pregnancy, but also that prenatal care is far more important than anyone could have imagined a decade ago.”

After reading this new information, several questions came to mind. If a fetus can alter its genes to adapt to the environment they are being born into, can a person alter their genes to adapt to their environment after they are born? And since I treat patients in San Diego with chiropractic care, what effect does chiropractic treatment during pregnancy have on the potential of a child way after they are born. If the environment is altered for the better, it only makes sense the fetus would adapt genetically in a positive way.

But, until proper research is done, who knows for sure? But one thing makes sense: During pregnancy, everything should be done to ensure the developing fetus has the best possible environment. Proper exercise, balanced diet, and a healthy spine with chiropractic care are all key elements in growing a healthy baby.

Learn more about chiropractors in San Diego. Request a free video where you can find out all about spinal decompression therapy and what it can do for you.

categories: pregnancy, nutrition, chiropractic, chiropractor, research, health, alternative medicine, Michael Pritsker, San Diego, New Century, vitamins, exercise

There are many reasons why you have to choose the best chiropractor. Whatever your reasons are, you have to remember that you have to select the right chiropractor in order to get the most out of the professional service that they provide. You logical first step is to check listing of Chiropractic services in the yellow pages and classified ads. A simple Google-search can provide you with “endless” stream of information and data about chiropractors in your community. Many people in San Diego look for a chiropractor that way.

There are many proper steps to take when choosing a Chiropractor in your area. What are your expectations when choosing your chiropractor or another doctor? Naturally, you would want to get involved only with a chiropractor who is technically competent and experienced in his field. The following will be five important things to consider when choosing your chiropractor.

The first is to consider chiropractors who can help you achieve your health goals. Your health goals should be your primordial concern when choosing your chiropractic doctor. Do you want immediate relief from the pain that you are experiencing? Are you concerned with feeling better forever? You must know what your requirements are and make sure that these match with the services of the chiropractor.

Your chiropractor must first diagnose your condition before making any recommendation for two reasons. Consider chiropractic doctors that perform the appropriate examination before offering recommendations. First, your doctor must determine whether you really require chiropractic treatment or not. Second, your doctor may discover other chiropractic conditions that may entail the intervention of other medical health provider.

The third is to consider chiropractors in San Diego who monitor your progress. Chiropractors adopt various tracking methods from the simplest to the more complex types of methods. You have to engage the services of one that can closely and consistently track your progress. A good tracking process will typically involve computerized medical evaluation, general postural analysis and temperature measurement.

Contrary to common belief, not all chiropractic clinics perform x-ray examinations. Consider chiropractic clinics in San Diego that perform x-ray examinations. You have to understand the reason why it is essential that you have to deal with clinics that offer this kind of service. X-rays can help determine if your condition would respond to chiropractic intervention. This becomes extremely important for patients who have had serious body trauma as a result of sport-related injuries, car crashes and even roller-coaster injuries.

Also consider other things when searching for the most qualified chiropractor in your area. You may check out testimonials or consider referrals of relatives, friends and colleagues. The important thing that you have to remember is that due diligence is an essential requirement in your search for the most qualified and competent chiropractor in San Diego. At New Century Spine Centers in San Diego, they have some of the top chiropractors.

Want to discover more information about back pain, then New Century Spine Centers site on how to choose the best chiropractor for your needs.

Last year, chiropractic care could have saved about 3,300 children age 5-14 that were treated in emergency rooms for this back-to-school related activity. A San Diego chiropractor and spinal decompression specialist reveals how this could have all been avoided with advanced chiropractic care. It is important to understand what it is and how you can avoid it happening to your children.

Return to school is an exciting time for millions of children and parents all around the world. After a long needed summer vacation, many kids are going back to school. And to many moms and dads it means shopping. This includes school supplies, paper, pens, pencils, notebooks, the latest style of clothes and probably the most important is backpacks.

Backpacks are a popular item. Millions of elementary, middle, and high school students are heading to their classes with overstuffed backpacks slung over their shoulders. While carrying a backpack to school every day may seem harmless enough, but it can cause painful neck and back problems and injuries for students who don’t pack or carry their backpacks properly. Those heavy loads can cause repetitive stress injuries and spinal pain that will worsen with age and may last a lifetime.

Some studies actually say that if they are used improperly, they are outright dangerous and can cause permanent damage to your child’s spine, possibly leading to herniated discs and arthritis.

Here are some shocking back pain and back pack facts: The Consumer Products Safety Commission estimates that more than 3,300 children aged 5 to 14 were treated in emergency rooms last year for injuries related to backpacks. Backpack-related injuries are up 256 percent since 1996. According to researchers at the University of Michigan spine program, up to 60 percent of children will experience back pain by the time they reach age 18. An Auburn University study shows heavy backpacks may be a serious threat to spinal development. In their survey sample, the average pack was 17% of the child’s body weight. This is the equivalent of a 150 lb. adult carrying a 26 lb. pack. 67.2% of the children studied suffered muscle soreness, 50.8% back pain, 24.5% numbness and 14.7% shoulder pain. Studies at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center also show overloaded backpacks as the cause of shoulder or lower-back pain and poor posture in kids.

A research study published in the journal named Spine found that six percent of 10-year-olds complain of back pain. Ten to fifteen percent of twelve year olds reportedly had back pain. A new scientific experiment found that transporting a backpack alters the mobility of spinal bones. This leads to restricted movement which is a risk factor for the cause of back pain.

Another study used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to examine the effect of backpacks on the intervertebral discs of the spine. These are the fluid-filled “pillows” between spinal bones. According to the article, backpacks alter the fluid content of these discs, a risk factor for disc herniation and osteoarthritis.

Fresh research reveals a disturbing hazard linked with childhood backpack use. This research comes from the growing number of reports of childhood back pain in recent decades. By the conclusion of their teen years, sixty percent of youths experience at least one low back pain episode. And novel research indicates that this boost may be due to the incorrect use of backpacks. Research presented at the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation’s annual meeting in San Francisco stated that children carrying a load of twenty five percent of their body weight had balance problems and were more likely to experience injuries from falling.

It’s obvious from all the research that can be dangerous and can cause damage to your child’s spine if they are not used properly. One of the biggest safety hazards with backpacks is overloading them. Many children are carrying up to 40 lbs. and are hurting themselves. If your children are feeling headaches, neck aches, bad posture, achy and strained muscles, low back pain, muscle spasms, tingling hands, and increased scoliosis complications, they are carrying too much weight improperly.

Your children should carry no more than 10-15% of their body weight on their backs. Here are some backpack weight guide lines to go by. A child weighing 40 lbs should carry no more than 6 lbs. A child weighing 75 lbs should carry no more than 11 lbs. A child weighing 100 lbs should carry no more than 15 lbs. A child weighing 125 lbs should carry no more than 18 lbs. A child weighing 150 lbs should carry no more than 22.5 lbs.

To reduce injury, here are some more tips on wearing backpacks properly. Make sure the weight is distributed evenly throughout your spine. Generally put heavier items on the bottom and this keeps the weight off the shoulders and improves posture overall. Have your child wear both shoulder straps unless there is a specially designed backpack that is designed to use only one strap across the body. Carrying a heavy backpack using one strap can shift the weight to one side of the body which can lead to misaligned spinal bones, muscle spasms, low back pain and walking improperly. Get a backpack with well padded or air-filled straps that support the back. Non-padded straps can dig into your shoulders and cause pain and injury in the shoulders. If the back pack comes with a waist strap, make sure your child uses it across the waist.

A lot of injuries actually occur from simply lifting the pack off the floor. To avoid this, ensure your child always lifts with their knees bent and their backs straight up and not bent forward.
Also make sure that your children only take what they need to school. The added weight adds up quickly.

Ensure that your child has their spines checked by a San Diego chiropractor to make sure their spine is in proper alignment and they are not setting themselves up for permanent injury. You can even bring them in with their backpacks to get tested and a good chiropractor or spinal decompression doctor will make sure that they fit correctly.

Learn more about backpack safety. Stop by the chiropractic site site where you can find out all about chiropractic care and what it can do for you.

In the past, research has proven some of the best treatments for back pain. One of these treatments for back pain has over thirty scientific studies and is published in several Medical Journals. The conclusion from some of the findings state that the average patient receiving this type of treatment is better off than fifty four to eight five percent of the patients receiving other common and accepted medical back pain treatments.

Additionally, fourteen of these studies showed that this treatment that we will refer to later costs less and was up to twice as effective as most common medical treatment. Seventeen of the studies showed a decrease in disability at work from chiropractic care and less back pain symptoms. Unfortunately, many of these studies were done in the eighties! I am referring to chiropractic care. So why isn’t this treatment plastered all over the front pages and headlining the nightly news on a regular basis? How could something so great and proven to be this effective be kept out of the spotlight for so long?

The answer to these questions and more will follow. First off, we have to look at the real facts about back pain. Here are some shocking low back pain statistics: 1) Eight to ninety percent of all adults will suffer from low back pain at some point in their life. 2) Low back pain is the leading cause of disability in people under forty five years of age. 3) Low back pain is the second leading cause of visits to the doctor. 4) Low back pain is the third leading reason for hospital admissions. 5) The annual cost of back pain in the United States range from $20-$75 billion, and as much as $100 billion worldwide. 6) According to Met Life Insurance statistics, the average back treated medically without surgery costs $7,210, and the average back treated with surgery costs an astonishing $13,990, and 7) Statistics indicate that fifteen to twenty percent of the population has low back pain in any given year, approximately twenty three million cases.

So, here’s a question for you. Do all epidemics kill? The answer is no, and it’s a good thing they don’t. Because if they did, most of us would be dead from this back pain epidemic.

Before we get to the best treatment, we will talk about other common treatments and the facts about how good they really are. The first to discuss are anti-inflammatory drugs. They are also known as NSAIDs. Examples of these drugs are Tylenol, Motrin, Aleve and Advil. They are often the first and most common treatment for back pain. Two prominent medical doctors had a lot to say about these drugs.

The first was Dr. Julian Whitaker, M.D.. He reported saying that in our attempt to escape the throbbing of an occasional headache, the muscular ache of being a weekend warrior, Americans spend over six and a half billion dollars each year on prescription and over the counter pain relievers. And we do this at tremendous cost to our health. The side effects are that these drugs can damage the stomach, liver, kidneys, and even some of the tissues they are designed to support. Aspirin, Ibuprofen, and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs which are sometimes taken on a daily basis by arthritis sufferers, may speed up degeneration of the joint by restricting cartilage synthesis and speeding up cartilage destruction.

Dr. Joseph Mercola is a medical doctor. He is in the Department of Health Policy and Management of John’s Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health. He stated that researchers say aspirin and related drugs kill almost as many people every year as the disease AIDS. They are responsible for a silent epidemic. Approximately twenty six billion over the counter pills are consumed each and every year. The number of deaths caused by medicine is very big. There is even some research that estimates that approximately sixteen and a half thousand deaths occur every year in the United States from ulcer related complications associated with their use. Suppose those deaths were given their own category. The toxic effects of non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs would amount to the fifteenth most common cause of death in the United States. Non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs just may be the most dangerous drugs that medicine uses because of their widespread use. As a whole group, it may be very likely that they amount for the largest amount of deaths of any drug group. The conclusion about non steroidal anti inflammatory drugs is that they kill sixteen and a half thousand people every year and damage the joints they were designed to fix.

The next to discuss is very common. This treatment is surgery. You really need to understand only one statistic about surgery to understand its effects. After you understand the statistic, it will shock you. According to the official Clinical Practice Guidelines put out by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, surgery has been found to be helpful in only one in a hundred cases of low back problems. It is important to understand that even having a lot of back pain does not, by itself, mean you need surgery on your spine.

If only 1% of back problems are helped with surgery, is it really worth the risk of infection, paralysis or even death? That is something that needs to be considered.

Unfortunately, that was the bad news. But with all bad news there is usually good news. Many of the studies I talked about show chiropractic care to be the best, safest and least expensive treatment for back pain. Since you might not believe it coming from a chiropractor in San Diego, I’m going to give you one more thing to consider. This quote is from the well respected Pran Manga, PhD. Dr. Manga is a medical economist from Ontario Ministry of Health who studied this subject very thoroughly. The conclusion was that there is an overwhelming amount of evidence indicating that chiropractic care of low back pain is more cost effective than well known medical care. Chiropractic care of low back pain is greatly superior to medical management in terms of scientific validity, safety, cost-effectiveness and patient satisfaction rates.

These are the statistics and quotes from some very prominent figures. The only problem is that Dr. Manga published his findings back in 1993 and many people have not heard this before. The reason that many have not heard it before is profit.

Reviewing the statistics again you’ll find that the average medical non-surgical back costs a little over seven thousand dollars to treat. The average surgical back costs almost fourteen thousand dollars to treat. And important to understand is that $6.6 billion is being spent every year on drugs. That’s the real facts. After all, I’m sure you realize whose commercials pay for the news you watch every night anyway.

So next time you have an aching back, sore neck, or headache, here’s something for you to remember. Try chiropractic first, drugs second, and surgery last!

Want to find out more about chiropractic care, then visit New Century Spine Centers where you’ll find some of the best chiropractors for your needs.

Imagine that someone told you that the fountain of youth was discovered and all you have to do is put up forty bucks and you can have a jar of it to drink or eat. I’m sure you wouldn’t fall for that obvious line of baloney but you hear it all the time. But unfortunately many people do fall for this sort of stuff. Most people are like goldfish. Not that they have fins and swim around in a fish tank but because goldfish have an attention span of only three seconds. That’s right, only 3 little seconds!

That means goldfish are slow learners. After all, what can they possibly learn in 3 seconds? So, if they eat a little green worm that makes them sick, guess what they’ll do 5 minutes later? Yes they would eat another little green worm and get sick again. So what happens after they give that guy their $39.99 for that “fountain of youth in a jar” and it doesn’t work? They forget all about the first guy in 3 seconds just like a goldfish and give another $39.99 to someone else claiming the same thing! So what does all this have to do with you? Well, even though there is no “fountain of youth in a jar,” there are 3 things that can make you live up to 20% longer and look 20 years younger!

The first is to have a positive mental attitude. A positive mental attitude actually makes you live longer. In fact, a study performed at the Mayo Clinic revealed that optimists lived twenty percent longer than pessimists! Imagine that looking on the bright side and cracking a smile every so often may add ten to fifteen years to your life. There’s another interesting side note to optimists that they are already probably aware of. They have many more friends!

The second thing to consider is exercise. Of course you’re aware that everyone is always talking about how good exercise is. You work hard at the gym and you run circles around the race track and maybe you live an extra year from doing this. Of course it may be the last year when you’re too old to care about it anyway. Well, it gives me great pleasure to tell you just how wrong you are when considering this. A groundbreaking study published in JAMA in 1994 showed that the bodies of forty postmenopausal women became fifteen to twenty years more youthful after the women lifted weights twice a week for a year.

Lifting weights twice weekly certainly is not slaving away in the gym. This is something you have to understand to get the full grasp of it. That’s something anyone can do to look years younger and feel great. I know it’s not quite as intriguing as the fountain of youth and may take a little more time but it really does work.

And for another interesting exercise fact, exercise can even overcome bad genes! In a study of sixteen thousand sets of healthy twins, researchers kept track of the twins’ lifestyles for almost twenty years. At the end of the study, they discovered that those who exercised moderately at thirty minutes of walking twice a week cut their risk of dying almost in half when compared to their sedentary sibling.

That brings us to number three which is decreasing free radicals. Although experts disagree about exactly what causes our bodies to age, one of the leading theories attributes it to damage caused by free radicals. These molecules that are missing an electron, bind with healthy cells and wreak havoc on those cells’ ability to function. Our bodies produce antioxidants to counteract the damage, but if there is not a large enough supply, cellular damage may not be repaired and sooner or later, we become ill. According to this theory, the best approach to slowing the aging process is to provide the body with plenty of ammunition against free radicals. You can do this by increasing your intake of antioxidants.

Now let’s forget about carbohydrates, protein and fat. Instead focus on food as a source of antioxidants to prevent damage in our body. Focus on your health. The most powerful food sources of these all-important nutrients are vegetables and fruits. These should be the greatest portion of items on your plate. Round out each meal with whole grains, like brown rice, whole wheat bread, cereal and pasta. In addition include low-fat dairy products and lean meats. Sugar and fat should be the smallest category in this entire group.

One study by the National Cancer Institute shows how powerful a diet like this can be the key to your health. Researchers examined the eating habits of more than 45,000 women and found that those who ate a diet high in fruits, vegetables, grains, low-fat dairy and lean meats cut their risk of dying from any cause by 30%! That’s phenomenal!

So there are multiple ways to find the fountain of youth and drink from it. Most importantly they are maintaining a positive mental attitude, exercising regularly and eating a proper diet. This can make you happy and healthy as you become older and smarter. And hopefully you will enjoy the process of growing old with all that life has to offer to you.

Learn more about the fountain of youth. Read more articles by Dr. Michael Pritsker, DC’s and visit the New Century Spine Centers website where you can find out all about health and how you can live pain free with chiropractic care.