Top Chiropractor in San Leandro, CA

San Leandro Chiropractor

Why is posture so important?

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Good posture depends upon several factors. While exercise, attitude, and practice can positively affect posture, some postural problems need more aggressive attention due to complications which can jeopardize good health and well-being.

The foundation for normal spinal posture is laid out early in life. Improper development of the spine’s normal curvature will set the stage for eventual distortions. If the base of a child’s spine is tilted incorrectly, it can wreak havoc with the structure that builds upon it.

Normally the human body attempts to maintain erect posture by balancing “back and forth” over the lower spine. If the lower vertebrae are wedged to one side it can cause the spine to compensate by bending into an abnormal curve. This condition is commonly referred to as scoliosis. The medical approach to scoliosis has been to administer braces and electrical stimuli; neither of which have proven very successful. Upon termination of such practices the abnormal curve usually returns to its initial state within five years.

Why are abnormal spinal curves unhealthy?

When vertebrae move out of their normal alignment, neurological disturbances known as subluxations can result. This condition impedes the normal transmission of mental impulses through the nerves from the brain to the body, thus inhibiting body function. Besides interfering with the innate ability of the body to heal, subluxations disturb the “righting reflex” which allows the body to adapt to abnormal equilibrium permitting the body to stand upright.

How can parents help?

As the parent of a child with poor posture and/or scoliosis, there are several things you can do to help.

First, it is crucial to keep all of your child’s corrective chiropractic appointments so that proper spinal balance may improve. Specific adjustments work not only to restore normal posture, but also to improve overall health by facilitating nerve function.

Second, avoid placing infants in a walker, jumper, or other restraining device that allows him/her to stand. An infant’s spine is not completely developed and these devices can cause permanent damage. Instead, one of the best positions for your baby is on his/her stomach. In addition to developing the muscles of the neck, this position lays ground for the proper development of the lower back’s secondary curve. Crawling also helps to develop this important curve of the spine. Exercises such as these allow for better physical growth and encourage strong spinal musculature.

Lastly, be a good role model for your child. Seek chiropractic care yourself, exhibit good posture, and exercise daily. Encourage your child to ride a bike or run and play outside instead of watching TV.

Any child suffering from poor posture and/ or scoliosis should be thoroughly analyzed for vertebral subluxations that may be causing the problem. Although this condition is difficult for both the parents and the child, continued patience seems to pay off with visible improvements in overall posture and health.

STRESS

In today’s fast paced, ever-changing society, many factors or stressors are believed to contribute significantly to our most serious health problems. Individual perception of stress varies from person to person, but most often stress is related to situations in which you are forced to adapt to in a way that is difficult or unpleasant.

Many life events and the ability to cope with them are closely related to stress-related health problems. Some stressful events are the death of a loved one, alienation of affection, geographical moves, decline in self-esteem, or change in job status. Threats to marital, family or social status, to health or security may also be particularly stressful. Patterns of change, both for better or worse, can also cause stress.

Particular kinds of work seem to cause special stresses related to the nature of the work or imposed irregularities, For example, rotating shift work which disturbs the normal sleep cycle, produces chronic stress by repeatedly upsetting daily rhythms that control specific hormones and other responses. Jobs that entail little variation but close attention, such as assembly line work involving dangerous machinery, also seem particularly stressful. People in high-stress jobs often view their situation as controlling: too much to do, too little time, unstimulating and no way to escape.

Much has also been written about the role of personality and stress-related conditions, particularly heart disease. Individuals who are very tense, impatient, highly competitive and seem to be driven by time and the need to succeed (Type A persons) seem to be at a higher risk for stress-related diseases than others who are more relaxed and less competitive.

How to manage pain?

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Pain is a warning sign. Like the piercing sound from a smoke alarm, the alarm isn’t the problem. The alarm has a cause, just like every ache or pain has a cause. Some people choose to cover up the pain instead of correcting the cause. What’s your approach?

The nerve-rich facet joints on the back side of each spinal bone are a common cause of back pain. If these pairs of interlocking “fingers” aren’t moving right, they can cause painful symptoms.
The discs between spinal bones can be a source of back pain, too. These rings of fibrous tissues act as spacers, connectors and “shock absorbers” for the spine. Trauma can cause the soft, pulpy material in the middle to bulge or herniate, putting pressure on delicate nearby nerves.

Once you know the cause, you have several choices. One approach is bed rest. But research shows that prolonged bed rest can actually delay recovery and make the problem worse!
Physical therapy is another option. But exercising spinal joints that aren’t working right is like continuing to drive your car with misaligned tires!

Another choice is to numb or cover up the pain with drugs. While drugs can offer temporary relief, they can’t correct functional problems of affected spinal joints.

The most drastic measure is surgery. A laminectomy cuts off the offending facet joints, leaving the spinal cord exposed! A spinal fusion cuts out the disc tissue and immobilizes the joint. While there may be times when surgery makes sense, it’s expensive, risky and more than half of all back surgeries fail.

More and more people are choosing chiropractic care first. Specific chiropractic adjustments can help improve spinal function.

Better yet, chiropractic is safe. Chiropractic is natural. And chiropractic looks to correct the underlying cause of the problem.

  • While a sedentary lifestyle can make symptoms worse, back pain affects those who are tall, short, thin, heavy, young and old.
  • While overexertion can cause back pain flare-up, the underlying problem may have gone undetected for years.
  • Besides being dangerous and the results temporary, more than half of all back surgeries are considered failures.

Ironically, many insurance companies would rather pay for expensive surgery than conservative chiropractic care!

What is a pinched nerve?

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The human body is a self-contained, self-governing and self-protecting vehicle which is designed to “live” many years. The body, with its framework of bones, its moving parts and motors of muscles and organs and its communication system of nerves, is controlled by the rational and sentient capacity of the brain. With all the parts functioning smoothly life is known, experienced and enjoyed.

The nerves can be traced back to a point where they leave the backbone and enter the spinal column through small bone sections called vertebrae. These separate sections are bound together into a strong, flexible vertebral column by muscles and fibers. Between these sections or segments are protective cushions of cartilage.

It is possible for one or several of the individual vertebrae to slip or turn slightly from their proper position by sudden twists, prolonged stress of remaining in one position, falls, blows or other accidental strains. Displacement of the vertebral section tends to change the size and shape of the nerve trunk openings resulting in pressure upon or obstruction of the nerve trunk. This physical obstruction creates an abnormal flow of nerve impulse.

There are 24 moveable vertebrae in the spine, with nerve trunks issuing to the right and left between each juncture of the vertebrae, each carrying millions of individual fibers bundled together like a telephone cable and extending to the various parts of the body. This is why any one of the many bodily parts and organs are affected by nerve obstructions and why these effects can be detrimental.

Doctors of Chiropractic are trained to discover displacements of the vertebral segments of the spine. Not only do they rely on their educated fingers discovering displaced vertebrae that reveals noticeable tenderness as the result of irritation, but x-ray is also used to show the position of the vertebrae in relation to one another. Other diagnostic measuring equipment are utilized but the type of devices used vary with doctors preference and are used to provide additional information about the body and the possible underlying dysfunction.

Vertebral displacement, termed “subluxation” by chiropractors is corrected by a chiropractic adjustment. The bone will be felt and usually heard called a “cavitation” as it is moved back into place, where it belongs. Bones move from pain causing positions to the original health inducing positions. Chiropractors are uniquely trained in the biomechanics of all the joints comprising the human body and know exactly which structures are “out-of” their normal position and through various techniques assist the two bones comprising the joint back into its proper position.
In this modern era of catch phrase we have often come to know the resultant cause of a displaced vertebrae as a “pinched nerve”.

You can see, healthy and normal nerve trunks branch forth from normal openings in the spinal column. But you can also see the devastating effect vertebral pinching has on a once healthy and normal nerve trunk.

What is a subluxation?

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subluxationAccording to Oxford’s Dictionary of the English Language, subluxations are less than complete dislocations and involve a tearing, stretching and sometimes rupturing of ligaments. The ligaments are what bind the joints of the spine together but still allow movement to occur.

A subluxation is a neurological disturbance caused by a nerve that is not functioning properly. The body depends upon the free flow of nerve communication from the brain, through the spinal column, and to all parts of the human body-in order to govern itself and all of its functions. Chiropractic science has determined that the interruption, blockage, or aberration of this flow of information can lead to serious health complications. Conversely, the removal of such interferences has been shown to have important health benefits.

Vertebrae fit together so that the nerve supply produced in the brain may filter down the spinal cord and out through the nerves. These messages are responsible for communicating information throughout the body so that growth, repair and healing may take place. When vertebrae are out of their natural alignment, the potential for nerve interference is great.
All body functions are controlled by messages from the brain sent through the nerves. When nerves become stretched, twisted, or “pinched,” this vital communication system of the body is disrupted. As a result, one or more functions of the body may begin to fail. As the body weakens, health declines and if uncorrected, the body will ultimately give in to sickness and disease. While traditional medicine would resort to treating the symptoms of such disease, the Doctor of Chiropractic considers correcting the cause of disease-in this case subluxations-so that normal body function may once again take place.

In addition to nerve interference, subluxations cause abnormal posture and apply tension to vertebrae, muscles, ligaments, and tendons. This increased tension can interfere with blood flow to internal organs.’ Lack of oxygen to cells, tissues, and organs, via the blood, can also cause dysfunction and disease. As Doctors of Chiropractic, we lay our hands on your back and gently line up the vertebrae into their natural position. This process may take weeks or months depending on the extent of misalignment. As the subluxations are reduced, however, nerve supply communicates more effectively throughout the body and healing can begin to take place. As the body heals, the symptoms of dysfunction and disease diminish.

Chiropractic is a very specific science. By minimizing nerve interference, the natural strengths of the human body are maximized, increasing the body’s ability to heal itself without the use of drugs or surgery.

NERVE AND LIGAMENT DAMAGE

Most everyone has either witnessed a person spraining their ankle ligaments or has experienced this quite painful injury themselves. The over-stretching, swelling and inflammation creates limitation of movement and irritation of the nerves that sense pain. When dislocations occur in the bones or joints of the neck, the person can become paralyzed or may even die. Many patients are dependent on respirators because the nerves to the diaphragm coming from the neck are injured.

Subluxations of the spinal bones (vertebrae) can also cause severe injuries but are generally less severe than dislocations. When nerves to the organs are injured, then the person might experience symptoms such as pain or other dysfunctions. But sometimes the injury is silent and the organ does not function at an optimal level with the person experiencing little short term effects. Over time however, these minor problems can develop into greater problems so your chiropractor should be consulting early in life (as a child) rather than after many years of nerve system neglect.

Subluxations irritate and compress the nerves coming out of the spinal column. The injuries to the spinal joints can cause the sending nerves of these structures to send abnormal impulses to the brain. The range of nerve injury depends usually on the amount of trauma the patient experiences.

For example, an automobile injury with whiplash of the neck can cause severe injury whereas simple posture positions sustained for a short period only cause minor stretch of the ligaments.
One way to determine if damage to the spinal joints person’s back when a subluxation occurs. Your chiropractor examines the joints of the spine by touching the different structures of the back and using different testing procedures such as X-ray, to arrive at an accurate diagnosis of where the subluxations are in your spine and what their effects are on your health.

Since subluxations of the spinal joints interfere with nerve impulses traveling from the brain down through the spinal column and out to all reaches of the body, chiropractors can be thought of as nerve doctors.

Subluxations are one of the most common forms of nerve injury a patient can have. These nerve injuries or problems can effect a wide range of different tissues since nerves control all functions of the body. Although many patients with organ problems such as wheezing (asthma), indigestion and heart burn, infant colic or ear infections seek chiropractic care, it is important to address the original nerve problem and subluxation when it first occurs. Consult your doctor of chiropractic for a plan to improve your neurological health.