Defeat High Blood Pressure with Chiropractic

Did you know that getting your neck adjusted could lower your blood pressure? Yes, it's true according to a recent study that was published in the Journal of Clinical Hypertension (volume 8 number 5 May 2006). Researchers found that anatomical abnormalities (subluxations or misalignments) of the cervical spine at the level of the Atlas vertebra are associated with relative ischemia of the brainstem circulation and increased blood pressure. Manual correction of this misalignment has been associated with reduced arterial pressure. This pilot study tested the hypothesis that correcting the misalignment of the Atlas vertebra reduces and maintains improved blood pressure. The study included 50 patients that were not taking medication and suffered from stage I hypertension. These patients were evaluated using a randomized, double blind, and placebo controlled study design at a single center. Patients received no medication during the eight week study session. After baseline measurements of their blood pressure were taken, they received either chiropractic adjustments or a placebo procedure. Considering that the technique performed was very gentle (no cracking), it was difficult or impossible for the patients to distinguish between the real chiropractic adjustment and false procedure. Statistical analysis was performed comparing the baseline with the results after the eight weeks of visits. The study demonstrated an 8/5 mm reduction in pressure at eight weeks versus the placebo group. In other words, a patient that entered the study with a blood pressure of 147/92, at the end of the study had a blood pressure of 130/82. The only treatment received was chiropractic adjustments to the cervical spine.

In my opinion, this is a landmark study. Chiropractic adjustments not only treat neck and back pain. They can affect the human physiology at all levels. Thomas Edison stated over 100 years ago: " The doctor of the future will give no medicine but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet and in the cause and prevention of disease." This is what chiropractors do everyday all over the world!!

Stay Sharp! Stay Adjusted!

Kids are back in school and as parents we are trying everything to keep our kids focused. On the other hand, we are on the constant look out for anything to keep us energized enough to keep up with them. From school to football practice, dance, then back home to dinner and homework we are not on our “A game” and as a result, our reaction time suffers.  Eating healthy meals, staying active, and getting plenty of sleep are all great ways to encourage sharp minds for everyone. But you probably didn't know that getting adjusted can aid your response time. Your brain has two functions: it tells your body what to do and then responds to what it was told to do. Your spinal cord is a major component of the nervous system: it comes together into the brain at the base of the skull. The spinal cord is in the protective shell of the spinal column that consists of vertebrae which are stacked one on top of the other and separated by flexible discs. If the flow of information to or from your body is affected by a misalignment of the vertebra then those misalignments can affect your response time. Here is a good example: your neck can be misaligned which then pinches a nerve that goes to your arm and causes numbness and tingling everywhere that nerve goes in your arm. Typically I can adjust these patients, taking pressure off of the nerve. This makes the numbness and tingling go away, restoring sensory function to the arm enabling sharp response time. So get adjusted and stay sharp!

LOW VITAMIN D UPS RISK OF ALLERGIES IN KIDS

Low vitamin D increases the likelihood that children will develop allergies, according to a paper published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

Researchers looked at the serum vitamin D levels in blood samples from more than 3,100 children and adolescents and 3,400 adults.

No association between vitamin D levels and allergies was observed in adults. But for children and adolescents, low vitamin D levels correlated with sensitivity to 11 of the 17 allergens tested, including both environmental allergens and food allergens. For example, children who had vitamin D deficiency were 2.4 times more likely to have a peanut allergy than were children with sufficient levels of vitamin D.

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology – February 17, 2011;Epub.
www.aaaai.org/members/jaci.stm

ADJUSTMENTS QUELL HEADACHE

ADJUSTMENTS QUELL HEADACHE

If you live in Clermont Fl and suffer from headaches you may want to read this:

Chiropractic care is beneficial for many patients with headache, according to a large review study published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics.

To find studies on chiropractic care for headache, researchers searched 8 major databases: 1) MEDLINE, 2) EMBASE, 3) Allied and Complementary Medicine, 4) The Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, 5) Manual, Alternative and Natural Therapy Index System, 6) Alt HealthWatch, 7) Index to Chiropractic Literature, and 8) The Cochrane Library.

After pooling findings from 21 reports, the study’s authors concluded that “evidence suggests that chiropractic care, including spinal manipulation, improves migraine and cervicogenic headaches. The type, frequency, dosage, and duration of treatment(s) should be based on guideline recommendations, clinical experience, and findings. Evidence for the use of spinal manipulation as an isolated intervention for patients with tension-type headache remains equivocal.”



JMPT – June, 2011;34:274-289.
www.jmptonline.org

Like apples? they can keep your body strong:

APPLE PEELS KEEP MUSCLES STRONG

Apple peels contain a substance that may ward off muscle atrophy and promote muscle growth, according to a University of Iowa study.

“Muscle atrophy causes big problems. It’s also very common — it affects most people at some point in their lives, during illness or aging. But, there's no medicine for it,” notes Dr. Christopher Adams, senior author of the study. “We studied muscle gene activity in people with atrophy and used that information to find chemicals that might block atrophy. One of those chemicals was especially interesting. It’s called ursolic acid and it’s particularly concentrated in apple peels.

“The old saying goes that ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away.’ So, we tested ursolic acid in mice, and found that it increased the size and strength of their muscles,” Adams adds. “It did this by helping two hormones that build muscle: insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF1) and insulin. Because ursolic acid increased muscle, it reduced muscle atrophy. Surprisingly, it had some other beneficial effects in mice: for example, it reduced body fat, and lowered blood glucose and cholesterol.”

Cell Metabolism – June 2011

Things you need to know about acetaminophen

Published ahead of printing on August 13th, 2010, the study is titled “Acetaminophen Use and Risk Asthma, Rhinoconjuctavitus and Eczema, and adolescence: ISAAC Phase Three” the object of the study was “to investigate the risks of asthma and other allergic disorders associated with the current use of Acetaminophen and 13 to 14 year old children in different populations worldwide.”
This was no lightweight study conducted in a small town or with a small subject population. Participants were 322, 959 adolescent children from 113 centers in 50 countries. Study findings included the following:
• “the reported use of Acetaminophen in the past 12 months was associated with the significant exposure- dependent increase risk of current asthma symptoms.”
• “The reported use of Aceteminophen the past 12 months was associated with the significant dose- dependent increased risk of current symptoms of rhinoconjuctovitus (allergy) and eczema”
• “These findings extend are previous observation from ISAAC Phase Three that the use of Acetaminophen in infancy and current use was associated with the increase risk of asthma symptoms in 6-7 year old children.”

Rather than cover your pain with medication adress the cause. Chiropractic adresses the root cause of your pain, eliminating the need to put chemicals in your body.

Questions? Send Dr. Pete an email: drpete@drpeterbrockman.com

Adjustments help low back pain

South Lake Wellness & Injury Center
SMT SAFE AND EFFECTIVE FOR CHRONIC LBP

A large review study published by the Cochrane Library confirms that chiropractic is as effective as common medical interventions, such as painkillers, for chronic low-back pain. It is also safe.

The review authors looked at 26 randomized controlled on spinal manipulative therapy (SMT), including a total of 6,070 participants.

“The effectiveness of this therapy has long been controversial,” says review lead author Sidney Rubinstein, a chiropractor in private practice and a postdoctoral researcher at the VU University Medical Center in Amsterdam. “Some proponents are slowly starting to view it as effective for chronic low-back pain. The results of this review will support that view.”

“The decision to refer for manipulation should be based upon costs, preferences of the patient and providers, and relative safety of all treatment options,” adds Dr. Rubinstein

Cochrane Library – February 16, 2011:CD008112.
www.thecochranelibrary.com