If you’re one of the millions who spend long hours at the computer, you may suffer with pain in your wrist, fingers, and/or shoulder. The repetitive motions of computer keystrokes can lead to a pinched nerve in the wrist known as carpal tunnel syndrome.
This pinched nerve can lead to painful tingling in the fingers, and a shooting pain right up to the shoulder. You may even see swelling in your hand or fingers.
So what can you do?
Since you probably aren’t able to stop using the computer, you can manage your pain with a combination of an ergonomic workstation, an anti-inflammatory diet and heat therapy. Chiropractic care helps for many people too.
Is Your Work Area Optimal for You?
In order to prevent and manage this carpal tunnel syndrome, make sure your computer work area is adjusted for your height. Your computer monitor should be at eye level. If you find yourself looking down to type for hours a day, that puts a strain on your neck that can cause pain in your back, your shoulder and ultimately, your arm, wrist and hand.
Make sure your chair supports your back and helps you to sit with good posture. If you’re slumped over all day, that will lead to low energy (because you’re not breathing deeply and evenly) plus, it can lead to back pain.
Eat an Anti-Inflammatory Diet
Inflammation is the body’s way of healing itself. If you’re in feeling pain or see swelling that’s your body’s way of sending chemicals to the affected area to try and heal it. Chronic inflammation can make it worse. Certain foods like broccoli, bell peppers and other vegetables will help lower your inflammation levels.
How Can Chiropractic Care Help Carpal Tunnel Syndrome?
Regular chiropractic adjustments re-align your spine. This re-alignment puts your bones back in place so they’re no longer out of alignment. When you combine this with good nutrition and an ergonomic work area, you can alleviate the pain caused by the pinched nerve in your wrist without surgery.
If you’re in the Doylestown, PA area, come in and see Dr. Jeff McQuaite for carpal tunnel relief.
Winter’s been a bit hard on us this year and you know what that means. Snow shoveling and spills on the ice are happening all over Central Bucks and can leave you with a serious back ache. In fact, just the other day a new patient limped in after slipping on icy steps.
We did an x-ray to determine the extent of the damage and outline the treatment options. After hot/cold therapy and a chiropractic adjustment, he was back on his feet with a greater range of motion and less pain than he had when he entered. Plus, he’ll heal quicker.
Your Spine Affects Your Whole Body
Slipping on ice can leave you feeling battered and bruised. It’s also sure to knock your spine out of alignment. That’s where chiropractic care can help. A chiropractor will assess your body for damage and adjust you so your spine is back in alignment. This will help you feel less stiff and be better able to regain your full range of motion just like my patient earlier in the week.
In chiropractic school, chiropractors study the 33 bones in your spinal column. They learn how each of these bones relate differently to the rest of your body and can affect your movements.
For instance, the 5 vertebrae that make up your lumbar region (lower back), are responsible for your ability to bend from side to side and forward as well as support your upper body. If one (or more) or these are out of alignment, you’ll feel pain and stiffness. Chiro care discovers the source and eliminates the pain so you can get on with your life.
Whether your back aches because of snow shoveling or you’ve slipped and hurt yourself, you don’t need to suffer.
Don’t suffer with a back ache, call your Doylestown chiropractor, Dr. Jeff McQuaite and reclaim your life!
Degenerative disc disease is one of the most common causes of low back and neck pain, and also one of the most misunderstood. Here are some things you should know.
The term, degenerative does not apply to the symptoms, but rather describes the process of the disc degenerating over time. Many times those with a diagnosis of degenerative disc disease are fearful that the pain will worsen and they will be crippled and confined to a wheelchair; however, the pain from degenerative disc disease usually does not get worse and in fact usually gets better given enough time. This is explained by what is known as degenerative cascade theory.
Kirkaldy-Willis was the first to describe the degenerative cascade of degenerative disc disease. There are three general stages to his theory:
There is significant dysfunction caused by the acute back pain of the injury.
Next, there is a long phase of relative instability at that particular vertebral segment and the patient will be prone to intermittent bouts of back pain.
Finally, the body re-stabilizes the segment and the patient experiences fewer episodes of back pain.
Another source of confusion is created by using the term “disease,” which is actually a misnomer. Degenerative disc disease is not really a disease at all, but rather a degenerative condition that at times can produce pain from a damaged disc.
Disc degeneration is a natural part of aging. Over time all people will exhibit changes in their discs. However, not all people will develop symptoms. In fact, degenerative disc disease is quite variable in its nature and severity.
Much confusion also stems from the fact that medical professionals don’t agree on what the phrase degenerative disc disease actually describes. And how can they when the medical textbooks rarely attempt to give an accurate description?
While debate and confusion surround degenerative disc disease, it is important to note that disc degeneration can lead to or hasten the onset of additional spinal conditions. So, it is essential and responsible to pay attention to your back pain and seek medical attention to help with symptoms. Just don’t panic, one or a combination of treatments such as physical therapy, chiropractic treatments or osteopathic manipulation, often provide adequate relief of troubling symptoms.
According to the American Chiropractic Institute, 9 out of 10 Americans suffer from headaches at least occasionally. Some of you suffer on a more consistent basis.
Bright lights, noise or general anxiety can cause headaches. Even certain foods may trigger headaches in some people.
Did you know chiropractic care can offer headache relief? In fact, a 1995 study in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics found that spinal adjustments helped study participants suffering from headaches. The study found regular chiropractic treatment reduces tension headaches.
Do You Spend Hours at the Computer?
One way chiropractic care can help is by re aligning the neck.
Millions of Americans spend hours a day at a computer. This often leads to stiffness and muscle tension in the neck and shoulders. Prolonged tension can cause headaches. If you move around and stretch at least once an hour, you’ll help keep the blood flowing in your neck and release some stiffness.
Plus, you’ll want to make sure your workspace is ergonomically sound. One adjustment you can make is raising your computer monitor so it’s eye level. That adjustment protects your neck and shoulders so they can stay relaxed rather than straining.
You might be surprised to learn, 70% of all headache sufferers have an impairment in their cervical spine. That’s not surprising if you’re sitting for extended periods of time with less than optimal posture is it?
The National Institute of Health agrees that chiropractic care can offer headache relief. Particularly for those suffering with migraines, spinal manipulation helped.
In makes sense when you think about it. When your body is out of alignment, pressure is exerted where it shouldn’t be causing irritation and tension. Chiropractic treatment relieves that pressure. Studies show it’s more effective than medication.
Your chiropractor can make recommendations for you and prescribe a course of action that’s right for you.
If you’re seeking headache relief, consider chiropractic care. It’s time you feel better.
If you suffer with rheumatoid arthritis, you know the feeling of swollen, painful joints and fatigue.
Yet, you may not know the cause.
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an auto-immune disease. What that means is, your brain sends the wrong messages to itself. It creates a cycle of inflammation in an attempt to heal what it perceives as a problem.
The Inflammation Problem
You may have heard of the inflammation cascade.
Inflammation is your body’s way of dealing with stress and sickness. But it can be a lot for anyone to deal with if they are suffering from chronic pain. This is where the help of sites like https://thegreenace.ca/ may come in handy. After all, there are many groups doing research into the health benefits of the chemicals found within cannabis products, and initial results seem to indicate that cbd for arthritis is a valid medical choice.
Additionally, the cascade occurs when your body dumps chemicals into your bloodstream and causes inflammation. This is completely normal.
Here’s an example, if you cut your finger while chopping vegetables, your body sends a flood of white blood cells to kill off any potential bacteria. Your finger will swell and feel tender.
This is an important part of healing.
The problem is when your body doesn’t know when to stop. That’s the problem with an auto-immune disease like rheumatoid arthritis.
Your nerves send the message to your brain that something is wrong so the brain releases the chemicals that cause inflammation so your body can heal. Your joints may be swollen and tender. You may feel tired all the time. That sends more signals to your body that something is wrong.
This vicious cycle suppresses your immune system. A chiropractor can reverse this process.
How Chiropractic Care Relieves Rheumatoid Arthritis Pain
Subluxation is the medical term for spinal misalignment. This misalignment leads to pressure and irritation of your nerves. Your nerves send stress messages to your brain. As you’ve seen above, that leads to inflammation.
If you can take the pressure off your nerve endings and allow the correct messages to move from your brain to your nerves, you can reduce this cycle.
That’s where chiropractic care comes in. It can help by re aligning your spine.
By re aligning your spine, your body will be under less stress which improves your immune system and creates less inflammation. It creates a health cycle.
Plus, if rheumatoid arthritis has left you with stiff joints, chiropractic care can help you gain more mobility within them. This means you’ll have a greater range of motion eventually. However, for now, you might want to consider adding a stairlift to your home to make it easier for any rheumatoid arthritis sufferers in your home. People who have mobility issues, such as those elderly people who find it difficult to move around their home, might benefit from adding one of these devices as it will allow them to travel from the bottom floor of their home, to the top floor. This can save them from having to consider entering retirement homes, as people suffering with mobility should be able to become more independent.
Chiropractor Dr. Jeff McQuaite in Doylestown, Pa, works with patients who have rheumatoid arthritis so you feel better. Make your appointment today and get on your way to health.
The Doylestown Food Pantry, run by the Bucks County Housing Group is in DIRE need of non-perishable food donations. They are having record numbers of families from our community coming in on a weekly basis, and they need our help. From now through November 9, 2013, we will be having a food drive to hopefully “Pack the Pantry”.
We will be accepting donations at our Doylestown chiropractic office during normal office hours. We are located directly across from C.B. West. Some of the items needed are:
Soups
Gravy
Rice
Beans
Canned fruit
Coffee, tea, hot chocolate
Cereal
Snacks
Canned pasta
Juice
Canned meats
Monetary donations will also be gladly accepted.
A little help goes a long way, so let’s help our neighbors who may be a little less fortunate.
You can have a herniated disc and not even know it. That’s because the symptoms can be in your leg, foot or other body part that doesn’t seem related. Of course, all of your body’s movements are related to your spine in some manner so it is related.
You can have a herniated disc in your lower back or your neck area. Here are some common symptoms.
The most common signs for a herniated disc in the lower back (lumbar) are:
Leg pain – Some refer to this as “sciatica”. You may also experience “foot drop” (pain in ankle, weakness when raising the big toe).
You may also experience the radiation of pain down the sole of your foot and outside the foot.
The most common signs for a herniated disc in the neck (cervical region) are:
Weakness in the deltoid muscle in the upper arm or shoulder pain.
Weakness in biceps in the front of upper arm and wrist extensor muscles. This can be actual pain or “tingling” radiating to thumb side of the hand.
Weakness in triceps in back of upper arm to forearm and extensor muscles of fingers.
You may also experience pain, numbness or weakness when gripping with the hand down arm to little finger side of hand.
What exactly is a herniated disc?
The problem occurs with one of the rubbery cushions (discs) between the individual bones (vertebrae). This spinal disc has a “jelly” like interior (nucleus pulpous) and a tougher exterior (annulus fibrosis). A slipped/ruptured disc is when the softer middle pushes out through a crack in the tougher exterior. This irritates surrounding nerves causing pain.
The process happens in four stages:
Disc degeneration – The disc is starting to dry out and is less able to absorb shock of movements.
Prolapse – The form and position of the disc changes causing a slight bulge to begin to form.
Extrusion – The jelly like nucleus breaks through.
Sequestration – The nucleus pulposus breaks through and moves outside the disc in the spinal canal.
The causes of a herniated disc are not always the result of a tragic accident, but are commonly a result of the following:
Most often result from gradual, age-related wear and tear.
Lifting with back muscles instead of leg/thigh muscles.
Twisting/turning while lifting.
Subluxation – One or more of the bones of your spine move out of position.
Risk factors for herniated disc conditions:
Age – Usually seen between 35 and 45 with 35% appearing in males and 45% in females.
Weight – Being overweight strains your body.
Occupation – Those with physically demanding jobs, repetitive lifting, pulling or pushing and bending sideways/twisting are most at risk.
So…can your chiropractor help you with your herniated disc? Yes! Chiropractors are the only healthcare professionals with years of training to specifically address this type condition. They are trained to locate, reduce or correct subluxations by decompressing the vertebrae allowing the disc to heal itself without medications or surgery.
On initial examination, your Chiropractor will look for intact reflexes, loss of muscle strength and/or signs of muscle wasting, and loss of sensation along the path of the nerve. Diagnostic methods such as x-ray or MRI can determine some of this. The chiropractor will also conduct a complete spinal evaluation and careful exam of posture.
Some of the options for treatment are:
Spinal manipulation – Gentle/Low force techniques such as Flexion Distraction or Pelvic Blocking.
Manual Therapy – Ice and or ultrasound in the initial phase as well as guarded stretching exercises.
Therapeutic exercises
Decompression (traction)
Back brace specially fitted to address the injured area
Supplements to replace the lost glucose amino chondroitin
With either some or all of the above, a herniated disc takes approximately 12 weeks to heal.
Studies say fibromyalgia affects between 3-6 million Americans. For reasons the medical community doesn’t know, it primarily affects women. Symptoms include tenderness in at least 11 points throughout your body, decreased mobility and fatigue. It’s a difficult disease to diagnose.
Many people with fibromyalgia have trouble sleeping, experience brain fog, and chronic headaches among other symptoms. In many cases, it can take years to diagnose because the symptoms are similar to other diseases. As difficult as dealing with it can be, there are relief methods. Some people with this disease, and similar pain-related disorders, use marijuana to help ease the symptoms they may be suffering from. This is definitely an avenue to try if you haven’t already, perhaps with these shatter bars, to see if it’s an effective pain relief for you.
Treating fibromyalgia successfully is usually a multi-part effort. Massage, acupuncture and chiropractic care are all effective approaches to this painful disease with or without conventional medicine. These treatments tend to be the most popular choice amongst people suffering from fibromyalgia. Even though they have been known to make a difference, sometimes it doesn’t have a lasting effect on the pain that is being experienced. To help the pain subside, some people may decide to turn their attention towards a form of marijuana called lindsay og that is supposed to help with chronic pain, such as fibromyalgia. It may be in your best interest to try the treatments listed above before deciding to try alternative pain-relief treatments.
How a Chiropractor Helps
Besides the chronic pain, one of the hallmarks of fibromyalgia is stiffness in your back. Fibromyalgia causes your muscles to stiffen and you lose range of movement. As a result, you move less because it hurts or is difficult, then, the muscles get tighter and you are in more pain.
Chiropractic care will help you increase your range of movement and reduce pain. The reason why is regular chiropractic care adjusts your spine which helps it to stay mobile. Combine this with massage and regular stretching and most fibromyalgia patients feel relief.
Dr. Frederick Wolfe, University of Kansas School of Medicine has studied the effects of chiropractic care and fibromyalgia. His study asked fibromyalgia patients whether drugs or alternative therapies relieved their pain. The findings? Chiropractic care & lifestyle changes were more effective than medications.
Prescriptions have their place and you may feel they’re necessary for your immediate pain management. However, in the long term, medication only treats the symptoms. In other words, you’re not healing, simply treating the pain.
Good chiropractic care could help you heal. Studies show it relieves the painful symptoms of fibromyalgia as well as helps you feel less fatigue and get a higher quality of sleep.
If you’re suffering from the pain of fibromyalgia, discover how McQuaite Chiropractic can help you feel better and embrace your life.
In an era in which we are bombarded with media articles about “pink slime” in school cafeterias and pizza being considered a vegetable because it contains tomato sauce, it is natural for parents to want to provide healthy alternatives to the lunches provided by schools. But this provides a challenge. What should we pack in their lunch boxes? And how do we get them to eat it? I know some parents who show their kids a children video to encourage them to eat healthier, as it can be both informative and educational too. Once you get your kids into this habit, then they’ll be carry this on as they get older.
According to Dr. Jeff McQuaite, a Doylestown pediatric chiropractor, the importance of nutrition for school-aged children cannot be overemphasized. Numerous studies have shown that kids who eat nutritionally balanced lunches do better in school, behave better and miss fewer days of school because of illness. Balanced lunches – including foods from each of the major food groups – can help kids to keep their brains alert and their energy up during the long school day, and prevent sluggishness and energy “drop outs” due to low blood sugar. A recent study by JAMA Pediatrics showed that children residing in states with stringent nutritional standards for school meals had lower rates of obesity than those living in states with more lax regulations.
Fortunately, there are dozens of websites on the Internet that provide tasty yet nutritional recipes for kids; just do a search in your favorite browser for “healthy school lunch ideas” and you’ll be able to find hundreds of new recipes to try and many ideas for how to make them more appealing. Here are a few general ideas to get you started:
Try to include at least three of the four major food groups – grains and breads, meats, milk and dairy, and fruits and vegetables – in each meal. A balance of carbohydrates, protein, fats and other nutrients will help to keep kids’ energy up during the afternoons.
Consider alternatives to the same (to kids) boring old sandwiches. You can use bagels or pita breads or sourdough rolls, or prepare “roll ups” using flour or corn tortillas. Instead of processed meats and cheese slices, use cookie cutters to cut up healthier meats that you prepare yourself or healthier cheeses into shapes that entice your kids to eat them.
Encourage your kids to be part of the lunch-planning and lunch-preparation process. They’ll be more likely to eat and enjoy lunches that they helped to choose or prepare. Also, it provides an opportunity for you to teach them more about nutrition, and what is healthy for them.
If your kids are prone to snacking, include healthy snacks like dried fruits and nuts, or make your own. Instead of pre-made packets of crackers and cheese, consider making your own, using healthier whole-grain crackers and real cheeses, instead of white-flour crackers and “cheese food.”
Variety, variety, variety. Instead of a sandwich, consider creating a “dipping lunch” that is all bite-sized and can be dunked in a healthy sauce. You can package up the various ingredients in inexpensive plastic containers. For example, you can combine carrot and celery sticks with a ranch dressing dip, or strips of chicken with a tasty honey-mustard sauce. Cottage cheese, yogurt, guacamole, or hummus can also be healthy dips.
These are just a few ideas from your chiropractor in Doylestown for “spicing up” your children’s school lunches. Use them as a starting point for creating more ideas of your own. Work with your kids to find the things they like best, and chances are they’ll both eat them, and enjoy them.
According to the National Institutes for Health Statistics, lower back pain and headaches are the most common ailment among Americans. People spend almost $50 Billion a year on remedies and treatments for their aches and pains.
Lower back pain causes can come from all sorts of avenues. From arthritis to osteoporosis to disc problems, there are dozens of possible causes.
It’s worth finding out the source of the pain. It’s a big difference to experience the occasional lower back pain because you overdid it in the garden vs. experiencing chronic pain that won’t go away. In either case, you want to get relief right away.
Chiropractic care is a gentle means of adjusting your spine so it returns to its rightful place relieving pain and pinching. Many people find success with chiropractic care and don’t require surgery. Others use it in conjunction to help their surgeries be more successful.
Your chiropractor will work with you to determine your lower back pain causes and create a treatment plan.
A Quick Overview of the Back
The spinal column is made up of 30 bones, tissues, ligaments, and nerve endings. Between these bones are the discs that act as shock absorbers between the vertebrae which cushion the discs. A flexible spine improves your range of motion and protects your back from injury.
Getting Older and a Sedentary Lifestyle Can Contribute to Low Back Pain
This combination is the reason for all types of health issues.
As you get older, you lose muscle tone and bone strength which means your lumbar region (lower back) works harder. This makes it’s easier to strain your muscles when you move something heavy or do vigorous exercise.
Additionally, the discs in your back become less flexible with age and produce less synovial fluid to lubricate the bones.
Then there’s sitting. You’re probably not surprised to find that sitting too much can contribute to lower back pain. So, if you sit at a desk all day and then sit in the evening too, you’re setting yourself up for back pain.
For one, be aware of your posture. Computer work typically causes people to sit hunch forward. This contributes to rounded shoulders and sometimes a chin jutting out which can lead to more pressure on your lumbar region. Investing in a supporting chair can make a big difference.
Some people find a gaming chair is ideal in this situation. Gamers tend to sit in front of dual screens for long periods of time, similar to the amount of time you may sit at your desk. A gaming chair provides comfort and support to your lower back and neck, the same places you may be having issues with so it may help.
Between the normal aging process and today’s sedentary lifestyles, it’s a perfect storm for nerve irritation or bone lesions.
One other reason you might be experiencing back pain is because of an accident. If you have sustained a back injury as the result of the negligence of another person you might be able to make a claim for personal injury compensation.
Here’s How Chiropractic Care Works
Dr. McQuaite will start by discussing your medical history. You’ll share your symptoms and lifestyle. He’ll also examine your posture and take x-rays to see what’s inside. The X-rays will illustrate the cause of your chronic lower back pain. If you have the beginnings of arthritis it will be visible, so will nerve damage, unhealed scar tissue, and dozens of other possibilities.
From there, your chiropractor will recommend a course of treatment. That treatment plan can cover things like heat and cold therapy, a number of visits, and more.
How Quickly Will You Find Relief?
Relief varies for everyone as conditions are different but many find some pain relief after their very first visit. After a few weeks of regular visits, you may find the pain lessens and you have more mobility than you did before.
Of course, making some other adjustments in your lifestyle will contribute too. Regular moderate exercise like walking will help. Not only does moderate exercise help keep you fit, but also, it releases feel-good endorphins in your body which are natural pain relief.
Other adjustments such as your sitting posture and height of the computer can also help. Your monitor should be eye level to take the strain off your neck from bending forward for hours at a time.
You don’t have to live with chronic lower back pain. Discover your lower back pain causes and find relief with a chiropractor.
Eat an Anti-Inflammatory Diet
