CHOICES NEWSLETTER

April 02, 2007

Welcome to CHOICES, Gutrich Chiropractic and Naprapathy's Newsletter

Keeping you up-to-date in the constantly changing and expanding field of complementary health care. Forward to a friend!

Chiropractic Lowers Blood Pressure

Study Finds Special ‘Atlas Adjustment’ Cuts Blood Pressure
By Daniel J. DeNoon /WebMD Medical News
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD
March 16, 2007 — A special chiropractic adjustment can significantly lower high blood pressure, a placebo-controlled study suggests.
“This procedure has the effect of not one, but two blood-pressure medications given in combination,” study leader George Bakris, MD, tells WebMD. “And it seems to be adverse-event free. We saw no side effects and no problems,” adds Bakris, director of the University of Chicago hypertension center.
Eight weeks after undergoing the procedure, 25 patients with early-stage high blood pressure had significantly lower blood pressure than 25 similar patients who underwent a sham chiropractic adjustment. Because patients can’t feel the technique, they were unable to tell which group they were in.
X-rays showed that the procedure realigned the Atlas vertebra — the doughnut-like bone at the very top of the spine — with the spine in the treated patients, but not in the sham-treated patients.
Compared to the sham-treated patients, those who got the real procedure saw an average 14 mm Hg greater drop in systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood pressure count), and an average 8 mm Hg greater drop in diastolic blood pressure (the bottom blood pressure number).
None of the patients took blood pressure medicine during the eight-week study.
“When the statistician brought me the data, I actually didn’t believe it. It was way too good to be true,” Bakris says. “The statistician said, ‘I don’t even believe it.’ But we checked for everything, and there it was.”
Bakris and colleagues report their findings in the advance online issue of the Journal of Human Hypertension.

SOURCES: Bakris, G. Journal of Human Hypertension, advance online publication, March 2, 2007. Grassi, G. Journal of Human Hypertension, advance online publication, January 25, 2007.George Bakris, MD, director, hypertension center, University of Chicago.

Failing to Prepare = Preparing to Fail

An adult may not have to sit in a classroom and take tests like he did as a school-aged child, but the same adage about planning ahead still applies when trying to juggle all of the responsibilities of adulthood. Children regularly have to check in with parents and teachers, receive report cards, and even sometimes discuss their behavior. Adults could also benefit from regular introspection, as well as accountability to a trusted advisor. Many people have to create year plans for their jobs, but not necessarily for their personal lives, which would explain why many New Year’s resolutions are left unmet.
Let’s take an example of a person that wants to lose weight. How can we build the scenario to create a pathway for success? First, create a long-term goal that is challenging, but realistic to be reached. It should be worded in very clear verbiage to make sure it includes all of the actions one must take to make changes. Next, break it down into short-term goals: What do I need to accomplish today to keep me on the road for the month or year? Start each day by mentally preparing for what you want to accomplish and set the tone by using positive and encouraging language. The last thing you need is to sabotage yourself. Then, it is important to have a system to keep track of progress, and that often comes in the form of checking in with a doctor who is qualified to give advice about nutrition, exercise and your overall well-being. It is good to have a cheerleader in your corner that can help you stay motivated. Building new habits takes time and patience, but the payoff far outweighs the efforts.
We want to help you “ace your life.” Keep checking in to update us, and we’ll hold up our end of the bargain by keeping you healthy and energetic.

Hitting the Links

Signs of spring are warm weather and golf clubs! People are blazing outdoors, jogging on the lakeshore path and hitting the links. There are over 25 million golfers in America, many with chronic low back pain. Some of the popular recommendations given to golfers, such as, keeping the pelvis stationary while maximally rotating the spine to increase power, has no evidence to support it. In fact, it can cause and/or contribute to low back pain and other injuries.

Physiologically, adopting a short back-swing will help reduce the risk of injuring your low back, without having to sacrifice power or speed. New research shows that a short back-swing still achieved the same clubhead speed at ball impact as a long back-swing would. In fact, you will gain more control and will minimize stress in the low back.

Getting custom made orthotics is another way to improve your game. Par-flex plus by Foot Levelers has been shown to improve support, balance, and fight foot fatigue. So next time, instead of popping aspirin, try chiropractic! Gutrich Chiropractic can help with current low-back pain, make orthotics (specially designed for golfers), preventative advice, rehabilitation exercises and natural anti-inflammatory nutrition to help you with your golf game.