Is Your Body Merely a Collection of Parts?

In school you learned that the human body was divided into different parts. The mouth, esophagus, stomach and intestines made up the digestive system. The bones made up the skeletal system. And so on. This has contributed to the widely-held belief that you and I are merely a collection of parts, a belief that stands in the way of better health. It’s responsible for:

Isolation: Incorrectly thinking that organs and tissues operate independently of each other rather than together as part of an integrated whole.

Mechanism: The belief that we’re simply a collection of parts in which identical inputs (drugs) should produce identical results in all subjects.

We chiropractors go beyond mechanism to embrace what’s called vitalism:

Wholism: Each “part” has a purpose that contributes to the whole.

Intelligence: You and I can learn, create and adapt to our environment.

Self-healing: Cut your finger and your body can heal it. Mechanisms can’t.

Since the nervous system regulates these vital processes, chiropractic care is the centerpiece of the growing interest in vitalism.

ANJC Health eNews is provided on behalf of local member chiropractors and published monthly by the Association of New Jersey Chiropractors.

Health Is No Accident!

When people get sick or experience various aches and pains, it’s tempting to look for causes outside ourselves. The most convenient culprits:

Bad luck. Accidents often fall into this category—being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Germs. Blaming a cold or flu on germs overlooks one critical ingredient—being a hospitable host!

Genetics. The new fall guy is "bad genes.” Yet, research shows that gene expression is a reaction to our environment.

Thankfully, we live in a world of cause and effect. Every symptom has a cause. And as tempting as it is to look to outside causes, many health problems are the result of our own choices, beliefs and habits. Sometimes the effects can take decades to appear.

Ill health is not an accident, but the result of your body’s inability to accommodate physical, chemical or emotional stress. Similarly, good health results when your body works the way it was designed to.

Educational information is provided by the Association of New Jersey Chiropractors and local chiropractors.

Once You Go...

It keeps a lot of people from benefiting from chiropractic: they're afraid that they will somehow get "addicted" to our care!

While many of our patients choose to come in on a regular basis when they're feeling great, they don't have to. They want to. For...

- The early detection of subluxations
- Avoiding a relapse of their original problem
- Being their best and staying well

These are choices patients make, based on their understanding of what we do and how they value their health. It's mostly about priorities. Each of us gets to choose how much attention we want to give our health. We honor that choice. Sure, we explain the benefits of periodic checkups, but our job is to offer the finest chiropractic care possible, and then it's entirely up to you to decide how much of it you want.

Health information is provided by the Association of New Jersey Chiropractors (ANJC) on behalf of local member chiropractors.

"Baby It's Cold Outside"

For the fourth year in a row, the Association of New Jersey Chiropractors (ANJC) is launching its statewide community service initiative, "Baby It's Cold Outside" to help the less fortunate during the holiday and winter seasons.

Optimal Family Chiropractic is participating in the initiative by asking patients to bring non-perishable food items and/or unwanted coats, hats, gloves & scarves in good condition to their office through the holidays and until January 15, 2011. A special Drop-Off box is in the office waiting room.

Donations will be distributed to the Salvation Army, Goodwill, the local County Human Services and Jersey Cares and local food banks.

Do You Get the Message?

Many people think chiropractic is about bones, especially spinal bones. But the fact is, we're much more interested in nerves. In particular, the nerve messages that travel between the brain and the body and from the body back to the brain.

Any type of disruption can distort or disturb the integrity of the controlling and regulating messages from the brain. The result can be ill health.

A common culprit is the 24 moving bones of the spine that cover your spinal cord. When spinal bones lose their normal motion or position, it can irritate nearby nerves. Because the nervous system controls every cell, tissue, organ and system of your body, chiropractic care can help a wide variety of health problems.

Maybe you know someone who has been told that it"s "all in their head" or that they"ll have to "learn to live with it." Worse, someone who thinks they have a muscle relaxer shortage. Let them know about chiropractic!

Information provided by the Association of New Jersey Chiropractors.

Resolution Check-In

Just a few months ago, many of us resolved to make changes in our lives. What happened?

Consider some of the traits of those who keep new, healthier habits:

They believe in their ability to change.
They know that keeping old habits and forming new ones are choices that they control.

They don't blame themselves or make excuses.
Instead of giving up after "falling off the wagon," they dust themselves off and recommit to their goal.

They concentrate on measurable results.
They track their progress.

They make change a long-term lifestyle decision.
Diets don't work. Abandoning unhealthy habits requires thinking long term.

If you've fallen out of the habit of regular, preventive chiropractic care, it's not too late to get back in the habit!

Patient information provided by the Association of New Jersey Chiropractors

Governor Corzine Signs Bill Expanding Scope of Chiropractic Medicine into Law

The Association of New Jersey Chiropractors and all Doctors of Chiropractic in New Jersey are delighted that Governor Corzine signed an updated Scope of Practice into law on Monday, January 18. This law enables Doctors of Chiropractic to expand the scope of treatment and health care services that they can offer to patients in New Jersey. The prior scope of practice was last amended in 1953 leaving New Jersey chiropractors with one of the most restrictive statutes governing their scope of practice in the nation. The previous scope of practice also left chiropractors unable to fully incorporate their medical knowledge into practice; thereby limiting the extent of their therapeutic care.

This new Bill expands the scope of practice of chiropractic medicine beyond adjusting the articulations of the spinal column to include a person’s extremities. It covers the reduction of misalignment, as well as examination, diagnosis, assessment, adjustment and treatment of joints and soft tissue. Chiropractors can now also order and administer physical therapy and rehabilitative and strengthening exercises.

Chiropractic Physicians receive extensive medical training. This expanded scope allows them to use their extensive training to provide more treatment options to health care consumers in New Jersey.