Daily News and Events
A Blood Drive will be held by the New York Blood Center (NYBC) at the Shoprite of Flanders on Saturday, January 22 from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. Shoprite is located at 90 Flanders Bartley Road. Please call 800-933-2566 to schedule an appointment if you would like to make a donation.
Donating blood or platelets is one of the few things you can do to make an immediate, life-saving difference for others. To meet the complex needs of the hospitals and patients of greater New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, NYBC needs close to 2,000 people to roll up their sleeves each day to give the gift of life. There is simply no substitute for voluntarily donated blood. Without volunteer donors, our community would not have an adequate community blood supply.
You may also go to the New York Blood Center's website at http://www.nybloodcenter.org/ to schedule an appointment and for information about donation.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
Nervous System Feedback and Subluxations
You're probably familiar with the high-pitched squealing feedback of a public address system. But there's another kind of feedback that helps keep us alive.
We all know that the brain and the rest of the nervous system orchestrates the function of every cell, tissue, organ and system of the body. Most of these impulses travel down the spinal cord and out from between each spinal joint to service all parts of the body.
Beat the heart! Secrete enzymes! Inhale! Blink! Make blood cells! Perspire! Produce stomach acid! Beat the heart! It's a full time job. Good thing we don't have to think about all this or we wouldn't have time to do anything else.
Of course, any interference or distortion of these controlling nerve messages and the heart doesn't beat right, the lungs don't inflate and our stomach produces too much or too little acid.
But there's more. Organs and tissues originate their own messages that flow back up to the brain confirming that the information was received and acted upon.
Did it! Done! Got it! Sure thing! Will do! Okay! I'm on it! Did it!
This feedback is crucial. If a subluxation compromises the signal to (or from) any tissue, it won't work properly.
We all know that the brain and the rest of the nervous system orchestrates the function of every cell, tissue, organ and system of the body. Most of these impulses travel down the spinal cord and out from between each spinal joint to service all parts of the body.
Beat the heart! Secrete enzymes! Inhale! Blink! Make blood cells! Perspire! Produce stomach acid! Beat the heart! It's a full time job. Good thing we don't have to think about all this or we wouldn't have time to do anything else.
Of course, any interference or distortion of these controlling nerve messages and the heart doesn't beat right, the lungs don't inflate and our stomach produces too much or too little acid.
But there's more. Organs and tissues originate their own messages that flow back up to the brain confirming that the information was received and acted upon.
Did it! Done! Got it! Sure thing! Will do! Okay! I'm on it! Did it!
This feedback is crucial. If a subluxation compromises the signal to (or from) any tissue, it won't work properly.
The result? Ill health!
Health information provided by the Association of New Jersey Chiropractors (ANJC) on behalf of local chiropractors.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
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.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
ACA Member Discusses Chiropractic Neurology on PBS
American Chiropractic Association (ACA) member and Palmer College of Chiropractic West Campus alumnus Robert Adams, DC, was recently featured on the PBS program “Healing Quest,” which, according to the show’s website, “is the only weekly national television series focused on the latest in integrative health and natural approaches in wellness.”
Adams’ segment on the program, which is broadcast on more than 100 PBS stations throughout the U.S., as well as nearly a dozen broadcast networks around the world, focused on his work in the field of chiropractic neurology, and how he is utilizing this technique to help children with learning disabilities reduce their dependency on pharmaceutical drugs.
One of Adam’s current patients knows one of the “Healing Quest” producers, who contacted him to discuss a segment on chiropractic. When Adams mentioned his success in utilizing chiropractic neurology as a means by which to help children with learning disabilities, the producer decided to make this the focus of the segment, which was one of the stories featured in the episode originally broadcast the last week of November.
Adams, who earned his diplomate from the American College of Chiropractic Neurology in 1993, says the ability to precisely adjust certain areas of the nervous system without drugs is a major advantage of chiropractic.
By providing parents of ADD-afflicted children with a powerful, natural alternative, Adams has had many young patients referred to him by teachers throughout Sonoma who are interested in learning about how to deal with learning challenges without using pharmaceuticals.
The nervous systems in these kids are phenomenal; they’re just waiting for some help, they’re trying to get stimulated,” says Adams in the segment. “The paradox here is that you have a child with hyperactivity, yet the typical medical model (in treating ADD) is to do what? To give them medications, which are amphetamines, to slow them down. Instead of taking a medication that affects both sides of the brain, which affects everything, you want to target the area of the brain that’s deficient, to bring it up to higher frequency of firing, so it won’t inhibit itself.”
In addition to focusing on Adams’ specific work in helping children with learning disabilities through his “Brain Back Body” neurotechnology focused exercise program (www.theneurotechnologies.com), he also promotes chiropractic as an effective way for patients to maintain a strong immune system, and cites the results of a study by the Sloan-Kettering Institute in New York, which showed that patients who’d been adjusted monthly for five years had 200 percent better immuno-competence than the average person, and 400 percent better than sick people.
Four hours of filming in Adams’ office resulted in the 6:56 segment on the program, whose trio of hosts include singer Olivia Newton-John, and which also features weekly advice from alternative medicine proponent Dr. Deepak Chopra. “My primary motivation for agreeing to take part was to use this national stage as a way to help promote chiropractic, not to promote me,” said Adams.
“I think it’s a nice presentation, and it shows that as doctors of chiropractic, we’re more than just musculoskeletal specialists,” said Adams, past president of the California Chiropractic Association North Bay Society, from which he received “Doctor of the Year” Honors in 1995.
To learn more about the “Healing Quest” program, go to: www.healingquest.tv. To see the “Healing Quest” segment with Dr. Adams, go to the program’s YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IZ4-bnf_2U.
Source: Palmer College of Chiropractic, www.palmer.edu
Adams’ segment on the program, which is broadcast on more than 100 PBS stations throughout the U.S., as well as nearly a dozen broadcast networks around the world, focused on his work in the field of chiropractic neurology, and how he is utilizing this technique to help children with learning disabilities reduce their dependency on pharmaceutical drugs.
One of Adam’s current patients knows one of the “Healing Quest” producers, who contacted him to discuss a segment on chiropractic. When Adams mentioned his success in utilizing chiropractic neurology as a means by which to help children with learning disabilities, the producer decided to make this the focus of the segment, which was one of the stories featured in the episode originally broadcast the last week of November.
Adams, who earned his diplomate from the American College of Chiropractic Neurology in 1993, says the ability to precisely adjust certain areas of the nervous system without drugs is a major advantage of chiropractic.
By providing parents of ADD-afflicted children with a powerful, natural alternative, Adams has had many young patients referred to him by teachers throughout Sonoma who are interested in learning about how to deal with learning challenges without using pharmaceuticals.
The nervous systems in these kids are phenomenal; they’re just waiting for some help, they’re trying to get stimulated,” says Adams in the segment. “The paradox here is that you have a child with hyperactivity, yet the typical medical model (in treating ADD) is to do what? To give them medications, which are amphetamines, to slow them down. Instead of taking a medication that affects both sides of the brain, which affects everything, you want to target the area of the brain that’s deficient, to bring it up to higher frequency of firing, so it won’t inhibit itself.”
In addition to focusing on Adams’ specific work in helping children with learning disabilities through his “Brain Back Body” neurotechnology focused exercise program (www.theneurotechnologies.com), he also promotes chiropractic as an effective way for patients to maintain a strong immune system, and cites the results of a study by the Sloan-Kettering Institute in New York, which showed that patients who’d been adjusted monthly for five years had 200 percent better immuno-competence than the average person, and 400 percent better than sick people.
Four hours of filming in Adams’ office resulted in the 6:56 segment on the program, whose trio of hosts include singer Olivia Newton-John, and which also features weekly advice from alternative medicine proponent Dr. Deepak Chopra. “My primary motivation for agreeing to take part was to use this national stage as a way to help promote chiropractic, not to promote me,” said Adams.
“I think it’s a nice presentation, and it shows that as doctors of chiropractic, we’re more than just musculoskeletal specialists,” said Adams, past president of the California Chiropractic Association North Bay Society, from which he received “Doctor of the Year” Honors in 1995.
To learn more about the “Healing Quest” program, go to: www.healingquest.tv. To see the “Healing Quest” segment with Dr. Adams, go to the program’s YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IZ4-bnf_2U.
Source: Palmer College of Chiropractic, www.palmer.edu
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Chiropractic Care Improves QOL for Cerebral Palsy Patients
Scant information exists in the medical literature on chiropractic and cerebral
palsy (CP), but those Doctors of Chiropractic (DCs) who work with CP patients say that most respond favorably to chiropractic treatment. CP patients have motor disorders that are unique to each individual, the result of damage to sensory-motor areas of the cerebral cortex that occurred during fetal development or childbirth and neonatal development. Any CP treatment must be individualized and specific to each person’s needs, although no treatment offers a cure.
Because the presentation of CP varies greatly from patient to patient, so does each patient's response to care. Some see improved comfort, some feel increased flexibility and motor control, and others notice improved bowel function or sleep. About three-quarters of all CP patients suffer from spastic CP and usually benefit from chiropractic treatment. Treatment is directed toward changing muscle tone, coordination, and motor development.
All CP patients have a pathology in their brains that is fixed and non-progressive. CP patients can expect a varied combination of applications including spinal and joint manipulations or adjustments, as well as specific exercises and a variety of environmental stimuli such as light, sound, and other brain-based applications. Regular adjustments help normalize motion in the spinal and extremity joints.
Pain is one of the most troubling aspects of CP—a result of the constant joint irritation that causes inflammation. Adjusting the joint reduces the mechanoreceptor irritation and helps reduce both the degree of spasm and the inflammation. The decreased muscle tension and lessened inflammation means the patient feels more relaxed and has less pain.
Unfortunately because the original damage to the central nervous system causes constant muscle spasm in those with spastic CP, although chiropractic care can bring great relief to these patients, improvement is often temporary. Without a cure available, this condition continues to present the patient with biomechanical and physiological challenges.
Treatment should be realistic and designed to help CP patients experience a higher quality of life. Initiating treatment as early as possible is critical for promoting the development of as many motor skills as possible, as well as helping patients learn the skills they need to compensate for lost function.
Because chiropractic helps increase the comfort level of many patients with CP, a major side benefit is that they can greatly reduce or eliminate their medications. These pain medications often come with serious side effects, especially for chronic users, and patients often develop a tolerance over time to them, which causes them to require ever increasing doses to experience the same level of pain relief. Therefore, including chiropractic care early as part of the treatment protocol for CP patients can potentially reduce their lifetime intake of pain medications and increase their overall quality of life.
Written by Mark Crawford, contributing writer, and reproduced from the Journal of the American Chiropractic Association. Edited by Optimal Family Chiropractic, LLC.
palsy (CP), but those Doctors of Chiropractic (DCs) who work with CP patients say that most respond favorably to chiropractic treatment. CP patients have motor disorders that are unique to each individual, the result of damage to sensory-motor areas of the cerebral cortex that occurred during fetal development or childbirth and neonatal development. Any CP treatment must be individualized and specific to each person’s needs, although no treatment offers a cure.
Because the presentation of CP varies greatly from patient to patient, so does each patient's response to care. Some see improved comfort, some feel increased flexibility and motor control, and others notice improved bowel function or sleep. About three-quarters of all CP patients suffer from spastic CP and usually benefit from chiropractic treatment. Treatment is directed toward changing muscle tone, coordination, and motor development.
All CP patients have a pathology in their brains that is fixed and non-progressive. CP patients can expect a varied combination of applications including spinal and joint manipulations or adjustments, as well as specific exercises and a variety of environmental stimuli such as light, sound, and other brain-based applications. Regular adjustments help normalize motion in the spinal and extremity joints.
Pain is one of the most troubling aspects of CP—a result of the constant joint irritation that causes inflammation. Adjusting the joint reduces the mechanoreceptor irritation and helps reduce both the degree of spasm and the inflammation. The decreased muscle tension and lessened inflammation means the patient feels more relaxed and has less pain.
Unfortunately because the original damage to the central nervous system causes constant muscle spasm in those with spastic CP, although chiropractic care can bring great relief to these patients, improvement is often temporary. Without a cure available, this condition continues to present the patient with biomechanical and physiological challenges.
Treatment should be realistic and designed to help CP patients experience a higher quality of life. Initiating treatment as early as possible is critical for promoting the development of as many motor skills as possible, as well as helping patients learn the skills they need to compensate for lost function.
Because chiropractic helps increase the comfort level of many patients with CP, a major side benefit is that they can greatly reduce or eliminate their medications. These pain medications often come with serious side effects, especially for chronic users, and patients often develop a tolerance over time to them, which causes them to require ever increasing doses to experience the same level of pain relief. Therefore, including chiropractic care early as part of the treatment protocol for CP patients can potentially reduce their lifetime intake of pain medications and increase their overall quality of life.
Written by Mark Crawford, contributing writer, and reproduced from the Journal of the American Chiropractic Association. Edited by Optimal Family Chiropractic, LLC.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Spinal Link to Asthma
A report funded by the Australian Spinal Research Foundation suggests a link between chiropractic and the reduction of asthma symptoms.
According to Macquarie University researcher Dr. Ray Hayek, the study involved hundreds of people suffering with asthma symptoms.
"When an asthma sufferer is under the anxiety of a looming asthma attack, the levels of the hormone cortisol increase. This acute increase in cortisol through a number of mechanisms can bring on an asthma attack," says Dr. Hayek. "Levels of the stress hormone cortisol steadily decreased during the trial, and levels of immunological markers (immunoglobulin A) steadily rose."
Apparently, reducing stress to the nervous system with chiropractic care reduces the likelihood of asthma attacks. More proof that chiropractic care, because of its focus on the nervous system, may be helpful for improving a wide variety of health complaints.
According to Macquarie University researcher Dr. Ray Hayek, the study involved hundreds of people suffering with asthma symptoms.
"When an asthma sufferer is under the anxiety of a looming asthma attack, the levels of the hormone cortisol increase. This acute increase in cortisol through a number of mechanisms can bring on an asthma attack," says Dr. Hayek. "Levels of the stress hormone cortisol steadily decreased during the trial, and levels of immunological markers (immunoglobulin A) steadily rose."
Apparently, reducing stress to the nervous system with chiropractic care reduces the likelihood of asthma attacks. More proof that chiropractic care, because of its focus on the nervous system, may be helpful for improving a wide variety of health complaints.
Thursday, December 9, 2010
"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.
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.
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