Mountain Island Chiropractic: March 2019

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Pain After Back Surgery? Study Shows Chiropractic Can Help

Back pain is the number one cause of disability in the United States. Living with chronic pain causes us to lose joy and miss out on important activities in our daily lives. Patients are often told how to "deal or manage the pain" by taking prescription medications or eventually turned to surgery to try and fix their pain. According to the University of Oregon 2017 study, there was an estimated 1,150,000 back surgeries performed in 2015. And of those surgeries, between 8%-20% had a second surgery within ONE year! The reason why back surgery often fails and the patient is still experiencing pain? It's simple, the cause of the pain was never discovered. They simply went to the spot of the pain and tried to mask the symptoms.
A 2019 case study followed a 62-year old woman who suffered from chronic low back pain after two different back surgeries. She originally had surgery at 42 years old and again at 49 years old due to persistent pain post-surgery. She had been placed on 13 different medications to try to ease the pain over the course of those 20 years. After a chiropractic examination, she was diagnosed with scoliosis, dysautonomia (her autonomic nervous system was not functioning properly), and multiple vertebral subluxations (interferences of the nervous system in the spine). She underwent an initial 3 months of chiropractic corrective care, in which her low back pain decreased significantly and her scoliosis improved with a change in her scoliotic curve shown on post thermal scans and xrays. She was able to come off of her pain medications and reported a significant increase in her overall quality of life! She reported that for two decades she was unable to go through a single day without unmanageable pain at some point during her day, and after chiropractic care no longer went one day where the pain was not tolerable!
Chiropractic adjustments offer specific, gentle relief for patients looking to avoid medications and surgery and to keep their bodies operating at full potential! Have more questions on how chiropractic specifically treat back pain? We are here to help!

Yours in Health,

Dr. Nicholas J. Knutson, DC

Owner/Doctor

MOUNTAIN ISLAND CHIROPRACTIC

10917 Black Dog Ln., Suite 101

Charlotte, NC 28214

Tel (704) 394-8556

Fax (704) 395-8556

mtnislandchiro.com

"If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you're going to have something special." JV

Lapham-Yaun, R., D.C., & Castro, K., D.C. (2019). Improved Spinal Alignment, Chronic Low Back Pain and Improved Quality of Life in a 62-year-old Patient Undergoing chiropractic Care Following Failed Surgical Syndrome: A Case Study & Review of the Literature. A. Vertebral Subluxation Res., 10-21.

Tuesday, March 12, 2019

How Much Water Should You Drink?

A question I get asked often in my practice is "how much water should I drink?" The answer to this varies person to person. Often times you hear the phrase to drink 8 glasses of 8 ounces of water per day. Although this is an excellent measurement to base water consumption on, there are other factors to consider when trying to reach an adequate hydration goal.
Most people are not great about water consumption, and quite honestly water can be an excellent "fix" to help with a lot of ailments. Every cell, organ, and tissue in our body needs water to function properly. Water not only hydrates our cells, but it eliminates waste through our urine and stool, regulates our body temperature, lubricates tissues and joints, and helps in protection of our vital organs. Factors that take away water from our body include exercise, perspiration, hot weather, drinking soda and other sugary drinks, bowel movements, and pregnancy or breast-feeding.
I tell patients all of the time that the best measurement on how well-hydrated you are is the color of your urine and the frequency in which you urinate. "Healthy" looking urine should be a pale or light yellow. Dark urine especially with a strong odor means you are behind the hydration gauge. Often times if you are feeling thirsty, your cells are already in the dehydration state. Also, if hunger feelings start it is best to drink water first, as thirst signs can easily be mistaken for hunger pains.
Every morning you should start the day by drinking a glass of water at least 16 ounces in size. It not only awakens the organs and digestive system after sleep, but it jump starts your metabolism, flushes out toxins, awakens the brain and nervous system, and even can aid in weight loss by curbing your appetite for a short time. Your body has been hard at work while you sleep, and you should replenish that hard work with water first thing. I also suggest if possible to drink an alkaline water with a pH of 8 or higher, especially first thing in the morning. Also, if available room temperature water is best for optimal absorption and digestion throughout the day.
Tracking water consumption can just seem like one more thing to have to do during our day. My advice is to simply try to substitute water in a few places where you normally wouldn't. Start your day with 1-2 glasses or water, have water with lunch or keep a bottle at your desk with you during the work day. When the afternoon hunger hits start with a glass of water before you have a snack. Try to drink a bottle to and from your commute to work. Drink a glass as you're getting ready for bed. A trick with my kids is they take water bottles that can have fruit infused to school so that they drink more throughout the day. Small changes to your water consumption daily will have large effects on your overall health!

Yours in Health,

Dr. Nicholas J. Knutson, DC