How does a Chiropractic Adjustment work and why is it so important to overall Health?

This past month:

 Tiger Woods had to pull out of a major PGA Tournament because of back pain

 

 

Pope Francis fell while delivering a mass, some say due to his chronic sciatic pain. 

 

 

In all likelihood, both incidences could have been avoided had the world’s formerly greatest golfer and the 79-year-old Pontiff received specific chiropractic adjustments to their low backs to help them with their chronic painful conditions.

 

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How does a Chiropractic Adjustment work and why is it so important to overall Health?

 

Empirical evidence suggests that chiropractic patients tend to be healthier than those who depend on drugs and surgeries to address their health problems. You may ask, “How and why is this?"

 

First and foremost - Gravity never takes a day off and my job is to improve your “relationship with gravity” by making sure your 206 bones are in alignment. You know that if one of the 4 tires of your car is out of alignment what happens…. imagine any one of the bones of your feet, spine, limbs or skull being misaligned. Like the misaligned tires it will make you move unsteadily and if you don't quickly remedy the misalignment you will have to replace the tire (shoulder, hip or spinal bone).

 

Currently, there are approximately 285,000 hip replacements and 600,000 knee replacements in the US yearly. The best ways to prevent these are:

 

1. Keep your joints in alignment through monthly chiropractic adjustments

2. Keep your weight down

3. Put your joints through their full movements. - The 6 Power Kinetics® Movements are great for this. Ask me about these if you don’t know them.

 

It is not just the biomechanical benefit mentioned above of having your bones in proper alignment that creates your improved health; there are also neurological reasons:

 

All joints have nerve endings called mechanoreceptors, which tell the brain where the body is in space. When a spinal vertebra for instance is stuck within its normal range of motion the mechanoreceptors lose the impulse and the integrity of the nervous system is compromised - this can lead to pain, loss of sensation, muscle spasms (as the body tries to make the bone move) and has autonomic consequences to the related organs in the area. (via the intermediolateral cell column of the spinal cord, which allows communication between the muscle and the related organ)

 

Therefore, a chiropractic adjustment does not just “un-pinch a nerve” it stimulates the mechanoreceptors in that joint and affects the entire nervous system and thereby the entire body. In other words, a spinal adjustment actually “un-pinches the entire nervous system.” 

 

This is how it helps people with other health issues besides back pain and sciatica such as allergies, digestive problems, headaches, chronic fatigue, ADHD, skin issues (the largest organ of the body)  visual disturbances… and basically anything connected with the nervous system, which is everything since the nervous system controls every muscle, gland and organ in the body.

If you look at people who regularly receive specific chiropractic treatments they are not only straighter and in less pain… they have more vitality! This is how you will be if you maintain your good health by including the necessary and often overlooked aspect of keeping your joints in proper alignment and your nervous system free of avoidable tension.

 

To your great health,

 

Eugene Charles, D.C. DIBAK

Diplomate, International Board of Applied Kinesiology

www.appliedkinesiologycenterofnewyork.com

 

 

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Incidentally, Dr. Charles’ training manual, Precision Adjusting For The Master Chiropractor, is in every Chiropractic College in the United States. 

Photo: Dr. Charles restoring normal motion to a patient’s low back 

(From Precision Adjusting For The Master Chiropractor by Eugene Charles, D.C.)

The #1 Cause of Disability in the World - Low Back Pain

When you were younger you probably felt invincible. It was like you were made of rubber and could withstand anything (bumps, bruises, or sitting like a pretzel for hours on end) and would snap back up again unscathed, ready for the next challenge. But how about now? Are you still invincible, or has your lower back been giving you painful reminders that you are not? According to statistics, the answer is probably YES! Sadly, you are not alone. You are actually part of an alarming global trend of people with low back pain issues. My hope with this BLOG is to teach you how to avoid becoming a statistic.

A recent Medical Journal Reported, “Low back pain (LBP) causes more disability globally than any other condition; according to two studies published online January 30 and March 24, 2014 in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. As the world population continues to age, an urgent need exists for research to find out why and how LBP might be prevented or better managed…” (http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/822492)

Let’s read that again,

“Low back pain causes more disability globally than any other condition… an urgent need exists for research to find out why and how LBP might be prevented or better managed...”

So the question is, "why does this happen and what can you do to prevent and/or recover from low back pain?" If I may be so bold... I am positive that I have the answers to both how LBP might be prevented and better managed!

Follow these steps:

#1. Take responsibility. If you are reading this you are obviously someone who takes responsibility, and who realizes that you cannot afford to keep doing what got you in this mess in the first place. You have to treat yourself differently. You have to treat yourself and your spine better. If you are overweight you have to drop the excess poundage...NOW! Proceed to step two.

#2 Movement is Medicine. We have all heard the quote, “use it or lose it.” Simply put, you absolutely MUST move around more. Get out of your chair for 10 minutes every hour. The US Army did a study and found that resting 10 minutes out of every hour made marching soldiers more effective. I believe that getting up 10 minutes out of every hour will help soldiers in the civilian world (you) be more energetic—and healthier. So get up and walk around! Better yet, shake the dust off your spine by performing the 6 spinal movements and the “10 Things To Do at Work” on the Power Kinetics® Exercise DVD.

#3 Get your spine aligned. How anyone in this day and age does not realize that all 26 bones of their spine need to be adjusted and realigned at least once a month is mind-boggling! I believe most LBP comes from the spinal bones getting stuck or misaligned. In other words, for optimal joint and spine health you absolutely MUST see a doctor of chiropractic on a REGULAR basis.

*Just like you regularly see a dentist to take care of the bones in your mouth... you must see a chiropractor to take care of the bones in your spine, and the rest of your body for matter.

#4 Receive applied kinesiology treatments. Applied kinesiology (AK) is a system that uses muscle testing to uncover which muscle(s) is not moving right when someone has pain or cannot do something. You are well aware of the fact that muscles move bones and I feel that chiropractors who utilize applied kinesiology techniques to augment their great adjustments can accomplish more in one visit than any other doctor who specializes in spinal health. I feel you need to have your muscles tested and then treated for optimal spinal health and I know of no better way of keeping your low back healthy than having specific kinesiological work done on your muscles followed by a precise chiropractic adjustment.

So we are clear, I am partial to AK because the founder of AK, Dr. George Goodheart, properly diagnosed and corrected the cause of my severe shoulder pain when no other doctor was able to... over 30 years ago. This motivated me to become the youngest teaching Diplomate of Applied Kinesiology in the world. (or so I was told)

*If you are interested, I have a list of doctors I've trained in applied kinesiology and also have seminar DVDs available to any doctor who wants to learn and use these powerful healing tools. 

#5 Eat foods and herbs that decrease inflammation. Foods such as olive oil, nuts & seeds, fish (especially wild salmon, sardines & anchovies), grass fed beef, vegetables; and herbs such as turmeric, boswellia, ginger root, quercetin and ubiquinol work naturally with your body to decrease pain and swelling.

#6 Strengthen your stomach muscles (the abdominals). Strong abdominal muscles stabilize and support your low back. However, MOST stomach exercises are wrong. That’s right, most stomach exercises involve the hip flexors, which are antagonistic to the abdominal muscle. So you are creating tension in your low back; the very same low back you are exercising to help.

Several years ago, I developed an abdominal exercise for a man with a herniated disc who had horrific pain shooting down his legs. He needed to strengthen his stomach muscles to help his condition, yet every stomach exercise he tried was incredibly painful. Instead of having him contract his hip flexor muscles (psoas, rectus femoris), I had him contract his hip extensor muscles (gluteus maximus, hamstrings).

I developed this exercise for him and he was able to do it with no pain. So if a guy with a herniated disc was able to do this and not hurt himself, I am confident that this exercise will not injure your low back and you will benefit greatly by it. I’m a little embarrassed that it took me 30 years—plus a patient in horrible pain—to come up with this abdominal exercise. One of my students named it “The Charles Crunch.” I simply call it, "The PK Sit-up."

*You can see this low back saving exercise in the Dec 17 2014 BLOG.

There you have it. Six things you can do to avoid the greatest cause of disability on the planet. When your low back hurts, everything hurts and everyday can be a living nightmare. Be very diligent with these 6 steps and you will have a greater probability of a healthy, pain-free low back and a greater opportunity of enjoying life to the fullest.

Don’t wait until you have low back pain to implement these six actions, do them as preventative measures NOW. As Benjamin Franklin said, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

I will leave you with a different version of this adage that I teach all of my patients, “Be kind to your spine. Treat your back like it is hurting…and it never will.”

To your Great Health and Success,

Eugene Charles, D.C., DIBAK Diplomate, International Board of Applied Kinesiology www.charlesseminars.com

Follow Dr. Charles on Twitter, and subscribe to his YouTube channel. Share this blog with a friend!

Contact us and let us know you signed up for the BLOG and you will receive a FREE PDF to the book Antidotes For Indiscretions: What to do when you do what you shouldn’t have.

For a list of doctors trained in Applied Kinesiology http://www.charlesseminars.com/AKdoctors.html

For doctors interested in adding Applied Kinesiology to their practice http://www.charlesseminars.com/producs.html

To order The Power Kinetics® Exercise DVD http://www.charlesseminars.com/PowerKineticsVitamins.html

Introducing the Power Kinetics™ Exercise DVD from Dr. Eugene Charles

Dr. Eugene Charles has spent nearly 25 years puttinghis weight training, martial arts, chiropractic and applied kinesiology knowledge and experience in creating Power Kinetics. It is possibly the most intelligent and synergistic workout to develop EVERYDAY STRENGTH!

Here is the only exercise program to combine all 3 workouts – Isokinetics, Isotonics, and Isometrics to prevent injuries and help rehabilitate injured joints and develop a healthy, strong and well-balanced body.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/g3qJFqwZZb8]

PowerKinetics™ consists of exercises using your own body to improve health, enhance performance and relieve joint pain - The stronger you get the harder the exercises gets.

Your patients are getting older; your training knowledge must get newer. Your patients can perform these at home or in your office as part of your treatment.

INCLUDES the most scientific and effective Muscle Building, Fat Metabolizing and Healthy Joint Nutritional Supplements from Power Kinetics™.

The main purpose of exercise is to make you healthier and PowerKinetics™ may be the healthiest way to work out.

[youtube=http://youtu.be/KXk7wAV04Hg]

Enhance your own health as well as the health of your patients with PowerKinetics™.

To order your Workout DVD and Fitness Building Vitamins go to  http://www.charlesseminars.com/PowerKineticsVitamins.html

  "Maximize Your Performance" with PowerKinetics - Balanced Workouts for Everyday Strength

Every Back has a Front Attached to it

Sometimes, a back problem may really be a front problem. On the front of every human body lies the ileocecal valve. Let’s call it ICV for short. This little valve is what separates the small intestine from the large intestine. Its function is to prevent food in the large intestine (meant for evacuation) from refluxing back into the small intestine.

But what if this trusty gatekeeper failed to do its job?

If it did, our body would have a landslide of toxins to deal with, and the results wouldn’t be very pretty. Think excruciating low back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, inflamed pelvic organs, PMS, bowel changes, dark circles under the eyes. Not enough to make you cringe? Tack on ovarian pain, prostate problems, dizziness, fatigue, severe sinus issues and headaches. I’ll bet that’s enough to ruin your day.

Let’s back up a second, though. How can a little food leaking back into the small intestines cause so many catastrophes? Well, the fact of the matter is that once food enters the large intestines, it’s meant to go nowhere else but OUT. And if it doesn’t, then toxins will build. Such toxicity can cause the body to react by trying to dilute the dangerous wastes by sending fluid to the different areas. And the accumulation of this fluid can lead the above mentioned malfunctions and symptoms.

So how do we keep our ICV working properly on our own?

1) We keep our abdominal muscles strong. Sadly, most abdominal exercises cause more harm than good. I am testing an abdominal exercise I developed to help with low back and ICV problems. I plan on making this available when I am totally satisfied with the results.

2) Having around 20-30 grams of fiber per day helps too. Fiber can be found in foods like salads, fruits, vegetables, bran or high quality fiber products like Whole Food Fiber from Standard Process (available from your doctor) or Psyllium Whole Husks from Yerba Prima (available at your local health food store). Too much or too little can disrupt the valve.

3) Proper walking after meals helps also. If you do not know how to walk properly find an Alexander Technique Practitioner in your area or go to http://www.alexandertech.org/.

Please note: Only a doctor trained to address the ICV can tell you if there is a problem and correct it. Proper treatment of the valve can help with a myriad of conditions as the valve may be the underlying cause of many “overlying” and seemingly random health problems.

For example: trying to help someone with sinus problems without correcting the ICV disturbance is like trying to clear a clogged sink by taking a cup and bailing out the water. The problem is not the sink. It is the plumbing below.

Before anything else, your doctor should examine the ICV and then continue. This goes for severe low back pain, ovarian pain and headaches that have resisted prior treatments and medications.

It was once suggested to me by a doctor that it is impossible to correct an internal organ by external manual pressure. I thought for a moment and seriously asked, "Then how do you explain CPR?" I mean if you can bring someone back to life by compression on the chest then massaging the intestines to help with low back pain or headaches seems pretty believable.

To Your Continued Good Health and Success,

Dr. Eugene Charles

If you think you may have an ICV problem contact charlesinstituteinfo@mac.com or www.icak.com and we will send you the names of doctors in your area who are skilled in Applied Kinesiology.

Doctors, if you would like to learn more about helping your patients with possible ICV problems you can order Session 8 of Applied Kinesiology in Clinical Practice at http://www.charlesseminars.com/producs.html. Workshop Leaders may be available in your area for hands on training.