by Charles Herbert | Feb 28, 2015 | Blog, Chiropractic |
How do you want to age? What will your last 10 years look like? Will you be quick enough to play with your grandchildren? Strong enough to embrace every moment? Will you grow old with vitality or will you succumb to old age? Your posture is a good indicator of how well you will age. When you have good posture your nerves and body will be able to work and function the way they are supposed to. However, with most of us now spending nine hours a day sitting down, our sedentary modern lifestyles are fast becoming a serious threat to our health. These prolonged periods of inactivity not only increase our risk of obesity they also affect our body shape and posture, which can, in turn, lead to a whole range of health problems. It is therefore no surprise that sitting has been blamed as the new smoking! Poor posture over time changes the shape of your spine and affects your health Modern technology sees many of us hunch over our smartphones and sitting slumped in front of a computer for hours. It’s these commonly adopted positions that can lead to a loss of the essential cervical (neck) curvature. Another change often seen is a thoracic hyperkyphosis, which is sometimes referred to as ‘Dowagers Hump’ – this is an exaggerated curve backwards of the middle of the back. These changes in the shape of your spine can impair mobility and balance as we age and increase the risk of falls and fractures. It is known that those with a hyperkyphotic posture have a 44% greater risk of mortality than those without. The increased risk of death presented by a...
by Charles Herbert | Dec 10, 2014 | Chiropractic |
How to avoid winter colds by boosting your Immune System with Vitamin D and Chiropractic I went to my local GP surgery the other day and was shocked at the amount of adverts promoting the new flu shot. There were banners, flags, huge roller banners, leaflets etc. It appears the pharmaceutical company promoting/selling it has a bigger advertising budget than coca-cola! I’m not writing this blog to talk about the shaky benefit of this vaccination, or to express my opinions on the recommendation in the UK for every child aged 2-16 to have the nasal spray. I’m writing this blog to look at the alternatives to boosting your immune system to avoid the winter cold, influenza and more… There are many facets to a healthy immune system. I am going to write about 2, the function of your nervous system and vitamin D. The role your nervous system plays in immunity Chiropractic philosophy, which has been around since 1895, has long boasted that a better functioning nervous system equals a better functioning immune system. Anecdotally, its be know for years, however now research is catching up and proving that very thing. Recently, a hospital in Toronto1 found that the nervous system played a role much larger than previously ‘known’. They found that nerves send information from an area of infection to the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) so it can co-ordinate the body’s response. The information is hypothesised to be more in-depth than previously thought. The nerves are thought to send danger warnings of not only where the infection is but also whether the infection is caused by...
by Charles Herbert | Aug 22, 2014 | Chiropractic |
Is cleaning everything with antibacterial soap such a good idea? We live in a world where we are obsessed with cleanliness and hygiene. We have antibacterial hand wash by the sink, antibacterial wipes to clean the kids and worktops, antibacterial hand gel to clean our hands before food and after we touch anything, you can even get antibacterial washing powder for your clothes. So why are we obsessed with antibacterial stuff? Because germs are bad and make you ill, right?! Are germs bad for you? No matter how hard you try, germs are everywhere. It is commonly estimated that at any one time you have 10x more bacterial cells within your body than you have human cells! There are thought to be almost 200 different species on your skin. If you do kill any germs with antibacterial gel then any left behind are able to double their numbers within 20 minutes, and in 8 hours create almost 1 million new germs. We are surrounded by them constantly, so why aren’t we ill? Firstly, it’s important to point out that we need germs, and they need us (although they’re not fussy about which human they get). Germs help us digest our food and break down tougher foods like plant fibers. They synthesise essential vitamins in our gut. They assist with the regulation of our serotonin levels, which make us happy. They turn wine into vinegar and milk into cheese and yogurt – not essential for life but for important for tasty food. And most importantly of all they regulate our immune systems. It has been found by Gerald Callahan of...
by Charles Herbert | Aug 13, 2014 | Chiropractic |
It’s written in blood – Chiropractic heals through chemistry. Fact! We all know Chiropractic works and adjustments make you feel better. Not only do we hear it all the time from our patients, we see it in the research conducted on the benefits of a Chiropractic care. Now a recent research article takes our understanding one step further… Scientists at the University of Spain decided to look at the changes in your blood after a Chiropractic adjustment. Using 30 students, who suffer no symptoms, they split them into three groups. One group received cervical (neck) adjustments, another thoracic (mid back) adjustments, and the final group no adjustments at all. The scientists took blood samples before the student’s adjustment (or lack of), immediately after, and then two hours later. What they were looking for was the changes in the hormones and neurotransmitters present in the students blood sample in relation to their adjustments. What happened to the hormones? The scientist were tracking four hormones in the blood plasma: neurotensin, oxytocin, cortisol, and orexin-A (learn what they are below). They found that immediately after a Chiropractic adjustment the levels of neurotensin and oxytocin significantly rose and cortisol also rose significantly after the cervical (neck) adjustment. There was no change in the levels of orexin-A in any group. But what on earth do these biochemical markers do? Neurotensin When times get tough and the stress levels increase then neurotensin is thought to help neutralise associated, stress-related pain. It also interacts with the serotonin neurons of the brain helping to chill you out. It also affects the activity the hormone oxytocin in the brain. Oxytocin...
by Charles Herbert | Jul 22, 2014 | Chiropractic |
This is a Chiropractic video about us at The Chiropractic Centre: Bristol The video was made by the talented Kris Griffin. If you need someone to make a short film or take photos (like the ones on our website) then he’s your man! Contact us if you would like more...
