If Your Oil Change is Important To Your Car, How important is Your Health to You?

Everything needs maintenance to be sustained for a long and lasting life.  Chiropractors don't just treat biomechanical and neuromusculoskeletal disorders, but also help prevent them. The latter is commonly referred to as either preventive or maintenance care.
While your chiropractor will explain his or her particular philosophy regarding chiropractic's role in preventing pain and maintaining health, formal definitions have also been established.
In the US, the definition is determined by the "Guidelines for Chiropractic Quality Assurance and Practice Parameters" (known as the "Mercy Conference Guidelines") and is as follows:

Any management plan that seeks to prevent disease, prolong life, promote health and enhance the quality of life. A specific regimen is designed to provide for the patient's well-being or for maintaining the optimum state of health.

It is important to recognize that the guidelines state, "preventive/maintenance care is elective; must include periodic reassessment; may include treatment, education and counseling; and generally should be delivered at a frequency of not more than once a month." Still, while the guidelines recommend once a month, many patients elect to have preventive/maintenance care more often and many chiropractors feel this is reasonable and important in promoting wellness.

In all cases, it is up to the chiropractor and the patient to determine whether or not an individual is a candidate for this type of care.

References:

Mootz, R. and H. Vernon. Best Practices in Clinical Chiropractic. Maryland: Aspen Publishers, 1999. 184-186.

Chiropractic Gets Noticed

Anybody who has been following the NBA this season is well aware that Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose has been dealing with a wonky back as of late. Returning Monday after a nearly two-week layoff for a match-up with the Atlanta Hawks, Rose took a moment while being interviewed by ESPN’s Doris Burke for a segment on SportsCenter to sing the praises of the fine job performed on his ailing back by Dr. Stuart Yoss, the 17-year head of the Bannockburn Chiropractic and Sports Injury Center in Deerfield, Ill.
Said Rose, via the Chicago Tribune:

“…the whole week I was seeing a great chiropractor, Stuart Yoss. He did a great job of getting me back.”

Voss, a self-described “huge sports fan” who has worked with other Chicago-area teams (White Sox, Bears and Blackhawks) didn’t initially see his name mentioned on national television as he was working at the time, but knew something strange was up when people began reaching out to him:

“A lot of friends and family started texting and calling me,” Yoss said. “A bunch of friends sent the clip and when I was done working, I watched it. I was shocked. To hear my name on ‘SportsCenter’ was above and beyond.”

Voss didn’t even mind that Rose mispronounced his name — it’s “Yass,” not “Yoss” — saying, “Just to be part of and included in his care was an honor.” Yeah, that and the fact that he is now the likely most well-known and most-liked chiropractor in the Chicagoland area, given he was at least a part of getting Rose back on the court

Chiropractic Adjustments and Pregnacy

Chiropractic care facilitates a more comfortable transition from early to late term pregnancy and through to postpartum recovery. No one has said that pregnant women should silently endure the aches and pains of pregnancy. The good news is that pregnant women do not have to suffer these pains that result from a changing body posture.
As Chiropractors, we will assess your spine and pelvic joints to see if there are certain areas that are not moving as easily as they could. We perform many of the same tests that your physician does to determine that you are in perfect health: a complete history, orthopedic exam, neurological exam, and a postural exam to see how your body is adapting to your pregnancy. If we find that you have areas in your spine or pelvic joints are not moving properly, we usually adjust them. The choice is yours as to whether we adjust or not. What is important to remember is that a chiropractic adjustment will allow the areas of your spine that are stuck to move again, which will relieve your discomfort.
The pelvic area is of great concern to Chiropractors. The pelvis is essentially a ring made up of four bones: the sacrum, which is the triangular bone at the base of your spine, the tailbone that is attached to your sacrum, and the two hipbones of your pelvis. These four bones are held together by many ligaments and connective tissue. Relaxin, the hormone of pregnancy, is released in the body from early on in the pregnancy to soften these ligaments to allow better passage of the baby during labour and birth. What can happen later on in the pregnancy is that the ligaments stretch quite a bit, to the point of overstretching. The sacroiliac joints (where the sacrum meets the pelvis) can become quite movable and walking can become a challenge. The “pregnant waddle” can be noticeable as a woman walks because, at this point, the sacroiliac joints move too much and the body locks the sacrum into place by causing the woman’s feet to turn out and for her to lock her knees. With a Chiropractic adjustment, the sacroiliac joints are able to move in a more normal position and the woman is able to walk more easily.
The goals of Chiropractic care throughout pregnancy are to ease the pregnant woman’s areas of discomfort and to help promote a more stable pelvis. A study done in 1990 showed that women who were under Chiropractic care throughout their pregnancies had reduced labour times. First time moms experienced 25% less time in labour and birth and moms with previous babies averaged 31% shorter labour times. Also, another study done in 1991 showed that women who experienced back pain during their pregnancies had a 72% chance of having back labour during labour and birth. Back labour isn’t pleasant and Chiropractic care can help ease back pain.
Chiropractors are interested in relieving your aches and pains throughout your pregnancy and during your postpartum period. Immediately after birth, your body experiences another great posture change and your back needs to adapt to not having a pregnant belly anymore. The posture of breastfeeding can cause great discomfort in the mid back, especially between the shoulder blades. There is the constant lifting, bending, stooping, carrying the car seat about, rocking, walking and so on. Life with a new baby is definitely another time where chiropractic care can help your body more easily. Once again, we keep the fixed or subluxated areas of your spine moving smoothly.
After birthing a baby, your body continues to produce relaxin for approximately the next four months, but in a gradually decreasing amount. This process helps the ligaments to slowly tighten back around the spine and the rest of the joints in the body. Chiropractic care can keep the joints in your spine and pelvis in optimal alignment as your ligaments pull back into place around the joints of your spine.

We Help Children With Ear Infections

Its 2am, and your baby is up screaming and running a high fever from yet ANOTHER ear infection. He has been on antibiotics for weeks, and it keeps going away and returning. You’re feeling frustrated and helpless, and just don’t know what to do!

There are 10 million new cases every year, of ear infections (Otitis Media).  They are the most common illness affecting infants to young children, and the number one reason for visits to the pediatrician; which accounts for more than 35%(1) of all pediatric visits. Almost half of all children will have had an ear infection by their first birthday.

The standard treatment for an ear infection is antibiotics. But according to many research studies, these drugs are not much more effective at treating the problem then the body’s own immune system.

So before giving your child another round of “hopefully this will work” antibiotics or the drastic step of surgery; Please consider Chiropractic care! Studies show that after receiving a series of chiropractic adjustments, nearly 80% (1) of the children who were treated were free of ear infections for at least the six month period following the initial visits.

Winter is the most prevalent time for ear infections; so let one of the skilled doctors at Hillcrest Chiropractic Clinic help your child have an ear infection-free winter!


Reference:
1.) March 1998 edition of Alternative Therapies and authored by Fallon and Edelman. Chiropractic Care of 401 Children with Otitis Media: A Pilot Study

Hillcrest Chiropractic Clinic joins forces with Pilgrims Pride at annual health fair

From left to right (Monique, Mandy, Robert, Dr. Trunell, Chris)

Hillcrest Chiropractic Clinic participated in the Pilgrim Pride Waco, annual health fair.  Hillcrest Chiropractic offered the workers a free 5 minute trigger point massage and a consult with the doctor.  It is the intention of Hillcrest Chiropractic Clinic to expand on the virtues of chiropractic care one patient at a time.  The Doctor and staff enjoyed meeting and addressing the different health concerns that were brought to the doctor's attention.   



Hillcrest Chiropractic Clinic and Doris Miller YMCA join together for Trunk or Treat

Recently Hillcrest Chiropractic Clinic participated in the annual "Trunk or Treat" sponsored by the Doris Miller YMCA of Waco.  The staff of Hillcrest Chiropractic Clinic enjoyed the smiles and laughter that the event helped create in the children.

Seniors and Chiropractic: Seven Great Benefits

Many seniors are unaware of the outstanding benefits that are possible through regular chiropractic care. I have compiled a list of seven of the most frequent benefits that chiropractic care provides for seniors.
1. Pain Relief
Chiropractic care is one of the most effective and safest forms of health care to treat pain due to spinal related conditions. Chiropractic is so effective because most causes of spinal disorders are related to abnormalities of the spine and the surrounding soft tissue structures. Doctors of chiropractic are specifically trained to identify and treat subluxations (misalignments of the vertebrae) and their subsequent effect on the central nervous system. Anti inflammatory medication and pain relievers merely mask the symptoms and have many undesirable side effects.
2. Increased Range of Motion of the Spine and Extremities
Chiropractic care has been shown repeatedly to increase not only the range of motion of the spine but also in the extremities. Increasing a person's range of motion can positively and drastically affect lives in many ways. For some, an increased range of motion means being able to bend down to pick up their grandchildren. For others, it means they can garden without pain or get an extra 40 yards of distance out of their driver on the golf course. In many cases, an increase in range of motion immediately follows chiropractic adjustments. This is one of the reasons why many top professional sporting teams have team chiropractors.
3. Increased Balance and Coordination
Many problems in balance and coordination in the aging population have been shown to come from injury or degenerative changes to the cervical spine (neck region). Structures known as mechanoreceptors are located in the posterior (back) joints of the cervical spine and are responsible for providing the brain with essential information important for balance and coordination. Mechanoreceptors in cervical posterior joints provide major input regarding the position of the head in relation to the body. With aging, mild defects impair mechanoreceptors function and results in a loss of proprioception (sense of body awareness). With decreased proprioception, body positioning in space is impaired and the patient becomes reliant on vision to know the location of a limb. To compensate for the loss of proprioception (sense of body awareness) in the legs, the feet are kept wider apart than usual. Steps become irregular and uneven in length. As impairment increases, the patient becomes unable to compensate. With severe loss of proprioception, the patient is unable to get up from a chair or rise after a fall without assistance.
Studies have shown that chiropractic care can help restore balance and coordination by stimulating the joint receptors (mechanoreceptors) in the cervical spine. This stimulation is thought to restore or normalize joint receptor functioning which leads to improvements in balance and coordination. (Caranasos, MD, Isreal, MD. Gait Disorders in the Elderly. Hospital Practice. 1991; June 15:67-94.Guyton, MD. Textbook of Medical Physiology. 9th edition. WB Saunders, Philadelphia 1996; 714.)
4. Decreased Joint Degeneration
A subluxated (misaligned) spine is much like a misaligned wheel on an automobile. This misalignment will cause the spine (and the wheel) to wear out prematurely. Since all moving parts will eventually wear down over time, it is very important to get your spine aligned periodically. Chiropractic care decreases spinal degeneration and other arthritic changes by normalizing the spinal alignment and reducing spinal stress.
5. Increased Health and Well-Being
We commonly ask our patients what changes they notice once they are put of pain. Here are some regular responses we hear every day:
I feel great!
I can sleep through the night!
Now I can play in the garden!
I have so much energy!
Life is worth living now!
Yes, chiropractic is far more than mere pain relief.
Feeling good, staying healthy and doing the things that make us happy are what keeps us looking forward to each new day. Regular chiropractic care increase the quality of life and increase health and well being.
6. Decreased Incidence of Falling
Injuries due to falling are extremely common in the elderly population. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), falls are responsible for 90% of the 850,000 bone fractures which occur annually among Americans past the age of 65. Chiropractors reduce the risk of falls by normalizing the mechanoreceptors of the cervical spine by administering chiropractic adjustments. They also prescribe stretching and exercise programs to increase strength, flexibility, mobility, balance and coordination.
7. Keeps Seniors Out of Nursing Homes
While studying at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, I had the opportunity of meeting the president Dr. Ian Coulter. Dr. Coulter was involved with many research projects studying the benefits of chiropractic care and exercise.
In 1996, he published an interesting study in the Journal, "Topics of Clinical Chiropractic" called "Chiropractic care for the Elderly."
The key points he noted in this study were:
o 44% of those who used chiropractic care reported having arthritis compared with 66% in the non-chiropractic care group
o those who used chiropractic care were more likely to do strenuous levels of exercise
o at three years follow-up, less than 5% of those who used chiropractic care lived in a nursing home while a staggering 48% of those who did not use chiropractic care did live in a nursing home
o at three years follow-up, only 26% of those who used chiropractic care were hospitalized compared with 48% of those in the non-chiropractic group
There is no need for seniors to suffer needlessly. Chiropractic provides amazing benefits and has an outstanding record of safety and effectiveness. Ask your family and friends for a chiropractor that they recommend. Take action now and make an appointment to see if chiropractic can help you!

Dr. Larry Smith Chiropractor and author of:
Embrace the Journey of Recovery: From Tragedy to Triumph
Embrace the Journey of Recovery will passionately reignite your spirit and teach you how to confront, conquer and powerfully triumph over any life threatening illness! Experience the remarkable story of two courageous yet ordinary individuals and their astonishing recoveries from heartbreaking tragedy. The message is simple. They transformed their lives and you can too!