Do you remember your mother reminding you to “stand up straight, and don’t slouch”?

You may have been annoyed by her nagging, but Mom knew what she was talking about. Forward head posture is one of the leading causes of pain in the neck and shoulders. Over the years, gradual changes to body position can slowly wear away at joints and surrounding soft tissues. Chronic pain syndromes, headaches and TMJ issues may appear if arthritic changes progress and postural alterations remain uncorrected.

Recently, research has shown that not only can faulty posture be a pain in the neck, but the effects of poor posture can also pose a significant health risks to many other systems in the body, specifically the respiratory, circulatory and digestive systems.

The chiropractic adjustment is very effective in reducing the pain caused by joint restriction and malposition (vertebral subluxation). However, if poor posture is the cause of these subluxations, the symptoms are likely to recur if your posture is not corrected. Your chiropractor encourages you to pay attention to this very important issue related to your spine.

What is Ideal Posture?

Posture is the way your body is held in space- whether standing, sitting or lying down. If your body has proper posture there is a perfect balance to your physical structures. And you’re able to hold your body in a neutral position with minimal effort. Certain physical structures in your body line up correctly with your center of gravity. Chiropractors such as Dr. Dana Winchester are able to assess your posture to see if these anatomical areas are correctly aligned.

Test Yourself

There are three quick self-tests you can perform to see if you have proper posture

Look in a mirror. Ears, shoulders and hips should each line up horizontally from left to right.

Stand with your back and buttocks against a wall. Place your feet approximately six inches from the wall. Does your head easily rest against the wall too? If it doesn’t, you have forward head posture.

Lie down on your back on a hard surface. With your head on the floor, you should be looking straight up to the ceiling. If you feel your head tilt backward, or aren’t looking straight above you, chances are that your upper back curve is the cause of your faulty posture.

Typical Symptoms of Bad Posture

For every inch that your head is held forward, an additional 10 pounds of pressure is placed on the supporting tissues of your neck and shoulders. Muscles along the rear of your neck and the upper back are required to accommodate for this extra load. As a result, they’ll experience stress and strain that is greater than normal.

Also, whenever the position of your body moves away from its center of gravity, your joints are taken out of their normal stress-free positions. You then begin to experience abnormal wear and tear. Over time, joint cartilage erosion, bone spurs and pinched nerves are evidence of this phenomenon. Painful symptoms of poor posture may include:

Muscle pain (aching or burning) and tightness

Nerve pain (shooting, sharp or aching) traveling down the arm or leg

Joint pain (aching, sharp or stabbing) and restriction

Ligament or tendon pain (aching, sharp or diffuse)

How to Improve Posture?

Be aware. Practicing awareness of your posture is the first step to correcting it.

Take regular breaks from sitting at a computer. Research shows a strong correlation between neck pain and lengthy computer usage.

Check the ergonomics of your workstation or desk.

Use a proper pillow for sleep. Avoid sleeping on your stomach.

Stretch the muscles that are too tight, and strengthen the postural muscles that are weak. Dr. Winchester can show you the correct techniques to use.

Get adjusted. When your spine moves properly, it has the best chance to position itself properly

Sure, you know that chiropractic alleviates dysfunction in the spine that may impede nervous system activity. And you know that chiropractic care wards off disability in the hips back and neck as well. You are probably also aware that this drug-free approach to health averts headaches, jaw pain and fibromyalgia. But did you know that chiropractic offers effective correction for problems in the joints of the upper and lower limbs (extremities)?

 Dr. Winchester addresses maladies affecting the ankles, knees, wrists elbows and shoulders with a multi faceted approach. First, alignment in the extremities is influenced by spinal posture. Consequently, a misaligned spine may spark a chain reaction that throws limbs slightly out of balance, leading to uneven wear on joints.

Dr. Winchester examines the spine for areas where movement is restricted or spinal bones (vertebrae) are slightly out of place. These dysfunctional segments are called vertebral subluxations. This condition is corrected with specialized, adjustments, using the Gonstead technique.

Next, chiropractic care targets the specific joint involved. This may include gentle adjustments to or manipulation of the joint. It may also involve physiotherapy techniques or exercises custom tailored to the patient’s unique circumstances. In addition, ergonomic advice is a common component of an extremity care plan. And nutrition and stress reduction are often also integrated into this revolutionary approach to health.

How effective is chiropractic at alleviating problems with joints in the extremities?

Wrists

A growing body of research indicates that chiropractic care is a winning solution for wrist pain due to carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) and the lesser-known conditions that mimic it. Findings show that drug-free chiropractic approach is as effective as medical treatment, without the potentially hazardous side effects of hazardous effects of painkillers. Chiropractic care is also effective for the lesser-known disorders that are often misdiagnosed as CTS.

Elbows

Chiropractic adjustments alleviate common elbow problems, such as “tennis elbow” (lateral epicondylitis) and “golfer’s elbow” (medial epicondylitis). Research reveals that a specific type of adjustment to the elbow, as part of the Gonstead technique, produces an immediate and dramatic drop in pain for patients with tennis elbow. Schedule an appointment with Dr. Winchester to begin treatment for these issues and more!

A founding principal of chiropractic is that the mind, body and spirit are connected. Nutrition is an integral component of wellness. At The Winchester Institute of Chiropractic Health and Wellness we offer individual nutrition programs designed by Dr. Dana Winchester .

The Fashionable Fig- Healthy and Hip

Figs are the latest in style, hip fruit gracing celebrity hot-spot restaurants from Los Angeles to Paris. But the fig won’t just make you hip-it can also make you healthy. With over 50 varieties to choose from-and countless ways to prepare and enjoy this ancient delicacy-it’s truly one of the most delicious, versatile, nutritious and fashionable foods available.

Dr. Winchester promotes the inclusion of nutritionally rich foods, such as figs, as part of the chiropractic lifestyle: a philosophy that focuses on preventing disease and illness with regular chiropractic care, exercise and proper nutrition.

Figs are loaded with nutrients and provide a rich source of dietary fiber, according to Dr. Winchester. They’re also pleasantly plentiful year-round, particularly in their dried state or as preserves.

The skins of the tiny but nutritionally powerful fig range from greenish-brown and the brown-purple of the “Hardy Chicago’ variety. Inside, the fruit is equally multi-hued.

Antioxidant Amplifier

Dried figs share top honors with dried plums for having one of the highest nutrient scores among dried fruits. What’s more, they are loaded with powerful, disease- fighting antioxidant chemicals.

Researchers from the University of Scranton found that “figs produced a significant increase in plasma (blood) antioxidant capacity for four hours after consumption, and overcome the oxidative stress of consuming high fructose corn syrup in a carbonated soft drink.” Oxidative stress is the process that turns healthy cells into diseased ones, which occurs in cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and a myriad of other conditions.

Carotenoids Carrier

Carotenoids are fat-soluble plant pigments. In addition to sparking antioxidant activity in the body, some of the more than 600 carotenoids can transform themselves into vitamin A.

Why are carotenoids so important? Because, among other things, studies link them to the prevention of several cancers.

Figs contain all of the major carotenoids found in blood plasma, according to researchers in Australia.

The Nutrient Numbers

Figs have no saturated fat, sodium or cholesterol. They are also high in calcium, iron and potassium. A quarter cup has 3.7 milligrams of potassium and just 93 calories.

When it comes to calcium, three dried figs provide 80 milligrams of this bone-boosting mineral. In comparison, one cup of milk contains 300 milligrams of calcium.

Let’s Talk

As you partners in preventive health care, one of our goals at The Winchester Institute is to provide you with the information you need to make well-informed nutritional decisions for yourself and your entire family.

Think that chiropractic care is just for adults? Think again! Children and adolescents also reap the wellness-boosting rewards of chiropractic care. Dr. Winchester encourages patients to learn how chiropractic care helps kids of all ages grow up as healthy as possible.

Safe and Gentle

Dr. Winchester uses an extremely safe and gentle technique, known as the Gonstead Technique when adjusting her pediatric patients. This technique is specifically modified for our younger patient’s spine.

Lessen Low-Back Pain

Low-back pain (LBP) in little ones is no minor problem. Researchers estimate that a startling 50 percent of children are afflicted sometime during their youth. Even worse: Almost 15 percent experience frequent or continual pain.

The good news is that chiropractic care for children works. One study included 54 children (31 boys and 23 girls) with LBP cared for at 15 chiropractic clinics. The children ranged in age from 4-18 years, with an average age of 13. Specifically, 61 percent suffered from acute LBP, with 47 percent attributing onset to a traumatic event (most commonly sports-related); 2 4 percent reported pain lasting longer than three months.

Patients received chiropractic adjustments, specialized and precise maneuvers designed to eliminate vertebral subluxations. Vertebral subluxations are dysfunctional areas in the spine, where alignment is skewed and movement is limited.

The result of the chiropractic intervention? Within six weeks of beginning chiropractic care, two separate assessments revealed “important” improvement among 62-87 percent of the youngsters, respectively.

The authors conclude that pediatric patients “respond favorably to chiropractic management, and there were no reported complications.”

Ergonomics and Low-Back Pain

In a study of 5,000 adolescents aged 11-14 years, researchers found that the top predictor for LBP was sitting for long periods in a poorly designed chair. To reduce the risk of LBP, Dr. Winchester encourages optimal posture for children and advises parents to make sure that your youngster’s chair and desk are the correct height. Limiting television time and promoting daily exercise are highly beneficial to children as well.

Overloaded backpacks and school bags are additional ergonomic nightmares, which provoke spinal problems.

Ask Dr. Winchester for specific instruction regarding ergonomic parameters for your child.