Why does my chiropractor care if I smoke?

Why does my chiropractor care if I smoke?
As a chiropractor why do I care if my patients smoke? I mean it’s not like I’m treating their lungs or heart, right? Well no directly I’m not. I will have some effect on your lung function, what? How? By working on your upper back, rib cage and muscles of respiration we can improve the mechanics of breathing.
Now back to smoking, why does my chiropractor care if I smoke?

Smoking isn’t just for hearts and lungs any more, smoking or more accurately nicotine( so vaping counts) causes a reduction in blood and nutrient flow to the discs between the spine and the spine itself, now the blood supply to these structures is rather limited to start with and some of the nourishment occurs only by nutrients being transmitted to these structures. This can result in degenerative changes to the spine. Should this happen over a long period of time you may then need a spinal fusion surgery, continuing to smoke will result in a poorer surgical outcome.

Smoking will reduce bone formation leading to a greater risk of spinal fracture especially women who may already have lower bone density due to menopause. If there is a fracture, naturally that fracture will now heal slower as well due to decreased blood flow and decreased bone formation to repair the break.

Let’s leave the effects of smoking on your bones and spine and wonder why else does my chiropractor care if I smoke. If you recall smoking can affect blood flow to certain tissues is rather limited, this would hold true for things like ligaments that connect bones together say in your knee. Smokers who injure their knee ligaments requiring surgical repair will again have poorer outcomes post-surgery and may need revision surgeries later on. Not fun.

Why else does my chiropractor care if I smoke? Smoking has been shown to be one of the strongest environmental risk factors for developing rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic, progressive, debilitating and disfiguring form of arthritis, a form of autoimmune reaction characterized by inflammatory joint dysfunction. Eagle Glen Frey recently passed away due to complications related to RA treatment and its subsequent co-morbidities.

So why does my chiropractor care if I smoke? Because I care about you and your overall health.
For more blogs visit here https://yourpickeringchiropractors.ca

Running shoes, running, running injuries and chiropractic care

Running shoes, running, running injuries and chiropractic care.
I need new running shoes. At my family’s request to add more fitness options we purchased a treadmill to extend the running season as no one in my family ( sheepishly I include myself here) are too keen to be running outside in the snow, snow shoeing is an altogether different activity.

So the giant box arrives and my son and I assemble the beast. This was made more difficult than it needed to be by two Lego lovers who should follow instructions better.
That aside, I needed new running shoes. This for me is about as appealing as Christmas shopping, there are too many choices, too many features, most of which are not suitable for many people.

There had been a trend to minimalist running shoes, shoes that were barely there to benefit people who wanted to get in on the barefoot or toe running trend that had been prevalent of late. I am not one of those people, at 190+ pounds minimalist shoes are not for me and I have not trained myself to be a forefoot running person.
If in the market for new running shoes for the purpose of running I would recommend you visit a running specialty store at least to have a discussion of what type shoe or even brand of shoe works for you, also bring your old shoes with you for the sales associate to look at.

Simple tips that you can apply if you’re shoe shopping.
Arches- Do the arches of your feet rest on the floor when you’re weight bearing, i.e you have flat feet? Then a shoe that has more support on the inside of the shoe are better, how can you tell if a shoe has more support for the arch? Grab a shoe and try to wring it out like a dish rag, can you? This is probably not a shoe for you. More supportive shoes often have an insert of some other material in the arch area. Second squeeze the heel, can you squeeze the sides together or are they stiff? Stiffer shoes won’t allow your ankle to roll in as much keeping a more neutral position.

Weight-Are you like me and are a heavier runner, you might want a more cushioned shoe, when you run you are landing with a force usually 2.5 times your weight again and again, in a mile you make approximately 2000 of those impacts, so you can see how cushioning might play a role. Also keep in mind that the foam will deteriorate with time and impact so you probably need to replace those shoes more often, as often as every 3 months depending on mileage.

Try before you buy- Before you shell out big bucks, try the shoes out, go for a short jog in the store, wear them for a bit. If they’re uncomfortable in a few minutes they’re not for you.

Size-Get sized, just like women’s clothes, a size 10 from one manufacturer may not be the same as another.

Don’t shop by fashion, colour, brand or price.

What does this have to do with chiropractic? As I mentioned running puts a lot of force through your joints, from your feet all the way up the legs to the knees, hips and eventually your spine. Starting to run is a big change for your body. Injuries to runners occur when you make a change of more than 10% to any running parameter, distance, speed, stride length etc. As a chiropractor I can help your body manage this change and the forces inherent with running.
For my other blogs in this series or other topics visit here https://yourpickeringchiropractors.ca

Careers that benefit from regular chiropractic care, PART 4: Professional drivers

Regular chiropractic care and professional drivers

Careers that benefit from regular chiropractic care part 4: Professional drivers
In my last blog in this series I talked about our emergency personnel benefitting from regular chiropractic care.
In this issue I will discuss another group of workers who benefit from regular chiropractic care.

This group are our professional drivers, transit employees be they bus drivers, train engineers and subway and streetcar operators, truck drivers, taxi drivers and couriers. These drivers spend their working day behind the wheel of large vehicles responsible for the safety of many passengers and expensive cargo.
These drivers have a number of risk factors for developing back and neck pain in common; constant vibration from the road or rail, prolonged postural stresses leading to postural muscle fatigue, jarring forces from the road or rails and the constant stresses of driving.

Let’s take truck drivers for example, long haul truck drivers can often be driving for 14 hours at a stretch. While they are often using a specialized seat that aims to limit road forces to them, they are only so effective, the truck’s suspension is primarily there to support the load in the trailer, not the driver. As such much of the vibration is transmitted to the driver. The constant vibration of driving has been identified as a risk factor for back pain and the development of osteoarthritis in the spine.
The next group of drivers then should not be a surprise then, bus drivers more so public transit than luxury coach drivers I’m thinking of here, although coach drivers will still be at risk. Public mass transit buses are not built for comfort, most of us who have taken a public bus can attest to the rough ride. The drivers don’t fare much better, they often to have an air suspended seat, but these are not one size fits all and since the bus is operated by many drivers over a week they often will end up with back pain due to the poor designs and often age of the equipment.

Train operators be they subway operators don’t have specialized seats, however they don’t get as many jarring surfaces, subway operators will however have vibration and the jerky motion of the train can often produce back and neck pain. Commuter train operators have a specialized seat however they often are at risk of lateral sway of the vehicle causing a “side-lash” or side whiplash do to the often violent lateral movement of the train.

I often see these drivers regularly as a preventative measure and often as the result of a work-place injury to the neck or back. Regular chiropractic care can limit the negative effects of constant stress, muscle tightness, vibratory and jarring impacts to the spinal joints due to prolonged periods of sitting and muscular fatigue.
If you know of a professional driver who could benefit from my care please don’t hesitate to have them contact me.
For my other blogs in this series or other topics visit here https://yourpickeringchiropractors.ca