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Man Up, Stand Strong

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www.100yearlifestyle.com

– Man Up!
 – Don’t Wait for a Crisis
 – Make the Critical Transition Now

Man Up!
If you are a man and you are reading this newsletter, then I am glad we got your attention. The term “man up” is the expression used by many men that describes taking on challenges, facing fears and accepting responsibility. “Stand strong” implies overcoming adversity and promoting and defending your beliefs. In this context, to ensure that you can “man up” and “stand strong” for a lifetime, it is critical that you make your health a priority.

Don’t Wait for a Crisis
Too many men are crisis motivated only. They wait until their pains or illnesses become debilitating. Rather than manning up and standing strong on their own accord, they do not take action on their health until they hear their family and friends screaming the wake up call, “man down!” Don’t let this happen to you.

A recent report found that 48 percent of women admit that they have to resort to nagging to get their husbands to see a doctor. Research shows that, in general, women live longer healthier lives than men because they are more likely to be proactive about their health and heed the early warning signs before they become major problems.

Too many men suffer from preventable health problems that deteriorate their quality of life as they age, causing them to die sooner and more painfully than necessary. This is completely unnecessary, especially when simple lifestyle and chiropractic adjustments can keep them standing strong.

Men spend tens of billions of dollars treating injuries to their spine that cause back pain and many other health problems that can be related to pressure in the nervous system. These spinal injuries are known as vertebral subluxations. Approximately 185,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer annually. The nerves in the lower back and upper neck supply the prostate gland.

According to the AMA, 8.8 million men suffer with coronary heart disease. The nerve supply to the heart comes from the upper back and the upper neck.

Obesity and being overweight is also a problem. According to government statistics, the number of overweight men is alarming:

• 67.6% of men aged 35-44
• 71.3% of men aged 45-54
• 72.5% of men aged 55-64
• 77.2% of men aged 65-74
• 66.4% of men aged over 75

Being overweight can contribute to herniated disks, heart disease, cancer, diabetes and may other preventable health problems. If you’ll notice from the overweight statistics, the numbers increase to age 75, and then the statistics go down. Why? At this age the severity of their health crisis leaves them no choice. “Take care of yourself now or die” have become their only options.

Make the Critical Transition Now
Now is the time to man up, stand strong and make your health a priority. Chiropractic care is a great place to start because with a healthy spine and nervous system, your entire body can function better.

Our office has a simple home test that you can do to check the alignment and strength of your spine. Or, if you have not had a thorough spinal examination recently, make an appointment today to get checked. Thomas Edison said, “The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease.” Man up, make your future now, and stand strong for a lifetime.

Change Your Families Course of History

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Stop Blaming Your Genes

Here is a very important message if you want to live an active, healthy, quality of life for 80, 90, 100 years and beyond: Stop blaming your genes. Too many people rationalize unhealthy choices with words like, “Why bother, it’s in my genes.” You can’t get away with this anymore.

The lifestyle choices that you make for yourself and your family can literally change the course of your history. A family history of heart disease or cancer used to mean that it was your destiny to get those conditions too because they were “in your genes.” Through the science of epigenetics we are learning that nothing could be further from the truth. Epigenetics, which means ‘around the gene’, has shown that your lifestyle choices, both positive and negative, can influence the expression of your genes, turning them on and off like a light switch.

In the largest nature/nurture study that was ever done, on 44,000 pairs of twins, it was found that the primary determines in most cases of cancer were environmental or lifestyle factors such as tobacco use, diet and exercise habits rather than the inherited disposition of their family history.

A recent report in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA found the activity of more than 500 genes in the normal tissue of thirty men with low-risk prostate cancer changed after the patients began eating diets higher in fruits, vegetables and whole grains and lower in red meats and fats while also implementing an exercise and stress reducing regimen.

After three months the men had changes in the activity of about 500 genes including 48 disease preventing genes that were turned on and 453 disease promoting genes that were turned off.

Adjust Your Lifestyle
Changing the course of your history is not rocket science. Eating a diet filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean meats will keep you lean and healthy and they will activate healthy genes. Exercise, as a part of a lifestyle, reduces stress, strengthens your heart and muscles and has been shown to reduce the risk of nearly every disease.

Optimistic thinking has been shown to keep people motivated to make healthy lifestyle choices regardless of their circumstances. In addition, chiropractic care as a part of a healthy lifestyle, Lifestyle Care, keeps your spine and nervous system aligned, balanced and healthy and free from deterioration, this ensures that the vital messages between the brain and the body are optimized. Reducing stress is also important as stress has been shown to shorten the telomeres, or caps on the genes, which can reduce the life expectancy of your cells.

One of the life-changing principles of The 100 Year Lifestyle is “Change is easy, thinking about change is hard.” It is much easier to eat healthy and exercise regularly as a part of your lifestyle than it is to be on a weight gain-weight loss rollercoaster or to chronically have to deal with being sick or injured.

Chiropractic care as a part of a lifestyle is a much better option than the crisis to crisis suffering that comes with an unhealthy spine and nervous system. Bringing these values into your home can literally change the course of your history and ensure a healthy future for you and your loved ones.

Please take advantage of the resources our office provides to help you and your loved ones rewrite your history. Contact us to make an appointment for yourself or someone in your family. A healthy future could be yours for generations.

Top 10 Reasons to Get Your Spine Checked

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10. The times that you need your spine the most will be the time that it will tend to give out on you.
If you neglect your spine and nervous system, you can be sure that when you need it the most due to stress, physical activity, business or pleasure travel, it can give out on you. Extra stress on a weakened spine and nervous system can overload your system and contribute to health problems. Lifestyle Care can keep you healthy and prevent these inconvenient episodes from putting a damper on your life.

9. Nerve pressure can exist without pain.
According to the research, pain is not a good indicator of how healthy or unhealthy your spine and nervous system are. Spinal examinations such as posture, weight balance, palpation, muscle testing, computer scans and x-rays are much better indicators. Pain is usually the last to show up and the first to be relieved when you begin chiropractic care.

8. Nerves supply your whole body.
Your spine protects your nerve system, the master control center of your body. Vital energy flows over your nerves and communications with every cell. Nerve pathways must be clear for the messages to get through. If you have an uncorrected spinal problem, it can cause a decrease in the function of vital organs and systems, and lead to unnecessary pain or health problems.

7. Deterioration can begin within 2 weeks.
Researchers found that when the spine is misaligned it can begin to deteriorate within 2 weeks. Think about how many two weeks have passed since you were born, which is often when the first spinal injury or vertebral subluxation occurs. How many two weeks are there from a childhood fall to age 50? Is it any wonder why more than 15 million people are diagnosed with osteoarthritis each year? Don’t wait another 2 weeks for a check up.

6. Your quality of life depends on a healthy spine.
If you want to be healthy and active as you age, your spine and nervous system must be healthy. Period.

5. The straw will break the camel’s back.
We’ve all heard the expression “the straw that broke the camel’s back.” This is so true for too many people who ignore minor spinal problems. One day they do something simple, like bend down to tie their shoe, and they can’t get up. Major problems are much more painful and expensive to care for, and they can ruin your day, or even worse, your life.

4. Grandma and Grandpa didn’t get crooked overnight. They grew that way over time.
Over time, the spine and nervous system deteriorates, not because of age, but because of subluxations. Just like the tires on your car wear down unevenly when they are misaligned, the same can happen in your spine. You may have some areas in your spine that look and feel like they are 80 years old while you have other areas that are more like a 30 year old. You can keep your entire spine healthy with chiropractic Lifestyle Care.

3. Good posture keeps you young and attractive.
When your body becomes bent over and crooked, you will look and feel old and decrepit. If you keep your posture and your spine straight and strong, you will stay healthier and feel younger and more attractive. People often use drastic measures to preserve their youthful appearance as they age. Don’t you think a facelift would look silly on a person whose spine and nervous system were neglected?

2. You can’t afford to get sick or injured.
Now more than ever, you cannot afford to get sick. Crisis care costs are astronomical and an unhealthy spine and nervous system can be the cause of many problems. Getting your spine and nervous system checked and adjusted regularly can help you stay healthier and save you money in the long run.

1. Because you were born.
Everybody deserves to be healthy from the time they are born through their last breathe of life. This includes you. Too many people wait until they have intense pain and suffering before they make their health a priority. Don’t let this happen to you.

© 2013. The Family Practice, Inc., Dr. Eric Plasker and The 100 Year Lifestyle. All Rights Reserved.

A Truly Sustainable Health Care Solution

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Is Your Health Care Philosophy Sustainable?
When you think of “Health Care” what is the first image that pops into your mind? Do you envision hospitals, prescriptions, expensive surgeries, or a sick person? This is often what people have been conditioned to think about because the current health care delivery system is actually a Sick Care system in disguise. Fortunately, heart disease, diabetes and even many forms of cancer are preventable “lifestyle” diseases.

Lifestyle choices such as smoking, poor eating habits, sedentary living, and allowing stress to build all affect your body negatively and can cause you or a loved one to suffer from a disease that could have been prevented.

Suffering or sickness can be reasons to make lifestyle changes, and pain can certainly get your attention fast. However, avoiding sickness and pain altogether is a much more desirable option. When you make good choices and invest in your health you are more likely to thrive over the course of your lifetime. This is a truly sustainable health care solution for you and your family, and for our society as a whole.

The Health Care Hierarchy
The Health Care Hierarchy of The 100 Year Lifestyle is Self Care, Health Care, and Crisis Care, in that order. They will help you set your priorities regardless of your current health condition or age and get you on a sustainable path.

Self Care
Self Care is what you must do for yourself to keep your mind, body and spirit healthy and functioning at your highest level. Nobody can sleep, sit up straight or exercise for you.

Health Care
Health Care is what you need to do to stay healthy that you cannot do for yourself. Chiropractors, Dentists, and Nutritionists are some of the professionally trained experts that can help you stay healthy beyond your Self Care.

Crisis Care
Crisis Care is meant to help you recover from a serious injury or illness which requires the support of the appropriate crisis care specialists.

With the right Self Care and Health Care team you may be able to avoid the need for Crisis Care completely.

Who is Responsible?
Who is responsible for your health? Is it your doctor, government, or your insurance carrier? Keep in mind that our current health care system’s main focus is on Crisis Care only, sometimes leading to severe side effects and long term damage. Dramatic and expensive rescue measures as a way of life add to your stress and can make health challenges worse for you and your loved ones.

This even includes prescription drugs. The “quick fix” of over-the-counter or prescription drugs can make you feel different because they change your body chemistry but they can give you a false sense of security that everything is fine when it really is not.

Lifestyle Care
Chiropractic Lifestyle Care aligns your spine and nervous system to optimize your body’s functions. Your spine and nervous system are the means by which your brain communicates with your vital organs, muscles, ligaments, and cells. When there is interference to this communication system, the messages are interrupted. Your body may experience immediate symptoms or it may take a while to feel like something is wrong or not functioning like it used it.

Keeping your spine and nervous system aligned and balanced before a crisis can improve your body’s natural immunity and ability to reach a higher level of vitality, energy and health. If you are already in crisis, chiropractic care can remove the interference, get the pressure off the nerve and may promote a faster recovery without having to resort to more invasive options.

Begin making better lifestyle choices today for yourself and for your family. Make Self Care and Health Care your top priority.

© 2013. The Family Practice, Inc., Dr. Eric Plasker and The 100 Year Lifestyle. All Rights Reserved.

The Hidden Effects of Head Injuries

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The Hidden Effects

The issues surrounding head injuries, including concussions, have never been a part of mainstream conversation more than they are right now. As we begin football season, the reports of thousands of ex-NFL players suing their former league regarding their mental health have shaken the sport down to its youngest players. Recently, pee-wee football organizations have released new rules limiting contact during practices.

Every athlete and parent knows football isn’t the only sport that is raising concerns about head injuries. Cycling has the highest number of people who sustain head traumas reporting to the emergency room each year, almost double the amount of the next highest, football. Hockey, soccer, wrestling, field hockey, baseball, softball, basketball, in fact, all sports reported an increase in head injuries from 2008 to 2009. As our kids become faster, stronger and start sports earlier, their chances of sustaining chronic head injuries, and the likely result of long-term brain injury, is dramatically rising. There is also a growing concern in the military regarding combat training procedures.

Check Your Neck

Just as concerning is the hidden tragedy that every head injury has the potential to also damage the neck. Since the primary focus at the time of a head injury is the head, the neck is very often overlooked. There are distinct signs of neck injury that can be found during an examination at the time of injury, as well as days, weeks, months and even years later. Due to the focus and pressure rising on concussions, the rapid forward-backward motion commonly known as whiplash has been swept under the rug, downplayed and often ignored. And yet, the vast majority of head injuries also have the mechanism to cause whiplash injuries as well.

A recent report on ESPN told the story of a teenage football player who made a tackle where he led with his head and broke his neck. In this case, his head wasn’t even injured, but his neck was injured severely and this unfortunate young man is paralyzed as a result. Most neck injuries that occur in conjunction with head trauma are not severe enough to cause paralysis, but can cause pressure on nerves that affect the health of the victim on many levels.

Symptoms and Side Effects

Whiplash and concussion both have serious long-term effects, including depression, memory-loss, fatigue, mood swings, headaches and chronic instability. Head and neck injuries also damage sensitive nerves in these regions as they exit the spine. Also, damage to ligaments can mean continual nerve irritation and interference if proper care is not given. The effects from these injuries can last decades after the pain goes away.

The Lifestyle Care Continuum

The potential for long-term effects has caused many to run away from activities they love and use to remain physically active. Rather than leave athletics, the Lifestyle Care Continuum of The 100 Year Lifestyle can help you correct and protect spine and nervous system subluxations that can affect the health of muscles, ligaments and vital organs as well.

Crisis Care provides relief and stability to injured areas of the spine. It is essential that these injuries are given appropriate time to stabilize, as head and neck injuries have a high rate of lingering symptoms. The Critical Transition phase of care is essential to help minimize the long-term effects of these injuries. Major research centers still only recommend care for several weeks following an injury, one of the probable causes for continued nerve damage. For people who have sustained previous injuries and those looking to avoid them, the spine and nerve protection afforded by Chiropractic Lifestyle Care contributes to optimum function and support, which can also minimize the risk of future injuries.

This issue will be part of our society for years to come. If you or a loved one has ever sustained even a mild head or neck injury, consider your long term health and get your spine and nerve system checked. The damage done by the injury may not surface for years to come, but your ability to protect your long term health and well-being begins now.

References:
1.http://nflconcussionlitigation.com/

2.http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/14/sports/pop-warner-football-limits-contact-in-practices.html

3.http://www.aans.org/Patientpercentsign20Information/Conditionspercentsign20andpercentsign20Treatments/Sports-Relatedpercentsign20Headpercentsign20Injury.aspx

4.http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/brain-and-behavior/articles/2009/01/28/concussions-effects–may-linger-for-decades

5.http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=197667

6.http://windcitypt.com/files/2011/07/Sterling_predictors_of_outcomes_post_WAD.pdf

The Benefits of Lifestyle Care

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The benefits of Lifestyle Care are many and well documented. From improving athletic performance, increasing brain function and increasing bone density to strengthening the immune system and preventing deterioration, the results can be dramatic. And as common sense and world renowned chiropractor, Dr. Ernie Landi has stated so eloquently, “If you prevent it, you don’t have to treat it.”

Lifestyle Care is about keeping your spine and nervous system aligned, balanced and functioning to its full potential throughout your lifetime. This allows your brain and your body to communicate efficiently, without interference, so that they can function at their highest level and you can enjoy life to the fullest.

People will frequently ask, “This makes a lot of sense. How often should I come and get my spine and nervous system checked?”

Life Can Be Intense

The answer is quite simple and depends a lot on you. The intensity of your Lifestyle Care will depend on the intensity of your lifestyle as well as the underlying condition of your spine and nervous system. People who live stress free lives and have no underlying deterioration in their spine or nervous system require much less Lifestyle Care.

On the other hand, people with moderate amounts of stress and deterioration require more frequent visits and people who are under severe stress or have a lot of severe deterioration in their spine and nervous system require much more frequent visits to keep their body functioning at high levels of health. You and your chiropractor will determine together the frequency that is best for you based on your personal health condition and goals.

As the intensity of your lifestyle changes from month to month or from year to year you may find that the intensity of your Lifestyle Care also needs to change.

For example, if you have found that an adjustment every two weeks has been ideal for you and you change to a more stressful job with a lot of sitting or a long commute you and your chiropractor may find that one adjustment a week works better.

Chiropractic and Exercise

If you are a casual exerciser and decide to start participating in triathlons, the increased intensity of your training might require you to increase the intensity of your visits to multiple times per week. On the other hand, if your life becomes less stressful, you begin meditating three times a day and your underlying spinal conditions have already been corrected, you may find that your Lifestyle Care frequency may decrease in its intensity.

Lifestyle Care is Not Based on Symptoms

The most important thing for you to understand is that Lifestyle Care is not based on symptoms. Your frequency is not determined by how you feel but instead is determined by whether or not you have a subluxation, a spinal imbalance with nerve pressure, that needs to be adjusted. Since additional research has revealed that nerve compression can exist without pain, waiting until you have symptoms to get checked is not a good idea. Only your chiropractor can determine whether you need an adjustment or not through a chiropractic check-up.

Ask around and you will find that there are millions of people who have been under chiropractic care for decades not just because they have had a problem but because they have experienced the benefits of Lifestyle Care. These people may be some of the healthiest people you meet. Too many people in our society are suffering because they are crisis oriented when it comes to their health. Don’t let this happen to you. It is easier, less expensive and more fun to stay well than it is to have to get well after you become sick or injured. Make Lifestyle Care your top priority.

© 2013. The Family Practice, Inc., Dr. Eric Plasker and The 100 Year Lifestyle. All Rights Reserved.