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Lifestyle Care Continuum

The U-U of Chiropractic

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The U-U of Chiropractic is the Under-Utilization of the health philosophy, science and healing art that is at the foundation of chiropractic care. Why is Under-Utilization an issue for you and your family? Why should our culture take note?

Benefits of Utilization
The statistics on the benefits of a healthy spine and nerve system and chiropractic care are astounding and well documented by scientific literature and the tens of millions of people benefiting from the care. Here are some examples:

People under chiropractic care use medical services 58% less
http://www.naturalnews.com/031206_chiropractic_immunity.html

People under chiropractic care take less medication
http://www.chiro.org/research/ABSTRACTS/The_Impact_of_Chiropractic_care.shtml

They are 15% less likely to end up in nursing homes
http://www.naturalnews.com/030004_chiropractic_aging.html

They are more likely to get back to work faster after injury on the job
http://www.silcom.com/~dwsmith/manga.html

They perform better in sports and recover quicker when injured on the field
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0161475402749774

A Clear Message
In the past, mixed messages about the benefits of chiropractic may have misguided you on how to utilize the care. They sometimes leave the impression that it is just for back or neck pain. While chiropractic care is exceptional at helping people with pain and other health problems, that’s not what the care is about. The true benefits of chiropractic care will be experienced when you and your loved ones go beyond Crisis Care and make the Critical Transition to Lifestyle Care. This type of care is not about treating symptoms. It is about keeping your spine and nerve system healthy and balanced over the course of your lifetime, whether you suffer from symptoms or not, so your body can function at its optimum levels.

From the moment you were born, your spine and nerve system have been exposed to macro and micro traumas that can affect the growth, development and function of your spine and nerve system. Since nerves control your entire body, these traumas may cause immediate symptoms that can affect every area of your body, or they may lie dormant and asymptomatic for decades leading to deterioration and disease down the road.

Which Type of Care is Right For You?
So what is the appropriate level of utilization of chiropractic care? The answer is different for everyone and can be discovered through a chiropractic examination. You will find that the intensity of your Lifestyle Care will depend on the intensity of your lifestyle, health goals and the underlying pre-existing conditions that have impacted your spine and nerve system since birth. If you want to live an active, healthy, long life, you must have a healthy spine and nerve system. Period. Get your spine and nerve system checked today and find out how you can best utilize and benefit from chiropractic care. Start today, regardless of your age, and express your full potential for a lifetime!

Health Care Is Rising

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Health Care is Rising. As the U.S. and many other nations try to figure out how to pay for the challenges of the aging population, individuals are realizing that they need to take responsibility for their own health through their lifestyle choices, while also utilizing chiropractic as their first choice for care.

People are living longer than ever. Our generation is the first in history that is getting the advance notice that whether we like it or not, want to or not we will probably live longer than we ever thought. The question is what will our quality of life be like along the way? Will we enjoy an active, healthy, purposeful life with meaningful relationships or will we follow in the path of the many elderly now residing in nursing homes? When it comes to health care values, how will we raise our children differently?

Hundred year old people are the world’s fastest growing segment of the population. The U.S. Census expects this group to grow by 746% between now and the year 2040. This is a staggering statistic as the Baby Boomer Generation moves into their later years. Unfortunately, Baby Boomers are watching their parents and grandparents suffer in their longevity with deterioration and chronic disease. Simultaneously, as they themselves get older, they are waking up to the reality that they need to live their lives differently and make their health a priority before they get sick. This is a philosophical shift that goes way beyond the concept of Affordable Care.

When Dr. Eric Plasker wrote The 100 Year Lifestyle in 2007, the United States was ranked 37th in Life Expectancy and 35th in Infant Mortality. Upon researching the statistics for The 100 Year Lifestyle Second Edition, available now, he was disturbed that our country has become worse in both categories: dropping to 51st in Life Expectancy and 44th in Infant Mortality.

While quality medical care may be necessary when there is disease or a severe accident, Health Care is different. Health Care is about keeping your body, mind and spirit functioning at full potential. It’s about keeping yourself fit, balanced and healthy, and optimizing the function of your nervous system. Chiropractors who are practicing this philosophy of The 100 Year Lifestyle are providing this solution for the people in their communities.

Millions of families – three, four and five generations of them – have been utilizing chiropractic care since birth or early childhood and are some of the healthiest people. I look at my family members who have been fortunate enough to grow up with a healthy spine and nervous system and healthy lifestyle choices and I have seen them thrive as they become healthy adults. This is the direction that humanity needs to follow.

In 1903 Thomas Edison, the great inventor, was quoted:

“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.”

Well, that was 110 years ago. Enough time has passed to have the “future” be now. The new quote says:

“The doctor of the PRESENT will give no medicine but will interest their patients in the care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of Dis-ease.”

Isn’t it time that you and your family be present? Yes, let health care begin rising for you!

Avoid This Dangerous Holiday Duo

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Alcohol and prescription drugs are a dangerous combination. While celebrities are the most popular victims, too many people are affected by this bad combination. With the holidays coming up, this knowledge can even save the life of someone important to you.

Both prescription and non-prescription drugs do not mix with alcohol. Too many people take medications on a regular basis – daily, weekly or monthly – and are unaware of the damaging effects that can be caused by adding alcohol into the mix.

During the holidays, people tend to consume more alcohol. The combination of even small amounts of alcohol with many medications can result in adverse reactions within the body that can lead to severe health problems, and in the worst case scenario, even death. Your awareness about this issue brings responsible drinking to a whole new level.

A few examples include
– Medications used for ADHD or sleep disorders, such as Adderall, may actually circumvent the body’s normal warning systems and can mislead the person to unknowingly drink a dangerous amount of alcohol.

– Acetaminophen is listed as a Major Drug Interaction with alcohol and can result in liver damage, even from small amounts of this combination. This is the medicine found in over the counter drugs such as Tylenol and the widely used Cold Medicine, Nyquil.

– An antibiotic like Bactrim, Flagyl, or Tindamax should not be mixed with alcohol because it can cause severe reactions such as nausea and vomiting, headache, and rapid heart rate.

With other antibiotics, the immediate effects may be less severe but your energy can be reduced and delay how quickly you recover from illness.

Even in small amounts, alcohol may intensify medication side effects such as sleepiness, drowsiness, and light-headedness. The risk of serious injury or fatality when operating a vehicle or machinery is magnified and reaction time to prevent harm may be diminished.

Medications consumed by adults over the age of 65, many of whom already have balance issues and an increased risk of falls, can raise the risk when combined with even a small serving of alcohol.

The combination of medicine and alcohol should be avoided at all costs. If you are taking medication prescribed by a doctor, do your homework to learn about the potential reactions that may occur and avoid them.

When hosting a party or meal during the holidays, offer a variety of beverages to provide non-alcoholic, healthy choices to those who may need to avoid alcohol consumption. When attending as a guest, if you know you are at risk, offer to provide a non-alcoholic beverage to share as part of your contribution to the gathering.

You may read this and at first thought presume that the alcohol is the problem. For many, however, it’s the prescription and non-prescription drug use that is the problem. Millions of people each year are discovering that drugs are not the answer for long term health. As they become aware that long term drug usage can lead to severe side effects, they are making healthier lifestyle choices, 100 Year Lifestyle choices that include good nutrition, exercise, and a healthy spine and nervous system through chiropractic Lifestyle Care.

Avoid this dangerous mix, make healthier choices, and make this the healthiest holiday season ever.

Summertime, Recommitment Time

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We all know the power of commitment. Think about the last time you committed yourself to something that was significant to you. Was it your family, your health, your job, or learning a new skill? Commitment is energizing because you block out the world, focus your energy, and create meaningful results for yourself and your loved ones.

Too many people make a commitment, get the results they want, and then become complacent or back off of their commitment. When this happens, the results you created when you were committed mystically vanish into thin air leaving you wondering what went wrong, what happened, and why did it all come to a stop?

The answer is simple: it is not enough to commit once to something that is good for you, you must recommit every day. This daily recommitment makes those areas of your life that are important to you a part of your lifestyle which leads to tremendous fulfillment and lasting results.

Stop wondering what you need to do to get your health back on track. Recommit. Recommit to eating healthy, exercising, getting your spine and nervous system adjusted on a regular basis and making choices that bring balance to your life. Recommit to spending quality time with your family and listening to your spouse or significant other. Recommit to the hobbies, passions, and activities that bring you joy. Recommit to your job, nurturing your talents and abilities, and building your skills.

Commitment is a one-time action. Recommitment, every time you are faced with a choice, is ongoing and is how meaningful lives are built. In addition to recommitting to the things you know you need to do, say no to the things you know are destructive to your health, vitality, and lifestyle. These usually include things like saying no to unhealthy foods, to prescription and over the counter drugs, or to mindless television and internet surfing.

We see the power of recommitment in our practice every day through the people who have made Chiropractic Lifestyle Care their top priority. Since this type of care is not based on symptoms, people who participate in Lifestyle Care typically feel healthier and younger every day even as they age. They get off the symptomatic rollercoaster ride that comes with being committed one day and not staying committed the next.

The New England Centenarian Study indicates you are more likely to live an active, healthy, long life if you avoid sickness in the first place. According to The Health Care Hierarchy of The 100 Year Lifestyle, you must make Self Care and proactive Health Care your top priority.

The power of daily recommitment will optimize the expression of your Innate potential for a lifetime.

Recommit.

Why would you want to live any other way?

Vital Vacation Tips

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Summer Time is vacation time for many of us. The kids are out of school and family trips are planned. In the world of The 100 Year Lifestyle, we call vacations Play Time.

Play Time has many benefits and may help prevent forced time off that is caused by a health crisis. When someone makes the transition from Crisis Care to Lifestyle Care with their chiropractic adjustments, they often experience higher levels of health. The same is true with people who plan for and build vacations into their lifestyle.

Here’s why:

Vacations may help you live longer – A study by the State University of New York at Oswego that surveyed 12,000 men between ages 35 and 57, found that men who go on vacation every year reduce their overall risk of death by 20percent.

The Framington Heart Study indicates women who regularly take time off have a 50percent lower risk for heart attack.

Vacations can raise energy levels – Experts from the University of Pittsburgh and Radboud University both said that people had more energy and felt more satisfied with life while on vacation.

Vacations free your mind – Robert Kriegel, author of “How To Succeed In Business” believes many workers get their best ideas away from work and Los Angeles psychologist, Robert Butterworth told ABC, “The break will allow you to refresh your brain cells.”

Vacations can strengthen relationships – A Wisconsin Medical Journal published findings that women who take two or more vacations a year are less likely to be depressed, tired, or unhappy with their marital relationship.

If you believe you can’t take a vacation and there is too much at stake, in one way, you are right. There is too much at stake: The toll on your long term vitality, health and energy. Not taking Play Time can cause a buildup of stress that is unhealthy and can lead to all types of health problems.

Stress affects everyone differently. High levels of stress can contribute to heart disease, cancer, digestive issues and sleep deprivation. Stress can elevate cortisol levels and reduce the strength of your immune system. These are just a few conditions from a long list that can slowly sneak up on you over time or dramatically surprise you with the speed of their impact on your life.

If you use up all your sick days then have to dip into your vacation days, where is the win? You have the choice. Plan and take your vacation.

Leading up to your vacation, make sure you schedule your spinal checkups to determine if you need to get adjusted. Going on a vacation with a healthy spine and nervous system can make your trip more enjoyable while also improving your health and well-being.

Go ahead, adjust your lifestyle and take a vacation. You will be glad you did.

References from www.businessinsider.com and from www.prevention.com

Lifestyle Renovation in 3 Easy Steps

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The Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition of Renovation is 1 – To restore to a former better state (as by cleaning, repairing, or rebuilding), 2 – to restore to life, vigor, or activity.

Have you ever thought about renovating your lifestyle? Naturally, most of us think of a house when we hear the word ‘renovate’. The way you have lived until now has brought you to where you are physically, mentally, financially and spiritually. Your lifestyle is your choice and your responsibility. Renovating can be done in 3 easy steps and NOW is a great time to start!

First, get your nervous system working at its best. Your nervous system controls and coordinates every cell, tissue and organ in your body and allows your body to respond to its internal and external environments. Gray’s Anatomy says this about the nervous system: “It is the mechanism concerned with the correlation and integration of various body processes and the reactions and adjustments of the organism to its environment.” [1] This means that your nervous system allows you to adapt and live in our constantly changing world. Keeping your nervous system free from interference must be a priority in your lifestyle renovation.

Food is the second step of your lifestyle renovation. No kidding, you are what you eat. Your body rebuilds itself constantly replacing every single cell, over the course of 7 years. If you are eating processed foods, packaged foods or fast food, this can be very destructive to your health now and as you age. Instead, fill your body with fresh vegetables, fruit, proteins and healthy fats. Science shows us that we are living longer. The fastest growing segment of our population is the centenarians, or 100 year old, age group. How do you and your family want to be when you get to 100 years old or older? How healthy do you want your journey to be? The World Health Organization says that increasing your fruit and vegetable consumption can lower your risk of cancer, heart disease, and stroke. [2]

A healthy spine and nervous system give you the best change of absorbing the nutrients from the foods you eat. Remember your nervous system: The nerves that exit from the upper neck, mid back and lumbar regions of the spine send messages to your stomach, gall bladder, and intestines controlling digestion. Their health should be a priority!

The third step to renovating your lifestyle and living a quality life as you age is healthy movement. You will recall from other health articles that to do this you have to Get Your ESS in Shape – Endurance, Strength and Structure. Endurance training exercises your heart and lungs. You need Strength to remain independent as you age. Structure determines the quality of your health because it houses your spinal cord and central nervous system. A healthy structure keeps you aligned and helps maximize healthy movement.

You have a lot of living to do. Getting your ESS in shape now will help you now and down the road. Harvard did a study that not only says you can reduce your risk of disease by exercising, but you can also feel better and live longer! [3].

Before the years fly by, commit to starting your lifestyle renovation now. Begin eating better, get your body moving, and make an appointment to get your spine and nervous system checked to help optimize the function of all your organs and systems. Your quality of life depends on it!

[1] http://www.bartleby.com/107/183.html
[2] http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/fruit/en/index2.html
[3]http://www.health.harvard.edu/special_health_reports/exercise-a-program-you-can- livewith

Contributed by Dr. Josh Handt, A 100 Year Lifestyle Affiliate Chiropractor in New City, NY