This month’s newsletter written by our new Chiropractor, Dr. Dave Rankin, is quite timely for the impending snow shovelling season and the inevitable sore backs. He has written a very interesting article on neck and back pain prevention and treatment. As well, Cynthia Love, our nutritionist has supplied us with a seasonal recipe. We have also included a recipe from the Chopra Center for your enjoyment. We would also like to let you know that our massage therapist, Steve Cagalj, will now be available for massage therapy on Saturdays. He has also added laser therapy to his repertoire. For those of you who are not familiar with cold laser therapy, please refer to our website for more information www.fpcihh.com. If you are new to our newsletter, you can find earlier editions on our website at www.fpcihh.com.
People often seek treatment for back pain that keeps coming back over and over again. Often they’ve been treated for a problem over months or years, receiving relief for a few hours to a few weeks, only to have the pain return hours to days later. When this occurs, it usually indicates that there are other contributing factors that have been overlooked and need to be addressed. Most chronic back and neck pain results from muscle imbalances, postural strain, and overuse syndromes which result from the activities that we repeatedly perform and the postures we support for hours a day. Think about how much time you spend sitting at the computer, in your car, in front of your TV. Sitting makes up most of our days and places great demand on your low back and neck muscles, which have to keep you upright for hours on end. These muscles are forced to contract for continued periods of time causing tension in the muscles. This causes a restriction in blood flow to the muscles preventing oxygen and nutrients from entering the muscle and lactic acid and other waste products from exiting the muscle; over time this situation induces a minor injury that leads to scar tissue formation. Coupled with years of these conditions, muscles become fibrotic and leathery, leading to restricted motion, nerve compression, muscle weakness and pain. By the time many people receive treatment, these conditions have been present for a long time. Simply treating and stretching the painful areas will rarely yield long-term results or completely resolve the pain because the circumstances that caused the problems in the first place remain after treating these structures. So what can you do? As much as it’s important to stretch the sore back and neck muscles, it’s more important to correct the muscle imbalances by strengthening the weak muscles and stretching the tight muscles that attach to the spine. Stretching or treating the sore muscles alone may only enhance the problem. For instance, one of the best things a person can do for chronic low back pain is to stretch the hip flexors, which are situated at the front of the spine and become shortened through sitting for long periods of time. Stretching the hip flexors opens up the pelvis and takes pressure off the low back. Another solution is to strengthen the hip and abdominal muscles, which provide stability to the spine and pelvis. By correcting these muscle imbalances, less strain will be placed on the tight back muscles throughout activities of walking, sitting, standing and lifting. In chronic neck problems, it’s much more important to stretch the muscles on the front of the neck and the pectorals, which attach to the front of the shoulder and rib cage, than to stretch the muscles on the upper back and neck; these neck muscles are usually tight because the pectorals and the muscles on the front of the neck are pulling things forward, leading to upper back and neck stiffness as these muscles fight to stabilize the head and neck. Instead of stretching, it’s more important to strengthen the upper and mid-back muscles (rhomboids and middle trapezius) between the shoulder blades. Strengthening these muscles will help you hold posture for longer periods of time. Try to take short frequent breaks throughout the day to take the pressure off the back and neck. One last suggestion is breathing with the diaphragm (a.k.a. belly breathing). Many of us use the upper back and neck muscles for breathing, placing excess strain on these structures. In fact, the average person takes 17000-28000 breaths per day. Learning to breathe with the diaphragm through meditation, yoga, or through direction from your health care provider can help to minimize chronic neck strain. Back and neck pain doesn’t have to be an ongoing occurrence. By addressing the cause of the problem and correcting it at the source, most musculo-skeletal ailments can be minimized or even prevented.
Pumpkin and Apple Soup with Roasted Walnuts Ingredients:
Garnish Directions:
Serves 6-8 Sweet Potato Ginger Soup Ingredients:
Directions: Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the red chili flakes, leeks, ginger, and aminos. Sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the sweet potatoes and sauté until they are well coated and begin to brown slightly. Add the coriander and garam masala. Sauté another 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the vegetable stock to cover the sweet potatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the sweet potatoes are tender. Blend with a hand blender or food processor until the mixture has a smooth consistency, adding more stock as necessary. Reheat before serving and garnish with the chopped cilantro. Nutritional Facts (per 1 1/2-cup serving): Serves 4 We hope you continue to enjoy the newsletter. Please feel free to forward it on to your family and friends. If they would also like to receive our newsletter they can email us at fpcihh@magma.ca . With Warm Regards, |
When Back Pain Keeps Coming Back
Recipe