Vitality Family Chiropractic Castro

Chiropractic Care and Numbness and Tingling

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:40:33 +0000

Chiropractic Care for Numbness and Tingling

Numbness and tingling conditions are conditions that can affect people of all ages. Most commonly, numbness or tingling results from underlying nerve compression caused by subluxations. Other times, blood flow is restricted to the affected area for a variety of medical reasons.

Paresthesia — the pins and needles feeling we get when our foot falls asleep — is the most common type of numbness and tingling. In isolated incidents, such as falling asleep on your arm and waking up to it numb, paresthesia is normal.

However, if paresthesia occurs regularly without obvious explanations, or if it happens to last more than a few minutes, it can be a symptom of a serious underlying condition. These conditions can include a herniated disc, nerve trauma, inflammation, vitamin deficiencies, multiple sclerosis, toxins and more.

Dysesthesia is another condition related to feeling numbness or tingling, although it is much rarer than paresthesia. Sufferers can have extreme nervous system reactions to normal stimuli, such as feeling like your hand is burning when you rest it on a flat surface.

How Chiropractic Care Can Help Numbness and Tingling

We specialize in making specific and gentle chiropractic adjustments to relieve nerve compression. By analyzing the spine for subluxations and other abnormalities, We can create a care plan that eliminates the root cause of numbness and tingling symptoms.

For instance, the Journal of Chiropractic Medicine describes one case of a woman in her mid-40s presenting with weakness and numbness in her pinky, ring finger and middle finger of her right arm. An assessment was performed, determining that the woman most likely had a common condition known as “ulnar nerve compression.” After 11 chiropractic adjustments and a regimen of home exercises and improved working posture habits, the woman’s symptoms resolved completely.

By correcting these subluxations through a scheduled care regimen, your chiropractor can alleviate root causes of numbness and tingling such as nerve compression and provide suggestions on how to avoid them in the future.

If you are currently concerned about chronic numbness or tingling sensations, you can book an appointment for a neurological assessment with us today.

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Chiropractic Care and Neck and Back Pain

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:40:10 +0000

Chiropractic Care for Neck and Back Pain

Back pain is one of the most common health issues in the country, according to the U.S. government’s online resource MedlinePlus. Data suggests that 80 percent of people will have to deal with painful or long-lasting back pain in their life. Twenty-five percent of the population will encounter at least one day of back pain in any given three-month period, according to the National Institutes of Health. The frequency of these incidents are why back pain is the single biggest cause of disability in the world and the second most frequent reason for doctor’s visits.

Similarly, chronic, recurring or long-lasting neck pain conditions plague many Americans and others worldwide. Neck pain also happens to be the third most prevalent type of reported pain behind lower back pain and headaches/migraines.

Common reasons for neck and back pain include poor posture, repetitive stress, injury, nerve damage/ nerve interference and poor muscular support. This range of underlying conditions means that neck and back pain can equally affect someone who spends hours working on a computer at their desk as it does someone who does regular physical labor, like lifting patients.

How Chiropractic Care for Neck and Back Pain Helps

When our skeletal system is subjected to skeletal stress or sudden traumatic injury, we often develop spinal subluxations as a result. For neck pain, a subluxation in the upper cervical region can cause nervous system interference leading to regular pain and discomfort. With back pain, similar issues can occur along the thoracic or lumbar regions of our spine.

When subluxations persist, they can easily affect the nerve pathways that run through them with a significant amount of pressure. We can correct these subluxations and restore ideal nervous system functioning through specific, scientific adjustments.

In fact, neck and back pain are stated as the most common reason for visiting a chiropractor. 7.7 million Americans or 35 percent of chiropractic visitors seek relief from underlying conditions that cause recurring neck and back pain. A Gallup poll also confirms that the majority of Americans believe that chiropractic care can be effective in treating neck and back pain, with nearly one in four strongly agreeing with the assessment.

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Chiropractic Care and Headaches & Migraines

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:39:42 +0000

Chiropractic Care for Headaches and Migraines

Headaches and migraines plague adults, especially people who work long hours or encounter daily stress. A combination of poor posture along with stressors and other factors like diet can all increase the chances of chronic headaches and migraines.

Chiropractic care seeks to alleviate the pain and suffering of chronic headache and migraine sufferers through targeted spinal corrections. These corrections have been proven as effective as medications for treating those with chronic migraines. Since many medications only offer temporary relief and can have serious side effects, chiropractic care can be the safest and best option for some headache sufferers.

Regular chiropractic adjustments may offer the best chance of alleviating both the symptoms and underlying causes of chronic headaches.

Chiropractic Care for Tension Headaches

There are two common types of headaches as described by modern medical science: tension headaches and migraine headaches. While tension headaches are not as severe as migraines, they can still be just as painful and debilitating, popping up unexpectedly and making a normal routine difficult. The most common type of condition that leads to regular tension headaches is a recurring spasm in the rectus capitis posterior minor (RCPM) muscle, located along the neck. Spasms in this muscle affect its tendon attached at the base of the skull to a thin, protective tissue called the dura mater. The dura mater is covered in sensitive nerve endings, so RCPM spasms can trigger a broad, dull sense of pain that leads to a headache. By correcting subluxations in the top two cervical bones near the base of the neck, muscle tension and spasm can be relieved, eliminating the root cause of tension headaches.

Chiropractic Care for Migraine Headaches

Migraine headaches have complex root causes that are not completely understood by modern science and medicine. The prevailing theory is that a chemical imbalance can cause blood vessel dilations in particular regions of the brain. These dilated blood vessels press on the nerves, causing irritation which can cause more blood vessel dilation in an escalating, painful loop.

Published research indicates that chiropractic adjustments can reduce the conditions that trigger migraines by removing nerve interference, thus relieving pain and often solving the root cause of migraines. In that study, 22 percent of participants reported an almost complete reduction in migraine episodes, while an additional 50 percent reported that their migraines had become significantly less painful and frequent.

Seeking Chiropractic Care for Headache Relief?

If you suffer from headaches, migraines or stress-related pains, consider booking an appointment with us today.

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Chiropractic Care and Ear Infections

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:39:00 +0000

Chiropractic Care for Ear Infections

Ear infections occur so commonly in children under the age of five that some pediatricians consider them almost inevitable.

Otitis media, the medical name for ear infections, make up the second-most common cause for emergency room visits (after fever) in infants less than 12 months old. In children 1-17 years old, ear infections also constituted the second-most common discharge diagnosis, with the first being superficial injuries and contusions (bruises).

For a time, physicians and pediatricians resorted to the typical go-to of modern medicine: antibiotics. Parents would go home with vials of antibiotics only to see an ear infection develop yet again. Eventually, the medical community developed the consensus that antibiotics do nothing to treat ear infections.

Parents facing ear infections as a chronic condition have alternatives to this endless cycle of over-medication, and one of the most effective is chiropractic care.

How Chiropractic Care Improves Ear Infections

Otitis media (an ear infection) is a condition characterized by a buildup of fluid in the middle ear. This can cause discomfort since the Eustachian tube that connects the ears to the throat cannot equalize the pressure. Pain, imbalance, temporary hearing impairment, headaches, sleeplessness and other troubling symptoms result. Since a young child cannot understand these unpleasant, foreign sensations, they can understandably become quite upset.

Research shows that chiropractic care can not only address the fluid buildup, but it can sometimes prevent the condition altogether. It does so by getting to the root cause, nerve interference in the nerves that lead to the ear. One study of 46 children aged five and under observed that 93 percent of all patient cases improved. 75 percent saw improvements in 10 days or fewer, and 43 percent of the cohort improved after only one to two treatments.

The results of studies like these show that children have the potential to avoid repeated, ineffective use of antibiotics and improve their condition through chiropractic care. Contact us today so we can become your chiropractor and help with ear infections.

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Chiropractic Care and Digestive Problems

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:38:26 +0000

Chiropractic Care and Digestive Problems

Approximately 60 to 70 million people in the U.S. are affected by digestive diseases and chronic conditions, according to the National Institutes of Health. These conditions were responsible for 21.7 million hospital visits in 2010 alone.

The most common conditions include gastrointestinal reflux disease, chronic constipation, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and peptic ulcers. Less serious conditions can include cramps, acid reflux (heartburn), indigestion, nausea, bloating sensations and gas.

Acute digestive conditions as listed above can often be treated with simple over-the-counter remedies like bismuth or calcium tablets. However, some people have recurring conditions that make these temporary relief measures ineffective. Such digestive issues can make daily activities more difficult while creating feelings of chronic pain or discomfort.

How Chiropractic Care Can Help Digestive Problems

Many treatments for chronic symptoms fail to recognize the role muscle tension and nervous system irregularities play in our abdominal region and digestive tract. When our abdominal muscles remain contracted as a result of poor posture or emotional tension, it can easily lead to recurring conditions like cramps or constipation.

Other times, issues with nervous system performance along the spine can cause pain receptors near the abdomen and esophagus to activate. As these nerve synapses trigger irritation, stomach conditions like acid reflux can worsen.

Chiropractic care seeks out these abnormalities by identifying subluxations and removing them which can often improve the underlying condition of the nervous system, thereby relieving the sources of recurring digestive issues. Evidence of chiropractic’s healing effects can be found in this 2008 study of patients with gastrointestinal reflux disease symptoms. Researchers found that spinal adjustments had been successful in a majority of patient cases based on survey responses.

Therefore, if you suffer from recurring digestive conditions or wish to manage the effects of a diagnosed chronic condition like Crohn’s disease, consider seeking our help to get the relief you need.

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Chiropractic Care and Asthma

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:37:39 +0000

Chiropractic Care and Asthma

Asthma is a condition characterized by chronic inflammation of the lung’s airway passages. Sufferers of asthma have periodic “attacks,” where these passages suddenly inflame and fill with mucus, causing severe shortness of breath.

Spasms often accompany asthma attacks, causing muscles in the chest as well as smooth muscle tissue in the lungs to contract rapidly, making breathing and movement difficult. These spasms can be so severe that the person cannot move. Coughing fits, wheezing, excess sputum production and other issues can make these fits even worse.

Patients that want to safely manage their asthma condition by reducing the frequency and severity of their attacks can look to chiropractic care. Doing so may lessen their dependence on medicines with severe side effects. Since asthma is theorized to be related to allergic reactions, the allergy-reducing potential of chiropractic can also provide benefits.

How Chiropractic Care Can Benefit Asthma Sufferers

Most modern anti-asthmatic drugs attempt to treat the condition’s symptoms. Inflammation, histamine reactions, mucus production and more are all targeted. Yet, even with these medications, the condition persists. Some people also report little to no improvement in their symptoms.

What these drugs fail to account for is the role our musculoskeletal and nervous systems play in asthma attacks. Chiropractic care recognizes this role and seeks to correct underlying issues resulting from muscular and nervous system irregularities caused by subluxations.

Specifically, subluxations in the upper third, fourth and fifth vertebrae can impede functionality of the phrenic nerve. Since this nerve controls the muscle responsible for breathing (the diaphragm), back spasms associated with an asthma attack can create a critical loop that worsens symptoms.

Through targeted adjustments, natural nervous system functioning can be restored. Lymphatic system and muscular performance can similarly improve, helping lessen the severity and frequency of attacks in addition to improving the quality of life of patients. We have the ability to correct these subluxations, allowing for a happier, healthier life.

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Chiropractic Care and Anxiety

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:36:35 +0000

Chiropractic Care and Anxiety

According to the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health, anxiety disorders affect 18% of adult Americans or approximately 40 million people. Of these cases, 23 percent are considered “severe,” with recurring, debilitating symptoms like panic attacks or intense phobias that prevent normal functioning.

Despite the prevalence of anxiety disorders, only around a third of sufferers seek proper care for their condition. The rest risk the effects of anxiety disorders entering into their life and causing depression, poor work or school performance, relationship problems and more undesirable effects.

Fortunately, anxiety conditions can often be managed effectively through a combination of psychological therapy and other therapies like chiropractic.

Sufferers do not need to resort to drugs with drastic side effects that often compound problems rather than helping them. Instead, they can entrust in the care of chiropractic professionals, who will use their understanding of the nervous system and musculoskeletal system to help.

How Chiropractic Care can help Your Anxiety

Many of our mental conditions can be traced back to physical elements of the body. For instance, those who suffer chronic pain are significantly more likely to develop depression. Poor nervous system performance can also lead to conditions that worsen anxiety.

Nervous system disorders can often be connected to abnormalities of the spinal curvature, called subluxations since the spine houses our most important nerve pathways. When subluxations are pronounced, they can “kink” these nerve pathways and cause the sufferer to develop symptoms of anxiety. Dizziness, nervousness, fatigue, sadness and more can all be the fault of improper nerve functioning leading to imbalances of critical neurochemicals.

At the same time, conditions like anxiety can lead to us holding tension physically in our bodies, creating painful symptoms and obstructing nerve pathways in a vicious loop that only intensifies mental issues.

Chiropractic care can address subluxations and therefore help relieve the underlying causes of many anxiety conditions. It can also demonstrably help patients manage pain and improve their nervous system functioning through targeted adjustments. Upper cervical adjustments show the most promise in their ability to deliver such results.

Ask us how neurologically based chiropractic can help with your condition, and remember that you have choices that do not involve drugs.

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Chiropractic Care and Allergies

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:36:00 +0000

Chiropractic Care and Allergies

According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, allergies affect up to 30 percent of adults and 40 percent of children. These numbers are only increasing worldwide. Not only are there more allergens in the atmosphere thanks to increased pollution and more intense pollen seasons, but people have become more sensitive to substances like smoke, dander and pollen that trigger histamine reactions.

Combating these allergies with modern medicine has proven to be incredibly expensive. Americans spent $17.5 billion on treatments and medications for nasal issues alone in 2010. Additionally, health problems related to allergies that year lead to 6 million lost days of work and school, as well as 16 million doctor visits.

Those that suffer from chronic or sporadic allergies often find that medications are not enough. Pronounced side effects like drowsiness, dizziness, increased heart rate, nose bleeds and more can often cause more problem than they solve.

For those looking for true, lasting relief, chiropractic care may be the answer.

How Chiropractic Care Manages Allergies

The symptoms of allergies stem from histamine reactions in your body. These reactions are meant to fight off infection or dangerous substances, but those who suffer from allergies have immune systems that are hyperactive. Normal substances that should not trigger coughing fits or draining noses do.

Orthopedic doctors and chiropractic practitioners both think that the root issue may not lie in immunoresponse, but rather imbalances in the nervous system that cause a domino effect on the lymphatic systems.

Specifically, nerve compression as a result of subluxations along the eighth, ninth and tenth thoracic vertebrae can cause adrenal glands to behave abnormally. As a result, the body tends to react hyperactively to simple environmental triggers.

Research shows that targeted adjustments can restore proper nerve functioning, help the lymphatic system drain to improve immunoresponse and improve the condition of allergy sufferers. By working closely with our Chiropractor, you can manage your condition and ensure continued wellness that allows you to enjoy things you used to like going outdoors or owning pets. See how we can become your chiropractor and work with your allergies.

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Chiropractic Care and ADD/ADHD

vitalfamily — Mon, 20 Feb 2017 12:35:05 +0000

Chiropractic Care and ADD / ADHD

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are conditions characterized by an inability to focus and impulsive behavior. People with ADHD also have pronounced hyperactivity that makes it difficult for the person to calm down.

ADD and ADHD are often diagnosed in young children as personality differences and behavioral choices emerge into a pattern.

Naturally, most children have difficulty focusing and can show more impulsive-type behavior than adults. Yet, those with ADD/ADHD have such a severe pattern of behavior that it can interfere with their ability to function normally in society. Missed homework, disciplinary action as a result of outbursts, severe fidgeting and sometimes anti-social-type behavior can result.

Currently, the most common approach to addressing ADD/ADHD conditions is through a neuropsychopharmacology, or the use of drugs. Stimulants like Adderall, Ritalin, Vyvanse and Concerta are just a few examples. Some people oppose the use of such drugs because they can have significant side effects, including ones like nervousness, anxiety and excitability that can actually make ADD/ADHD conditions worse.

For people seeking an alternative of drugs for either adult or pediatric ADD/ADHD, chiropractic care can provide a possible solution.

How Chiropractic Care Addresses ADD/ADHD

Subluxations (nerve interference) can inhibit normal nerve function. Many people seeking chiropractic care think of this type of nerve function on a purely physical level, e.g. back pain or headaches, but nerve function also governs mental processes. When we feel excess anxiety, an inability to focus, restlessness or other symptoms associated with ADD/ADHD conditions, these are also the results of improper nervous system function.

With targeted adjustments, research has shown that ADD and ADHD can be managed completely without drugs to help restore normal functioning in children. An additional case study showed improvement in the subject’s ability to follow directions.

Positive effects are not isolated to children, either, since people of all ages can be affected by diminished nervous system performance as a result of subluxations. Visit us today to see how chiropractic care can help with ADD/ADHD.

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