Articles

February 4, 2010

Wind your body like a watch

Filed under: Dr. Kenney's Health Blog — admin @ 8:09 am

A self winding watch is unique in that it needs to be wound each day to operate.  It requires daily motion and believe it or not, this is no different than your spine.  Your spine is made up of 24 moveable vertebrae that need motion to function properly.  Your spine is “wound” through stretching, exercise, yoga and countless other forms of movement.

An average person wakes up, gets ready for work, sits and drives to the office, arrives and sits all day, gets backs in the car and returns home where they sit and watch television.  There is no motion in this routine.  Lack of movement translates into misaligned vertebrae which weaken muscles, cause the spine to age prematurely and damage nerves.  Now, compare the routine of a human to that of a dog or a cat when they awake.  Animals innately know that they need motion in order to work properly which is why they will shake themselves, stretch forward or backward, roll around, etc.  These motions keep their bodies moving and operating properly.

The purpose of the chiropractic adjustment is to help you wind your body’s watch – the spine.  Exercise and stretching are the ways that you can help to motion your own spine on your own.  It is the job of the chiropractor to adjust the 1 or 2 vertebrae that are misaligned and not moving properly due to stress from different aspects of daily life.  We call these misalignments “subluxations” and they prevent your spine from working properly and protecting your spinal cord and nerves as it is intended.  These nerve disruptions can cause pain and/or decreased function of organs, glands and systems.

To help achieve and maintain better health, each of us should commit ourselves to some form of daily exercise and have a chiropractor check our spines regularly to make sure one of our most vital structures, our spine, is protected.

by Dr. Matt Kenney

www.sptchiro.com

February 3, 2010

Where are you taking your health today?

Filed under: Dr. Kenney's Health Blog — Tags: , , , , , , — admin @ 9:27 am

Are you aware that almost every condition or ailment you can name produces symptoms only after it has been present for an extended period of time, sometimes years?  This is why right now we have millions of people who look good and feel fine but are literally dying inside from cancer, heart disease, diabetes and more.  That is why how you look or feel can never accurately assess health.

The first step to health is realizing that it’s all about how well your body works, not just how it feels.  If your lungs take ½ as many respirations per minute as they should they’re not healthy, if they work to expel carbon dioxide and inspire oxygenated air in the proper amount and with the correct timing, they are.  Only a body that is working the way it is intended is actually healthy.

Next, picture your health as a spectrum.  On the far left you have disease (things are not working well); on the far right you have wellness (near perfect working order of your body).  Each of us on a daily basis will fall somewhere between these 2 points and will either regress or progress to one end or the other.  The direction we travel depends on 3 main factors – how we care for our bodies physically, what we put INTO it nutritionally and how we care for ourselves emotionally.  If today your input in these 3 areas is good (not perfect) you’ll progress toward better health.  If the input is poor, you’ll regress toward disease.  Each day you do this you’ll get closer to one end or the other.

Finally, understand that better health rewards you with more enjoyment and vitality.  With better health you’ll have more time to enjoy and contribute to all the people and activities that you love.   In fact, there is likely nothing that you can name that would not be better with improved health.

As a chiropractor I pride myself on not only being an expert on how to make people feel better but more importantly how to help and motivate them to actually become healthier.  I have the privilege on a daily basis of witnessing how better health can change lives and would be happy to play a part in helping you change yours.

In great health,

Dr. Matt Kenney

Southport Chiropractic Office

1995 Post Road

Fairfield, CT 06468

(203) 259-4731

www.sptchiro.com

February 2, 2010

Disc Herniation does not mean doom!

Filed under: Chiropractic - General Info and Benefits, Dr. Kenney's Health Blog — Tags: , , , , , — admin @ 12:24 pm

What Can I Do for a Disc Herniation?

By Dr. Matthew Kenney

Often, people with neck or back pain are sent for an MRI only to learn they have a disc herniation, a term people have come to dread.  Upon hearing this term people usually imagine surgery and/or other unpleasant outcomes.  However, while surgery may sometimes be necessary there are countless people each year who discover that these disc problems can be corrected naturally.

Discs are basically the shock-absorbing circles that sit between spinal vertebrae.  Each disc is made up of 2 parts, a large outer ring of fibers called the annulus and a smaller circular jelly called the nucleus.  If a spine remains misaligned without being corrected these disc areas can become stressed and cause decay.  A herniation occurs when the outer fibers weaken (usually over a period of months and years) and the jelly-like nucleus material begins to leak outward and irritate spinal nerves much like pressing a peanut butter and jelly sandwich would squirt jelly out sideways onto a plate.  The nerve irritation can cause pain, numbness, tingling, weakness and other unpleasant symptoms which are often severe.

Herniated discs most often occur in either the lumbar (lower back) or cervical (neck) areas; both of which can be corrected.  The methods we use to correct them are as follows:

First, because disc problems stem from spinal stress caused by misalignments (subluxations) the spine must be re-trained through a series of gentle, spinal adjustments to return to its natural position.  Next, traction is utilized to help heal and repair the discs.  Because discs are weakened by compression (downward pressure) on the spine they can be healed by doing the opposite.  Traction involves stretching the spine outward so that discs can realign to proper positions, herniated material can be sucked back toward the nucleus like a vacuum, blood flow to the area can improve and nerve tension can be reduced.  In our office we have specialized equipment that we utilize for traction including a Flexion-Distraction Table for the lumbar spine.  Natural nutritional supplements are often used to assist in minimizing inflammation and to give the discs the proper nutrients they need to heal.  Finally, once the underlying problem is corrected exercises and stretches are carefully selected and assigned to help strengthen the area.

So, how successful is this natural approach?  Statistically the results are nearly 90%, meaning 9 out of 10 people can avoid surgery or other unpleasant outcomes. In the rare event that someone is not healing from this approach (within a period of 2-4 weeks) than they will be referred for surgery or other intervention.  Even those who do not improve will still know that they have exhausted their simple, natural options before exploring more risky and complex ones.

We help many people with disc herniations each year and currently have 8 patients that are nearing full recovery from them under our care.   If you or anyone you know suspects a disc problem please do not wait for it to correct itself!  Contact my office immediately for an appointment or further information at (203) 259-4731.

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