Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Check out the classes coming up at Vital Chiropractic!

We are happy to announce some incredible upcoming classes at Vital Chiropractic.

1) Pathways Connect.

Starting Monday, April 18th we will be holding monthly Pathways Connect get togethers. The purpose of Pathways Connect is to provide the resources and tools to introduce and foster the family wellness lifestyle in our community and families. We will discuss various wellness topics that pertain to current family wellness and growth. This will be a great way to gather with other families, ask questions and gain knowledge in natural healthcare!

Monday, April 18th 5 pm.
Cost: Free

2) Natural treatments and care for ADD, ADHD, Autism and Sensory Processing Disorders.

This will be an informative class on non-medical approaches to helping children with these disorders or challenges. Information will be provided that will help kids with challenges in school, socially and academically, to children with more extreme neurological challenges. Bring your questions and open mind to learn. You will leave the class with things you can start doing immediately to help.

Monday, April 25th 5 pm.
Cost: Free

3) Purification and weigh management program.

 
Purification is merely the internal cleansing and detoxification of your body. Think of it as "spring cleaning" for your insides.

Why do I need purification?

Purification, also known as detoxification, can help you remove natural toxins from your body and help maintain a healthy weight. We are exposed to external toxins everyday, including pollutants, pesticides, and chemicals. Internally our bodies produce waste byproducts as a result of normal metabolic function. Although your body is designed to rid itself of these toxins naturally, it can become overburdened. Purification offers your body additional support to expel natural toxins and minimize your weight, which is important to maintaining your health and vitality.

Toxins can contribute to a wide range of conditions:

* Stuffy head
* Fatigue or difficulty sleeping
* Digestion and other gastrointestinal problems
* Food cravings and weight gain
* Reduced mental clarity
* Low libido

What are the benefits of purification?

A purification program can have a significant, positive effect on the biochemistry of the body while allowing natural toxins and byproducts of daily metabolism to be eliminated. By participating in a purification program, you may notice the following:

* Improved weight management results
* Increased energy/vitality
* Better digestion
* Less bloating
* Clearer skin
* Shinier hair
* Better sleep
* Clearer thinking
* Disappearance or lessening of past conditions†

How is purification different than any other diet?

The Standard Process Purification Program is not a diet. It is a program that helps you live a healthier life by purifying, nourishing, and maintaining a healthy body and weight.

Our purification program emphasizes supplements and whole foods, particularly fruits and vegetables, while limiting high-calorie, refined foods and saturated fats. Nourishing yourself with nutrient-rich foods will provide the complex combination of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that are needed to protect the body and promote optimal health.

This is a weekly program that runs for 4 weeks. The first date is Wednesday, April 27th from 5:30-6:30.

The program includes program guide, weekly contact with the doctor, all supplements and meal suggestions/recipes.

Limit is 10 participants. Call our office for more information or to sign up.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

The Luck of the Draw

The Luck of the Draw





We Can Make
Our Own Luck
Making your own luck with respect to good health involves taking various actions on your own behalf. In fact "luck" itself, without any help from us, only goes so far. For example, you could be lucky and blessed with a fast metabolism. That's great, you can eat whatever you want and not put on much weight. But is eating exclusively from the three main food groups of pasta, pizza, and peanut butter what you really want to do?

Well, yes, but it's important to recognize that there is a down side. Eventually your metabolism will rebel against this slog-fest and betray you. You'll begin to put on weight and it may take a long time to reverse this trend, even after you've switched to a more sensible diet.

Similarly, health check-ups are a smart lifestyle choice. Chiropractic check-ups help ensure your body is functioning at peak levels. If some optimizing is needed, your chiropractor will recommend treatment that will get you back to being fit. They'll also be able to answer your questions about diet and exercise, helping you plan choices and activities that will keep you and your family healthy and well.
Some people do all the right things and still develop serious health problems. Others flaunt their bad habits and are able to live long lives, dying peacefully in their sleep at the age of 95. For example, high blood pressure (hypertension, HTN) is a common chronic disease in the United States. With HTN a person's heart has to work much harder, all the time, to pump the blood needed by the rest of the body. HTN is associated with heart attacks and stroke, and hypertensive heart disease is a leading cause of death. 1

HTN is often described as a lifestyle disease. 2,3 Those who are overweight and/or obese (this characterizes two-thirds of American adults) are at increased risk for HTN, as are persons with diabetes. People who don't exercise regularly are more likely to develop high blood pressure, as are those who smoke cigarettes. In fact, overweight/obesity, lack of exercise, and tobacco use are the top three causes of HTN.

Obviously, achieving an average weight, exercising regularly, and stopping smoking (or never starting) are three main lifestyle actions related to decreasing one's risk of developing HTN. But some people who are slim, have exercised all their lives, and do not smoke may still develop high blood pressure. In such a case, HTN is termed "essential hypertension". The person has a very healthy lifestyle, there are no risk factors for HTN, and still they become hypertensive. That is the luck of the draw, otherwise known as a genetic predisposition to this disease.

In a contrasting example, a few people may smoke two packs of cigarettes a day since age 15, drink a quart of gin every few days, and never get really sick. They don't develop lung cancer or liver cancer and have no problems with HTN or heart disease, and live lives that fly in the face of all received wisdom in the field of public health. They continue to thrive well into their 80s and beyond and love to tell their well-meaning friends and relatives, "I've never been sick a day in my life" while lighting up another cigarette. Such persons are described by epidemiologists as outliers, those whose health parameters represent an outlying 2.5% or less of the standard values. Their luck of the draw lies in possessing an indestructible constitution.

Of course the exceptions only prove the rule. Their existence does not suggest that rules for good health should not be observed. Regular vigorous exercise and a healthful diet containing plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables are important for all of us, young and old. Chiropractic care is an important component of the lifestyle mix. Chiropractic care helps people, young and old, achieve the best health possible. This natural form of health care helps take the "luck" out of the equation. We can make our own luck and chiropractic helps us do that in the arena of health and well-being.

1Zhang WW, et al: Hypertension and TIA. Int J Stroke 4(3):206-214, 2009
2Schmid AA, et al: Current blood pressure self-management: a qualitative study. Rehabil Nurs 34(6):223-229, 2009
3Pascual JM, et al: Body weight variation and control of cardiovascular risk factors in essential hypertension. Blood Press 18(5):247-254




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