Can Custom Orthotics Improve your Golf Game?

Can Orthotics Improve Your Golf Game?
The competition can get pretty fierce out on the golf course, whether it’s Tiger Woods battling David Duval for $1.3 million or two amateurs spending a lazy Saturday afternoon playing for a beer. Small, subtle adjustments can often make the difference between winning and losing, a point emphasized by a study published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics. 

Twelve experienced golfers took part in the study, designed to examine the effect of orthotics (custom-made, flexible shoe inserts) on the golf swing, before and after nine holes of simulated golf. Subjects wore the orthotics daily for six weeks, and measurements were taken using an electronic device that measures club speed (club-head velocity, or CHV) as the golfer swings. 

Use of the custom-fit, flexible orthotics increased CHV by 3.5 miles per hour, translating to appromixately a 15-yard increase in the distance the ball traveled in the air. Orthotic use also appeared to reduce the effects of fatigue associated with nine holes of golf, suggesting the potential for more consistent golf performance. 

The authors caution that their results only address a specific sample of golfers using a specific set of orthotics. For more information on the potential benefits of orthotics for golf and for overall health and wellness, schedule a consultation with your chiropractor. 

Reference:

Stude DE, Gullickson J. Effects of orthotic intervention and nine holes of simulated golf on club-head velocity in experienced golfers. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, March/April 2000: Vol. 23, No. 3, pp168-74. 

Visit http://www.baneschiro.com/Orthotics.html to learn more about our custom orthotics.

What Can Be Done to Prevent Autism Now? Part2

On our last post we talked about what can be done to prevent autism before conception. 

Today we are going to review some things that can be done during pregnancy. 

1. Continue a high-quality organic diet that eliminates, or greatly reduces, sugar and other processed foods. 

2. Take a comprehensive, natural and easily absorbed multivitamin.

3. Avoid dental work while pregnant.

4. Avoid antibiotics and other over-the-counter and prescription medication. 

5. Continue an exercise program.

6. Eat a diet that contains at least 80 grams of protein per day.

7. Always have a protein-rich snack on hand. 

8. Avoid the flu vaccine or any other immunizations.

9. If you get sick, rest. 

10. Interview midwives and or obstetricians.

11. Avoid unnecessary ultrasounds. 

12. Minimize intrusive procedures.

13. Choose your birth care providers wisely. 

14. Start childbirth classes early. 

15. There is a higher risk of autism in cesarean-delivered babies. 

16. Walk during labor, and sty in an upright position or on all fours for pushing and delivery.

17. Interview several pediatricians during your pregnancy. 

18. Continue regular chiropractic care. 

This information is from an article in Pathways Magazine Issue 26. 

http://pathwaystofamilywellness.org/

What can be done to prevent autism now?

Pathways Magazine Issue 26, produced a great article called what can be done to prevent autism now?
This is a very insightful article that has some great information about what you can do prior to conception, during pregnancy, during newborn and infant stages to help prevent autism.

Today we will start with what you can do prior to pregnancy. Here are some of the pointers given in this article.
1. Spend six months to a year improving your diet and making better lifestyle choices.
2. Eliminate or reduce the "white foods".
3. Reduce or eliminate your alcohol and caffeine intake, and eliminate tobacco.
4. Begin or continue an exercise routine.
5. Switch to using green cleaning and personal care products.
6. Consider a detoxification or cleansing program , such as those found at Blessedherbs.com
7. Consider having mercury-based amalgam dental fillings removed.
8. begin taking a comprehensive multivitamin mineral supplement.
9. Add a source of animal based omega-3s.
10. Drink filtered water.
11. Use a stainless-steel water bottle to carry and consume filtered water.
12. Limit your mercury intake. Visit gotmercury.org for more information.
13. Take a high quality probiotic.
14. Test your vitamin D levels.
15. Eat a diet rich in colorful, organically grown vegetables.

For more information you can see the full article in the Pathways magazine Issue 29. http://pathwaystofamilywellness.org/

How are High Heels impacting your health?

High Heels Are Fashion-Friendly, but a Foe to Feet

Chiropractors Suggest Wearing Heels Two Inches or Shorter

CARMICHAEL, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Foundation for Chiropractic Progress (www.f4cp.org ), a not-for-profit organization dedicated to increasing public awareness of the benefits of chiropractic, cautions women that overuse of high-heeled shoes poses health risks and recommends wearing shoes with heels no higher than two inches.

“Dangers associated with wearing high heels affect the entire body, particularly the knee, hip, and back,” said Gerard W. Clum, D.C., President of Life Chiropractic College in West, Hayward, California and spokesperson for the Foundation. “The abnormal weight-bearing and stressful posture induced by high heels can strain both the low back and the neck, not to mention the foot, ankle, and knee.”

If high heels must be worn, Dr. Clum advises not to wear them for more than two hours a day. According to a recent survey by The Gallup Organization, 59 percent of women polled reported wearing high-heel shoes for at least one to eight hours a day. Since contemporary footwear fashions collide with the “on the go - and on their feet” lifestyle of today’s women, it is imperative that high heel wearers consider whether their shoes are friend or foe.

“Many high-heeled shoes do not allow for proper space and movement of the toes,” said Dr. Clum. “Typically, the pointy toe of the shoe causes pain in the front of the foot, which creates pressure on the metatarsals.”

Often, a chiropractor can recommend custom-made orthotics, designed specifically for women to help eliminate burning in the balls of the feet caused by high heels.

“The vast majority of women who come for chiropractic treatment, do not associate the heel height of their shoes with their ailments,” said Dr. Clum. “It is important for woman to realize that their everyday choices, including what shoes to wear, will affect their entire body, not only their feet.”

As for the fashion conscious, it is not necessary to wear flat shoes. Doctors at the Foundation suggest wearing heels of two inches or less as a compromise. However, if one chooses to wear high heels, “regular visits to the chiropractor would significantly reduce the negative effects caused by wearing high heels,” says Dr. Clum.

Why is Posture Important?

Why is Posture Important? 

• "Older men and women with hyperkyphotic posture have higher mortality rates.

American Journal of Pain Management, 1994

• "Spinal pain, headache, mood, blood pressure, pulse, and lung capacity are among the functions most easily influenced by posture."

Archives of Internal Medicine 2007 - Loss of Height Linked To Heart Disease And Early Death

• "Height loss was associated with a 42% increased risk of coronary events such as heart attacks, even in men who had no history of cardiovascular disease.

To learn how our office can help with posture visit: http://www.baneschiro.com/Posture.html

Strength Gains through Lumbar Lordosis Restoration

A study shows that strength gains can be made through lumbar lordosis restoration. 


Conclusion: By restoring the lumbar lordosis in a single patient, the protocol outlined was able to provide for a 60-pound increase in the patient's bench press after 4 months. This study supports the previous premise that a normal lumbar lordosis provides inherent biomechanical stability and strength. Expanding this study to include a large number of subjects may be valuable to certain groups within the population concerned with strength and endurance, such as athletes and bodybuilders. 


Visit the following link to see the entire study: 
http://www.pettiboninstitute.org/pdf/Strength%20Gains%20from%20Lumbar%20Lordosis%20Restoration.pdf