What's the deal with leg length?

Chiropractic and Leg Length

Because the spinal cord is housed by the spine and the exiting nerve roots communicate with the autonomic nerves that basically run our organ function, maintaining alignment of the spine and pelvis is very important to minimize nerve irritation and subsequent health-related problems. The focus of this article is on leg length, its effect on our posture, methods of assessment, and treatment.

Leg length plays and important role in posture. When there is a difference in leg length, the pelvis cannot maintain a level position, and because the spine’s base is the pelvis, it cannot stay straight if there is a leg length discrepancy.

Doctors of all disciplines realize the importance of leg length, especially orthopedic surgeons as they consider a hip or knee replacement! There are many causes of leg length issues, and some include a genetic predisposition (inherited) or trauma during bone growth years.

From a treatment standpoint, a heel lift (with or without arch supports) can be placed into the shoe on the short leg side. Unfortunately, there is not a 1 to 1 mm correction of the leg length deficiency with heel lifts. In adults, it has been reported that about a 66% correction occurs, which means a 10 mm lift would result in around a 6.6mm leg length deficiency correction.

Many doctors have found that it is usually wise to GRADUALLY increase the amount of heel lifting, and so patients often start with a 5mm lift and at one week intervals, increase it to the next height, such as 7mm, followed by 9mm, and so on. At 12mm (0.5”), problems with the heel lift being pushed out of the shoe and/or sliding forwards in the shoe may prohibit the use of these thicker lifts after which point the bottom of the shoe can be built up by a shoe cobbler (some services can be found online as well).

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Nursing helps to reduce stress.

Did You Know? Breastfeeding can help mothers relax and handle stress better. Skin-to-skin contact with your baby has a soothing effect.

Both short and long-term stress can affect your body. In fact, stress can make us more likely to get our spines out of alignment (or subluxated) and of, course more likely to get sick. It can also make problems we already have worse. It can play a part in a range of issues, including trouble sleeping, stomach problems, headaches, and mental health conditions.

Try to listen to your body so that you can tell when stress is affecting your health, and take these steps to feel better!

If your baby is having difficulty with latching on, losing suction, reflux or colic - be sure to have them checked by a chiropractor who specializes in pediatric care.

• Get adjusted!  It has been reposted that getting adjusted can increase your immune system by 60-200% with just one adjustment!   
• A therapist can help you work through stress and find better ways to deal with problems. For more serious stress-related disorders, like post-traumatic stress disorder, therapy can be helpful. 
• Relax - It's important to unwind in a way that works for you. Try a bubble bath, deep breathing, yoga, meditation, and massage therapy. If you can't do these things, take a few minutes to sit, listen to soothing music, or read a book.
• Sleep - Your stress could get worse if you don't get enough sleep. It is hard to fight off illness when you sleep poorly. With enough sleep, it is easier to cope with challenges and stay healthy. Try to get seven to nine hours of sleep every night. If you can't, try to sleep when the baby sleeps.
• Eat right - Try to fuel up with fruits, vegetables, proteins, and whole grains. 
• Get moving - Physical activity not only helps relieve your tense muscles, but helps your mood too! Your body makes certain chemicals, called endorphins, before and after you exercise. These relieve stress and improve your mood.  
• Talk to friends - Friends can be good listeners. Finding someone who will let you talk freely about your problems and feelings without judging you does a world of good. It also helps to hear a different point of view. Friends will remind you that you're not alone.
• Keep a journal - Write down your thoughts. Have you ever typed an email to a friend about your lousy day and felt better afterward? Why not grab a pen and paper and write down what's going on in your life! Keeping a journal can be a great way to get things off your chest and work through issues.
• Get a hobby - Find something you enjoy. Make sure to give yourself time to explore your interests.
• Set limits - Figure out what you can really do. There are only so many hours in the day. Set limits with yourself and others. Don't be afraid to say no to requests for your time and energy.
• Plan your time - Think ahead about how you're going to spend your time. Write a to-do list. Figure out which tasks are the most important to do.
• Don't deal with stress in unhealthy ways - This includes drinking too much alcohol, using drugs, or smoking, all of which can harm the baby. It is also unhealthy to overeat in response to stress.
• AND GET ADJUSTED.   
• Schedule online

Forget Someone at Home?

Chiropractor - “Hey Mary, where are your kids?”   Mary - “I left them at home, they don’t have any back pain…”  Chiropractor - “That might be true, but do they have Subluxations?”

Studies show that stress from the birth process alone is enough to produce pediatric Subluxations –  subtle, yet significant vetebral misalignments which alter normal nerve function in children.  And don't forget the stress they experience from falling off bikes, rough housing with siblings or just trying to fit in at school.  Kids are inherently Subluxation prone!

If you bring your kids to the dentist for preventative maintenance as soon as they get teeth, it only makes sense you bring them to the Chiropractor as soon as they get a spine.  In other words, don’t leave them at home… get them checked EARLY and REGULARLY for Subluxations.  You’re investing in their health and their future when you do.

Distributed with permission © The Weekly Sticky

Go to www.drkarengardner.com to schedule an appointment

Happy Thanksgiving

It's Thanksgiving time, and in staying with custom, we'd like to share with you a few things we are truly grateful for this year.  Here's a short list...

We're thankful for Subluxatation free spines, mobile joints and healthy sagital curves.  Supple muscles with elastic flexibility.  Unimpeded nerve systems, through which the gift of innate intelligence flows, coordinating all the functions that sustain Life.  An abundance of eager referrals, standing room only orientations and miracle testimonials.  We're especially grateful for our Principle, and the many lives that have been saved by its faithful application.

But most of all we're thankful for all our patients, staff and ChiropracTIC fanatics worldwide who, through their trust and unrelenting desire to advance Life, have come to appreciate these things as well.   Our practice is nothing without you - our Chiropractic family.  Have a blessed Thanksgiving, above down, inside and out.

Distributed with permission © The Weekly Sticky

Schedule today www.drkarengardner.com

Flies and Garbage Cans

The Ever notice that flies like to congregate around dirty, neglected garbage cans?  You don’t usually see them swarming near clean ones. The same can be said for germs, bugs and viruses.

Germs are like flies... they’re opportunistic. Give them a dirty place to settle and they’ll multiply.  Provide a weak host and they’ll take advantage. But that’s not the case in clean, well kept environments.  BJ Palmer, the developer of Chiropractic said ‘if the germ theory was true, we would all be dead…’ He recognized that germs thrive in dis-eased (Subluxated) individuals who can’t fight back, not healthy strong ones.

If you keep your body tidy with proper hygiene, good nutrition and most important - a clear Nerve System, germs and bugs are less capable of taking up residence in you.  And if they make the mistake of trying too, you’re healthy well-adjusted body will give them the boot!

Distributed with permission © The Weekly Sticky

Schedule a check up TODAY! www.drkarengardner.com

Zombies Among Us

What do zombies and the chronically Subluxated have in common?  Both are doomed to aimlessly wander the earth more DEAD - than fully ALIVE!

It’s common for those suffering with chronic Subluxations to feel tired, fatigued and disinterested in Life - like they’re barely existing.  If left undetected, chronic Subluxations interfere with the normal flow of power in your Nerve System, leaving you physically, mentally and emotionally drained.  The result: you end up walking around in a trance-like state, clueless to the fact that you’d feel more alive if you simply got adjusted.

Do you know someone who’s meandering through life like the walking dead?  Nothing’s scarier than living hopelessly in a ‘zombie-like-fog’ because of Subluxations.  Reach out and tell them how Chiropractic care can transform them from the walking dead to the well-adjusted!

Distributed with permission © The Weekly Sticky

Schedule an appointment today www.drkarengardner.com

Nothing Organic about it

Spray pesticides on an apple and it’s no longer organic.  Add a drop of oil to a glass of spring water and it’s no longer pure. Most Americans detest the idea of dumping chemicals in a pristine, natural environment.  But why not have the same aversion when it comes to getting the flu shot?

Maybe it’s because you don’t realize what’s in it: Mercury (a known neurotoxin in the form of Thimerisol), Glycol (a component in antifreeze) and Formaldehyde (the stuff they preserve cadavers with).  If you dumped those chemicals in your local water supply you’d get arrested.  But every year, unknowing Americans line up at their local pharmacy to get this stuff injected into their veins.

Given the choice to eat an organic apple vs. one blasted with toxic chemicals, you know which one you’d rather take a bite out of.  Question is, would you take a bite out of yourself after getting injected with the ingredients in the flu shot?  There are natural, alternative ways to boost your immune system and protect yourself from the flu. Ask your Chiropractor what they are so you can keep your body ORGANIC this season.

Distributed with permission © The Weekly Sticky