Back Pain Relief in a Bowl of Cherries

Back pain is the most common reason people seek out the aid of a chiropractor, and when they do, most are looking for a mechanical solution. While spinal adjustments and other direct forms of treatment can have a powerful affect on back pain, many of our client doctors also will consider the impact of nutrition and maintaining a healthy weight. A holistic approach to pain relief will include an evaluation of the role food plays in a patient’s health. The latest issue of Reader’s Digest lists some common foods that may help ease chronic back pain, and a few that...

Write yourself out of back pain…or...

We have a new article today on a really intriguing study in the journal Chiropractic & Osteopathy that looked at how fear-avoidance–the fear of pain, rather than actual pain–can impact a patient’s recovery from a low-back injury.  The study found that a patient’s perception after an initial consultation with a chiropractor could largely predict how positive or negative their eventual outcome would be.  Check out the article through one of our client sites, Dr. Daniel Benko in Schererville, IN. The study was notable for investigating the way...

Long Commutes Lead to Neck and Back Pain

More good news for those of us whose kitchen/living room/garage doubles as a home office. Our slipper-powered commuting habits might just be saving us from neck and back pain, as well as from an expensive monthly gas bill. A telephone survey conducted last month for the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index asked 173,581 employed adults about their commuting habits and health conditions. The researchers found that among people who reported a commute of more than 45 minutes from home to the office, 29% also report experiencing recurring neck or back pain in the past year. That...

Back to School; Back to Back Pain?

As kids and parents prepare for the final back-to-school push this week, many are investing in new backpacks and stacks of schoolbooks. But while heavy course loads may be great training for young minds, heavy backpacks can put a real crick in young backs (link courtesy of one of our client sites – Dr. Michael Hillenbrand in Philadelphia, PA). An article in the Toronto Sun highlights some of the ergonomics that take a toll on kids and their backs, noting that the poor designs of school desks, chairs, and many backpacks encourage slouching and poor posture. The...

Can a Hard-Knocks Life Help You Deal wit...

Have you ever been told that a little adversity in life builds character? As it turns out, it may also help you deal with back pain. A new study by researchers at the University of Buffalo suggests that patients with chronic back pain who also reported having endured some kind of traumatic event in their past experienced less impairment from and visited the a doctor’s office less often than patients with no such previous difficulties in their lives. The researchers suggest that psychological resilience may be a factor in dealing with chronic pain. You can read the...

Chronic Pain Worse for Women than Men

Headaches may be an ancient tool in the battle between the sexes, but increasingly, medical research is proving that there are significant differences in the way women and men experience pain. In a speech to the American Psychological Association yesterday, Dr. Jennifer Kelly of the Atlanta Center for Behavioral Medicine outlined some of the most recent research, which shows that women are more likely to suffer from chronic pain than men, and that the pain can come more frequently and hit with greater intensity. Women also are more likely to experience multiple pain...