Archive for May, 2010
At my Cincinnati Chiropractic Clinic I treat many older adults who are affected by balance problems. In fact, 9% of adults, aged 65 and over, have episodes of dizziness, “wooziness,” and other balance-related conditions. Good balance is essential, of course, in aiding seniors to stay independent and to avoid falling down and sustaining injuries that are often extremely serious or even fatal. But, what you may not know is that falls are the cause of a large percentage of work-related injuries for adults under 65 years of age, including individuals in their twenties and thirties. That’s right! Balance problems can happen at any age. That is why those who work in”precarious locations” like construction workers, roofers, oil platform employees, windows cleaners, or anywhere else where a ladder is involved are in danger of serious injury if their balance is “off.”
The chief function of good balance is to help us to manage and maintain our body position, whether we are standing still or moving, and whether we are on the ground or high up on a platform. Good balance assists us in walking without staggering, arising from a sitting position without tottering, and in climbing stairs without tripping. In other words, good balance is extremely important to our health and well-being.
What you may not know could have a balance dysfunction without any idea of how threatening it may be. On occasion someone can “shake off” a dizzy sensation and the sensation may not come back for a while. The problem is that when sudden dizziness comes about at a decisive time, it is too late to shake it off and a fall is often certain.
The feeling by some individuals that they, personally, are spinning or that objects around them are moving is known as “vertigo.” About forty percent of people in the U.S. will have at least one incidence of dizziness that is acute enough to seek out a health professional, like your Chiropractor at Cincinnati Chiropractic. But, if you work at any of the jobs listed above, having a chiropractor check your balance prior to a distinct episode of vertigo, make corrections if needed, and then aid you in maintaining good balance, may save you from serious injury or worse.
Balance disorders are dangerous at any age. It is crucial for you to be evaluated and treated without delay if you believe that you may have a possible balance disorder. In fact, if you can answer “yes” to any of the following questions, even if the experience is seldom or infrequent, it is highly recommended that you discuss the symptom(s) with a chiropractor as soon as possible:
• Have you experienced a feeling of being “unsteady?”
• Has the room seemed to spin around you?
• Has there ever a time when you felt as if you were moving when you knew you were standing still?
• Have you lost your balance and/or fallen down?
• Have you ever felt as if you were falling?
• Has your vision ever become “blurred?”
• Have you ever felt disoriented, or lost a sense of time, place or identity?
As discussed above, balance problems are not isolated to a particular age group. From the time we learn to walk until we take our final step, our falling down is an ever-present possibility. If you work in a job that makes your falling down a “critical” event, you need to have your balance checked. Don’t wait until it’s too late! Call a Chiropractor today, and if you’re in the Cincinnati area, I’d love to be your Cincinnati Chiropractor!
Here’s an interesting question for you to consider: Do you want to keep your chiropractic internet marketing in-house or do you want to hire a professional? There are pros and cons to both, and the answer lies in your particular situation. Let’s check out the advantages and disadvantages of both.
Advantages of in-house chiropractic internet marketing
- There is a lower monthly cost involved in using someone already employed by you.
- The staff knows your practice intimately. Your staff has a good understanding of your clinic’s particular services and, therefore, is able to describe your specialties easier than those who don’t know the specifics of your particular practice.
- You can communicate anytime. Being in-house it is easier to set up times to have meetings or just to chat about situations on the fly.
Disadvantages of in-house chiropractic website marketing
- The staff may not be fully aware of what SEO (search engine optimization) is, let alone how to accomplish it. In that case, a lot of education and training will be needed to make sure SEO gets done right.
- The staff may be overworked. Sometimes the time it takes to do SEO can be underestimated. It is an ongoing process that can actually be a full-time job. If a marketing manager has been told to do SEO as well as his or her full time job, obviously that person will be overworked and feel overwhelmed.
- Attention needs to be paid to detail. This goes together with Point #2. If the staff is overworked, they have no time to check out search engine news and keep up-to-date on how the search engines have changed the game each week and what needs to be done to implement those changes to keep your clinic internet presence up in the rankings.
Advantages of using an outside professional
- Chiropractic marketing companies are specialists in the field. They have experience in working on numerous clinics and their websites and optimizing them for SEO. They know, first hand, what works effectively and what doesn’t.
- There is a dedicated team at the company who will be working on your site and can give it the attention it requires.
- The company has a specific plan and won’t be just jumping around, going from short term tactic to short term tactic with no organized strategy and no clear way to reach your desired goals. In other words, they have an “integrated” internet marketing strategy.
Disadvantages of a chiropractic internet marketing company
- Let’s face it, it can get expensive, but costs vary widely from company to company. Some companies out there are charging $600-$700 a month for their services. It is definitely worth your while to shop around and research before you buy.
- There is usually a commitment. Most chiropractic internet marketing companies will want you to sign up for at least six months to a year.
- Account management can be a problem. With high turnover rates at many companies, especially the big ones, there may be a chance that you’ll get handed from account manager to account manager just when you were building a relationship of trust. You may have to start over again, maybe even have to redesign and reiterate your strategy with the new manager.
Now that you’ve taken a moment to look at the pros and cons of both keeping your internet marketing in-house or hiring a professional, the solution to SEO and your internet marketing strategy will depend on the size of your practice, the time and staffing you can devote to it, and your overall long-term goals.
Now, of course, we are a chiropractic internet marketing company that specializes in helping chiropractors with their internet presence. So, I will admit that I am a bit biased on the side of your hiring an expert to do it right. If you are thinking of hiring a company to develop and implement your internet marketing strategy, it is tremendously important for you to hire one that specializes in chiropractic clinics. Why? Because we understand the chiropractic profession intimately. Therefore, in the long run it will save you both time and money not having to explain what chiropractic is about to some general SEO company. There are several of us out there.
If you are going to go with an outside company, be sure to read the fine print. Look at the bottom of their page for a disclaimer. If they have one, read about their “typical” results. You don’t want to be fooled by outrageous claims even though such hype can be enticing. Remember, your internet marketing strategy is just one stream of new patient leads. Even though chiropractic internet marketing is fast becoming a great source for new patient leads, and even though internet marketing gets more important with every passing day, and even though it is a crucial area in which to generate new patient leads, it is still not the only source of marketing you will need to succeed in your practice.
Whether you choose to keep your internet marketing in-house or to hire a professional, you want to be sure that the time and money you spend on SEO gets you where you want to go. A member of your staff that does your internet marketing for “free,” while squeezing those efforts in-between other tasks, may “cost” you in the long run. A professional whose sole focus is internet marketing, won’t lose sight of your goals. Internet marketing is essential to your practice, so choose your chiropractic internet path wisely.
It isn’t news to anyone that elderly people are more prone to bone fractures, especially of the hip. Fortunately, there are a number of preventative measures that older adults can take to help avoid bone fractures, especially from falls. As a chiropractor, I recommend a number of preventative measures to my older patients, not the least of which is for them to have regular chiropractic treatment to help to improve and maintain balance and to keep their body in good alignment. As far as I’m concerned, in addition to balance challenges and poor muscle strength, an aging body that is out of alignment is a hip condition waiting to fracture.
According to a new study by Dr. Marian Hannan, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical school and co-director of the Musculoskeletal Research Program at the Institute for Aging Research, elderly people who eat more protein are less likely to suffer hip fractures. Why? Because consuming proteins such as meat, eggs, fish or cheese helps to build stronger muscles in the legs, which, in turn can reduce an older individual’s chances of falling. In addition to helping to build stronger muscles, other studies have shown that protein intake can increase bone density. For more on protein study go to: dailymail.co.ukYour Corona Chiropractor offers a highly effective non-invasive, drug-free approach to decreasing hip pain and frequently eliminating it altogether. Whenever possible, surgery should be seen as a final option. So, before you decide on hip surgery, think about the following questions: Is it out of the question for you to get a good night’s sleep because your hip pain wakes you up at night? When you get up in the morning, and/or when you get out of your car, are you stiff and do you find it initially hard to get your legs moving sufficiently? Do you feel pain whenever you rotate or twist them or when you cross your legs? If these symptoms sound familiar, it is likely that you have imbalances and misalignments in your lower extremities that, in addition to causing your hip pain, can lead to osteoarthritis in your hips in the future if not treated. The good news is that chiropractic treatment can help whether or not degenerative changes have already started!
It may be true that you’re getting older and your hip joints just aren’t what they used to be. But, did you know that your hip pain (and related problems), which generally signal age-related degenerative conditions, may not actually be created by osteoarthritis? That’s right. In many cases, rather than being the original source of your pain, osteoarthritis of the hip joint is frequently the outcome of a previous injury (or injuries) to your hips.
As a general rule, hip problems have to do with asymmetry or imbalance when you are in motion, like walking for instance. If you “pronate” when you walk, with your toes pointing away from your body (like a duck), sooner or later you will experience pain in your hips from the asymmetrical tension on your hip joints and your body’s efforts to compensate. However, you can learn to alter your gait pattern at any age, and your chiropractor in Corona can show you how to do it.
Additionally, you may have undergone gait changes as the result of an ankle sprain or knee strain, and since “the knee bone’s connected to the hip bone,” these biomechanical changes generate pain in the hip(s). There is no doubt that, if not treated, your hip joints will suffer further consequences, like wear and tear that leads to degenerative changes.
Other activities that can occasionally impact the hip joints are starting a new job or beginning a new sport that makes it necessary for you to move your body in unfamiliar ways. Also, ferrying a child (or grandchild) on one hip can generate hip pain. Even your sitting position or driving for prolonged periods of time on a regular basis can cause hip injury and pain.
Isn’t it good to know that not every pain is caused by “old age,” although we may suffer from more pain due to the progressive activity of untreated injuries.
In addition to your adjustments, as an integral part of your chiropractic management, your Corona Chiropractor will suggest special rehabilitative exercises that include gentle muscle stretching and strengthening, and will also study your gait and may recommend simple pattern changes.
Your hip pain won’t vanish by itself. Hip pain means that there’s an injury that needs treatment. If ignored, more than likely that at some point you will require that hip replacement surgery. So, don’t wait until it’s too late. Your chiropractor in Corona can relieve your hip pain, get your body back into balance, and help you get to back to enjoying your life again!
As a chiropractor who works with athletes, both young and old, and one who preaches a healthy diet in addition to regular chiropractic care, I am often asked by my more active patients about “fuel foods,” especially before a big high school football game or prior to a weekend warrior event. The most frequently asked question is: Are carbohydrates the best source to “fuel my sport”? And, my answer is “yes and no.” If you play sports, it’s important for you to know that even though carbohydrates burn off quickly, and are generally the best source of energy (and I recommend them highly), other factors come into play when the body is under the “stress” of the game. And, while pasta, energy bars, fruits, breads, yogurt, potatoes, cereals, and milk may all be great energy foods to eat before your sport, you should also include high sources of protein, including meat and peanut butter. Why? Because even though carbohydrates give you energy, proteins rebuild your cells and help you to maintain your muscle mass.
Another important thing to remember is that not all carbohydrates are equal. And while healthy fats can be an excellent source of energy during your sport, it isn’t wise before the game to eat fats that digest too slowly, like the fats contained in potato chips, fried foods, doughnuts, candy bars, and other sugary foods. Not only can hard-to-digest fats cause stomach cramping, but these types of fats are hard on the body systems for many reasons.
Maintaining an active lifestyle is important to overall health. But, doing it right and not overdoing it will make a big difference in how well you perform.