ProActive Health Blog by Dr. Cohen: Learn something about your body!

Orthotics for Women Walking San Francisco Hills

January 3, 2012 | Filed under: General Interest,Pain Management

Women differ from men in structure and biomechanics and their feet are among the most different of the body’s structures. In spite of this, our healthcare system treats female patients’ foot imbalances and lower extremity dysfunction in the same way that it treats male patients’.

V7 Plus, Scan Screen

Feet Problems:

Women develop biomechanical problems and symptomatic condition in the forefoot more frequently than men do. Bunions (hallux valgus), hammer toes, callus formation, interdigital neuromas, and metatarsalgia are all more common in women according to the Journal of Musculoskeletal Medicine. Many of these conditions have been linked to abnormal biomechanical forces in the feet, which is why, at ProActive Chiropractic, we look at your feet at every visit.

During your initial exam, we scan your feet to determine if foot imbalances may be contributing to biomechanical issues.

This information helps us get to the root of the problem and resolve it quickly.

Orthotics for Women Walking San Francisco Hills? Take the Test.

December 23, 2011 | Filed under: Pain Management,Sports

Women differ from men in structure and biomechanics and their feet are among the most different of the body’s structures. In spite of this, our healthcare system treats female patients’ foot imbalances and lower extremity dysfunction in the same way that it treats male patients’.

Feet Problems:
Women develop biomechanical problems and symptomatic condition in the forefoot more frequently than men do. Bunions (hallux valgus), hammer toes, callus formation, interdigital neuromas, and metatarsalgia are all more common in women according to the Journal of Musculoskeletal Medicine. Many of these conditions have been linked to abnormal biomechanical forces in the feet, which is why, at ProActive Chiropractic, we look at your feet at every visit.

During your initial exam, we scan your feet to determine if foot imbalances may be contributing to biomechanical issues.

This information helps us get to the root of the problem and resolve it quickly.

V7 Plus, Scan Screen

Big Game of Mercy or a Big Weekend of Rock Climbing Scheduled- Chiropractic Helps Prepare You

December 20, 2011 | Filed under: General Interest,Kids,Sports

Most of us remember the game Mercy from childhood. According to Wikipedia, school children around the world play this game. New research suggests those school children hoping to reign as Mercy champion on their playgrounds should be getting adjusted. A recently published study finds chiropractic neck adjustments improve wrist strength which I can only imagine improves your Mercy odds.

No, the research didn’t focus on Mercy. It actually focused on Judo athletes showing that “grip strength of national level judo athletes receiving chiropractic adjustments improved compared to those receiving sham (or a placebo).”

There are many reasons you might want to improve your grip strength: Mercy, Judo, rock climbing, or fighting back against that aggressive hand shaker at work who crushes your hand to prove he’s “tough.” Regardless of your reason, chiropractic adjustments will help your nerves function more efficiently and that will improve your grip strength. Call ProActive Chiropractic in San Francisco if you want to improve your hand/wrist strength and get back to work and back to play.

Our 4 Week Class Teaches You How To Start The New Year Right: Sign Up By Christmas and Save

December 19, 2011 | Filed under: Dr Cohen,General Interest,Nutrition

My practice gets you out of pain and back to what you love doing by considering the whole picture. In addition to the musculo-skeletal problems you expect your chiropractor to note, I look at how your diet or emotional stress may be interfering with your system hindering your ability to recover and heal efficiently.

ProActive Chiropractic, in San Francisco, will run a cutting-edge nutrition class in January 2012 the will teach you simple ways to clean up your system therefore helping improve energy and complement your exercise goals for the new year.

To make it reasonable in the midst of the financial stress of the holiday season, we are offering a special: register with a friend by Christmas and we’ll waive the second registration fee! That’s two for the price of one! Email or call us (415-762-8141) to get more information.

Become your own Health Champion™ with assistance from Detox 360°™, an integrative new detox system. Look great, renew your health, and energize your life!

There are many different detoxes or cleanses out there now. I researched a ton of them, narrowed the field to the three that most closely match my practice’s priorities and goals, and tried out those three. I even tried them on my wife before I settled on Detox 360°™. The supplies provided by Detox 360°™ best fit my practice because the supplements are cleanest and most honest and the materials share my focus on educating patients to keep themselves out of the doctor’s office. Over four sessions (Thursdays in January at 6pm), I will lead support sessions to help you through the detoxification and show you how to make long-term changes that will benefit you long after you’ve finished the cleanse.

Do You…

Experience headaches or migraines?
Feel fatigued or sluggish?
Have aching joints or muscles?
Feel your weight is getting out of control?
Feel unfocused or foggy?
Have digestive problems?

If so, the Detox 360°™ program can help renew your sense of well-being. Read about the program’s unique, multi-pronged approach to learn how Detox 360°™ differs from other detox methods.

Why Should I Detoxify?

Never before in human history have we been exposed to so many environmental toxins! The air we breathe and the chemicals in our food, water, houses, and workplaces, as well as the various products we put on our bodies, all expose us to environmental toxins. Low-level bioaccumulation from multiple sources, building up year after year, increases our toxic load. This may result in symptoms such as fatigue, rashes, brain fog, etc., manageable at first, but then gradually may result in degenerative disorders, autoimmune, neurological dysfunction, and hormonal imbalances. Our bodies are equipped to neutralize these toxins and clear them out or store them.

Our detoxification organs—kidneys, liver, lymph, lungs, intestines, and skin—work hard each day to address such exposure. However, due to factors such as genetics, stress levels, dietary issues, lifestyle practices, nutritional balance, and exposure levels, our ability to neutralize and excrete these toxins may vary. Unless we take active steps to address toxic exposure, our health may be affected to varying degrees.

The best approach is to fight this problem on many fronts. A simple cleansing diet or supplements, although helpful, may not be enough to make a major difference. The Detox 360°™ program has been designed by healthcare and nutrition experts to provide a coordinated, multifaceted answer.

More Than a Cleansing Program

Detox 36°™ is a multifaceted foundational system, which incorporates many important clinical considerations in its planning and design. It addresses several key areas such as allergies, inflammation, toxicity, systemic and metabolic stress, mental-emotional stress, susceptibility factors, and much more. It is primarily a lifestyle-changing program, which helps anchor health-promoting habits and dietary adjustments that can become a new way of life, or may be used periodically to take advantage of its dramatic benefits. It can be used as a stand-alone program, or in conjunction with the therapeutic regimen recommended by your healthcare practitioner. The goal of Detox 360°™ is to provide a clinically tested system of dietary and lifestyle recommendations, with supportive formulas, which when used together, will have a significant impact on your health.

Detox 360

This 4-week program includes educational DVDs, a highly detailed manual with easy-to-use food guides and recipes, daily journals, detailed explanations of toxicity sources, detox mechanisms, detox-promoting lifestyle practices, targeted nutrition, as well as supportive therapeutics. You are taken through a simple, step-by-step approach with clear explanations of how to complete each week’s regimen.

About the Detox 360°™ Process

In just a few weeks, you can begin to experience results and look forward to continued improvement. The Detox 360˚™ program includes:

Dietary support of the body’s detox processes, emphasizing whole foods and eliminating known inflammatory and allergenic foods
Lifestyle practices, such as regular exercise, healthy sleep habits, etc. that support detoxification
Support of liver detox pathways
Stimulating kidneys, lymphs and liver through physician-formulated homeopathic drainage formulas

Testimonials

“My nutrition practitioner recommended a food elimination and detoxification program (Detox 360°™). After four weeks, I was out of pain for the first time in years.”
- Suzanne K, School Superintendent

“I was suffering from depression and unmanageable perimenopause symptoms. My health practitioner suggested the Detox 360°™™ program, and it was amazing to see my depression disappear and my hot flashes become bearable.”
- Sheri S., Home Health Nurse

The content and images on this page are property of Detox 360°™

Posted via email from ProActive Chiropractic in San Francisco, California

Sid Crosby Concussion Helped by Chiropractor

December 14, 2011 | Filed under: Celebrities and Chiropractic,General Interest,Video

Chiropractic Neurology Addresses Symptoms Concussion: Specialized Intervention Speeds Recovery for NHL’s Sidney Crosby

After a traumatic vestibular concussion resulted in year-long symptoms of instability, fogginess, dizziness and light sensitivity, National Hockey League (NHL) standout Sidney Crosby has reported improved cognitive and physical functioning and is progressing remarkably well, thanks to the care of a Doctor of Chiropractic with specialized training in neurology. The Foundation for Chiropractic Progress calls upon all coaches, parents and athletes to learn concussion signs and symptoms and what to do if a concussion occurs. “In professional hockey alone, there are more than 50,000 hits annually, and far too many of these are serious injuries to the head,” says Dr. Ted Carrick, the Chiropractic Neurologist who treats Crosby and other NHL and NFL players. Dr. Carrick is the Distinguished Professor of Neurology at Life University, Marietta, Ga., and points to vestibular concussions as a national epidemic requiring a resolution.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a concussion is a type of traumatic brain injury (TBI) caused by a bump, blow, or jolt to the head that can change the way your brain normally works. Concussions can also occur from a fall or a blow to the body that causes the head and brain to move quickly back and forth. Health care professionals may describe a concussion as a “mild” brain injury because concussions are usually not life-threatening, but their effects can be serious.

“Concussions can occur in any sport or recreation activity,” says Dr. Carrick, a spokesperson for the Foundation. “Many people who suffer these injuries suffer seemingly irreparable symptoms that affect their daily activities and performance. With experience specific to the neurological system, our specially trained team utilizes an exclusive neurologically-based intervention that oftentimes is successful in the recovery process.”

According to the Foundation, board certified Chiropractic Neurologists are specialists within the chiropractic profession that receive an additional three years of specialty training following a Doctor of Chiropractic degree, to specifically deal with the functional integrity of the brain and nervous system. Treatment methods are brain-based, non-invasive, drug-free physical rehabilitation, using receptor-based stimulation, such as chiropractic adjustments, movement, light, taste and smell, in conjunction with nutritional therapies, exercise and rehabilitation. Collectively, these approaches work to re-establish balance as well as maximal brain and nervous system functionality.

According to Dr. Marc Ellis, a board certified Chiropractic Neurologist on Dr. Carrick’s Life University clinical team who also represents the Foundation, “Concussions and their debilitating effects have been receiving increased attention, particularly with professional athletes sidelined because of the lasting effects of a concussion. The issue has also become a flashpoint in youth sports – especially bicycling, football, playground activities, basketball and soccer.”
According to a recent report by the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research, more than 500,000 concussions are sustained by the 4.4 million children who play tackle football. Dr. Susan Esposito, another expert from the Life University Neurology Clinic shares, “Our society needs to place greater emphasis on prevention, while continuing to address those who experience concussions resulting from sports injuries, car accidents or other mishaps – especially our youth. This approach will not only have a major impact on professional and amateur athletes, but also the health of all Americans.”

10 Worst Breakfast Desserts, I Mean Cereals.

December 7, 2011 | Filed under: General Interest,Kids,Nutrition

“Most parents say no to dessert for breakfast, but many children’s cereals have just as much sugar as a dessert— or more”, says the Environmental Working Group.

The 10 cereals with the highest sugar content (by percentage weight) are:

Kellogg’s Honey Smacks (55.6%)
Post Golden Crisp (51.9%)
Kellogg’s Froot Loops Marshmallow (48.3%)
Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch’s OOPS! All Berries (46.9%)
Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch Original (44.4%)
Quaker Oats Oh!s (44.4%)
Kellogg’s Smorz (43.3%)
Kellogg’s Apple Jacks (42.9%)
Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch’s Crunch Berries (42.3%)
Kellogg’s Fruit Loops Original (41.4%)

The EWG just published a wonderful report addressing this issue and giving healthy alternatives (remember protein is crucial at breakfast). Spend a few minutes going through it, especially if you’re a parent and your kids eat dessert for breakfast, I mean cereal.

Avoid These 7 Foods Like the Plague

December 6, 2011 | Filed under: Dr Cohen,General Interest,Nutrition

This is a great article to pique your curiosity and awareness. I imagine a few of you are familiar with this from conversations we have had at ProActive Chiropractic (e.g. corn fed beef and farmed salmon) but for some it may be a surprise. Luckily living in San Francisco there are lots of good alternatives.

7 Foods That Should Never Cross Your Lips

Is your food loaded with toxins and chemicals? Here, simple swaps to protect yourself

Available at: http://www.prevention.com/tips/nutrition/7-foods-should-never-cross-your-lips

Which foods should you avoid?

Clean eating means choosing fruits, vegetables, and meats that are raised, grown, and sold with minimal processing. Often they’re organic, and rarely (if ever) should they contain additives. But in some cases, the methods of today’s food producers are neither clean nor sustainable. The result is damage to our health, the environment, or both. So we decided to take a fresh look at food through the eyes of the people who spend their lives uncovering what’s safe—or not—to eat. We asked them a simple question: “What foods do you avoid?” Their answers don’t necessarily make up a “banned foods” list. But reaching for the suggested alternatives might bring you better health—and peace of mind.

1. Canned Tomatoes

Fredrick Vom Saal, PhD, an endocrinologist at the University of Missouri who studies bisphenol-A, gives us the scoop: The problem: The resin linings of tin cans contain bisphenol-A, a synthetic estrogen that has been linked to ailments ranging from reproductive problems to heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Unfortunately, acidity (a prominent characteristic of tomatoes) causes BPA to leach into your food. Studies show that the BPA in most people’s body exceeds the amount that suppresses sperm production or causes chromosomal damage to the eggs of animals. “You can get 50 mcg of BPA per liter out of a tomato can, and that’s a level that is going to impact people, particularly the young,” says vom Saal. “I won’t go near canned tomatoes.” The solution: Choose tomatoes in glass bottles (which do not need resin linings), such as the brands Bionaturae and Coluccio. You can also get several types in Tetra Pak boxes, like Trader Joe’s and Pomi. Budget tip: If your recipe allows, substitute bottled pasta sauce for canned tomatoes. Look for pasta sauces with low sodium and few added ingredients, or you may have to adjust the recipe.

2. Corn-Fed Beef

Joel Salatin, co-owner of Polyface Farms and author of half a dozen books on sustainable farming, gives us the scoop: The problem: Cattle evolved to eat grass, not grains. But farmers today feed their animals corn and soybeans, which fatten up the animals faster for slaughter. But more money for cattle farmers (and lower prices at the grocery store) means a lot less nutrition for us. A recent comprehensive study conducted by the USDA and researchers from Clemson University found that compared with corn-fed beef, grass-fed beef is higher in beta-carotene, vitamin E, omega-3s, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), calcium, magnesium, and potassium; lower in inflammatory omega-6s; and lower in saturated fats that have been linked to heart disease. “We need to respect the fact that cows are herbivores, and that does not mean feeding them corn and chicken manure,” says Salatin. The solution: Buy grass-fed beef, which can be found at specialty grocers, farmers’ markets, and nationally at Whole Foods. It’s usually labeled because it demands a premium, but if you don’t see it, ask your butcher. Budget tip: Cuts on the bone are cheaper because processors charge extra for deboning. You can also buy direct from a local farmer, which can be as cheap as $5 per pound. To find a farmer near you, search eatwild.com. Get Healthy Beef Recipes

3. Microwave Popcorn

Olga Naidenko, PhD, a senior scientist for the Environmental Working Group, gives us the scoop: The problem: Chemicals, including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), in the lining of the bag, are part of a class of compounds that may be linked to infertility in humans, according to a recent study from UCLA. In animal testing, the chemicals cause liver, testicular, and pancreatic cancer. Studies show that microwaving causes the chemicals to vaporize—and migrate into your popcorn. “They stay in your body for years and accumulate there,” says Naidenko, which is why researchers worry that levels in humans could approach the amounts causing cancers in laboratory animals. DuPont and other manufacturers have promised to phase out PFOA by 2015 under a voluntary EPA plan, but millions of bags of popcorn will be sold between now and then. The solution: Pop natural kernels the old-fashioned way: in a skillet. For flavorings, you can add real butter or dried seasonings, such as dillweed, vegetable flakes, or soup mix. Budget tip: Popping your own popcorn is dirt cheap.

Note from Dr. Cohen: I prefer an air popper than cooking it in a skillet because it’s less greasy and more efficient.

4. Nonorganic Potatoes

Jeffrey Moyer, chair of the National Organic Standards Board, gives us the scoop: The problem: Root vegetables absorb herbicides, pesticides, and fungicides that wind up in soil. In the case of potatoes—the nation’s most popular vegetable—they’re treated with fungicides during the growing season, then sprayed with herbicides to kill off the fibrous vines before harvesting. After they’re dug up, the potatoes are treated yet again to prevent them from sprouting. ” Try this experiment: Buy a conventional potato in a store, and try to get it to sprout. It won’t,” says Moyer, who is also farm director of the Rodale Institute (also owned by Rodale Inc., the publisher of Prevention). “I’ve talked with potato growers who say point-blank they would never eat the potatoes they sell. They have separate plots where they grow potatoes for themselves without all the chemicals.” The solution: Buy organic potatoes. Washing isn’t good enough if you’re trying to remove chemicals that have been absorbed into the flesh. Budget tip: Organic potatoes are only $1 to $2 a pound, slightly more expensive than conventional spuds.

5. Farmed Salmon

David Carpenter, MD, director of the Institute for Health and the Environment at the University at Albany and publisher of a major study in the journal Science on contamination in fish, gives us the scoop: The problem: Nature didn’t intend for salmon to be crammed into pens and fed soy, poultry litter, and hydrolyzed chicken feathers. As a result, farmed salmon is lower in vitamin D and higher in contaminants, including carcinogens, PCBs, brominated flame retardants, and pesticides such as dioxin and DDT. According to Carpenter, the most contaminated fish come from Northern Europe, which can be found on American menus. “You could eat one of these salmon dinners every 5 months without increasing your risk of cancer,” says Carpenter, whose 2004 fish contamination study got broad media attention. “It’s that bad.” Preliminary science has also linked DDT to diabetes and obesity, but some nutritionists believe the benefits of omega-3s outweigh the risks. There is also concern about the high level of antibiotics and pesticides used to treat these fish. When you eat farmed salmon, you get dosed with the same drugs and chemicals. The solution: Switch to wild-caught Alaska salmon. If the package says fresh Atlantic, it’s farmed. There are no commercial fisheries left for wild Atlantic salmon. Budget tip: Canned salmon, almost exclusively from wild catch, can be found for as little as $3 a can.

6. Milk Produced with Artificial Hormones

Rick North, project director of the Campaign for Safe Food at the Oregon Physicians for Social Responsibility and former CEO of the Oregon division of the American Cancer Society, gives us the scoop: The problem: Milk producers treat their dairy cattle with recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH or rBST, as it is also known) to boost milk production. But rBGH also increases udder infections and even pus in the milk. It also leads to higher levels of a hormone called insulin-like growth factor in milk. In people, high levels of IGF-1 may contribute to breast, prostate, and colon cancers. “When the government approved rBGH, it was thought that IGF-1 from milk would be broken down in the human digestive tract,” says North. As it turns out, the casein in milk protects most of it, according to several independent studies. “There’s not 100% proof that this is increasing cancer in humans,” admits North. “However, it’s banned in most industrialized countries.” The solution: Check labels for rBGH-free, rBST-free, produced without artificial hormones, or organic milk. These phrases indicate rBGH-free products. Budget tip: Try Wal-Mart’s Great Value label, which does not use rBGH.

7. Conventional Apples

Mark Kastel, former executive for agribusiness and codirector of the Cornucopia Institute, a farm-policy research group that supports organic foods, gives us the scoop: The problem: If fall fruits held a “most doused in pesticides contest,” apples would win. Why? They are individually grafted (descended from a single tree) so that each variety maintains its distinctive flavor. As such, apples don’t develop resistance to pests and are sprayed frequently. The industry maintains that these residues are not harmful. But Kastel counters that it’s just common sense to minimize exposure by avoiding the most doused produce, like apples. “Farm workers have higher rates of many cancers,” he says. And increasing numbers of studies are starting to link a higher body burden of pesticides (from all sources) with Parkinson’s disease. The solution: Buy organic apples. Budget tip: If you can’t afford organic, be sure to wash and peel them. But Kastel personally refuses to compromise. “I would rather see the trade-off being that I don’t buy that expensive electronic gadget,” he says. “Just a few of these decisions will accommodate an organic diet for a family.” Get more tips on how to go organic without breaking the bank http://www.prevention.com/budgetorganic

Note from Dr. Cohen: I would put conventional strawberries with apples because they are very high in pesticides and extremely difficult to wash (or peel for that matter).

Want to be More Productive? Bike or Walk to Work.

December 2, 2011 | Filed under: Brain Health,Sports

Everyone knows that exercise has major health benefits. Now, new research suggests that exercise improves work performance, with specific benefit to memory and the ability to multitask. So if you needed another reason to hop on a bike, now you have it.

Granted, health experts have known for quite some time about the positive impact exercise has on the brain. But until recently, they knew very little about how this happens. Now they think they do: Exercise increases the production of a specific protein that improves recall and overall brain function.

And you don’t need to run a marathon or bike 50 miles to reap its rewards. A recent New York Times article cites a study which found that just five minutes of exercise several days per week, over the course of five weeks, markedly improved rats’ memory function.

But is strenuous exercise more beneficial than light exercise? Not necessarily. In fact, Charles Hillman, a kinesiology professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, says studies have shown that the lightest and heaviest doses of physical activity have the least impact. He also points to research which suggests that, for cognitive functioning, moderate doses of walking can have significant benefits over time.

If you walk or bike to work, take on your most challenging tasks right when you get to the office, since the benefits of exercise on brain function start to wear off after about an hour (sorry, procrastinators).

And if walking or biking to work isn’t an option, consider taking a brisk walk at lunchtime. You’ll get fresh air and the exercise which’ll allow you to crank up your afternoon productivity.

written by Green Life/Sierra Club

Every 14 Minutes … Someone Dies From Prescription Drugs

December 1, 2011 | Filed under: Drugs,Pain Management

Written by Donald M. Petersen Jr., BS, HCD(hc), FICC(h)

When I was in the Navy during the Vietnam War, there was a sign posted just outside the base where I was stationed in California. The sign provided the running total of the number of U.S. military personnel who had died in Vietnam during the war versus the number of U.S. citizens who had died on U.S. highways during the same period of time. The numbers weren’t even close. The casualties on our highways were much higher.

Now, a new threat has risen to outpace traffic accidents as one of the top killers of Americans: prescription drug poisoning. According to an investigative article that appeared recently in the Los Angeles Times,1 “drugs exceeded motor-vehicle accidents as a cause of death in 2009, killing at least 37,485 people nationwide.” By comparison, the death toll for the Vietnam War is reported at 58,148 for the entire 10 years in which U.S. troops were deployed.

According to the article, pain meds and anti-anxiety drugs are the most deadly. OxyContin, Vicodin, Xanax, Soma and newcomer Fentanyl rank as the drugs that have taken the most lives. Every year, these drugs kill more people in the U.S. than heroin and cocaine combined.

What is most frightening is the aggressive trend the death tolls have taken in recent years. According to the authors of the Times article, between 2000 and 2008:

“(Prescription) drug fatalities more than doubled among teens and young adults”
“Deaths more than tripled among people aged 50 to 69″
“(T)he death toll is highest among people in their 40s.”

Not surprisingly, the prescription and dosage rates for these drugs are also increasing at an alarming rate. According to the Times article, in California alone, the prescription rate for pain meds increased by 43 percent while the doses grew by 50 percent, a deadly combination.

Sadly, the majority of the people who overdosed on these prescription drugs were only looking to ease the pain in their body. Many probably believed they could live comfortable lives with regular dependence on their pain relievers.

Clearly, the chiropractic message was not being heard by these people. Many obviously chose regular drug ingestion over regular chiropractic care. I’m sure that a large percentage stopped looking for the cause and settled on what they believed was an acceptable “cure.”

But this is not the end of this pharmaceutically-induced nightmare. In fact, it may only be the beginning. The current trend shows little signs of leveling off. We will certainly see even more deaths from prescription drugs once the 2010 and 2011 figures come out, and it is likely that the numbers will increase every year thereafter.

What can we do? Many have said that Big Pharma cannot be stopped. That may be true, but perhaps we can slow it down. If nothing else, maybe we can communicate a different message to our communities. Perhaps we can educate our patients to appreciate just how dangerous prescription drugs really are and encourage them to tell their friends, family and co-workers to “try chiropractic first.”

Go to the Los Angeles Times Web site, print out their investigative article and share it with your patients for the next few weeks. Ask them about the people they know who are living with pain by using prescription drugs to get through life. Ask them to talk to the people they love and encourage them to come see you instead. You may even want to offer a free exam to “see if chiropractic can help them with their pain.”

Considering the millions of pain-medication users, even reaching a small percentage could make a real difference. Not only will we be improving health, but we will also be saving lives.

It took me about three hours to research and write this article. In that relatively short time, more than 13 people in the U.S. alone died of prescription drug poisoning. It didn’t have to happen.

Reference:

“Drug Deaths Now Outnumber Traffic Fatalities in U.S., Data Show.” Los Angeles Times. Sept. 17, 2011.

Notes from Dr. Cohen: I sometimes hear at parties how great pain drugs work, almost as if it’s a joke. Medications are quite serious and this article puts it into perspective by comparing medications to traffic fatalities and the Vietnam war.

The take home for me is that pain meds and anti-anxiety drugs are the most deadly and both are conditions we can treat conservatively with limited or no medications.

Tips for Those Who Want To Start a Weight Training Program

November 30, 2011 | Filed under: General Interest

First off, I think you should start with a trainer who really knows their stuff. I recommend you start with 2-3 sessions so they can teach you healthy lifting techniques. Believe me - training research has changed and taught us many new things since you were in high school. Therefore, if you haven’t worked out with a trainer in 10 years, do so.

If you have worked out with a trainer and have just taken a long break and forgot how much weight to start lifting, this is a good tip:

Body weight can serve as guideline or starting point to identify the weight that beginning adult lifters, performing three sets of lifts, should perform to get started:

Barbell Squat 45% of body weight

Universal leg press 50% of body weight

Barbell bench press 30% of body weight

Universal bench press 30% of body weight

Universal leg extension 20% of body weight

t Leg extension 20% of body weight

Universal leg curl 15% of body weight

Upright rowing 20% of body weight

Newer lifting techniques integrate more than one body part at a time, which has many benefits that can be applied to sports. Talk to me if you have any questions. Going through the Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician program gave me many tools and techniques to help you achieve your workout goals, whether it’s recommending a fabulous trainer or giving you tips to improve your current workout.