I am sorry to tell you I am not talking about Skittles the multi colored candy. I am talking about the huge variety of fruits and vegetables available at most grocery stores. A question not often asked is why are there so many different colors in nature and especially in the plant world? How did early man figure out what he could and couldn’t eat?
(more…)
Imagine holding a bowling ball in your out stretched hand for hours at a time, believe me it would 
get heavy and your arm would get very tired and sore. Sitting for hours at a computer looking down can have a similar effect and create quite a bit of neck pain. The average human head weighs about 9 lbs. This can put quit a lot of strain on the neck over the coarse of the day.
(more…)
Today was one of those days when I was shooting from the hip in my attempt to educate my patients. My theory was that humidity helps keep us hydrated by breathing in all that moisture. After doing a little research I found that for the most part I was wrong. The truth of the matter is that heat and high humidity dehydrates us more than dry heat and it comes down to how our body tries to cool itself. High heat as we all know causes us to sweat. The reason we sweat is the body attempts to cool down by producing sweat, that sweat then evaporates on our skin which causes a cooling effect. In dry heat this system is very efficient. With high heat and humidity we sweat but don’t get the cooling effect of evaporation because the air is more saturated already. Our body continues to stay hot and sweat continues to flow, so in essence we get more dehydrated in hot humid weather. Under both conditions it is vital to good health to stay properly hydrated. I promise to do my research in advance next time.
In the Chinese culture the words yin and yang are used to describe the polar opposites that exist in everything. Yin in general is used to describe feminine nature. Cool, moist, slow-moving or stationary are all said to be traits of yin. The earth, water and the moon are considered feminine and therefore yin. Yin is considered to be in contraction.
(more…)
Chiropractic from its origin has always talked about innate intelligence or the bodies ability to heal 
itself. This concept explains how when we are exposed to a bacteria our immune system produces antibodies or even on a more basic level when we cut ourselves the wound heals often without much of a trace. The big question is how and why do some people function at much higher levels than others. This is what got D.D. Palmer (chiropractic founder) excited to think about.
(more…)
Holism – The first guiding principle of Chiropractic.
Doctors of chiropractic like to quote D.D. Palmer the professions founder and talk about the “philosophy, art and science of chiropractic”. The philosophy part are the principles we use to guide our treatment. The first of these principals is Holism.
(more…)
Foods to help with brain function and focus. Ginseng, Fish, Berries, or Caffeine? Listen to the buzz about foods and dietary supplements, and you’ll believe they can do everything from sharpen focus to enhance memory, attention span, and brain function. But do they really work? There’s no denying that as we age, our body ages right along with us. The good news is that you can improve your chances of maintaining a healthy brain if you add “smart” foods and drinks to your diet. Caffeine Can Make You More Alert. There’s no magic bullet to boost IQ or make you smarter — but certain substances, like caffeine, can energize you and help you concentrate. Found in coffee, chocolate, energy drinks, and some medications, caffeine gives you that unmistakable wake-up buzz, though the effects are short-term. And more is often less: Overdo it on caffeine and it can make you jittery and uncomfortable.
(more…)
~~Should I use ice or heat for pain?
One of the most frequent questions I get asked at New Life Chiropractic is whether heat or ice is most effective for the treatment of acute pain. As a general rule ice is the best bet. Ice reduces swelling, reduces inflammation and produces an analgesic (pain reducing) effect caused by the numbing from the cold.
(more…)
What is Fibromyalgia? Fibromyalgia syndrome is a condition that shows up as widespread pain and tenderness in multiple areas throughout the body. It was originally thought that this pain originated in the muscle and or soft tissue of the pain areas. Chiropractors have known and it is now proven that this is a condition of the central nervous system. Pressure on the nerves of the spine cause the pain receptors of the body to become super sensitive causing pain to be produced with much lighter pressure than normal. We call this allodynia. Along with the allodynia, many other symptoms can be present such as headaches, irritable bowel syndrome, numbness and tingling in the extremities as well as anxiety and depression.
(more…)
10 Secrets to Live to 100
In the year 2000, the United Nations estimated that there were more than 180,000 people over the age of 100 throughout the world, a figure that will jump to 3.2 million by the year 2050. Centenarians make up the fastest-growing section of the population in developed countries.
(more…)
Changing the face of healthcare.
How enthusiastic is Jeff Hays, executive producer of the much-anticipated documentary originally titled”Medical, Inc.” (recently retitled “Doctored”) about his soon-to-be-released documentary? According to
Hays, he’s more proud of this film than any other film he’s done. Exciting words from the man with “On Native Soil” and “Farenhype 9/11,” among other works, to his credit.
(more…)
New Life Chiropractic in Virginia Beach is happy to announce that we are now members of the ChiroHealthUSA network. In the past few years many of the health insurance programs including BC/BS, Medicare and others have started conducting random audits in an attempt to find doctors offering discount or free services to their uninsured or under insured patients. They consider this a breach of contract and grounds for being kicked out of their program. For many reasons this was highly unfair to patients without insurance or under insured patients. In an attempt to fix this problem a group of chiropractors created a discount insurance company that would make it legal and ethical for us to give a substantial discount to patients joining this group.
(more…)
The 5 best exercises to do with no equipment needed.
1.) Walking – a brisk continuous walk is one of the best forms of exercise that can be done. Chiropractors prefer walking because it is very low impact and still offers a great workout. The walk should be done at a 15-20 minute per mile pace for 30-45 minutes, and can be done daily.
(more…)
REAL DOCTOR?
Chiropractors often get asked whether or not we are real doctor. This could be insulting, but the question usually comes from a lack of understanding of the curriculum of a chiropractic college. These are the current requirements so you can decide for yourself.
(more…)
Chiropractic is safe!
Yes chiropractic is safe. On average a medical doctor pays from $10,000 to over $50,000 a year for their malpractice insurance. Chiropractors pay about $1200 for the same insurance. We pay less not because the insurance companies like us, but because we don’t hurt people. We have been developing modern chiropractic care for well over 100 years.
(more…)
Patients at my Virginia Beach Chiropractic clinic often ask what is a healthy diet? This is an extremely complicated question with many possible answers. I think it is safe to say that a healthy diet should be vegetable based with a lot of variety. Avoiding or reducing the amount of processed wheat and products containing large quantities of sugar. Meat should be minimal with lean chicken or fish the primary type. Low fat dairy in small amounts can be ok.
(more…)