We knew that Chiropractic adjustments were important to restore normal joint motion. We’ve also been successfully using therapeutic massage techniques to eliminate pain and restore normal muscle tone. Along with this we use Low Level Laser Therapy to accelerate the healing of injured ligaments and tendons.

The old expression “an ounce of prevention beats a pound of cure” is appropriate in this situation. That’s why we’re going to give you some tips on avoiding accidents, based on the information we have gathered on the cause of the hundreds of accident patients we have treated.

• Avoid stop and go traffic. Most accidents are rear-end collisions, that occur when someone stops. Avoid routes that have a lot of stop lights and cross walks, if possible. Of course you need to stop at all stop signs and red lights. When you’ve stopped, glance in the rear-view mirror. Is the distracted driver behind you also slowing to stop. If not – brace yourself.
• Don’t stop when you’re not supposed to.  Don’t be a “nice guy” and stop on the road just to let someone turn left across traffic. When you do, you create a blind spot for drivers in the curbside lane that often leads to a t-bone collision.
• Turn your phone off. You’re driving a 2000 pound piece of metal at 30-55 mph and suddenly your phone rings. Don’t let the temptation to answer your phone cause you to take your eyes off the road for a second. Your reaction time is not that good.
• Be aware of the weather. Rain, snow or black ice can increase your stopping distance much more than you think. Don’t follow too close.
• Don’t be in a hurry. Plan your trips. Leave for work in plenty of time. Your boss may end up being impressed that you show up early some days.  

Prepare yourself like an athlete would prior to working in the yard. Stretch those muscles first. Don’t spend a lot of time in one position. Don’t lift more than you are used to. Consider a Chiropractic tune-up in anticipation of extra activity after your winter hibernation.

Ask Dr. Prom

Q) What is in your Medicine cabinet?  -Curious in Corbett

A) Dear Curious, As you may have guessed I try to avoid pharmaceutical drugs whenever possible. All you have to do is listen to the disclaimers at the end of the latest drug ad on the nightly news to know why…”may cause loss of hearing or vision, etc.”  Even taking things such as ibuprofen on a regular basis can be bad, because they are not natural substances. You are a natural being and putting an unnatural substance in your body can and does cause conflicts with your body. Here’s some of the things I use and take…

Glucosamine Sulfate for achy joints, mostly for my knees. As we pass age 30 our bodies do not regenerate cartilage anymore. Cartilage lines the ends of all bones and helps joints glide. Without that lining you start to get resistance to full motion in your joints and they ache. Glucosamine Sulfate (not Glucosamine HCl) is a building block of cartilage.

Bromelain as an anti-inflammatory. Bromelain is a proteolytic enzyme made from pineapple. It works naturally to reduce inflammation and heal damaged tissue. I sometimes take Bromelain as a preventive measure just before playing softball or if I know that I am going to be working out extra hard that day. Of course it can also be taken after an injury.

Fish Oil does so many good things to keep your heart and body healthy. I was recently tested and found to have slightly high cholesterol. There is no way I would take a statin drug with all their side effects. I choose to take fish oil instead. I take the capsules, because they are easier to store than the liquid, but either would help. Make sure you get a reputable manufacturer on this. They can vary.

Lysine. If I eat too much chocolate or peanut butter, then I will get a cold sore. Lysine will knock out the cold sores in no time flat. Certain foods contain high levels of Arginine. Cold sores live on Arginine. Lysine and Arginine are amino acids that compete for the same receptor sites on cells. Extra Lysine crowds out the Arginine and makes the cold sore go dormant.

Vitamin D. If you lived in the tropics, like I would like to, we would get all the Vitamin D we needed from the sun. But that is not the case; we live in the great northwest. Your skin absorbs sunlight and your body converts it to vitamin D. It is essential for strong bones, muscle tone, heart health, and mental well being. Maybe that is why we all feel better when the sun comes out. A large percentage of Oregonians have been shown to me deficient in Vitamin D. Maybe you are one of them

E-mail your “Ask Dr. Prom” questions to Steven@DocProm.com

A new year seems to be a good point to attempt the changes that you have been thinking about for a while. Here are some of the Top Resolutions and how we can help.

Losing weight. This can be tough unless you change the way you think about food. That is why I recommend Chemae Stevens as your weight loss health coach. Chemae comes free with the Medifast weight loss meal replacement system. My wife was very successful with this program. One of my patients lost 165 pounds on this program; she now weighs 150. Contact Chemae at 503-703-0770 or visit her website www.Fit4Me.TSFL.com

Quitting Smoking. Many smokers believe that they have been smoking for so long that even if they quit today it won’t make a difference in their health. Surprisingly, your lungs will start the process of healing within a few days after you quit and return to a more youthful condition. As long as you haven’t yet had a lung removed, quitting now can still help. Check out this great online resource at www.smokefree.gov. They offer step by step ways to quit, including free telephone counseling at 1-800-QUITNOW.

Getting healthier. Chiropractic care can be very beneficial in staying healthy. By maintaining mobility of your spine and other joints with regular Chiropractic adjustments you take the pressure off your nervous system and allow it to function the way it was intended. This allows your body to heal itself from injuries and disease. Many people ask me how often they should get adjusted. This varies based on your age, overall health, and how much physical and emotional stress is in your life. The older patients that I see on a regular basis all tell me that they are in better shape than others their age. My own family members get adjusted at least every week.

“My doctor says I have pain because I’m getting old.” That’s a recent quote from a patient. Oh really, what is the diagnosis? Tylenol-deficiency? While it is true that our bodies were not made to last forever, we can improve the length and quality of our life with proper maintenance. Here’s 5 tips…

• 1:  Use or lose it. If you want to be able to walk up stairs when you are 70 – walk up stairs every day. Do you need to take the elevator for one flight of stairs? Can you walk to the store for that one item you need? Personally I like to walk the trail to the top of Multnomah Falls at least once per year to make sure I can still do it.
• 2: You are what you eat. (with the exception of nuts and vegetables) But seriously, even if you buy the cheapest fuel for your car, think of the food you eat as fuel for your body. It is an investment in your health. Are you eating quality unprocessed fresh foods? They contain the most nutritional benefit. I’m not saying you can’t have a cookie now and again, but cookies are not one of the basic food groups.
• 3: Round is a shape. Sure it is, it’s just not a healthy shape. If you can find the will power within yourself to become height-to-weight proportional you will add YEARS to your life. Not nursing home years, but active quality years.
• 4: Do you have the right stuff? You have to play the cards you were dealt with as far as DNA and genes. You may have a family history of certain disease or risk factors that others don’t. Identify these and take the proper supplements as needed: Grandma with osteoporosis? Then make sure you maintain good calcium levels. After age 30 joint cartilage does not regenerate. That’s why I supplement with glucosamine sulfate daily, so hopefully I will never need knee replacement surgery.
• 5: Smoking ain’t cool. Have you heard the latest news from the surgeon general: Cigarette smoking is hazardous to your health.  OK, that shouldn’t be news to anyone, yet 21% of the population still smokes. Is cancer on your bucketlist? Find a way to quit. I’ll help.

Never accept “old age” as a reason for your pain. At Springwater Chiropractic we will help you find out the real reason for your pain and work on a natural solution to get rid of that pain. Chiropractic works by restoring motion to your joints and removing restrictions from your nervous system so your body can heal itself as it was designed to. 

Do I have Arthritis?

Chances are you probably do have a common form of arthritis. If you are over 30 years of age you probably have osteoarthritis, at least a mild form, in some joints of your body. Osteoarthritis happens when cartilage at the ends of bones wears away allowing damage to the bone. This degeneration usually starts in an area where you have had a joint injury at some time. The best way to prevent osteoarthritis is to take a supplement like glucosamine sulfate and maintain flexibility of your joints with regular stretching and Chiropractic adjustments.

Other forms of arthritis like Rheumatoid arthritis, gout and psoriatic arthritis are inflammatory in nature. They are caused by metabolic disorders and can be helped by natural means also. A diagnosis is made with blood tests and x-rays. Besides hereditary causes, other factors such as food allergies and sensitivities can make symptoms worse. It’s important to know all the options you have for treatment.  See your Chiropractor or Naturopathic physician for help

School Sport Physicals - Yes, we do school sports physicals for just $35 time of service fee. If covered we’ll bill your insurance for you. Call to schedule an appointment.

Student backpack tips - I guess in the future all students will just have an I-pad or something similar to carry all their textbooks in digital format, thus eliminating the cause of back injuries from overloaded backpacks. But in the mean time here are some tips to prevent injuries for your student.

• Select the right backpack. Ideally it should have two padded shoulder straps to help distribute the weight.
• Make sure your student uses both straps when carrying a heavy load.
• The maximum load should not be more than 20% of the student’s body weight. Ideally 10% or less.
• Get a Chiropractic tune-up if back pain lasts more than a day or two.

Do you have enough Insurance?

Most people hunting for car insurance are looking to save money on this mandatory expense. You need however to really determine what you need in the way of car insurance. Which is a good company to deal with? Which company will actually pay my claims when I get in an accident not just who is the cheapest? (Next month we’ll tell you in our opinion and the opinion of a local body shop, which companies pay claims without a hassle.)

Did you notice I said when you get in an accident and not if you get in an accident. On average a driver (or passenger) is involved in a car accident every 7-10 years. Luckily most of those are minor, but sometimes they are serious.

The personal injury protection (PIP) coverage part of your car insurance covers your medical and Chiropractic expenses when you are involved in an accident. The Oregon state minimum is $15,000. Is that enough for you?

Consider these two recent examples we had in our clinic: Female patient number One was involved in a rollover accident and was taken to the hospital by ambulance. X-rays and other tests were done and she stayed overnight for observation. Hospital bill: $12,000. Luckily her Chiropractic bill came in far under the remaining $3000, because she responded so well.

Female patient number Two got fired from her job one day. On the way home from that firing she was t-boned (struck sideways) by another car in an intersection. Taken to the hospital by ambulance. Two days in the hospital with tests, etc. and her hospital bill was more than $15,000. All her PIP coverage was exhausted. She had no private health insurance. No money to pay for rehab, because she lost her job. Now she lives on Social Security Disability.

My insurance agent, Ryan Richter (I’m convinced is the best agent in the world) tells me that for as little as $5-10 more per month anyone should be able to raise their PIP coverage to $25,000. You can also increase your PIP coverage incrementally to up to $100,000 if you want. Just think how much life flight would cost?

Not trying to scare you, but these are some things to really consider, especially if you don’t have private health insurance. We have also seen claims denied by private health insurance if the injury was the result of a car accident.

It’s a good idea to talk to your agent about this. If you would like the world’s best agent to answer these questions for you then e-mail Ryan Richter at Ryan@ColumbiaInsure.com.  He is an agent for a variety of different insurance companies and can find the best policy for you.

Think about it. -Steven Prom, DC

Sorry, this article is not about food, but about a part of your anatomy that can and does cause a lot of pain. Many people have unexplained back pain that may not be from their spine, but instead from a rib that is “out”. Although you can go out for ribs, ribs don’t usually go out.

Ribs can however, become slightly rotated and stuck in a position that can be very painful. A simple sneeze, or muscle spasm from doing lots of reaching or overhead work can cause a rib to be stuck.

Let me explain… You have 12 ribs on both side of your spine that connect in a somewhat ball and socket joint to your mid-back (thoracic) vertebrae. These ribs wrap around to the front of your chest and connect by cartilage to your breastbone (sternum).

When you breathe in and out your ribs rise and fall. Sometimes they get stuck. Because the ribs attach right next to where spinal nerves come out of your spine, they are super sensitive. Even a slight restriction to the motion of a rib can trigger a lot of pain signals to your brain.

The same rotation to one of your fingers would not hurt at all. But, because the ribs attach so close to the spinal nerves, a rib stuck in rotation can feel like you are being stabbed. It may even be painful to breathe.

The good news is that ribs can usually be easily adjusted by me. Almost instant relief is common. Many times however ribs will need to be adjusted more than once to maintain their motion. After determining the possible causes I can give you posture tips and other exercises that will decrease the chance of rib pain in the future.

The bottom line is that stuck or fixated ribs can be very painful, but can usually be easily helped with a Chiropractic adjustment. We’re open five days a week.  -Steven Prom, DC