Concussion Symptoms Left Unchecked Can Prove Deadly

Now more than ever, young athletes are pressured to perform.  This pressure comes from many sources, but as parents, it's important to monitor your athlete closely.  A recent article CBC news describes how a young athlete 'ignored concussion symptoms, days before her death.'

Many student athletes, like the one described in the article, are pressured to continue to play and have a strong drive to continue to play despite injuries and symptoms that suggest trouble.  It seems more now than ever before, parents have to be aware of any injuries sustained, and then watch for symptoms of possible head trauma.

If there was an injury and symptoms appear, an assessment is absolutely vital.  At Smith Family Chiropractic, we offer the most comprehensive and contemporary approach in diagnosing and managing concussions.  If you have a young athlete that you suspect has had a head trauma, do not delay in getting your child assessed.  Call us today.  (218)736-4113.

Be sure to read the whole story from CBC news at: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/rowan-stringer-ignored-concussion-symptoms-days-before-death-1.3077245

Children, Safety, and Head Injuries

Being a parent is tough!  It's hard to draw the line between over protective and negligent...especially as it relates to head injuries.  How much supervision do they need?  What should they be allowed to do?  How much protection is needed? What symptoms or behavior changes are concerning? All of these, are questions that keep many parents from sleeping and increase gray hairs at a rapid rate.

Sure, you want your child to be able to run and play and do all the things kids should do.  But, since children aren't aware of what to look for, or how to be careful is some instances, it is important as parents to provide that guidance.  And since it is impossible to watch them at all times, parents need to be attentive to a child's complaints and/or changes in behavior and provide some simple preventative measures.

One of the  most basic and convenient protective measures, is to provide bike helmets.  Now that summer is here, put their bike helmets on whenever they ride bikes, scooters, rollerblades, or skateboards.  This simple step can can make such a difference.  It is important to note that even a small bump on the head can result in brain stress.  Particularly, when a child is in the prime of their neurological development.

Another way to protect your child from long term effects of a head injury is to be aware of any change in their behavior or complaints.  Kids are very active an often have many hits to the head or bumps that they neglect to tell parents about.  Maybe it was a baseball to the head in the park, or a fall off the swing.  Often, these injuries don't get mentioned to parents but could possibly have caused some brain stress.

So as a parent, it is important to stay vigilant and watch for any changes such as: headaches, nausea, confusion, asking the same questions, blurred vision, reading changes, poor balance, shaky hands, or light sensitivity.  If you notice any of these, be sure to ask your child more questions about potential injuries they may have endured.  If you don't get the answers you need, don't hesitate to contact us!  We provide the most comprehensive and contemporary approach to brain injuries, and neurological child development.

Will your child 'grow out' of these developmental problems?

Sensorimotor problems include a wide variety of symptoms that relate to combining of functions from the sensory system and the motor system.
These symptoms are often noted as:

• Clumsiness
• Attention difficulties
• Reading problems
• Generalized anxiety
• Sensitivity for stress.   

Often times we overlook these symptoms in children and assume they will 'grow out' of them. However, new research published in Frontiers in Psychology finds that "motor problems do not disappear with age." (1)  As a result, "sensorimotor problems in early childhood should therefore be taken seriously and be the target of diagnostic examination and appropriate treatment." (1)

This study also concluded that the same treatment methods can be used for both children and adults with sensorimotor difficulties.  At Smith Family Chiropractic, our doctors utilize Functional Neurology to diagnose and treat both children and adults with difficulties and disorders that relate to the sensory and motor system.  If you notice these symptoms in your children, be sure to have their condition assessed as new research confirms it will not go away.  In addition, if left unchecked and untreated it can ultimately affect their learning and linger into adulthood.


Source: 
(1) Niklasson, Mats, et al.  "Adults with sensorimotor disorders: enhance physiological and psychological development following specific motor training." Frontiers in Psychology.  22 April 2015.

Orthopedic Rehab with Functional Neurology

This past weekend I had the privilege to study with fellow colleagues at The Carrick Insititute in Atlanta, GA.  This, hands on course was called Functional Neuro Orthopedic Rehab (FNOR).

This course focused on the upper quadrant, including the shoulder, arm, and wrist.  I learned a ton of great new information on the neurologic aspect of orthopedic problems including shoulder injuries such as, rotator cuff, frozen shoulder, impingement, adhesive capsulitis, tendinitis, bursitis, synovitis, carpal tunnel, tennis elbow and much more.  We learned so many great strategies to approach these ailments non-surgically by combining orthopedic care with functional neurology.  

If you are suffering with any of these types of ailments, whether they are acute or chronic, please contact our office today!

For more information on the course and material I studied last weekend, check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPaXfN0IS0I

Burn Fat Dr. Ala's Way

These fat burning strategies are not for the faint of heart, but they are for the person who wants results and wants optimum body composition.  This is about more than just losing weight, this is about losing FAT weight.  Too often people focus on just the number on the scale.  However, this number doesn't tell you if you've lost, fat, muscle/lean tissue, or water weight.  Often times when people try to lose weight on their own, they end up losing lean tissue and gaining or maintaining fat weight.  This is undesirable for many reasons.  Fat weight looks less desirable, it burns fewer calories, it doesn't support the skeletal system as well, and it stores toxins that can lead to disease.  Lean tissue on the other hand, looks better, feels better, burns far more calories, doesn't store toxins, and supports your frame adequately.

So, if you are ready to shed some FAT weight, consider what I recommend and how I live, in order to shed fat pounds and maintain the lean ones.  Then, call our office to have a BIA test run on you so you can see more than just the numbers on the scale...and actually see what you are losing!

Fat burning strategies:

1. Intermittent fasting.  

2. High intensity exercise.

Intermittent fasting is a great way for the body to clean out all the garbage that is stored.  The body goes through a process call apoptosis.  Apoptosis is the programmed cell death, whereby the body, when deprived of caloric intake, actually uses the stored energy as fuel.  These stores are often garbage that is no longer needed or is actually a threat to our health.  I practice intermittent fasting one day per week.  For example, on Monday, after my evening meal, I cease eating until Tuesday at my evening meal.  This requires lots of discipline, but the effects are profound.

High intensity exercise is not only extremely effective, it is also more efficient.  A recent article in Men's Fitness stated this phenomenon perfectly.  

      "The magic of high intensity interval training (or HIIT for short) lies its ability to keep you burning fat even after you leave the gym. In short, your body isn’t able to bring in enough oxygen during periods of hard work. Therefore, you accumulate a “debt” of oxygen that must be repaid post-workout in order to get back to normal. The result — your metabolism is revved for hours after you leave the gym. 1

Each of these strategies on their own are effective and beneficial, but if you want serious results, consider combining the two strategies like I do.  You can super charge your fat loss efforts by combining these strategies as they actually mimic each other.  Consider my favorite benefits of these strategies when used together.

"Both strategies keep insulin levels ridiculously low, which keeps your body in fat burning mode."2  Primarily, spikes in insulin levels are caused by food intake.  When fasting, you avoid these spikes.  High intensity exercise has been shown to lower insulin and keep insulin levels low for several hours post workout.

"Both strategies increase Growth Hormone production in a big way."2  By fasting, you increase GH production as the body's 'fight or flight' response is heightened.  High intensity exercise has been shown to increase GH production by as much as 450% if you exercise properly.

My favorite benefit of the combination of these strategies is the increase in brain power and focus.  "Adrenaline is released by the adrenal glands during high intensity exercise protocols, which is a precursor to helping you release and burn off more fat."2  Fasting also increases neurotransmitter products which is key in increasing focus and concentration.

Now that you have the keys to losing fat, I challenge you to test these strategies.  Then call us for a BIA test to watch your results.  With this test, we can measure your fat mass, muscle mass, and water distribution.  Watch your results and your body transform as you accept my fat-burning challenge.

1. Duvall, Jeremy. "8 Amazing Fat Burning Intervals." Men's Fitness.  http://www.mensfitness.com/training/cardio/8-amazing-fat-burning-intervals

2. Otake, Shin.  "MaxWorkouts." http://www.xtremefatlossdiet.com/special/fflwe-mg1.php

How Can Chiropractic Care Help With Work Injuries?

Our doctors were recently asked to share about chiropractic care and workplace safety at a local manufacturing facility.  The information shared was so great, we thought you'd like to be in on it too.

The most common workplace injuries we see are lifting injuries or repetitive motion injuries.  This often results in a sprain of the ligaments or a strain of the muscles, which results in soft tissue breakdown.  Chiropractic care is the only treatment option that carries little risk and is the most cost effective.

Before an injury occurs, we like to focus on prevention.  Chiropractic care, used as a preventative measure to help joints move more freely, is the best way to reduce your chance for injury.  You can think of your joints like a hinge.  If you use chiropractic care as a preventative measure, your joints will be like a well greased hinge.  It moves, opens, closes easily without much effort.  Without preventative care, the joint becomes like a rusty hinge which takes more force to open, close, and move.  If a joint becomes fixated, like a rusty hinge, it takes more muscle power, or force, to move, thus increasing your chance for injury.

There are some other preventative measures that you should also consider.  First, consider nutrition.  The best place to start is to reduce simple carbohydrates and sugars.  Next, increase your protein intake, particularly at breakfast.  Then, do not be afraid to add good fats.  And finally, hydrate!  A good rule of thumb with hydration is to take in half your body weight in ounces of water each day.  For example if you weigh 100 lbs your should drink at least 50 ounces of water daily.

Another excellent way to prevent injuries is to engage in some type of regular exercise.  If your workplace requires some type of physical labor, starting your work day with a simple warm up can greatly reduce your risk for injury.  By doing some simple exercises such as jumping jacks, running in place, and the like, plus adding some stretching, you increase blood flow to your tissues which prepares your body for work and greatly reduces your risk for injury.

If an injury does occur, there are a few treatment options you can consider.  First, physical therapy can be offered.  This treatment can be viewed as primarily a muscle therapy.  They may offer treatment and modalities that focus on the muscle groups.  Second, traditional medical care can be considered.  In a soft tissue injury, their primary goal is to reduce pain, inflammation, and muscle spasms thru medication.  The goal is to cover or mask the pain long enough for the patient to rest to allow healing.

At our office we offer a multi-faceted approach to injury care.  We focus on the the muscle and the joint health.  We offer modailities such as Ultrasound and Electrical Muscle Stimulation to reduce inflammation and muscle spasms.  Spinal manipulations are utilized to correct and repair the joint.  We also utilize Acupuncture for more chronic conditions.  Acupuncture causes fresh tissue injury, that will recreate the healing response.  Our doctors are also trained as functional neurologists which allows them to offer a more well rounded and whole system approach.  This approach requires them to look at all systems of the body to determine the precise cause of the pain, and then offers a course of care to correct that problem.

In conclusion, we are thrilled to help our patients improve their health and prevent injuries!  However, if you have endured an injury we would enjoy helping you recover and then work on prevention of future injuries!

Train Your Brain To Improve Your Athletic Performance

You are likely aware that we help athletes that have suffered concussions and other orthopedic types of injuries.

 But, did you know that we can help athletes optimize their performance?

Using our state of the art diagnostic equipment we can measure brain health and detect deficiencies.  Then we can offer a rehab program that will repair those deficiencies in the brain.  So, if you have not been injured and want to enhance your performance as an athlete, whether professional, or "run of the mill", you need to experience the most innovative way to detect your own brain capacity, integrity and endurance.   You will leave intrigued, but hopeful of improving your brain health!

If you'd like to begin this process, visit us on June 13th for a complimentary screening using our specialized equipment.  Then enjoy a brief assessment of your status along with a recommendation for future care to improve your performance.  Call our office for more details on this complimentary screening event! (218) 736-4113.