Remember that you head is the weight of a bowling ball and hanging it over a smart phone looking down will inevitable lead to tight muscles, joint dysfunctions and even headaches.

Enjoy the video and remember to keep you head up!

As a chiropractor there is not a day that goes by that I don’t here the words “I carry my stress right her,” as the patient rubs their shoulders.  Upon examination I typically notice tight and tender muscles throughout the back of the neck and shortened front muscles including neck and chest muscles.  There are also often joint dysfunctions in the upper back and neck.  These conditions can be treated with chiropractic care, but if we don’t stop what is causing these problems, the symptoms will come right back.

I recently came across this video that gives some simple tips that might help relieve some of that stress in your shoulders and elsewhere.

For more information about how we treat neck pain, check out our Neck Pain Page.  Working too long on a computer can also lead to headaches, if you are experiencing headache check out our Headaches Page.

http://amandasquickbite.blogspot.com/2012/07/day-trip-mama.html – for managing work travel by bringing your baby or going for as little time away as possible.

http://amandasquickbite.blogspot.com/2010/07/caregiver-tips-from-working-and.html – Caregiver tips from a working mom’s perspective to help continue breastfeeding

http://amandasquickbite.blogspot.com/2011/02/breastfeeding-moms-guide-to-returning.html – Guide for breastfeeding mother’s returning to work.

Is is because we don’t use enough hand sanitizer?  Nope, there is not enough hand sanitizer to fend off even the amount of bacterial that you would find around your home…not to mention most sicknesses are caused by viruses that are impervious to sanitizers.  Furthermore there is concern that overuse of sanitizers could be creating stronger drug resistant bacteria.

Defense wins the game!

Because there is no way that we could ever eliminate all the bacteria and viruses that we come in contact with throughout the day, our best protection against getting sick is a strong healthy immune system.   There are a number of variables that can negatively impact a persons immune system, ie stress, bad food, lack of sleep etc.  There are times that our immune system gets overrun and needs a boost.

Boost your immune system

To keep your immune system in tip top shape it is important to eat well, sleep well and eliminate stress, if  it were only that simple we would all be healthy and never get sick.   When find ourselves run down our immune system pays the price and allows us to become susceptible to foreign invaders like the flu.  Luckily there is a great supplement from Metagenics that is designed to give your immune system a kick start by waking up the cells in your body that are responsible for your defenses.

We now have Immucore by Metagenics!

Immucore by Metagenics

-Provides a 3-prong approach to immune boosting
-Ultrapotent Vitamin C – shown to increase uptake
-Proprietary blend of mushroom extracts
-Zinc and Vitamin D for long lasting support

For more info on the immune system check out our other post – “The Best Offense is a Great Defense”

Typically I will make a large batch of this waffles and then freeze them.  In the mornings I grab the waffles and pop’em in the toaster.

2 Organic Eggs
2 Cups Pamela’s Gluten-Free Flour
1 3/4 Cup Milk (I use Soy or Coconut Milk)
1/2 Cup Coconut Oil

This is the base of for the waffles and then I will mix in a number of different things depending on what I have around the house.  The following are a some of the things that I have used in the waffles:

-Ground Flax Seed
-Ground Chia Seed
-Canned Butternut Squash
-Canned Pumpkin
-Peanut Butter
-Almond Butter

I don’t have specific amounts for these ingredients and modify based on what’s around the house.  My kids are picky eaters and they love these waffles!

Enjoy and share any ingredients that you’ve tried!

Dr. B

Metagenics Vitamin D3 1000 120ct – $13.00  (3 left)

Metagenics Vitamin D3 5000 120ct – $16.00  (3 left)

These are some of the highest quality pharmaceutical grade  supplements available.

Stress  can run down your immune system leaving you sick, tired, and wondering where the joy of this season went. So I want to remind you of the things you should do to ensure  that you stay healthy through this holiday season.

As always, make sure to eat a whole foods diet with plenty of fresh vegetables, keep up with your exercise routine, and even squeeze in some relaxation time!  Plus, provide your body with the extra nourishment it needs with appropriate vitamins, minerals, and herbs.  Here are the things that I recommend to all of my patients:

• A multivitamin – the foundation for any health support regimen.
• Vitamin D3 – very important through the winter months.
• Buffered Vitamin C – well known for its support of your immune system.
• Fish Oil – an old time remedy for good health that still stands true.
• Probiotics – to support a healthy gut, a major barrier against pathogens and integral to the immune system.
• Beta Glucans – helps your white blood cells do their protective role.
• Cordyceps and mushroom extract – provide immune supporting properties.

For those who need extra support, also add:

• Zinc citrate – a powerful immune supporting nutrient.
• Natural anti-viral/anti-bacterial herbs – many herbs have broad-spectrum antimicrobial or immune-enhancing effects.

One way to figure out which piece of a vegetable makes it healthy would be to determine all the parts of a vegetable and give that to a group and subjects individually and see if they get healthier.  We know that vegetables contain vitamins like A,B,C etc, so we could put together three groups; each group would be told to keep living like they have always lived but  group 1 would be told to take a vitamin A pill, group 2 a vitamin B pill and group 3 a vitamin C pill.  In order to determine which part of the vegetable is the healthy part we would following these people over time  to see if they get more or less diseases, but since there are so many diseases we would have to pick a handful of diseases to track.

Let’s take the average American eating the standard American diet and have them take a few thousand IUs of vitamin A and see if miraculously there’s any impact on  morbidity.  If this person is deficient in Vitamin A we might see some improvement in health, but didn’t look for people who are Vitamin A deficient, but that was not what we were testing for.  Obviously we wouldn’t expect a small Vitamin pill to have a profound impact on our sedentary, overweight smoker.  When we read the headlines “Vitamin A doesn’t work!” we throw up our hands and curse that talk show host that told us to go out buy this supplement.

There is a reason that our vegetables contain a wide array of nutrients, because our bodies need all of the parts to be healthy.  Our aforementioned hypothetical study would be akin to studying how well your car can get you to work, but we only gave you the windshield.  We need every part of a car for it to function properly and our health is no different.

Are their people that can benefit from taking individual nutrients, of course, but we can’t give these nutrients to people without knowing if they truly need them.  The best source of these nutrients is through dietary intake, but due to our modern diet these nutrients are not consumed in the levels we need.  Vitamin D is a good example of a nutrient that many of us are deficient in.  Vitamin D is processed in the body from either food or from the sun.  Most of us don’t get enough from our diets and rarely do we get outside to get Vitamin D from the sun.  We are even seeing kids getting Rickets, which is a disease associated with low Vitamin D and thought to be all but eradicated in developed areas.   If I were to give Vitamin D to someone who lived in Southern California I might not see much benefit, but there might be a completely opposite effect on someone living in the Pacific Northwest.

The take home message for this post is to take studies as what they are, a small piece of the puzzle.  If one study comes out and says that Vitamin A has no effect on prostate cancer,  it isn’t time to throw away all your carrots.  The best source of healthy nutrients comes from a plant, it’s not made in one but there are most definitely situations where dietary supplementation can have a profound affect on vitality and wellness.   Also, don’t pick up a supplement that you co-worker has recommended because it has worked from them, they’re not you and that supplement may not be right for you even though you swear you have the same symptoms.  Research your symptoms, speak to someone who is knowledgeable in order to get on the path to wellness.

Join in the holiday fun and help us make this Christmas great for a child.

You can choose to make the holidays a time for reflection, appreciation and family gatherings or you can make it about stress, shopping and obligations.  I was at a seminar last weekend and the presenter put a quote up that is very fitting for this time of year; “Stress is like the wind, you can’t change it but you can adjust your sails.”  This holiday season try to remember that you are in charge of how you react to the stress that comes your way.  Of course there may be extenuating circumstances that will test you, but ultimately you are in charge of how you deal with them.

With the gatherings and celebrations typically comes excess eating.  Indulgence in moderation can be a healthy thing, but it can also cause stress and anxiety for people who are trying to remain healthy through the holidays.  The best way to deal with these holiday temptations is to plan. Look at what you have coming down the line, if you have three holiday parties this week make sure to be extra good about your diet on the days you’re not at the parties.  You will be able to enjoy the parties more without as much food guilt.

Lastly, take time to be thankful.  Over the last year I have started a thankful journal that I keep at my desk.  Each day I pull it out and write a handful of things that I am thankful about.  They can be as simple as “got a good nights sleep” to “the health of my family.”  There are those days that I come in the office and immediately get to work without taking the three minutes to write in my journal and those days I notice the difference.

To wrap things up; control your sails, plan your holiday eating and be thankful and you will have a healthier happier holiday.