The past 12 months have been very good for the Chiropractic profession in terms of data supporting the efficacy of chiropractic care:
The Wellmark pilot study that suggests chiropractic reduces both costs and need for surgery";
The Milliman USA analysisthat concludes, "[S]pinal patients who seek chiropractic coverage have materially lower health care costs than those who do not";
The Consumer Reports reader survey that found "hands-on" therapies, led by chiropractic care, were the top-rated treatments for back pain sufferers, with chiropractic receiving the highest satisfaction-with-care ratings (significantly higher than MDs);
The "Mercer Report" that suggests chiropractic compares favorably to most therapies covered by health benefit plans and is "likely to achieve equal or better health outcomes";
The final report on the Medicare demonstration project, which notes that 87 percent of patients surveyed gave their DC a satisfaction score of 8 or higher and 56 percent gave a perfect 10.5
A survey analysis published in the June 2010 issue of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine revealed that 60 percent of U.S. adults utilizing CAM therapies for back pain reported "a great deal" of benefit. Chiropractic was used most frequently (74 percent of respondents) and had the highest success rate (66 percent reporting significant benefit).
We sponsored a video of the Twilight Criterium this year, have a look:
Beginning Wednesday, August 18th, we will be offering weekly strength training classes to patients, coached cyclists and personal training clients. These will be small group classes (2-6 participants) and will focus on improving your strength, flexibility and endurance. We will use kettlebells, medicine balls, body weight exercises and functional drills.
If you have not attended a class previously, you are required to do 1-2 individual sessions prior to the first class to learn the program.
Classes will be taught by Certified Coach, Quinn Keogh.
Class will begin at 6:00pm, please arrive 5-10 minutes early to sign-in and change. Wear athletic clothing, bring a sweat towel.
Cost will be:
$20 / mo. for coached athletes
$30 / mo. for patients and personal training clients
$15 / session for drop ins.
Class time: WEDNESDAY @ 6PM.
Address: 1102 NW 10th Ave, Portland, OR
I've heard two particularly interesting stories on OPB in the last two days. Yesterday, there was a story about a 95-year old post office worker who never took a sick day in 37 years, accruing nearly 2-years' worth of sick time. He attributed his longevity to "a healthy diet of watermelon, alkaline water and an onion sandwich with mayo every day." (story here).
Then today, I heard another good story on Science Friday about longevity – they did a study, interviewing and doing genetic testing on a pool of centenarians. They identified a number of genes that many of the population pool had in common. However, not all of the people that were over 100 years old had these genes. This somewhat confounded the results, as other factors besides genes are clearly at play (such as the epigenome).
There have been other interesting studies on longevity over the years, with the most frequent result I can remember is that slightly under-eating is associated with improving longevity. The presumed mechanism was more frequent cell turnover, which left fewer DNA transcription errors (cancer being one result of such errors).
A common theme from many of these research studies and anecdotal stories like our postal worker noted above is that people seem to have a discipline about doing things a certain way, frequently noting habits such as exercise, nutrition, spirituality, etc as positive influences. This agrees with both common knowledge and the movement in modern medicine to move towards prevention rather than waiting until somebody is sick to maintain health.
Chiropractic is a wonderful example of a system whose goal is to assist the body in functioning optimally by restoring natural motion and teaching exercise, nutrition and wellness habits to improve your health and quality of life. Good health is not something that just "happens" it is a series of choices that you make every day – including the choice to work with a healthcare provider that can help you back on the path to healthy habits, reducing pain, and improving function. The onion sandwiches and watermelon might not work for everybody, but Chiropractic certainly can!
I visited Circle Studio a few weeks back to learn about their instructors and the type of sessions that they do with their clients – I was hoping to set up an appointment to find out more about what makes their studio and staff unique, so that I would have another good option for my patients to use in maintaining their health.
Since then I have had some great conversations with Kari and her staff, and learned a lot about their approach to working with their clients. I was very impressed, and I have started working with the staff there to see what we can do to unwind some of my hip and back tightness that has built up after so many years of cycling and running.
Yesterday was my first session. As with all new things there is a bit of frustration as your body moves one way when you want it to move another…but as it starts to sink in you can feel your body lengthening and opening up the joints, which feels great. It was challenging, and I felt great after the session.
Many people have not heard of Gyrotonic – there are some reasonably good videos on YouTube that show a bit about it, and I am hoping to do one of my own in a future Blog post. For now I will just say that it really helps to get your spine and hips moving through their full range, improving the health of your joints.
I have already sent over a few patients to work at the studio, and they have had great things to say about the classes: feeling better throughout the day, better awareness of their body moving, improved posture.
So I am very happy that I stopped by the studio – another wonderful group of health-consious people to work with who have dedicated their professional careers to helping others improve their movement and life. And I'm also improving my own health in the process.
Yours in Health,
Dr. Seth Hosmer
I've been reading several studies recently about pain and the use of over the counter (OTC) non-steroidal anti inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). The latest one that I've come across can be found here. If you are interested in more reading, surf on over to Google Scholar and do a search using terms like NSAIDS and high blood pressure or stroke.
Current research shows an association between even occasional use of NSAIDs and other health problems such as high blood pressure and stroke, but it is not clear at this time whether it is due to the medications themselves, or the ongoing underlying conditions that are leading to the person using the drugs in the first place.
It is clear, however, that treating the root cause of the problem rather than medicating away the symptoms will make the condition vs. side effect question irrelevant – just fix the problem!
Chiropractic treatment is a safe and effective treatment for a wide variety of aches and pains. Call our office at 503.227.2279 for a consultation with Dr. Hosmer to discuss your healthcare concerns.
Vitamin D plays a critical role in the body, and most people do not synthesize enough Vitamin D on their own. Vitamin D supplementation is a safe and effective way to increase your circulating Vitamin D, and offers a wide range of health benefits. While prior recommendations for Vitamin D – and other vitamins and minerals – were based on the level required to prevent disease, modern recommendations instead focus on levels required for optimal health. The levels required for optimal health may be substantially above the levels required to prevent disease.
Recent research has focused on the role of Vitamin D in a wide range of health concerns. Classically Vitamin D is associated with calcium absorption and storage in the skeletal system, a concern for everybody. Recent research has also focused on immune system function, musculoskeletal pain, cancer, amongst others.
The next question: am I deficient? If you are like millions of people in America, the answer is "probably" but the only way to know for sure is to have your serum Vitamin D levels checked with a lab test. This test can be ordered by your healthcare provider, and provides a baseline measurement so that your provider will know if you need a supplement. If supplementation is required, your provider may order another test after a period of weeks to determine progress and future supplementation recommendations.
At Hosmer Chiropractic Health, we can help you get your circulating Vitamin D levels checked, and also recommend a supplementation program for you as necessary.
Yours in Health,
Dr. Seth Hosmer
Since moving to the Pearl District, we've been gradually getting out and meeting our neighbors. We are lucky to have Barre3 right across the street from us, and owners Chris and Sadie Lincoln have graciously agreed to help me learn about the classes at Barre3. What better way to learn than to jump in and try a class, right? I know, I know – Men don't go to Barre3. And yes, I was the only guy there yesterday at my first class. But I got a month-long unlimited membership, so I'm going to be going to some classes and posting impressions along the way.
So some readers are probably saying, "see, guys can go to Barre3" and others are saying, "uh….."
But you should reserve your judgement and simply try some classes if you are looking for something different than the same old same old, and are interested in a workout that helps build integrated functional strength and adds some flexibility and balance work as well. We started out with some warm ups, which involved some coordination that everybody else seemed to have. I unwisely chose a spot relatively close to the mirror, which means that as I was going through the warm up it was painfully obvious that I was a first timer. Other class participants pretended not to notice that I was moving one way when they were all going the other.
We went through a 60 min routine total. It was fun, challenging, and definitely different than any other classes I've done. It had some elements of other things that I've tried (yoga, Pilates, functional training) but at a new pace and flow. It also helped me recognize some imbalances that I have in my core. This was one of my main motivations in trying out the class – learn something new, and hopefully meet professionals with a complimentary approach to improving health. I am also interested in having options for my patients once they are finished with their active treatment plan at my clinic – an important part of staying healthy is keeping the body strong and limber, an I think that these classes are excellent for people who enjoy this type of a workout. Based on class turnout – I think we had a full house – others feel the same way.
As always, questions and comments welcome
We are offering Massage Therapy appointments on both Saturday and Sunday by appointment. Treat yourself to a relaxing massage this weekend, call 503.227.2279 to set up your appointment. More about our massage therapy services here.
if this is how you feel, you need our healing hands
