30 years and more to go....
Thirty years and counting
As we battle into our fifth month of Covid life, we think the worse thing is not knowing when or even if this will all end. Phrases like 'this is the new norm' get banded about and 'we will never be free from this virus until a vaccine is found', depicts a bleak picture but we need to try and be strong and make the best of every day.
Many of us are working harder than ever, juggling work deadlines with family life, worried about our children's mental health and education, and many have lost the confidence to venture out to do the most routine of things like going shopping or spending time with family and friends.
All of these issues affected us not only from a mental perspective but from a physical one. In clinic we see home working from laptops compromising postural positions causing a variety of not only lower back and pelvic issues but neck and shoulder ones too.
The initial enthusiasm of keeping moving and being limited to one hour of outdoor exercise a day dwindled away many weeks ago, for which we can easily blame the typical erratic British weather. With this, we are seeing many of our older generation losing muscle tone, strength, mobility, stability and consequently confidence.
The very slow opening of gyms and sports facilities to resume our exercise routines and classes is not quite the same as before with a degree of apprehension by instructors and participants alike.
We hope the articles in the newsletter this month will give you some helpful advice and guidance to keep going and be kind to your body.
August marks the easing pf restrictions for our older generation and those that have found it necessary to keep shielding- we welcome you back to a clinic that will continue to provide you with a safe environment to attend. We assure you that all measures will stay in place for the foreseeable future. There will be a slight shortening of some appointment times to increase availability as we have been very busy throughout but we still have the opportunity to provide 'safer times' when we can continue to shield you minimising contact with other patients. Please ask reception about these and book through them or your chiropractor.
Many of you have embraced the return of Ruth, Jenny and Anne and they are getting nicely booked up. Their patients will follow the same routine as the chiropractic patients by way of wearing gowns, gloves and masks before entering the treatment rooms.
We are now having to charge £2 for facemasks due to their wide mandatory use. We cannot sustain the cost of providing these long term and we would like to limit waste too, so please bring your own if you have them.
We wanted to mark the occasion of Alex having been in practice 30 years last month, so a socially distancing delicious Indian takeaway, thanks to Shama, was enjoyed in the car park, nicely concluded with the biggest and most spectacular carrot cake made by Troy.
September is the deadline for submission of our triannual PPQM (Patient participation quality mark) which we have been awarded for the last 12 consecutive years by the Royal College of Chiropractors. One of its components is to get feedback from patients about certain aspects of the service the clinic provides so that we can continue to make improvements and ensure we deliver the highest possible service to you. Questionnaires will be distributed throughout August in clinic and we would value a few minutes of your time to complete them, please. Thank you in advance.
Create A Spine-Friendly Environment
As a society we tend to spend many hours of our day sitting, whether it’s for work, study or just having a relaxed day on the couch. According to the NHS, brits spend an average of 9 hours a day sitting. There is ever-developing proof that a sedentary life with prolonged sitting is damaging the spine and overall mobility. However, what do you do if sitting is a necessity of your day-to-day life and you do not want to suffer from daily back or neck pain? Here are a few tips to improve your workspace and make it spine-friendly.
Be choosey with your chair
If you need to spend your day sitting, you need a chair that is properly positioned for your spine. The chair should comfortably hug the spine and be flexible, with adjustable height and arm support.
While having the right chair is essential in preventing spine strain, regular breaks to extend your legs and roll out your neck are essential. Get up every hour for a glass of water and while you hydrate, do some standing body stretches.
Stuck staring at a screen?
Is your neck hurting while you read this? This might be because your screen is not at your eye level. The correct placement of your work screen should be just below or at eye level. This will ensure that your shoulders remain relaxed, your neck is elongated and your head isn’t pulling any neck muscles. Invest in a screen stand for your workspace or make one yourself just by stacking a few books and position the top of the screen at eye level.
The dutiful desk
We are used to sitting while working, from studying in school to working at a desk as an adult. There is now a new way of approaching deskwork, with standing or adjustable desks. Standing work areas enable us to change our position throughout the day while distributing the weight and pressure on our spine, pelvis, neck and legs.
Standing desks are now widely available and they provide one of the best solutions for maintaining correct posture and reducing back injuries.
Take Care While doing D.I.Y
It is estimated that there are approximately 200,000 D.I.Y accidents each year in the UK.
Although being active around the home can help your overall fitness levels it is always important to ensure you are not over stretching and possibly causing yourself injury.
DIY accidents in the home can cause accidents that can often be easily avoided.
How to prepare when doing DIY:
- Make sure you are wearing comfortable loose fitting clothes that won’t restrict your movement
- Do some basic stretches before you start to loosen up your muscles to ensure that you don’t sprain yourself while working
- Set yourself an achievable goal
Make sure you take plenty of breaks to relax, stretch and keep hydrated. Vary your activity and try to spend no more than 20-30 minutes on any one thing.
Make sure you’re not twisting yourself:
- This can place excess pressure on your spine and back muscles which could lead to an injury
- If you’re painting a wall, keep moving the ladder rather than stretching across
Always make sure you’re directly facing the area in question – If you are painting the ceiling use a paint pad or roller with an extended handle and hold it at chest height
Lifting
D.I.Y and home improvements often require a lot of heavy lifting and bending
- Work out how much you can manage and don’t go beyond your limit
- If you are lifting or carrying a heavy load, make sure your legs are hip width apart and your knees are bent.
- Ensure that both your head and shoulders are directly above your waist and keep whatever you’re carrying as close to you as possible
- Ensure that both your head and shoulders are directly above your waist and keep whatever you’re carrying as close to you as possible
- Don’t lift with your arms straight out, keep your elbows bent and to your side to minimise the stress on your lower back
- Avoid bending from the wait as this could cause a risk of painful strains and injuries to the lower back, instead crouch down and bend from the knees
Summer Time Sports
Summer time has arrived and with it the added need for us to take extra care of our necks, backs and spines to avoid pain and injury…
If the arrival of sunshine has caused you to pack away your winter jumpers and, instead, pull out your racket, shin pads or helmet for a bout of summer activities, remember to take note of these simple steps to ensure you steer clear of any unwanted pain and discomfort.
RUNNERS can avoid injury by regular stretching of the tendons and wearing good shoes with shock-absorbing features.
RACKET-SPORTS PLAYERS should be wary of playing through the pain of Tennis Elbow. Tennis Elbow is in fact an overuse injury, caused by repetitive movements at the wrist forcing the thumb outwards and the palm upwards. Continuing to play will only exacerbate the problem.
GOLFERS are particularly prone to lower back injuries. Graphite clubs and soft spiked shoes will help absorb the shock which can bring on back injury. Your chiropractor can suggest appropriate warm-ups and exercises, and help you work on an alternative swing.
GARDENERS commonly suffer from aches and pains, but they can avoid lower back trouble by kneeling on one leg rather than bending from the hips, keeping the back hollow whilst digging, and varying tasks throughout the day to avoid repetition injury.
DIY, like gardening, is often far-removed from everyday activities. When the sun is shining many will want to get out in the garden and get on with the long list of DIY jobs that have piled up over the winter months. Enthusiasts often injure their back by unhabitual exertion, so when lifting, take the weight on bent legs, keeping the back straight.
Nourish Your Body
It is no secret that a healthy, balanced diet has endless benefits for our health. Knowing in more detail about the amount of vitamins and minerals we need in our diets will only enhance those benefits and decrease out chances of developing deficiencies later on in life. Here is a easy and healthy diet plan for you to follow which explains which vitamins and minerals you need and how best to obtain them; but first, let’s start with some of the foods you should be avoiding:
- High saturated/animal fats
- Refined foods
- White flour
- White sugar
- Carbonated drinks
All of these foods adversely effect the body’s use of minerals and vitamins so be sure to limit these foods from your diet; or if you can, eliminate them completely. Below are some of the vitamins and minerals that are essential for keeping your body, muscles and joints healthy:
Vitamin C
Collagen is extremely important in maintaining the structure of bones, cartilage, muscles and blood vessels and in order to produce strong efficient collagen, you require vitamin C. Vitamin C can be found in citrus fruits, tomatoes, potatoes, green leafy vegetables and cauliflower.
Antioxidants
Vitamin C is also a strong antioxidant and it capable of regenerating other antioxidants. Antioxidants swoop up free radicals, which is useful in preventing damage to joint surfaces and muscle cell regeneration. These antioxidants are present in fruits and vegetables, them most in the brightly coloured ones!
Magnesium
Healthy magnesium levels are important because it contributes to efficient muscle contractions and the conduction of nerve impulses. Low magnesium levels can actually affect the body’s calcium levels, therefore putting bone health at risk. Magnesium can be acquired from green leafy vegetables, unrefined grains and nuts.
Essential Fats
Essential fatty acids reduce the degenerative changes in tissues and cells and help guard against some cancers. These are highly unsaturated fatty acids. They can be found in foods such as fish, nuts and avocados.
We treat all conditions that affect any muscle or joint in your body, from your head to your little toe! One of the most common complaints that we treat is back pain and Chiropractic is recommended by the government authority, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) for acute and chronic back pain. Some of the other conditions that we treat are neck and headache, shoulder pain, leg and hip pain, knee and foot pain, sciatica and arthritis. Our registered Chiropractors all have at least five years of training. Treatment costs can be covered through most health insurers. If you are in any doubt, we are always very happy to talk with you on the phone to see if your condition will respond well to Chiropractic treatment. Call the clinic now to arrange an appointment time that works for you. 0115 9225085 If you would like to opt-out of receiving these newsletters please follow the unsubscribe link below, email alex@beestonchiropractic.co.uk or let us know at your next appointment.
