Weekly Health Round Up

Welcome to True Health Family Chiropractic’s Weekly Health Roundup, where we’ll take a look at what’s making news in the world of health.

Research of the Week

This week we look at the research of Ria Chhabra, a middle school student who after hearing her parents argue about the value of organic foods, was inspired to create a science fair project to try to resolve the debate. The research tracked the effects of organic and conventional diets on the health of fruit flies. By nearly every measure, including fertility, stress resistance and longevity, flies that fed on organic bananas and potatoes fared better than those who dined on conventionally raised produce.

Interesting Articles

Yahoo News has a very cool article that shows how chiropractic care can benefit more than just us humans. It tells the story of Dr. Gene Giggleman, a veterinarian who once thought chiropractors were quacks. Since then, he says he’s straightened out thousands of dogs and cats, not to mention the occasional snake, hamster, gerbil and guinea pig. The vets say any human or animal with a spine-related problem can benefit from an “adjustment.” I agree.

Food for Thought

From food containers and utensils to water bottles, plastic has become a permanent fixture in our everyday lives – but it’s one that comes with serious consequences. All of these plastic chemicals are now finding their way into your body and the environment, where they are accumulating over time. Dr. Mercola offers a guide on how to recognize the plastics that are hazardous to you as well as offering tips on how to cut down on your plastic use.

Blog Posts Worth Reading

From Mashable comes 10 Touching Acts of Kindness at the Boston Marathon. It’s great to see firsthand accounts of people who stepped up to help in a moment of tragedy. As Patton Oswalt wrote after the bombing: “So when you spot violence, or bigotry, or intolerance or fear or just garden-variety misogyny, hatred or ignorance, just look it in the eye and think, ‘The good outnumber you, and we always will.'”

Time Capsule

A year ago on the True Health blog we looked at a the benefits of breastfeeding to your baby. This has been by far the most popular article on our blog (it’s been “pinned” on Pinterest over 5000 times(!), and has over 250 likes on facebook.) Needless to say, it struck a cord with moms – and for good reason. From the article: “Recently, published evidence-based studies have confirmed and quantitated the risks of not breastfeeding,” the authors stated. “Thus, infant feeding should not be considered as a lifestyle choice, but rather as a basic health issue. As such, the pediatrician’s role in advocating and supporting proper breastfeeding practices is essential and vital for the achievement of this preferred public health goal.”

Can Chiropractic Help with Breastfeeding?

chiropractic helps breastfeeding

We all know it is important for babies to get good nutrition so that they can be healthy and strong. However, some mothers find it really difficult to breastfeed for various reasons. It is so important that mothers understand that there are ways to improve the breastfeeding experience, and that chiropractic can offer a helping hand with many of these issues.

“It’s painful to breastfeed”

One of the reasons why it may be painful to breastfeed is that baby has a problem with TMJ function and/or the muscles around the jaw, including the tongue, which is causing baby to suck in a strange way that may cause pain for mom. An injury to the jaw can take place during the birthing process, especially with breech presentation, or a shoulder dystocia. Sometimes even a normal, incident-free birth can cause problems with the way the jaw moves and can create a lot of tension in the muscles in the area.

La Leche League identifies chiropractic as an effective option for babies damaged by vacuum or forceps, and for those whose muscles and bones are not working well together causing the baby to be in pain, or become a poor feeder. A poorly feeding baby does not drain the breast sufficiently, therefore the mom suffers the secondary impact of reduced milk production. Continue reading “Can Chiropractic Help with Breastfeeding?”