Back Clinic For Seniors. Older individuals do not have to learn how to live with pain! Chiropractic care for the elderly can help, as it is one of the most effective and safest forms of health care to treat pain-related conditions. The elder we live, the more issues we have with our muscles and joints. Dr. Jimenez discusses the aging process and how it affects those in their prime of life.
Dr. Jimenez offers a range of treatment options. From deep tissue massage, manual therapy, and spinal manipulation. Seniors experiencing problems and or pain can benefit from chiropractic treatment. Chiropractic treatment has been shown to have multiple benefits for the elderly. Increased mobility, decreased risk of falls, and other injuries. And routine chiropractic treatment can help improve overall health and well-being and give them more sense of independence in their lives.
Tremors are extremely rare, but they can result from spinal compression and not necessarily a brain condition like Parkinson’s disease. Tremors are abnormal, involuntary body movements with various causes, most of which are connected to the brain and not the spine. A study reports that more than 75% of individuals with Parkinson’s experienced a resting tremor, and about 60% experience tremors while moving. Sometimes the spine is the contributor caused by compression of the spinal cord.
Spinal Compression Study
A 90-year-old man was hospitalized after having tremors, with Parkinson’s being the initial diagnosis. The tremors progressed to the point where the man could not feed himself or walk without support. The case became the focus of a medical report published by physicians in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Division of the Spine, Singapore Tan Tock Seng Hospital. Along with the tremors, symptoms progressed to:
Difficulty with fine motor skills like buttoning a shirt.
However, it was ruled out because the patient was not presenting with other Parkinson’s symptoms.
For individuals with cervical spondylotic myelopathy tremors, surgery can be used to help the condition. However, with cervical myelopathy, there is often some permanent damage. Individuals have shown that post-surgery and decompression, symptoms still present, maybe not as much, but there will be a need for a symptom management plan.
Prevention
The best way to prevent tremors associated with cervical spondylotic myelopathy is to minimize the strain on the spine that can lead to herniated discs and/or other spinal injuries. The discs in the spine degenerate, dry out and start cracking with age, increasing the risk of rupture. If a tremor develops, contact a doctor, spine specialist, or chiropractor to help diagnose the condition. These doctors can perform physical and neurological tests to determine the cause and treatment options.
Body Composition
Aging Health
Steady weight gain throughout life can lead to adult-onset diabetes. This is partly caused by having more body fat and progressive muscle loss. Loss of skeletal muscle mass is linked to insulin resistance that involves:
The less muscle is available, the less insulin sensitive the body becomes.
As insulin sensitivity decreases, the body becomes more resistant, increasing risk factors for type II diabetes.
This can lead to osteoporosis, where the old bone is reabsorbed more and less new bone is created.
Both men and women can experience decreased muscle mass that can lead to:
Thinner bones
Weaker bones
Increased risk of osteoporosis and severe injury from falls.
To help prevent these issues, it is recommended to:
It is recommended to space out protein intake across meals rather than consuming it all at once. This helps to ensure the proper amount is acquired.
Monitoring body composition regularly can help minimize muscle mass loss and fat mass gain as the body ages.
A regular strength training routine will help strengthen bones muscles and maintain optimal circulation.
References
Heusinkveld, Lauren E et al. “Impact of Tremor on Patients With Early Stage Parkinson’s Disease.” Frontiers in neurology vol. 9 628. 3 Aug. 2018, doi:10.3389/fneur.2018.00628
Jancso, Z et al. “Differences in weight gain in hypertensive and diabetic elderly patients primary care study.” The Journal of nutrition, health & aging vol. 16,6 (2012): 592-6. doi:10.1007/s12603-011-0360-6
Srikanthan, Preethi, and Arun S Karlamangla. “Relative muscle mass is inversely associated with insulin resistance and prediabetes. Findings from the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.” The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism vol. 96,9 (2011): 2898-903. doi:10.1210/jc.2011-0435
Tapia Perez, Jorge Humberto et al. “Treatment of Spinal Myoclonus Due to Degenerative Compression Myelopathy with Cervical Spinal Cord Stimulation: A Report of 2 Cases.” World neurosurgery vol. 136 (2020): 44-48. doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2019.12.170
Sedentary lifestyle prevention through chiropractic is highly recommended for seniors. With advanced age, the body’s muscles, bones, and spinal system begin to wear down and need to be maintained to retain their mobility and flexibility. Regular chiropractic adjustments are recommended as part of an active/fitness lifestyle for seniors and can help older individuals maintain optimal health.
Sedentary Lifestyle Prevention
Many seniors tend to reduce physical activity after reaching retirement age. Many individuals just want to kick back and relax. However, living too laid-back can impact overall health. A lack of exercise and physical activity can cause the muscles, cardiovascular system, and skeletal system to prematurely wear out. Living an active lifestyle will keep individuals at their best when retiring and maintain a healthy quality of life.
Pain Management
Chiropractic can help individuals realize their full potential. The chiropractic approach to achieving top health means treating the source of symptoms, and not just the symptoms. This helps maintain a high quality of life. Chiropractic sedentary prevention includes:
Adjustments
Adjustments to the body are the core of chiropractic. Adjustments are utilized to realign the spine that helps treat various nervous system-related conditions. These include subluxations, slipped discs, sciatica, nerve damage, and more. Adjustments also increase the immune system’s functionality. This is extremely beneficial for older individuals.
Nutritional Recommendations
Older individuals can benefit from a customized nutrition plan to help with any deficits in their diets. Often older individuals need more calcium to help fortify bone health. Chiropractors and health coaches can provide individuals with nutritional information needed to live a healthy life.
Exercise Program
An active lifestyle is an essential component of staying healthy. Chiropractors can provide individuals with specialized exercises that take into account their specific and specialized needs.
Physical Therapy
Physical therapy is another component of chiropractic, as it helps enhance the adjustments.
Health Coaching
Health coaching can provide individuals with the tools necessary to take charge of their health. Counseling involves exercise recommendations, nutritional advice, healthy habits development, and more depending on the individual’s abilities.
Stay Moving
A sedentary lifestyle places an older individual’s spine in a compromised position. Older individuals have an increased risk of developing detrimental spinal conditions. Overexertion happens more easily in weakened bodies. The solution is to maintain physical activity with proper support. Chiropractic is designed to improve the whole-body. If you�re looking for sedentary prevention and the latest care approaches, contact us, we’re ready to help!
Chiropractic Shoulder Pain Treatment
Dr. Alex Jimenez�s Blog Post Disclaimer
The scope of our information is limited to chiropractic, musculoskeletal, physical medicines, wellness, and sensitive health issues and/or functional medicine articles, topics, and discussions. We use functional health & wellness protocols to treat and support care for injuries or disorders of the musculoskeletal system. Our posts, topics, subjects, and insights cover clinical matters, issues, and topics that relate and support directly or indirectly our clinical scope of practice.*
Our office has made a reasonable attempt to provide supportive citations and has identified the relevant research study or studies supporting our posts. We also make copies of supporting research studies available to the board and or the public upon request. We understand that we cover matters that require an additional explanation as to how it may assist in a particular care plan or treatment protocol; therefore, to further discuss the subject matter above, please feel free to ask Dr. Alex Jimenez or contact us at 915-850-0900. The provider(s) Licensed in Texas& New Mexico*
References
Hawk, Cheryl et al. �Best Practices for Chiropractic Care for Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Consensus Update.��Journal of manipulative and physiological therapeutics�vol. 40,4 (2017): 217-229. doi:10.1016/j.jmpt.2017.02.001
Back soreness, pain, and discomfort can make walking even moving a challenge, but through assistive devices, you can keep moving. If a spinal condition affects your ability to walk or if you have recently undergone surgery, a cane or walker can help maintain your independence.
Canes and walkers are designed in a simple fashion, but come with amazing benefits: They improve:
Balance
Prevent falls
Takes stress/pressure off the spine
There are all kinds and styles of assistive walking devices. Here are a few tips to help you select the best cane or walker.
Which To Get Cane or Walker
There are options when it comes to choosing but with so many options knowing which is the best for your condition can be challenging.
Talk with your health provider, which could be a primary physician, nurse, chiropractor, physical therapist, or other health care professionals familiar with your medical history and discuss which device would suit your condition and lifestyle the best.
Canes and walkers each have their pros and cons depending on the condition/s. Some considerations to think about when choosing between a cane and a walker:
What is the purpose of the device?
Canes are ideal for problems that occur on one side of the body like sciatica, which often affects one leg, and walkers are ideal for pain that occurs on both sides like weakness in both of the legs.
Which should I get to support my weight?
Canes can support up to 25 percent of your weight, and walkers can support up to 50 percent.
What is the amount of stability you need in the device?
Walkers have the most stability, but there are four-point canes that can also support proper balance and spine safety.
What amount of flexibility do you need in the device?
If you want perhaps the flexibility to go up and downstairs�a cane may be a better choice, as walkers should not be used on stairs.��
Considerations and Questions
Once you�ve decided on what type, then it’s time to decide which type to buy and make sure it is the correct model and style for you. A health care provider can help you find the right model that suits your needs, fits correctly and will educate and show you how to properly use it. Considerations to think about when buying a cane or walker.
Canes
Canes fall into three categories:
Standard: The simplest type of cane and comes with a comfortable T-shaped handle. This helps with balance, but these aren’t able to bear as much weight.
The Offset: A cane that can support more weight than a standard model comes with a flat grip for those with a weak grip and an upper shaft that can bend outward.
Multi-legged: Multiple-legged canes offer maximum stability, perfect for preventing slips, and falls. The only issue could be is that because of the multiple legs means it can be a little awkward at first. But once you get the hang of it
Questions for a Cane
What grip should I go with?
There�s no right or wrong grip. This all comes down to you and what feels the most comfortable as you move around. But, larger grips work better for those with joint problems, and the foam grip style or a type of memory foam that shapes to your hand seems to be the current trend.
What if the grip I chose is not the correct one?
If numbness, tingling, or pain begins to present in your hand/s when using the device or after, consult your doctor, chiropractor or physical therapist.
Where are Canes available?
Canes can be purchased at medical supply stores and pharmacies. But they can also be purchased online, which is extremely helpful if the model you want is not available at the store.
Where to learn how to properly use the cane?
Talk to your chiropractor, physical therapist or doctor who can give you tips and guidelines on how to use the device. They will also help make sure that the cane fits correctly.
Working with a health care professional to achieve the right fit can be highly beneficial. If the grip does not feel right, it’s not comfortable, or if it’s too long/short, the cane ends up doing more harm than good. A therapist/chiropractor will make sure everything is right.
Walkers
Walkers fall into three models:
Standard: These walkers have four legs with rubber ends and provide quality support and stability. But, because there are no wheels it needs to be picked up to move around.
Front-wheel walker: This type has two wheels in the front and two solid legs in the rear. This type does not need to be picked up and requires less effort.
Four-wheeled walkers: These move the easiest, but they can be difficult to get used to placing all your weight because of the easy rolling. Although they do have breaks and wheel adjustments to control the wheel speed, it can take some getting used to and training. Some models come with a seat.
Questions for a Walker
What grip should I go with?
Walker grips are usually made of hard plastic, non-slip rubber, or flexible memory foam. Again it�s all up to you to decide which is the most comfortable.
Preparing the home for a walker
Walkers can get snagged on rugs or bump into the furniture so it�s a good idea to set up your home and move the furniture/objects to help accommodate your movement.
Where can I purchase a walker?
Walkers are available at medical supply stores and pharmacies. They can also be purchased online.
How can I learn how to properly use my walker?
Using a walker can be a little uncomfortable at first. Movements that were easy, like sitting to standing might need to take some time to get the feel of it. But with time and practice, it will become second nature. Talk to your doctor or chiropractor/physical therapist about the right way to use your walker. They can help you develop a strategy and technique to improve mobility.
Spine Pain Won’t Slow You Down
Mobility assistive devices, like canes, and walkers can help you move around after an accident, spine surgery, or a chronic spine condition and allow you to maintain your freedom.
Our uplifting southwest community surrounded by its infinite beauty is a fantastic place to live and enjoy our families; it is, therefore, our mission to help each of our patients to live,�to�love,�to�matter�and�to�thrive�pain-free�in this beautiful special place.
Shoulder Pain Treatment El Paso, TX Chiropractor
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As you move into your senior years, you may expect some discomfort and loss of mobility. Aging is hard on the body. But it is important to understand that there are things you can do to feel better. Regular exercise, a healthy diet, and�chiropractic care�can all make your senior years active and thriving.
As parents and grandparents, we first need to think about the activities that we will be doing throughout the day and consider how to protect ourselves and loved ones from falls and falling injury/s.
Around the House
Most accidents indeed happen at the house. Add that to the increasing number of people, both young and elder, that work from home. Consider the following tips.
Home
If possible, hire a professional to clean the gutters or get one of those gutter washers that you can use from the ground. Falls from the roof results in multiple injuries, and some are very serious.
Would you please not stand on a chair to change lights or clean those out-of-reach areas? Always use a reliable heavy-duty step ladder with anti-slip steps and handrails. Doctors from emergency rooms report that falls from chairs are a common case they treat.
Proper Lighting
Having the right lighting throughout the house is the best defense against tripping and falling. The stairways, hallways, and entrances are primary areas that should be adequately lit to see everything around you. The light switches should be easy to find and activate. Inexpensive nightlights should be placed anywhere you go at night, like the kitchen or bathroom. A small flashlight should also be kept nearby, possibly a keychain or next to the bed in case of an emergency or if the power goes out.
Kitchen
Falling on wood or tile kitchen floors can have a serious impact on the body. A wet slippery floor can be another cause for a fall, so clean up spills or fix a dripping refrigerator immediately. Using a no-slip floor wax rather than conventional floor wax will reduce accident probability. Keep a secondary heavy-duty step ladder with wide anti-slip steps and handrails for the kitchen.
Bathroom
The bathroom has the potential to be one of the most dangerous rooms. The slick hard floor floors from bath/shower water, along with the limited room to move around comfortably and metal towel rods, can make for a dangerous space to fall in. However, bathrooms can be made safe by the following:
Handrails/grabs can be placed along the walls and shower/bath, near the toilet and sink. Make sure that the proper height is measured.
Anti-slip bath/shower mats and anti-slip floormats can go a long way to help prevent falls. They provide traction and stability while standing and moving around.
There are some top assisted bath devices in various drug stores and home centers. They include shower seats and walk-in baths.
Raised toilet seats can be easily installed and shorten the distance needed to sit and, more importantly, get up comfortably from the toilet.
Elderly and physically challenged individuals could still need help. Make sure assistance is readily available. Elderly and physically challenged individuals could benefit by carrying an alarm or emergency contact system in case they fall or need help.
Stairways
The stairway is an area that can be another danger zone. One stairway danger is the use of canes, walkers, and walkers with wheels. These can easily get snagged on a step, or the wheels can slip and quickly travel down the stairs. Safety railing and step mats with traction nibs can help prevent slips and falls. Outdoor stairs should have non-slip tape to prevent falling.
Carpeting/Rugs
Carpeting and rugs are great for warmth, foot care, and decoration, but they can also pose a danger. Here are a few tips:
Throw rugs that are not properly anchored to the floor should be anchored or used in an area that will not pose a potential injury. These rugs can be bought with a rubber backing to prevent slippage. Stores carry non-slip backing that can be cut and used between the floor and the rug.
Carpeting needs to be smooth and not wrinkled, which can snag and cause tripping.
Bent corners should be removed and fixed to prevent unraveling or tacked down with non-slip tape.
Loose fibers need to be cut off.
Furniture
Individuals that don’t use an assisted device like a cane or walker could find navigating through the house difficult. Furniture should be arranged and organized for easy maneuverability. Electrical cords should be safely placed out of the walking path.These cords can be tacked to the floorboard, placed behind/under furniture, or stored in special cord tubes/runners. Small tables, floor lamps, and plants should not be in the walking path as well as this can cause an easy bump to fall scenario.�
Footwear
Footwear should be nice but also practical. Flat-soled shoes, high heels, not properly structured, or ill-fitting shoes can lead to slips and falls. Unsupported feet will not provide a solid foundation to help prevent a fall.
If there are foot issues, custom foot orthotics can really help stabilize balance, help the spine stay aligned, and bring relief from pain. Orthotics are designed to fit inside shoes to relieve pain from various foot conditions/issues. Non-slip and anti-slip soled shoes can also help prevent a slip and fall. With these types of shoes, care needs to be taken to avoid sticking to floor surfaces. This can contribute to stumbling and tripping. Don’t wear socks or hosiery on smooth tiled/wood floors; because there is no floor-foot traction, the potential for slipping increases.
When walking outside, if the sidewalk is slippery, walk on the grass or dirt area. Try walking in an area that does not show iciness or wetness. Cat litter or rock/sidewalk salt can provide foot traction.
Assistive Devices for Balance and Stability
If you feel unstable while walking, ask your doctor about an assisted device that includes canes and walkers. If using a cane, make sure the rubber grip tip is not worn down.
Conclusion
Here are a few tips that may help you to take a proactive approach to fall prevention. Depending on specific conditions and needs, you may want to talk to your doctor, chiropractor, physical therapist, or other health care professional. They will create a customized individual plan to help prevent falls and enjoy life.
Our clinical focus and personal goals are to help your body heal naturally, quickly, and effectively. At times, it may seem like a long path; nevertheless, with our commitment to you, it’s sure to be an exciting journey. The commitment to you in health is never to lose our deep connection to each one of our patients on this journey.
Plantar Fasciitis, Reduce Foot Pain with Custom Orthotics
NCBI Resources
Aging is hard on the body. As you move into your senior years, you may expect some discomfort and loss of mobility. But it is important to understand that there are things you can do to feel better. Regular exercise, a healthy diet, and chiropractic care can all make your senior years active and thriving.
Increase in sports-related fractures among young and active people
Any type of bone fracture, especially when the spine is involved, comes with the most common and debilitating symptom is severe pain.
Managing pain correctly is vital to the proper healing of a fractured bone.
Unfortunately, the common treatments prescribed to manage fracture pain can cause significant side effects, especially when used beyond the short-term or acute phase of pain.
Bone fractures cannot be always be avoided, but when it comes to osteoporosis, everyone can take steps to help minimize the risk of developing the condition.
How to Prevent Osteoporosis and Bone Fracture
First, understand that osteoporosis is not a normal part of the aging process.
It is an irreversible and degenerative disease that causes bones to become porous over time.
Prevention should begin as early as possible, as this will benefit an individual later in life.
It’s never too late to begin taking steps!
Protecting the bones begins with the most important thing and that is diet.
Most individuals’ diet does not fill the recommended daily values of calcium and Vitamin D.
Both are essential for strong bone health and density.
Diet must be well-balanced with an abundance of:
Green leafy vegetables
Fruit
Dairy sources high in calcium:
Milk
Yogurt
Cheese
However, vitamin D is typically highest in sources of wild-caught fatty fish like salmon and tuna.
Regular exercise is the next important step to help reduce the risk and keep bones strong.
Do exercises that are both:
Weight-bearing (high/low-impact aerobics or walking/jogging)
Muscle-strengthening (weightlifting and exercise bands)
Yoga and Pilates can also help to improve:
Strength
Balance
Flexibility
These are essential in the prevention of bone fractures from falls.
Engage in exercise that you enjoy, this way you will stick with it on a regular basis.
Try for two to three sessions a week if you�re beginning and try to work up to five.
While diet and exercise are extremely important to prevent osteoporosis, there are some areas that should be removed from the lifestyle or limited.
Smoking
Alcohol
These chemicals in bothcigarettes and heavy alcohol consumption are known to be significant contributors to bone loss.
Injury Medical & Chiropractic Clinic offers not only chiropractic treatment, but exercise, and diet programs set up by professional life/health coaches that are customized to each patient. Set up an appointment today, we can help!
Chronic Body Pain Treatment El Paso, TX Chiropractor
Aracely Norte suffered a slip-and-fall accident which tremendously limited her ability to work, affecting her quality of life. Due to the chronic pain she experienced, Aracely had difficulty engaging in her regular, everyday responsibilities. After her lawyer recommended Dr. Alex Jimenez, chiropractor, Aracely found the relief she was looking for.
Chronic pain is a common issue that can occur due to a variety of reasons, including injuries and underlying conditions, however, chiropractic care can help eliminate chronic pain symptoms from the source.
NCBI Resources
As with most conditions, prevention is the most�effective treatment. If you have a family history or fall under any of the risk factors, there are things you can do to minimize the effects or prevent the conditions completely.
Your chiropractor can talk to you about lifestyle changes, exercise, and�diet�as well as supplements that you can take. Chiropractic adjustments can also be effective for many patients with osteopenia and osteoporosis as long as the chosen technique is a low force technique like Activator.
As you move into your senior years, you may expect some discomfort and loss of mobility. Aging is hard on the body. But it is important to understand that there are things you can do to feel better. Regular exercise, a healthy diet, and chiropractic care can all make your senior years active and thriving.
How Chiropractic Can Make Your Senior Years Fantastic
The benefits of chiropractic for seniors can be considerable, including:
1. Takes away the pain.
If you are experiencing pain due to spinal or joint issues, chiropractic can help. Chiropractic care focuses on providing pain relief without the need for prescription medications or surgery.
Research has demonstrated the effectiveness of chiropractic for pain relief. In fact, one study showed that chiropractic was considerably more effective than prescribed medications. Unfortunately, many seniors assume that their pain is here to stay when it may be reduced or eliminated through regular chiropractic care.
2. Improves balance.
Seniors who are suffering from balance and coordination issues often have problems with the cervical spine, the technical term for the neck. When degenerative disc disease or other injuries disrupt the function of the mechanoreceptors located in the neck responsible for sending to the brain important information related to balance, then problems with balance can result.
Chiropractic adjustments and other related therapies are quite effective in treating neck injuries and degenerative disc disease. Regular adjustments from your chiropractor may be enough to help you get your balance back.
3. Improves mobility.
Injuries and aging can lead to a loss of range of motion, both in the spine and in the extremities. Fortunately, chiropractic care is designed to help you regain range of motion.
Your chiropractor has a variety of treatment methods to heal existing injuries while also improving range of motion. It may take several treatments to achieve the results you want, but a few visits to the chiropractor are well worth the increased range of motion you will enjoy.
4. Wear and tear on the joints are reduced.
The spine and joints need to be aligned to minimize wear on discs, bones, and other tissues. When you go for an extended period of time with a misaligned spine, it will increase the rate that your joints wear down.
One of the major benefits of chiropractic care is the way it keeps your whole body in alignment. As long as alignment is maintained, wear is minimized. Of course, alignment is lost in day-to-day life, but you can get it back by revisiting the chiropractor.
When you visit your chiropractor, he or she will ask you several questions and listen to your story to better understand the challenges you are dealing with. Once the chiropractor understands your situation, he or she will design an overall treatment plan designed to help you be as healthy as possible. Seniors that get regular chiropractic care often say they feel much better than they did before, which allows them to do more of the things they love to do.
The information herein is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified healthcare professional or licensed physician and is not medical advice. We encourage you to make your own health care decisions based on your research and partnership with a qualified health care professional. Our information scope is limited to chiropractic, musculoskeletal, physical medicines, wellness, sensitive health issues, functional medicine articles, topics, and discussions. We provide and present clinical collaboration with specialists from a wide array of disciplines. Each specialist is governed by their professional scope of practice and their jurisdiction of licensure. We use functional health & wellness protocols to treat and support care for the injuries or disorders of the musculoskeletal system. Our videos, posts, topics, subjects, and insights cover clinical matters, issues, and topics that relate to and support, directly or indirectly, our clinical scope of practice.* Our office has made a reasonable attempt to provide supportive citations and has identified the relevant research study or studies supporting our posts. We provide copies of supporting research studies available to regulatory boards and the public upon request.
We understand that we cover matters that require an additional explanation of how it may assist in a particular care plan or treatment protocol; therefore, to further discuss the subject matter above, please feel free to ask Dr. Alex Jimenez or contact us at 915-850-0900.
Osteopenia and osteoporosis, two very similar conditions, that are defined as decreased bone density, but osteopenia is far less. However, it is still a problem due to an increase of breaking a bone because of bone fragility.
Symptoms
Osteopenia usually doesn’t cause symptoms unless a bone is broken. However, some patients who present with osteopenia complain of dull back pain.
Symptoms associated with osteoporosis include the following:
Back pain, caused by a fractured or collapsed vertebra
Loss of height over time
A stooped posture
A bone fracture that occurs much more easily than expected
The causes and those at risk?
Women (primarily small-boned Caucasian and Asian) are most at risk for both conditions, primarily those who are age 65 or older as well as women who are postmenopausal. However, men can also be affected.
Anyone who meets any of the criteria for being at risk for either of the bone conditions should be evaluated. Often, catching the conditions early can make a significant difference in the effects that they have on the body and in some cases, can even be arrested so that they don�t progress.
Some of the common causes of both conditions include:
Lifestyle habits
Smoking
Insufficient calcium
Sedentary lifestyle
Excessive alcohol consumption
Vitamin D deficiency
Carbonated beverages
Medical Situations
Bulimia, anorexia, and other eating disorders
Estrogen deficiency in women
Certain hormone imbalances
Overactive thyroid
Certain treatments including radiation and chemotherapy
Low testosterone in men
Medications including anti-seizure, hydrocortisone, and steroids
Health issues
Tumors
Cystic fibrosis
Crohn�s disease
Digestive issues
It should also be noted that certain types of diets, particularly those that advocate extremely low fat, or no fat can also cause problems. Vitamin D is necessary for calcium absorption in the body, but vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin meaning the body requires some fat in order to make use of it. When there is inadequate fat, the vitamin cannot be absorbed and in turn, calcium cannot be absorbed.
A family history of osteopenia, osteoporosis, or low bone mass can increase a person risk by 50% to 85%.
A Diagnosis
Bone mineral density (BMD) tests are used to diagnose both osteopenia and osteoporosis by measuring the calcium levels in bone. This type of test can also provide an estimate of how much at risk a person is for bone fractures.
This test is painless and non-invasive. It is usually performed on the heel, shin bone, wrist, spine, finger, or hip.
Two common types of these tests are radiographs, a standard diagnostic tool for osteopenia, and Dual Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DEXA). A DEXA scan is essentially a low energy x-ray so patients are not exposed to as much radiation as they would be if they had a regular x-ray. The results are attained by comparing the score (measurements were taken) to scans of individuals who do not have the condition.
Once the score is measured and compared, it is assessed using a chart that identifies the level or risk:
+1.0 to -1.0 – Normal bone density
-1.0 to -2.5 – Low bone density
-2.5 or higher – At risk for osteoporosis
What Treatments Is Available?
As with most conditions, prevention is the most effective treatment. If you have a family history or fall under any of the risk factors, there are things you can do to minimize the effects or prevent the conditions completely.
Your chiropractor can talk to you about lifestyle changes, exercise, and diet as well as supplements that you can take. Chiropractic adjustments can also be effective for many patients with osteopenia and osteoporosis as long as the chosen technique is a low force technique like Activator.
Many patients find these natural treatments preferable to any medications that may be prescribed. The most important thing you should do, though, is get a bone density test if you are in an at-risk category, are a woman who is postmenopausal or age 65 or older.
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