Cell phones and your posture

They had a great segment on CBS morning show today. An Orthopedist was showing how cell phones are ruining people’s posture. We have noticed that in our office, since we use a computerized exam to evaluate posture. As people are spending more and more time on smart phones, their necks are moving forward and to the side. This is due to the way they hold the phone.

Forward neck posture increases the strain on the neck and shoulders. This also decreases the curve in the neck (cervical spine). I have even seen some patients that have reverse curves in the neck! Over time the trapezius muscles stretch and the front neck muscles can shorten. This makes it more difficult to correct forward head posture.

This is in fact a spinal injury and will usually take some time to correct. Generally, this condition is very treatable, but if let go for too long degenerative changes can occur. A combination of spinal adjustments, postural re-training, supplements and exercises are the standard treatment at our office. You can get more information about www.posturecheck.com.

Remember structure is function!
Dr. Robert Simmons

Dancing with the stars

There has never been a time when people were more busy. The advances in technology have been astounding. Everyone can be reached at anytime, anywhere! How is it that everyone has time to watch all these television shows? You can’t even watch the morning news without receiving reality show updates.

Don’t get me wrong, everyone needs diversion and entertainment! The question is what are you sacrificing for it? A great exercise is to write down all the tv shows you watch every week. Add up that number of hours. Now ask yourself, do I get regular exercise? Do we sit down for family meals without tv? Are we taking the time to prepare healthy meals? Do we go out to experience new things as a family? When was the last time we went to a park?

Examine your lifestyle and find out if you are sacrificing the quality of your family’s life to see who is winning a reality show. Are you a drive thru parent? Many parents today stop at the drive thru to get fast food. When they get home, they drop the food in front of the kids who eat and watch tv. Be sure not to drive thru your family’s life. Remember that the most important reality show is at home!

Enjoy Your Life,

Dr. Rob

Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution

Hope you watched the food revolution tv show. It is about a chef trying to get people to eat healthy in America. Boy has he got his hands full. He was trying to get into the Los Angeles schools. They actually banned him from looking into the cafeteria in a public school. The look on the school boards faces were priceless. Rigid and not open to change. They didn’t care what he said at the public board meetings.

Make sure that you are open to change and new ideas. Everyone can learn every day, especially about topics like exercise and nutrition. The are new studies being done everyday, so it is important to be open to the latest developments. Pack your kids lunch. It is cheaper and healthier! It may take more time, but they are worth it!

Cafeteria food

Just thinking about an old commercial. Remember the commercial that asked, it’s 10 o’clock do you know where your children are. I wonder if people know what their children are eating. The school cafeterias are full of pizza, ice cream, soda, macaroni and cheese and so many processed foods.

Take the time to pack your child a healthy lunch. So many health problems can be prevented with a healthy and nutritious diet. The gift of health is one of the most important gifts you can give to your family. So I ask you….do you know what your kids had for lunch today?

McDonalds gets healthy?

Just felt like giving some props to McDonalds! They are one of the greatest offenders against healthy eating with those large calorie meals. Gotta give them some credit with the fruit and oatmeal breakfast on their menu! What a great idea to make it quick and convenient!

Goals

Picture yourself in as having already achieved your goal. See yourself doing the things you’ll be doing when you’ve reached your goal.

Adversity

Adversity has the same effect on a man that severe training has on the pugilist: it reduces him to his fighting weight.

What I’m doing

Enough work for tonight! Time to get to sleep. Volunteer day at the shelter tommorrow!

Drug Recalls

Just thinking about the childrens drug recall. We start them off with drugs at such a young age for every problem. Tylenol for headaches, Ritalin for having too much energy, antidepressant…….and we wonder why there are so many adults with drug problems. Apple says there’s an app for that. A lot of people think there’s a drug for that. Let’s start finding out what is causing these diseases and not just treating symptoms!

Proverb

A good name will shine forever…….Proverb