Wednesday, December 25, 2002

Visions of sugarplums ... or headaches?

Have you been experiencing more headaches the last month, than in previous months? Many of us are aware that stress levels increase around the Holidays, but few understand how stress influences us physically and how it contributes to increased symptoms around this time of year.

"Headaches are not caused by your mind, your stress level or your diet (or the time of the month)," said Dr. Jeffry Finnigan, author of "Life Beyond Headaches." "However, these factors can look like they are the very cause, simply because they are actually the triggers for headaches in most people. Those events will trigger headaches, but they are not the cause."

While agreeing that personality, stress, hormones and other factors definitely play a contributing role in the continual production of this frustrating condition, Finnigan added, "Clinical evidence demonstrates that these factors do not cause headaches."

It has been my experience over years of practice that headaches are most often caused by structural imbalances in the neck, affecting nearby nerves and blood vessels. We have found that, when the upper cervical area of the neck loses its alignment, a condition called Neurovascular Syndrome is created. This condition is often associated with chronic or reoccurring headaches.

The Atlas Orthogonal is a gentle effective Chiropractic technique used to restore function to the upper cervical spine, where the Atlas (C-1) misalignment can cause nerve interference (called subluxation).

If you are suffering from headaches, you owe it to yourself to have your neck checked to see if spinal misalignment is causing them.

Dr. Finnigan states that several "keys" are important to good health. These include breathing clean air, drinking good water, eating whole foods, getting regular exercise and adequate sleep, and having a healthy nervous system.

Unfortunately, even with a healthy diet, our food supply does not contain all the nutrients necessary to support good health. Last month the American Medical Association (AMA) reversed a 30-year position stating that all Americans needed to take vitamins. The question is what and how much to take.

We now can answer that question with a scientific test that is done in the privacy of your own home and is less expensive than most supplement programs. Based on your test, you will receive the highest quality customized nutritional formulation available, conveniently sent to your home each month. We are excited to begin offering this program to everyone in this area.

We are located at the Durden Chiropractic Clinic, 1130 Senoia Rd., Suite B-4, Tyrone. You can call for more information at 770-631-7600. We wish everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year!