www.chiropractorfreehold.com Archives - Hometown Family Wellness Center

May 11 2020

Chiropractor in Freehold Reviews Stress and Your Health

Dr. Russell Brokstein, Chiropractor in Freehold reviews stress and how it affects your health.

Each week 95 million Americans suffer from stress related symptoms for which they take medications. Stress is recognized as the number one killer as it results in many of the health conditions people suffer from. According to the AMA, stress is the cause of up to 80 to 85% of all human illness and disease.

Stress in humans results from interactions between people and their environment that are perceived as straining or exceeding their adaptive capacities and threatening their well-being.

There are drug-free solutions you need to know about:

1) There are glands in your body called the adrenal glands. They are also known as the stress glands. They help regulate the 4 main hormones of the body: adrenaline, norepenephrine, cortisol and DHEA. When these hormones get thrown off balance, it can cause heart conditions, digestive issues (IBS, acid reflux, and colitis), allergies, sleep disorders, depression, anxiety, headaches, fibromyalgia, immune problems, arthritic conditions, skin conditions (eczema and psoraisis), diabetes, weight problems, PMS, menopuse, libido problems.. just to name a few.

Many people consume 2 products that destroy the adrenal glands: caffeine (coffee) and refined carbohydrates (white breads, pastas and rice are examples). By eliminating these products from consumption and using a proper adrenal support vitamin, the adrenal glands can be regulated properly so the body can handle stress and reduce the symptoms and diseases it can produce.

2) Internal and external stressors have been scientifically proven to contribute to many health conditions.

What is a Stressor?
A stressor is any biological, chemical, emotional or physical substance or factor that can cause temporary or permanent harm.Examples of common stressors can include:

Emotional (marriage, death, work)
Chemical (cigarette smoke, toxins)
Environmental (hayfever, grass, food)
Biological (cats, dust mites)

There is technology known as biofeedback stress reduction therapy which is an assessment and therapeutic tool used by practitioners to identify those substances causing stress on the body (stressors) and then corrects your body’s response so that future exposure to those substances no longer cause a stress response. The therapy recalibrates the body’s response so that future exposure to the corresponding substances now allows the biofeedback measurements (and the body’s reactions) to fall within the acceptable parameters. Your body no longer feels overburdened or stressed by the stressors.

3) Every day our bodies are subjected to these stresses and stressors. Along with physical stress, including traumas or accidents, chemical and emotional stress also cause spinal misalignments called vertebral subluxations. These subluxations interfere with the nervous system which controls all functions and health of the body. For the body to function optimally, it is important to remove all nerve interference. The only health profession that corrects and optimizes nerve flow is chiropractic. In our office, we use technology called Myovision which analyzes the imbalances of the nervous system to see how your body is functioning.

At Hometown Family Wellness Center in Freehold, NJ chiropractor Dr. Russell Brokstein examines and addresses all 3 of these areas to reduce the stress to your body so you can be optimally healthy without drugs and surgery.

If you are ready to reduce your stress and Get healthy now.. call 732-780-0044 and check out our website www.ChiropractorFreehold.com for more information and view out patient reviews!

May 11 2020

Freehold Chiropractor Reviews Chronic Pain Result of Lifestyle

Freehold Chiropractor and owner of Hometown Family Wellness Center, Dr. Russell Brokstein, reviews how lifestyle in many times results in chronic pain. People wonder where their pain came from as they didn’t have a particular injury. The fact is we are causing our pain every day with lifestyle and the pain sneaks up on us out of the blue. The pain becomes chronic and we don’t even realize it.

The American Chronic Pain Association defines chronic pain “…can be described as ongoing or recurrent pain, lasting beyond the usual course of acute illness or injury or more than 3 to 6 months, and which adversely affects the individual’s well-being. A simpler definition for chronic or persistent pain is pain that continues when it should not.”[1]

There are many causes of pain other than an accident or injury. Certain choices we make in our everyday lives could be the reason why we experience lasting musculoskeletal pain. Following are some things that can lead to chronic pain:

Carrying wallets/handbags/briefcases – Many people use these to carry our everyday essentials. But carrying a handbag or briefcase causes us to adjust to the amount of weight being carried on one side. This can strain everything from the neck, shoulder, lower back and hips, as one shoulder will shift weight to one side of the body.

Many guys carry a wallet and they put it in their back pocket of their pants. This can be another cause of chronic low back pain. Sitting on a thick wallet in the car, at work, and at home causes an uneven foundation for the hips and lower back. The more one sits with the wallet in their back pocket, the greater the chance of experiencing a pinched nerve, or a herniated disc.

Weight – Our population is become more overweight every year. Extra weight can impact the body in so many ways. It builds up around the midsection of the body offsetting balance, causing the pelvis to tilt forward, which can strain the spine and lower back as well as putting additional pressure on the discs.

Extra weight adds pressure onto the feet causing the muscles, ligaments, and tendons to stretch and become weaker. It is common for overweight men and women to experience collapsed arches, which cause the knees to rotate, the hips to drop and disrupt the balance of the spine.

Pain becomes more of an issue when the body carries more weight that it has been designed to carry. By adding light exercise and watching what you eat, you can make a big difference in reducing the pain.

On the job – Every job is different and our bodies react inversely to the ergonomics at work. Setting up your work station properly is so important to help prevent chronic pain. In a previous blog we discussed ergonomics: Ergonomics at your Work Station. Whether you are standing or sitting all day, your body develops a routine and adapts to the positions you frequent the most throughout the day. No matter what the job may be, every body needs restoration of its original range of motion. It is highly recommended to take frequent breaks, take a walk outside during a break and take the time to stretch. This helps avoid improper posture, lifting techniques, and eyestrain from computer screens. You will also notice an energy boost and less chronic pain.

Sleep – There are many consequences to the way we sleep. From the type of mattress you use, to the position that you sleep in.

Stomach and side sleeping may feel comfortable, but are also a main reason why we toss and turn during the night and wake up with pain. As we sleep, our head, neck, and spine need to be supported correctly. Optimal sleep patterns include, sleeping flat on the back with the neck supported by a cervical pillow. If you must sleep on your side, keep a pillow between your knees with them slightly bent and your head and neck supported by a pillow. You should avoid sleeping on your stomach at all costs as it puts continuous strain on your neck, shoulders and lower back.

Posture – Posture is one of the key elements at reducing every day stress to the body. So many people slouch at their desk or while watching tv and many times are propped up in unnatural positions while watching tv. Or talking for extended periods of time on the phone with the head tilted. Having the body in these postures for extended periods of time increases the stress and tension to the muscles, tendons and ligaments. This will further increase the amount of pain you feel.

For a moment sit in your chair and slouch with your head forward, letting it fall slightly and you will notice an increase in pain in the back of the neck, down to between the shoulder blades. Sitting all day at school or work in this type of position damages the soft tissues. Now sit up straight and you will most likely notice that there is less pain. Just by improving your posture, you can reduce your chronic pain, but you might have to do strengthening exercises to improve your posture.

These are just a few of many reasons why you might have chronic pain and not know where it stems from. At least one of the above factors might be adding to your pain. Instead of using temporary painkillers and muscle relaxers that just mask the symptoms and lead to harmful side affects, chiropractors help you pinpoint the cause of your pain and recommends change in lifestyle to reduce and prevent future problems.

Dr. Russell Brokstein utilizes chiropractic care, therapeutic stretching as well as lifestyle recommendations to help his patients recover more quickly so you can once again enjoy your regular daily activities. Don’t let chronic pain take control of your life!

To find out more about Hometown Family Wellness Center in Freehold, NJ go to our website at www.chiropractorfreehold.com.

[1] American Chronic Pain Association. Chronic Pain. Last Updated: 9/18/2012. http://www.theacpa.org/conditionDetail.aspx?id=74

May 11 2020

Anti-Aging Review by Chiropractor in Freehold NJ

Many people are always looking for ways to hold back the hands of time, looking for the secrets to anti-aging. There are so many ways to live longer and live better. We know about eating healthy, exercising, and of course reducing stress, but there are some other very important factors in slowing down the aging process.

I have been a chiropractor in practice for over 14 years and I am always get asked, “excuse me, where is the doctor” or better yet most recently I had a patient say to me, but Dr. Russell it’s so much easier for somebody your age than myself.” Interestingly in the second case, I am a little older than that patient and he was shocked.

Yes, for me I choose a healthy lifestyle as mentioned above but I also incorporate other KEY factors at staying and looking younger than most my age. I want to share with you some of these important factors of anti-aging and how I try to help my patients with them too.

1) Everything we eat, breath and drink has chemicals and is toxic to the body. This toxicity increases the acidity levels of the body. Most bacteria, viruses and even cancers thrive in an acidic environment. Another important thing to note is that the more toxic your body is, the more it stores body fat. In the US, overweight and obesity is running rampant. People run to Weight Watchers, LA Weight Loss and other programs with little to no success and it’s because they are not addressing the real cause of being overweight. By counting calories, you will initially lose weight, but the toxins become more concentrated and therefore tells the body to start storing more body fat. This leads to the yo-yo affect of losing weight, then gaining it right back. Sound familiar? Well in our office we address toxicity by doing a full body cellular cleanse and nutritional program. Weight Loss and cleansing is so important in maintaining health and anti-aging

2) So many people consume caffeine in coffee and energy drinks as well as many products with refined carbohydrates or sugars. Caffeine and refined carbohydrates lead to adrenal fatigue and adrenal failure. You have glands in your body called adrenal glands that help regulate the 4 main hormones of the body: adrenaline, norepenephrine, cortisol and DHEA. When these hormones are off balance it can lead to heart conditions, digestive problems, immune problems, allergies, immune problems, arthritic problems, fatigue, increased stress, loss of sleep, depression, insomnia, anxiety, weight problems, diabetes, PMS, menopause, libido problems and even fertility problems. Caffeine also dehydrates the body, which will age the body more quickly.

3) Science has proven that part of your genes determine your aging! There are strands of repeated nucleotides that end the strands of your DNA.. these are called telomerase. Telomerase is an error correcting process that assists cellular reproduction to make sure that new cells are exactly like the ones they are replacing. The problem is that as we age, the length of the strands shorten and this is why organisms age and die. A great analogy is if you photocopy a copy over and over, the quality of the copy decreases. Research is focusing on the protection and repair of the telomerase to slow down or even reverse human aging. Recently I found a supplement that supports telomere health by combining scientific breakthroughs in telomere support and the benefits of antioxidants in youthful aging. The supplement helps maintain youthful function of cells and healthy telomeres, helps protect the body from harmful free radicals that can accelerate aging and contribute to poor health, targets the sources of aging, such as oxidative stress.

4) Chiropractic is such an important aspect of improving the quality of life and maintaining health. We know the nervous system controls all functions of the body. Activities of daily living, stress and traumas cause or spine to subluxate or misalign therefore putting pressure on the nerves and spinal cord. When this happens it disrupts the functions of the body, we get malfunction of the organs, tissues and cells. If this is allowed to progress we develop disease and finally symptoms. Waiting for symptoms to evolve is the worst form of health care. By going to a chiropractor, you improve your natural health and function naturally without harmful drugs or surgery. This natural form of health care improves your quality of living, reduces stress, and helps you live and more healthy longer life.

In our office, Hometown Family Wellness Center located in Freehold, NJ, we help our patients live longer by warding off illness and live better through improvement in diet and lifestyle. Nobody wants to spend the last decades of life in misery. Every day of every year should be filled with life, laughter and happiness with promise and pain free. Fitness, nutrition, positive mental attitude and regular chiropractic care all have key roles to play in the equation of anti-aging. This is our multi-pronged approach to help you and other patients!

For more information on our practice go to www.ChiropractorFreehold.com or watch what some of our patients have to say by clicking here: Freehold Chiropractor Reviews.

May 11 2020

5 Key Things to Look for in a Multivitamin

My name is Dr. Russell Brokstein, chiropractor and wellness consultant at Hometown Family Wellness Center in Freehold, NJ. Every day I am asked by patients what to look for when searching for a multivitamin. Recently I read an article that covers what to look for when choosing a vitamin and I wanted to share it with those searching and reading the following:

Most people are puzzled when it comes to choosing a multivitamin-mineral supplement. They search the internet and ask other people and health professionals but the messages conflict. The media further adds to the confusion with reports that tend to overemphasize observational studies that confirm bias against supplementation.. which one has to just follow the money trail to the pharmaceutical companies. The fact is that the quality of multivitamins has a large range.

The highest quality supplements are designed according to current science and technologies—they use the most stable and efficacious forms of vitamins and minerals, have optimal solubility rates, are third-party tested for potency and shelf life, and provide optimal vitamin-and-mineral dosages that are divided over the course of the day for best absorption.

The popular “one-a-day” supplements are on the bottom of the quality spectrum. They claim to provide all that the body needs in a single tablet; they may provide adequate amounts of many nutrients, but severely neglect others. Other supplements use synthetic vitamins but research shows the body prefers the natural forms. To top if off, some companies claim higher absorption or bioavailability because their nutrients come directly from “whole foods” but these claims are misleading because they are not presented with data. These vitamins do not actually come from whole foods, but are simply combined with botanicals that may even prevent optimal absorption.

It’s important for anybody looking for a quality vitamin to do the research because not all marketers provide the science behind their vitamin and it’s unfair for the media to do little homework before categorizing all dietary supplements as low quality and worthless. The fact is that there are well-designed studies showing clear benefits from taking supplements in appropriate forms and in dosages that assist in meeting dietary recommendations for optimal health. If this weren’t true, or if multivitamins were somehow “dangerous”, then why do most medical doctors continue prescribing prenatal multivitamins to women who are expecting?

A proper review and critique of multivitamin-mineral supplements should be based on how well it reflects positions of scientific consensus on dosage, forms, and delivery. Here are 5 Key things to look for in a supplement:

1) Quality – A recent Consumer Labs report states one in three supplements either contained fewer nutrients than promised on the label, provided far more nutrients than claimed, had incorrect labeling of ingredients, or simply failed to disintegrate in the allotted time for proper absorption. If uncertain about whether or not a supplement really provides what it claims to, it’s probably a supplement to avoid. Take a multivitamin-mineral only if it comes from a reputable company that tests label claims through an independent laboratory.

2) Efficacy – It’s well-known that some forms of vitamins or minerals are more stable, or more bioavailable, than others. For example, natural vitamin D3 exhibits greater retention in the body compared to synthetic vitamin D2 (1). Likewise, vitamin E in its natural form of d-alpha tocopherol provides greater activity than its synthetic mixture counterpart, dl-alpha tocopherol, which contains only a small percentage of the natural form (2). Another example is vitamin B12 as cyanocobalamin, which is more stable than other forms of vitamin B12, thus allowing for greater shelf life.

3) Optimal dosages – Multivitamin-mineral supplement makers will often add a mineral such as calcium or an antioxidant such as coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) to help it sell better in the marketplace, but not in high enough doses to really strengthen bones or support the heart. Such supplements should be avoided in favor of others that actually supply enough of each nutrient to truly be effective. Similarly, should a supplement contain omega-3 fatty acids, it should contain a high enough concentration of both DHA and EPA for heart health. In short, dosages should reflect the latest that science has to offer as recommendations for health and longevity.

4) Solubility – Many vitamins pass thru the body without being absorbed. Science has come a long way to provide technologies for better solubility, but there still are a few multivitamins on the market that don’t disintegrate appropriately enough to be absorbed properly. The standard for a quality multivitamin-mineral tablet is to disintegrate within 60 minutes or less in an acidic solution mimicking the environment in the stomach—even better is if it can disintegrate easily in plain water or rice vinegar.

5) Absorption and bioavailability – Companies make misleading claims when they market their supplements as more highly absorbed or bioavailable because they are from, or combined with, “whole food” or “vegetable components.” For one thing, the source of their vitamin is really not different than anyone else’s, which is obtained through yeast fermentation. The “whole-food” source supplements also seldom meet label claims or stability for shelf life. In addition, they don’t account for anti-nutrient components; for example, a supplement containing leafy green vegetables such as spinach may also contain anti-nutrient compounds called oxalates that inhibit absorption of other minerals in the supplement through chelation (that’s not to say people should avoid eating spinach, but that improved absorption and bioavailability from a spinach supplement is false) (3). There are also supplements on the market (obviously not designed by nutritionists familiar with the science) that completely disregard well-known absorption problems when dosages of minerals such as calcium are too high, or when mineral competitiveness occurs between iron, calcium, zinc, and copper (3 & 4). A quality supplement will use forms of minerals without absorption-inhibiting anti-nutrients and have an appropriate amount of minerals in each tablet to be taken in divided doses over the course of the day.

These 5 key points presented above should be considered by those looking looking for a multivitamin and mineral to achieve the greatest value from their supplements. All things considered, we recommend to our patients Ageless Essentials Daily Pack, which comes in convenient A.M. and P.M. packets. Over the course of the day, the pack provides optimal dosages of essential vitamins and minerals such as vitamin D3 (2000 IU), calcium (800 mg for men, 900 mg for women), vitamin E as mixed tocopherols and d-alpha tocopheryl succinate (90 IU), and vitamin K2 (80 mcg).

The pack also includes a potent combination of bioactive compounds that support optimal health and longevity. These include patented, lipid-soluble CoQ10 (100 mg) backed by studies showing eight times greater bioavailability, maximum concentrations of ultra-purified DHAand EPA omega-3 fatty acids (600 mg EPA, 440 mg DHA), trans-resveratrol (250 mg), and more.

Add in Product B to the order—Ageless Essentials with Product B—and as clearly displayed on every box, “Imagine adding life to your years with an increased feeling of youth, health and vitality.” Product B positively supports telomere health by combining scientific breakthroughs in telomere support and the benefits of antioxidants in youthful aging. Product B helps maintain youthful function of cells and healthy telomeres so you can live a longer, healthier life.

To find out more and order click here: Ageless Essentials Daily Pack or Ageless Essentials with Product B

Dr. Russell Brokstein uses a combination of chiropractic, exercise, weight loss, nutritional support and detoxification programs to help his patients be healthy naturally. If you are looking for more ways to be optimally healthy without drugs and surgery, find out more about Dr. Brokstein and Hometown Family Wellness Center by going to their website at www.ChiropractorFreehold.com.

References

Food and Nutrition Board. Institute of Medicine. Dietary Reference intakes. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 2000, pp. 186-283.
Heaney R et al. Vitamin D3 is More Potent Than Vitamin D2 in Humans. J Clin Endocrin & Metab. 2011;96(3):E477 doi: 10.1210/jc.2010-2230
Gropper SS, Smith JL, Groff JL. Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2009.
Hoffman H et al. Zinc-induced copper deficiency. Gastroenterology 1988; 94:508-12.

May 11 2020

Chiropractor in Freehold NJ Shares Research Showing Smoking Increases Risk of Back Pain

There are many risks to smoking cigarettes and new research is showing it can also increase your risk of back pain.

95,000 nurses in one study showed those women that smoked were three times more likely to develop Psoriatic arthritis. This form of arthritis is inflammatory in nature and can cause lower back pain and sacral pain. Even those smokers that quit were 1.5 times more likely to develop psoriatic arthritis, and the highest risk were women that smokes for over 25 years. It is believed smoking increases the risk of psoriatic arthritis because smoking can induce oxidative stress which causes inflammation and also damages the immune system.

Another new study shows smokers had a higher incidence of inflammatory back pain at a younger age. Patients who smoke overall have more disease and illness, worse body function, and a much lower quality of life. Research of smokers shows MRI scans revealed more structural lesions on their spines and sacroiliac joints than non smokers. Since smokers have more severe symptoms, they tend to have more absenteeism from work than non smokers. This is another reason to add for smokers to quit immediately, especially if you are experiencing back pain with inflammation.

Other research on smoking has shown correlation to increase in sciatica and other chronic pain conditions.

Our chiropractic office, Hometown Family Wellness Center, located in Freehold, NJ has been highly successful in helping patients with back pain, sciatica and many forms of arthritis. While addressing the cause of the back pain, we also help support our patients in making healthy lifestyle changes to reduce the risks of pain and improving your overall health without the use of drugs or surgery. Smoking is a difficult, addictive habit to quit and we have including biofeedback stress reduction therapy in our office to help patients end their addictive habits. To find out more about our office click here: www.ChiropractorFreehold.com

References

Chung HY, Machado P, Heijde D, et al. Smokers in early axial spondyloarthritis have earlier disease onset, more disease activity, inflammation and damage, and poorer function and health-related quality of life: results from the DESIR cohort. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases 2012;71:809-816. doi:10.1136/annrheumdis-2011-200180.

Li W, Han J, Qureshi A. Smoking and risk of incident psoriatic arthritis in US women. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases 2012;71:804-808. doi 10.1136/annrheumdis-2011-200416.

Walsh, Nancy. Smoking Tied to Back Pain, Arthritis. Medpage Today. May 18,2012. Accessed May 24, 2012. http://www.medpagetoday.com/Rheumatology/Arthritis/32763.

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