More problems with muscles and cholesterol meds such as Lipitor. Are they really necessary

  Recently, I have had a number of patients who, because of their cholesterol medication (Lipitor, etc.) have had the side effect of muscular spasms and mechanical problems in their bodies that have been exacerbated.  This disturbing trend continues to get worse because people are being scared into taking these medications when their cholesterol numbers are not very high (under 300 for triglycerides).  The drug companies have become great at selling doctors on the preventative nature of these drugs which are quite dangerous (this is why, you must have your blood taken every three months - to discover if it is causing damage to the liver or muscles).
    What's worse, is current epidimiological studies show that at best, these medications may give you an additional year, while treating a questionable disease calling it prevention. 
    Years ago, we did not have these drugs and some people had heart attacks. The question is Do these drugs prevent them and at what cost?
    The other question is - when do the benefits outweigh the risks?
    In my opinion, this is not preventative but interventional and the general public needs to understand the difference.  The other question is, with all the potential health problems out there, with this being one small piece of the puzzle, does health care by the triglyceride numbers really make people healthy?  Based on my findings, dealing with real people, and seeing the creation of problems they never needed to have because of the medication, primary care and cardiologists as well need to re look at this question and reevaluate who really needs these meds to stay healthy.
    In my humble opinion, if your triglycerides are under 300, stay away. What is your opinion?  As always, I value your thoughts.

Fighting colds naturally - Dr. Charschan's cold survival kit

There are many people who have colds, and I am one of them. You can however, get more control over how you feel and how long these symptoms persist with my simple plan that I have outlined below. Most people who have colds can benefit from this regimen.

1. Echinacea (helps fight cold viruses as the body is being attacked)

2. Amino Lysine 400 IU

3. 5000 mg vitamin c powder - one level tsp taken with orange juice


Take this as follows

At the onset of symptoms, take a tablet of Echinacea per ever two hours for 3-4 doses total. Echinacea is only effective at the onset. If you are well into the symptoms, don't barther.

Vitamin C powder - take ever two hours. If you begin to get diahrea or feel gassy, stop taking it. This means you have saturated your body. Vitamin C powder acidifies your system and gives it a fighting chance. Typically, colds make your body basic. If you are on medications that are altering your body chemistry, check with your pharmacist first. You can then take doses of this periodically as the symptoms begin to abate.

Amino Lysine is anti viral and can be taken with the vitamin C powder.

This regimen will shorten colds, get you feeling better faster. If you have a really nasty virus, you may find that it takes many doses of vitamin C to get to the point of diahrea or gassiness. If it is mild, you may reach this with one or two doses.

Doubts about foot orthotics - Do they really help?

The NY Times published an article on 1/18/11 regarding this subjective and was rather inconclusive, weighing the pro's and cons (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/18/health/nutrition/18best.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1295442225-gWl5Mb3DkEtHteTDkRIX8A).  Please read the article for yourself as I am a large proponent of these devices.

Foot orthotics have become a huge industry, with both custom (hand made or scan made) and non custom orthotics (store purchased). The results as the article suggests can seem quite variable, with people using them at the suggestion of perhaps their podiatrist to use them to treat plantar fasciitis, shin pain, knee pain or in the case of our office, symmetry and alignment issues creating back, neck and human frame issues.

From a purely mechanical standpoint, they improve symmetry and body alignment.  In our office, I find that most people who visit us have body style issues which are inherited and passed down through the generations.
The more asymmetrical someone is built, the more problems you will likely have with your back and neck and it is predictable.

I believe, based on years of practice, that the hit or miss approach to treat a symptom with orthotics, whether using off the shelf orthotics or custom is bound to frustrate many, since it shows a clear lack of understanding from the practitioner, who should know more than the patient.

Do they work and what should you expect?  I believe that correct expectations is part of the problem.
1. Orthotics are merely a brace, therefore, they will only correct while you wear them.  The question is then : what do they do when you don't wear them?  The answer is; they are only effective when they are in ones shoes.
2. What do they really do?  They correct (if applied with the proper understanding of their function and the way they were made if custom) gait (the way you walk) and improve body symmetry at the ground level.  This means that they will level you out, similar to taking a 2x4 and using it to level the foundation of a house.  The difference is, they only correct while you wear them.  In other words, if they are not in your shoes, they are not doing anything.  You also should be advised to wear sandals in the summer with arches and avoid the flat ones (for more year round correction).  Also note, if you are wearing heels over 2 inches, you will not need an orthotic since the feet cannot overpronate (turn out) or supinate (turn in) with high shoes which alters your gait.
3. The device did not help my condition. Orthotics do not fix conditions.  They merely, create symmetry at the ground level.  The myofascia which controls muscle movement (newest information  - check out Thomas Meyers book on Anatomy Trains) will mold according to the forces placed upon it.  In other words, if your body is a mess because of your body style, and you have plantar fascia because your body's fascial system is a mess (very common), you will not get relief.  Podiatrists will commonly treat the foot and ignore the body above it (lunacy) which is why you have the condition.  Using orthotics may level the hips but you are still a mess.  A good chiropractor who understands a style of myofascial therapy is a must.
4. They need to be worn all the time.  If you can correct the problem 70 percent of the time, in combination with body work (chiropractor, massage therapist, both), you are much more likely to get a successful outcome you will be happy with.  If your doctor understands the gait process (few do), your results and the orthotics you get whether custom or non will be much more effective (I see many poorly thought out and casted orthotics from other orthotics).

In closing, orthotics are not a one size fits all solution.  Your best bet is to see a practitioner who really understands the gait process.  Changes we make with either custom or non custom orthotics are provable and reproducible and I do this all the time showing people how running gait predictably improves with the right shoes and device.

What do you think?  As always, I value your opinion.  Please write me with your questions at backfixer@aol.com and visit our web sites at http://www.backfixer1.com/ or.http://njrunningdoc.com/.  Also, stay tuned for my new book on the subject.

The $99 health plan brought to you by Sams Club - What does this really offer?

News flash: Sams Club offers a preventative health care plan for under $100 (http://money.cnn.com/2011/01/11/news/companies/sams_club_selling_healthcare_service/index.htm).

Sams club today presented a preventative health care plan for $99 which makes use of the internet, applying the concept of what a financial planner does but to healthcare.  I applaud them for doing this because many people do not regularly go to doctors for various reasons. Here is a way that puts the consumer in control.

"What you get: For $99, buyers of the program get an annual subscription to a web-based program that includes an at-home blood screening test that tracks an individual's cholesterol, blood sugar and Hemoglobin levels.

That information is then used to create a personalized Prevention Plan that identifies, prioritizes and explains users' health risks and recommends steps to improve their health.

Buyers of the program also get access to a 24/7 nurse line, two health coaching sessions, recommended prevention screenings, schedule and alerts based on age, gender and risks and a physician summary that can be shown to a doctor."

As a chiropractor, I look primarily at musculoskeletal health, which affects organ systems in ways we are just beginning to understand (Thomas Meyers book on Anatomy Trains shows deep muscular and organ connections).  While this gives you a light basis for managing your health, it does not substitute for doctors visits and will not cover doctors visits.  If you have a problem, you can prescreen and even discuss it with someone on their 24/7 nurse line.  The problem I see is that from the medical point of view, which this clearly comes from, these basic screenings tell you nothing about the musculoskeletal system, and most nurses and medical providers have little musculoskeletal training to properly advise you.

The good news is that as always, chiropractic care has always been affordable and the cost of an office visit is relatively inexpensive, when compared to many medical visits and the patient satisfaction continues to stay high.

If you do not go to doctors regularly, this may be money well spent, putting you in the doctors chair able to find out when to go to the regular doctor.  If you are using this for advice on back or neck pain or some other complaint, a visit to our office is priceless.

Safe Methods For Snow Removal

Follow some simple tips to protect yourself while shoveling snow. 
1. Use a fencers stance when pushing or lifting snow. It will help you protect your lower back.
2. If the temperature is in the low 20's the snow will be powder like and light. If the temperature is closer to 30, the snow flakes will be larger, wetter and heavier. Push and lift accordingly.
3. Snow that has been pushed against your driveway by the plow is always heavier. Dig , push and lift with caution.
4. If you are getting out of breath and are older, take frequent breaks. People suffer heart attacks moving snow and you do not want to be a statistic.
5. If you are sore and it is getting worse after shoveling, call us.www.backfixer1.com

Another study shows chiropractic is much less expensive and more effective for lower back problems

I came across a study that was in the December 2010 issue of JMPT (journal of manipulative therapeutics) that shows after adjusting for risk adjustment ( a fancy way of saying severity), the cost of chiropractic intervention was markedly less than going the traditional medical route (http://www.dynamicchiropractic.com/mpacms/dc/article.php?id=55052)

One of the major cost drivers we experience in our office is when our patient decides to go to the emergency room for care.  Typically, they are given pain killers or a shot of toradol for the pain which does nothing for the problem.

In many managed care plans, the medical doctor must give the referral.  To their credit, many tell their patients that they can only offer medication and then refer them to someone like me for further intervention.  Others, find themselves being sent from specialist (often orthopedics) to rehab, without having the problem that created the back issue ever resolved.  I treat many patients who tell me they are fine as long as they do the exercises and then get ready in bed to be able to move.  This tells me their problem is now subacute and have never been resolved. This causes periodic exacerbations, spinal, hip and knee degeneration and of course, they become less active and avoid painful activities.

In our office, we look for the cause and use tests that show the mechanical faults leading to back pain. Through active evaluation (a process of treat, test and treat), we get to the root of the back problem and other problems such as the hip, foot and knee improve as well, since these are merely symptoms of the gait issue that created them.  Perhaps, the greater level of understanding chiropractors have avoids costly MRI and other tests that come with increasing severity.

Many studies really need to compare not just the episode, but with chiropractic care, do people have far fewer episodes of back pain.  Also, foot orthotics are quite helpful as well as myofascial treatment to the region, which is becoming a larger part of many more progressive chiropractic practices as they move away from the less effective and more expensive model of heat, ultrasound and passive care and move toward the model of exercise, myofascial and active modes of care.

What do you think?  As always, I value your opinion.

Dead Butt Syndromes and other fairy tales affecting those who run

A few weeks ago, I read an article that was posted on the NY Times web site regarding something called Dead Butt Syndrome (http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/21/when-the-diagnosis-is-dead-butt-syndrome/).  Apparently, this is a problem with the gluteus medius (one of the larger muscles in the butt) which as this person. The person who wrote this article is a veteran runner and as she said “For people who have persistent pain, it’s healing gone wrong,” Dr. Bright said. “That gluteus medius isn’t firing the way it’s supposed to. You’re getting an inhibition of the muscle fibers. It’s kind of dead.” 


The problem with this all encompassing diagnosis of Dead Butt Syndrome is the same with many of the attempts to globally diagnose and then come up with a cure without fully understanding the mechanisms involved.  


Over the past year, I have been reading and reviewing Thomas Meyers book on Anatomy Trains (available through Amazon.com) which shows the myofascia actually controls motion, not the muscles making this diagnosis a part of the problem rather than the solution. 

 As many of our patients know, I diagnose through active evaluation, treat the fascial restrictions and then retest the firing patterns involved.  Sometimes my first impressions are right on but I do a number of maneuvers until I figure out how to restore a more normal firing pattern.  Often, tight hip capsules (fibrous tissue surrounding the hip) can cause this problem, as well as foot overpronation and gait asymmetry.  It does not just happen to nice people like this author.  The Fascia surrounding the muscles tighten, cause the gluteus medius to recruit in other muscles such as the obliques , hamstrings, other gluteal muscles, erector spinae and even affect the upper back as the problem worsens.  

My concern is the piecemeal type of diagnosis this is, only addresses the symptom, which is really a gait issue.  This person was over and under striding (one leg is tight in back, the other tight in front causing a short stride one one side and a longer stride on the other) way before the symptoms appeared and likely ran and stretched through it.  Like most things mechanical, you can run it until it dies or fix it so it wont. The net effect is it torques the pelvis, causing a loss of leverage and your legs tighten.  Your stride shortens, you pull muscles, have problems in the calves and you mechanically have some real issues.  To fix this, you need to understand that this diagnosis of dead butt is just a symptom, rather than the problem.  You cannot, as many our runners know after visiting many practitioners who were not effective enough, fix this with a quick itis or osis diagnosis which sounds medically intelligent but hardly will lead to a solution, because of the lack of understanding of the gait mechanism that created it.  Enough said.


There is no such thing as a dead butt.  There is a thing called foot overpronation or supination or asymmetric gait which will cause this type of a problem. For those looking for a solution, you can email me directly at backfixer@aol.com.  I would be most happy to give you cost effective guidance on problems like this.


What do you think?  As always, I value your opinion