Chiropractic Care Can Ease the Challenges of Aging

Aging: Not very appealing, but better than the alternative.

Aging typically accompanies a host of physical symptoms we’re not crazy about, but these symptoms vary widely. Some folks are slowed down and shuffling at 60, while others are still backpacking or playing tennis until they’re 90. We’d like to be in that second group — how about you?

Chiropractic treatment can actually help people age gracefully, healthfully and pain-free. While it probably won’t reverse your graying hair, it can keep you feeling and moving better as the years roll by.

COMMON ASPECTS OF AGING

One stereotype of aging which is too often true, is deteriorating posture. Corrective chiropractic care can help keep the spine moving freely and holding the head erect. This helps the body move with ease, and supports good balance, which is important as falls and fractures become increasingly serious to the aging body.

Joint diseases often accompany aging. The Canadian Chiropractic Association states that 50% of chronic conditions in people 60 or over are joint diseases such as arthritis and bursitis. Chiropractic care can help keep joints in proper alignment, promoting smoother function, increased range of motion, and flexibility. These qualities also promote more easeful movement, better balance, and better ability to avoid falls, as well as to sustain fewer injuries when falls do happen.

THE PROBLEM WITH PAIN

People who experience less pain and greater ease of movement as they age are much more likely to keep engaging in exercise, which is good for physical health as well as a healthy state of mind. Aging isn’t so bad when you can keep enjoying the activities which have brought you fulfillment through life, whether that means golf, skiing, traveling or other pastimes. These activities typically accompany fuller social lives and a generally improved sense of well-being.

Physical pain causes an increase in cortisol, the body’s stress hormone. Both macro traumas such as falls and car accidents, and micro traumas such as bad posture and back pain, cause physical nerve stress which invites increased cortisol release. Sustained elevated cortisol levels have been associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease and insulin resistance. Chiropractic care can help treat pain directly, and it can help keep the body feeling good so you can stay active into old age.

OXIDATION, INFLAMATION AND AGING

Lastly, let’s talk about oxidization.

Oxidative stress results from free radicals outnumbering the body’s antioxidants-that’s why there’s been such emphasis on incorporating anti-oxidant powerhouses like blueberries into the diet. Oxidation damages all body cell components: DNA, proteins, and lipids.

The Journal of Vertebral Subluxation (JVSR) published a study in 2005, citing evidence that chiropractic care can reduce oxidative stress. The study focused on thiols, sulfur-containing compounds in the body that act as antioxidants. They react with and neutralize free radicals.

Serum levels of thiols reflect our DNA’s ability to repair itself, and are one way to measure disease and aging status. Briefly, the study found that regular chiropractic care was associated with higher serum thiol levels. Higher thiol levels equals fewer free radicals, less inflammation, and less disease.

EASE AGING WITH CHIROPRACTIC CARE

We’re living longer than ever. Baby boomers are turning 65 at the rate of 10,000 per day, and today’s life expectancy of nearly 79 years is nearly double the predicted lifespan in 1880. Drug-free, conservative healthcare like chiropractic can play a vital role in minimizing pain and maximizing wellness for an aging population.

If you’d like to get the jump on aging, call us at Life Wellness Center. We can help treat your pain and alignment issues so you can enjoy an active lifestyle and better health for years to come.

 

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