Graph available here.

Sometimes we hear and see patient stories that just blow our minds. 

This is one of those stories.  And it has to do with black mold exposure.

We are so happy that Rebecca has been able to make a full recovery with an all-natural, holistic protocol that has yielded incredible results.  This type of protocol falls under the realm of Functional Medicine, which is a natural way to treat disease and dysfunction.  

This is her story:
​

​References: 
Lee SY, Kim TH, Oh JK, Lee SJ, Park MS. Lumbar Stenosis: A Recent Update by Review of Literature. Asian Spine J. 2015 Oct. 9 (5):818-28.
Kalichman L, Cole R, Kim DH, Li L, Suri P, Guermazi A, et al. Spinal stenosis prevalence and association with symptoms: the Framingham Study. Spine J. 2009 Jul. 9(7):545-50.

Matthew D. Spaur, D.C.
Thrive Health Systems
4671 Centennial Blvd
Colorado Springs, CO 8019
(719) 476-0873

Sources:
 

1.  Wishnofsky M. Caloric equivalents of gained or lose weight. Am J Clin Nutr. 1958;6(5):542-546.

1.  Roesch, Darren M. "Effects of selective estrogen receptor agonists on food intake and body weight gain in rats." Physiology & behavior 87.1 (2006): 39-44.
2.  Luger, D., et al. "Association between weight gain, blood parameters, and thyroid hormones and the development of ascites syndrome in broiler chickens." Poultry science 80.7 (2001): 965-971.
3.  Russell‐Jones, David, and Rehman Khan. "Insulin‐associated weight gain in diabetes–causes, effects and coping strategies." Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism 9.6 (2007): 799-812.
4.  Doerr, Peter, et al. "Relationship between weight gain and hypothalamic pituitary adrenal function in patients with anorexia nervosa." Journal of Steroid Biochemistry 13.5 (1980): 529-537.
5. Svetkey, Laura P., et al. "Comparison of strategies for sustaining weight loss: the weight loss maintenance randomized controlled trial." Jama 299.10 (2008): 1139-1148.
6.  Heilbronn LK, de Jonge L, Frisard MI, et al. Effect of 6-Month Calorie Restriction on Biomarkers of Longevity, Metabolic Adaptation, and Oxidative Stress in Overweight Individuals A Randomized Controlled Trial. JAMA. 2006;295(13):1539-1548. 
7. Soeliman FA, Azadbakht L. Weight loss maintenance: A review on dietary related strategies. Journal of Research in Medical Sciences : The Official Journal of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. 2014;19(3):268-275.
8. (RLM) Redman LM, Heilbronn LK, Martin CK, de Jonge L, Williamson DA, Delany JP, et al. (2009) Metabolic and Behavioral Compensations in Response to Caloric Restriction: Implications for the Maintenance of Weight Loss. PLoS ONE 4(2): e4377. 

 

Do you know what text neck is? Have you ever heard of it before? Text neck is the term used to describe the neck pain and damage sustained from looking down at your cell phone, tablet, or other wireless devices too frequently and for too long. Our brains require movement from our joints, called proprioception, for optimal function. The smart phones that we carry in our pockets are having a dramatic impact on how our brains function.

Nerve input into your brain is created when you move around throughout the day. This input is so important to brain health that problems with proprioception have been linked to autism spectrum disorders.
 
Our Cumming Chiropractors know that a deficiency of healthy nerve input to your brain can occur a number of ways. The most common being c-section births involving a lot of pulling on the infants neck, or severe repeated falls that change the spines shape throughout childhood.
 
A new issue that is arising with alarming frequency is what we call “text neck.” The largest amount of proprioception in our body comes from the joints in your neck, called facet joints. When you have a healthy cervical arc in your neck you help ensure proper proprioception from your spine up into your brain. When you lose the arc in your neck due to falls, accidents, or by sitting with your head down in your phone for hours on end each day, your brain pays a price.
 
Of course, this posture of bending your neck to look down does not occur only when texting. For years, we've all looked down to read. The problem with texting is that it adds one more activity that causes us to look down—and people tend to do it for much longer periods. It is especially concerning because young, growing children could possibly cause permanent damage to their cervical spines that could lead to lifelong neck pain and the essential proprioception up to the brain.
Text neck most commonly causes neck pain and soreness. In addition, looking down at your cell phone too much each day can lead to:

• Upper back pain ranging from a chronic, nagging pain to sharp, severe upper back muscle spasms.
• Shoulder pain and tightness, possibly resulting in painful shoulder muscle spasm.
• If a cervical nerve becomes pinched, pain and possibly neurological symptoms can radiate down your arm and into your hand.

Cumming Chiropractors know that the genius behind the chiropractic adjustment is that it helps to correct misalignment of the spinal joint as well as increasing proprioception. Every adjustment stimulates the nerve endings in your spinal facet joints to help simulate and fire off proprioception up into your brain.
 
Chiropractic also helps to restore the healthy arc that is supposed to be in your neck so that your brain is receiving the proper input throughout your day.
 
How is text neck treated?
First, prevention is the key. Here are several pieces of advice from our Cumming Chiropractors to prevent the development or advancement of text neck:

• Hold your cell phone at eye level as much as possible. The same holds true for all screens—laptops and tablets should also be positioned so the screen is at eye level and you don't have to bend your head forward or look down to view it.
• Take frequent breaks from your phone and laptop throughout the day. For example, set a timer or alarm that reminds you to get up and walk around every 20 to 30 minutes.
• If you work in an office, make sure your screen is set up so that when you look at it you are looking forward, with your head positioned squarely in line with your shoulders and spine.

The bottom line is to avoid looking down with your head bent forward for extended periods throughout the day. Any prolonged period when your head is looking down is a time when you are putting excessive strain on your neck.
Next, correction of the misaligned structure is extremely important.

• A complete examination and consultation to access the strength, integrity and alignment of the spine is the first step for correcting this condition.
• You also need to have strong core muscles—the abdominal and lower back muscles—to support your upper body, including your neck. Your core muscles usually do not get enough exercise during normal daily activities, so you need to do specific exercises to target these muscles.
• Strong and flexible muscles in the neck are necessary to minimize strain on your cervical spine and help support the weight of your head.    

Avoidance is the best strategy, but unfortunately there are many people walking around with “text neck” type spinal issues. For a complete exam and consultation to determine if you can be helped with your neck pain and weakness please call Thrive Health Systems at 770-667-0099.  We are located at 4914 Atlanta Hwy in Alpharetta, GA.     

Fertility is a term that is often times difficult to understand.  Many women are pregnant without any thought, and others on average may take up to 12 months to become pregnant. Our Naturopathic Doctor in Atlanta shares some ways to boost fertility naturally. 

1. Minimize your exposure to toxic chemicals
Exposure to environmental toxins (in the form of industrial chemicals) both in utero and neonatally may dramatically affect adult fertility. Most chemicals used in everyday life do not go through the same checks medicines do. Consequently; poisonous chemicals end up circulating in our environment, food supply, air and water. Occasional exposure to one of these chemical is not of concern. What is of concern is accumulation of these chemicals over a long period. Come in for toxic metal testing with our Naturopathic Doctor in Atlanta today.

2. Try to drink filtered water whenever possible
Unfortunately, our waterways are constantly being polluted by industrial waste and byproducts, pharmaceutical drugs, pesticides and herbicides and commercial cleaning products. Heavy metals are the most common form of toxins, reaching our water supply through industrial waste, jet fuel exhaust residue and a variety of other sources. And increasingly pharmaceutical drugs are increasingly being detected in tap water.

3. Aim to eat an optimal fertility diet
An optimal fertility diet is about what to avoid as much as it is about what to include. A fertility diet should be as fresh and organic wherever possible. Key elements include: good quality protein sources and; good fats. Here is a suggested list of types of foods to consider:
§  Organic meat in small quantities, small deep sea fish like sardines and red snapper, organic legumes home cooked (not canned).
§  A gluten free diet consisting of brown rice, nuts, seeds, vegetables and fruit in season, organic where possible.
§  Increase your consumption of good fats and avoid dangerous fats. Good fats include; monounsaturated fats in olive oil, polyunsaturated fats in oily fish and nuts and midchain fatty acids found in coconut oil.
§  For cooking use clarified butter (ghee) or coconut butter (without flavor) as they do not become unstable when heated.
§  For non heated oil requirements (salads etc) use cold pressed olive oil, flaxseed oil and nut oils.
 
4. Avoid trans fats
Did you know that consuming trans fats hidden in foods, such as doughnuts, biscuits, candy, chocolate, chips, pies, fries, and thousands of other foods may increase your risk of infertility by as much as 70%? Scientists from the Harvard University School of Public Health advise women wanting to get pregnant to avoid all trans fats. Trans fats are mostly listed as ‘hydrogenated fat’ or ‘hardened vegetable fat’ or simply ‘vegetable fat’.

5. Minimize animal derived estrogens
Dairy products account on average for 60-70% of estrogens consumed. Humans consume milk from cows in the second half of pregnancy when cows estrogen levels are high. We usually associate dairy and drinking milk with calcium, and never think about what else we may be consuming along with it (and dairy, by the way is not the best source of calcium). Hormones that have been found in cow’s milk include prolactin, somatostatin, melatonin, oxytocin, growth hormone, lutenizing releasing hormone, thyroid stimulating hormone, estrogens, progesterone, insulin, corticosteroids and many more. Do you think an excess consumption of all these hormones could disrupt your own hormonal balance? You bet! Consumption of milk has been linked to certain cases of male infertility.

6. Avoid the two most common allergens
The link between food intolerances and anti-sperm antibodies is now well established. Studies have found that women with multiple allergies and food intolerances were more likely to miscarry. An overactive immune system is more likely to attack its own body cells. From an immunological point of view an embryo and sperm cell are foreign bodies. But Mother Nature was clever; she programmed our immune systems to distinguish between an everyday invader and a sperm cell or embryo.
The two most widely spread food intolerances are gluten and dairy. I recommend all my patients have an IgG immunoglobulin test done to check if you are dairy and gluten intolerant. But since most people have some level of allergy to gluten and/or dairy, it’s advisable to avoid gluten and dairy altogether during the preconception and pregnancy period.

7. Have an STD check
Most people believe both they and their partner are STD free. However there are some STDs which can be asymptomatic, meaning that you may not be aware you have them, as there are no obvious symptoms. One such STD is a Chlamydia infection. In men, a Chlamydia infection can lead to sperm abnormalities including sperm antibodies. In women, it can lead to scarring, blocked tubes and miscarriage. Most STD’s are easy to treat, so it pays for both partners to have an STD check.

8. Implement stress reduction exercises into your daily wellness routine.
It is has been confirmed that stress has an enormous negative influence on our reproductive health. In addition, difficulties with trying to conceive produce as much stress as someone facing a life-threatening health problem or situation. It’s imperative to implement strategies to reduce stress on a daily basis. There are plenty of ways to do this, and include such things as regular exercise, deep breathing techniques, yoga or other slow-stretching exercises, and meditation.

9. Minimize intake of coffee and alcohol. Stop smoking immediately.
The studies and research findings of the effects of coffee on your fertility are mixed. But one study showed an alarming result. It found as little as 1 cup of coffee per day increases the risk of not conceiving by 55%. Try switching your daily caffeine with a healthy alternative like green tea. Alcohol has also been shown to be harmful to women’s eggs and men’s sperm. And although it’s been known for a long time that drinking while pregnant is a no-no, drinking before pregnancy has been largely ignored.
Smoking and recreational drugs can also reduce your odds of conception. A study tested the effects of cigarette smoking on semen quality in men and found that sperm motility (ability to propel forward) decreased in light smokers while heavy smoking produced abnormal sperm shape. Scientists have discovered that quitting smoking may increase sperm count in men who quit smoking for 5-15 months by 50% – 800% respectively.

10. Take a good quality preconception and pregnancy supplement
Regardless of whether you are eating organic produce and a healthy diet, you are unlikely to be getting all the nutrients your body needs for optimal fertility from your diet. This is why supplementation is important. Getting pregnant and growing a new human being with your own reserves, requires a surplus of nutrients and energy. In your body’s accounting terms, pregnancy is a luxury, a splurge of energy and nutrients. Opt for a prenatal vitamin with Methylated B12.

​To learn more information call our Naturopathic Doctor in Atlanta at 770-667-0099.

We are almost done with January, if you have stuck with your health and fitness resolutions so far then WAY TO GO!! Usually a few weeks into a new program 1 of 2 things start to happen. 1. You hit a Plateau and don’t know where to go from there. 2. You become obsessed with THAT number on the scale!

As your Nutritionist in Alpharetta I am going to discuss the later, and why the number on the scale should not define your progress. Yes the scale is a great tool to use occasionally to track your goals, but that number does not determine your worth or the effort that you are putting in!

Being a Nutritionist in Alpharetta there a few factors and patterns I look for when tracking progress:
​

1. Sleep Patterns- When adapting to a new Fitness and Diet regiment your sleep patterns will normally improve. Sleep plays a big role in both weight loss and your body functioning as a whole. So once your body is regulated to a new routine, your sleep patterns should improve.
2. Digestion- Incorporating a new diet is usually a shock to the system! Especially if you go from Taco Tuesdays, and Wine not Wednesdays to following a strict meal plan, and eliminating inflammatory foods from your diet.  Your body won’t make the change overnight, but once it does you will notice such a big change in how you metabolize your food and how it affects you on daily basis!
3. How your clothes Fit- Now this has to be my favorite! Yes the scale shows a number drop but does it make you feel and look better in that little black dress, or the tailored suit? I don’t think so! The way you feel in your clothes determines how you feel throughout the day. If you feel confident you will portray confidence!
4. Improvement in your conditioning - If you see the  strength in your body improving, or if  you can run a longer distance, not get out of breath while chasing your kids, take that class at the gym that you were always terrified of then those are true results!

By limiting yourself to just focusing on that number you are losing track of all the hard work you have put in. No one else can see that number but you! But they can see hard work, dedication, and focus. Being your Nutritionist in Alpharetta I am here to help you hoan in on your goals and to focus on the real reason why you want to achieve them. Get past that number and focus on living a healthy life!

​If this is something you are interested please reach out to our amazing staff here at Thrive Health Systems! We are here to help! Please visit our website www.thrivehealthsystems.com or give us a call at the office 770-667-0099

Our hips perform many functions for our body; they keep us upright, allow us to bear weight, walk smoothly, run, jump, and kick. Since the hips are engaged in nearly every way we move, pain in this area can affect everyday life. While hip pain can be the result of injury or osteoarthritis, it can also be due to other health conditions. Our Cumming chiropractors can help you identify the source of your hip pain and develop a tailored treatment plan for condition.
 
Common Causes of Hip Pain:
 
Overuse Injuries
Constant use and wearing of the soft tissue lining of the hip joint can cause arthritis and inflammation. This can also place stress on the hip and cause inflammation of the muscles, tendons, and ligaments surrounding the hip. This type of pain can develop gradually overtime.
 
Trauma
Much more obvious than overuse injuries, fractures and dislocations of the hip or pelvis are easier to detect since they usually are result of direct trauma and can be seen on X-ray. Even if no bones actually break, the ligaments and muscles in the hip area can be strained, sprained, or bruised with direct trauma. These injuries can still cause significant pain.

Overuse Injuries
Heavy wear and tear on the cartilage surrounding the hip joint can cause arthritis and inflammation. Routine daily activities that place stress on the hip can also cause inflammation of the muscles, tendons, and ligaments surrounding the hip. This type of pain can develop gradually overtime.

Inflammation
Hip pain can come from within the hip joint itself or from the structures and ligaments surrounding the joint. The hip itself has limited space to move in its socket. If for any reason the hip or joint becomes injured it will cause inflammation in this space. This space then can become filled with fluid or blood, causing pain. There are also sacs outside of the joint called bursa, if these inflame pain usually occurs.

Osteoarthritis and Inflammatory Diseases
No matter the age of a person, if an injury to the hip bone occurs it can begin a process of degeneration. This degeneration is called osteoarthritis and it is the most common cause of hip pain. It involves a cycle of progressive cartilage loss and joint degeneration. While degeneration and changes to the bone can not be reversed it can be slowed down and prevented from getting worse.  Other inflammatory diseases can also cause hip pain like rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, or inflammation of the spine.
 
Referred Pain and Other Sources of Hip Pain                                       
Often what patients describe as “hip pain” may actually derive from a different part of the body. Some patients that experience pain in the lower back and hips may actually be suffering from dysfunction of the sacroiliac joints, or the joints that connect the sacrum to the iliac bones. Pain in the groin and hip can also be a result of a hernia, when the abdominal wall is torn or weakened.
One of the more common types of referred pain is sciatica, or inflammation or irritation of the sciatic nerve. This can result from conditions like disc herniation, spinal degeneration, narrowing of the spine due to osteoarthritis, or Piriformis syndrome. Irritation of the nerve root can cause pain the in low-back, buttocks, hips, as well as radiating leg pain.
 
How Chiropractic Can Help Hip Pain
After performing a careful physical examination and evaluating your personal history, our Cumming chiropractors can work to determine the source of your hip pain. We create a personalized treatment plan that could include chiropractic adjustments, decompression, cold laser, exercise therapy, posture advice, stretching, massage, coordination with other health practitioners, and more. Treatments will aim to reduce inflammation, relax any existing muscle spasms, strengthen weakened muscles, and improve the mobility of the joint. Depending on the cause of your hip pain, chiropractic adjustments could help.

Multiple studies have found that chiropractic adjustments are effective in relieving sciatica, a common cause of pain in the hip and lower back.  In a study comparing the efficacy of chiropractic to surgery for sciatica, 60% of chiropractic patients with severe sciatica had substantially improved symptoms that enabled them to avoid surgery. Cases studies have also suggested that chiropractic can relieve pain associated with sacroiliac joint dysfunction and Piriformis syndrome, which both frequently result in hip pain.
 
Some patients with hip osteoarthritis have also benefited from chiropractic care. In one study, 83% of these types of patients improved within nine visits to a chiropractor. Natural treatments of hip pain can allow patients to avoid the costs and risks of surgery and drugs.  
 
So if you or someone you know suffers from hip pain then get in touch with the Cumming Chiropractors at Thrive Health Systems In Alpharetta GA. We are located on Atlanta Hwy. You can begin your journey back to health and create an amazing year for yourself by calling us at 770-667-0099. Let’s make it your healthiest year ever!