San Diego Chiropractic Blog

As a chiropractor who cares for people who typically have a more holistic approach to their health and diet, I see my patients sabotage their efforts to become healthy on a regular basis. I have long contended that treating people for neck pain, back pain and headaches is much easier than trying to instill a dietary change or an exercise plan. Some of my chiropractic patients indicate poor planning leading to drops in blood sugar resulting in poor food choices while others just like the taste of their favorite fast food.

Eating habits are funny things. They are very hard for most of to control. I have always been a thin 6 foot 190 pound guy. I can’ tell you how many people think that I am just one of those “blessed” people who can eat anything they want to without gaining weight. Unfortunately for me, they would be wrong. Watching my diet is a daily chore. One thing that has helped me is the fact that I exercise and that I am keenly aware of how long I will have to exercise in order to work off any sweets that I eat or Mexican foods that I indulge in.
With this in mind, I came across a neat little article that covered what some of our chain-food favorites will cost us in time spent doing common exercises. These excerpts are from the Diet Detective who has authored several books on the topic.

Note: Calorie content of foods are based on official website information at the time of publication. Minutes of exercise are averages based on a 155-pound person. The greater the weight of the person the more calories burned per minute.

DONUT
Dunkin Donuts Chocolate Frosted Donut (230 calories)
59 minutes of walking (3 mph).

BREAKFAST SANDWICH
McDonald’s Egg McMuffin (300 calories)
32 minutes of running (5 mph).

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE
Panera Chocolate Chipper (440 calories)
62 minutes of biking (10-11.9 mph).

PIZZA
Pizza Hut Large Hand-Tossed Style Cheese Pizza (1 slice; 320 calories)
39 minutes of swimming (slow to moderate laps).

CINNAMON ROLL
Starbucks Cinnamon Roll (500 calories, varies by location)
85 minutes of dancing.

HAMBURGER
Burger King Original Whopper With Cheese (770 calories)
94 minutes of swimming (slow to moderate laps).

BROWNIE
Au Bon Pain Chocolate Chip Brownie (380 calories).
129 minutes of yoga (Hatha style).

FRIES
Wendy’s Large French Fries (540 calories)
77 minutes of biking (10-11.9 mph).

ICE CREAM
Häagen-Dazs Vanilla Ice Cream (0.5 cup; 270 calories)
29 minutes of running (5 mph).

BURRITO
Taco Bell Burrito Supreme, Beef (410 calories)
70 minutes of dancing.

The next time you think that eating these foods once in a while won’t hinder your efforts to see your abs again or fit into the bikini, think again. Not only will indulging in these treats hamper your quest for a lean physique, but they will also lead to weight gain which is known to cause heart disease, back pain, sciatica and many other disorders – some of which can be treated with chiropractic and some that can’t. I hope that you found this information entertaining and helpful.

Have a Great Day!

Dr. Jones
San Diego Chiropractor

(619) 280-0554

Chiropractic care is more than just adjusting the spine.  The philosophy of chiropractic includes care of the entire body - a large portion of this care includes nutrition.   Chiropractors use a holistic approach, meaning that when you have neck pain, we not only treat your neck but we also look for the cause of your neck pain.  Sometimes that neck pain is due to a simple misalignment of a vertebra, somtimes it occurs secondary to postural stress and sometimes there are nutrition causes.  If we don’t examin all of the potential causes of your neck pain, back pain or headaches, then treatment may be quite ineffective.

Regarding nutrition, my understanding of the nearly immediate impact of a healthy diet on my own body was recently re-booted.  I have been on a strict diet of non-processed whole foods and a supplement regimen from Standard Process for the last 21 days.

At the onset of this program I imagined that when it was finished that I would no-doubt eat an occasional piece of pizza or a burrito or have a Sunday morning cup of coffee to satisfy my cravings. Well, my thoughts have changed and my cravings are gone!

This has become the jumpstart for the lifestyle change that I have desired and pursued for many years. The following is a list of some of the more noticeable changes that this program has made for me.

1) Noticeable reduction in anxiety

2) Significant decrease in blood pressure

3) Sleep is much improved

4) Complete loss of my cravings for coffee, sugar and fattening foods

5) Increased energy levels through my day

6) No more bloating or indigestion after meals

7) My pants don’t fit anymore - I lost 15 pounds.

 Much more stable blood sugar levels - no more crashing!

9) Significant decrease in knee pain, ankle pain and neck pain.

As a chiropractor, I have always encouraged my family, friends and patients to maintain their spinal health through regular chiropractic care and to pursue a healthy lifestyle. I am embarrassed to say that even though I maintained a diet that would be considered much healthier than the average persons prior to the start of this Detox - Purification - Weight Loss Program, I really wasn’t healthy.

I would encourage all of you to examine your lifestyles, especially those of you over 30. If you are eating fast food, drinking coffee and / or soda and eating processed foods out of cans / boxes you need to consider a lifestyle change. No one wants to be fat and ill when we get older. But that is exactly what the typical diet supports!

I can’t imagine reverting back to my old eating habits after completing this program. The taste of my favorite Mexican food, that occasional cold soda on a hot day or that warm morning cup of coffee doesn’t even begin to compare to how my new eating habits have made me feel. That old diet was easy and fast - and totally not worth the ill health that came with it.

The combination of eliminating the intake of unhealthy foods with the powerful Detox / Purification provided by the Standard Process Supplements and the undeniable benefit of consuming fresh fruits, vegetables and lean animal proteins like fish and chicken have made both Linda and I feel like completely new people.

Those of you who would like to go through the Standard Process Purification program should call the office or just come in and talk to us about what you need to get started.

The cost for the supplements that you will need for the entire 21 day program is reasonable - the benefits of completing the program are Priceless!

Your’s In Good Health

Dr. Jones

San Diego Chiropractic Care
Chiropractor San Diego

I have always considered myself a fairly healthy person. Until I started taking inventory of all the things that really bother me. To begin with, since I am a chiropractor I will declare that I have my bouts with neck pain, back pain and the occasional headache but for the most part I am pain free. Since college I have suffered from a mild case of office hypertension - meaning that my blood pressure was borderline high but I attribute that to the anxiety I get from taking my blood pressure. Another thing worth mentioning is that some days I would get a little spacey from mild hypoglycemia, but this would only happen on days where my diet suffered from poor planning. Finally, I have another chiropractor in my office so I get regular chiropractic care which keeps my spine flexible and functional. On a superficial level, compared to many people that I know, overall my health looked OK.

One day here about two weeks ago my assistant Linda told me that she had a representative from Standard Process coming to the office to discuss nutritional products for our patients. At the time of this appointment, I really had no expectations of where this would go. I figured that since I exercised and ate right (for the most part) that we would be discussing products for my patients.

By the time the appointment with the Standard Process representative ended both Linda and I had committed to doing a 21 day purification program. It was at this point where I really started looking at my diet. What I found was that vegetables and fruits were a good part of my diet but so were bean rice and cheese burritos, occasional cheeseburgers, potato chips, an occasional soda pop and lots of coffee. All of this stuff would have to go under the guidelines of the purification program. Basically, the purification program involves taking whole food supplements to stimulate the kidneys, liver and intestines to eliminate toxins, supplementing whey protein for animal protein sources and eliminating all caffeine, dairy and processed foods.

Today is the thirteenth day of our purification program. I am embarrassed to say that even as a doctor with extensive schooling in nutrition that I have been taken back by the dramatic positive changes in my health as a result of this purification program. To begin with, what I thought was office hypertension is gone. Since the third day of this program my blood pressure reading has ranged from a low of 115/74 to a high of 121/80. This reading is accompanied by a calmness that I have rarely if ever felt as an adult. In addition to lower blood pressure, my digestion is significantly better - no more bloating, my blood sugar has been stable and my sleep is much improved.

I attribute these improvements in my health to three simple changes that seem so elementary. Stop putting junk in, eat a clean healthy diet and get the toxins stored in our bodies out.

I have been asked what I plan to do after the 21 day program is over. At this point, I can’t imagine not continuing with a healthy diet and taking whole food supplements. The taste of that BRC burrito or that morning cup of coffee will not be missed in the least.

The chiropractor finally got healthy!

Your’s In Good Health

Dr. Jones

San Diego Chiropractic Care
Chiropractor San Diego

A good chiropractic program should include a nutrition component. Treatment for neck pain, back pain and headaches goes beyond spinal adjustments and therapy. Poor diet choices have the ability to cause inflammatory processes in the body resulting in a magnification of the typical aches and pains that we develop while sitting at our desks all day. In my San Diego Chiropractic Clinic, I see patients on a regular basis who would do much better with their treatment if they would address their physical complaints with the appropriate dietary changes as well.

One of the most recent trends in natural health care is detoxification diets. There are many detoxification programs on the market. I have been familiar with Standard Process over the course of my chiropractic career. Standard Process has been in business for over 80 years and they have always been held in high regard for their top quality, natural whole food supplements. My assistant, Linda, took the initiative to call Standard Process and have a representative come discuss their purification process with us.

The purification program that they offer is an extreme departure from my normal diet. While I eat fruits and vegetables on a regular basis, this diet restricts you to fruits and vegetables for the first 10 days supported by nutritional supplements and protein shakes that cleanse the body of toxins. This cleansing process is initiated by supplements that help stimulate the liver, kidneys and intestines.

At this point we are ten days into our purification program. Aside from a day spent with a mild caffeine withdrawal headache and a few cravings that I battled for the first few days this has been less than a painful process. I actually don’t miss the morning coffee, Mexican food and pizza. If you were standing in front of me right now and asked me how I am feeling I would say that “I feel better than I have in twenty years”. And I wouldn’t be exaggerating.

As a result of the first 10 days of this purification, my blood pressure is lower than it was when I was 20, my neck pain and back pain have noticeably improved, my digestion is much improved, my sleep is better than it has ever been in my adult life and I have lost 12 pounds of fat and bloat. This program definitely has supplied the building blocks on which I will become healthier and leaner.

Your’s In Good Health

Dr. Jones

San Diego Chiropractic Care
Chiropractor San Diego