Drinking Soda Pop can Ruin Your Bone and Joint Health
In my San Diego Chiropractic office we see many people for neck pain, back pain, headaches and various other types of pain. In the summer time it is not uncommon to see many of those people walk into my office with a Big Gulp from the 7 Eleven across the street.
Sometimes I like to depart from the obvious when discussing the health of your spine. There are probably many of you who are reading this article while enjoying a tall glass of soda over ice.
This article should make you second guess EVER reaching for soda again.
Did you know that the average American drinks an estimated 56 gallons of soft drinks each year? Next time you are craving a soda, consider this: one can of soda has 10 teaspoons of sugar, 150 calories, 30 to 55 mg of caffeine, and is loaded with artificial food colors and sulphites.
Soda has absolutely no nutritional value. Studies have linked soda to osteoporosis, obesity, tooth decay and heart disease. Despite the long list of negative health effects, soda accounts for more than one-quarter of all drinks consumed in the United States, and its consumption is becoming more prevalent. In the last 10 years, soft drink consumption among children has almost doubled in the United States. It is estimated that teenage boys drink three or more cans of soda per day, and 10 percent drink seven or more cans a day. The average soda consumption for teenage girls is two cans per day, and 10 percent drink more than five cans a day.
Let’s take a look at the major ingredients in a can of soda:
• Phosphoric Acid: May interfere with the body's ability to absorb calcium, which leads to osteoporosis of the teeth and bones. Phosphoric acid neutralizes hydrochloric acid in your stomach, which interferes with digestion, making it difficult to utilize the nutrients from the healthy foods that we eat.
• Sugar: Soda manufacturers are the largest single user of refined sugar in the United States. Sugar consumption increases insulin levels, which lead to high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes, weight gain, premature aging and many other undesirable side effects. Most sodas include over 100 percent of the RDA for sugar. Think of the average teenage boy who has 3 cans per day!
• Aspartame: This chemical is used as a sugar substitute in diet soda. There are over 92 different health side effects associated with aspartame consumption including brain tumors, digestive problems, birth defects, diabetes, emotional disorders and epilepsy/seizures. When aspartame is stored for long periods of time or kept in warm areas it changes to methanol that converts to formaldehyde and formic acid. Both are known carcinogens. Formaldehyde is the stuff they preserve the dead with!
• Caffeine: Caffeinated drinks cause anxiety, insomnia, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, elevated blood cholesterol levels, vitamin and mineral depletion, breast lumps, birth defects, and perhaps some forms of cancer.
If you are still drinking soda, stopping the habit is an easy way to improve your health. Pure, filtered water is a much better choice. If you must drink a carbonated beverage, try sparkling mineral water.
From a chiropractors stand point, bone weakening is a major concern. As a chiropractor, I spend my days helping my patients improve the biomechanics of their joints. If the patients are consuming soda and engaging in other detrimental practices, our efforts become less likely to have desirable results.
Animal studies demonstrate that phosphorus depletes bones of calcium and two recent human studies found that girls who drink more soda are more prone to broken bones. Phosphorus appears to weaken bones by promoting the loss of calcium. With less calcium available, the bones become more porous and more brittle.
As long ago as a 1994 Harvard study of bone fractures in teenage athletes found a strong association between cola beverage consumption and bone fractures in 14-year-old girls. The girls who drank cola were about five times more likely to suffer bone fractures than girls who didn't consume soda. All of this is due to phosphorus consumption.
The potential damage of bone loss is compounded by the growing numbers of obese people in the United States. The combination of weakened bones with increasing body weight can certainly undermine our future health.
Trying to stop drinking soda is difficult. Both sugar and caffeine make soda an addicting substance. It is best to stop drinking soda by going “cold turkey”. Remember if you slip up to keep trying to quit.
Stop drinking soda today. Your body will be much healthier without it.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
ADJUSTABLE MOUSE PLATFORM Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav
Chiropractic San Diego Website to make an appointment
Better Health Steve Jones
Dec 28, 2009
Dec 18, 2009
Breathing with the diaphragm will unload the neck muscles
Breathing with the diaphragm will unload the neck muscles. Place one hand on your chest and one on your abdomen. With inhalation, make the belly push the hand outwards, and don’t move the chest hand at all. Inhaling through the nostrils and exhaling through the mouth will help you when practicing this exercise. Soon enough, you will do this naturally. This process is repeated over the course of five minutes, gradually working into deeper abdominal breathing without breathing into the chest at all.
This is a method of breathing that many singing coaches and people who teach meditation also offer their students. It can be practiced at home to start, and eventually you can do it in your workplace without attracting attention. Start and end each day with this exercise to afford more relaxation during the day and a more restful sleep. Once you get it down, you can use it to release tension at the office, in your car or even during a heated discussion. The hands will disappear, and this self-care skill you have learned will become a vital part of your day.
Another way to release tension from the neck is through slow neck rolls. In practicing this exercise, the rolling should be coordinated with the breathing so as not to carry your head back too far. The ear should never go behind the shoulder.
To start, sit comfortably in a chair with feet flat on the floor. Take a deep breath, and let your head fall forward toward your chest as you exhale. Slowly roll your head to the right as you inhale again, and exhale as you bring your head back to center. Now inhale as you roll your head to the left. Exhale as you come back to center again. Remember that this is a slow exercise. Breathing should be timed so that the ear is above the shoulder as full inhalation is reached. Again, do this for five minutes. You will be amazed at how the stress and tension drift away.
Sitting for long periods of time at a poor workstation causes the head to fall forward and out of alignment. This causes the muscles at the base of your skull to get tighter and tighter. This is one way that tension headaches begin. To get relief, all you need do is to let your head fall slowly toward your chest until tension is felt at the base of the skull. At this point, pull on the back of your head gently with one hand. Then look up into your eyebrows and take a deep breath. Hold the breath and hold the gaze for as long as is comfortable.
Then exhale and unfocus your eyes, letting the weight of your hand pull the head further downward as the muscles relax. As the tension increases at the back of your neck, repeat the motions again with looking up and inhaling. It is suggested that this exercise be repeated five to eight times whenever tension builds up at the base of your skull.
There is one more exercise that will help relax and strengthen your neck muscles. Let your head fall forward toward your chest until all the curve has been taken out of your neck. At this point, place one hand behind your head and push gently forward. Using your neck muscles, push the hand backward as the head is brought back and the chest brought up and forward. Pause for a second, and then slowly relax your neck and let the hand push the head forward again. Repeat this 10 to 12 times. Your neck muscles will get stronger over a period of time.
Don't forget to breathe!
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
ADJUSTABLE MOUSE PLATFORM Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav
Chiropractic San Diego Website to make an appointment
Better Health Steve Jones
This is a method of breathing that many singing coaches and people who teach meditation also offer their students. It can be practiced at home to start, and eventually you can do it in your workplace without attracting attention. Start and end each day with this exercise to afford more relaxation during the day and a more restful sleep. Once you get it down, you can use it to release tension at the office, in your car or even during a heated discussion. The hands will disappear, and this self-care skill you have learned will become a vital part of your day.
Another way to release tension from the neck is through slow neck rolls. In practicing this exercise, the rolling should be coordinated with the breathing so as not to carry your head back too far. The ear should never go behind the shoulder.
To start, sit comfortably in a chair with feet flat on the floor. Take a deep breath, and let your head fall forward toward your chest as you exhale. Slowly roll your head to the right as you inhale again, and exhale as you bring your head back to center. Now inhale as you roll your head to the left. Exhale as you come back to center again. Remember that this is a slow exercise. Breathing should be timed so that the ear is above the shoulder as full inhalation is reached. Again, do this for five minutes. You will be amazed at how the stress and tension drift away.
Sitting for long periods of time at a poor workstation causes the head to fall forward and out of alignment. This causes the muscles at the base of your skull to get tighter and tighter. This is one way that tension headaches begin. To get relief, all you need do is to let your head fall slowly toward your chest until tension is felt at the base of the skull. At this point, pull on the back of your head gently with one hand. Then look up into your eyebrows and take a deep breath. Hold the breath and hold the gaze for as long as is comfortable.
Then exhale and unfocus your eyes, letting the weight of your hand pull the head further downward as the muscles relax. As the tension increases at the back of your neck, repeat the motions again with looking up and inhaling. It is suggested that this exercise be repeated five to eight times whenever tension builds up at the base of your skull.
There is one more exercise that will help relax and strengthen your neck muscles. Let your head fall forward toward your chest until all the curve has been taken out of your neck. At this point, place one hand behind your head and push gently forward. Using your neck muscles, push the hand backward as the head is brought back and the chest brought up and forward. Pause for a second, and then slowly relax your neck and let the hand push the head forward again. Repeat this 10 to 12 times. Your neck muscles will get stronger over a period of time.
Don't forget to breathe!
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
ADJUSTABLE MOUSE PLATFORM Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav
Chiropractic San Diego Website to make an appointment
Better Health Steve Jones
Dec 8, 2009
Can Chiropractic Care Save Our Students
Can Chiropractic Care Save Our Students
Computer work gives me a pain in the neck! It probably gives you a pain in the neck too.
I graduated in 1991 and at the time I can say that I made it through school without ever owning a computer. I bought my first computer in 1995 and didn’t really start spending more than a few hours on it daily until maybe 2003. In this relatively short period of computer use, I have developed postural stress issues despite my efforts to keep it at bay.
I began practicing chiropractic in San Diego in 1993 and at that time my practice consisted of patients suffering from typical complaints. It was unusual to get patients that complained of neck pain, back pain, headaches or sciatica that wasn’t a result of some specific injury, auto accident or work injury.
Now my chiropractic patients are different. I still practice in San Diego and my patients still complain of neck pain, back pain, headaches and sciatica but these symptoms begin with a different type of injury.
And it is scary!
Most of the injuries that I see today are due to sedentary tasks. Most of these tasks involve computer use and postural stress. The scary thing about these injuries is that I hear from my patients with kids that their kids are using computers both at home and in school.
I know how computer work has affected me with less than 5 years of moderate use. Students of all ages are using computers for everything.
By the time today’s’ kids are in their 30s or 40s, they will have had over 20 years of exposure to the postural stresses associated with computer use. Considering the frequency with which I see computer related stress syndromes now, it is hard to imagine how much of these disorders will be seen in another 20 years.
The health of tomorrows computer users will rely on ergonomically designed work stations combined with stretching, exercise and chiropractic therapy to help relieve the effects of computer related postural stress.
Computer work gives me a pain in the neck! It probably gives you a pain in the neck too.
I graduated in 1991 and at the time I can say that I made it through school without ever owning a computer. I bought my first computer in 1995 and didn’t really start spending more than a few hours on it daily until maybe 2003. In this relatively short period of computer use, I have developed postural stress issues despite my efforts to keep it at bay.
I began practicing chiropractic in San Diego in 1993 and at that time my practice consisted of patients suffering from typical complaints. It was unusual to get patients that complained of neck pain, back pain, headaches or sciatica that wasn’t a result of some specific injury, auto accident or work injury.
Now my chiropractic patients are different. I still practice in San Diego and my patients still complain of neck pain, back pain, headaches and sciatica but these symptoms begin with a different type of injury.
And it is scary!
Most of the injuries that I see today are due to sedentary tasks. Most of these tasks involve computer use and postural stress. The scary thing about these injuries is that I hear from my patients with kids that their kids are using computers both at home and in school.
I know how computer work has affected me with less than 5 years of moderate use. Students of all ages are using computers for everything.
By the time today’s’ kids are in their 30s or 40s, they will have had over 20 years of exposure to the postural stresses associated with computer use. Considering the frequency with which I see computer related stress syndromes now, it is hard to imagine how much of these disorders will be seen in another 20 years.
The health of tomorrows computer users will rely on ergonomically designed work stations combined with stretching, exercise and chiropractic therapy to help relieve the effects of computer related postural stress.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
ADJUSTABLE MOUSE PLATFORM Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav
Chiropractic San Diego Website to make an appointment
Better Health Steve Jones
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