Every day I hear patients explain to me that they have pain and they don’t know how it happened.  Many medical doctors explain to their patients  that they have arthritis that has formed in their spine and other joints.  The patient is concerned with how it got there, but most doctors say it’s part of aging.

As a chiropractor in Freehold, NJ, it is important for the public to be educated on how this happens.  Seeing people from all over Monmouth County, NJ in the towns of Marlboro, Howell, Colts Neck, Jackson, Morganville, Freehold and Manalapan, NJ, they always ask:  Is it from the stress of their work?  From playing golf for 20 years?  Sitting at desks in school for years on end slouching?  Or maybe the car accident many years ago?

The answer is.. it is more likely to be from the accumulative affects of all of these stresses to the body.  From the time you are born, the medical doctors pulls and twists your neck and shoulders to deliver you.  Then as an infant you start to learn how to walk… how many times do you think you fell?  Do you have brothers or sisters?  If so, did you wrestle or trip each other as a joke?  As you get older you sit in classrooms with bad postures or carry backpacks that are too heavy for the spine.  Did you play any sports and take a hard fall or tackle?  Think of the trauma of just a little fender bender.  Do you carry a pocket book or briefcase on a daily basis?  Have you ever missed that last step or curb?

I think you get the point that every little thing builds up in your body, causing the joints to misalign.  So, the real question with arthritis and spinal degeneration is not what you did, but what you haven’t done!  Joints wear down faster when they are not aligned properly… they are stuck and not moving well.  That’s why it is important to be under chiropractic care to get the joints aligned properly and keep them moving.

A great analogy to consider is your car:  As you drive your car, your wheels become misaligned especially if you hit a pothole or a curb while parking.  If you keep driving with them misaligned, the car starts to pull to one side, the tires wear out unevenly, and other parts of the car start to break down.  You don’t keep driving like that if you want your car to last long enough.  Also, every 3 months or 3500 miles or so we are informed to take the car in for maintenance, oil, lube and filter.  Neglecting your car for this maintenance, you will build up expenses to fix things and the car won’t last as long as you want, your fuel efficiency decreases, you will have to keep replacing tires, etc.

Some research shows that arthritis starts to form after a joint is misaligned for as little as 2 weeks.  Just like a cavity in the teeth, if it isn’t caught early enough it will progressively get worse.  You know that waiting to fix these things costs a lot more money than if you had just prevented it from happening.

Blaming the activities in your life for arthritis is like blaming the sidewalk for scuffing your shoes.  Everything wears down naturally as we use them, including your spine.  If you focus more on prevention with regular maintenance chiropractic care, you can help slow down arthritis and other forms of wear and tear.  Most people get this concept when it comes to their teeth:  their teeth don’t hurt, but they get their teeth examined one to 2 times a year and cleaned, brush their teeth daily and floss to prevent decay.  If you didn’t do this, teeth would decay as part of normal aging too!  But it can be prevented with proper care.

Well your spine is a dynamic system that protects the most important system of your body.. your nervous system!  Your nervous system controls all functions of your body.  Many activities, stress and nutritional choices affect your spine and nervous system!  Your teeth can always be replaced, but your spine and nervous system CANNOT!

In our office we take a different approach to your health than any other health professional in the area!  As a chiropractor, we make sure your spine is aligned and properly balanced so your nervous system functions optimally.  On top of that, Dr. Brokstein, DC also analyzes your body for stress, adrenal function and the toxicity of your body.  We are the ONLY doctor in Monmouth County, NJ to have state of the art FDA cleared biofeedback to analyze your body for over 160,000 sensitivities and stressors.  We educate our patients on healthy eating, weight loss and exercise.   Prevention NOW is more cost affective and helps avoid harmful drugs that at best just cover up symptoms and surgery.  Don’t wait and get your spine and health checked today!