Commercial Drive - East Vancouver Chiropractor; Dr. Dominic Chan DC - "How Chiropractic Works (In Everyday Terms)"

This is a very important question and one that many people have of Chiropractic, especially those that have never been to one. So how does Chiropractic work?

I've heard people and even patients say to me, "Chiropractors 'crack' bones, re-align your joints and then you feel better". Well, although that's not entirely wrong, it's just the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

What's missing in this description is the understanding that your nervous system plays an even bigger role. Let's put it this way. Most people will seek the help of a Chiropractor when they feel pain or discomfort. Ever stop to think what exactly is going on here? Well, pain is your body's way of telling you that, 'something's wrong' and you need to address it. "Pain" is how your brain interprets the signals it gets from the rest of your nervous system. Like cars travelling on a highway, your nervous system is how your brain and the rest of the body communicates with each other.

Now most people have experienced a traffic jam before. Cars and trucks just stuck and going nowhere. But a few miles ahead is a three car pile-up. This small accident can have a significant effect on traffic for miles. This accident can even stall traffic going the other way!

Well imagine if something similar occurred with your nervous system. The signals traveling along your nerves like cars on a highway can become 'stalled' or interrupted. Now a chain reaction occurs resulting in your body feeling "PAIN!!".

Now how Chiropractic works simply is to help to restore function! Chiropractic works to keep your nervous system working well and making sure there is no irritation or 'roadblocks' along this information highway. Chiropractic care can help to reduce inflammation in irritated tissue thereby restoring normal function and reducing pain.

This can be done without the use of drugs, which often just temporarily mask the symptoms. It's like tricking your brain into thinking there's no problem at all.

Hopefully this explanation helps to get people thinking differently about pain. More importantly, I hope it helps you to understand how Chiropractic works!

If you have questions or comments, get in touch with your COMMERCIAL DRIVE - EAST VANCOUVER CHIROPRACTOR HERE!!

Commercial Drive - East Vancouver Chiropractor: Dr. Dominic Chan DC - "Chiropractic Is Cost-Effective In Treating Chronic Back Pain, Study"

This study from the United States wanted to compare the cost effectiveness of Chiropractic care compared to standard medical interventions for people suffering from back pain.

A little background first; in the U.S. alone, "back-pain" costs the American economy an estimated $48 billion a year. A staggering amount and one that underscores the prevalance of this problem. It is also estimated that at any given time, 80% of the population will be suffering from back pain.

Now back to the study. The researcher followed 2780 patients with mechanical low back pain who referred themselves to either Doctors of Chiropractic or General Practitioners. The cost of treatment and also the patient's satisfaction of care were monitored at 3 and 12 months after their initial visits.

The study found that initially, Chiropractic care cost more, however when additional costs involving medical care was factored in such as; advanced imaging, physical therapy, and specialists, Chiropractic care quickly became more cost-effective.
More importantly, when asked about their satisfaction of care, the respondents rated Chiropractic care more favorably than those who opted for standard medical care.

Important to note was that both choices for low back pain treatment involved physical activity and exercise, however it appears that Chiropractic patients fared better in the long term (ie. at 12 months) than patients who saw a General Practitioner. All things being considered, this study strongly suggests that Chiropractic is not only a viable treatment option for patients suffering from low back pain, but for a medical system as a whole, a cost-effective one as well!

Click here to visit the website of your COMMERCIAL DRIVE - EAST VANCOUVER CHIROPRACTOR; DR. DOMINIC CHAN DC

Commercial Drive - East Vancouver Chiropractor: Dr. Dominic Chan DC - "Let's go Biking!"

Well the summer is here in full force and what better way to enjoy the outdoors than to go for a bike ride.

Luckily, Vancouver is a city that has a multitude of bike paths and parks that are bike friendly. In addition, the city has introduced a dedicated bike lane on the Burrard bridge going into and leaving the downtown core.

Bike riding is a great cardiovascular exercise. It works the major muscles of your legs and hips. In addition to being easy for most people, bike riding is also a fun activity you can enjoy alone, or with friends!

In practice, I actually encourage my patients to ride bikes because many of them have recurring or acute lower back and hip issues. I find that riding bikes is great for them not only for the exercise but for proprioception of their muscles too. That's to say, once you're on a bike and pedaling, you become very aware of tightness or muscular imbalances regarding your hips and lower back. This can actually help patients to become more aware of their bodies and can help to gauge their progress and recovery.

If you need more information, please visit the website of your YOUR COMMERCIAL DRIVE - EAST VANCOUVER CHIROPRACTOR!

Commercial Drive - East Vancouver Chiropractor; Dr. Dominic Chan DC: Sitting Can be Hazardous to Your Health!

Do I have your attention now? That's right, researchers have found a link between the amount of time you spend sitting in your day and your mortality rate.

Researchers asked 17,000 people, "How much do you spend sitting in your typical day?". They then followed the respondents over the next 12 years and compared their mortality rates. What they found was truly astounding. They discovered that those people who spent half of their day sitting, had a significantly increased risk of dying from ANY cause!! They also found that those respondents who sat the most during their day, had a 54% increased risk of dying in the 12 years following compared to the people who sat the least.

But here is the sobering component. The results were independent of whether you were old or young, smoker or non-smoker or even if you were over-weight or not. Meaning the risk of sitting too much can not be completely removed by your activity level.

So what are some things you can do right now to lower your risk?

- Start moving around more. Take periodic breaks from your computer and walk around. The study even suggests that spending some time standing at work can even be helpful. ie. standing while you're on the phone.

- Look for ways you can be more active at work. Examples include, taking the stairs or even parking your car further away from the entrance so you get just a bit more exercise each day.

- Looking for alternative ways to commute. ie taking public transit to work or biking.

For more information, visit the website for your COMMERCIAL DRIVE CHIROPRACTOR IN EAST VANCOUVER

Commercial Drive - East Vancouver Chiropractor; Dr. Dominic Chan DC: " A Chiropractor to tell your friends about"

You know what I love about practice? It's when you help a patient and they are so happy and grateful for your care that they say, " You know, my husband/wife/brother/co-worker etc. could really use your care. Do you accept new patients?"

I mean wow! what an awesome compliment. I think it's a great honor to treat the loved ones of my existing patients. But this actually got me thinking, " How many of my patients are referred to me by existing patients or other health care professionals?".

So I went about tabulating the data. I decided to review my records for the first six months of this year. Here are the results from January to June 2009;

New Patients referred from existing patients: 63%
New Patients referred from Healthcare professionals: 22%

Even I was a little surprised that the vast majority of new patients to my practice are referred by existing patients or other health care providers such as; family doctors, physiotherapists, massage therapists, naturopaths and even dentists!!!

Thanks again everyone!

As always, if you're in the COMMERCIAL DRIVE AREA OF EAST VANCOUVER, DR. DOMINIC CHAN DC IS NOT FAR AWAY!!

Commercial Drive - East Vancouver Chiropractor; Dr. Dominic Chan DC - FYI: Diabetes

Sometimes I get questions from patients about various health concerns. Since I get questions about Diabetes a couple times a month, I thought I'd write about it. More specifically, I will talk about Type II Diabetes and things you can do to lower your risk of developing it.

First off, Type II Diabetes is sometimes also called, Adult onset Diabetes. Basically what happens is that your body needs to produce a hormone called Insulin, in order to properly use glucose. Glucose is a form of sugar your body can use for energy. Common sources of glucose include things like pasta, rice, bread, milk and fruit. But for patients that develop Type II Diabetes, their Pancreas doesn't make enough Insulin, or the body doesn't properly use the Insulin it makes.

This can cause a lot of trouble for these patients as the levels of glucose increases in the body. Some problems associated with Type II Diabetes include; cardiovascular disease, kidney failure, blindness and even nerve damage that can lead to amputations.

So what are some of the things you can do right now to lower your risk?

- Visit your doctor and find out what your levels of blood glucose are. Once you know where you're starting you can find out what your risks are. Note, if your parents have Type II Diabetes, you definitely want to watch your blood glucose levels as there appears to have a strong genetic component to Type II Diabetes.

- Watch your consumption of sugar and especially refined sugar. We are talking about things like Soda, Candy, processed breads and white pasta for example.

- Exercise!!! Studies have shown that exercise can help you to control your blood sugar levels.

- Eat 5-6 small meals per day. Eating like this can also help to normalize your blood sugar levels and help to control weight.

Unfortunately, I can only give you a brief introduction to Diabetes here but if you have any questions, please visit my website, COMMERCIAL DRIVE - EAST VANCOUVER CHIROPRACTOR and you can message me!

Commercial Drive - East Vancouver Chiropractor; Dr. Dominic Chan DC - FYI: "The Good, The Bad and The Nutty"

Sometimes I get a craving for the munchies. You know what I mean? food that you can just pick at while you're enjoying your favorite show. Well, the next time you feel like this, put down the chips!.....and reach for some nuts!

Nuts are power packed for their size. Some studies have suggested that adding nuts to a diet that is low in saturated fats and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease. A ha! but there's a catch. The type of nuts that were studied are restricted to; almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts, pecans, pistachio nuts, walnuts and pine nuts. (Sorry all you Macadamia nut lovers)

Now although nuts can be high in fat, the fat is considered a "heart healthy" or unsaturated. This type of fat may help to lower your LDL levels, also known as the "bad" type of cholesterol.

One more tidbit of healthy information. A study conducted on women who ate nuts found that those who ate 5 or more, one ounce servings of nuts per week, reduced their risk of developing Type II diabetes compared to women who ate few or no nuts at all. Wow! that's a huge difference. However, it must be said that if you are going to add more nuts into your diet, it's best to choose wisely. The "flavored" nuts ie. BBQ flavored will probably be more harmful than good. The flavoring and all that added salt will just do you more harm than good. So be choosy and smart about your nuts!!

As always, visit the website of your COMMERCIAL DRIVE CHIROPRACTOR IN EAST VANCOUVER HERE!