Emu Oil

Emu oil is a naturally powerful “transdermal carrier” which means that it penetrates through many layers of the skin. It has natural anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, healing, and moisturizing properties. Emu oil is a healthy, complex, topical or ingestible oil. In addition to reducing swelling and stiffness in joints, it reduces bruising and muscle pain. It is a rich source of essential fatty acids, Omega-3, 6, and 9. Emu oil is different then other topical superficial analgesics because it penetrates the skin and is actually able to get into the joint to reduce inflammatory properties as well as produce relief from pain. 

Handy Dandy Adjusting Tool! Chiropractors all over the place are familiar with anterior adjusting.  It is a safe and easy way to correct a fixation in the thoracic region of the spine. But for any chiropractor or student of chiropractic that has ever tried one of these adjustments on a patient, you will appreciate that sometimes it can hurt the doctor’s fingers.  Fortunatley there is a solution… two, actually. The first you might have heard about is the TepperWedge.  This is a great tool!  It works like a champ.  It saves the doctor’s fingers by sliding over them and providing support, while also securing a comfortable adjustment for the patient.  I love it!  And, it costs $139.95.  Ummm, wait…   That’s a shade steep.  Though I love it, and it does save the fingers, I want to share this pearl with you. Finger Savers!!  These beauties do the same thing but cost, wait for it, $2.  The other thing that I like about this option, beside the price, is the fact that the doc’s hand is on the segment and can feel the adjustment happen.  It’s a pretty cool thing.  So, if you were wanting an easy way to help save your fingers on your A-P adjustments, the Finger Saver gets my vote.  Check out the site below and happy adjusting! http://www.choatetables.com/products.htm

Handy Dandy Adjusting Tool!

Chiropractors all over the place are familiar with anterior adjusting.  It is a safe and easy way to correct a fixation in the thoracic region of the spine. But for any chiropractor or student of chiropractic that has ever tried one of these adjustments on a patient, you will appreciate that sometimes it can hurt the doctor’s fingers.  Fortunatley there is a solution… two, actually.

The first you might have heard about is the TepperWedge.  This is a great tool!  It works like a champ.  It saves the doctor’s fingers by sliding over them and providing support, while also securing a comfortable adjustment for the patient.  I love it!  And, it costs $139.95.  Ummm, wait…   That’s a shade steep.  Though I love it, and it does save the fingers, I want to share this pearl with you.

Finger Savers!!  These beauties do the same thing but cost, wait for it, $2.  The other thing that I like about this option, beside the price, is the fact that the doc’s hand is on the segment and can feel the adjustment happen.  It’s a pretty cool thing.  So, if you were wanting an easy way to help save your fingers on your A-P adjustments, the Finger Saver gets my vote.  Check out the site below and happy adjusting!

http://www.choatetables.com/products.htm

Prossage Heat This product I absolutely love!  My husband and I get muscle aches and pains from being over confident in ourselves at the gym, as well as from being torn up by old age (we’re 30 :) Anyway, he likes BioFreeze to give his sore muscles some relief.  I am allergic to it, so I have to use another good hot/cold therapy ointment called CryoDerm.  Both work great for helping the muscles to relax (the heat), and also numbing the pain (the cold).  Both are also good because they dry quickly. But this is about Prossage.  This is why we love it.  It is a warming OIL with the cooling properties you find in products like BioFreeze and Cryoderm…  You can work it into the soft tissues without it drying up too quickly.  Us chiropractic students feel a lot of fibrous buildup under the skin, most folks refer to them as “knots.”  One of the best things you can do for tender muscles is to find the knot and message it for a few minutes.  This breaks down the fibrous tissue and just flat makes you feel better.  Prossage is a fantastic product for just this scenario. To make a short story long… Prossage rocks!  I give it two enthusiastic thumbs up!

Prossage Heat

This product I absolutely love!  My husband and I get muscle aches and pains from being over confident in ourselves at the gym, as well as from being torn up by old age (we’re 30 :)

Anyway, he likes BioFreeze to give his sore muscles some relief.  I am allergic to it, so I have to use another good hot/cold therapy ointment called CryoDerm.  Both work great for helping the muscles to relax (the heat), and also numbing the pain (the cold).  Both are also good because they dry quickly.

But this is about Prossage.  This is why we love it.  It is a warming OIL with the cooling properties you find in products like BioFreeze and Cryoderm…  You can work it into the soft tissues without it drying up too quickly.  Us chiropractic students feel a lot of fibrous buildup under the skin, most folks refer to them as “knots.”  One of the best things you can do for tender muscles is to find the knot and message it for a few minutes.  This breaks down the fibrous tissue and just flat makes you feel better.  Prossage is a fantastic product for just this scenario.

To make a short story long… Prossage rocks!  I give it two enthusiastic thumbs up!

Textbooks for the iPad

Inkling is an application for the iPad that allows you to purchase certain textbooks.  They are constantly coming out with new textbooks, and have a large selection already.  There are quite a few textbooks for medical and chiropractic students already.  You have the choice to purchase the entire textbook or just purchase each chapter separately.  It is very interactive, it allows you to take self-assesment quizes to test your knowledge, zoom in on the images and much more.  Check out their website and get the application at www.inkling.com.

New Recipe App for iPhone and iPad

Jamie Oliver is an amazing chef and he finally came out with his new application for the iPad. The app is free and then you can purchase packages of recipes for only 99 cents. His recipes are all healthy recipes and he walks you through all of the steps to making your meals. He even has video tutorials to show you how to cook with different foods, or how to find the right foods to use.

Check out the application here.

The Speeder Board We all have one!  The speeder board by Thuli is used for extremity adjusting as well as improving adjustment speed.  Here’s the skinny: Pros Light weight Small size Easy to handle mechanisms Ajustable tension to increase or decrease resistance Sturdy build Versitile (I’ve seen it used on shoulders, wrists, feet and occiput.  Two drop piece sizes are available) Cons Price = $60.  Kind of steep especially if you are a student It is bulky and stiff; can be awkward during some patient placements.   Outside of school, I’ve never seen it used.   Practicing with the Thuli speeder board will help you develop fast twitch fibers in those muscles used for adjusting.  That would be a good thing.  Also, it gives the beginning adjuster (especially) the little extra umph she/he needs to thrust through a joint at tension.  It’s a good product, and overall worth the investment for any chiropractic student.  To order one, check out: http://www.thuli.com/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=5

The Speeder Board

We all have one!  The speeder board by Thuli is used for extremity adjusting as well as improving adjustment speed.  Here’s the skinny:

Pros

  • Light weight
  • Small size
  • Easy to handle mechanisms
  • Ajustable tension to increase or decrease resistance
  • Sturdy build
  • Versitile (I’ve seen it used on shoulders, wrists, feet and occiput.  Two drop piece sizes are available)

Cons

  • Price = $60.  Kind of steep especially if you are a student
  • It is bulky and stiff; can be awkward during some patient placements.  
  • Outside of school, I’ve never seen it used.  

Practicing with the Thuli speeder board will help you develop fast twitch fibers in those muscles used for adjusting.  That would be a good thing.  Also, it gives the beginning adjuster (especially) the little extra umph she/he needs to thrust through a joint at tension.  It’s a good product, and overall worth the investment for any chiropractic student.  To order one, check out:

http://www.thuli.com/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=5

The Future of Chiropractic & Athletic Performance »

Some talented and very clever folks at KinesioCapture are launching a new app for Docs, PT’s and coaches to help thier athletic clients perform at their highest level.  This incredible technology gives the doc and patient portability and real time results that can only help improve efficiency in diagnosis and performance.  Take a minute to check it out, odds are that this is how the future of health assessment will look!  

~MK

Gotta Love the Neti Pot »

So recently someone asked me “Hey, have you ever used a Neti Pot?”  For those of you that have no idea what a Neti Pot is, I will explain.  For thousands of years, quite literally, eastern medicine has been using nasal irrigation to treat ailments like colds, allergies and mild sinus infections.  Recent studies suggest that nasal irrigation might even prove helpful with chronic conditions such as sinusitis or allergic rhinitis.  

Here’s what you do…  Take some warm water (not too warm because this is going up your nose) and mix with a small amount of table salt.  Stir to dissolve.  Fill your Neti apparatus with the saline mixture and find a place with a drain because this can be a shade messy.  Now tilt your head and lean forward as you squirt the solution in your nasal cavity.  Flush both sides.  For those of you doing this for the first time, be warned, it can sting just a bit.  Be brave though, it’s really worth it!

Here’s how it works…  The warm saline solution fills your nasal cavity and essentially cleans out the bacteria filled mucous and allergy causing agents.  The solution breaks it loose and pushes it out.  The saline part is important because our bodies secrete fluid that is similar to saline. 

Here’s why it’s great…  Flushing out the bogies with the irritants will give your body a little extra boost in healing time!  The less irritation your body has to fight off, the faster you start feeling better.  Should you have an infection, this might take a few days or weeks.  But the immediate benefit is that you should start to breath easier immediately after the treatment with the Neti Pot.  Plus you can feel good about doing it because it is a natural alternative to using chemical nasal sprays or drugs that can make you sleepy or keep you up at night.  

Advice… A true Neti Pot can cost as much as $40.00.  Grab a .99 cent squeeze bottle from your local grocery store.  It works just as well!

Happy Flushing!

~MK