Exploding the Myth that Chiropractic Care is not Scientific

Exploding the Myth that Chiropractic Care is not Scientific

Chiropractors have always sought to provide the safest and most effective healing methods for their patients. In order to achieve this, the chiropractic profession has been dedicated to conducting scientific studies to improve their diagnostic methods and treatment techniques. In the last 20 years chiropractic health care has established an impressive array of scientific research that demonstrates the efficacy, safety and cost effectiveness of chiropractic care. There are many further studies currently underway, and several have been performed by medical doctors and government researchers in both the U.S. and a number of other countries.

In fact, the chiropractic profession has accumulated a greater number of scientific trials on chiropractic than the medical profession has accumulated for many of the treatments rendered by medical doctors. According to David M. Edy, M.D., Ph.D., professor of health policy and management with Duke University, North Carolina, only 15 percent of all medical interventions are supported by solid scientific evidence. Paul G. Shekelle, M.D., M.P.H., of the RAND Corporation made the following statement on ABC's 20/20:

"There are considerably more randomized controlled trials which show benefit of this (chiropractic care) than there are for many, many other things which physicians and neurosurgeons do all the time."

Lake Worth chiropractor Dr. Craig Selinger has gone through extensive training prior to opening his chiropractor in Lake Worth Florida practice in 2006. His specialties include acupuncture in Lake Worth, deep tissue massage in Lake Worth, pinched nerve pain and similar conditions.

Education for Chiropractic Doctors

Education for Chiropractic Doctors

If you’ve decided to visit Lake Worth chiropractor Dr. Craig Selinger, who is also a chiropractor for Lantana residents, you might wonder where he got his education and how his training differs from that of a medical doctor.

The training and education endured by chiropractors is extremely thorough and demanding, similar to that of medical doctors with the exception of pharmacology and surgery.

Prior to entering chiropractic college, the aspiring chiropractor requires 2-4 years (depending on the college attended and the state one wishes to practice in) of premed undergraduate studies. Once completed, the student must next complete 4-5 academic years of studies at a chiropractic college. This includes extensive training in anatomy, physiology, pathology, neurology, radiology, differential diagnosis, chiropractic adjustive techniques, biomechanics , and other health-related studies.

In addition, prior to graduation each student must successfully complete several hundred clinical hours of "real" patient management in a clinical setting under professional supervision. Most chiropractic colleges also require students to partake in clinical externship programs which place them in actual chiropractic offices, further enhancing their clinical practice skills.

Near or soon after graduation, the new doctors of chiropractic must successfully complete rigorous National and State Board examinations prior to obtaining a license to practice chiropractic. Once licensed, most states require that chiropractors receive annual continuing education to ensure that a high level of competency is maintained.

If conditions such as neck pain in Lake Worth, low back pain in Lake Worth, pinched nerve pain or shooting leg pain in Lake Worth are bothering you, please consider scheduling an appointment with Lake Worth chiropractor Dr. Craig Selinger. He received his doctor of chiropractic degree from Life Chiropractic College in 1996. He attained a Bachelor of Science degree from State University of New York at Binghamton. He has completed training in acupuncture, active release technique and neuromuscular re-education.

Exploding the Myth that Spinal Adjustments Are Dangerous

Exploding the Myth that Spinal Adjustments Are Dangerous

If you are considering visiting a Lake Worth chiropractor, you might be concerned that spinal adjustments are dangerous.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  Whether you are experiencing back pain in Lake Worth, neck pain in Lake Worth or shooting leg pain in Lake Worth, you’ll definitely want to consider scheduling an appointment with Dr. Craig Selinger. 

Chiropractic spinal adjustments are extremely safe when performed by chiropractors. In fact, chiropractic adjustments are among the safest treatments for most back and neck problems. According to a 1993 Ontario Ministry of Health commissioned study,

"There is no clinical or case-control study that demonstrates or even implies that chiropractic spinal manipulation is unsafe in the treatment of low-back pain. Some medical treatments are equally safe, but others are unsafe and generate iatrogenic (doctor-induced) complications for low-back pain patients. Our reading of the literature suggests that chiropractic manipulation is safer than medical management of low-back pain."

Lead investigator of the study, Pran Manga, Ph.D., however, did warn that spinal adjustments performed by health care professionals other than qualified doctors of chiropractic were potentially harmful and less effective:

"Indeed, several existing medical therapies of low-back pain are generally contraindicated on the basis of the existing clinical trials. There is also some evidence in the literature to suggest that spinal manipulations are less safe and less effective when performed by nonchiropractic professionals."

On December 8, 1994, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) of the US Department of Health and Human Services released clinical practice guidelines for the management of acute low back pain. Their guidelines were developed after extensive study of the diagnostic and treatment methods used for acute low back pain. Their findings included:

• The risk of serious complications from lumbar spinal manipulation is rare;
• Conservative treatment such as spinal manipulation should be pursued in most cases before considering surgical intervention;
• Prescription drugs such as oral steroids, antidepressant medications and colchicine are not recommended for acute low back problems.

What Type of Mattress Should You Buy?

What Type of Mattress Should You Buy?

The mattress you sleep on has a lot to do with your spine health.  If you are sleeping on a bed that doesn’t offer adequate support, you could wake up with pinched nerve pain, back or neck pain in Lake Worth, or even shooting leg pain in Lake Worth.  Dr. Craig Selinger, a caring and motivatedchiropractor in Lake Worth, FL, talked to Rick, a manager at City Mattress, to help people learn more about the mattresses available today and which kind might be right for them.  Here are some highlights from their conversation:

Dr. S: What are some of the different kinds of mattresses that are out there?

Rick: Well, you’ve got your traditional mattress, which is coil springs, and specialty, which would include air, water and foam. Foam is the area where we’re seeing the biggest increase in sales.  In general, you’re going to have Tempur-Pedic type mattresses with memory foam and latex mattresses, such as the prana sleep mattresses.  Not a real big fan of water or air.

Dr. S: I’ll tell you, water mattresses, they do not support your spine properly.  There’s no resistance and plus, you know what, they’re just way too ‘70s. I mean the next thing you’re going to see is some guy wearing a leisure suit. So [water mattresses] are something I definitely try to avoid from a lot of perspectives – it’s bad for your back, and I think bad for your social life. 

But some of the other mattresses we have.  You mentioned the Prana mattress, which I thought was an excellent mattress and it’s a new technology that’s out there.

R: Prana sleep has asked Latex International to produce a proprietary foam for them, one of the highest quality foams in the industry – it has the most amount of rubber in it.  That will give you the most amount of lift or buoyancy in a mattress so you get plenty of support and very little pressure. What’s different with a prana sleep than a Tempur-Pedic type mattress is that with prana sleep you don’t feel like you’re stuck in the mattress; you don’t sink in really deep into the mattress like you might with a Tempur-Pedic type mattress. 

Dr. S.: You feel like you’re a turtle on your back, and you can’t tip over.

R: Both are excellent quality products. Most times it comes down to whether the customer likes, which comfort they like, one or the other. Both mattresses would be superior to an innerspring mattress because they would give less pressure.  There are some excellent innerspring mattresses out there, they give you plenty of support but you get the pressure.

Dr. S.: Right

R: If you’re very sensitive, you’re better off going with a foam type mattress.

For more information, stop by a City Mattress location near you or call the offices of Lake Worth andPalm Beach chiropractor Dr. Craig Selinger.,

Hangover Help

Hangover Help

Dr. Selinger makes it clear that he does not condone the use of alcohol or drugs, but he knows there are times many of us may over indulge.  “Alcohol can cause a lot of health problems, it can also cause car wrecks, it can cause liver damage and unwanted hook ups,” the Lake Worth and Palm Beach chiropractor says. “But I know a lot of people are going to be out there drinking and I have some tips to alleviate some of the hangover symptoms you’re going to be feeling the next day.”

Here are his tops tips for dealing with the pain of a hangover:

• Don’t drink more than one drink per hour.
• Make sure you drink a lot of water. When you drink, you dehydrate your body.  Water will help you hydrate. 
• Avoid coffee. Caffeine is a diuretic – what that will do is add to your dehydration and increase the symptoms of the hangover.
• Sweat it out.  You can go for a brisk walk, sweating some of the toxins out of your body is going to be helpful. Don’t overdo it though.   And make sure you do this when you’ve had a lot of water.
• Avoid pain killers.  Painkillers such as Tylenol have acetaminophen which is bad for your liver.  Your liver has been working overtime.  We don’t want to put fuel on the fire. So try to avoid that.
• Take vitamins – especially B6, and vitamin C. They’re going to help you as well. 
• Eat fruit. Fruit has fructose which is helpful in metabolizing alcohol.
• Snack while you’re drinking.  This is going to also help you.
• Make sure you sleep in, get enough rest.  Lay in a dark room because light can increase the effects of a headache. 
• Be safe, be healthy and make sure you don’t do any David Hasselhoff impersonations because, look, YouTube videos last forever.  

Most importantly, if you are going to indulge, don’t under any circumstances drink and drive! Dr. Selinger has seen patients injured because of a drunk driver.  As a car accident chiropractor, he can help some of them – but not all. 

If you think you have been injured in a car accident, you can rely on Dr. Selinger, a leadingchiropractor in Lake Worth. In addition to chiropractic adjustments, Dr. Selinger also offers deep tissue massage in Lake Worth from his offices at 7749 Lake Worth Road.  He also provides acupuncture for Lake Worth area patients. Dr. Selinger has helped patients suffering from pinched nerve pain, shooting leg pain in Lake Worth, back and neck pain. Lake Worth area residents don’t have to live with pain (unless, perhaps, they are severely hung over – and then it’s only temporary.)

Low Back Pain Travel Tips

Low Back Pain Travel Tips

There are a lot of ways you can injure yourself when you travel – you can take a tumble on the ski slopes, burn your hand while roasting marshmallows on a campfire or get a sunburn after a week in the islands.  You can also find yourself longing for your chiropractor in Lake Worth, FL, before you even arrive.

If you’re not careful, a plane trip can lead to pinched nerve pain, neck and back pain for Lake Wortharea residents flying the not-so-friendly skies. Lake Worth chiropractor Dr. Craig Selinger has some tips that will help keep you healthy when you fly.

“One – avoid the last aisle in the plane,” he says. “Those seats typically don’t recline back. It’s very uncomfortable and all that weight is on the L5/S1, the lower part of your spine. Also, they’re usually close to the bathroom, which isn’t a nice experience.”

Another great idea he says is to request a seat in the emergency exit row.  “Usually you’ll get twice the amount of legroom. It’s easier to get up and it’s easier to stretch.” 

If you can’t get the exit row (or, if you’re only 5’2” and you feel guilty denying someone taller all that lovely legroom), you can reserve an aisle seat.   “If you sit in the aisle seat you’ll be able to get up, stretch and move around more,” says Dr. Selinger – who also offers acupuncture in Lake Worth. 

The good doctor, known to some for his skill as a car accident chiropractor, also recommends that you drink lots of water.  “When we fly, we dehydrate.  If we drink lots of water, it will hydrate us and it will fight the effects of jetlag. Also, the cabin has almost no humidity, so drinking water will help our body adjust to that pressurized cabin,” he explains.

Dr. Selinger’s fifth tip is to use a lumbar support pillow.  If you’re lucky enough to find one of the small pillows the airlines provide, that will work.  To be on the safe side, you may want to bring one of your own.  If you forgot to pack something and there are no available pillows on the plane, try rolling up a sweater or jacket and using that instead.  Whatever you’re using, you’ll want to put it right in the small of your back, then Dr. Selinger says, “Sit back with your shoulders back and that will help preserve the natural curve in your lower back.”

Lugging Luggage Safely

Lugging Luggage Safely

It wasn’t that long ago that people actually had to carry their suitcases wherever they went. It was definitely an incentive to pack light, but there are times when each of us has a heavy load to carry. And that, of course, resulted in lots of sore backs, pinched nerve pain and neck pain in Lake Worth and other communities in Palm Beach County.

Looking back, it’s surprising nobody came up with the idea of putting wheels on our luggage sooner.  But even now, when you can roll your suitcase down a long terminal with ease, luggage can still pose a threat to your spine health and the fun you’re planning to have on your trip.

“So many of my patients injure themselves while traveling, typically by lifting luggage or sitting in the plane seat,” Lake Worth and Lantana chiropractor Dr. Craig Selinger says.

If you want to be in good shape to enjoy your vacation or family visit or be at your best for the business meeting you’re traveling for, Dr. Selinger has some advice on the proper way to place your carryon baggage in the overhead bin.

“The first thing we want to do is get close to our luggage and we want to bend our knees and we want to lift our luggage keeping our back straight,” the Palm Beaches chiropractor says. “And then we want to put it onto the chair of the plane. We want to make sure the overhead compartment is open. We want to take the luggage by the top handle and we want to bend our knees, get close to it, lifting it with both hands [one grabbing the top handle and one hand placed underneath the bottom of the bag] from our chest. And then placing it into the overhead compartment.”

Getting that bag down is a bit easier but you still need to be careful, Dr. Selinger says.  “When we’re taking it down, we want to lift it again using two hands – one on the top handle and one at the bottom of the bag by the wheels.  As you lift it, keep it close to your body. Bring it down onto the chair. Then to get it on the ground, you get close to it, lifting it by the handle, and then bend at the knees, placing it down.”

Dr. Selinger will be there for you if you come home with shooting leg pain to Lake Worth or are in need of deep tissue massage in Lake Worth following your trip.  But, if you want your trip to be a good one, he says, “The key things are bending your knees, keeping your back straight, ask for assistance if you need it. If you do these things, you’re going to be less likely to injure your back on your trip”