At The Winchester Institute we focus on the whole health of our patients. One of the topics we encourage our patients to talk more about is their diet. Other important topics we dig deeper into are how we need to stress less, sleep more, and maintain physical activity.

The Basic Do’s and Don’ts of Gut Health:

What does being healthy mean to you?  We all have different ideas of what the word health means to us. We often think of health as lack of a symptom or as a feeling. Our medical dictionary says that in order to be healthy, we have to have a complete balance of chemical, physical, and social well-being. Health is not merely the absence of disease. You see, our health is one big complex system and it is a cascade of reactions. Mostly, due to our choices. As long as we are making healthy choices, they compound upon each other and lead to really well results. Similarly, when we make bad choices, they compound one upon the other. Once inflammation begins and overpowers our immune response, we end up with an illness, a symptom, or a “gut feeling” (no pun intended) that something just isn’t right. 

Thoughts, Traumas, and Toxins

Preventative medicine agrees, there are three causes of disease: emotional/ physical stress, environmental/dietary toxins, and macro/micro trauma to our tissues, bones, and cells. We like to think of these as the three T’s: Thoughts, Traumas, and Toxins.

It is widely understood Vitamin D is vital for strong bones, but there are many additional ways in which Vitamin D can be essential. Vitamin D is important for neuromuscular function, immune health, disease prevention, and avoiding depression. Vitamin D has been diagnosed as deficient in the majority of North Americans.

The sun is one of our primary sources of Vitamin D. However, during the winter months, when the sun is not as abundant, it becomes especially important to know the other sources in which you can receive Vitamin D. Supplementation and certain food choices are key to making sure that your body has the proper levels of Vitamin D.  Food items such as cod liver oil, mackerel, salmon, tuna, egg yolks, and beef liver contain higher levels of Vitamin D. These options may not be the most favorable meal items for some, which makes supplementation that much more important.  Our Vitamin D supplements, in liquid or pill form, are pharmaceutical grade and can provide the necessary dosage of Vitamin D to prevent any deficiency. Our vitamin and supplement manufacturers only sell to licensed physicians and certify the quality and validity of their ingredients and product labeling...

Many of my patients initially come to The Winchester Institute in pain and with loss of function.  In the initial phases of care, my focus is on pain reduction and restoring function.  Once the patient is feeling better, I often get the question, “Doctor, if I’m no longer in pain, why do you still want to see me?”

There are many reasons why regular Chiropractic Care is important for a patient’s overall health and wellness, but one of the effects of Chiropractic adjustments I find particularly amazing is that adjusting the spine changes the brain.

Some people are generally surprised to hear that we take care of such young patients.  However, the truth is whether you have a large spine or a little one, if there is improper or hindered communication throughout the nervous system then our body is unable to function at 100%.

Our body’s nervous system is the controller. When communication channels become aggravated, distorted, or damaged we may experience significant or subtle communication errors. In babies, this ineffective communication may present as colic, irritability, poor breast feeding, and poor sleep habits. In toddlers and children, poor nerve communication may result in developmental delays, lack of concentration, behavioral problems, digestive issues, and asthma to name a few in a long list of possibilities.