Friday, June 10, 2011
Dr. Christine Anderson Demonstrates Inversion Therapy
Dr. Christine Anderson, a Los Angeles based pediatric-chiropractor, recently acquired and inversion table for her waiting area. Patients can literally "hang out" while waiting and prepare their spines for adjusting at the same time! Inversion tables basically reverse the effects of gravity just as yogic postures, such as head, shoulder, and handstands do, but with an inversion table you are able to regulate the degree of inversion and stay inverted longer.
Benefits of Inversion:
Take Pressure Off the Spine/ Spinal Pain Relief
Inversion therapy uses your own body weight as a natural form of traction, elongating the spine and increasing the space between the vertebrae. Inverting can decrease the pressure on discs, joints, ligaments and nerve roots, which can relieve neck, back, and other spinal pain.
Tense muscles are able to relax and toxins flush through the lymphatic system with as little as 25° inversion, for even a few minutes. The faster toxic waste is cleared and oxygen is supplied to the muscles, the faster stiffness and pain can disappear. A study conducted by physiotherapist L.J. Nosse found that, "EMG (electromyographic) activity, an indicator of muscle pain, declined over 35% within ten seconds of assuming the inverted position."1
Dr. Anderson states," After working out and adjusting patients all day, my back is usually tight. Since I have been inverting for a few minutes everyday, I notice that my back stiffness has significantly decreased and I expect my weekly adjustments will hold longer!"
Better Posture
As a wellness based chiropractor, Dr. Christine Anderson performs a posture exam on every new patient. "Posture is suffering as a result of our modern lifestyle. Car accidents used to be the number one reason I would see a loss in the curve of the neck, but now I also see disruption of posture caused by improper computer set ups, hand held games and phones which you can text and play games." Inversion tables help to encourage good posture by encouraging the normal "s" curve, along with using a supportive pillow, some posture retraining exercises, and regular chiropractic care.
Enhance Disc Hydration & Relieve Disc Pressure
The discs that sit between the vertebrae in your spine are important as they provide spinal flexibility, shock absorption, and create space for your spinal nerves. Disc separation is important as the body depends on the information from your nervous system to control and coordinate all its functions, including self healing. Insufficient distance between the vertebrae can result in nerve root pressure and pain. Over time, gravity will cause the discs to lose fluid. In fact, you are ½ to ¾ inches shorter at the end of the day than in the morning. When you lie down, disc pressure remains at 25%, but inverting to 60 degrees reduces the disc pressure to zero.2 Inverting is the most effective posture that allows your discs to recover from the constant pressure placed on them during your daily activities.
Recover from Workouts
So, exercise is good for your, right? Yes, but nearly every activity involves some form of compression of the spine, especially high impact sports such as running, weightlifting, aerobics, skiing, biking. One-sided activities, such as golf, water skiing, tennis, bowling, racquetball, and baseball involve rotation of the spine in one direction under pressure, which can cause damage to the discs and joints as well as overdevelopment of the muscles on one Inversion after physical activity may with spinal realignment, along with chiropractic care, in order for you to keep exercising at higher levels for longer periods of time. Inversion can also help with post workout soreness by using gravity to flush lactic acid out of the body faster.
Strengthen Ligaments
Ligaments your bones together and flexible but not very elastic; this means they can tear when they are stretched too much. The tension that is put on the ligaments when you invert helps to gentle strengthens ligaments and connective tissue, which helps to protect you from serious injury while exercising.
Relieve Stress
Inverting can be rejuvenating and can also help to reduce muscle tension. A study conducted by physiotherapist LJ Nose found that EMG activity (a measure of muscle tension) declined over 35% within ten seconds of inverting. Inversion, therefore, is helpful in relieving tension and pain in your muscles that may have been caused by stress.
Stimulate Circulation
The heart is a muscle that pumps oxygenated blood it receives from the lungs and nutrients to all your body's cells. Un-oxygenated blood and waste then comes back through the venous system; the movement of blood through your veins is dependent on the action of surrounding muscles to move the blood back to the lungs and heart, as well as a series of valves to prevent blood from backing up. Venous blood coming back from the legs and torso has to work against gravity; inverting takes the pressure off the valves in the lower body and helps to refresh the circulation. Inverting allows the blood in your limbs and lower body circulate more easily, which may help to drain blood from varicose veins and hemorrhoids.
Anti-Aging
Notice how people tend to shrink as they age? Most people will lose from 1/2" - 2" in height during their lifetime due to thinning discs. As a baby, your discs are 90% water, but by age 70, the water content in the discs decreases to 70%. An active inversion program can help prevent shrinkage by helping the discs maintain their height.
Over time, gravity causes the internal organs to descend, causing "middle age spread" or a "spare tire" around the waist (in addition to any weight gain). Digestion or waste elimination issues, such as constipation, can by symptomatic of organs that have prolapsed. Inversion helps prolapsed organs resume their normal shape and place in the body by reversing the effects of gravity.
Peter Russell notes in The Brain Book that the deterioration of the brain is not directly linked to age alone, but is caused by hardening of the arteries and high blood pressure, both of which decrease the supply of oxygen to the brain. It stands to reason, then, that by inverting, you can increase the oxygen supply to your brain which may help maintain your brain function and mental sharpness. Chiropractic care also helps to increase blood flow to the brain due to the fact that subluxations or misalignment of the vertebrae in the neck can compress the vertebral arteries which pass through holes in the vertebrae; there are also many studies which have proven that chiropractic adjustments can help decrease blood pressure. (NOTE: If you have high blood pressure, consult your physician before starting an inversion program.)
The uterus is held in place inside the pelvis by ligaments. These ligaments may become overstretched due to gravity, high impact exercise, childbirth, and pelvic misalignment. For women, especially those who have given birth, prolapsed of the uterus, bladder or rectum may become an issue. Pregnant women could benefit from a 30 degree angle of inversion in order to reduce in utero constraint of the fetus and prevent or help with a baby that is breech. (Pregnant women should consult their health care provider before inverting.) For those women who are having difficulty getting pregnant, uterine position may be an issue. And for those women who are having bladder issues, taking the pressure off by inverting could be a godsend. "In the past I have used Maya Abdominal Massage and chiropractic adjustments to help with optimal uterine position. Now I am also recommending patients invert in order for the gravitational stress to be removed from the pelvic organs," states Dr. Anderson. For more information on Maya Abdominal Massage and Webster In Utero Constraint Technique, go to www.kidchiropractic.com
1 Nosse, L: Inverted Spinal Traction. Arch Phys Med Rehab 59: 367-370, Aug 78.
2 Nachemson, A and Elfstrom, G; Intravital Dynamic Pressure Measurements in Lumbar Discs. Scandinavian Journal of Rehab Medicine, supplement, 1970)
As great as inverting is, it may not be for everyone. If you have a health condition, especially one that is listed below, please do not invert without your licensed physician's approval: Heart / circulatory disorders, any condition involving the circulatory system, stroke, use of anti-coagulants, bone weakness, recent fractures, skeletal implants, osteoporosis, spinal injury, glaucoma, pink eye, retinal detachment, hiatal hernia, ear infection, obesity, and pregnancy.
A note about high blood pressure, or hypertension, and inverting. Hypertension is considered to be an elevated blood pressure which exceeds 140/90. Although you should not invert if you have uncontrolled high blood pressure, mild inversion can cause a state of relaxation that results in a drop in heart rate and blood pressure. Doctors who use inversion therapy for hypertension will test a patient's BP as they do a mild inversion.
About Dr. Christine Anderson:
Christine Anderson, a Doctor of Chiropractic, has been practicing in Hollywood since graduating Summa Cum Laude from Cleveland Chiropractic College (CCC-LA)in Los Angeles in 1989. As an intern, Dr. Anderson was on the faculty at CCC-LA and also assisted the head of the radiology department in the clinic. Dr. Anderson completed a 3 year post graduate program which gives her diplomate status and Board Certification in Chiropractic Pediatrics and Pregnancy (DICCP).
She received her Diploma in Homeopathy (DiHom) from the British Institute of Homeopathy in 1996 and completed Craniosacral Therapy I and II training from Upledger Institute in 2002. Dr. Anderson has lectured and presented papers at the yearly ICA Council on Pediatrics Conferences and at the 2002 Rome Symposium. Dr. Anderson has contributed articles on various health issues for local newspapers and magazines, as well as chiropractic publications.
She was consulted for the book, I Got Pregnant, You Can,Too, by Katie Boland. She developed the pre/post natal exercise program at the Hollywood YMCA, continues to teach classes there, and has produced the 90 minute DVD Dr. Christine Anderson`s Dynamic Prenatal Yoga. She also does community outreach, talking to parents and kids about health issues. "Dr. Chris" is also very involved in bringing up her children Toxil, Anzac, and Seven along with her husband, Tony.
For media interviews contact Promotion in Motion at 323-461-3921 or
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