It is likely that quite a few females have never given much thought about the integrity of our vaginas.  However, as a pelvic health physiotherapist, this is one of the main concerns that women have when they come into my office.

What I am talking about is pelvic organ prolapse (POP).

This can be seen in a variety of forms:

• Anterior vaginal wall prolapse (also known as “bladder prolapse” or “cystocele”)
• Posterior vaginal wall prolapse (also known as “rectocele”)
• Uterine prolapse
• Small intestine prolapse (also known as “enterocele”)
• Vaginal vault prolapse (sometimes seen after the uterus has been surgically removed)

Symptoms of POP are wide-ranging:

Seeing tissues coming out of vagina

• Problems having intercourse or inserting tampons
• Feeling heaviness or pressure in vagina or rectum that may worsen with coughing, lifting, standing or as the day progresses
• Low back pain or lower abdomen/pelvic pain/pressure
• Urinary incontinence
• Problems having a bowel movement

Some women may have no symptoms at all.

What causes POP?

Most people would consider vaginal childbirth as the only risk factor for pelvic organ prolapse.  However, at PRI we have seen many patients who have had a cesarean section, or who have never been pregnant, exhibit signs and symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse.  Other such risk factors include:

• Chronic constipation
• Persistent, long-standing cough
• Certain types of connective tissue disorders
• Genetics – did your mom or other female family member have a prolapse?
• Repetitive high impact activities that increase intra-abdominal pressure
• Obesity

What treatments are there?

Depending on the severity of the prolapse there are a number of treatment options.  Yes, surgery is one option but that is typically for significant prolapses.  The good news is there are a number of different surgical methods that are not always complex or invasive.  Pessaries, which are medical devices fit to support the vaginal tissues are also good options for a lot of women.

There is of course Pelvic Health Physiotherapy!

The pelvic health physiotherapist will assess your external and internal parts.  That is, expect the physical exam to include your postural alignment, mobility of your spine, and control of your muscles as well as an internal vaginal and rectal exam.  Internal examination is the gold standard to evaluate the severity of prolapse along with the health of the tissues and muscles on the inside of your pelvis.  Don’t worry, this may sound a little uncomfortable but as health professionals, we are well-trained in doing these exams.  And they need to happen: there is no way to determine what type of prolapse you have if we don’t look.

Treatments during physiotherapy can include:

• Teaching proper body alignment and mechanics
• Manual movement of spinal and pelvic joints
• Retraining pelvic floor muscle control (note that I did not say strength! Often we look at balancing over-used, tight pelvic floor muscles on their ability to contract AND relax)
• Looking at exercises that reduce intra-abdominal pressure, which includes Low Pressure Fitness/Hyporegressive training
• Acupuncture and Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS)

Our physiotherapists at PRI incorporate these methods to ensure you will get optimum improvement.

If you have POP, we can help you, as we’ve helped many others.

Call  (416) 477-1101 today!

E-mail: reception@priclinic.com

Web:   www.priclinic.com

As people start using computers more, they spend their time hunched over a keyboard.  Because of this their posture is deteriorating.  Instead of standing tall, people walk around with rounded shoulders and heads that are too far forward.  This has led to a decline in health, and an increase in neck, shoulder, and back pain.  Fortunately, chiropractic care can help fix bad posture, and help people experience the health benefits of having good posture.

Research shows that the muscles in your back have to support ten extra pounds of weight for every inch your head moves forward.  Quite a few patients that come into our office come in with two inches of forward head posture. That’s an extra 20 pounds of weight that their back and spine has to support on a daily basis.  No wonder people complain about back pain.

Not only does having bad posture cause stress on muscles and back pain, it can also cause other problems.  The brain is the center of the nervous system.  If the vertebrae are out of alignment in your neck, the nervous system’s ability to communicate with the rest of the body is hampered.  Think of it like a hose.  If the hose is bent, there won’t be a steady stream of water.

Good posture is an indication that the body is aligned.  When the body is aligned, messages are able to flow uninterrupted from the brain to other parts of the body.  The system is more efficient, and results in decreased discomfort and improved health.

So how can Chiropractic help? A Chiropractor will design a program that will help improve your posture.  This program may include a series of adjustments to realign the vertebrae, traction to remold the neck and stabilize the spine and exercises to help strengthen the muscles that improve posture.  This combination will help you experience the lasting benefits of good posture.

For more ideas on how to keep you posture, go see your local chiropractor.  Or just head to PRI, where your health will be in good hands.

We look forward to helping you out:

Tel:      (416) 477-1101

E-mail: reception@priclinic.com

Web:   www.priclinic.com

Do you keep trying weight loss diets but can’t seem to drop the pounds? Are you instead exhausted and frustrated by an ever growing layer of fat?

Calorie-restricted diets have been popular for decades as a way to lose weight, but clearly more is at play as many people under eat and still can’t lose weight or keep it off.

If you’re doing everything right and the fat isn’t budging, the culprit may lie in underlying health issues slowing metabolism and blocking fat burning.

Feast or famine? Dieting slows metabolism for years

For most of human history, life vacillated between feast or famine, with plenty of bouts of famine. The human body has smart coping mechanisms to get us through hungry times — lowered metabolism and increased fat-storage hormones.

As far as the body is concerned, a low-calorie diet is a famine and it employs the same measures to save you from starving. As a result, each low-calorie diet can add weight in the end when you resume normal caloric intake.

This dieting-caused metabolic slow-down can last for years. The phenomenon was documented in participants from the The Biggest Loser reality TV show. Six years after participating, contestants’ metabolic set point was below what it was when they started. They burn up to 800 fewer calories per day! After all that hard work, most of them returned to their pre-show weight and have to under eat in order to prevent weight gain.

Dieting disrupts key hunger hormones

Conversely, if you have a history of overeating or eating too much sugar, you may suffer from leptin resistance, which hinders fat burning.

Leptin is a hormone that controls appetite, satiety — that feeling of being full and satisfied — and whether your body burns or stores fat. A diet is high in starches and sugars causes frequent swings in blood sugar. This leads to chronic insulin surges, which, in turn, cause cellular resistance to leptin. With leptin resistance, you’re constantly hungry and you store fat.

Lowering intake of processed carbohydrates and exercising regularly help sensitize the cells to leptin so your hunger cues and fat burning abilities return to normal.

Underlying health issues hinder weight loss

For most people, weight loss is not as simple as “calories in, calories out.” Sometimes inflammation and other metabolic factors can be a driving factor behind the inability to lose weight.

Many people are surprised to find unwanted pounds drop away when they follow an anti-inflammatory diet. These nutrient-dense diets void of inflammatory triggers are used to manage pain, digestive problems, autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, as well as high blood pressure, depression, anxiety, and other health issues.

Why do they work? Excess weight can be a symptom of underlying health imbalances that slow metabolism and block weight loss. Systemic inflammation, leptin resistance, hormonal imbalances, stress, leaky gut, blood sugar imbalances, food intolerances are examples of factors that block weight loss.

The solution

A nutritionist can take a look at your underlying health issues and come up with a specific protocol that can ameliorate your health and help you sustainably reach and maintain your weight goals.

Ask our office for more details on supporting your success with nutritional therapy.

Tel:      (416) 477-1101

E-mail: reception@priclinic.com

Web:   www.priclinic.com

There’s a common perception that physiotherapy is something that you do when you’re hurt and want to heal. This is especially the case among younger people, as most youths do not experience the nagging aches and pains that come with a long life full of adventures, injuries, bumps, and bruises.

This perception is changing, albeit slowly, and we think that’s a positive thing. Physiotherapy is as much about injury prevention as it is about rehabilitation.

Have you ever heard the phrase “it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than it is for permission”? Well, this may be true in some areas (not that we encourage it), but when it comes to our bodies, asking for permission is always the better way to go.

What do we mean by “asking for permission”? Well, for starters, incorporating stretching, physiotherapy, massage, and other types of therapy traditionally associated with rehabilitation into a preventative regimen has been proven to reduce injuries, help young athletes recover from their workouts faster, and alleviate stress and anxiety that often stem from injury-related downtime.

Looking at the youth demographic, several studies suggest that most injuries occur in teenagers. A study looking at the rising popularity of soccer in the United States found that for kids under age 10, fewer than 1 injury per 100 players occurred; among teens, the rate of injury rose to 7.7 per 100 players.¹

Another study that looked at sports participation among Calgary high-school students, published in 2006, looked at the the rate of injury vs. participation. It found that there were approximately 40 injuries per 100 participants, and the top 5 injuries were to the ankle, knee, head, back, and wrist. The corresponding injuries were sprains, contusion, concussion, fractures, and muscle strain.²

Rather than just exercising, injuring yourself, getting in pain, quickly becoming demotivated and forgetting about it, use our resources and stay on track! We have personal rehab trainers who can show you proper form, physiotherapists and chiropractors, who can quickly get you out of pain, allowing you to run faster and jump higher. So reach out to us – we are here for you!

Tel:      (416) 477-1101

E-mail: reception@priclinic.com

Web:   www.priclinic.com

Works Cited

1. Sullivan, J. A., Gross, R. H., Grana, W. A., & Garcia-Moral, C. A. (1980). Evaluation of injuries in youth soccer. The American Journal of Sports Medicine, 8(5), 325–327.
2. Emery CA, Meeuwisse WH, McAllister JR. Survey of sport participation and sport injury in Calgary and area high schools. Clin J Sport Med. 2006 Jan;16(1):20-6.

The ability to turn your head is something that many of us take for granted, until we can no longer do it.  Putting a sweater on, driving, or even looking around, all become painful activities.  There are many ways to go about treating neck pain.  One of the most effective is going to a Chiropractor.

There are many causes of neck pain, including:

• Cervical herniated disc
• Cervical Foraminal Stenosis
• Degeneration of the joints that can cause pressure on the spinal cord and nerves
• Disc degeneration/Arthritis
• Muscle strain
• And Subluxations, which is a misalignment of the neck vertebrae

When you are stressed, the muscles around the neck and upper back can seize up and contract. Muscles don’t push, they pull. And this contraction can pull vertebrae out of place, causing pain.  The symptom of neck pain is your body telling you that you need to fix the problem.  The lack of symptoms is not necessarily the lack of a problem.  If your neck pain is not properly cared for, your symptoms can worsen. It can then radiate pain into the arms causing a sharp shooting pain, numbness, burning, tingling and/or pins and needles.

Chiropractic care can help not only relieve your neck and arm pain, but also prevent it from occurring. When a Chiropractor adjusts the spine, they are putting the bones in the proper place.  Spinal adjustments help decrease pain and increase range of motion and flexibility. That in turn keeps your body healthy and functioning properly. When the spine is free of subluxations, the nervous system is able to function better and fix problems before they appear.

Neck pain can keep you from functioning and having a great quality of life.  Whether you suffer from chronic pain, or a simple muscle strain, if you are looking for a safe alternative to modern medicine, give a Chiropractor a try.

For more ideas on how to keep your neck healthy, go see your local chiropractor.  Or just head to PRI, where your health will be in good hands.

We look forward to helping you out:

Tel:      (416) 477-1101

E-mail: reception@priclinic.com

Web:   www.priclinic.com

When you’re following a diet to calm inflammation, repair a leaky gut, or manage an autoimmune disease, the lack of variety can be frustrating. But you’d be surprised how deftly the humble cauliflower can jazz up your meals. Cauliflower’s first impression is not good. It’s pale, bland, and smelly when steamed. But cauliflower’s gift is in shape-shifting ability to mimic a variety of dishes by taking on the flavor of whatever it’s cooked with. Another bonus? Cauliflower keeps well, patiently waiting for up to a few weeks in the refrigerator drawer for your attention, and prepping it is easy.

Mark Twain said “cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.” Indeed it is related to cabbage and a member of the disease-fighting brassicas, which also include broccoli, kale, and Brussels sprouts. Cauliflower is low in calories, high in fiber, and rich in vitamins and minerals, including vitamin C, potassium, folic acid, and a health protective compound called isothiocyanate.

Cauliflower can be enjoyed in a variety of ways

Cauliflower’s beauty is in its versatility, especially if you are on a restricted diet. Once you discover how to work with it, you may find it becomes a regular item in your shopping cart. Below are some of the ways you can enjoy cauliflower.

Mock mashed potatoes. When seasoned well, mashed cauliflower can be a delicious and attractive substitute for mashed potatoes without skewering your blood sugar. Steam or simmer in broth before mashing, and add garlic, salt, pepper, and your choice of healthy fat (olive oil, coconut oil, butter, or even duck fat).

Cauliflower rice. The secret to cauliflower rice is to pulse cauliflower florets in the food processor until it’s the size of rice grains. Sauté it in a pan with onions and a healthy fat and season.

Cauliflower pizza crust. Cauliflower pizza crust starts with using the food processor to make cauliflower rice, cooking, wringing it dry in a kitchen towel, and then mixing with egg and seasoning before flattening onto a pizza stone and baking. Then top with your favorite ingredients and bake again.

Roasted cauliflower, or cauliflower “popcorn.” It doesn’t sound that interesting, but roasted cauliflower can be a surprising crowd pleaser, especially if seasoned creatively. Cut cauliflower florets into uniform pieces, toss with your favorite oil and seasoning, and flip occasionally while roasting until evenly browned.

Cauliflower puree. Pureeing cauliflower in soups is a wonderful way to create a thick base without blood sugar-spiking flours. Add it to your favorite broth with sautéed onion or shallots and garlic, puree, season, and throw in some chopped vegetables for color

For more ideas and for help getting started on a healthy diet, contact our office

Tel: (416) 477–1101

E-mail: reception@priclinic.com

Web: www.priclinic.com

Do you have trouble falling asleep, getting back to sleep after you wake up in the middle of the night, or waking up way too early in the morning deprives you of essential rests? If any of these afflict you regularly, you have insomnia, and you’re far from alone. Up to two-thirds of all adults in this country experience at least one episode of insomnia per year. For about 15% of men and women, insomnia is chronic.

Visit a primary care physician or internist for insomnia and chances are you’ll be prescribed sleeping pills. Sleeping pills may help you grab a little more shut­eye, but they also carry possible side effects of dizziness, nightmares, headache, nausea, overeating, and agitation. Even if you don’t experience any of these, sleeping pills only provide a temporary fix, and can actually become addictive.

Instead, you want to get at the source of your problem and to treat the underlying issue. To accomplish that, chiropractic care may be your best bet. Chiropractic provides a non invasive, all natural option for a wide array of health issues, including insomnia. In fact, the National Sleep Foundation reports that one third of people who receive chiropractic adjustments experience immediate improvements in sleep. We, at PRI, have helped countless patients overcome insomnia.

Health Issues Linked to Insomnia

This is great news, not just because sleep deprivation makes you ineffective at school, work or home, but also because a lack of sleep increases your risk for a number of serious health issues, such as stroke and heart disease.

Causes of Insomnia

While the causes of insomnia aren’t entirely understood, experts classify the condition into two different types:

Secondary insomnia : With this form of insomnia, your sleeplessness is associated with another condition such a s sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome, or another neurological or medical illness.

Primary insomnia : This type of insomnia is not attributed to a medical cause or anything in your environment. It is considered psychophysiological because learned sleep avoidance behaviors are to blame, and the cause is unknown.

One theory as to why you may experience primary or secondary insomnia has to do with chemicals that your brain manufactures to help you sleep, such as muramyl peptide, dopamine, and acetylcholine. When something disrupts the release of these substances, insomnia may occur.

Subluxations and Sleep Hormones

Subluxations are misalignments of the spine that interfere with nerve function. When you have one or more subluxations in the upper cervical spine ­­ where the head meets the neck ­­  it may negatively affect the nerves that create impulses to flood your brain with the sleep hormones. As a result, your sleep cycles become disturbed, and you may find it hard to fall asleep or stay asleep.

How Chiropractic Care Helps

Research suggests that people report improvements in their sleep patterns and fewer episodes of insomnia as a result of Chiropractic care. Chiropractors use non-invasive adjustments to help realign the vertebrae, including those in your upper neck, which takes the pressure off the nerves allowing your body to function properly, including getting enough sleep.

Chiropractic care can also alleviate back and neck pain that’s keeping you from getting enough shuteye. Your Chiropractor may recommend a certain kind of pillow or mattress, or suggest a sleeping position that may help. If you’re struggling with insomnia and live in Toronto, Ontario come see us at PRI for a possible long term chiropractic solution ­ no pills necessary.

To let us know how we can help you, please contact our office and we will gladly help you out at:

Tel:      (416) 477-1101

E-mail: reception@priclinic.com

Web:   www.priclinic.com

Have you ever had a workout and experienced soreness afterwards? We can go into the details of the lactic acid buildup in your tissues and so forth to explain why this pain happens, yet the point we would like to drive right off the bat, is that this sort of pain/discomfort is a necessary temporary side effect that happens when we ameliorate our health through exercise. Some people experience some discomfort while going through Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS) therapy that induces rapid healing in your body.

Similarly, if you experience an acute accident or injury, like spraining your ankle, it is easy to understand why your ankle may hurt.  You likely tore some of the ligaments and or muscles around the joint and experienced subsequent swelling, bruising and inflammation.  Over a four to six week period your body typically fills in the torn tissue with scar tissue and then slowly remodels it back to its original state.  Sometimes the pain persists beyond six weeks even though the entire swelling and bruising have long disappeared.  Other times pain appears for no apparent reason in the complete absence of an injury and you can’t understand why or what you did wrong.

Nerves are the electrical wiring of your body.  They supply the energy for all your muscles and organs to do their jobs.  Your brain and spinal cord are like the electrical fuse box of your body and your spine and skull are their protective coverings.  Peripheral nerves extend out from your spine at every level on both the left and right sides.  The nerves that extend from your neck are responsible for most of the muscles in your shoulders, arms and hands, while the nerves that come from your low back enervate all of the muscles in your hips, legs and feet.  The nerves in the middle are responsible for your trunk and a lot of your organs.

Muscles are comprised of a whole bunch of stringy tissue that can stretch and contract.  The muscle should have a certain amount of resting tone in it, i.e. at rest it is slightly contracted, not flaccid or extremely tense; this is dictated by the input of the nerve.  If the nerve is irritated as it extends from the spine, or anywhere in the periphery it will result in an altered signal getting to the muscle.  This altered signal can create bands of tension in the muscle, which results in one or more tiny condensed portions of the muscle, otherwise known as trigger points. This will strain the joint that are moved by this muscle, as well as the tendons and likely create pain.  Muscles are attached to bones on either side of a joint by tendons.  Tendons are a tougher tissue that only stretch a small amount; when the muscle is in a banded state, the tendons will have to endure a lot more stress and strain when the joint is used and the result is typically tendonitis.

Let us get back to IMS. It is a needling technique that involves an insertion of a dry needle into aforementioned trigger point in your muscle. Naturally, this may produce a sensation of temporary discomfort. Yet, the results are incredible. The trigger points get released from this technique, the muscles unwind, the joints relax, and the irritated peripheral nerves that run from these muscles to the brain are finally able to relax. In other words, this temporary discomfort that people experience from having a dry needle inserted just below the skin is a side effect of a technique that gets rid of the major pain that people chronically feel from having tense muscles, taught joints, and irritated peripheral nerves.

Do you have chronic pain or an injury? Despite treatment, have the aches and pains just not gone away? Don’t give up! If you have been suffering aches, pains or numbness in your back, neck, arms, shoulders or legs, PRI is pleased to offer Intra-Muscular Stimulation, which may be just the right solution for your chronic pain.

Treatments can be scheduled by contacting our office.

Phone: (416) 477-1101

E-mail: reception@priclinic.com

Web:   www.priclinic.com