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Nutrition

Completing The Triangle Of Health With Better Nutrition

By Kathleen D. Baumgardner, D.C.

We know the body is a self-healing mechanism and our goal as chiropractors is to reduce as much interference as possible to allow the body to heal itself. In doing that, it’s helpful to view health as a triangle with three components—structural, chemical and mental—forming equilateral sides.
When any of the triangle’s sides are out of balance, the patient’s health is compromised and difficult to maintain.(1) Thus, we should be aware of all aspects of the triangle in providing care.

The Health Triangle
Structural: At the base of the triangle, we begin with the feet, the foundation of the body. They provide support when standing, walking or running, and they help protect the spine, bones and soft tissues from damaging stress during movement.

Our feet perform better when all their muscles, arches and bones are in their ideal stable positions. Pain from one part of the body could be caused by a misalignment in the spine, perhaps caused by unbalanced positioning in the feet. It’s important to examine the feet; detect and eliminate subluxations; and evaluate biomechanics and posture.

Utilizing specific techniques, we first correct the subluxation. Then, we can educate patients about specific exercises for rehabilitation they can use at home. They may even benefit from the use of adjunct products, such as braces, pillows or custom-made orthotics, which help stabilize the patient. Adjunct services complement your care and give patients responsibility in maintaining their adjustments.

Emotional: The reduction of stress is a key factor in improving the body’s ability to heal. We must evaluate the influence stress plays in the healing process. Utilizing breathing, visualization and relaxation techniques helps patients regain control over stress, enhancing the healing process.

Chemical: While the medical profession uses chemicals to control the body’s function, we try to remove as many distractions to the body’s healing process as possible. This includes lessening the dependence on unnecessary medications, and most importantly, improving nutrition.

Proper nutrition builds tissue and provides the basic raw materials for normal body function. For example, fats are needed to produce hormones; carbohydrates generate energy; and an appropriate amount of bacteria breaks food down properly.

Elements Of Poor Nutrition
It is interesting to note that the top three deadly diseases in the United States today are cardiovascular disease, stroke and diabetes. The risks for all these diseases can be reduced with better eating habits.(6) Improved eating habits result in less obesity.

Studies show that 61 percent of the U.S. population is overweight, and 27 percent are clinically obese, almost double the nuimber of obese Americans in the 1970s.(2) Society, social settings, business demands, government policies and our high-stress lifestyles have enabled us to reduce our nutritional priorities. Fast food has become a necessity for our chaotic lifestyles, and fast food restaurants make indulging trouble-free with their many “super-sized” options.

But many elements contribute to our lack of proper nutrition:

• Empty calorie foods contain large amounts of calories with a low value of essential vitamins, minerals and proteins.
• Processed foods contain much added fat, sugar, sodium and chemical additives
• Milk and milk byproducts can cause allergies, gastrointestinal disease, obesity, infectious diseases and other problems.
• Fresh produce may have a decreased value of vitamins and minerals due to poor soil quality.

We have an inadequate intake of water, an increased consumption of animal fats and poor quality fats, and an increased intake of soft drinks, which are high in phosphates.

The Road To Proper Nutrition
The consequences of our deprived diets include poor anti-inflammatory effects, weak tissue repair and the degeneration of a general level of health, wellness and fitness.
Proper nutrition, in conjunction with adjustments and necessary adjunct services, offers patients a much better response to holding adjustments. It is our responsibility to educate our patients of the role nutrition plays in maintaining spinal corrections and helps them make nutritional lifestyle changes. Patients can make their own nutritional adjustments by:

• Eliminating foods that produce inflammatory responses, such as poor quality fats, hydrogenated or saturated fats, arachadonic acid found in animal fat and dairy products, and increasing the consumption of fish and poultry without skin.
• Sufficient vegetable, fruit and olive oil consumption insures an adequate intake of anti-inflammatory nutrients.(3)
• Consuming carbohydrates in the form of complex carbohydrates (such as whole-grain and multi-grain foods) should be 40 to 50 percent of energy (calorie) intake.
• Reducing fat consumption to no more than 30 percent of total caloric intake and balancing it with polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats.
• Consuming protein at approximately 25 percent of the daily energy or caloric intake. An adequate balance among carbohydrates, protein and fat insures proper glycemic regulation.(4)
• Increasing the consumption of fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain and legume products.
• Decreasing the consumption of butter, fat and high dietary cholesterol sources.
• Decreasing the consumption of sugar and hidden-sugar rich foods, including alcohol.
• Decreasing the consumption of salt and hidden-salt rich foods.

But even with a higher quality diet, many patients may need supplements to enhance the healing process and “get them over the hump.” Since there are numerous nutritional companies, doctors must research and investigate them to determine the best manufacturers and products, so that they can be as well educated as possible.(5)
Following is a partial list of supplements that may enhance the healing process and assist in reducing the inflammatory response.

1. Multiple vitamins and minerals
2. Calcium
3. Magnesium
4.Bioflavonoids/ antioxidants
5. Essential fatty acids — fish oils, flaxseed oil, olive oil
6. Vitamin E
7. Coenzyme Q10
8. Chondroitin/Glucosamine
9. Bromelain

While adjustments are essential in helping our patients reach their optimal health, we cannot eliminate nutrition from our practice. At the same time, supplements are not beneficial without adjustments. Keep in mind, the whole is greater than the sum of parts.

About the author: Kathleen D. Baumgardner, D.C., a 1986 Logan College of Chiropractic graduate, maintains a private practice in Marlton, N.J., and she lectures on topics such as sports injuries, extremities and women’s health issues. She has served as the medical director for the Garden State Games, and this year the American Chiropractic Association selected her as its “Sports Doctor of the Year.” Inquiries should be directed to her at 151 W. Greentree Rd., Ste. B, Marlton, NJ 08053; or call (856) 983-5422.

References
1. Walther, David S., Applied Kinesiology: Synopsis, Pueblo, Colo.: Systems DC, 1988, pp. 11-12.
2. Pilzer, Paul Zane, The Wellness Revolution, New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2002, p. 62.
3. Seaman, David R., Clinical Nutrition: For Pain, Inflammation and Tissue Healing, NutrAnalysis, Inc., 1998, p. 161.
4. Seaman, David R., Clinical Nutrition: For Pain, Inflammation and Tissue Healing, NutrAnalysis, Inc., 1998, p. 167.
5. Seaman, David R., Clinical Nutrition: For Pain, Inflammation and Tissue Healing, NutrAnalysis, Inc., 1998, p. 167.
6. Bland, Jeffrey, Medical Applications of Clinical Nutrition, Keats Publishing, Conn., 1983.

© Copyright 2002 Today's Chiropractic

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