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Showing posts from July, 2016

Scroll no further for these fun facts about your spine

Here are some fun facts that you didn’t know about your spine -As we get older, it’s not uncommon to lose about an inch in height.  This is due to the discs in your spine wearing down and “shrinking”. -Most humans are born with 33 vertebrae (“backbones”).   However, some naturally fuse together as we grow and we end up with 26 as adults. -Both humans and giraffes have 7 cervical vertebrae (neck bones).  However, a giraffe’s neck is about as long as a full grown human is tall. -A newborn human spine is C-shaped.  The S-shape develops as the baby learns to hold their head up, crawl, and ultimately walk.  It’s the S-Shape that allows us to walk upright with two legs. -You wake up in the morning slightly taller than when you went to bed.  This is because your discs (essentially your shock absorbers) tend to lose water throughout the day due to supporting your bodyweight.  Sleeping at night gives the discs a chance to rest, rehydrate, and thus make you taller in the morning.

Stress Poster Explained

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Vacation Time

Hi all, It’s officially summertime!  As I look outside today and see the lovely Pacific Northwest rain, it doesn’t appear that it has arrived, but we all know better living in Washington.  Thank you to Dr. Scott for filling in for me while I took my vacation last week.  It was a great break to help get me reenergized.   I’m glad to be back to work and seeing our patients once again. I figure there’s no better time than now to talk about the various health benefits to taking a vacation, and why you should make the time for one.  Note that there are MANY benefits, and this is just a short list: 1) Decreased stress:  In our office, we talk about the three pillars of stress (emotional, physical, and chemical).  Getting away from the daily grind is something that everyone needs every now and then and will help decrease stress levels.  People can use vacations as a long-term coping strategy for all those stressful times and having something to look forward to.  2) Reduced risk of