Families First of Loudoun

How to get TechnoHealthy

October is National Chiropractic Health Month! and this year’s theme is ‘GET TECHNOHEALTHY’!

As of 2008 PDA’s and smart phones have exceeded sales of laptops! I found this statistic to be staggering. Technology is a part of every minute of our lives. Look around and you’ll see kids even as young as 7 texting away!

The advantages of this technology are far reaching. We can’t underestimate how it has brought us closer to family and friends and given us the ability to work away from the office. But with technology comes disadvantages as well. Repetitive injuries are on the rise. All ages and generations are affected.

Symptoms of technology overuse include pain in the elbows and shoulders; wrist pain; neck pain and headaches; lower back pain. We’re seeing more of not only carpal tunnel syndrome, and tendonitis, but also ‘blackberry thumb’, and ‘text necks’!

So what can you do to protect yourself and your children from injury? We ask you the question… are you TechnoHealthy or TechnoFoolish?

Here are some tips:
1. Avoid typing more than 3 minutes on small keyboards without a break.
2. Keep messages short!
3. Practice using another finger when your thumb is sore!
4. Don’t slouch.
5. Respect Sundays and keep your device off!
6. Get outside, exercise and enjoy nature…Balance is the key!

If you think you or someone you know is suffering from a repetitive injury, please come by our Leesburg clinic and get it checked out. Chiropractic care is the care of choice for many of the above symptoms. Both Dr. Connor and I are well versed in the suitable treatment and rehab protocols.

- Misty

What’s Your Posture Number?

In our effort to better one’s posture, the first step must be to explain where the deficiencies are.  There is now a new posture assessment tool that does just that!  By taking a few pictures of you, we can show you how your posture is and determine your posture number.  Once we know where the problem is, we can work as a team to strengthen the weaker areas.

Consider getting a posture assessment done. Basics First Chiropractic is now offering this new service in our clinic.

- Dr. Misty Paul

Cord Blood – To bank or not to bank

I found this article on Midwife Thinking blog and after reading several times, I am still on the fence about how I feel.  On one hand I have heard wonderful stories about cord blood making a better quality of life your very ill children and on the other hand shouldn’t all babies receive all of the their own cord blood in hopes of them not getting sick?  I have been thinking about this a lot in the last few days and still don’t know how I feel.  I can see both sides of wanting to do it and not wanting to do it.   I did not bank cord blood with my 2 children but at the time decided not to do it.  If I were to have another child what would I do?  I DON”T KNOW.  What are your thoughts or experiences?

Cord Blood Collection: confessions of a vampire-midwife Posted on February 10, 2011 by midwifethinking

When I was a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed student midwife I was awarded with a certificate and a box of chocolates. My achievement was collecting the most cord blood in the hospital. At that time the Local Health District was trialling a cord blood bank. The collected stem cells were to be used for treating leukemia and for research. Every woman birthing in the hospital was asked to donate cord blood for the good cause, and many generously agreed. I was exceptionally good at collecting the blood. This post is a small attempt to repent for my sins.

In recent years cord blood collection and storage has become popular, particularly in the private sector. Cord blood contains magical stem cells, and the idea is that if your baby becomes ill in the future you may be able to use these cells as treatment. My concern with cord blood banking is the inadequate and misleading information given to parents. This misinformation raises both ethical and legal issues. The procedure involved in collecting cord blood is sold as ‘simple, safe and effective’. When it comes to decision making about cord blood only three options are presented: keep it (pay for storage), donate it (to a public initiative) or throw it away. What about letting it finish its journey up the umbilical cord and into the baby?

Even the term ‘cord blood’ is misleading – blood is merely collected via the cord. In addition the promotional materials talk about collecting ‘blood from the placenta’ without acknowledging that the baby/placenta are one blood circulation unit. After birth the blood from the placenta transfers to the baby, assisting transition to breathing. Knowledge about the short term and long term health benefits of allowing placental circulation to complete the job is becoming widespread. See this post for an overview of the physiology of newborn transition to breathing, and for links about the health benefits of full blood volume for babies. With further research one of the long term benefits may actually turn out to be protection against some of the illnesses stem cells are being collected to treat.

Parents need to be informed that cord blood collection requires premature cord clamping, and that the blood being collected belongs to their baby.

In the procedure guide for collection there is no mention of when to clamp the cord. This may lead parents to believe they can delay cord clamping and still collect cord blood. This is not an option. After the placenta has finished transferring blood to the baby it is difficult to collect even the few mls needed for blood group testing (Rh neg). The large umbilical vessels are empty and by the time the placenta has been birthed the blood in the small vessels has begun to clot. You have to faff about trying to scavenge enough un-clotted blood from the small vessels covering the placenta. The minimum required for cord blood collection is 45mls. Take a look at the photograph of a placenta that finished its circulation before being clamped. If you reckon you could get 45mls out of that, you deserve a certificate and some chocolates.

Paediatric guidelines state that ‘blood draws in infants and children should not exceed 5% of the total blood volume in any 24 hour period’. A 3.6kg newborn has a blood volume of around 280mls – so the maximum blood draw would be 14mls. How come these rules don’t apply immediately following birth? The collection bag for cord blood holds 250mls (35mls already taken up with anticoagulant fluid). The minimum amount of blood acceptable for collection is 45mls, and the maximum possible is 215mls. During my vampire-midwife days I reckon I generally filled at least half of the bag – so around 90mls. In the photograph at the top of this post the bag looks more than half full. This amount of blood represents a significant proportion of the newborns blood volume.

I wonder how many parents would consent to someone coming onto the postnatal ward and sticking a needle into their baby to collect around a third of their blood volume? It’s the same thing… only the needle is in the baby not the umbilical cord.

I am not saying cord blood banking shouldn’t be an available option. All I am suggesting is that parents need adequate information before they make a decision to withdraw a significant amount of their baby’s blood volume. They need to be able to weigh up the definite benefits of full blood volume at birth vs a possible treatment for an unlikely future illness. Cord blood is baby’s blood.

PS: I no longer participate in stealing babies blood. We live and learn.

Reincarnated as a Baby???

Last week I was driving with my four-year-old to school and on the way we pass the cemetery next to the Ida Lee Recreation center.  He said, “Mommy, I want you to die.”  I was alarmed but, thankfully, curious.  I said, “Why?”  He said, “So you can come back as a baby.”  I responded with an “oh” and then thought on it.  Where did he get this idea of reincarnation and why did he think I would come back as a baby.  I had no recollection of having such a discussion.  What was clear after more conversation is that my son was simply curious about what I would be like as a baby and that he really did not want me to die but just wanted to see me as a baby.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Need for Chiropractic Care During Pregnancy

The Need for Chiropractic Care during Pregnancy

Happy Birthday!  Depending on your age, a birthday may be a time of introspection, celebration, or both.  The “holiday” that marks a newborn’s first breath leads to many challenges and opportunities for mom and the family.  How can you help mother and child embark on this adventure?  Here are some facts and tips.

As a pregnancy proceeds, mom’s body undergoes numerous changes.  The most obvious changes involve body shape and posture, but a hormone called relaxin subtly makes ligaments a little looser.  A good analogy is that the “rubber bands” (ligaments) that hold bones together become more easily stretched.  Though this extra “play” between the bones will be useful upon delivery, it can also predispose mom to injury (knees, fallen arches, back pain).  Since the feet are part of the shock-absorbing system that protects the knees, hips, and spine, and since chiropractic doctors are uniquely trained to help the human frame function at its best, it’s not surprising that some chiropractors will prescribe orthotics to support the feet to help limit pain during pregnancy and avoid permanent post-pregnancy fallen arches. Read the rest of this entry »

How to tell if your child’s backpack is too heavy

A new school year is dawning.  It’s a time of joy, new beginnings, and new injury risks.  Here are some tips to stack the odds in your family’s favor, courtesy of the Virginia Chiropractic Association.

Healthy school lunches and healthy exercise together are an opportunity to protect your child’s heart, decrease future diabetes and arthritis risks, and create positive self-esteem.  Healthy exercise can be as simple as a daily walk, and innovative communities have established safe walking routes to and from school.ⁱ Read the rest of this entry »