Durham Health and Wellbeing

Despite great scientific progress during the 20^th century, high-tech medicine and our ability to cure many diseases, including some serious spinal diseases, we still confront simple back pain with confusion, unable to offer a cure.

Simple, non-specific or mechanical low back pain are terms used to describe a mechanical derived back pain not involving nerve root compression or serious spinal disease.

BackCare.org.uk have collated some Back Pain facts and figures to give an overview of the total number of people affected by back pain, the associated costs and and various other back pain statistics.

Seventy percent of us will suffer from a low back pain in our lifetime. A one-size-fits-all approach to preventing and rehabilitating chronic back pain is unlikely to be successful and what we must do is be holistic. The previous article has introduced how we can build a holistic approach and today we delve deeper.

In this, the second in the Holistic Health Series, we will discuss an approach to Chronic Back Pain. We will go beyond the standard approach of just looking at various exercises and get down to root causes and open out our ideas for a successful solution. Read on if you have tried and failed to rehabilitate yourself out of pain.

When considering your health and fitness you have multiple choices available. Where to start, what area to work on, who to see, how often…? Taking a ‘Holistic’ view is essential to this, but what does it mean? We will discuss Holistic Health and how these principles can guide you to making decisions about how to go about improving your health and how to put together an approach that works.

Red Flags Assessment Training  |  Saturday 19th November 2011

10am to 2pm | £30

@ Northern Integrative Health Practice (NIHP)

Book your place: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it |  0191 3980000 | www.healthnorth.co.uk

Tyne & Wear Fire and Rescue Services have been organising the Hebburn Sprint Triathlon for a number of years which involves a 400m Swim, 20k Bike and 5k Run.

Here's a great opportunity to find out more about how to customise your nutritional requirements.  A new series of videos that tell you all about Metabolic Typing and how to find your unique Metabolic Type:

Find Out More Here

Pregnant? Just had a baby? Come along to our free demo class and find out what Dancing for Birth is all about. No dance experience necessary. It's fun, gentle exercise designed to help you feel great in pregnancy, prepare for birth and recover postpartum... and baby comes too!

July is ‘Change 4 Life’ month and the motto is to “Eat Well, Move More, Live Longer".  Change 4 Life was set up to provide opportunities for children, adults and families to make changes to their daily diet and exercise routines to live a longer healthier life.  At the Northern Integrative Health Practice (NIHP) we’re doing our bit to share great information on nutrition and help you get the most out of exercise, sport and activity.

The word anatomy means quite literally to cut up or to dissect. This therefore means that the study of muscular structures and the workings of the body is, by its very nature, the study of the dead human form. The theory of the brain controlling all muscle movement through the cranial and peripheral nervous systems - still held as a central belief today - stems from experiments performed by Galen nearly two thousand years ago.

The practitioners at the NIHP have worked with many athletes from recreational to competitive levels. The Great North Run is a hugely important event for the region as a health practice we have enjoyed a lot of success in supporting charities and runners alike to achieve their goals for the run.

This year we've stepped it up a notch.  For the 2011 Great North Run you can get access to high quality conditioning resources that support you day-by-day and step-by-step. Click below to continue reading........

ME North East Open Day - A Great Success.

The ME Northeast and the 'Northern Integrative Health Practice' teamed up to deliver The Bowen Technique therapy for people living with ME/CFS.

Spring – A brief perspective from Chinese thought

Spring is well and truly on its’ way – daffodils, blossoms, warmer weather and increased daylight hours!

These are all natural signs of the major energetic shift from winter to summer – yin to yang. Spring or yang energy is expansive, upward, outwards, warm, new and fresh– similar to most natural processes that occur this time of year (in comparison to the yin energies of winter months - downwards, conversation, internal, cold etc).

Chinese thought sees no difference between the human and the environment we live in, as most species naturally adapt their behaviour to the seasons, it is important, we too attune to this energetic shift. This prevents disharmony and disease and allows us to make the most of this abundance of yang natured energy that we can draw forth from the environment into our lives.

Ideas on how to implement this:

Reduction of heavy foods consumed over the winter periods should be reduced (potatoes, diary, heavy nuts, chocolate and sweets, fried, stewed or casserole food preparation, red meats, reduction in caffeine) for their thermal and heavy nature does not resonate with the yang energy of spring, which supports clean and light foods encouraging the bodies detoxification from the winter residues. This allows the energy to move freely as activity levels increase. Salads, light meats, seeds and dried fruit, light soups, abundance of vegetables especially green in colour (raw, if you have a hardy digestive system, or lightly stemmed), and fruit are ideal to support the body’s detoxification and renewal processes.

It is also ideal to begin to move the body, gentle exercise – walking, jogging, cycling in the elements connects the body to the external environment but also assists in removal of winter residues logged deep in the tissues of the body as the blood flow and breathing depth is increased from exercise. And stretch, especially in the morning. Have a good stretch, really expand yourself!

Drink plenty of room temperature water, fruit and herbal teas, reducing caffeine and alcohol intake.

It is also a great time to connect with your creative side whatever that may be, bring into ‘fruitation’ ideas and plans brewing and stewing over winter period.

Disharmony’s common at this time of year include; allergies e.g. hay fever, certain types of depression, anxiety and mood swings, anger and frustration, lethargy, immune problems e.g. aggravation of types of rheumatoid arthritis. All of which are effectively treated through Chinese medicine and Acupuncture.

Please call reception on 0191 398 0000 and ask to speak to one of our qualified Chinese Medicine practitioners for further advice or details of treatment. Alternatively, drop us a line via our website.

Pollen Avoidance Advice

This pollen calendar shows an average pattern of release of the main allergenic pollen in the UK. The severity and timing of the pollen seasons will differ from year-to-year depending on the weather, biological factors and geographical location.

Pollen Avoidance Advice

Use the pollen calendar to work out which pollen types you are allergic to.

• If you have symptoms in June and July it is probably grass pollen.
• If you have symptoms in the spring it is probably tree pollen, especially Birch and Oak.
• If you suffer in late summer it is probably weeds, and if you have symptoms in the autumn it is probably fungal spores.

Some people are allergic to more than one type of pollen. Several types of pollen have cross reactions.
For example Alder, Hazel, Hornbeam and Birch all have similar allergens so if you are allergic to one you will also react to the others.

Once you have worked out which pollen types you are allergic to it is easier to avoid the problem. For example, avoid high pollen locations such as areas with un-mown grasses in flower, countryside areas with un-mown verges etc. Avoid woodland locations in the tree pollen seasons.

General Tips

• Avoid going out at peak pollen times. Look at the pollen forecasts on the Met Office website.
• On high and very high grass pollen count days the worse times are usually in the early morning (7-10am) and late afternoon ( 4-7pm) as this is when most grasses release their pollen.
• Don't dry washing outside on high pollen count days as it will collect pollen from the air.
• Change clothes and wash hair etc after being out.
• Cover bed and desks when not in use and then fold the cover back carefully when you want to use the area.

It is best to combine pollen avoidance measures with other treatments. The Bowen Technique can make a huge difference to the onset, duration and intensity of the body’s response to the allergens and histamines that trigger this condition.

Alternatively, talk to your GP or pharmacist about other treatments and remedies. In most cases the symptoms can be controlled.

Did you know that a 3 week course in the Bowen Technique has shown excellent results in reducing the incidence of hayfever?

I thought this would be a good time to revisit seasonal allergic rhinitis – our old spring and summertime foe known as hay fever to all the sneezing, nose-blowing, eye-itching citizens who struggle with this yearly visitation.

Bowen treatment can make a huge difference to the onset, duration and intensity of the body’s response to the allergens and histamines that trigger this condition.

Hay fever, asthma, food allergy and eczema are related allergic conditions and the tendency to develop them seems to run in families. The body produces an antibody called immunoglobulin E (IgE) when it comes into contact with an allergen. When there is a lot of pollen in the air, IgE is produced in reaction to it. Antibodies are usually only released to fight infection, but in this instance the body believes the pollen or spore is harmful. This leads to certain cells in the body, especially those of the respiratory system, releasing chemicals. One of these is histamine, which triggers the, often severe, allergic symptoms of hay fever. It contributes to an inflammatory response and it causes constriction of smooth muscle (one of the major causes of asthma). Hence, anti-histamines such as Piriton are taken by many people to try to control this.

Most Bowen therapists have a number of regular hay fever clients who book appointments as their time of usual onset approaches.  Some, who start early with the tree pollens, will need to be seen as early as late January or early February.  The latest arrivals will be booking in June for July/early August trigger times.  Often, people discover the anti-hay fever properties of Bowen treatment by accident:  they come for treatment for a bad back or tennis elbow, for instance, and then discover that their bodies are not reacting as usual to the pollens that usually torment them.

A typical example being a lady that came for her knee injury (after her large dog crashed into it from the side!), and she was amazed to find three or four weeks later that her responses to the pollens flying about were almost nothing compared to her life-long experiences with hay fever.  Instead of itchy, red eyes and a nose streaming like a tap, she found she only had the occasional drip from her nose and her eyes were clear!  Miracle, she said!  Bowen, I said!  Thereafter, she yearly booked in a set of three appointments in the month or so before she would expect the hay fever and she sailed through ‘the season’ without any significant reactions at all.

Then I didn’t see her for about three years and when she booked an appointment after that gap, she reported that she hadn’t had any hay fever problems over those years.  It was only in the past week or so that she began to feel some symptoms so she figured she needed a top-up.

Another type of response to Bowen is that of Simon: a 35 year old who volunteered for the year long study into the  effect of Bowen on adult asthma. In addition to his asthma, Simon had always suffered from considerable hay fever each summer. He began his asthma treatments, according to the study’s protocols, in January. By early summer, his asthma attacks had decreased enormously and his hay fever, which he usually had full on for two months, that summer lasted a week.  And this happy state has continued for some 5 years now.

In Bowen Technique treatment, the hay fever and sinus procedures are combined with the jaw (TMJ) procedure. A key part of that treatment involves the draining of the lymphatic system hidden behind the sternoclydomastoid muscles on either side of the neck. It seems that this area being blocked over a long period of time, or in response to a hay fever trigger, is the key to why it is so difficult to successfully clear the sinus area.

When Bowen is given, this part of the treatment often produces an immediate positive response to the sinus blockage. Once started, it does not then seem to re-block. However, with the chronic cases, clearing this area can take a number of treatments, which must continue once per week or so until the blockage is clear. This can take more or less 3 - 6 weeks and occasionally more. Once cleared, it seems to stay clear.

There are also some gentle, ‘opening’ sort of moves that can be made over the sagittal sinus along the sagittal plane of the skull from the front hairline to as far back as you can go when a client is supine.  There can be almost instant clearing of the sinuses after theses moves.  Craniosacral therapists who have also trained in Bowen frequently comment on the effectiveness of this move also for the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid.

By Janie Godfrey. Janie practices in Frome, Somerset.

Check out the Pollen Calendar and get Pollen tips and advice.

Good Posture: the position every rower needs to perform better

The desire to perform better leads many amateurs and professionals into spending lots of money on new gadgets or the latest training kit. Although this approach may work for a short time, most rowers end up injured which limits their chance of reaching peak performance.

It is estimated that at any given time as many as 30% of all professional athletes are playing injured, 53% of men and 45% of women athletes suffer from back pain.

Strength is not the only key to healthy rowing; a good rower requires flexibility, the ability to rotate with every stroke, efficiently, easily, explosively and repeatedly. Many postural faults are the result of poor joint mobility or joint instability, resulting from soft tissue (muscles, tendons, ligaments and fascia) restrictions.

When the balance of any muscle group is altered, the movement patterns of the joints are altered. This progressively alters the movement for the joints to follow. This joint alteration will inevitably lead to injury. When muscles become injured due to trauma, repetitive strains, they form scar tissue and fibrous adhesions, these adhesions form between muscles and connective tissue which restrict the muscles ability to slide freely past one another, disrupting joint mechanics and causing muscles to feel tight and restrictive.

Shortened muscles and tightened joints, all combine to impair coordination, reduce power and result in further injuries. This cycle will repeat itself unless the restrictions are released.

By assessing posture, muscle imbalances and functional movement, we at the Northern Integrative Health Practice can identify and locate your muscle and movement restrictions. By using soft tissue treatments, follow up stretching, removal of adhesions and designing your individual strength training program you can return to high performance with reduced risk of injury.

We'll be at the Chester-le-Street Regatta on Saturday 16th April from 9.30am on the riverside, supporting our local Rowing Club by providing pre and post race treatments. If you're looking for advice or more information about how the NIHP Durham can help then come down and see us.

Spend a day by the river!

Skills for Life

• Get a qualification in Maths and English at Level 1 or 2 (equivalent to GCSE)
• Improve your skills
• Increase your confidence
• Progress your career

Take the National Test on-line or paper based
It’s Free!

We can help you prepare for the test which consists of 40 multiple choice questions.

We can offer advice and practice sessions from our friendly and qualified tutors.

Sessions will take place at the NIHP on Thursdays 1pm—3pm.

Contact Return to Learn in Stanley on 01207 230 521 or leave your contact details at reception to be added to the waiting list.

Kinesio Tex Tape is the coloured tape all the champions seem to love.

But does its work and how?

I just recently came back from the headquarters of the English Institute of Sport, where I taught a course for the physiotherapists of the Olympic teams and I am on my way to teach my colleagues who look after the players of one of the big premier league teams in Scotland. All the medical professionals treating elite athletes throughout the country want to learn how to use Kinesio Tex Tape. Why is that?

Simple, that’s because Kinesio Tex Tape can help recovery from injuries in a very efficient, natural and lasting way in much faster time. In more cases than not a relief from the pain and an improvement of the function or movement in the treated area can be experienced immediately or shortly after the application.

No wonder the managers of the well paid football stars are keen fans of Kinesio Tape. They want them to go back to perform as soon as possible

No wonder the Olympic athletes want to be able to perform at their best to come home with medals…

But don’t worry; you don’t need to be a professional athlete to be treated by me at the NIHP with Kinesio Tape. If Kinesio Tape is good for the best performers so it is good for us “common mortals”. And that is why 85% of the applications of Kinesio Tape are made on normal population ranging from infants to elderly people.

Which conditions can be helped?
You name it and we can tape it! Basically Kinesio tape will help with conditions from A to Z and this is not a joke.

The unique qualities of this tape make it very friendly to all types of skin, from paediatric to geriatric. Also Kinesio Tape can be used in all phases of the healing process; from the acute to the rehabilitation phase of an injury.

Conditions like acute or chronic swelling, muscle strains and tendon/ligament injuries, postural problems, pain during pregnancy like back pain or PSD, neurological and visceral like period pain or stomach pain problems can be helped thanks to Kinesio tape and the expertise of the therapist.

How does it work?
Kinesio Tex tape is applied on the stretched skin with different degrees of tension according to the technique the practitioner chooses to use for the treatment.

The recoil effect of the tape and/or the amount of pressure applied will affect the many receptors, microcirculation and lymphatic system reducing pressure and congestion, facilitating or inhibiting muscles, stimulating proprioception.

But what make KinesioTex Tape so unique?
Unlike other taping methods Kinesio Tex tape will support and enhance the physiological movements and functions of the part treated instead of blocking it. This is possible due to the qualities of the texture which make Kinesio Tex tape similar to the skin in weight, elasticity and thickness. Kinesio Tex tape is also the ONLY product available guaranteed 100% LATEX free.

Who is applying the tape?
My name is Angela and I am not only an experienced physiotherapist, but in October 2008 qualified as an official Kinesio Taping instructor in Albuquerque/ USA. Besides treating my patients I regularly teach Kinesio Taping courses for other medical and sport professionals nationally and internationally, bringing Kinesio Tape as far as to the Indian cricket team. I am also the Kinesio Taping instructor for the English Institute of Sport and the physiotherapists of the various national teams and different English and Scottish Premier League Football Teams.

Just a fancy coloured tape? The answer is: No, but a great tape which in experienced hands can do… 'magic'!

Who invented Kinesio Tape?
The original Kinesio Tex Taping method was created in 1973 by Dr. Kenzo Kase, a Japanese chiropractor. Its first exposure outside Japan came during the Summer Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea in 1988, generating international interest. Kinesio Tex tape was officially introduced in the United States in 1995 and Europe in 1996. Nowadays it is accepted by medical practitioners worldwide.

If you would like to know more please don't hesitate to give me a call on 0191 398 0000.

• Importance and Function of the Shoulder Girdle
• Functional Assessment
• Rotator Cuff Conditioning
• Flexibility | Stability | Strength

To Book: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it | 0191 3789555 | www.durhamclimbingcentre.co.uk