HEADACHES Headaches are common in our fast-paced, pressure-filled world. There are many causes of headaches, including physical trauma, emotional stress, nutritional deficiencies, or chemical toxins. In addition, if the joints in your neck and/or back are fixated and out of alignment, this can affect nerves, muscles, and even blood flow to your head. Too often, we turn to over-the-counter medications to relieve our discomfort. Unfortunately, these only mask the underlying sources of pain. After your initial chiropractic examination, we can determine if chiropractic health care is the best course for treating your chronic headaches. A combination of chiropractic adjustments and nutritional and lifestyle changes can dramatically reduce the frequency and intensity of headaches. It is important to know that if you've suffered from chronic headaches for years, improvement can take time. But a visit to our offices is a great place to start. Every headache has a cause, and if we are unable to identify the cause, we will refer you to other specialists who may be able to help. Migraine headaches are one of the most common neurological disorders affecting approximately 15 percent of the population, or about 45 million Americans. It is a problem for which few people have found a "cure," and many have accepted as something with which they will have to live. This, however, may not be necessary. Although all of the factors causing migraine have not been discovered, one common cause is now better understood. Increasing evidence is showing that in susceptible individuals, nerves from the upper spine can be irritated by poor joint movement in the neck. These nerves connect to the trigeminal nucleus, a relay center for many of the nerves going to the head, and particularly its blood vessels. Dr. Michael Anthony, medical neurologist, states that this nerve irritation in the neck should be corrected before any drug therapy is tried. Chiropractic manipulation has long proven to be one of the most effective treatments for migraine. The most complete research study to date was funded by the Australian government and performed by a combined team of medical and chiropractic researchers at the University of New South Wales in Australia. This study found chiropractic treatment to provide more relief and more permanent cures for migraine than any other treatment tested. In a similar study in Canada, Dr. Howard Vernon, a prominent chiropractic researcher, reported similar results. Migraine subjects had, on an average, greater than 30 percent reduction in the frequency and duration of headaches and a 55 percent increase in activities that had previously been restricted by the headaches. Chiropractic treatment will bring relief for many patients needlessly suffering from migraine headaches. It does not have to be a problem that "you just have to live with." http://www.advancedchiropc.com