Ben Griffes DC

So, while we all practice social distancing, there is no reason not to stay healthy, or get healthier. First, stay hydrated. It's easy to stop drinking water if you're just lying around, so stop lying around. Second, move 30 to 60 minutes every day. Here is my video of suggested exercises you can start doing: Video link https://youtu.be/IIhJo0G7G_I ... Third, take Vitamin D3. This is important anyway for healthy bone growth, but getting at least 15 minutes of sunshine a day, and eating yogurt and fatty fish are good habits to employ. Fourth, take Vitamin C, also. It helps boost your immune system, kind of important right now, so aim for 500 to 1,000 mgs a day. Foods high in Vit C are kiwi, red peppers and oranges. Fifth, reduce your sugar intake. Sitting around being bored lends itself to eating sweet and fatty foods for comfort, so aim to eat more nuts, fruits and vegetables. If you have any questions about health, fitness or your relative safety during this time, please feel free to contact me. I still am seeing patients, in an extremely sterile office. Dr. Ben

Hi beautiful people, This is an absolutely strange time we are in right now, but it doesn't have to be scary. Now is the time to rediscover books, board games and talking face to face with your teenager. Here are some things to know:... Vitamin C and Zinc are two natural products that help boost your immune system, and you want a strong immune system. I strongly recommend them. I learned today that soap molecules have two parts; a water-loving "head" and a water-hating "tail", so when you use soap with water, half dissolves with the water while the other half surrounds the fat, oil, dirt, bacteria, etc, and removes those molecules from the surface of your skin. So soap doesn't kill the bacteria or oil or dirt, it removes it. This is why it's important to wash your hands for 20 seconds; time enough to remove all foreign particles. Also, in the case of viruses and other little nasties, the soap's chemical make-up easily destroys the thin, lipid membrane of the virus, so it doesn't have a chance of surviving against soap and water. Much, much better than hand sanitizer. Maintain a routine while quarantined at home. If you exercise at the gym, workout in the house or outside. (Watch for an upcoming video on how to exercise at home, using what you have) Go for walks, just stay six feet from other people who are not your family. If you're working from home, block out distractions and don't be in the same room as your refrigerator. Call up friends and family you haven't seen in awhile. Maintain some social contact, even if it is by phone. You can also use Zoom or Facetime and see the other person on your computer. It's not the end of the world, it's just a major hiccup in our normal routine of life; it will resolve itself, hopefully in the next month or so. Be patient, gracious, forgiving and understanding. Stay calm and don't panic. Be the clock in the thunderstorm. Stay healthy, my friends, Dr. Ben

Want a standing desk to help offset all the sitting you do?

I have decided to ride 500 miles to raise awareness for children's cancer research and to raise $500 as well. The money raised has already exceeded $500, so I've changed it to $1000. That was the easy part. I don't usually ride beyond 50 miles in a week, so averaging 125 miles for the four weeks in June is going to be a push, but I said I would ride to bring awareness about children's cancer, so I'm going to give it my best shot. You may visit https://greatcyclechallenge....com/Riders/BenjaminGriffes to read my profile and donate if you wish. Or join up and ride, too. I am riding for Grayson Miller, a 7 year old with leukemia, and for two great men who succumbed to cancer in the past 3 years - Steve Schoenbaum and Eric Webster. My challenge to you today is whether you are comfortable where you're at now, and is there anything - a goal, a cause, a challenge that would push you and take you out of your comfort zone? Find something bigger than yourself; look for the needs within your community and ask if there is something you could do to help make things better; and what about you and the way you take care of yourself and others? Can you do better? Today is the day, this is the place and you're the one. See more

Ibuprofen Linked to Men's Fertility Problems By Tim Locke TUESDAY Jan. 9, 2018 -- Taking the common painkiller ibuprofen has been linked in a small study with a condition affecting male fertility problems....Continue reading

How and what do you carry (physically)? I know many of you work from home, and you might have kids, whom you're going to lift and carry. Some of you carry briefcases and suitcases and all this lifting and carrying can contribute to tight shoulders, neck and back. As an aid to helping you carry and lift better, check out my new video on "How to hold your baby" at https://lnkd.in/gEzU6CU. I show you how to hold and lift your little one and reduce the strain on your spine. The principle applies to everything you carry, actually. Doesn't get any easier than that. Dr. Ben, "Your Biomechanic on the Road to Good Health"

YOU WANT TO DO THIS Admit it, most people are lazy. If you really don’t have to do it, you might postpone it until later. You know there are things you must do, should do, could do or need to do, but ultimately you have to want to do it. You get out of bed at 6:00 because you want to get your kids to school on time, you want clean teeth and no cavities so you have to brush every day. When you say you don’t have time to exercise, or say you want to lose 20 lbs., it really i...s because you don’t want it enough to move it to a higher priority. Woulda’, coulda’, shoulda’ are all excuses, and your talk becomes the walk when you want it enough to make changes in your patterns, habits, desires and time management. I challenge you to take 5 minutes out of your precious day and write down what you want and next to it what you could do to make it happen, and I’m not talking about buying a lottery ticket. I’m talking about looking at your schedule and finding the time wasters and distractions that prevent you from doing the wants lower on your list. For example, people who like to read and do some form of exercise, like gardening, have balanced these wants by switching to ebooks and listening to stories instead of reading. Want to lose 20 lbs.? Switch out the cheeseburger and fries for a chicken salad sandwich and a handful of almonds instead of a candy bar for an afternoon snack. Burn more calories without starving yourself. You have to want it enough to taste it (pun intended). Be honest with yourself. If you won’t go to the gym or learn to play the piano, whatever it is, you cannot blame not having enough time. Blame your priorities. See more

YOU ARE THE SUM OF YOUR EXPERIENCES A new patient came in the other day, a young mother in her early 30s, complaining of pain in her neck and upper back. After an examination and treating her twice with deep-tissue bodywork and spinal adjustments, she called to cancel her next appointment, saying she would just do more stretching and some yoga. I asked her why, and she said it was because she hurt worse after each visit and didn’t think it was helping. I explained to her t...hat when we attempt to release chronic pain, it sometimes ends up hurting worse initially because the only way out of pain is through it. She replied that she hadn’t done anything to hurt herself recently, but she did remind me that she had done a lot of horseback riding and mountain bike riding as a kid, and could that be part of the problem? Well, a history of falling off horses and mountain bikes can leave a lasting impression on your body, and over time, the accumulation of those impacts is going to alter your physical structure. In particular, creating early onset arthritis and degenerative joint disease. My patient responded with but I’m too young to start having arthritis. Unfortunately, age has nothing to do with it, but the mileage and collective repetition of every fall, twist and strain that impacted the soft tissue and skeletal system. Your body will develop compensations that lead to stiff joints, tight muscles and restricted movement, which affects your posture and your activities. Most of these imbalances can be corrected with myofascial releasing, spinal adjusting and therapeutic exercises (which I am doing with the aforementioned patient). The key is recognizing that you have to undo or unlearn old patterns and replace them with new ones. Sometimes this can hurt in the process, but the result is moving and playing in a body that has fewer restrictions and greater ease of movement. You may start today. Dr. Ben - "Your Biomechanic on the Road to Good Health" See more

POSTURE AND YOUR PAIN Make a fist and hold it for 60 seconds or until you finish reading this article. Your posture, and the positions you hold your head, back and pelvis all determine how tight or relaxed your muscles will be during the day. Muscles are meant to move, but in today’s sedentary society you sit for way too long; eating, driving, working and relaxing all include sitting. Now add an uneven variable like driving with one arm, using a mouse at the computer all d...ay, lifting and carrying things with only one arm, or leaning forward in a slouched position for hours at a time. These actions tighten muscles and lead to tension and spasms. This is known as postural overload. This daily and chronic postural overload is not good for your circulation or your flexibility, which can lead to adaptive shortening. Keeping your muscles locked in a stationary position is like keeping your hand clenched in a fist all day. (has your hand started to ache yet?) In order to keep your blood flowing you have to move your muscles, and in order to keep a flexible and relaxed body you have to sit in a neutral and relaxed position. Lately I have been treating a number of people with chronic shoulder blade pain, which they describe as a knot or knife sticking in to them underneath the shoulder blade. Sometimes it hurts when they move and others say it only hurts at rest, but either way, it’s annoying. Why is this and what can be done about it? In most cases the cause is lack of movement over a number of hours per day, per week, per month, so the best thing to do is start moving your shoulders and back regularly throughout the day with simple stretches and taking a break every 30 to 60 minutes from what you are doing. The easiest stretches to do to relieve stress and tension from your muscles are: Backbends stand up, clasp your hands together and raise them above your head, reaching up and slightly back, feeling a stretch in your shoulders and low back. Hold for about 30 seconds and repeat throughout the day. Shoulder rolls roll your shoulders by lifting them up, back, down and forward in a circle 5 to 10 times, then reverse and do it the opposite way. Do this anytime, anywhere. Windmills standing up, lift your arms out to your sides and then slowly rotate left and right about 10 times. This will stretch your back and boost your circulation. You may unclench your fist now. Does it feel tight and stiff? Possibly colder? This is what you do every day when you remain in a fixed position for hours at a time. See more

IF YOU RESOLVE TO MAKE SOME CHANGES Don’t start what you cannot finish. Don’t make promises you cannot keep. The secret to success is consistency of purpose. You can go with the negative or go with the positive, but either way, you’re going to succeed when you focus on your goals and commit to taking a step towards completion every day. So if you are looking to make a few changes, here are a few suggestions: 1. Drink more water. This will help you keep up your ener...gy, aid in digestion, and help you maintain proper weight. Often people will confuse thirstiness with hunger and eat instead of drink, ending up eating more than you need. 2. Get enough sleep. Studies show that people who do not get enough sleep tend to become overweight, possibly due to not being able to repair and restore the body overnight. You also tend to be more tired and less energetic. 3. Move more often. You have probably heard by now that sitting is the new smoking. This is mainly due to the fact that a sedentary lifestyle leads to a number of diseases, including heart, lung and diabetes. Getting up once an hour helps loosen up muscles and improve circulation, thus reducing the risk of muscle cramps and stiff joints. BTW, my resolution for the 4th year in a row is Do it Now! because I still procrastinate too much. I find that when I actually listen to myself and say do it now, I get up and do it, eliminating future rushing or just forgetting. See more

A patient came in the other day and said she was tired, so I asked her some questions. Are you getting enough sleep? Are you active throughout the day? Are you drinking enough water? Are you eating enough of the right food? In her case, she wasn’t eating enough good food and drinking enough water. She forgot that her body needs fuel, good fuel to help her going all day long. You also need to stay hydrated with enough water, you have to move and get your blood flowing t...hrough your muscles and organs, and have had enough sleep the night before to be fully repaired and rested. So here’s a checklist of what you can do. First, are you getting too little sleep or too much sleep? Too little sleep means your body never has enough time to rest and repair itself, leading to an increase in inflammation, weight gain and fatigue. Too much sleep makes you sluggish, which you might confuse with tiredness, and it can lead to an increase in muscle aches with too much time lying in bed. Secondly, don’t sit too long without a break. Muscles are meant to move, not laze around all day. There are many health advantages to exercising and increasing your activity level, and having more energy is one of them. Thirdly, fuel yourself with power foods, not empty calories or no calories. Consider your stomach like a furnace; it’s been quiet since last night’s meal with just ashes left in the bottom. Open up the furnace and throw in a log or some charcoal briquettes in the form of proteins and whole grains, and then continue to feed the furnace about every 3 hours all day, eating 5 to 6 small meals. This does not include coffee and donuts. This helps keep up your metabolism by burning more calories and maintaining your energy levels, plus drink water in between your meals. You have no excuse to be tired all the time, but if you are, taking a nap also helps. Being healthy is a multi-faceted proposition and involves tending to a number of elements. You can do it, and if you have any questions, feel free to ask for answers. Dr. Ben

The Wall Street Journal will carry an ad about Chiropractic this month. Check it out: http://www.f4cp.com//WSJ_Safer_Solution_10.87x10.5_102317.

GIVE SENIORS THE MEDICARE COVERAGE THEY NEED AND DESERVE: FULL ACCESS TO SERVICES PROVIDED BY CHIROPRACTORS The American Chiropractic Association is actively collecting names for our Medicare Equality Petition. This is a major grassroots campaign to enact federal legislation that would allow chiropractors to perform to the fullest scope of their license in Medicare, significantly improving the health and wellness of our nation's aging population. Add your name to the petition to urge your representatives to give seniors the Medicare coverage they need and deserve by allowing full access to services by chiropractors. Take Action: http://cqrcengage.com/aca/app/sign-petition

Welcome to my new Business (only) page. This page will be strictly about chiropractic care, health, fitness, posture and nutrition. Please LIKE my page if you're interested.

WHY MAINTAIN? Is maintenance really a bad word, something that is a necessary evil? Do you maintain your car with regular oil changes, rotating your tires, and having the air filter and spark plugs changed on a regular basis? Do you maintain your body with enough sleep, proper food, regular activity, proper posture and having a positive mental attitude? Those five elements of good health are within your control. Couple this with regular visits to your chiropractor, who a...ligns your spine and balances your muscles, and your vehicle receives the needed neurological re-alignment necessary to operate at 100% efficiency. So what do you do to maintain your health and fitness? Have you set in place regular habits that address all the elements of health and fitness? I know many people who incorporate 3 or 4 of the above elements and hope that the other 2 or 3 missing health strategies will magically show up and do their job or not be noticed that they’re missing. So, maintenance is a good thing, particularly when it comes to good health. It does require paying attention to your posture, watching what you eat, managing your time so you get enough sleep and enough exercise and play. You also must love yourself and approach life with a positive mental attitude, and all this held together with a nervous system that keeps you operating at full tilt bozo. BG See more

The California Chiropractic Association's 2017 Doctor of the Year, with CCA President Leslie Hewitt

WHAT IS CHIROPRACTIC? Chiropractic is the art, science and philosophy of adjusting the spine and restoring normal health pathways. You have 24 moveable vertebrae and they protect your spinal chord, which sends out signals to control and regulate all other systems in the body. You have about 1,000 yards of nerves in your body (your nerves have nerves), and they help you operate, grow, repair and restore throughout the whole body. When there is interference of the nervous system, by spinal misalignment or muscle imbalances, you don't operate at 100%. With bodywork and spinal adjusting, you have a better chance of restoring normal health with uninterrupted nerve flow. Chiropractic care operates best as prevention, but does help facilitate healing faster than any other method, since it addresses the cause of your dis-ease.