I’ve always appreciated the old saying, When you consider the alternative, getting old isn’t so bad.” But, if the aging process is creating pain in your body, you are painfully aware that aging is no joke! As a Santa Barbara chiropractor, I treat a lot of patients suffering from age-related challenges that likely would not have happened if the original cause had been addressed earlier in life, especially when it relates to musculoskeletal breakdowns. Poor posture, improper gait, and repetitive overuse frequently create needless stress in the back, neck, hip, knees, and even the feet that can create painful challenges over time. Unfortunately, as another saying goes, “Hindsight is 20-20.” If we only knew back then how our aging body would feel now!
Back pain is at the top of the list as the most common musculoskeletal problem to develop as we get older. Back pain that is age-related is generally caused by spine osteoarthritis, or Spondylosis, a degenerative disorder.
Spinal osteoarthritis is caused by advanced deterioration and weight-bearing pressure on the spine that, over time, does harm to the discs, joints, and surrounding ligaments. The specific area(s) and degree of the degenerative process of spondylosis is individual, varying from person to person. It is likely to affect the cervical (neck), thoracic (mid-back), or lumbar (low back) regions of the spine. Depending on the severity of degeneration, Spondylosis symptoms vary from person-to-person as well, and can extend from minor pain and numbness to extreme sensory loss and muscular atrophy.
Calcium is deposited in the tissues around the vertebrae due to repetitive stresses that adversely affect the cartilage around the joints These calcific deposits, known as bone spurs, can constrict adjacent nerves, blood vessels and soft tissue. This particular of compression is at the root of Spondylosis.
Fortunately, whether or not you have developed spondylosis, regular chiropractic treatment and overall chiropractic management can significantly decelerate the aging process of your spine. Even though “you can’t un-ring a bell” or “turn back the hands of time,” but it isn’t too late to give your spine the attention it deserves. Chiropractors are experts when it comes to treatment of the spine. See your chiropractor in Santa Barbara today, for the health of your spine.
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