Health Made Easy with Dr. Jason Jones

Adrenal Stress: How Lifestyle Hurts and Helps this Vital Gland- Dr. Jason Jones Elizabeth City NC, Chiropractor

Adrenal glands are vital organs for your everyday health. They form a part of your endocrine system and are responsible for the production of hormones that react to stressors.

The hormones produced by adrenal glands also help to distribute fat and protein as well as regulate inflammation and sugar levels in your body.

In certain cases, adrenal glands may be unable to carry out their roles efficiently, and this may be a result of adrenal stress. Here, you will be exposed to the lifestyles that are injurious and the ones that are beneficial to your adrenal glands.

What is adrenal stress?

Adrenal stress is a condition whereby your adrenal glands cannot produce adequate amounts of hormones. In this case, the adrenal glands are exhausted due to physical, mental, or emotional stress.

In addition, adrenal stress may also be caused by infections. Fatigue, weightlessness, loss of appetite, and low blood pressure are symptoms associated with adrenal stress.

Lifestyle Habits that hurts your adrenal glands

Some lifestyle habits may be injurious to your adrenal glands and cause adrenal stress. These lifestyles include:

1. Drinking less water

Drinking adequate amounts of water is essential and should not be taken for granted. If you are not drinking adequate amounts of water, you are causing harm to your adrenal glands. 

Water is very important for the normal functioning of your endocrine system.

2. High consumption of caffeine

When you consume too much coffee, the caffeine present causes a rise in your levels of cortisol, giving more work to your adrenal glands which have to pump out the excessive cortisol.

3. Lack of sleep

If you are too busy to sleep, you are overworking your adrenal glands. Not getting enough sleep will cause your cortisol levels to rise and your adrenal glands will become stressed out overtime. 

4. High-impact exercises

Your body, sometimes, responds to high-impact exercises as though you were stressed. Such exercises may put too much work on your adrenal glands. Low-impact exercises such as Light cardio, Pilates, or Yoga are better alternatives. 

5. Consumption of processed food

Processed food high in fats, calories, and carbs is difficult to digest and absorb by your body. Most of your organs, including your adrenal glands, have a hard time processing that food.

Lifestyle that helps your adrenal glands

Here are some lifestyles that support the function of your adrenal glands:

1. Proper relaxation

The best thing to do after going through a stressful day is to get proper relaxation. When you relax, you are allowing your adrenal glands to calm themselves.

2. Eating a diet rich in protein

When you consume a diet rich in protein, it digests to give certain amino acids such as tryptophan that help in relaxing your body and lowers your cortisol level. This reduces your adrenal stress.

3. Getting fresh air

Ensure you stay in a well-ventilated room. Getting fresh air helps to relieve your adrenal glands.

4. Eating more veggies

Green vegetables contain fibers, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that contribute to the health of your adrenal glands.

5. Taking vacations

Working 24/7 without taking a break is injurious to your adrenal glands. Consider taking a vacation from work to relax your adrenal glands.

Adrenal glands play vital roles in producing steroid hormones in your body. These glands are essential for your everyday health but overworking them may result in adrenal stress.

Healthy lifestyles such as eating proper food, getting enough sleep, and low-impact exercises can help to manage your adrenal stress.

You may consult Dr. Jason Jones at our Chiropractic office at Elizabeth city, NC to learn more natural measures to prevent adrenal stress. 

Parasites: Common Parasites and How They Affect Our Health - Dr. Jason Jones Elizabeth City NC, Chiropractor

Any organism that lives in or on another organism (host) to derive its needed nutrients is known as a parasite. The host suffers in this parasitic relationship and sadly, we humans are victims. 

What do parasites actually do? They make use of the nutrients that are supposed to be beneficial to their hosts, depriving them and causing the development of health problems due to nutrient deficiency. 

Certain parasites live in our bodies and sometimes on our skin. These parasites affect our health by causing certain diseases. In fact, intestinal parasites are often implicated in many ongoing health issues, ranging from digestive symptoms to insomnia and more.

Let’s look at some of these parasites and how they affect our health.

Link to full article:  https://optimumwellnessandrehab.com/parasites-common-parasites-and-how-they-affect-our-health-dr-jason-jones-elizabeth-city-nc-chiropractor/

There are eight B-vitamins that benefits overall health, including keeping your nerves healthy. But three of these vitamins – Thiamine (B1), Pyridoxine (B6), and Cobalamin (B12) are mainly known to support nervous system function.

Continue reading to find out how these three B-complex vitamins help support your nervous system and keep it in tip-top shape.

Thiamine (B1)

Vitamin B1 has a huge benefit to your central nervous system (CNS). This vitamin aids the synthesis of acetylcholine, which is one of the most abundant neurotransmitters in your CNS. This chemical helps to relay messages from your brain to your body muscles, thereby influencing movement and behavior.

Acetylcholine also helps memory and cognitive function. More so, it plays a role in regulation of hormones, learning, sleep cycles, and pain sensation.

Now, imagine if your body is not producing enough of acetylcholine because you’re having vitamin B1 deficiency. You’ll not only experience fatigue, but you’ll suffer poor short-term memory and confusion. Your feet and hands may become numb and your movement hampered.

So ensure you’re getting enough of vitamin B1 in your diet. Some thiamine-rich foods you can include in your diet include beans, nuts and seeds, beef, yeast, liver, oranges, eggs, pork, peas, legumes, and oranges.

Pyridoxine (B6)

While thiamine is essential for the synthesis of acetylcholine, pyridoxine is needed in the synthesis of other neurotransmitters like norepinephrine and serotonin.

Norepinephrine is the stress hormone helpful in triggering a fight-or-flight response. This neurotransmitter helps increase the amount of oxygen in your brain, helping you to think and make decisions faster.

Serotonin is an import neurotransmitter responsible for regulating your appetite, mood, and sexual desire. It also helps to enhance your memory and maintain your sleep cycle.

Vitamin B6 also plays an important role in myelin formation – the insulating sheath around your nerves. This helps in quick and efficient transmission of electrical impulses along your nerves.

When you’re deficient in vitamin B6, you tend to feel more tired, irritable, nervous, and depression. This vitamin deficiency is also linked with conditions such as neuritis, neuralgia, and carpal tunnel syndrome.

So it is important to add pyridoxine-rich foods to your diet. Some good options including meat, legumes, bananas, avocados, fish, tofu, soybean, and potatoes.

Cobalamin (B12)

Both vitamin B6 and B12 are needed for maintaining your myelin. Cobalamin helps in the synthesis of myelin that protects the nerves.

If myelin becomes damaged, it can lead to dysfunctional nerves, which leads to problems such as peripheral neuropathy.

Pregnant women who do not eat foods rich in cobalamin puts their babies at risk of nervous system disorders like seizures, brain atrophy, microencephaly, and even blindness.

Some good food options that are rich in vitamin B12 include read meat, fish, poultry, eggs, lamb, liver, fortified yeast products, and milk.

Looking at these benefits of the B-complex vitamins for your nervous health, it is important that you get enough of these vitamins from your diet or take supplements (as approved by your doctor).

If you’re going to load up on B vitamin supplements, ensure you choose options with optimum combination of the B vitamins to prevent running into deficiency in any form.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office in Elizabeth City, NC, to learn more about how vitamins support your nervous system and other bodily functions.

In the previous article, we’ve described what B vitamins are, the eight types, their functions and food sources. In this article, let’s proceed to talk about the common symptoms associated with a deficiency in each of the eight B-group vitamins.

B vitamins are essential for maintaining cell health and keeping you energized, and you must keep taking them in adequate amount since they are water-soluble and are not stored in the body. This means excess amount is given out through urine, and you have to load up on these vitamins daily to stay healthy.

Some foods are high in several B vitamins, while certain foods are particularly high in a specific B vitamin.

However, eating a balanced diet is key to getting all these vitamins, at least in amounts that your body needs.

How much of B vitamins should you be taking?

The recommended daily intakes are:

• Vitamin B1: 1-1 – 1.2 mg
• Vitamin B2: 1.1 -1.3 mg
• Vitamin B3: 14 -16 mg
• Vitamin B5: 5 mg
• Vitamin B6: 1.3 mg
• Vitamin B7: 30 mcg
• Vitamin B9: 400 mcg
• Vitamin B12: 2.4 mcg

A normal healthy and balanced diet should supply you with all these vitamins in adequate amounts, but some common symptoms are associated with a deficiency in any of these vitamins. However, if you have a deficiency, it is something that must be determined by your doctor.

But unfortunately, some of us suffer vitamin B deficiencies. The high-risk group includes pregnant women, people with certain conditions such as Celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, and HIV.

What are the symptoms of Vitamin B deficiency?

Symptoms of vitamin B deficiency vary based on the particular B vitamin you’re deficient in.

Here’s a quick rundown of the symptoms of deficiency of each B vitamin

Vitamin B1 and vitamin B2 deficiency is very rare because many foods including whole-grain cereals and milk are fortified with these vitamins.

Vitamin B3 deficiency is also very rare but severe deficiency of this vitamin can result in a condition known as “pellagra,” which is characterized by symptoms such as:

• a bright red tongue
• a rough skin that turns red or brown in the sun
• constipation and diarrhea
• vomiting
• aggressive, paranoid, or suicidal behavior
• fatigue
• hallucinations

Vitamin B5 deficiency is extremely rare because it is found in such a variety of foods, including kidneys, milk, egg, meats, legumes, and many more.

Vitamin B6 deficiency is also rare, but people women on contraceptive pills, people who drink excessive amounts of alcohol, people with thyroid disease and the elderly are more at risk.

Vitamin B7 is required in very small amounts and it is widely distributed in foods, so its deficiency is very rare. However, over-consumption of raw egg whites for several months can induce deficiency. This is because a protein in egg white inhibits the absorption of biotin. Bodybuilders should keep this in mind.

Vitamin B9 deficiency is also very rare, but low levels of this vitamin can result in the following:

• trouble concentrating
• fatigue
• megaloblastic anemia, which cause weakness
• heart palpitations
• shortness of breath
• headache
• irritability
• change in hair, skin, or fingernail color
• open sores in the mouth

Pregnant women who are deficient in vitamin B9 or folate could end up having babies born with neural tube defects.

Vitamin B12 deficiency can lead to disruption in the circulatory and nervous system. Also, a deficiency in this vitamin can lead to megaloblastic anemia, a condition characterized by the production of large abnormally shaped red blood cells by the bone marrow. The red blood cells do not function properly.

Some common symptoms associated with vitamin B12 deficiency includes:

• weakness
• tiredness or fatigue
• confusion
• weight loss
• constipation
• poor memory
• soreness of the mouth
• balance problems
• loss of appetite

If you suspect you might be deficient in a B vitamin, you can contact your doctor for physical examination and blood testing.

To prevent a deficiency in the B vitamins, however, you should always eat a varied diet of vegetables, fruits, lean meats, and grains. This way, you’ll be getting all the nutrients you need.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office in Elizabeth City NC, to learn more about symptoms of deficiency to watch out for and good food options to include in your diet to get adequate amount of B vitamins.

What Causes B vitamin Deficiency? - Dr. Jason Jones Elizabeth City NC, Chiropractor

We’ve talked about the types of B vitamins, benefits, and common symptoms of B vitamin deficiency in our last posts. In this post, we’ll quickly discuss the most common causes of these deficiencies. You probably believe it’s only about poor diet, but that’s not all. We will show you more in this article.

But before we talk about the causes of B vitamin deficiencies, it is important to note that while each of the eight B vitamins plays important roles in the body, each of them also yield different deficiency levels, which can lead to number of different symptoms over time.

Thiamine and folate deficiencies, for example, are quite rate across the U.S.

But research has shown that about 6% of children and adults younger than age 60 suffer vitamin B12 deficiency, while around 20% of adults older than age 60 have a deficiency.

Without further do, let’s get the causes of B vitamin deficiency.

What causes B vitamin Deficiency?

Here are the top four causes of B vitamin deficiency:

A Non-balanced diet

B-vitamins cannot be produced or stored in the body. This means you can only get them from your diet. But eating a non-balanced diet, your body will not get the right level of nutrients and you tend to suffer B vitamin deficiency.

If you follow a vegan or vegetarian diet, for example, you may not be getting enough of vitamin B12 because it is more commonly found in animal-based foods and dairy products.

So it is important to always eat a balanced diet loaded with vitamin-rich foods.

Excessive alcohol consumption

When you drink too much of alcohol, one of the downsides is that it rips you of vitamin B. Here’s how it happens – Taking alcohol causes your kidneys to flush B vitamins out of your system more quickly.

This means your body does not get all the time it needs to utilize B vitamins as they quickly go to waste due to excess alcohol consumption.

Gut Malabsorption Conditions

B vitamins are normally absorbed by the gut into your bloodstream under normal conditions. The bloodstream transports these vitamin to all parts of your body where they are needed. So it is important for the B vitamins to get into your bloodstream.

But if you have gut malabsorption problems, such as Crohn’s disease, Celiac disease or ulcerative colitis, your gut may not be able to absorb B vitamins into the bloodstream. This causes a deficiency and potential harm to your wellbeing.

Medications

Some types of prescription medications can cause you to suffer B vitamin deficiency.

Medications such as anticonvulsants, hydralazine, isoniazid, and corticosteroids can increase your likelihood of suffering vitamin B6 deficiency.

Medications such as phenytoin, trimethoprim – sulfamethoxazole, sulfasalazine, and methotrexate can increase your chances of suffering vitamin B deficiency.

Medications like antacids, metformin, proton pump inhibitors (PPIS), antidepressants, and long-term antibiotics can increase your likelihood of suffering vitamin B12 deficiency.

There you have it, the four common causes of B vitamin deficiency. If you’re showing symptoms of B vitamin deficiency, it may be because you’re not foods loaded with these vitamins.

If you’re showing signs of lightheadedness, tiredness, shortness of breath, and other symptoms of deficiency, it is advisable that you check your B vitamin level.

Ensure that you talk with your healthcare provider to diagnose the problem and come up with the best treatment measure.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our Chiropractic office in Elizabeth City NC, to learn more about the causes of B vitamin deficiency and how to ensure you’re eating a healthy, balanced diet loaded with vitamins.

What are the common B vitamins? - Dr. Jason Jones Elizabeth City NC, Chiropractor

Vitamins are found naturally in food and needed in small amounts by the body for various functions, including the making of red blood cells, supporting the immune system and boosting energy production.

There are 13 essential vitamins that our body needs, and the B-group vitamins make up eight of them.

Here at our Chiropractic office, we’re concerned about what you take in your foods to maintain optimal health. We’ll show you all you need to know about the B-vitamins, so you’re sure of what you’re consuming, especially in form of supplements.  

What are B- vitamins?

B-vitamins are water-soluble vitamins essentials that support several metabolic processes in the body. However, most B vitamins cannot be synthesized or stored by the body. This means you must consume them in your diet.   

Types of B vitamins

The eight types of B vitamins include:

Thiamine (B1)

Thiamine, also called vitamin B1, has a strong role in nervous function and helps covert glucose into energy.

Some good food sources of thiamine include legumes, whole meal cereal grains, seeds, yeast, pork, nuts, and wheat germ.

Riboflavin (B2)

Riboflavin supports vision and skin health, but it is primarily involved in energy production

Some good food sources of vitamin B2 include yogurt, milk, cottage cheese, egg white, leafy green vegetables, kidney, yeast, liver, meat, and wholegrain breads and cereals.

Niacin (B3)

Niacin or vitamin B3 is needed for the body to convert fat, carbohydrates, and alcohol into energy. It also supports the digestive and nervous system, and maintains skin health.

Niacin is heat stable, only a little is lost in cooking.

Some good food sources of Niacin include poultry, meats, fish, eggs, wholegrain breads and cereals, milk, mushrooms, nuts, and all-protein-containing foods.

Pantothenic acid (B5)

Pantothenic acid is essential for proteins, fats, and carbohydrates metabolism. It is also needed to produce steroid hormones and red blood cells

Some good food sources of pantothenic acid include meats, liver, milk, eggs, kidneys, legumes, peanuts, and yeast.

Pyridoxine (B6)

Pyridoxine is also needed to metabolize carbohydrates and protein, and it is essential in the formation of red blood cells and certain brain chemicals. This vitamin influences immune function, brain processes and development, and steroid hormone activity.

Some good food sources of vitamin B6 include legumes, cereal grains, fish and shellfish, fruits, liver, meat and poultry, green and leafy vegetables, and nuts.

Biotin (B7)

Biotin is essential for fat synthesis, energy metabolism, glycogen synthesis, and amino acid metabolism. However, taking too much biotin can contribute to raise blood cholesterol levels.

Some good food sources of biotin include egg yolks, liver, chicken, mushrooms, cauliflower, peanuts, and yeast.

Folic acid or Folate (B9)

Folic acid is the synthetic form of folate, and it is needed for red blood cells formation. It is also helps in the development of the fetal nervous system, DNA synthesis and cell growth.

Every woman within childbearing age needs to take diets rich in Folate.

Some good food sources of this vitamin include legumes, green leafy vegetables, poultry, cereals, eggs, liver, and citrus fruits.

Cobalamin (B12)

Cobalamin helps in red blood cell formation, the production and maintenance of the myelin surrounding nerve cells, and breaking down of some amino acids and fatty acids to produce energy.

Some good food sources of this vitamin include meat, liver, cheese, eggs, cheese, milk, and almost anything of animal origin.

It is important to always eat a balanced diet containing an adequate amounts of these vitamins. All the B vitamins are water soluble, but not stored in the body. So any excess amount is excreted in the urine. This means you need to constantly replenish your body with this vitamin from your diet.

You may also get vitamin B in supplemental form to ensure you’re getting the amount your body needs on a daily basis, but it is advisable to always get approval from your doctor or dietician before starting.

We shall discuss the symptoms of B vitamin deficiency in our next article.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office at Elizabeth City to learn more about the benefits of adding the B-group vitamins to your diet.

We all want to smile, talk, eat and laugh every day without issues. But if you have temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMJD), those facial movements may cause you a lot of pain.

Your temporomandibular joints (TMJ) are where your lower jawbone and skull meet. When you have TMJDs, including dislocation, arthritis, infection of injury in your TMJ, you may suffer painful clicking and locking in your jaws, neck pain, headaches, and ringing in your ears.

Although most symptoms of TMJD resolve in a few weeks, some persist and can be aggravated by certain actions like chewing, swallowing, and clenching, which causes a strain your jaw and neck muscles.

In this article, however, we shall be showing you solutions or remedies for TMJD and how you can manage this condition from the comfort of your home.

What are the best solutions for TMJD?

Here are some non-surgical approaches to help relieve pain in your TMJ:

Exercise your jaw

When you exercise your jaw daily, it helps increase mobility in your joints. You can try stretch exercises, relaxation exercises, and strengthening exercises to relieve TMJD

Correct your posture

Your posture can affect your TMJs. When you sit in an unideal position for a long time, it causes more pain in your jaw.

So a simple solution to help relieve TMJD is to correct your posture. When working, always choose a chair that has back support. Besides, take regular breaks to stretch out.

While driving, keep your sit upright, and while doing leisure activities, such as reading or watching TV, try to sit upright and use a pillow behind your back for support.

You can also try this simple exercise to correct your standing or sitting position – Push your chest out and pull your shoulders back. Now, gently squeeze your shoulder blades to help straighten your back muscles.

Reduce stress and get a good night’s sleep

Stress stiffens up your jaw and worsens TMJD. You can try meditation or yoga practices to put less stress on your on your muscles. You can also work on your garden to calm your mind and relax your facial muscles.

Generally, sleep is an important factor for good health. To minimize TMJD, it is advisable to sleep on your back with pillows to support your neck. Do not sleep on your stomach, and if you sleep on your side, ensure your hands are not on your jaw.

Avoid foods and activities

Some foods force you to open your mouth or move your jaw in an extreme way. Avoid these foods, including:

• Foods that requires chewing for a long time
• Crunchy or hard foods
• Chewing gum
• Taking large bites of food

Also, try to minimize activities like yelling or yawning. Also quit bad habits such as nail biting, clenching your teeth, chewing lips and cheeks, grinding your teeth and more.

You can take note of your daily pattern and jot them down. Keep in mind how often you do them and discuss with your doctor. This way, you’ll easily find solutions to your TMJD.

You can discuss with Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office at Elizabeth City, NC, to learn about more natural and non-surgical methods to enjoy relief from TMJD.

1. Why are psych meds so widely prescribed?
2. Is there really a rise in psychological disorders or is it something else?
3. What are some hidden things that people wouldn’t normally think about that could be leading to this?
4. Where should people start if they think they have a psychological problem?
5. What’s Wrong Wellness and is also the author of What’s Wrong with My Child and America is Infected, which became an Amazon bestseller.

If you want to get relief from your TMJD, the good news is that a Chiropractor can help you with alignments and soft tissue treatments to help loosen up your jaws and relieve pain. The interesting part is that these chiropractic procedures are quick and provide fast relief to pesky TMJD.

Let’s quickly review TMJD before talking more on chiropractic help on this condition.

What is TMJD?

TMJD also known as temporomandibular disorder (TMD) is term used to describe acute or chronic inflammation of the TMJ – temporomandibular joints, which connects your jaws to your skull.

TMJD is often used to describe a wide variety of conditions affecting the TMJ, facial nerves, and jaw muscles. This dysfunction is quite common among younger people and it can be caused by a number of factors, including teeth grinding, trauma/direct injury to the jaw, and degenerative joint diseases, such as arthritis and autoimmune diseases.

Most times, TMJD is accompanied by a wide range of symptoms including headaches, ear pain, neck pain, jaw pain when chewing or biting, tinnitus, jaw stiffness, difficulty opening and closing the mouth, etc.

If you experience any of these symptoms for a long period, you may be experiencing TMJD, and it is advisable that you take quick action to correct it.  Luckily, you can get natural relief through alignment and soft tissue procedure.

How a chiropractor can help with alignment and soft tissue techniques for TMJD

Chiropractors are experts on conditions relating to the spine and nervous system. At our Chiropractic office at Elizabeth City NC, we’ve worked on a number of TMJD cases and help our patients get relief from the chronic pains and symptoms associated with this condition.

When you visit our office with jaw pain, we focus on three key muscles – the masseter, the pterygoid, and the temporalis.  We also work on the suboccipital muscles, top two vertebrae and the TMJ itself to make sure everything is properly aligned.

Your masseter is a thick muscle in the upper jaw area that controls chewing. Your temporalis is a thinner muscle on each side of your head that also controls chewing but covers a broader area than the masseter, including regions around your temples.

At our chiropractic office, we walk you through some soft tissue techniques that work on your masseter and the temporalis to relieve jaw pain. After soft tissue work, we move on to adjust and assess the jaw using chiropractic TMJD adjustment. After this process, we reassess to see if the joint is realigned. Most times, we help patients with TMJD and accompanying pain enjoy fast relief.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office in Elizabeth City, NC to schedule an appointment for alignment and soft tissue work you’re your chiropractic TMJD adjustment.

What we cover with Dr. Livingston on this podcast:

What are the main causes of overeating? 

What are some hidden things that people wouldn’t normally think about that could be causing overeating?

What are people focusing on when it comes to overeating, but shouldn’t be….and what SHOULD THEY BE FOCUSING ON?

and so much more...

Glenn Livingston, Ph.D. is a veteran psychologist and was
the long time CEO of a multi-million dollar consulting firm
which has serviced several Fortune 500 clients in the food
industry. Glenn has sold $30,000,000 of marketing consulting
services over the course of his career. You may have seen his
(or his company’s) previous work, theories, and research in
major periodicals like The New York Times, The Los Angeles
Times, The Chicago Sun Times, The Indiana Star Ledger, The
NY Daily News, American Demographics, or any of the other
major media outlets you see on this page. You may also have
heard him on ABC, WGN, and/or CBS radio, or UPN TV.

Disillusioned by what traditional psychology had to offer
overweight and/or food obsessed individuals, Dr. Livingston
spent several decades researching the nature of bingeing and
overeating via work with his own patients AND a self-funded
research program with more than 40,000 participants. Most
important, however, was his own personal journey out of
obesity and food prison to a normal, healthy weight and a
much more lighthearted relationship with food.

What is the difference between TMJ and TMJD? - Dr. Jason Jones Elizabeth City NC, Chiropractor

A lot of times, patients with jaw pain ask me, “Doctor Jason, What is the difference between TMJ and TMJD?” Well, it can be confusing for people to understand some medical terms. But I will tell you about the difference between TMJ and TMJD in this piece, perhaps you also want to know.

Firstly, note that TMJ stands for temporomandibular joint, while TMJD stands for temporomandibular joint dysfunction. Literally, TMJ refers to the joint itself and TMD refers to pain, inflammation or disorders of that joint.

Sometimes, people use TMJ and TMD interchangeably, but there is a clear-cut difference between the two. Let’s take a deeper dive to understand these two terms better.

What is TMJ – The Temporomandibular Joint?

The TMJ is a delicate joint that connect your jaw to your cheekbones. This joint is located just next to each of your ears and it allows you open your mouth, speak, chew, and even yawn.

The TMJs are special because they have a unique hinging and sliding mobility allowing your jaws to move to the right and left, move forward and backward, and open.

TMJs are two – one on each side of your head. You can check out their functions by placing a finger in front of each ear, and then open and close your jaw. If the joints are in good shape, you will notice the muscles moving over the lower jaw up and down and side to side.

A small cartilage disc encased by a dense fibrous capsule is also located in the joint in front of your ear. This prevents your jawbone from grinding against your skull bones.

The proper function of the TMJs depends on each other and on the teeth, since these joints are connected to the jaw.

 However, due to the delicate nature of this joint, it is prone to becoming inflamed, irritated, or damaged. Usually when this happens, you may have issues with opening your mouth, speaking, or chewing. This is often accompanied with pain and discomfort.

What is TMJD – Temporomandibular Joint Disorder?

TMJD refers to the various disorders that affect the TMJ. Several factors could cause damage to the TMJ, including:

• Excessive gum chewing
• Nightly teeth grinding
• Injury
• Inflammation
• Infection
• Deterioration due to autoimmune diseases like arthritis

Some common symptoms of TMJD include pain in the jaw and face, tenderness of the jaw muscles, locking or clicking of the jaw when moving it, difficulty chewing, and muscle spasms. Sometimes, you may experience earaches, headaches, dizziness, and even back and neck pain.

However, according to the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, TMD disorders are classified into three categories, namely:

• Internal derangement of the joint involving dislocated jaw, displaced disc, or injury to the condyle/joint
• Pain in the muscles that control jaw function
• Arthritis-related issue that are inflammatory/degenerative joint disorders

So there you have it, the clear-cut difference between TMJ and TMJD. Do not confuse both terms anymore. You can visit Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office at Elizabeth City, NC, to learn about natural solutions for TMJD and how alignment and soft tissue work helps to resolve the problem.

Causes of TMJD - Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction - Dr. Jason Jones Elizabeth City NC, Chiropractor

Around 12% of people in the US experience TMJD – temporomandibular joint dysfunction at any one time. Statistics show that women are more affected than men. And 9 women to every 1 man experience restricted jaw movement in their lifetime.

Understand the causes of TMJD, however, is important to help you manage the condition. You need to know factors that predispose you to TMJD and the common symptoms to watch out for.

In this article, we shall be showing you the common causes of TMJD and other relevant details you should know. But first let’s briefly revise the meaning of TMJ and TMJD.

What are TMJ and TMJD?

TMJ or temporomandibular joint is a hinge that connects your jawbone to your cheekbones. You have one TMJ on each side of your jaw and it allows for the movement required for talking and chewing.

Since these joints allow for movement of your jaw from side to side as well as up and down, they represent one of the most complex joints in the body.

TMJD or temporomandibular joint dysfunction are conditions that affect TMJ and cause pain in your jaw joint and muscles controlling jaw movement.

What are the causes of TMJD?

The exact cause of an individual’s TMJD may be hard to determine. Doctors believe symptoms arise from problems with the jaw muscles or parts of the joint itself. However, some factors could trigger pains, including arthritis or jaw injury, or genetics.

Some other causes of TMJD include:

• Heavy trauma to your jaw from an accident
• Improper bite
• Displacement of the disc between the ball and socket
• Tightening your facial and jaw muscles due to stress
• Pressure on the TMJ from grinding or clenching your teeth
• Sinus problems, gum disease, and tooth decay

What are the common symptoms of TMJD?

If you have TMJD, you tend to experience both temporary or chronic pain and discomfort. However, diagnosis is important, since there are many signs and symptoms that may point to “temporomandibular joint.”

Here are a few of the most common signs and symptoms of TMJD:

• Headaches
• Jaw dislocation
• Neck aches
• Earaches
• Stiff or locked jaw in the open and close mouth position
• Clicking, grating, or popping sound in the joint when you open your mouth or close it
• Dental occlusion (the way the upper and lower jaw or teeth fit together.
• Being unable to open your mouth very wide
• Tenderness or pain around the face, ear, neck, or shoulders when chewing, speaking, or opening your mouth.

Keep in mind that noises or clicking that occur when you move your jaw are not always associated with TMJD. It is only when the sounds are accompanied by pain or restricted movement of the jaw that it can be described as TMJD.

Most times, TMJD resolve on their own after a couple of months and symptoms are mild with minimal inconvenience. But in some severe cases, TMJD can be serious and long lasting.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office at Elizabeth City, NC, to learn about other potential causes of TMJD and natural solutions you can embrace to enjoy relief.

Inflammation is a natural response of the body to infection and injuries to stay healthy. But when this inflammation becomes chronic is when it continues for a prolonged period and cause unwanted damage to the cells in your body.

Unfortunately, some foods can increase the inflammatory reactions in your body. Foods that are loaded with unhealthier fats like trans fat and saturated fat, and foods that are filled with sugars are promoters of inflammation.

The good news, however, is that some foods help to reduce inflammatory markers in the body. Whole foods like vegetables, fruits, seafood, nuts, whole grains, and seeds have a matrix of beneficial nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, healthy fats, and phytonutrients which helps to reduce inflammation.

Here are some inflammatory foods and good swap options to keep your body in a healthier state:

Swap sugars with natural sweeteners

Did you know that a can of coke contains 39 grams of sugar? Most times, food products add sugar in disguise using names like fructose, corn syrup, golden syrup, dextrose, maltose, and sucrose.

Unfortunately, excessive consumption of sugar has been linked to tooth decay, metabolic syndrome, increased risk of obesity, and chronic inflammation.

Hence, you should avoid beverages like punches and soft drinks. More so, avoid sweet snacks, deserts, and pastries. Instead, you can take foods containing natural sweeteners like honey, Stevia, or blackstrap molasses.

Swap common cooking oils with extra virgin olive oil

Common cooking oils used in many restaurants and homes have a high amount of omega-6 fatty acids and low omega-3 fats. A diet containing these kind of oils promotes inflammation and puts you at risk of inflammatory diseases like cancer and heart disease.

So, avoid polyunsaturated oils like such as grape seed oil, cottonseed oil, canola and sunflower oils. You can swap with healthy options like extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil and macadamia oil.

Swap dairy products with coconut or almond milk

Milk is naturally an allergen that triggers inflammatory responses like IBS, acne, hives, skin rashes, and breathing difficulties.

So instead of using dairy products like cheese and butter, you can use coconut or almond milk or unsweetened yogurt, especially if you’re not allergic to milk.

Swap red meat and processed meat with poultry, fish, and organic vegetables

Several studies have shown that red meat contains molecules that may trigger chronic inflammatory response. Several reports of cancer have already been linked with consumption of processed meat.

Hence, swap those common red meats like beef, pork, lamb, and sausage with organic vegetables, fish and poultry. However, you don’t have to avoid red meat totally, but no amount of processed meat is safe.

Other inflammatory foods you can swap for healthy options include:

• Swap sugary drinks for mineral water with a squeeze of orange juice or lemon
• Swap alcohol for Kombucha
• Swap artificial food additives with anti-inflammatory spices, herbs, or natural sweeteners
• Swap trans-fats with natural peanut butter

You can try avoiding the inflammatory foods listed above for one or two weeks and notice the difference in your health. You can swap with the healthy options given.

Note that you may not be able to control every aspects that support inflammation, but you can take full charge of your food choices to reduce your risk of diseases associated with chronic inflammation.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our Chiropractic office at Elizabeth City, NC, to learn more about foods that triggers inflammation and healthy options to swap it to reduce your risk of inflammation.

Inflammation is known to help fight illness or heal injury, but it goes beyond that sometimes. A chronic inflammation state may slowly be damaging your body it won’t even show. This form of inflammation goes into action without an infection or injury. This way, the immune system cells that are meant to protect you will start to destroy your healthy organs, arteries, joints, and other body parts.

Several kinds of research have shown that when you don’t eat healthy, rest adequately, or get enough exercise, your body responds by triggering inflammation.

The bad part is that chronic inflammation has a long-term damage on the body. If left unchecked, it can contribute to chronic disease conditions, such as blood vessel disease, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and more.

How is chronic inflammation measured?

Doctors measure inflammation using several measures including

• conducting a blood test for C-reactive protein (hs-CRP)
• Measuring homocysteine levels
• Testing for HbA1C – a measurement of blood sugar

However, it is important to learn simple and effective ways to reduce the risk of chronic inflammation.

Ways to reduce chronic inflammation

The interesting thing is that you can prevent chronic inflammation through a change in lifestyle and diet. The following are simple but effective ways to reduce inflammation in your body:

Manage stress

Stress contributes largely to inflammation. You may not be able to change routines that cause stress, but you can change your response to it by learning how to manage stress better.

Some good measures include meditation, yoga, guided imagery, biofeedback, Chiropractic care or other stress-relieving practices.

Exercise regularly

Making time to exercise is a good way to prevent inflammation. You can engage in 30 to 40 minutes of aerobic exercise four to five times per week. You can also try 10 to 25 minutes of resistance training.

Eat more anti-inflammatory foods

Your choice of food matters a lot in preventing inflammation. When you add more anti-inflammatory foods - including fruits and vegetables - in your diet, it helps to reduce inflammatory markers and improve your overall health and wellbeing.

Also, you need to cut back or eliminate inflammatory foods, such as commercially grown red meat, bad oils,  margarine, and most processed foods.

Lose weight

Being overweight increases your risk of inflammation. Hence, make moves to lose weight. You can speak with Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office for effective natural ways to lose weight.

Control blood sugar

Eating too many simple carbohydrates at a sitting such as white rice, white flour, or refined sugar put you at risk of developing chronic inflammation. So, one easy rule is to avoid white foods, and products made with white flour and sugar.

You should build your meals around whole foods high in fiber, such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains such as whole wheat bread and brown rice.

Get enough sleep

Lack of adequate sleep may trigger chronic inflammation. This is because inadequate rest makes you more sensitive to stress, which in turn encourages inflammation.

So aim for at least 7-8 hours of sleep at night for optimal rejuvenation.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office at Elizabeth City, NC, to learn about other simple measures to reduce chronic inflammation.

Unlike the acute form of inflammation that is typically caused by injuries or illnesses, chronic inflammation often happens without any injury or illness present.

And the bad part is that it lasts far longer than it should. In fact, this condition is a major contributing factor in many diseases associated with getting older.

Over time, chronic inflammation can cause major changes to the body’s cells, tissues, and organs. Over time, this progresses to DNA damage and tissue death.

Although scientists do not know why all chronic inflammation happens, this condition is one of the several contributing factors in diseases onset and progression.

So far, chronic inflammation has a strong link with heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Other conditions associated with this form of inflammation include

• High blood pressure
• Kidney disease
• High cholesterol
• Depression
• Various types of cancer
• Osteoporosis
• Autoimmune disorders
• Fatty liver disease
• Neurodegenerative disorders

Chronic inflammation is quite dangerous because it often progresses quietly with only a few independent symptoms. And despite the subtle nature of this condition, it represents a major threat to the health and longevity of a large population of people.

Now, you may be wondering, what are the sources of chronic inflammation? Let’s dive quickly into it.

What causes chronic inflammation?

Several kinds of scientific studied have identified different causes of chronic systemic inflammation, many of which are associated with our lifestyle and aging.

The causes of chronic inflammation include:

Diet

Foods that are high in refined sugar, trans fat, and saturated fat are largely linked with increased inflammation, especially in overweight people.

Physical inactivity

When your muscles are in constant motion, it supports an anti-inflammatory chemical process in your bloodstream. But unfortunately, many people do not meet the minimum activity recommendations for optimal health, and this cause an increased risk of age-related diseases.

Obesity

When you have too much visceral fat (a deep layer of fat) around your abdominal organs, it triggers the production of pro-inflammatory chemicals.

Low sex hormones

When you have lower levels of sex hormones like testosterone and estrogen, especially in older age, it increases your risk of suffering inflammatory diseases.

Sleep disorders

Chronic inflammation can be triggered when you have irregular sleep schedules. On the other hand, a regular eight hours sleep helps to lower markers of inflammation.

Age

As you grow older, you stand more risk of suffering chronic inflammation.

Smoking

Smoking cigarettes have been studied to lower the level of anti-inflammatory markers and increase the risk of chronic inflammation.

There you have it, the 7 most common sources of chronic inflammation. You can visit Dr. Jason Jones to learn more about more sources of chronic inflammation, including toxins, environmental factors, and others. We’ll also show you simple lifestyle changes you can make to reduce your risk of suffering diseases associated with chronic inflammation.

When you hear the word inflammation, what comes to your mind? Most people probably think inflammation is all about redness and swelling that follows an infection, wound, or injury. But this is only “acute inflammation” – a beneficial response by the immune system that encourages healing, and usually goes off once the injury improves.

Chronic inflammation is another form of inflammation that is less obvious. While your immune system becomes activated, the inflammatory response stays on all the time at a low level. This is unlike the acute inflammatory response that is intermittent during an acute injury or infection.

In other words, chronic inflammation may begin even when you have no injury. Worst still, it does not end when it should.

Several factors could trigger chronic inflammation, from lifestyle factors such as poor sleep, obesity, or exposure to environmental toxins.

Common symptoms of chronic inflammation

Symptoms like pain, redness, or swelling are common with acute inflammation. But the symptoms of chronic inflammation are more subtle. Little wonder you tend to overlook them. These symptoms include:

• Body pain
• Fatigue
• Weight gain
• Gastrointestinal complications (constipation or diarrhea)
• Persistent infections
• Depression or anxiety

These symptoms can be mild or severe and they tend to last for many months or even years.

How does chronic inflammation damage the body?

Chronic inflammation can cause damage to the body over time. This condition can damage your DNA and trigger heart disease, cancer, and aging.

Unlike acute inflammation that that promotes healing and recovery for a better health, chronic inflammation causes a persistent increase in inflammatory proteins all throughout the body, and this can damage healthy cells, tissues, and organs, and trigger several major diseases

Unfortunately, most people don’t know they are suffering from chronic inflammation until it becomes late. Many individuals got to know they have chronic inflammation after they develop an autoimmune disease, such as Type 1 diabetes, lupus, and Crohn’s disease.

Chronic inflammation and aging

Chronic inflammation has been shown to cause oxidative stress in the body. This has to do with an imbalance in the production of:

• Dangerous free radicals, molecules that cause damage to healthy tissues in the body, and antioxidants
• Antioxidants, substances that neutralize and clean up waste products

This imbalance causes damage to your DNA as well as fatty tissues and proteins, which in turn speeds up biological aging.

Chronic inflammation contributes largely to cognitive decline and mental health disorders as it boosts age-related immune system deterioration, a condition called immunosenescence.

Chronic inflammation and other disease conditions

Chronic inflammation is involved in a wide variety of serious physical and mental health conditions. Experts believe chronic inflammation plays a role in developing kidney disease, heart disease, cancer, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, cognitive decline, neurological disorders, and mental health illnesses, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and schizophrenia.

However, you can reduce the risk of suffering chronic inflammation by making certain behavioral changes. And treatment option is based on the underlying cause.

You can consult Dr. Jason Jones at our chiropractic office in Elizabeth City, NC, to learn about natural measures to prevent chronic inflammation.

Covered in this podcast episode:

• How to properly acknowledge these relationships
• Techniques for beginning the conversation
• Practicing the Body Peace Method
• How Modeling in Community amplifies results
• And so much more...

Nina has been helping women feel truly
at home in their own bodies for 30 years.
She is known for her deeply feminist,
anti-diet, body-peace approach.
Her courses, coaching, and poetry
positively change the conversation
that women are having with their bodies.

According to Nina, too much time and energy is wasted feeling
bad about our bodies and food. Now’s the
time to create a body relationship based in
compassion, listening, respect, and deep
nourishment. This is the path to Body-Peace!

Our Guest:

Nina Manolson MA, NBC-HWC

Body-Peace™ Coach

Nationally Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach

Psychology of Eating CoachCertified Body-Trust® Guide

NinaManolson.com free ebook: How To Be A Woman At Ease in Your Body

https://ninamanolson.com/

Today's Guest: Michael Hughes

Michael Hughes is the founder of Gymnazo, a 7-figure functional training facility on the Central Coast of California that focuses on integrating restoration with performance. With a churn rate of under 3%, Gymnazo’s business model and training style have created security in a volatile market. After becoming a Fellow of Applied Functional Science, Michael integrated physical therapy directly into his programming for group coaching - something that had never been done before in the fitness industry. He realized the power of using fitness as a vehicle for recovery, which led him to implement a blend of performance and restoration training that dramatically increased his lifetime client value. Michael is passionate about functional training and is building his facility to revolutionize how we train all ages to promote vitality and to heal movement dysfunctions that hold us back from living the lives we desire.  Michael founded Gymnazo Edu to share his formula for success with the training community and offer his Multi-Dimensional Movement Coach (MDMC) certification.