It seems more and more we are becoming a society that is under stress.  Our jobs, kids, money, families, health and a whole other multitude of sources can leave us feeling like we have the world on our shoulders.

Aside from the unpleasant feeling of being stressed it is really not good for our bodies and our overall health.  We were designed to have a stress response physiologically for situations that require a quick emergency response.  For example: lets assume you are walking down the street and a lion jumps out at you (yes … we are living in the sub-Saharan region for this example), it is a normal response for our body to react as though our lives were at steak! Our heart rate quickens, blood pressure goes up, our focus narrows and the external world loses focus – essentially our body is preparing to run for its life! Our body is having a normal reaction to this level of stress.

Now, understand that our body is not intended to stay in this physiological state for long.  Cue into our modern day busy and hectic lives.  Although not at the level of a lion ready to attack, the day to day stresses we all endure cause the same physiological responses as the lion scenario on a low grade and sustained level.  Let me be crystal clear, this is not good for us and I would argue is the leading cause for nearly all of the lifestyle illnesses plaguing modern society.  The heightened physiological state leads to disease over the long term – simply put.

So, what can we do to help offset this and help to restore and reset our body’s physiology? It may come as a surprise to you that a significant body of research in neurology and the brain has shown that regular exercise and movement (especially of the spine, shoulder and hip joints) reduces the stress response and thus has significant impact on our overall health and well being.  This is where the bigger picture of regular Chiropractic care comes into play.  The stimulation on the pathways of the nervous system that happen with Chiropractic adjustments actually nourish the brain and alter the pathways of the stress response.  This lowering of the stress response assists in lowering of the physiological overload and hence improves health in the long term.  Simple.

So think of starting a regular exercise regimen and seek out a Chiropractor to start down the road to better health.  Will your present life leave you healthier in 5 years than you are today?  Think about it!