Allergy drug effects and alternatives

Spring is in the Air!

However, that means so are all those common allergens.
It can be a disappointment when all you want is to open your windows and spend time outside as the weather is warming but you know you will pay for it with your allergy symptoms. The fresh green grass and the beautiful blooms of the trees and flowers sounds so wonderful but can sound like a nightmare to allergy sufferers. There are plenty of commercials telling you of the different over the counter medications you can take to help with those pesky symptoms…however, what they don’t tell you are the many side effects that these meds can cause. You may notice less sniffles, watery eyes or itchy throat but are those really worth the tradeoff of something much more serious? I have compiled a small list of some surprising side effects of your beloved Benadryl, Claritin or Zyrtec (to name a few).

~Impaired thinking. We have all heard that some of these over the counter (OTC) drugs can cause drowsiness…I’ve actually heard plenty of parents giving their children Benadryl for this very reason, to help put them to sleep…but causing sluggishness, decreasing mental sharpness and actually causing cognitive impairment is not a feeling I want for myself or for my children.
~Increased appetite. There are likely many reasons you can’t put those Girl Scout cookies down but taking medication with antihistamines can actually stimulate your appetite. Taking these meds on a regular basis or over the long term can be a reason you may notice weight gain.
~Altered sense of taste or smell. There is preservative and sometimes fragrance added to nasal sprays that can change your sense of smell which, in turn affects your sense of taste as well. You may notice some of your favorites don’t smell the same or your food is bland due to these additives.
~Long term health issues such as osteoporosis or diabetes. Often steroid creams are prescribed during allergy “season”. The stronger the steroid, the more body surface covered and the longer it is used can lead to decrease growth rate in children, increase in developing cataracts and may also be associated with osteoporosis and diabetes. Long term steroid use is not ideal.
~Infertility. Many fertility specialists believe the drying of the mucous membranes, caused by most allergy drugs, could lead to infertility. This does make sense.
~Anxiety. The stimulant properties of many allergy meds give heart palpitations, insomnia and anxiety. If you are already prone to these issues or to panic attacks, these drugs will only worsen your condition.
~Depression. Have you been feeling unusually sad? This is a lesser known side effect of allergy drugs with antihistamine. The sedatives in these meds can exacerbate existing depression or trigger a new found feeling of unhappiness. Low libido is a take-off of this as well. When you are depressed and sluggish, I doubt you will be in the mood for intimacy.
Now, as an allergy sufferer myself, I understand “you gotta do what you gotta do” as you don’t want to lock yourself in your home in a congested, itchy mess…

there are NATURAL alternatives!
Chiropractic has been shown to decrease symptoms. Regular chiropractic adjustments allow the body to function properly helps the body’s immune system function at full speed and is great for ridding head and sinus congestion. Acupuncture has been shown to have amazing results with sinus pressure/congestion relief as well as decreasing those other annoying symptoms such as itchy throat, itchy and watery eyes. Natural supplements! We carry an amazing supplement called D-Hist for adults and children. It has NO side effects and has been excellent for curbing those symptoms I get every spring. My kids take the children’s formula as well with their daily vit D and probiotic. There may still be a slight amount of sneezing, congestion, etc, but very minimal and worth it for me not filling my body with the drugs that are causing all these issues mentioned above. In my mind, I would prefer to have a bit of a stuffy nose or itchy throat for a few weeks than to worry about depression, anxiety, weight gain…and so on.
Please let us know if you have questions and let us know how we can help you and your family enjoy this spring, drug free!!

Performance Enhancing Chiropractic

keeping you moving towards your goals

keeping you moving towards your goals

Many athletes in Olathe and Overland Park use chiropractic to recover from injury or difficult training.  However, with regular chiropractic care these athletes could also benefit in enhancing performance.  This added benefit is nothing new to those in high level professional and college sports as they have been consistently using chiropractic care to enhance performance for well over 10 years.  From professional golfers like Zach Johnson (whose father is a Chiropractor) Jordan Spieth (who thanked his chiropractor after winning the masters) to NFL football teams (who all have Chiropractors on staff) the performance enhancing benefits received from chiropractic and an optimally communicating nervous system is well understood. It always amazes me that 85-100% of professional athletes use chiropractic care for top performance, injury prevention and treatment while only 8-10% of American adults and 3-5% of American kids have had an adjustment in the last year.  Clearly the message has not been delivered to the masses.  The same way that an adjustment can rid you of a headache and enhance your ability to heal from back pain, it can also enhance performance and functioning of any joint, muscle, tendon, ligament, tissue, organ or system that is innervated by a nerve(even your immune system is directly nerve connected) or needs motion.  You are an expression of your nervous system, you need it optimally functioning to perform at your best no matter what the task.

A new award-winning study supports what these high level athletes have known for years; chiropractic can improve performance.  In this study, researchers examined the effects of chiropractic on 18 professional judo athletes in Brazil. Half of the athletes received chiropractic adjustments and the other half received a sham treatment. Researchers then evaluated athletes’ grip strength using a device that measures muscle force.

Despite the fact that both groups maintained their regular training schedules throughout the study, the chiropractic group had substantially better outcomes. After just three treatments, the chiropractic group improved their grip strength by 11% on the left side and 17% on their right, while athletes in the sham treatment group had only improved by 4-6%.

This study is more evidence that chiropractic improves nervous system functioning, which in turn strengthens muscles.

Whether it’s injury prevention or enhancing peak performance, chiropractic care can play a vital role in keeping your nervous system working efficiently and optimally.  Everyone can benefit from regular chiropractic care.

You don’t have to be a professional athlete to benefit from chiropractic.

Call our office today to see how we can help.

ProCARE Chiropractic Acupuncture and Rehabilitation
913 393 1303

Botelho MB, Andrade BB. Effect of cervical spine manipulative therapy on judo athletes’ grip strength. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 2012;35(11):38-44.
Chiropractic Nexus

Preventing Weeds in Olathe/Overland Park

ProCARE Chiropractic and Acupuncture preventing health weeds from growing in Overland Park and Olathe

ProCARE Chiropractic and Acupuncture preventing health weeds from growing in Overland Park and Olathe

Prevent Your Health Weeds

Every Spring/summer  residence of Overland Park and Olathe make their way to the lawn care stores and hire lawn service crews to tend to their lawns.  Johnson county is out in full force laying down pre-emergents and fertilizers in their best efforts to prevent unwanted weeds that harm the health and look of their lawns.  But, are we treating our bodies and health with as much respect for prevention?  or, are we letting our bodies become ridden with weeds that are sure to create future health problems.  This same analogy can be observed with most things of value in life, from cars and finances to houses and smiles/teeth. Most of us apply this “preventive principle” to everything of value in our lives–EXCEPT OUR HEALTH and certainly not our joints and nervous system.   Ask yourself these questions:  What am I, family, friends and co-workers doing to prevent unwanted “health weeds” this summer?  What am I doing to prevent the health of my joints from decaying?  What am I doing to enhance my adaptive ability and nervous system health? Today, what did I do to improve my health? 

Clearly the most valuable thing we can own is good health, just ask anyone who has major health issues.  I always find it ironic that the one thing that should be of most value to us is the one thing that is often put on the back burner and neglected.  People constantly make decisions about their health and well-being based on short term finances and not on the long term.  For example, someone might decide not to join a gym or see a chiropractor because of the monthly investment, but yet forget to look long term at the cost of decreased mobility, strength, joint motion, arthritis, bone density, diabetes, heart disease…. Just like the old saying goes “those that elect to spend their health to gain wealth will end up spending their wealth to later try to regain their health.”
Waiting until you MUST do something is always more costly and time consuming than preventive measures.   Don’t wait for a crisis, think of maintaining, preventing, improving and maximizing instead of reacting, masking, treating and killing disease and symptoms.

Consult an Expert  Just as you should consult a financial adviser if you inherited a large sum of money, create a team of trusted professionals that can help maximize your health. ( We have links to a few trusted health partners on our website but their are hundreds more out there and we are happy to help you build a team.  Read our blogs and facebook posts, ask us exercise and nutrition questions.)
When you are feeling and functioning well is the best time to see a Chiropractor and get expert advise on your health and that of your joints and nervous system. Have a regular check up for you and your family it could be the best investment you could ever make.

We are here to help and serve in any way we can.