Whole Health Chiropractic: Blog

Whole Health Chiropractic in Nampa offers treatment for athletes of all ages, and anyone exercising should know how to properly warm up. Often, pulled muscles and tendons can be avoided if stretches are done in the proper order. The most important thing to know about warm-ups is to never start with a static stretch. Arm circles, jogging in place, lunges, and butt-kicks are dynamic stretches; they require movement and get the blood flowing to the part of the body being targeted during the workout. But static stretches, which require a person to maintain a difficult pose for a set time, could cause muscles to tighten up. A person could even hurt themselves by stretching a muscle while still “cold.” Most people require about five to ten minutes to be properly warmed up. Static stretches do have a place in a workout, but they are best left until the cool-down phase. The body will be plenty loose by that point and cool-down stretches will help keep it that way. Dr. Anthony J. Oberti operate...

Dr. Anthony Oberti and Whole Health Chiropractic have a pain solution for every patient.  Electrical muscle stimulation is recommended for patients with muscle or soft tissue injuries because it reduces pain and swelling and can reduce overall recovery time.  When disease or injury occurs, a body’s natural electric current is disrupted.  Electric muscle stimulation mimics the electrical current that occurs naturally in a healthy body.  For the treatment, electrodes are placed directly on the skin in the affected area and the machine is turned on.  The gentle current causes the muscles to contract and relax, which relieves pain and can release locked up muscles.  These contractions also trigger the release of endorphins, the body’s most powerful natural pain reliever.  Most patients describe the treatment feeling like a tingling sensation and aren’t uncomfortable during the process. The treatments are short in length and can be scheduled over a series of weeks. To learn more about elect...

Many athletes turn to chiropractors after an injury.  Medical doctors typically treat a sports injury by alleviating symptoms with medication and recommending rest from activity.  Whole Health Chiropractic has an approach to rehabilitating sports injuries that considers a patient’s entire body and its natural ability to heal itself.  This always results in less time ‘benched’ from activity and a quicker recovery! You don’t need to be a professional athlete to rehabilitate a sports injury the right way.  A chiropractor will focus on repairing any damage to hard and soft tissue with chiropractic adjustments to the spine and extremities.  If you are in pain from an injury, of course your chiropractor will advise the best pain relief strategy for you.  However, your only prescription will likely include physical therapy exercises for you to perform on your own.  Start rehabbing sports injuries with your chiropractor now for a lifetime of healthy activity! To learn more about the services p...

Pinched nerves are one of our primary concerns at Whole Health Chiropractic in Nampa, and spinal stenosis is one of the biggest risk factors. This term describes the narrowing of the spinal channel, potentially putting pressure on the spinal nerves at the neck or in the lumbar region. Some people have a genetic predisposition toward developing bone spurs inside their spines. When spurs develop in the lower, lumbar region, patients may develop sciatica. This causes pain or numbness in their legs and contributes to poor bowel control. Spinal spurs in the neck, or cervical region, can cause pain or weakness throughout the body and a tingling sensation in the arms. Bone spurs are not the only reason why the spinal channel may get narrower; degeneration of discs and cartilage may also be to blame. Dr. Oberti will conduct imaging and tactile tests to determine the reason for the patient’s stenosis. Treatment plans usually include physical therapy and manual adjustments. Dr. Anthony J. Oberti...

At Whole Health Chiropractic, we don’t believe there ever comes a point when people need to accept a low quality of life. One of the questions people most commonly ask chiropractors is why people stoop over in old age. There are a few reasons, but none are inevitable. Osteoporosis is usually the culprit. This disease is characterized by tiny cracks in bone tissue. The cracks are typically acquired through small, everyday actions and don’t hurt enough for the patient to think they have a broken bone. But people who have osteoporosis are likely to experience more than one crack, and when enough cracks develop in the vertebrae, the backbones begin to collapse. This causes older people to lose height in addition to causing them to stoop. The best way to prevent osteoporosis is by maintaining good nutrition and posture. For people at risk, there are therapeutic exercises which can help to mitigate the damage. Spinal curvature can be painful, but we help patients manage it through chiropract...

At Whole Health Chiropractic, Dr. Anthony Oberti and the staff have seen many first-time chiropractic patients.  Often the patient has tried other treatment methods but is still frustrated with pain or discomfort.  What surprises most new patients is that chiropractic does not encourage drugs as part of treatment.  Chiropractic focuses on treating the root cause of any pain, unlike drugs that act as a ‘bandaid’ for symptoms but don’t correct the issue.  Chiropractic is based on healing the body as a whole.  The human body is resilient, and chiropractors use their knowledge of the spine and central nervous system not only to guide the body to self-heal, but improve musculoskeletal health and function.  Your initial assessment with a chiropractor is very important.  We will work to understand your goals for treatment, and take a very detailed record of your current condition using a physical exam and sometimes x-rays.  Chiropractors not only treat damage to hard and soft tissue, but help...

Dr. Anthony Oberti and the staff of Whole Health Chiropractic are passionate about non-surgical treatment methods.  Spinal decompression is a safe, innovative treatment performed with FDA-approved equipment to treat bulging or herniated discs. Herniated discs often have a direct impact on the central nervous system, causing more pain to the extremities. Spinal decompression is a unique treatment developed to target certain issues, and you should always consult your chiropractor to determine if this treatment is appropriate for your issue. The equipment used for spinal decompression resembles a table but has moving parts. Depending on the location of the issue patients lie on their back or stomach, and are secured to the equipment with padded straps.  The treatment alternates between applying distraction forces to the vertebrae and periods of partial relaxation.  The result is the vertebrae slowly and gently separating from each other.  This creates a vacuum effect that helps discs retu...

Scoliosis screenings are a regular part of pediatric care at Whole Health Chiropractic in Nampa. A curvature of the spine which results in uneven shoulders and gait, scoliosis is sometimes associated with breathing difficulties and muscle strain. It occurs most often in preteen girls, but any child or adolescent can develop it. If scoliosis is not already suspected, screening for it begins with the patient bending down so Dr. Oberti can observe any abnormalities in the angle of the torso. He will also be able to check for unevenness in the pelvis and the levels of the shoulders. The observation isn’t just done by eyeballing; a tool called a scoliometer is placed on the back to provide an objective measurement of curvature. If there is a reason to suspect scoliosis, x-rays are taken to provide the doctor with a better means of detection. Dr. Oberti will also try to find the cause of the patient’s scoliosis. Some problems can be ameliorated through electrical stimulation therapies and ad...

One of the most common causes of acute back injuries we treat at Whole Health Chiropractic in Nampa is improper lifting. Physical laborers are trained to lift objects in as safe a manner as possible, but people doing yard work or whose jobs don’t regularly require them to do move things often do not know how to do so properly, so we wanted to provide some guidance. Don’t carry anything you don’t have to; you’re never wrong to request use of a dolly. Before picking something up, feel it to get a sense of its weight and whether it’s heavier on one side than another. Keep the path between you and the destination clear and plan exactly where you will put the object down before picking it up. Crouch down as close to the object as possible and propel yourself upward with your leg muscles. Keep your head up and the object in front of you against your ribs. Walk slowly. Don’t twist your torso in a different direction from your pelvis and don’t make sudden, jerky movements. Be able to see where...

We use many treatments for a range of health issues at Whole Health Chiropractic, but the defining aspect of chiropractic is the spinal adjustment. As a non-invasive, non-addictive means of relieving back pain, headaches, and compressed nerves, the spinal adjustment is gaining popularity among the public and is commonly inquired about. All the nerves in the body, called peripheral nerves, branch out from the spinal column. When there is pressure on the spinal column, nerves in other parts of the body may also be disrupted (cervical headaches and sciatica are among the ailments caused by compressed spinal nerves). In chiropractic, we call a misalignment of the spine a subluxation. We detect subluxations with x-rays and tactile exams and determine a course of treatment based on the patient’s health history. An adjustment is the sudden but controlled use of force to push a subluxated vertebra back into place. It sometimes creates a popping sound which can alarm patients, but this sound is...

Chiropractic care is typically sought out by people seeking relief from neck or back pain.  However, Dr. Anthony Oberti and the staff of Whole Health Chiropractic also treat extremities like the knees, elbows, and the shoulders. The shoulder joint is the body’s most mobile joint. It is surrounded by nerves, tendons, bursa, and other tissues which can all experience irritation and cause pain. This complex structure may require your chiropractor to assess your overall health and condition to target the root of the problem.  Shoulder pain can have many causes.  Whether pain began after an injury or has increased over time, chiropractic treatment is a safe and effective way to treat damage to both hard and soft tissue.  When shoulder pain is caused by joint irritation, relief can often be achieved through an adjustment.  Pain in the muscles can be addressed by massage or stimulation therapy, and a chiropractor will recommend exercise and stretches if needed. To learn more about chiropracti...

Thanks to increased awareness of chiropractic among the public, many people are now fixing bad posture at work. However, there is another period of several hours every day during which people may unknowingly be hurting their backs: when they’re asleep. At Whole Health Chiropractic, we commonly see patients suffering from back strain, and want them to get better rest. The sleep position which most benefits peoples’ spinal health is on their backs with a pillow under their heads. This will keep their spine aligned and pressure off their internal organs. The downside is that gravity is working against their airways. People who sleep on their backs commonly suffer from sleep apnea and snoring because the soft tissue of their throats sags. People suffering from sleep apnea sometimes try sleeping on their stomachs to reduce snoring. But doing this forces the head backward and to the side. It also extends the lumbar region of the lower back, making it the worst sleep position for spinal healt...

Many people suffer from headaches on a regular basis.  For some they are a common annoyance, and for others a debilitating condition.  We see headache medication advertised everywhere, but the relief these drugs provide is always temporary and doesn’t address what has caused the headache.  Depending on the cause and severity, a chiropractor may be able to relieve your headache pain without the use of drugs. A chiropractic adjustment can provide relief, especially from tension headaches that originate from strain in the neck. Realigning the vertebrae in your neck and taking pressure off of any compromised nerves relieves pain and discomfort.  Regular adjustments will also help prevent future headaches caused by strain in the neck.  A chiropractor can also assign movements that both exercise and relax the muscles to prevent future strain.  If your headaches are frequent and a cause hasn’t been determined, a chiropractor may want to evaluate some details of your daily routine.  Things lik...

Car accidents that aren’t major collisions are often overlooked by those involved.  More worried about a car repair or being late for work, we don’t always stop to assess what damage may have been done to our bodies. Because of the sudden and unnatural movement of a body during a car accident, anyone involved should visit a chiropractor for evaluation. At Whole Health Chiropractic, we know some passengers feel the effects of whiplash injuries immediately following an accident, while others may walk away not feeling injured and experience pain later. This is why a chiropractor should always be consulted. Most often, passengers involved in an accident experience either pain or stiffness in the neck and back. A chiropractor can evaluate these injuries, as well as treat damage to both hard and soft tissue. Depending on a patient’s evaluation the chiropractor may perform an adjustment, recommend a massage, or assign exercises to help heal a particular injury. If you have been involved in a ...

Massage therapy is often presented as a way to pamper yourself, but the long-practiced therapy has many health benefits. Dr. Anthony Oberti and Whole Health Chiropractic offer chiropractic massage to promote a multifaceted approach to chiropractic care. Combining chiropractic treatment and massage therapy helps improve a patient’s overall musculoskeletal health and functionality. Another benefit of massage therapy is releasing toxins built up in the muscles, which can then exit the body. This is important for chiropractic patients and anyone with injuries because it helps the body heal itself Massages are performed in a calm, soothing environment. The relaxation achieved through massage won’t heal injuries, but is still important to overall health, especially for patients with chronic pain or stress. Your massage therapist can target problem areas, or focus on relaxing certain muscles in order to help your chiropractor perform an adjustment. Regular massage also increases circulation a...