Vitamin D Supplementation It’s that time of year again when we all need to start thinking about taking a Vitamin D supplement. As the days shorten and become darker the amount of Vitamin D we get from the sun diminishes. Vitamin D has a role to play in the function of many body systems. The most well known role is probably it’s facilitation of calcium absorption from the gut, keeping bones strong. Lesser known is the effect on the brain and mood, as well as it’s role in supporting the immune system. Through the darker months, as the level of ….continue to the whole article
Is your sleep causing neck problems?
I think most of us have woken with a stiff neck at one point or another from sleeping in a funny position. Sometimes that crick in the neck can be extremely painful and I have seen many patients over the years presenting with acute neck pain that was triggered by a bad night’s sleep. But what if you were sleeping incorrectly every night and waking regularly with a stiff neck or neck pain? We are generally not taught about correct neck posture when lying down and certainly not about what to look for in a pillow. The most common cause ….continue to the whole article
The importance of Breathing Correctly
The Importance of Breathing Correctly Recently there have been quite a few patients presenting to me at Farringdon Osteopaths with neck and shoulder discomfort who, on examination, have been found to be breathing primarily into the upper ribs and chest instead of the lower ribcage and abdomen. Some of them had some history of anxiety, gastro-intestinal problems or migraines and all were surprised to be told that their breathing mechanics were incorrect. Some patients really struggled to breathe into the lower rib cage and abdomen when we went through a guided breathing re-training exercise. After a few weeks, those that ….continue to the whole article
Hip And Knee Pain In Walkers
Hip And Knee Pain In Walkers Quadriceps tendonitis and how to relieve it London is renowned as a multi-cultural and multi-national global city. The population of the city is changing and expanding relentlessly, with new arrivals coming here every day to work and enjoy living in one of the most vibrant cities in the world. One thing that these new visitors inevitably underestimate is the amount of walking that a typical Londoner undertakes each day. It is not unusual to walk 30 minutes to and from work per day and the pace of walking on London footpaths tends to be ….continue to the whole article
Bruxism (Teeth Grinding), headaches and neck stiffness You know when you’re at the bus stop and you haven’t seen a bus for ages and then three come along at the same time? So too it goes for the different types of injuries and conditions that we treat here at the clinic. One month we might treat lots of pregnant ladies with low back pain, the next it’s laptop users with rib injuries and the next it’s triathletes with patella mal- tracking issues. Some of this is seasonal (for example, we see a lot more shoulder injuries when Wimbledon is on) ….continue to the whole article
Ipad Neck Strain
The most prevalent injuries that we Osteopaths treat on a day to day basis, in a way, reflect the society that we live in. These injuries change over time and as lifestyles and technologies develop, so too do new and interesting ways for people to injure themselves. The evolution of the desk based working society undoubtedly has been the primary contributing factor to the prolific rise of low back injuries over the decades. Ask almost anyone who works or has worked at a desk and they will surely report having had some low back pain at some time in their ….continue to the whole article
Marathon training and patella tendonitis
Hello everyone. At last a sunny day!! It’s been a long Winter this year. The arrival of the Spring weather always heralds the start of the Marathon Season. As people prepare for the impending London and Brighton Marathons in April, we are starting to see more and more running related injuries here at Farringdon Osteopaths. Back in 2011 I wrote about about the condition ‘Runners Knee’ and the need to use the delightful foam roller to keep that Ilio-tibial band (ITB) nice and relaxed in order to prevent injury.(click to read) This year we are seeing another type of knee ….continue to the whole article
Seasonal Affective Disorder (The Winter Blues) and Vitamin D
It feels like the Winter is already upon us and the clocks are going back soon. Not many people feel happy about the thought. For some people the winter season always brings a slight reduction in energy levels, but for others it is an annual battle with the blues that goes on through to springtime. The condition of being affected by seasonal changes is called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), and it is extremely common. It results from a deficiency of Vitamin D, a vital hormone whose precursor Vitamin D3 is derived from sunlight exposure. As the sun gets weaker our ….continue to the whole article
Ski stretches
The Ski season is upon us and for those intending to escape the inevitable London slush to catch some Christmas powder there are some great stretches that could stop you from stiffening up too much after a long day exercising on the slopes. If it has been a year since you last went skiing then you will certainly feel the muscle ache after the first day on the slopes. This is normal. It is called delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). DOMS occurs because of the sudden increase in demand on the muscles that are not accustomed to the load, resulting ….continue to the whole article
Ice your injury
As the winter weather gradually rolls in, the last thing that you may feel like doing is putting ice on your body. When injured, however, this may be exactly what you need. The body’s first response to injury is inflammation. This is a natural and necessary response by the body to injury. It serves to remove any harmful bodies or dead tissue at the injury site. Importantly, it facilitates and activates tissue repair and it prevents further injury. Inflammation can, however, often be extremely painful and disproportionate to the degree of injury. In these cases, it is desirable to ease ….continue to the whole article