Blog Archive

Struggles to get to the clinic? Trying to reduce your exposure to COVID-19, as well as other contagious illnesses, and still need to see your doctor? Telehealth is safe and easy — receive quality care from anywhere.

This month in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition… “Taylor MK, et al. – Cross-sectional analyses were performed to evaluate the association of dietary glycemic measures with the cerebral amyloid burden and cognitive performance...

Concussion, or traumatic brain injury is common among contact sports participants. Concussion has been defined as a condition in which there is a traumatically induced alteration in mental status, with or without an associated loss of consciousness.

The main causes of concussions are typically anything that involves a head injury. This can include sports activities, and all too frequently, automobile accidents. Severe concussions, because of the immediate symptoms, are often followed up...

In the United States, sports-related head injuries occur frequently. The Centers for Disease Control, (CDC), estimates more than 300,000 sports-related concussions occur each year just in the US.

Various 2012 studies further clarified how excessively sweet, unhealthy foods affect the brain. An animal study out of UCLA found that diets high in fructose can impair cognitive function...

A study conducted in Spain reported that consumption of both polyunsaturated fatty acids, (found in nuts, seeds, fish, and leafy green vegetables), and monounsaturated fatty acids...

Dietary advice is common practice in cardiology and primary care, but recently food and drink have become important considerations for neurologists, too. Diet is inextricably linked to conditions such as heart disease, obesity, and diabetes.

This week I would like to talk about exercise. For the most part the word exercise appears to be a foreign word lately. I started exercising when I was 13, and I haven’t stopped since.

I am not a big advocate of fad diets by any means. Quite simply, they don’t work. You usually lose some weight initially, about half of which is water and fat, and the rest, very desirable and difficult to replace muscle tissue.

Over the years I have authored several articles on vertigo, dizziness and imbalance, mostly pertaining to treatment, as treating these disorders is my specialty. So how do you avoid getting them in the first place?

This article is a great find by my office manager Debbie. It concurs with what I have been saying all along. If you have high cholesterol or are already on cholesterol lowering drugs, this should be cause for you to do your own research.

Metabolic syndrome, (obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia and hyperglycemia AKA diabetes), remains a concern in regards to increasing health risk within the United States population.

For those of you with any kind of history of serious fitness training behind you, a dramatic shift has occurred in the world of fitness with the almost stratospheric rise in ”cross-fit” type workouts...

Over the years I have written several articles on headaches. This is because there are so many types and causes of head pain that there is much to write about. Headaches remain one of the top three reasons why people go to the doctor.

Each week I see patients who have recently been examined by their primary doctors and are told that have findings of high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar or both.

Over the last few years it has become such that you cannot watch one television show without seeing at least a few commercials for drugs.

If you are new to exercise, I think you will find the following information extremely helpful. Recent studies have demonstrated that the “negative” or “eccentric” movement of an exercise...

Statin drugs are being prescribed like candy for tens of millions of Americans, but you need to seriously consider statin therapy before deciding to take your physician up on this prescription...

A recent video circulating on the internet on the biochemistry of fructose has had almost one million views already. Why? As seen on recent TV commercials, sugar is sugar, be it table sugar, (sucrose), or high fructose corn syrup.

Over 40 million Americans – 1 in every 7- suffer with a movement disorder. That’s more than double the number of people who suffer with diabetes, which, is in itself a staggering number.

Dizziness and vertigo are among the top three reasons why patients visit a physician. Back pain and headaches comprise the other two reasons.

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder affecting about 6% of the population worldwide with its complications, and is rapidly reaching epidemic scale.

Recent research on healthy aging shows that poor habits such as smoking, drinking too much alcohol, inactivity and poor diet, can age you by 12 extra years.

So what is vestibular rehabilitation therapy, a.k.a.VRT? Think about it like this. Suppose you just had shoulder surgery. Would you be all better, or would you now need to do physical therapy to rehabilitate your shoulder back to normal function?

Dizziness and vertigo are among the most common symptoms causing patients to visit a physician (as common as back pain and headaches). The overall incidence of dizziness, vertigo, and imbalance is 5-10%...

The only thing worse than someone who suffers with fall risk and not doing anything about it, is someone who does do something about it but waits too long and winds up suffering the consequences of a fall.

Diabetes is becoming more common and more of a medical problem than ever before. I am specifically referring to type 2 diabetes, which is invariably brought on entirely by ones eating habits.

High blood pressure affects about 1 in 4 American adults and is one of the most common worldwide diseases afflicting humans. It increases the risk of heart disease and stroke for those afflicted...

So why is it that one can go to ten different specialists, get no diagnosis or effective treatment , and that same individual can then come to see me and get better in a few days?

As a rule, the main types of disturbances that we feel as humans that present to the clinician as one form of dizzy feeling or another, are vertigo: a sense of spinning;...

Over the past several months, we have been discussing imbalance, dizziness, vertigo, disequilibrium, etc., how to find out if you are at risk, etc. We know that as part of the natural aging process individuals will become more prone...

Falls actually occur for many reasons. Falls occur simply out of shear accident. You slide on something slippery, you are knocked over by something, etc. When you fall because you lost your balance...

Obviously, the answer is one that is successful at treating patients with balance and dizziness type disorders. Our office has been sub-specialized in seeing patients with balance problems and fall risk...

Pretty much everyone knows at least one person who has fallen. The fall may have been purely accidental, such as a slip and fall, or the fall may have been related to dizziness.

A simple thing like tripping on a carpet or slipping on a wet floor can change your life in a heartbeat. Like the thousands of people who fall each year, you may suffer a broken bone.

A new guideline was published in the May 27 issue of Neurology, stating that the “Best Treatment for Vertigo Is Easiest One”. The Guideline urges immediate therapy with a simple series of head, body movements...

A recent study suggests that after age 40, dizziness makes you 12 times more likely to suffer serious injury from a fall. About 69 million Americans over age 40 have some form of inner-ear dysfunction or another...

Falls are the leading cause of injury, death, and emergency room visits for people over age 65 years. Falls also rank highly for those under 65 years, despite what most people believe, or want to believe.

Swine flu has certainly made its way into the media. Each day, several of my patients ask my opinion as to whether or not the vaccine is a good idea for them and their families.

Recently I have announced fellowship by the American College of Functional Neurology. Well, once again I am proud to report that I have recently been advised that I have been accepted as a Fellow of the American Board of Vestibular Rehabilitation as well.

Ménière’s syndrome is a disorder caused by a small defect in the vestibular labyrinth, which essentially causes an unexpected change in the barometric pressure within the chamber from the side with the defect to the good ear.

I am proud to report that I have recently been advised that I have been accepted as a Fellow of the American College of Functional Neurology.

I just returned from my daily trip to the hospital, and today, a nurse’s station was setup in the foyer graciously screening blood pressures for passersby.

Vertigo, for being one of the top reasons why an individual would go to a doctor, is an extremely misunderstood and frequently inappropriately treated disorder. Vertigo in and of itself manifests as a symptom, not as a true disease entity.

After having completed specialty postdoctoral neurology course work a few years back in the treatment of children as well as adults with neurobehavioral disorders such as ADD, ADHD, autism, etc,...

So what is health, and how would you define it? It seems that everyone has a different idea of what they consider it is to “be healthy”. Through the years, I have seen many patients, who consider health to quite simply be the absence of disease.

There is no question that vestibular rehabilitation therapy is the best way to manage most causes of vertigo, dizziness and imbalance. The downside is that there are very few trained specialists...

Of interest, the following topics are discussed in this weeks newsletter, composed from recent findings in the medical literature. To receive a copy of our E-News, sign up on our Subscribe Today! page.

What has become of our culture? TV is now inundated with drug commercials advocating drugs to treat just about everything, and during the part where they are required to list the side effects...

If you find yourself reading this and asking yourself the same question, why am I dizzy, you are certainly by no means alone. Dizziness is one of the top three reasons why patients visit their primary care provider...

Falls have become a leading cause of death, especially amongst seniors. Falls are also a leading cause of nonfatal injuries in all age groups, not just seniors. Risk of fall is clinically measurable...

Well, I suppose that I must apologize for my most unexpected hiatus as I now have many readers anxious to read my weekly column on various health issues.

The next time the world starts spinning, Patti will know exactly how to make it stop. But two months ago, when the 50-year-old Ocean County resident woke up spinning with vertigo for the last time, she had no idea what to do.

When I discuss falls and fall risk with people, their thought process is typically, “well, there is nothing wrong with me, I feel fine”. That is exactly the inherent dangerous mindset that leads to fall related injuries.

Unfortunately, these words are heard by far too many people. Although this may be true in that the problem really is in your head, (anatomically), one would anticipate that with the myriad of information on brain based disorders available today...

If you have a headache, you’re not alone. Nine out of ten Americans suffer from headaches. Headaches comprise the top three reasons why one goes to the doctor.

Perhaps you know someone who’s been injured, disabled or even killed by a fall. Or maybe you’ve taken a spill yourself and are afraid the next one could be worse.

In the past decade, prescriptions for Ritalin, a stimulant medication commonly used for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), increased five-fold, with 90 percent of all prescriptions worldwide consumed in the United States.

Current statistics show that approximately 13 million Americans over the age of 65 suffer from some type of dizziness or balance problems that significantly interfere with their lives.

Dystonia is a neurological movement disorder affecting more than 300,000 people in North America alone. It is characterized by involuntary muscle contractions, which force certain parts of the body into abnormal, sometimes painful, movements or postures.

The topic of headaches is vast as there are many causes as well as types of headaches, causing most doctors to shudder at the mere presentation of a headache patient.

Well, I guess it was inevitable. Being a technical fellow that I am, I think we all knew that having my own blog page was soon to happen. So, here it is.

I am asked this question a lot as we have found that this is the best way to describe what it is that we do. In essence, it is exactly what it is. Functional medicine pertains to restoring optimal function to a body part or system.

Quoted from Laurence J. Peter, US educator & writer (1919 – 1988), one must wonder if he somehow anticipated our current healthcare system. We are living in an age where it is deemed ok to suggest prescription drugs on TV...

Despite the multitude of dramatic success stories associated with chiropractic medicine over the past 200 years, the profession is ridden with myths, wives tails and many unfortunate beliefs, or as it may be, disbeliefs.

For over twenty years in my practice, I have personally witnessed the impact of helping people recover from various disorders, not just in terms of their health, but also in their ability to improve their quality of life.

Right up there with headaches and back pain, as the first two reasons which people seek medical attention. Invariably the standard medical treatment approach for vertigo and dizziness is to prescribe meclizine, (Antivert), a vestibular suppressant drug...

It does seem that each year the holiday season comes faster than the year before. And with that, comes the stress of rushing to prepare for the family festivities, which the holiday centers around.

Many patients that we see have seemingly bizarre symptoms that they have been living with for long periods of time, resultant to changes in the way their brain is functioning.

Many people with balance disorders confuse the symptoms that they are experiencing, which can have harmful consequences when presenting to your doctor, who will often medicate you based upon your complaint.

Mild cognitive impairment, (MCI), is a condition in which a person has problems with memory, language, recall and other simple activities of daily living which are severe enough to be noticeable to other people.

With complaints of dizziness, vertigo or disequilibrium, symptoms can be the result of vestibular, neurologic, vascular, psychologic and even orthopedic pathology.

As you are probably no doubt aware by now, my office spends much time dealing with patients who suffer with vertigo, dizziness, balance loss and dystonia. What you are probably not aware of is that many of these patients got that way in the first place...

I saw a young woman in my office this week, who presented to see if I could help her with her vertigo and dizziness, which she has been suffering with for several years.

“How do you thank someone who basically hands you back your life?” This is the question asked by Andres, who at a mere 20 years of age, suffered with ongoing vertigo...

As in other medical professions, we have individual specialists within the chiropractic profession. Through education, training and board certification, we choose to limit practice to a certain specialty to assist other physicians...

Falls are the leading cause of both unintentional injury and death in persons 65 and over. Falls are the number one reason for admission to a nursing home. One third of all people over 65 fall at least once a year. Half of those who fall do so repeatedly.

If you suffer from dizziness/balance disorder, here are some things that you should know: Q. How common is vertigo/dizziness?