If you knew ways to prevent injuries in your workplace, would you use them? A chiropractor can help you identify risk factors associated with your job and show you ways to work more efficiently and safely. You can avoid workplace injuries. Here’s more.
What Does a Chiropractor Do?
A chiropractor focuses assessments and treatments on the spinal column–its nerves, blood supply, and bone structure. Most people think of back pain and spinal misalignments as the chiropractor’s specific area of expertise.
While it’s true that chiropractors manage neck and back pain through a variety of adjustments of the spine, they also have a great deal of expertise in body mechanics. They understand how sudden impacts, repetitive motions and even being sedentary can contribute to injuries and chronic musculoskeletal conditions stemming from the workplace.
The Dangers of The Workplace
From the least physically taxing jobs to the riskiest of occupations, what people do every day impacts their overall wellness. Daily work can be a source of significant demands on the musculoskeletal system and nerves, affecting the ability to sleep well, have a strong immune system, and experience less stress and anxiety. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that about 2.6 million Americans had job-related conditions or injuries in 2021 alone.
How a Chiropractor Can Help You Stay Healthy on The Job
It almost goes without saying that taking preventive measures helps workers stay healthy, functional, and on the job. This is where chiropractors can provide significant insight and recommendations for injury and illness prevention. The following represents a common list of recommendations from chiropractors.
Stay Physically Active
A full 150 minutes of light aerobic exercise every week keeps bones, muscles, and joints, including those in the back, strong and flexible. Exercise improves cardiovascular endurance, too, and has a positive impact on coordination and balance.
In addition, your chiropractor can recommend at-home exercises to target and strengthen specific muscles and joints. The doctor can show you stretching techniques, too, for a better range of motion and flexibility.
Practice Good Posture
You can avoid chronic neck and lower back pain by having your computer at eye level and sitting in an ergonomically correct chair with armrests at a comfortable height and with appropriate lumbar support.
Your chiropractor will tell you to take regular breaks from your job. Get up, stretch, and practice good posture (head up, shoulders back).
Lift Correctly to Stay Safe
Your chiropractor can demonstrate proper lifting techniques to avoid strain on your spinal column, muscles, and joints. Avoid excessive twisting, and be sure to lift with your leg muscles, rather than your back. Never lift a load that is too heavy for you but get another person to assist.
Finally, a chiropractor keeps workers safe by identifying health risks and hazards on the job and by advising practical ways to alleviate them. Both workers and employers alike benefit from advice about safety equipment, proper staffing, and more.
Regular Chiropractic Adjustments Optimize Musculoskeletal Function
These hands-on adjustments relieve muscle tension, align the spinal vertebrae, improve blood flow, and nerve function, and more. A chiropractor customizes care plans to include massage, heat/cold therapy, and other modalities targeted to meet the physical needs of each patient, considering age, gender, occupation, and more.
Chiropractic Care In Grand Junction, CO
As your one-stop occupational health facility, WorkPartners Occupational Health is pleased to offer a wide array of onsite chiropractic services. Dr. Christopher Angello is our Level 1 chiropractic physician accredited through the Colorado Division of Workers’ Compensation. The most common conditions Dr. Agello treats include neck pain, back pain, sciatica, radiculopathy, and sacroiliac joint pain.
To learn more about chiropractic care and workplace injury prevention, call us at (970) 241-5585. Or, request a visit online.
