Q.

My back always seems to go out of alignment. What is the best way to prevent this from happening?

A.

The best way to prevent this is to strengthen the small stabilizing muscles of your spine called the "multifidi" through exercise. The multifidi attach vertebra to vertebra, thus helping to stabilize the joint and controlling motion in the spine as a whole. When these muscles get injured from a fall, an improper lift, or in sports the muscle gets weaker. When it heals, scar tissue forms in the muscle which tears more readily when stressed, and this is why you get muliple episodes of back pain over time.

Unfortunately we cannot voluntarily contract the multifidi muscles to exercise them as we can with the biceps in our arm or quadriceps in our thigh. So, in order to strengthen the multifidi we need to contract the abdominal muscle called " transversus abdominus. This muscle is easily contracted and when we do, it stimulates the multifidi to contract. This is why pilates, yoga and stability balls have all become so popular lately, as these different exercise modalities help us to strengthten our multifidi and stabilize our backs..

Well, cholesterol-lowering medicines are for the most part drugs classified as "statins." Statins, we now know through research deplete our bodies of a susbstance called Coenzyme Q10, also known as ubiquinone, or CoQ10. CoQ10 is found inside a cell in an organelle called mitochondria, and it is essential for energy production. If our cells can't produce enough energy, one of the first side effects that is noticed is muscle soreness. CoQ10 is classified as an antioxidant, although it has been suggested that it should be classified as a fat-soluble vitamin.

Deficiency primarily affects the heart and may lead to heart failure. Deficiency can result from impaired coenzyme Q10 synthesis or increased needs from diseases such as angina, hypertension and congestive heart failure. Many other drugs besides statins are known to deplete this from our bodies for example: antidepressants, antidiabetics, antihypertensives and beta blockers. Additionally, coenzyme Q10 levels may decrease as part of the normal aging process.

An increasing body of research is demonstrating that supplementation with coenzyme Q10 can be beneficial in the treatment of a number of health problems, particularly cardiac conditions and diseases. Studies have suggested that supplementation may be beneficial as an adjunct in the treatment of breast cancer, diabetes mellitus, immune deficiency, muscular dystrophy and periodontal disease. So, I strongly recommend to all my patients that if you are taking statins to lower your cholesterol, please also take CoQ10.