Anthony Fortier D.C.

06/14/2025

Got Migraines?
A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial showed that a group of patients with chronic migraines "were randomized to receive either cinnamon powder (3 capsules/day each containing 600mg of cinnamon) or 3 placebo capsules/day for 2 months."

Why Cinnamon?
Cinnamon has anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties, thus the aim of the study was to assess the effect of cinnamon on migraine attacks and inflammatory status.

What were the results?
"The frequency, severity & duration of migraine attacks were significantly decreased in the cinnamon group, compared to the placebo group."

The cinnamon group also had much lower inflammatory markers after the 2 months trial.

The daily amount of 1,800mg is equivalent to only a quarter teaspoon of cinnamon powder.

(See comments for more info)

Migraine is the most common type of primary headaches. Increased levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), calcitonin-gene-related peptide (CGRP) and nitric oxide (NO) lead to inflammation and neurogenic pain....

03/31/2025

People sometimes get confused with the type of soft tissue work I do with kinesiology alongside chiropractic. I get calls asking if I could “massage” them for x amount of time… and although I love a good massage and recommend them, that’s not what I do!

With kinesiology I assess how well the muscles are responding to commands from the brain, which involves the muscle spindles. Muscle spindles are special “sensors”, like little helpers inside your muscles. These helpers tell your brain how much your muscles are stretched or squished so it can help you move without hurting yourself. If the muscle doesn’t respond well while it is being challenged using kinesiology techniques, it might indicate that the muscle spindles are not functioning properly and that there’s an issue with how the muscles are being controlled.

Now, if these muscle spindles are not working right (like they’re sleepy or “inhibited”), they can’t give your brain the right information. Because of this, your brain might not know when you’re stretching or moving too far, and you might hurt yourself easily without even realizing it. In fact, you might feel pain more often or even in places that don’t usually hurt. Muscle inhibitions could make you feel wobbly and less coordinated.

When these inhibitions happen, your bones can start to shift out of their usual positions because your muscles aren’t pulling them in the right directions. This can cause problems with your posture and alignment, like making you slouch, lean to one side, or feel uneven.

Chiropractic adjustments and kinesiology techniques can help to “reset” the muscle spindles. This allows the muscle spindles to start sending the right signals to the brain again, helping the body function properly.

03/20/2025

A new article was published recently to determine the effect of individual muscle activities on the maintenance of an upright posture; as well as the effect of each spinal muscle impairment on upright posture with and without compensatory activities of the other muscles in the role of maintaining an upright posture.
This was done to help connect the dots with the relationship to symptoms related to spinal asymmetry.

What we commonly know as forward head posture can be seen in most people; the slumping of the head due to everyday work, activity, daily habits, etc. Over time as it gets worse it can be diagnosed as dropped head syndrome (DHS). "Primary symptoms of DHS include neck pain and anterior flexion impairment. Furthermore, excessive flexion of the head and neck can lead to difficulties in walking and eating, as well as trismus, dysphagia, and skin lesions (ulcerations) in the anterior neck and chest. The causative factors for DHS are diverse and include neurogenic factors (arising from conditions such as various neurological disorders), myogenesis (resulting from various muscle diseases), and cervical spondylosis-related causes (arising from intervertebral disc bulging and bone-spur formation)."

What they found was it is not just the muscles in the upper and back and neck affecting the forward head posture. In fact, it is the muscles throughout the entire back and body which are not functioning properly, or creating compensation patterns that affects the neck. "...the fatigue of the single muscle can be compensated for by increasing activation levels of the synergistic muscles resulting in unchanged MVC torque. They suggest that the synergistic muscles may be controlled by descending command signals at the supraspinal and spinal levels."

These are all things I see everyday, and I have posted about previously, but it’s always good to have new research to support my findings.

So, what can you do at home to help? Exercises targeting neck extensors, as well as posture improvement exercises for the thoracolumbar (Mid-lower back) region and localized rehabilitation of muscles like the psoas (hip flexor), are essential.

The occurrence of diseases characterized by irregular spinal alignment, such as kyphosis, lordosis, scoliosis, and dropped head syndrome (DHS) is increasing, particularly among older adults. DHS is characterized by an excessive forward tilt of the head and neck, causing the head to droop. Although i...

05/21/2024

Got a new piece of equipment in the mail today! Fully customized and ready for action

05/16/2024

People are often curious when being told a “rib is out”. What does that even mean?

Well ribs form joints with the thoracic part of the spine. The ribcage normally expands while breathing in, and then back down when breathing out. Individual ribs can get misaligned, which can cause pain and discomfort when they are not moving as they should. This pain may also refer to the side and front of the body, causing potential difficulty with breathing and/or digestion.

There’s many muscles that attach into the ribs, which can cause problems to those costovertebral (rib-vertebrae) joints if they aren’t functioning properly. Muscles from the mid back, between the ribs, in & around the shoulders, from the neck, even from the low back and hip!

Fun fact- the diaphragm, which attaches into the lower ribcage shares a connection with the psoas muscle (the infamous hip flexor we all love). When the psoas muscle (which also attaches into all the lumbar vertebrae, including the discs) isn’t functioning as it should, it can cause problems even to the ribs, which may affect the thoracic spine and more! A classic dysfunctional kinetic chain reaction.

Here’s a link that shows good detail of the rib anatomy with joint attachments, muscle connections, as well as some additional info-

Original Editor - Rewan Aloush

04/09/2024

Lately there's been way too many people I've seen who have lower back and knee pain from working on their lawns/gardening. A lot of the tips on this link aren't exactly mind blowing, but at least it may help to keep them in mind as you're doing these activities.

Just remember the pain may not come suddenly as you're doing the work itself, rather you may feel the effects later on or even the following day. So if something starts to feel off or not quite right, be careful!

If you love gardening, keep up your hobby by following these simple tips and adaptations to minimize back pain during long periods of planting.

02/04/2024

The healing process takes time, especially depending on the type of tissue that is damaged. Some people heal quicker, whereas it’ll take longer for others. There are many factors that come into play such as the severity/extent of damage, how long the problem has been occurring, your overall health, adequate nutrition, elimination of stressors/toxins, blood supply, age, weight, medications, pre-existing conditions, the type of wellness care (if any) you received before/after the injury occurred, exercise, posture, quality of rest, etc. the list goes on!

Having patience to endure recovery is not easy, especially if you have the mentality to tough it out, but that’s not necessarily the best option. If you have a cut and you keep doing things to reopen it, it’s obviously going to take longer to heal and possibly get worse. Same goes for a physical injury if you are constantly doing things to reaggravate whichever caused the problem to begin with! You may receive the best treatments out there, but it’s what you do on a daily basis and how you take care of your body which will dictate the results you get from it, or not.

Our bodies are great at healing and adapting, but it needs time as well as the right conditions to do so.

12/23/2023

In preparation of going up and down chimneys and carrying a heavy bag full of presents, Santa got adjusted!

Merry Christmas

12/12/2023

As a gift of appreciation and thanks to my patients, I got a new tool which just arrived today! It’s one of, if not my favorite devices which I’ve been wanting for a long time. You’ll have to see it yourself during our next visit, but I think you’re all going to love it! (and don’t worry it’s not going to hurt haha)

I wish I could’ve had this for all the wonderful people I saw back when I practiced in Colorado Springs, but I do you miss you guys and hope all is well.