Gardening and yard maintenance can be tricky regardless of expertise, and even the simpler tasks can result in minor injuries. However, experts and novices alike will benefit from these easy gardening tips and tricks. Get started on your garden...
Gardening is an excellent way to relieve stress and get exercise, but the heavy lifting, squatting and bending can cause severe strain in your upper and lower back. Check out these simple tips for back pain management and back pain relief after you’re done gardening. By Melinda Myers, Professional Horticulturist, Garden Expert, and...
Omron electroTHERAPY Solution Enables Pain-Free Gardening, Chance to Win Garden Makeover LAKE FOREST, Ill. – April 22, 2013 – With April’s National Garden Month underway, your planting plans may be ready, but your body is likely unprepared for the bending, kneeling, and lifting that go along with it. Savvy gardeners have a secret weapon – Omron’s electroTHERAPY Pain Relief unit, which keeps your green thumb from tiring by eliminating gardening aches and pains with proven physical therapy technology. Omron’s over-the-counter electroTHERAPY Pain Relief unit can relieve lower back pain, as well as muscle and joint pain that are all too familiar for gardeners and non-gardeners alike. Lower back pain is the number one reported pain symptom in the country. This 100 percent drug-free, non-prescription therapy is a smart option for tending to aches and pains inflamed by gardening. “As an avid gardener with two knee replacements, I’m always in search of alternative tactics to combat joint pain,” said Melinda Myers, a professional horticulturist with an eye for innovative solutions. “Electrotherapy treatment lets me garden without needing to stop due to the joint pain that often comes with kneeling, reaching, and lifting.” SMART GARDENING Myers doesn’t rely solely on electrotherapy to keep her gardening pain free. To reduce lower back and joint pain, she suggests following these simple pain-free gardening tips: Vertical Gardening – Garden up! Grow plants on a blank wall, fence, or post. Height makes gardening easier and creates visual interest. Choose Your Tools Wisely – Look for ergonomic grips, long-handled tools, and ratcheted tools to keep your posture upright, give you more power and make...
Get out, dig in and celebrate National Garden Month. And don’t let stiff joints, lower back pain, or bad knees stop you from gardening. Hi, I’m Melinda Myers, professional horticulturist and gardening expert. If you want to keep gardening and enjoy it to the fullest, try some of these simple, resourceful pain-free gardening techniques. For Knee Pain Management Protect your knees with pad kneelers or wrap-around kneepads. These items will reduce the pain and pressure on your joints. Some garden benches even have handles and can be turned upside down and used as a pad kneeler. The bench handles also make moving up and down easier for those of you who have trouble bending down low and getting back up. For Lower Back Pain Management Prevent unwanted lower back pain by keeping short and long-handled tools handy as you move around the garden. Convert a discarded wheeled golf bag, shopping cart, or wheeled trash bin into a tool caddy. Just wheel the caddy around the landscape so that you don’t have to keep bending over, plus it keeps the number of times you walk back and forth down to a minimum. Or create a permanent fixture as part of your garden to hold small tools for easy and quick access. Install an old mailbox in your garden and fill it with hand tools and gloves. Have fun with it by adding a little paint or cover it with a mailbox planter or vine to make it an attractive, yet functional part of your landscape. For Hand Pain Management Invest in ergonomic tools. They often have larger, softer handles that...
According to a report released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 10 adults suffer from pain that lasts a year or more with lower back pain being among one of the most common complaints. Typically, pain is what causes patients to seek out medical care initially, and in the chain of care, hopefully a patient may encounter a physical therapist. As a practicing physical therapist in Chicago, I am always trying to have my clients become as comfortable and pain free as possible. We know that the sooner we can decrease a patient’s pain, the sooner we can begin work on the cause of the pain and correct the biomechanical issues that may have caused the pain. TENS, or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation, has been used by physical therapists since the 1980s to achieve the goal of pain relief whether their patients have acute pain or are trying to reduce chronic pain. After surgery or an injury, physical therapists often use a TENS machine because the patient is suffering from acute pain. We define “acute” pain as pain that has been around for less than 6 weeks. An electrotherapy or TENS unit can greatly reduce the use of prescription drugs and over the counter products during this recovery period. In some cases, the side effects of the drugs can be worse than the pain that is relieved. A TENS therapy treatment allows the patient time to clear the surgical anesthesia drugs from their system, without adding more drugs to the mix while still getting the needed pain relief. In many cases, the sooner the physical therapist...
Your annual physical exam is around the corner, and you have some health concerns you would like to discuss with your doctor. How do you talk to your doctor about pain? It all starts before you even walk in the door for your appointment. Be proactive and prepared! My first suggestion is to come prepared with information about the pain you are having. Keep a pain diary prior to attending the visit with your doctor so that you can best describe the frequency, intensity, duration, and location of your symptoms. Note whether or not there are activities or positions that specifically make your symptoms feel better or worse. Once your doctor has examined you, you will have time to discuss your symptoms and the plan of care. My second suggestion is to have a list of questions ready for your doctor. Consider keeping a medical journal for yourself where you can keep all of your recorded information for easy reference later. If, for example, you are seeing your doctor about recurrent low back pain after gardening, have questions ready about treatment options. If your doctor recommends pain medications as a treatment option, ask specific questions that may include dosage, how often, with or without food, and side effects. You may also consider asking questions about other methods for back pain relief such as heat, a home TENS unit, or physical therapy. Keeping a prepared list of questions with spaces for answers will allow you to quickly note the doctor’s answer so that you have a greater understanding about your options regarding a customized pain relief management regimen. Finally, if...
Together with OmronFitness.com, the latest Omron device is an innovative way to keep track of fitness goals LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Jan. 7, 2012 – One simple, smart device is giving people the power they need to reach their fitness goals. Omron’s newest fitness solution, the Activity Monitor (HJA-312), reveals total calories burned throughout the day by tracking all types of activities – from walking to doing household chores. Introduced today at the 2013 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the device can be connected at OmronFitness.com via a NFC Communication Tray (sold separately) to track and transfer data, reflecting Omron’s goal to give users a clear picture of their activity over time and to help them stay accountable by sharing progress and achievements with friends, family and healthcare professionals. “Omron has always been focused on finding innovative solutions to help all kinds of people reach their fitness and lifestyle goals, whatever those may be,” said Ranndy Kellogg, vice president, marketing and product development at Omron. “Our new Activity Monitor is an intuitive product that shows people their everyday progress and motivates them to work out more. Together with its syncing capabilities at OmronFitness.com consumers can get a bigger picture of their total fitness over time.” Track Your Day For people at any fitness level, the Omron Activity Monitor features: Weekly Tracker– A weekly calories-burned goal tracker shows how much activity time is required to reach weight loss goals Five Activity Modes– Tracks aerobic time, steps, distance, calories burned and pace Workout Mode– This mode separately tracks activity during a workout OmronFitness.com Compatibility – Through an NFC Communication Tray, users can...
The global standard for home blood pressure measurement was developed out of the desire for a vibrant and healthy life. Download the complete report or select from the following sections (all files, PDF): Ohasama Study History Ohasama Study Findings and Statistics Key Opinion Leaders Reflect on the Ohasama Study Ohasama Study Leads to HOMED-BP Research Interview with Principal Investigator, Professor Yutaka Imai Study Participant Profiles History of Omron Home Blood Pressure Monitors Omron Home Blood Pressure Monitor Global Presence Media Contact: Johnna Purcell Omron Healthcare 847-247-5637...
SCHAUMBURG, IL (November 7, 2012)— Today, OMRON Foundation, Inc. made a donation to the American Red Cross Hurricane 2012 Fund in the amount of $20,000 to assist Hurricane Sandy victims through the Red Cross disaster relief and recovery efforts. “Our hearts go out to all those in the communities on the East Coast who have been impacted by the devastation of this hurricane, “ said Nigel Blakeway, Omron Foundation President and the CEO of Omron Management Center of America, Inc. “Our thoughts are for the health and safety of the residents as they continue to recover from the aftermath of this storm.” In addition to this donation, U.S. Omron employees are encouraged to make individual donations in support of local relief efforts which are matched by Omron Foundation within program guidelines. About OMRON Foundation, Inc. Founded in 1989, OMRON Foundation, Inc. (OFI) coordinates the charitable efforts of all OMRON offices in the US and Canada to achieve the greatest positive social impact. The Foundation is funded by OMRON’s subsidiaries in North America, which contribute a portion of sales revenue to the Foundation. The Foundation divides its charitable resources among organizations benefiting education, people with disabilities, cultural programs, health, and other social concerns including disaster relief. For further information, contact: Kevin Bulatek, Corporate Social Responsibility Manager, at Omron Foundation, Inc., 55 Commerce Drive, Schaumburg, IL 60173 U.S.A. Tel.: 1-224-520-7650 Fax: 1-224-520-7680. About OMRON Headquartered in Kyoto, Japan, OMRON Corporation is a global leader in electronics manufacturing. Established in 1933 and headed by President & CEO Yoshihito Yamada, OMRON has nearly 36,000 employees around the world working to provide products and...
FDA clears pain relief device for consumer use without a prescription LAKE FOREST, Ill. – September 18, 2012 – Omron Healthcare, a leader in pain relief for more than 20 years, announced today a new electrotherapy solution for for muscle and joint pain relief. The Omron electroTHERAPY Pain Relief unit (PM3030) is FDA cleared and now available to U.S. consumers without a prescription. Launched in conjunction with a new educational website, the pain solution is currently available at the Omron Webstore and through several online retailers including, Amazon.com and Drugstore.com. “As a pain management physician for 15 years, I’ve found electrotherapy to be a valuable pain management option,” said Dr. Rajive Adlaka, a board certified physician specializing in anesthesia and pain management. “One of the most important aspects of this therapy is that it’s 100 percent drug free. It essentially has no side effects and there’s no fear of addiction.” Utilizing TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) technology, the same technology used by physical therapists for more than 30 years, the Omron electroTHERAPY device is easy to use and helps relieve pain wherever it is needed most. The pads for the Omron electroTHERAPY unit are placed near the site of the pain and safely deliver gentle, massage-like pulses to alleviate stiff, achy, or sore muscles or joints. “There are as many as 100 million people in the U.S. with acute or chronic pain. Omron electroTHERAPY for Pain Relief may help them alleviate their pain in as little as 15 minutes,” said Maureen Perou, Sr. Product Manager at Omron. “What’s different about this product is that it demystifies and simplifies a time-tested...