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The back chat with the back dr is all about providing the latest health tips, self development. Natural approaches to health and life.
Together? Yeah. Alright. 3, 2, 1, go. Welcome to the back talk or the back chat with the back doctor.
Dr Oz:I'm your host, doctor Oz. And with me, I have the one and only, the lovely, wonderful, amazing, doctor Angus. Keep going. Thank you. Stunning.
Dr Oz:English accent, intelligent, wise, knowledgeable.
Dr Angus:My goodness.
Dr Oz:A great adjuster, a great chiropractor, a great dad. Should I keep going? Yeah. Now you're putting me on his father.
Dr Angus:Yes, dude. Great husband. I don't get this at home. Great. Keep going.
Dr Oz:I was like, that's it. No more. I praise you enough. I don't want your head to
Dr Angus:get too too deep. Gotta leave the through the door.
Dr Oz:So today is all about back to school. Mhmm. Okay. And really getting parents all ready up for their kids, making sure that they're the best they can be getting into school, getting into the new year of 2024. So doctor Angus, before we jump into that, I would like you to talk a bit about yourself and what really brought you into, you know, chiropractic and doing what
Dr Angus:you do. Absolutely. Yeah. Sure. So I went to the Anglo European College of Chiropractic in England.
Dr Angus:That was back in the mid nineties. Feels a long time ago. But what brought me into chiropractic was really just an appreciation for the natural world.
Dr Oz:Mhmm.
Dr Angus:Just really being brought up in the countryside and, being shown how the real world, the natural world works. That really set me on a journey to appreciating and wanting to work with mother nature, the innate intelligence, the power that built the body, heals the body, and chiropractic seemed the obvious choice at that point. So, yeah, that's how I ended up here.
Dr Oz:I was gonna say, like, just thinking about now you're well nicely dressed like a beautiful Englishman would be dressed. Indeed. And here I am dressed as green Christmas There you go. As Aussie as it gets.
Dr Angus:It's the Aussie Aussie summer uniform, Christmas uniform. Yes.
Dr Oz:Just shows the beautiful contrast. I love it. Yeah. So good. Please continue.
Dr Oz:Talk a bit about, you know, I've met your lovely wife, Shafika, and met your 2 boys as well, Phoenix and Aston. Mhmm. And what's it like being a dad?
Dr Angus:It's full on. It's full on as any parent will, testifying to. It's a complete change of life to, even just being a couple, a complete, reprioritization reprioritization of values and activities and everything, but I love it. Plenty, plenty of stress, but wouldn't have it any other way. Yeah.
Dr Oz:It must be a whole different experience when you have life in front of you that, you know, you brought you helped bring into the world. So
Dr Angus:That's right. And looking to shape the best way that you know how, which, is not always easy, and there's always regrets and things that you do better. But, we all do our best as parents. Yeah.
Dr Oz:I always sense a bit of pain behind that. Bit of, you know, happiness, but also a bit of pain behind those voices.
Dr Angus:Indeed.
Dr Oz:One thing is, you know, we're gonna talk about school. And you have like I mentioned before, you have 2 boys. How old are they now?
Dr Angus:So the youngest one is 7, and the older boy is 11. It feels like 2 and a half minutes ago since they were that big, but, here we are. Crazy. A decade has, flown by. Yeah.
Dr Oz:So I guess my first question is, you know, why is do you get your kids adjusted? Do you get them looked after?
Dr Angus:Absolutely. Absolutely. The kids come in every every Monday, along with my wife. They make the effort of driving 20 minutes to be here. So, yeah, they get adjusted regularly.
Dr Angus:And the reason for that is that I've seen what happens to spines that don't get well adjusted. So, we we see the consequences of that every day. And, yeah. It it it sometimes so bad, clinically speaking, that it's upsetting. So the one thing that we can do is to is to make sure that the next generation is as well prepared and looked after as possible.
Dr Oz:And when you say, like, we see how bad people's spines can get, you know, we're talking not just in children. Right? We're talking how, like, the effects from childhood lead into, you know, young young adulthood to later adulthood to middle age.
Dr Angus:Absolutely. I mean, all the all the, cases that we suck our teeth and shake our heads to in private, they all started off as small problems, as mild problems, as moderate problems in early life, in childhood, in babyhood. So so the more that we can address those now, then we're really changing the life trajectory of that person just with some simple simple work, simple adjustments.
Dr Oz:Yeah. I could probably bring a whole textbook and just boom, smack it here on the table, and we'll have to go through all the list of issues, but I'd rather we keep it concise for this episode and really keep it for kids. So what sort of common spinal health issues would you see with, like, younger children, you know, growing up into being adults?
Dr Angus:Yeah. So there's obviously the general aches and pains that we get from doing the wrong thing or being in the wrong posture or the wrong position. There is also also that mythical growing pains, which I've never seen adequately described in any medical textbook or chiropractic textbook. I think there's a reason for, a functional or a dysfunctional reason for every pain. And classifying it just as growing pains is is a bit lazy Yeah.
Dr Angus:Clinically speaking.
Dr Oz:Yeah. Because if you can't if you can't define, it's it's it's it's not to, you know, put a bad term behind it, but it's like, yeah, my child's growing up, so he's got pegs eggs and pains. Why? He's growing up. It doesn't it doesn't make sense.
Dr Oz:It doesn't click.
Dr Angus:That's right.
Dr Oz:There must be a reason why the pain's dying. Absolutely. You know, can I throw an analogy at you?
Dr Angus:Please do.
Dr Oz:For us Love analogies. Oh, beautiful. So, you know, we love our plants. We love growing plants. And you know how there's certain plants that people get like a stick and they wrap around so the plant grows nice and tall and straight?
Dr Oz:Because if it's left to return devices with nature, winds, it goes crooked. Mhmm. And, you know, and that sort of plant can be broken a lot quicker compared to something that grows up nice and straight and tall.
Dr Angus:Perfect analogy. And how easy is it to spend 2 minutes in the garden with a stick and a piece of wire compared to, trying to reshape a a mighty oak that has, spent, 2, 3, 5 decades growing. It's it's nearly impossible. It takes a year or 2 or 18 months if you're phase 2.
Dr Oz:Love it. Love it.
Dr Angus:So, yeah. The sooner we can we can straighten these little twigs and create strong, healthy, vibrant trees, the better.
Dr Oz:Oh, beautiful.
Dr Angus:It's a 1000 times cheaper as well.
Dr Oz:What else? Other than other than growing pains, what else do you notice? What do you see?
Dr Angus:Well, there are some some classics such as scoliosis, and, obviously, scoliosis develops late childhood. So that's something that is very much approachable from a chiropractic perspective. Yeah. A lot of medical doctors, even the orthopedic types, find themselves a little bit lost, when it comes to scoliosis care. The only real solution they can they can offer is some incredibly invasive top to bottom, surgery with introducing rods and screws and wires, which unfortunately does not allow the the spine to adapt or to grow very well.
Dr Oz:Yeah.
Dr Angus:And typically leads to, an even worse clinical outcome in in middle life.
Dr Oz:You can talk about how, you know, you can cut up a 15, 14, 13 year old girl, put a rod in when she hasn't fully grown up yet. We don't know the implications in 10 years, in 20 years, in 30 years Absolutely. And how that's gonna affect them.
Dr Angus:Absolutely. Because one thing we had to bear in mind is that with children and even young adults, their their bones are still growing. There's something called a growth plate, and that is the part of the bone that is expanding a little bit like an ice crystal to meet all the other parts of the bone, and create one solid bone. So there's a lot of opportunity for shift and change and restructuring that spine, restructuring that bone for optimal alignment, and, getting a much, happier outcome.
Dr Oz:Yeah. And, you know, you can always talk about the way you look as well. You know, for kids, you know, if they're if they're not in perfect symmetry or if they're hunched, they're curved, that can cause a lot of stress, a lot of anxiety. Something I see a lot now is a lot more depression in younger kids.
Dr Angus:Absolutely. I mean, let's let's face it. This world since, maybe when you grew up and certainly when I grew up is a lot more stressful. Mhmm. So anxiety problems and depressive problems, issues, are definitely more prevalent and common these days.
Dr Angus:But one thing we have to remember is that all these issues, they reside within and come from the nervous system. And by de stressing the nervous system through chiropractic care, it just means that those kids have more capacity and ability to take on the inevitable stresses and strains of 2024 and beyond with less consequences Yeah. Less, poor outcomes.
Dr Oz:And, yeah, that's the that's the inside change. Right? The nervous system that sits within, you know, comes in from the inside. And as a factor of that, posture changes as well. So, for I can speak for younger girls, you know, who love to take selfies, take photos, group photos, making sure they have good posture is really important to them.
Dr Angus:Right.
Dr Oz:So, you know, not only are you changing the physical aspect of the nervous system, the posture, but you're also changing the mindset and reducing that anxiety, reducing that stress is such a big thing.
Dr Angus:Absolutely. It is.
Dr Oz:Yeah. Can I bring up my most favorite topic? Texting, Instagram, text next. Right. You know, when you're like this, you're like this all the time.
Dr Oz:Yep. Where's the where's the outdoors? Outdoors.
Dr Angus:It's a dangerous place these days, apparently. So, and just to a certain degree, it is far more full of challenges and dangers compared to to what it was even just a few decades ago. But it's important to get those kids out into what I call the real world as often as possible, and as much as possible, for a whole variety of reasons. Yeah.
Dr Oz:Well, I think that I feel like it's too much screen time. It's just taking away too much from the world.
Dr Angus:Yeah. You're either doing one thing or or the other. Absolutely. And as as parents, we know that, you know, one of the resources that gets requested upon the most is is our time. And if, you know, without a big backyard or a backyard at all, it does take time.
Dr Angus:It does take focus, energy, resources to go to the park, to get the balls out, to go and spend time letting the kids run around and encouraging them to use their body.
Dr Oz:So what are some ways that you manage your 2 boys?
Dr Angus:Well, I don't wanna use the
Dr Oz:word manage, but, be an awesome dad, I should say.
Dr Angus:Yeah. Just I suppose it always comes down to being the best example that you can be. That's the best way to teach any kid, is to be the best example. So have a family culture that prioritises outdoor time. Have a family culture that prioritizes beach time, or even down in the swimming pool, or just getting to the to the park to bit of grass and kicking the ball around, whatever, rough and tumble, anything.
Dr Angus:Yeah. So it's all about having those family habits in place, and then the kids just grow up to to learn to like that.
Dr Oz:Yeah. And, you know, if we're parents glued on our phones when the kids are still trying to explore the world, that also sets a different type of example, doesn't it?
Dr Angus:It does. It does. And we have to remember that kids kids, you know, they're growing. It's actually physical activity. It's that low grade, medium grade stress to the bones that actually stimulates calcium deposition and bone growth and bone strength, as well as ligament strength and muscular strength.
Dr Angus:So we have that quite finite window of opportunity to actually encourage our kids and their bodies to be strong, to be resilient later in life.
Dr Oz:Allow them to be very healthy and stronger, have a better better life in the future as well.
Dr Angus:That's right.
Dr Oz:So let's get into the main topic of today, which is school. Mhmm. Alright? You know, we're sending our kids to school so they can get the best education, so they can learn, learn more about the world, learn about maths. I'm 30 years old, and I still can't do maths.
Dr Oz:I
Dr Angus:thought you were gonna say you loved it. Okay.
Dr Oz:Oh, no. No. It's too hard. Oh, so
Dr Angus:We we all have calculators these days. That's that's no problem.
Dr Oz:One thing I remember is backpacks, textbooks, and textbooks, and now it's like packing with laptops and all these other things, iPads, and, you know, kids wear heavy backpacks. Yep. So what are some ways to help navigate that? Yep.
Dr Angus:So three things, three rules that I always come back to in regards to backpacks and the kids' backpacks. Number 1 is the size. Just like ladies handbags, the bigger it is the more stuff is going to go in. The heavier it's going to get. So if you restrict or limit the size of the bag for the size of the kid, because very often you do see bags that are almost the same size as as the kid, then that obviously limits their ability to damage their spine with an excessively weighted backpack.
Dr Angus:Okay. So number 2 is positioning. Okay. Backpacks are designed for 2 arms. Wearing it on 2 arms is what we need to be encouraging our kids to do.
Dr Angus:We also need to make sure that the shoulder straps are fairly tight so that the backpack is residing at the upper part of the back and not down at the low back. Otherwise, it'll pull backwards. Yep. Okay. And then, the third thing is to make just make sure that all the heavy stuff, the books and things are are down at the base or at the back of the backpack so that, they're as close to the center of gravity as possible.
Dr Oz:Yeah. So close to the body is better. Mhmm. And one thing I do remember actually is carrying my handbag on one side Yep. And then I used to wonder why my shoulder's always higher compared to my other side.
Dr Oz:It's because, hey, you got all this additional weight of heavy stuff Mhmm. And then that causes your whole spine to shift and compensate as a result of that. And you do that for 10 years?
Dr Angus:10, 12 years?
Dr Oz:12 years. Yeah.
Dr Angus:Yeah. So that's a micro trauma that we speak about that is exposed to the spine on a day in day out basis that over time will gently warp warp, warp the spine into a subluxated, into a compromised position.
Dr Oz:Yeah. And it and it never never caused any problems until, you know, you grow up and become an adult.
Dr Angus:That's it. So that easy. Keep it small, keep it well fitted, and load it with the heavy stuff down at the bottom. Thank you. Mhmm.
Dr Oz:I guess another thing that we can really focus on is, you know, habits and just general day to day habits for kids. What are some good habits that, you know, parents can teach their kids so they can start to implement?
Dr Angus:Sure. And again, all habits, and training kids to do habits comes down to an example. Just try and set the best example ourselves. But specifically, we need to be adopting and using good, healthy posture for ourselves. So instead of slouching in the couch diagonally, you know, show them how to sit up.
Dr Angus:If they're not sitting up, just gently show them introduce a cushion to their lower back. Like this. And, that's right.
Dr Oz:Writing my notes. Mhmm. Oh, have you seen these ones? Have you seen any have you have your boys ever done that when they're riding?
Dr Angus:Yes. 45? Yes. Yeah. Because at that age, they're so focused on getting it right.
Dr Angus:And, it's it's still a it's I suppose it's like when we learn to drive, it's all, very new to them. So a 100% focused. So obviously, be compassionate with them. But, yeah. Just just help encourage that upright posture.
Dr Angus:I mean, when it comes to homework and studying and reading, it's important to actually provide an ergonomic setup where they can succeed, where they can prevail, rather than having them on the couch or on their bed. And it's just lazy. Okay. It's not difficult to buy a $100 desk, maximum $200 mini office chair from Officeworks. It's not expensive to set them up and, preserve their their spine in that regard.
Dr Oz:Really good. Yeah. I have so many people talking to me now about, like, expensive chairs. Mhmm. You know, you got the Yeah.
Dr Oz:Office office chairs, and you got the gaming chairs now. There's, like, a whole divide. I can talk to you about, but basically, these chairs, they they range from, like, a couple $100 to freaking over $1,000 you know, and I go, you know, at the end of the day, you're not designed to be sitting all day. So you just need a good enough chair that can get you through that sitting period and you still get up. You do your shows.
Dr Oz:You create the good habits. Yeah. You know, you don't have to spend $1,000 chair to sit 24 hours. No need to do that.
Dr Angus:Yeah. Like I say, even a $100, $200 chair, if you use it properly, you're still going to get 90 plus percent of the benefits of the several $1,000 shares. So get that 90% and, roll with it.
Dr Oz:So let's talk about probably the biggest thing that's becoming an epidemic now, or I should say pandemic, apologies, is screen use.
Dr Angus:Screen use.
Dr Oz:Set up screen use, you know. Mhmm. Because I can see, you know, young, you know, we're talking 4 years old, 3 years old kids Yeah. Who have been crawling, looking up, you know, developing a nice curvature of the neck now just being glued to iPads as soon as they get the chance or, you know, young school kids, you know, just jumping into a laptop. And we're not using the laptop at the moment, by the way, but this setup here is too low.
Dr Oz:So we'll be looking down and typing. Mhmm. So, you know, keeping all those screens up high. Mhmm. So what are some ways that we can help, you know,
Dr Angus:educate and teach? Absolutely. And, listen, as as parents know, screens and screen times are the absolute uncontrollable bane of every parent's existence. It's a new phenomenon that has leapt into our parenting lives and had a huge impact, not just physically, but also, you know, mentally. You're shaping kids brains to to need that stimulation several times a second to actually maintain their their focus and interest, which is why all these games and movies seem to be a 1000 miles an hour as opposed to movies even a couple of decades ago.
Dr Angus:So, yeah, screen time is, is a is a huge deal, and it's important to to get it right. We're never gonna get it a 100% right, but, to keep that pressure on improving things is good. Yeah. So in regards to screen time, number 1, we need to be limiting it. We do need to be limiting it.
Dr Angus:Again, no judgement on any parent that's using it at any time, because there are times and places for its use and there are times and places to break those rules and use it to get through the minute. However, providing a situation or a set up where kids can, again, succeed in looking after their posture is really important. So one rule that we have at home for myself, for my kids, is that they have to sit up in a good posture to use the screens. Okay? So they're either in a bean bag with cushions on their knees, or they're sitting on the couch with 2 cushions on their knees.
Dr Oz:Mhmm.
Dr Angus:And if they don't, if they've got iPad or switch on their knees, they know it gets taken away. Okay? And it's as simple simple as that. I know that that creates, Agra in the moment, but I'll tell you what, they only make that mistake once or twice, and then, guess what? It's a habit.
Dr Oz:Yeah. Because, yeah, you can play. You can play Nintendo Switch. Is is it Fortnite they're playing? Yeah.
Dr Oz:Most popular at the moment? Yes.
Dr Angus:So Minecraft.
Dr Oz:Minecraft, all that. So you can still play the game you wanna play, but now you just gotta have good posture while doing it.
Dr Angus:Absolutely. Absolutely. Varying posture is important as well, because that's one of the benefits of exercise is the varied posture, the varied use. You're not stuck in any one position. You're you're using all different aspects and positions of your body.
Dr Angus:With gaming, obviously, you're in one position, whatever it might be, for hours and hours on end, very often. So my my last point on that note is it's very easy to be in a flexed position gaming. So introduce some extension, and the easiest way to do that is have kids on their belly, on the floor. Ideally, not on the bed because the bed sags and gives you too much extension, but on the couch, on the floor, it's absolutely fine to be on their belly, on their elbows, and that way they're they're looking upwards.
Dr Oz:That's pretty good. I like that.
Dr Angus:So there's very few issues, problems to the spine that comes from looking upwards too much, but every kind of problem that we see is magnified by downward Downward flexion. Yeah. Okay.
Dr Oz:Let's shift topics a bit, and let's talk a bit about nutrition. Mhmm. Alright? It's a it's a whole broad park, but if there was, like, a couple key points that you would want parents to include in how they, you know, provide food for their kids, how they cook, whatever it may be. What are some key things that parents should include in, like, a child's development?
Dr Angus:Yep. So there are different levels of nutrition. I mean, it's a vast topic, but we have to remember that essential fatty acids are called essential because you die if you don't get them. Okay? So essential means essential.
Dr Angus:That's the scientific term, essential. So making sure that kids have appropriate essential fatty acids, which these days does require supplementation. Okay. Most of the normal, typical sources of essential fatty acids are mass produced, farmed at such a speed that they don't develop and retain the essential fatty acids. Yeah.
Dr Angus:So looking for some form of, oils, fish oils, even the kiddies ones, although they're very, very low dose, is a good way to introduce those into into the diet. And obviously, good old vitamin d. These days we're taught to slip, slap, slop, and cover up. We get very little sunlight to our skin. We are designed as human beings to be running around naked in the sun all day long, so, we get very, very little vitamin d compared to what we actually need and what we actually would appreciate to thrive fully.
Dr Oz:Makes sense.
Dr Angus:So, again, supplementation is so cheap with vitamin d. Liquid is the best form. So if you can find a liquid vitamin d supplement, then that's by far the best. Okay.
Dr Oz:Thank you for that. Okay. Well, I think we're getting close to the end of the podcast, but I think one thing I want to talk a bit more about is, you know, chiropractic care with kids. Mhmm. And how does that work?
Dr Oz:Because, you know, is it the same with adults, or is it completely different?
Dr Angus:Same approach. We're looking to decompress, de irritate, de stress that nervous system so they can develop and grow fully, and also structurally as aligned as possible. But what we do, obviously, is apply corrections that are far more in line and suitable for small and young bodies. So that's that means basically much much less force and more gentle adjustments.
Dr Oz:What's the good example that we usually use? Was it the eyeball, eyeball pressure?
Dr Angus:Yeah. So the amount of pressure that you can comfortably exert onto your onto your eye Yeah.
Dr Oz:That's usually about it pretty much.
Dr Angus:Current, just a few grams, is typically all we'll use for babies.
Dr Oz:Yeah.
Dr Angus:Newborns, and babies. As kids get older and a bit more weight bearing and the ligaments develop, then we'll we'll typically use very light manual adjustments or very often the the clicker, the activator. Yeah. The kids love that. I think it's a bit of a tickle.
Dr Angus:And,
Dr Oz:anything to help just move those bones, those remove those subluxations and realign
Dr Angus:That's right. Body. Get things back in alignment. Yeah. Yeah.
Dr Angus:But they still go through the same thorough examination. If we do identify a problem, we may even request an x-ray to so we can see exactly what the problem is there.
Dr Oz:Yeah. Really, really good. And I guess, you know, when it comes to preventative measures for kids, it's very different to adult prevention as well.
Dr Angus:Well, prevention is all about being proactive. So get them under chiropractic care, get them brought up to date, with any neglect that has, happened within their spine, and then proactively get them on some kind of check up schedule so that those small problems that inevitably accrue, they get dealt with and minimised before they build up into these, as we said, these big issues that we see later in life
Dr Oz:Yes.
Dr Angus:That at that point are difficult to correct, if not impossible to correct. To correct.
Dr Oz:One example that I'd like to share is, I have a 2 centimeter short leg on my left leg, and, basically, my hip is always dropping on one side compared to the other. Mhmm. But that's as a result, because when I was playing football in my teenage years, I had many injuries, many kicks sides here. So my growth play, unfortunately, finished growing a lot earlier than the other side.
Dr Angus:Right.
Dr Oz:So I've got this structural short leg
Dr Angus:Okay.
Dr Oz:Due to all that stress from childhood. Now, how that impacts me as an adult is I need to wear a heel lift to balance myself out. Otherwise, my spine is gonna be curving Yes. To compensate. Yeah.
Dr Oz:And that's gonna cause a whole lot of issues in terms of back pain, shoulders, posture, you know, and this is the type of prevention that you can do for kids, getting them checked, x rayed, make sure there is no structural changes to make sure that they can grow up as healthy as they can be.
Dr Angus:Absolutely. So just think if we'd have caught that at the age of 5 years old or 10 years old.
Dr Oz:Yeah. Wish my parents knew about chiropractic
Dr Angus:effect then. Well, that's why we're here. That's our our job is to let people know that which they don't know.
Dr Oz:Love it. Love it. Do you have any final closing advice for everyone watching this beautiful, beautiful episode?
Dr Angus:Sure. Sure. Keep those kids moving. Keep those kids active. By default, they're gonna get enough sedentary time, school time, studying time, screen time.
Dr Angus:So push them out the house, buy them the equipment, give them every opportunity to get outside, and do what I do because I'm in the know, and that's get them adjusted, get them checked on a very regular basis. We want the next generation to be as healthy, fit, and happy as possible.
Dr Oz:Always. Yeah. Doctor Angus Yeah. Thank you so much. You're
Dr Angus:so welcome. Anytime. I look forward
Dr Oz:to having you on the show again.
Dr Angus:Let's do it.
Dr Oz:Beautiful. Thank you.