June 26, 2019
Page 3C
By Diane Glidewell
news@mymcr.nef
Monroe County ranks 67th out of
159 counties in Georgia in terms of
health. The ranking is based equally
on length and quality of life. Monroe
County's ranking has dropped from
65 last year and 51 in 2017.
Georgia's North Central Health
District released its 2019 Health
Ranking Summary last week, ranking
counties on how healthy they are now
and how healthy they are expected
to be in the future. The 12 counties
in the North Central District, other
than Monroe County, are Baldwin,
Crawford, Hancock, Houston, Jasper,
Jones, Macon-Bibb, Peach, Putnam,
Twiggs, Washington and Wilkinson.
In the ranking for how healthy it is
expected to be in the future, Monroe
County scored 35. This is based on
weighted scores for health behaviors,
clinical Care, social and economic fac-
tors and physical environment. The
2019 rank was a slight dip from 33
last year and 30 in 2017.
In the North Central District the
top ranked county in current health
is Jones County, ranked 13; it is fol-
lowed by Houston at 22. The low-
est ranked county in the district is
Twiggs at 158, preceded by Hancock
at 153.
Jones County is also at the top of the
district for future health with a rank-
hag of 25; Hancock ranks the lowest
The term is used often,
but what does it actu-
ally mean to "throw out
your back, :According
to Coliseum;Northside
Hospit spine surgeon, Dr.
Ryan Schnetzer, it means
an acute onset of low back
pain, in the lumbar region
of the spine, just below the
ribs and above the pelvis.
Fortunately, "throwing
your back out" is usually a
temporary situation, and
there areways to speed
recovery and help prevent
it from happening gain.
Dr. Schnetzer says, "Inci-
dents involving acute back
pain can happen to anyone,
but become increasingly
common with age. While
people with physically
demanding jobs are more
prone, office workers who
sit for long periods of time
with inadequate back sup-
port can be affected, too."
Those who don't get
much activity have higher
odds of lower back issues,
as do "weekend warriors."
These are people who
are normally sedentary
throughout the week, and
then on the weekends, they
do things like play golf for
a few hours, work strenu-
ously in the yard, or play
softball, soccer, etc In this
case, the pain is triggered
by a brief bout of intense
exercise following a longer
period of little movement.
Most often, when some-
one throws their back out,
it's thought to be due to
a muscle strain, caused
by lifting a heavy item or
bending the wrong way.
The muscle can tighten up
or go into spasm, and the
spasm is what causes the
pain. The pain can vary, but
it will likely remain local-
ized around your lumbar
spine - the five vertebrae
positioned right above your
buttocks. Very occasion-
ally, acute lower back pain
is triggered by something
more serious, such as
an infection or a broken
vertebra.
In the first 72 hours fol-
lowing the event, apply ice
to ease the pain. Heating
pads may come in handy
after the third day. Certain
over-the-counter drugs
like acetaminophen and
ibuprofen may help relieve
the pain as well. Just make
sure you speak to a doctor
about which medications
to take first.
Schnetzer says, "In the
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Front:
Sam Bussell, Dr. Deena Smith & Melissa To/bert
Back: Denise Harpe & Barbie McCollum
Health outcomes are how
how healthy a county will
healthy a county is presently. Health factors predict
be in the future.
at 152 with Twiggs at 146. North
Central District Director of Epidemi-
elegy Amber Erickson said that Jones
County is part of a national study to
see what counties are doing right. "It
has a very engaged city7 she said.
Information in the report says that
the population of Monroe County in
2019 is 27,1i3. Of those people, 80
percent live in rural areas, 50 percent
are female, 73 percent are white and
23 percent are black. Monroe Coun-
ty's population is less than I percent
of Georgia's population. In Monroe
County, 62 percent of the people are
18-64 years old; 20 percent are under
Monroe County's strengths in hav-
ing healthy citizens include access to
healthy foods, a low number of cases
of sexually transmitted infections, a
low number of births to teen moth-
ers and a relatively high percentage of
citizens with some college.
Areas in Monroe County that pose
health concerns are adult smoking
(18 percent), adult obesity (31 per-
cent), a graduation rate of 87 percent,
and 14 percent of the population
under age 65 without health insur-
ance coverage. Monroe County ranks
better or near the same as the Georgia
average in these areas.
incl ing bL .: not
,24-Hour Nursing Services IV Tllerapy
, Wound Care Management:, Short-Ter Ret ab
,ysical; Occupational and $1 eech Ti er ii y
,HOspice Services, Pha:tm icy Sei,vi
18; and 18 percent are over 65.
days after you throw your
back out, resting may fed
good, but staying mod-
erately active is proven
to help with recovery by
stimulating blood flow,
increasing flexibility and
preventing spasms." He
adds, "While you're recov-
ering, skip high-impact
activities and steer clear of
BLT - 'bending, lifting and
twisting."
Usually, the pain caused
by throwing your back out
goes away on its own, but
if home care isn't working,
you need to seek help from
a medical professional.
When it comes to
keeping your lower back
healthy, proper body
mechanics are the name of
the game. To help stave off
sudden injuries, learn good
posture, the right way to
bend over, how to lift, push
and pull objects correctly
Regular physical activity is
also crucial. Keep your core
CHIROPRACTIC
, Pain Mana ment, Oxygen::t"her i y
e
and legs strong - those are
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