Through the latest technology and a multidisciplinary approach, a Bergen County doctor helps patients—including former professional gridiron warriors—achieve maximum wellness
by Laura D.C. Kolnoski • Photos By Robert Nuzzie
While conventional medicine focuses on treating disease, Dr. Peter Ferraro recognizes that people are increasingly interested in seeking alternatives to traditional medicine to achieve and maintain optimal health. Now celebrating 20 years in practice, the trailblazing specialist has created, elevated, and continually enhanced a cutting-edge, all-encompassing center for health and wellness that continues to grow in scope and results through tens of thousands of successful treatments.
“This isn’t your typical doctor’s office,” Ferraro said. “We wanted it to be comfortable, inviting, and relaxing, from the decor to the music. Many patients come in multiple times a week, so this becomes their second home for a while. We wanted it to reflect that.”
Ferraro’s facility integrates chiropractic care with multiple specialties in which certified specialists draw from a large repertoire of alternative healthcare treatments available for wellness, optimal performance for competitions or personal goals, and golf technique enhancement. All programs are individually tailored. Services are oriented around relieving pain, treating conditions, and altering behavior, attitudes, and lifestyle. The center offers physical therapy, spinal decompression,
sports medicine, acupuncture, nutrition counseling, massage therapy, and more.
“Our practice was created utilizing an integrated approach to treating some of the most difficult conditions, such as herniated and degenerative disc injuries,” Ferraro said. “Our team of highly skilled physicians, doctors, therapists, and acupuncturists deliver cutting-edge care, such as spinal decompression, class IV deep tissue laser, cold compression, acoustic trigger point therapy, kinesio taping, and manipulation under anesthesia. Whenever possible, we prioritize the use of non-surgical and non-pharmaceutical treatments. For 20 years, we’ve been able to bring in the best technology to correct any problems a patient is dealing with.”
The practice serves a diverse patient roster that ranges from children through adolescents in sports, to senior citizens and professional athletes. The latter led to the NFL Alumni Wellness Challenge, an online reality series featuring former NFL stars testing their physical and mental health.
“Cast members” in last season’s show featured former New York Giants, including Football Hall of Fame linebacker Harry Carson, running backs Ottis Anderson and Joe Morris, and twotime Super Bowl champion Jim Burt. A onetime U.S. Navy S.E.A.L completed the team. The former athletes, who sometimes initially display such conditions as high blood pressure and elevated body fat, receive a baseline assessment and a plan of action to safely attempt the challenges.
Four teams, each comprised of a former NFL player, a military veteran, and a hometown hero, then work with health specialists for 100 days to improve their health and lives. New episodes, pitting the New York Giants against the New York Jets, are currently in the works.
“This program was created to showcase health and wellness initiatives and ultimately seeks to improve the lives of others,” said Ferraro, who is the chief wellness officer and a founding member of the NFL Alumni Wellness Challenge. “These guys are all warriors. The general public wins by seeing what can be done in a proactive environment.”
Patients visiting the Ferraro Spine & Rehabilitation Center work with a multidisciplinary staff of 20 committed to restoring health and well-being. To enhance the healing process and help patients achieve optimum functioning, the Ferraro Functional Fitness Gym was added in 2016. Initial consultation and fitness tests help determine strategies for setting and meeting goals through tailored fitness programs that build strength and agility, and incorporate recovery and injury prevention.
“Whether it’s a part of recovery or an upcoming event you want to shine at, or lifelong health that you’re striving for, we get patients to their ultimate goal by improving strength, fitness, and performance,” Ferraro said. “Those seeking to improve overall health or prepare for a serious competition receive customized services.”
Free evaluations and recommendations are offered at the gym, which is staffed by certified professional trainers and health coaches. InBody Assessments utilize advanced technology to precisely measure individual body composition, while HealthSnap Software provides 15-minute, non-invasive assessments that generate personalized reports. A ROM machine offers complete aerobic workouts in minutes.
The Elite Golf Fitness Program is for serious golfers who are seeking to enhance their games. The one-on-one program is designed to combine cutting-edge personal training with private golf coaching by a Titleist Certified Golf Fitness Trainer. Besides improving skills and lowering scores, the program’s goals include eliminating back pain, improving posture, increasing strength and stamina, and losing weight while increasing muscle.
This year, Ferraro Functional Fitness began a partnership with Fast Twitch in Saddle Brook (an Under Armour facility; fasttwitch.training) to focus on sports performance, customized plans, and detailed solutions to achieve goals for groups and individuals. Recovery, corrective exercises, and nutrition regimens are offered, and it’s one of the hand picked Under Armour Elite Training Facilities with customized equipment and 30 yards of turf for speed and movement development.
“Ferraro Functional Fitness was added to meet the needs of patients who were finishing their rehabilitation, but were not quite 100 percent and seeking a way to train in a safe and knowledgeable environment,” said Ferraro, who also holds the title of chief medical officer of Fast Twitch Inc. “Our Masters in Exercise Science have the best training possible and continue their education annually.”
Ferraro, who was born in Paterson and grew up in Garfield, originally intended to channel his artistic talent and passion for cars into a career in automotive engineering. After attending Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey, he studied pre-med at Seton Hall University, then continued his education with post-graduate studies at New York Chiropractic College, where he earned a doctorate.
“As I began college and pledged TKE fraternity, I was first introduced to chiropractic after suffering a sports injury,” he said. “My fraternity brother’s father, Dr. Charles Paolino, became my mentor, which fills me with pride to have become the physician I am today.”
Ferraro has continued to be an automotive enthusiast enjoying the prolific car culture of Monmouth County where he resides with his wife Lisa and his three boys.
For his accomplishments, commitment to excellence, and devotion to patient care, NJ Top Docs has recognized Ferraro as a “Top Doctor” three times in recent years. From 2015 through 2017, he was named one of the state’s Ten Best in Patient Satisfaction by the American Institute of Chiropractors. Additionally, Ferraro has become nationally recognized for his extensive work using spinal decompression and deep tissue laser technology.
He became the official chiropractor of Saddle Brook Township in 1997, and has been reappointed to that post by every sitting mayor, from both parties, since then. He is also a lifetime physician member of the New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association.
Ferraro is the founder of Advanced Compliance Solutions, a consulting firm dedicated to practice anagement; a certified medical compliance specialist for the healthcare industry; and a member of the American Academy of Professional Coders. Besides his practice, he is a medical entrepreneur, having founded Innovative Healthcare Solutions, a medical distribution company specializing in the sale and distribution of non-surgical spinal decompression equipment worldwide.
Ferraro Spine & Rehabilitation Center
230 Midland Avenue, Saddle Brook / 973.478.2212 / ferrarospine.com