Suffering from back pain or any other form of chronic pain is one of the most common reasons that patients choose to see a chiropractor.
Doctors of Chiropractic treat over 27 million Americans annually…and Chiropractic care continues to grow in popularity as a preferred treatment in the US. But Chiropractor care offers many additional benefits in addition to helping with back pain. Here are a just a handful of common reasons you might consider for seeing a chiropractor.
1) Treating the Cause – this is the essence of Chiropractic care: treatment focused on the root cause of the health challenge…not just the symptoms.
Compared to prescribed medications in a recent study, it was in fact found that 56% of patients who saw a doctor, saw a 30% reduction in low back pain after 4 weeks. But 94% of patients who underwent Chiropractic treatment saw a 30% reduction in low back pain after 4 weeks.
Vertigo is an example of a condition much more effectively treated with Chiropractic care. Rather than simply dealing with the symptoms of the condition, the Chiropractor will likely help you to reestablish the balance within the ear. Recent research found that after 3-4 treatments, 80% of patients were symptom free!
2) Medication Avoidance – Many people choose to see a chiropractor as an alternative to taking pain relief medication, and the inevitable side effects than can occur.
Instead of treating the symptoms like pain relief medication does, a chiropractor aims to get to the root of the problem, to help you better manage your condition, putting together a treatment plan to help you get back on track.
A study by Annals of Internal Medicine in to the best option for treating neck pain, found that after following 272 neck pain patients for 12 weeks, those who used a Chiropractor or exercise were more than twice as likely to be pain free compared to those who took medication.
3) Chronic Pain Assistance – A first session with a patient with chronic pain will focus on the Chiropractor assessing the cause of the pain… determining exactly where inflammation and muscle tension may be occurring…then building an effective treatment plan. For patients with long term conditions, a study has shown that Chiropractic care is more effective in treating pain intensity than pain clinics, which only focus on the symptoms of the pain.
A Chiropractor may also employ other complimentary procedures such as ultrasound, electrical muscle stimulation (EMS), TENS therapy and other techniques to complement their spinal adjustment treatment.
4) Immune System Support – There is evidence to support the theory that chiropractic treatment can boost the immune system, as the nervous system and immune system are so interlinked, it’s believed if you tweak one then you tweak the other!
It’s not a new concept either, as it’s believed that chiropractic treatment was used during the Influenza Epidemic in 1912.
In fact, a series of studies published by the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics showed that several types of immune system cells, showed increased biological activity after chiropractic adjustment.
5) Migraines / Headaches – It is reported that 9 out of 10 Americans suffer from headaches, though varying in intensity, headaches and migraines can really affect your quality of life.
Both in the treatment of headaches and in the treatment of migraines, chiropractic care has proven to be an effective treatment, with spinal manipulation being the technique which is most commonly used. A 2011 study by JMPT, found that chiropractic care improves both migraines and headaches, when treated with spinal manipulation techniques.
6) Sleep Improvement – A National Sleep Foundation poll found that 60% of American adults experience sleep problems at some time. In fact, according to the APTA Move Forward survey, 37% of adults said that LBP affects their sleep, with over half stating that they suffer from poor sleep quality.
Chiropractic treatment and the manipulation therapies used are believed to help to improve blood flow in patients, which is essential for great sleep.
Chiropractors also focus on correcting misalignments or subluxations in the spine. These subluxations lead to a process called stress response which puts the body out of balance and does not let the body rest.
A well trained chiropractor will adjust these subluxations with safe and careful techniques to get your body to function normally.
Want more ways Chiropractic care can help?