How Chiropractors Can Help With More Than Your Back & Neck
When you think of a chiropractor, it’s easy to assume that you only make an appointment when you have a back or neck issue. But there are plenty of other problems chiropractors may be able to help with. Gregory D. Fox, a chiropractor and president of Maine Chiropractic Association and director and founder of Heritage Integrative Healthcare explains, “Many people don’t know that most chiropractors have postgraduate training and board certification in areas such as pediatrics, clinical nutrition, neurology, orthopedics, physical rehabilitation, sports/athletic injury, and acupuncture.”
When should you visit a Chiropractor?
Generally, chiropractors are trained health professionals that diagnose and treat patients with health issues of the musculoskeletal system, nervous system and overall general health. It is because of this all-encompassing training that chiropractors are knowledgeable about the entire body, but especially with injuries to the musculoskeletal system, a term that combines the muscular and skeletal systems.
One of the leading reasons one visits the chiropractor is for relief of lower back pain. In 2002, national data from the Department of Medicine at the University of Washington was analyzed to conclude that about one fourth of U.S. adults reported l
ower back pain within 3 months of the study.
Pregnant Women and Back Pain
Aches and pains are common in pregnancy. Earlier this year, the Institute of Nursing and Health Research at Ulster University in Ireland released a study that was based on the fact that more than two-thirds of pregnant women experience low-back pain and almost one-fifth experience pelvic pain. Evidence from acupuncture and craniosacral therapy (a noninvasive therapy that involves massaging the affected areas) performed during the study showed an improvement of pregnancy-related pelvic pain. Jeffrey Langmaid, a chiropractor at the Laser Spine Institute in Florida explains, “The options expecting mothers have to alleviate pain are extremely limited. Many treatments, such as pain medications or surgery, have the potential to affect the fetus, so pregnant women often turn to chiropractic care (or make use of things like physical therapy). The Webster Technique addresses the sacrum and sacroiliac joint, which assists with balancing the pelvis.”
Digestive Problems and Chiropractors
In a study published in the journal International Surgery, researchers studied a group of 27 people who had chronic abdominal pain and found that 66% of them showed evidence of thoracic disc herniation (a problem in the area between the spinal bones). Erik Schutt, a chiropractor and physiotherapist in Arizona explains, “If the thoracic vertebrae are out of alignment, these nerves begin sending erratic impulses to the stomach and intestines, which may lead to digestive problems such as heartburn, bloating, and gas.”
High Blood Pressure and Chiropractors
Published online in the Journal of Human Hypertension in 2007, researchers from the University of Chicago Medical Center, preformed a Chicago-area study of 50 individuals with “misaligned Atlas vertebra (located high in the neck) and high blood pressure.” The study concluded that after a one-time specialized chiropractic adjustment, blood pressure decreased significantly. The decrease was equal to taking two blood pressure drugs at once.*
So, whether you have a headache, high blood pressure or lower back pain, visiting your chiropractor first wouldn’t hurt!
*Speak to your doctor before ending or starting any medical regimen. This article is not intended to cure, treat, prevent or diagnose any disease or condition.
Questions for InVite® Health’s Chiropractor, Dr. Alan Pressman? Comment below!
Source: https://www.yahoo.com/health/6-things-chiropractors-can-help-with-1314294679601206.html
