Misconceptions Concerning Modern Chiropractic Care

 

This article is an explanation of the misconceptions concerning the nature of chiropractic, and how it is represented. As a practicing chiropractor for 34 years, I have seen many changes in our profession, some good and some not so good. In the past 15 years, however, the predominant shift I have observed is the growing lack of emphasis placed on the proactive wellness and peak performance aspects of chiropractic “health” care, and the preeminence given to the treatment of symptoms.

Let me first explain briefly the tenets of the practice of medicine. By nature, it is the practice of ascertaining the chemistry of the patient’s body, and then adding chemistry in the form of (mostly synthetic) pharmaceutical drugs to try to help the body stabilize. In a state of extreme emergency, I am in agreement with this practice because it does save lives. However, case studies have proven that hundreds of thousands of people in the United States alone are “correctly” diagnosed and yet die from the treatment, while many more are mis-diagnosed and meet the same end. This result is understandable, because the practice of medicine is by and large “evidence based,” meaning a symptom must be identified before treatment can be administered. 

Medical doctors have long argued that chiropractic “wellness,” or the adjustment of the human frame even when it exhibits no symptoms, is not scientifically based. However, this view is changing. Chiropractors have been employed for decades during the Olympics, and, more recently, at events like the Superbowl. While it is true that injuries do occur during these competitions, most of the athletes will admit they like to get checked while they are playing as a preventative measure to maintain peak performance. Life University in Marietta, Georgia is conducting ongoing research to determine this very thing. Primarily, do regular chiropractic adjustments to the spinal column and extremities contribute significantly to peak performance in athletes, in contrast to the prevalent practice of seeing the chiropractor only to treat symptoms  for the removal of joint and muscle pain.

Chiropractic care is now accepted as equally effective for neck and back pain as the leading painkillers. But while this is a milestone, it does not get to the heart of chiropractic. The basis of painkillers is mostly to change the perception of pain by the brain. Painkillers are not a solution to the “cause” of the pain. Pain means damage to tissues, which by definition means that the associated tissues have lost their strength and stamina and have usually become contracted in defense. The human spine is made up of five layers of muscles and nine common ligaments, all of which allow the movement and functionality of the spinal column. Electromagnetic impulses generated in the brain travel down the spinal cord, out the spinal nerve roots, and down the peripheral nerve to their final destination. Pressure at the nerve root can cause the impulse to travel more slowly or quickly, changing both the signals being sent to the body part, and the signals being sent back to the brain.

Without interference to these impulses, the body is able to regulate homeostasis and balance, which leads to the regeneration of damaged tissues. Any harm to those structures causes muscle contraction and the inevitability of loss of motion and damaged tissue. When this pressure affects the nerve it is called a subluxation of the vertebral complex.

It is the subluxation that chiropractors are trained to detect and correct. However, herein lies the misconception. Should treatment be limited only to the presentation of spinal symptomatology, or should the final emphasis be on the functionality of the spine, not just at that area of pain but globally, taking the whole frame of the body and its extremities into account?

Thirty-four years of helping patients has put me firmly in the latter camp. I call this approach spinal hygiene. We have been lectured for decades about the importance of good oral hygiene and regular professional care, as opposed to seeing the dentist only when we have tooth and gum pain. Chiropractic spinal hygiene is similar. It takes three things - regular chiropractic care, diet and exercise - to continually signal the brain to recreate tissues to sustain flexibility and movement. This is the basis of bodybuilding, and body transformation. Chiropractors locate and correct these areas of lack of motion (which causes nerve impulses to change) and return the spinal column to its supple state, restoring motion.

Do chiropractors put the vertebra back “in place,” or do they restore motion? Chiropractors restore motion. 

What is the characteristic state of the associated muscles and ligaments, which support this condition? The answer is mobility and the removal of compression and the resultant lack of mobility between segments. Therefore, maintaining strength and stamina in the associated tissues is critical. Reduction of pain, even though it is produced “naturally,” is insufficient, does not contribute to full healing, and does not produce the lasting results every patient is seeking.