Three Surprising Benefits of Chiropractic
In our mechanistic health care system that divides the body into parts, chiropractic care is mostly known as a treatment for various types of neck, back and nerve pain. However, it’s important to remember that because of the intimate connection between the spine, brain, and nervous system, the effects can sometimes be pleasantly unexpected. Here are three proven benefits that may surprise you:
1. Improving stroke recovery
A randomized, controlled trial published in Brain Sciences in 2021 found that “improvements in motor [muscle] function were observed when chiropractic care was added to 4 weeks of physical therapy care in people with subacute or chronic stroke.” Remarkably, this study showed improvement of leg muscle function in patients that had a stroke even more than 12 weeks prior to receiving chiropractic adjustments, while those that received sham or fake adjustments did not show improvement. This also shows that the benefits of chiropractic are not merely psychosomatic (i.e. “all in the mind”), but has an actual measurable effect on muscle function, even for people that have suffered damage to the brain. While previous studies have shown improvement in muscle function after chiropractic care, this is one of the first studies demonstrating improvement in muscle weakness that resulted from injury to the brain.
Also remember that strokes can affect other parts of the brain, which will then affect other body functions, as well, and not just muscle function. I saw this first-hand when a young woman came to me with a severe headache and loss of vision. Her vision was fortunately mostly restored shortly after a specific chiropractic adjustment to her atlas (C1 vertebra). A brain scan later revealed that the severe headache was related to a stroke that had occurred in the part of the brain that controls vision. After 3 months of chiropractic care and proper rest, her full sight gratefully returned, despite the specialists predicting her vision loss would be permanent.
2. Overcoming addictions
Addictions of all kinds generally result from using a substance or activity to relax the mind and nervous system. When a person is not able to relax naturally, it only makes sense to try to find something to achieve this. Unfortunately, addictions can destroy lives in many ways. Chiropractic adjustments have been proven to calm the mind, so it’s not surprising to learn that regular, consistent care can improve the function of what’s called the Brain-Reward Cascade, and thus helping with addiction recovery.
In the U.S., many addiction treatment centers now incorporate chiropractic care as a result of positive outcomes from a study involving 98 patients, which showed “an unprecedented 100 percent program completion rate” after intensive care for 30 days. In contrast, those receiving sham or fake adjustments had only a 55% addiction program completion rate. According to one of study subjects, "I think that chiropractic care was an integral part of my recovery"
There are also many other forms of addiction in life (see image above) that are much more common and potentially harmful, while keeping you from focusing on the truly important things in your life, including healthy activities, nurturing relationships, and staying productive at work.
3. Boosting creativity
An Australian study from 2011 interestingly showed “A statistically significant short-term enhancement of creative thinking or energy/focus when involved in creative work following a chiropractic adjustment.” While this was a small study of just 16 people, “Fourteen subjects reported an increase in creativity, while nine also reported an increase in their level of energy or quality of focus with respect to creative work.” Creative thinking and focus is obviously essential for artists and designers, but also important for life, in general, allowing you to solve problems creatively, which will make life more enjoyable, less stressful, and more rewarding.
Keep in mind that the study duration for the experiments discussed above were only 4 weeks, 30 days, and one day, respectively, but already showed positive benefits. It’s likely that the improvement can be even greater with regular, continued chiropractic care. It’s like improving the irrigation supply to your garden; the revitalization does not happen overnight, but the long term benefits are even greater.
The brain and nervous system can create what may seem like miracles, which we’ve seen often in our practice and many other chiropractic practices around the world. These are just a few of the effects that have been quantified and documented by scientific research, with many more discoveries to come.
by SJ NANA, DC, DrNana.co.za
References:
Chiropractic Care In Addiction Recovery and Substance Abuse Treatment
Pschychology Today - Dear Chiropractor: Help Me Kick the Habit
Subluxation Based Chiropractic Care in the Management of Cocaine Addiction: A Case Report
Please see my previous articles related to this topic:
