Naturally any parent wants the absolute best for their child. We ask questions in an attempt to find out additional information which may persuade us in our decision making. For some reason Chiropractic care is one of these continual questions, given the speculation that Chiropractic care for children is unsafe, dangerous, unproven or likened to witch-magic. Before we examine the nitty gritty…Yes, I am a Chiropractor who sees many children in my practice on a regular basis for wellbeing spinal check-ups. Having said that, I am going to present to you an unbiased opinion. Nevertheless, Chiropractic care is safe for children.
For Those Who Have Never Seen A Chiropractor
Over the years Chiropractic care, like all health care has developed and evolved. Historically, Chiropractic was based on the assumption that the spine and nervous system was central to the bodies health and wellbeing. While this has been proven to be true, other bodily systems are also critically important. The nervous system begins with the brain which transfers information to the body and then back to the brain through spinal nerves. These nerves arise from the spinal cord which is protected by the spinal (vertebral) column. Enter the Chiropractor… Chiropractors assess the vertebral column for areas that are dysfunctional.
Mechanical Joint Dysfunction
Firstly how do these dysfunctional areas develop? From the moment we are born our body experiences physical stress. Without doubt physical stress has the greatest impact on our spinal structure. Consider how stressful these events are upon the body:
- The birthing process
- Falls while learning how to walk
- Injuries while growing and developing
- Carrying heavy backpacks to and from school
- Sitting for prolonged periods at a desk
- Driving in the car daily to and from work
- Slouching on the couch watching television
- Females going through pregnancy
- Physically demanding occupations
These events are just a handful which ultimately contribute to having poor posture. Having poor posture is the greatest indicator (but not the only one) of poor spinal health and general wellbeing.
Techniques That Paediatric Chiropractors Use
People often associate ‘cracking, popping and clicking’ with Chiropractors. While Chiropractors do utilize manual adjustments that result in these sounds, typically these techniques are used on adults instead of infants, babies and children. Chiropractic care of children is more gentle as their spines are delicate, growing and developing.
Ask Yourself Why Chiropractors See Children & Adults If They Aren’t In Pain?
Majority of people initially visit a Chiropractor when they’re suffering a particular ailment or musculoskeletal problem which becomes too much to bare. Common problems seen by Chiropractors include headaches, neck pain, lower back discomfort, sciatica, disc injuries, sports injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome and postural abnormalities amongst other things. Many people do not realize that Chiropractic care is in fact designed to improve the general health, wellbeing and function of the entire body. Even though Chiropractors are extremely effective at relieving pain caused by these types of problems, Chiropractic is much better when used as a preventative therapy.
This is the very reason why I see so many kids in my practice, parents are more aware of the benefits of being preventative (taking care of the body before a problem develops) as opposed to being reactive (trying to fix a problem after it has developed). I love being a chiropractor for children, babies and infants (of course adults as well) because I’m preventing them from experiencing these types of problems and many others in the future as well as firing up their nervous system to function as it was designed too!
Debunking The Myth: Chiropractic Care Is Safe For Children
When assessing an individual, appropriate tests must be completed. These tests demonstrate to the Chiropractor that the risk of treating this person is extremely minimal or whether serious pathology exists. If serious pathology exists all necessary steps must be taken to refer the particular individual to an appropriate health care practitioner immediately.
- An adverse event in relation to Chiropractic management of children was reported in less than 1% of cases while also demonstrating clinically significant improvements1
- There is a lack of data concerning the incidence and prevalence of adverse events in direct response to Chiropractic care2
- Serious adverse reactions was rated low to very low following specific Chiropractic techniques2
While this is an extremely small sample, the overwhelming conclusion from these and many more scientific papers is that Chiropractic care is safe for children when administered with appropriate care and caution.
REFERENCES
- Gouvela, L., Castanho, P & Ferreira, J. (2009). Safety of chiropractic interventions: A systematic review. Spine, 34(11); E405 – E413
- Thiel, H., Bolton, J., Docherty, S & Portlock, J. (2007). Safety of chiropractic manipulation of the cervical spine: A prospective national survery. Spine, 32(21); 2375 – 2378
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