Chiropractic care is a form of alternative medicine that focuses on the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of neuromuscular and musculoskeletal disorders, especially of the spine. It is based on the belief that the body has the ability to heal itself, and that proper alignment of the musculoskeletal structure, particularly the spine, can help to facilitate this process.
Chiropractors use a variety of techniques to adjust the spine and other joints in the body, including manual adjustments, spinal manipulation, and other therapies. They may also recommend lifestyle and dietary changes to help patients improve their overall health and wellness.
Chiropractic care is often used to treat musculoskeletal conditions such as back pain, neck pain, and headaches, as well as other conditions such as asthma, allergies, and digestive issues. It is generally considered a safe and effective treatment option for many types of conditions.
That more than thirty-five million Americans receive chiropractic treatment every year and more than one million chiropractic adjustments performed every day throughout the United States. Chiropractic care techniques have also been proven to be 40% more effective when treating lower back pain than medical care and injury rates are much lower than general primary care.
With so much to be gained from chiropractic treatment, it’s no wonder that more Americans are seeking out this type of care. Chiropractic care also provides patients with a range of other, often surprising, benefits such as boosting your immune system, improving digestion, increasing energy levels and even lowering blood pressure. These additional benefits of chiropractic care lead to many patients returning for additional treatment, even when their pain is gone so they can continue benefiting from chiropractic adjustments.
Let’s take a closer look at just some of the benefits of chiropractic for your overall health and well-being.
“Who you go to first will largely determine whether or not you have back surgery. Of those who went to a chiropractor first, over 40% avoided having surgery that may not have been neccessary because their problem was resolved with chiropractic care.” – Dr. Scott Taylor
In this video, Dr. Scott Taylor demonstrates one of the most popuar types of chiropractic adjustments, the Diversifed Technique. Chiropractic adjustments are a natural, drug-free approach to helping patients alleviate pain and gain mobility.
A patient shares her experience with chiropractic care and the benefits she is experiencing just after 7 weeks. Chiropractic care is more than adjustments. A treatment plan can and will often include physical therapy, massage therapy, muscle and joint rehab, and much more.
Many patients in the United States that have chronic pain are all-too-often, prescribed opioid painkillers and other prescription drugs to manage their pain. While these medications might help to alleviate the pain, they do not address the cause of your pain. Chiropractic treatment can help you to identify the root of your pain so you can take steps toward eliminating the pain for good. In many cases, this leads to patients becoming less reliant on opioid painkillers and other prescription drugs. In fact, in 2020 a study found that adults who visited a chiropractor were less inclined to fill their opioid prescription versus those adults who did not receive chiropractic care.
Back pain can be very challenging to live with and can impact virtually every aspect of your life. Injections and surgery on your spine or lumbar area can carry significant risk. If the needle is placed incorrectly, or something goes wrong with the surgery, permanent damage could be done that could potentially leave you paralyzed. Chiropractic care, on the other hand, allows back pain to be treated effectively without the need for any medical or surgical intervention.
Osteoarthritis is a degenerative joint disease where the cartilage cushioning the ends of a joint wears away gradually. Typically osteoarthritis affects weight-bearing joints such as the hips, ankles, knees, and, of course, the spine. Most patients experience stiffness in the joints, which can inhibit movement and impact their quality of life. While non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are often used to treat osteoarthritis, they do not prevent the progression of the disease but instead, focus on relieving the pain. With chiropractic care, however, muscle and joint function are improved, offering patients more long-term relief from pain and discomfort caused by osteoarthritis.
There are many different types of arthritis that can cause back pain, limited movement, and a range of other issues. However, generally speaking, these types of arthritis can be categorized as either mechanical causes or inflammatory causes. Osteoarthritis, which we discussed above, is a good example of a mechanical cause. Inflammatory causes, on the other hand, include other forms of arthritis such as rheumatoid arthritis and arthritis from the spondyloarthritis family. Some other types of arthritis that can cause back pain include:
Chiropractic adjustments will not only help patients to manage pain caused by the various types of arthritis above but chiropractic care has also been shown to boost the immune system, which can help with autoimmune conditions such as psoriatic, or rheumatoid arthritis.
Migraines and tension headaches can be very challenging to live with and can completely disrupt your day. Nearly 40% of Americans have to deal with regular headaches and in many cases, the reason for these headaches are muscle contractions in the shoulder, neck, and head region. Using chiropractic adjustments, joint restrictions can be reduced, misalignments in the spine can be corrected to reduce inflammation and the overall function of the affected joint and the nervous system can be improved to enable our body to manage the pain caused by tension headaches and migraines more effectively.
Chiropractic care is not only highly effective and an excellent non-invasive, non-addictive alternative to prescription medications and over-the-counter drugs but it also much more cost-effective for patients. Multiple studies have revealed that chiropractic is much more affordable than general medical expenses.
For example, in a study from North Carolina, more than 43,000 workman compensation claims were examined over a nineteen-year period. The results showed that the average cost of chiropractic care came to just $633, while the average cost of a medical doctor was $21,000! With chiropractic care costing 82% less than medical care, there’ no denying that chiropractic treatment is the most cost-effective solution for patients.
Receiving chiropractic care is very common and is covered by the vast majority of insurance companies in the US. However, while chiropractic care is included in most insurance plans, some providers may require a co-payment so it is wise to check your policy. Major insurance providers such as Blue Cross Blue Shield, worker’s compensation, Humana, Cigna, UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, and, of course, Medicare all include chiropractic care in their policies. Eligible veterans, federal employees, and active-duty members of the armed forces may also be able to avail of chiropractic care.
Medicare Medical Insurance covers manual manipulation of the spine provided by a chiropractor or if medically necessary to correct a subluxation, however, they do not cover other tests or services ordered by your chiropractor, such as massage therapy, x-rays, or acupuncture, unless acupuncture is ordered for lower back pain. Medicare will pay 80% of the Medicare approved rate, leaving you to pay just 20%. Knowing that chiropractic care is not only covered but also trusted by Medicare, our country’s federal health insurance program since 1965, should give patients more peace of mind about chiropractic treatment and help to validate the benefits of receiving chiropractic care.
Chiropractic care can be very effective in improving athlete’s performance in their chosen sport. Nowadays, every major sport’s team works with chiropractors and countless pro-athletes rely on regular chiropractic visits to allow them to perform at their very best. Chiropractic treatment has been shown to improve performance in a number of different ways such as:
When it comes to improving athletic performance, chiropractic care is a winning choice. Experts estimate that 90% of the world’s top athletes receive regular chiropractic care to enhance the potential of their performance in their chosen athletic pursuit.
Patients, who undergo chiropractic treatment, typically report an improvement in their symptoms, leading to a very high patient satisfaction rate, and highlighting the effectiveness of chiropractic care. In fact, in a study of 544 patient’s experience of chiropractic care, 92% of those interviewed experienced less pain and 80% reported an increase in mobility. Another study revealed that satisfaction rates in patients with chronic lower back pain were much higher than in patients that exclusively sought treatment from their family doctor. Researchers also discovered that “Back pain and neck pain were the most prevalent health problems for chiropractic consultations and the majority of users reported chiropractic helping a great deal with their health problem and improving overall health or well-being.”
There are many different conditions, diseases, injuries, and other ailments that can be treated successfully with chiropractic care. With so many benefits to be gained from regular chiropractic treatment, you too can join the millions of Americans who undergo regular chiropractic treatment every year to reduce pain, improve their quality of life and feel better overall. Seek out an experienced, reputable chiropractor in your local area and begin the journey toward being stronger, more agile, pain-free, and happy.
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