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CHIROPRACTIC

What is Chiropractic?
Chiropractic is a science, art, and philosophy that concerns itself with the relationship between the nervous system and the function (health) of the body. It is a relatively new healing art started in 1895 in the United States by D. D. Palmer of Davenport, Iowa. Palmer was searching for the cause of disease and explored many types of healing methods. One day a janitor by the name of Harvey Lillard, who worked in the building where Palmer had his office, and who had been partially deaf for many years, allowed Palmer to examine him. What Palmer discovered was a lump in his neck from a misplaced spinal bone. Palmer convinced Lillard to allow him to adjust or restore the bone to its proper position by using his hands. Soon thereafter the janitor's hearing was restored and chiropractic, as we know it today, was born. Actually, restoring better spinal joint function is an old idea. Early Egyptian hieroglyphics show crude spinal manipulation techniques. Even Hippocrates of ancient Greece was aware of the importance of the spine for good health. Later, bonesetters of medieval times were quite successful in relieving pain and many other types of health complaints. What was new in 1895, was the use of specific spinal adjustments instead of generalized manipulation of spinal joints.

The Science of Chiropractic
Since its beginning, chiropractic has been based on the scientific fact that the nervous system controls the function of every cell, tissue, organ, and system of your body. Wriggle your toes -- and it's the nervous system that makes it happen. Digest your food -- and the nervous system oversees everything. Ward off an invasion of influenza -- and the nervous system directs the production of white blood cells. Clearly, the nervous system is the conductor of this symphony we call the human body. The power plant or computer of your body and nervous system is the brain. So important is this organ, it is encased by eight interlocking bones. To monitor the environment and coordinate all the function of your body, the brain communicates with the rest of your body through the spinal cord. Think of the spinal cord as the superhighway of the nervous system. Extending down from the brain, it is protected by just 24 moving bones of the spinal column. These bones are called vertebrae. Between each pair of vertebrae (except the top two vertebrae of the neck), is cartilage material with a pulpy center called a disc. Discs act as shock absorbers to the spine and when healthy, permit normal bending and turning. Trauma to the spine can injure one or more of the spinal discs and cause the soft center of a disc to bulge, herniate, or even rupture. Incorrectly called a slipped disc by the public, it is often a painful condition that may put pressure on the spinal cord or irritate nerve roots as they emerge from between each spinal joint. The brain sends impulses down the spinal cord and out 31 pairs of nerve roots through small openings between each vertebra. These nerve roots consist of thousands of nerve fibers that are less than 1/100th the diameter of a human hair. These nerve roots relay impulses between specific organs and tissues. So that the brain knows that everything is functioning (or not functioning) properly, a feedback loop sends information back to the brain. The unique clinical concern of chiropractic doctors is the clear transmission of these nerve impulses. But obstructions do occur. Stress, toxic environments, processed foods, poor eating habits, drugs, alcohol, trauma, poor posture, and other forms of everyday activities can affect normal nervous system function. Abnormal motion or position of the protective bones of the spinal column can also impair nervous system function. If vertebrae lose their normal motion or position they can choke or irritate the pairs of nerve roots that exit the spinal cord from between each spinal joint. This can impede the proper function of the organs and tissues they control (compression). More frequently, this irritation causes affected tissues and organs to become overactive (facilitation). This common cause of pain and ill-health, along with muscle, soft tissue, and associated degenerative changes is called the Vertebral Subluxation Complex. This is a serious condition and consists of five parts: Spinal Kinesiopathology: This is a fancy way of saying the bones of the spine have lost their normal motion and position. Your ability to turn and bend can be restricted, and the other four components can be set in motion. Neuropathophysiology: Improper spinal function can choke or irritate delicate nerve tissue. The resulting nervous system dysfunction can cause symptoms elsewhere in the body. Myopathology: Muscles supporting the spine can weaken, atrophy, or become tight and go into spasm. The resulting scar tissue changes muscle tone, requiring repeated spinal adjustments. Histopathology: A rise in temperature from an increase in blood and lymph supply results in swelling and inflammation. Discs can bulge, herniate, tear, or degenerate. Other soft tissues may suffer permanent damage as well. Pathophysiology: Bone spurs and other abnormal bony growths attempt to fuse malfunctioning spinal joints together. This spinal decay, scar tissue, and long-term nerve dysfunction can cause other systems of the body to fail. Doctors of Chiropractic are the only licensed professionals who are specifically trained to detect, correct, and help prevent the Vertebral Subluxation Complex. The clinical application of this knowledge is the art of chiropractic.

The Art of Chiropractic
While an ache or a pain may prompt patients to try chiropractic, the doctor is more interested in the underlying cause of the patient's problem, not the symptoms. This can be confusing to patients. Most patients have spent their lifetime treating the symptoms of ill health with pain relievers, muscle relaxers, stomach medicines, and other medications. After a thorough health history, the doctor performs an examination, and orthopedic, neurologic, chiropractic and physical testing. Often, x-ray views of the spine are taken to confirm the conclusions reached by these other tests. Each test supplies the doctor with information about areas of the spine which may not be functioning properly, thus interfering with nervous system function and the patient's health. All this information is used to develop a specific care program for each individual patient. Every patient is different. Depending upon a patient's unique spinal problem, age, condition, and lifestyle, the doctor outlines a program of care to help normalize spinal function and improve nervous system integrity. This will include specific spinal adjustments and other recommendations. The word adjustment describes the use of carefully directed and controlled pressure to restore better position and motion to stuck or fixated spinal joints. Some adjusting approaches can result in a faint popping sound when motion is put into the spinal joint. The presence or loudness of this sound is not necessarily an indication of the quality or effectiveness of the adjustment. It is thought that this sound is created by the shifting of fluids and gases in the joint. It is similar to the sound you can make by cracking your knuckles. How safe are chiropractic adjustments? Very safe. Statistically, chiropractic adjustments are safer than aspirin, muscle relaxers, and back surgery! In fact, the most dangerous part of receiving chiropractic care is driving your car to the office! Each year millions of chiropractic adjustments are delivered with fantastic results. You're much more likely to be struck by lightning than to have a negative experience in a chiropractic office! However, chiropractic is more than an art and a science. It has a philosophical component, too.

The Philosophy of Chiropractic
Chiropractic philosophy is one of the major differences that separates chiropractic doctors from medical doctors. In fact, it is this philosophical component that gave rise to the profession in the first place. The most important fundamental of chiropractic philosophy is the recognition that doctors don't heal the body. It may appear to some patients that doctors heal, but only the body can heal itself. There isn't a single doctor anywhere that knows how to grow new bone, to mend a broken one, or exactly how much white blood cell production is needed to fight an infection. The healing process, along with the immune system and other disease and repair mechanisms, is controlled by the nervous system. Chiropractic care is based on the objective of reducing nervous system dysfunction so the body can assume its inborn ability to heal itself. Another philosophical principle that is often misunderstood, is the notion that chiropractic doctors don't treat symptoms. Actually, the chiropractic approach is to find the underlying cause of the patient's health problem. Pain medication that dulls the senses may treat the symptoms of a patient's headaches or low back pain, but it may ignore the cause from possible spinal joint malfunction and associated nervous system dysfunction. Doctors of chiropractic attempt to locate and correct the cause of a variety of health problems that may result from improper spinal function. The germ theory of disease held by most people in our culture runs counter to chiropractic philosophy, too. Have you ever noticed that when someone suffers from the symptoms of a cold, that not everyone else gets a cold? Was it because they weren't exposed to the virus or because their immune system successfully warded off the infection? What controls the immune system? Proper food, rest, exercise, mental attitude, and of course a properly functioning nervous system. Germs don't cause a disease unless they find an available host whose immune system allows the infection to take hold. Every chiropractic doctor looks at the issues of art, science, and philosophy in a slightly different way. This diversity makes the chiropractic profession strong and vital.

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