Chiropractic Medicine
There are some alternative healing methods that require you to take herbal medicines, follow an exercise routine, and follow a very strict diet. Yet there are some treatments that don’t require much work. These minimum effort treatments are based on the idea that your body can heal itself.
One such treatment is chiropractic medicine – a holistic therapy that focuses on the body’s overall activity to heal itself from emotional, physical, and even mental stress. This healing method is mostly concerned with the relationship between the spinal column and the rest of the nervous system. Practitioners believe that pain and disease is caused by the misalignment of the spinal cord to other parts of your body. Misalignment can be caused by a lack of exercise, genetic or hereditary factors, improper rest and nutrition, non-organic food which contain chemicals, air pollution, stress, trauma, viruses, and bacterial infection.
Chiropractic medicine serves to correct the spinal lesion and manage the functional disorders of the motor structure. That is why those who are suffering from scoliosis, back pains, and loose discs in the neck often go to great lengths to see a chiropractor. The most common problems chiropractors treat are muscle tension, jaw pain and dysfunction, and joint or ligament damage.
However, treatments can also affect problems that are not directly related to one’s bones and muscles. People who suffer from high blood pressure, hypertension, heart disease, chronic headaches, and depression have reported an improvement in their condition after repeated session. There are some studies that show chiropractic treatments can even reduce addictions to smoking, drugs, and alcohol.
The Methods of Chiropractic Medicine
Chiropractic medicine is instituted by a chiropractor often called a chiropractic physician or chiropractic doctor. The chiropractor has methods and procedures in treating and diagnosing a patient: physical rehabilitation, nutritional and psychological counseling, spinal adjusting and manipulation, and emergency first-aid. They also sometimes use spinal manipulative therapy (SMT). They do understand the limitations of their practice and will refer their patients to doctors from the Western world from time to time.
When consulting with a chiropractor, the first thing you do is to your personal health history and your chief complaint. Next, you will undergo an exam which includes observation, inspection, and palpation. Sometimes lab work is required to determine the cause of the pain.
Recently it has been suggested in the Journal of the American Chiropractic Association that chiropractic medicine and acupuncture go hand in hand because they share the same treatment and principles. It also has similarities to kinesiology, the study of muscular movements.
Is Chiropractic an Accepted form of Medicine?
Chiropractics say that chiropractic medicine involves a holistic approach, believing that your body can heal itself. Experts will argue that illness must be actively treated. Although many people testify that chiropractic medicine does indeed work, simple word of mouth is not scientifically acceptable as many of their claims can’t be tested.
Because of this, modern chiropractors are starting to adopt Western practice. The SMT, for example, is now a procedure done by many qualified doctors and physiotherapists, not just in chiropractic medicine.
