Chiropractic Care for Back Pain

chiropractic

Hands-on spinal manipulation is the primary method of treatment used by chiropractors, though they do use other alternative forms of treatments and therapies in their practices. The benefits of chiropractic care for back pain are many, which is why this alternative medical care is so popular among people with back and neck pain.

Chiropractic Care Benefits

Treating the causes of pain, not just the symptoms – While chiropractic isn’t a cure-all alternative to pain, it can reverse the causes of some of the aches and pains we all experience. You can choose to take a painkiller to relieve back pain, but that’s a temporary solution when a chiropractor may have a more permanent or longer-term solution. By correcting what’s causing the pain, you get relief that lasts; not just a temporary ‘fix’.

Effective pain relief – A 2013 research report in the Annals of Internal Medicine show that home exercise and chiropractic (spinal manipulation) relieve acute neck and back pain more effectively than simply relying on painkillers. While the evidence for the wide range of pain relief benefits found in chiropractic care are limited, the people who choose this alternative treatment swear by its effectiveness.

Drug-free therapies – The treatments and therapies used in chiropractic care are completely drug-free. Chiropractors are taught and trained to treat the whole body and its holistic systems, focusing on its health instead of symptoms.

Customized treatment plans – Chiropractic care embraces several techniques, treatments, and therapies that can be custom-fit for each person and the root cause of their pain. The key is to ensure that you provide your chiropractor with as much information about your pain as possible for the most detailed and effective treatment plan.

Low-risk care – You may hear or read some negative articles related to chiropractic care, but overall, the risks of anything bad happening are exponentially rare. A common, but not harmful side effect of chiropractic treatment is some achiness or soreness where the spinal manipulation occurred. Less common side effects include headache and fatigue, and in extremely rare cases, herniated discs, higher pain levels, or stroke may occur.

4 Chiropractic Studies of 2013

Just a few years ago, several studies showed the effectiveness of this alternative treatment can work alongside of conventional medical treatments, or be a standalone alternative for back and neck pain.

  1. MRI shows immediate benefits of chiropractic care from the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapies (JMPT)
  2. The AMA recommends chiropractic treatments before choosing surgery
  3. Chiropractic is as effective as epidural injections for herniated lumbar discs from the JMPT by Swiss chiropractors
  4. Chiropractic is the best option for SI joint pain according to the European Spine Journal from a trial in the Netherlands

Conditions Chiropractors Treat

Chiropractors can treat neck pain, back pain, low back pain, infertility, menstrual issues, digestive problems, migraines, joint dysfunction, fibromyalgia, frozen shoulder syndrome, sciatica, scoliosis, headaches, and even earaches. Many chiropractors specialize in sports medicine, treating athletes and people with various sports-related injuries.

Considering that your nervous system controls everything that happens in your body from movements to reflexive responses (breathing etc.) and that the nerves leading to everything in your body are housed in the spine, the focus on spinal health is crucial to your overall health.

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3 Replies to “Chiropractic Care for Back Pain

  1. I was taking lots of pain relief medicine every day for about 1 year due to my lower back pain. My condition never improved. I did not realize that is was just masking the pain and not actually beneficial to treating my back. I can honestly say that working with a chiropractor has given me better pain relief than the medicine I was taking. It makes me happy to know that they are treating my condition also. My GP tells me that I should still take pain relief medicine along with my treatment from the chiropractor, do you think this would be beneficial or should I just stop the medicine completely?

  2. I have been using chiropractic treatment for about 6 months now to help with my back pain and it has been helping a lot. I have less stiffness and more mobility. It has been relieving pain enough that I can get through my basic daily activities. However, sometimes the pain fares up to excruciating levels and I will have to take the pain medicine then. The chiropractic treatment has definitely helped lower the baseline pain for me.

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