What is Chiropractic? (public)

What is Chiropractic?

Chiropractic is the largest natural healing profession in the world. It has been a recognized form of therapy in the U.S. since the 19th century.

Methods of adjusting the spine (also called spinal manipulation) were described as far back in history as Hippocrates, and seen much earlier in stone carvings of ancient China. Three decades of medical research has increasingly confirmed the effectiveness of this age-old practice.

Tiny joints where vertebrae contact each other have a smooth gliding motion when you move. If these joints don’t align properly, then the motion at that vertebrae becomes labored – like trying to slide a shower door that’s slightly off its track.

Errant motion can stretch or scrape spinal nerves, causing irritation and inflammation. Modern living habits and injuries disrupt normal spinal alignment and motion. Spinal manipulation is a vital tool to restore normal alignment and motion of the spine.

Soft Tissue Manipulation uses deep myofascial massage techniques to correct the changes in muscles, tendons, connective tissue and ligaments that occur with joint misalignment. Often these changes feel rope-like, hard or lumpy to the touch. Without correction, they can create imbalances that lead to chronic neck or back problems.

Physio-therapies (heat, ultrasound, massage, electrical muscle stimulation, ice) are used to assist the healing process. Important advice on exercise and lifestyle allows better healing and more lasting benefits.

Chiropractic can be wonderful for treating many non-spinal conditions, too. Knees, shoulders, hips, ankles, and wrists share similar basic joint configuration and respond well to chiropractic. Headaches, indigestion and other internal conditions often benefit from reduction of bodily stress through chiropractic care.

The structural elements of the spine (bony joints, muscles, disc, ligaments) have always been given particular attention in Chiropractic. This is because almost all the nerves that connect your brain to the rest of your body pass between vertebrae in your spinal column.

Chiropractic education has typically required a minimum of six years of highly specialized college training. Over 2800 hours of anatomy, physiology, chemistry, pathology, diagnosis, x-ray, orthopedics, and other subjects, with rigorous testing and internship, are required to obtain a Doctor of Chiropractic degree (D.C.).

With the past three decades of research demonstrating chiropractic’s effectiveness and excellent safety record, some medical schools have started to offer brief courses in chiropractic methodology. But how important is more thorough training in spinal manipulation?

In December 2004, the World Health Organization (WHO) convened to establish "Guidelines on Basic Training and Safety in Chiropractic". It seems that recent efforts by medical groups to provide non-chiropractic doctors with short courses (about 200 hours) in chiropractic technique raised some alarm regarding the safety of such practices.

Fortunately for would-be patients, the World Health Organization’s new guidelines require medical graduates to complete a minimum of 1800 hours of chiropractic training, including 1000 hours of supervised clinical training (internship) in order to be considered safe spinal manipulators. In other words, you don't want to be adjusted by an M.D. - even an orthopedic surgeon - unless they also have a chiropractic (or osteopathic) degree.

While spinal manipulation (also called “adjustments”) may look simple, only extensive training and education can assure safe and effective Chiropractic treatment. (For more information about the guidelines, visit the W.H.O.'s website: www.who.int).