Chiropractic Therapy

Chiropractic Therapy is very common today and is a fairly recent part of healthcare. Developed it in the 1900's by a doctor named Daniel David Palmer, for whom the Palmer method of chiropractic is named, chiropractic seeks to relieve paid through the application of pressure by the hands. Palmer was trying to relieve pressure on a nerve in the ear of a patient that he believed was causing hearing loss. Many people visit chiropractors today for a variety of reasons, but most seek chiropractic therapy due to lower back pain, neck pain, or headaches, in particular many seek help due to migraines. In fact, many migraine sufferers report relief after regular chiropractic therapy and adjustments.

Chiropractic physicians do not prescribe medicines, but do counsel people regarding diet and exercise. Many chiropractic physicians also embrace other holistic and alternative forms of medication. Some have massage therapists on staff, some practice Aromatherapy and many utilize acupuncture, or the related acupressure.

Chiropractic therapy follows an assumption that the vertebrae of patients are out of alignment and thereby cause pressures on nerves. This pressure causes pain, and also dysfunction of muscles and organs served by those nerves. Chiropractic therapy tries to restore the normal function to joins and vertebrae. A chiropractic physician will generally perform an exam and often use X-rays to determine if the skeletal structure is out of alignment. Through manual manipulation the chiropractic physician seeks to adjust the structure and relieve pain. Many patients feel pain relief without having to resort to pharmaceuticals.

Traditional medicine has tried to determine if chiropractic therapy is effective. In fact, the New England Journal of Medicine in 1998 ran a study. They found that there was evidence that people felt relief from pain after chiropractic therapy, in particular when it involved lower back pain. They found less evidence that chiropractic therapy helped with neck pain or with headaches. Some people however believe that the rivalry that has existed for many years between medical doctors and chiropractors is part of the basis for the findings of this study. Regardless of their findings, thousands and thousands of people visit chiropractors on a regular basis to seek pain relief, and the vast majority of them seem to be satisfied and believe that chiropractic therapy has helped them.