What are the BENEFITS of Chiropractic Care?

Chiropractic, as a profession, has been around since 1895! Research was limited at the time, but today, we have a growing level of research that creates a greater understanding of what chiropractic helps. So let us explore -what does Chiropractic Help? Let’s look at the research…

Let’s explore some of the reasons why people see their chiropractor and some of the research that supports it.

1.ACUTE LOW BACK PAIN

Effectiveness of Chiropractic Treatment
Research shows that chiropractic care, including spinal manipulative therapy, leads to impressive changes. This study looks at functional improvement in acute mechanical low back pain compared to standard medical care.

Studies highlight chiropractic’s cost-effectiveness, offering high benefits at low costs.

EFFECTIVE & ECONOMICAL:

The approach emphasizes early manual treatments and patient education over extensive diagnostic testing and medication.  This makes it both an effective and economical choice for managing back pain.

2.CHRONIC BACK PAIN

Can Be Avoided with Chiropractic Care
Neglecting spinal health significantly increases the risk of developing chronic back pain, experiencing recurrent symptoms, requiring surgery, and relying on pain medications, including opioids.

Research indicates that those who do not receive appropriate treatment have a high likelihood (over 60%) of developing chronic low back pain or recurrences.

REDUCING DRUG USE:

Chiropractic care has been shown to reduce opioid use, lower medical costs, and shorten disability periods compared to other treatment approaches.

Following an evidence-based chiropractic care plan, including spinal fitness and healthy lifestyle practices, enhances recovery, preserves spinal function, and improves overall quality of life.

3.OVERALL QUALITY OF LIFE

 Enhanced with Chiropractic Care
Chiropractic care positively influences brain function, leading to improvements in pain, mood, sleep, and overall quality of life.

BRAIN WAVES TESTED

Research using brain activity measurements (EEG and SEPs) and health assessments found that chiropractic adjustments enhance brainwave patterns.  This is associated with relaxation and cognitive function. Over four weeks, participants receiving chiropractic care experienced reduced anxiety, depression, fatigue, and pain, along with better sleep quality.

These findings suggest that maintaining a healthier spine can lead to widespread benefits for both physical and mental well-being.

4.INCREASE MUSCLE STRENGTH

Increase Muscle Strength with Chiropractic Care
Chiropractic spinal manipulation has been shown to enhance muscle strength and neural drive

Helping both athletes and non-athletes:

• A single adjustment session is shown to improve maximum voluntary contraction and cortico-spinal excitability in elite Taekwondo athletes by 8% (leg muscle tested).
• Research also demonstrates that spinal manipulation alters motor unit recruitment patterns, leading to more efficient muscle activation and improved neuromuscular control by 16% (leg muscle tested).

Additionally, stroke patients with muscle weakness experienced significant strength gains of 64.2% in the leg muscle tested, and increased cortical drive following chiropractic care, suggesting benefits for both athletic performance and neurological rehabilitation.

5. Posture Correction for Long-Term Results:

Postural correction (restoring cervical lordosis) is crucial for sustaining pain relief beyond short-term interventions.

Participants with structural correction experienced better improvements in neck disability scores and cervical range of motion.

IMPROVEMENT MAINTAINED AFTER 1 YEAR :

One year after treatment, only the group receiving posture correction maintained improvements, suggesting it addresses the underlying biomechanical dysfunction, not just symptoms.

This research supports that targeted spinal alignment therapies lead to lasting functional changes, not achievable through conventional pain relief techniques alone.

Posture-focused care helps prevent recurrence by reducing mechanical stress on cervical soft tissues and musculature.

A research based approach to care

What does Chiropractic Help? Let’s look at the research together as we provide better quality care that is research based. This assists us in delivering better care with clearer goals and better outcomes.

Let us know if it’s time you had a spinal assessment at Errol Street Chiropractic.

Lisa Smycz

Melbourne Chiropractor 

www.errolstchiro.com.au

The Australian Chiropractors Association has a free App called Straighten up Australia. CLICK HERE. If you would like to know more about what front on posture should look like CLICK HERE.  Find out how to assess side posture, please CLICK HERE.

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References:

1.Bishop, et al. (2010). The Chiropractic Hospital-based Interventions Research Outcomes (CHIRO) Study: a randomized controlled trial on the effectiveness of clinical practice guidelines in the medical and chiropractic management of patients with acute mechanical low back pain. The Spine Journal, 10: 1055-64.   Schifrin, L.G. (1992). Mandated Health Insurance Coverage for Chiropractic Treatment: An Economic Arrangement with Implications for the Commonwealth of Virginia. Richmond, Virginia.   Chapman-Smith, David LL.B. (2008). The Chiropractic Profession: Basic Facts, Independent Evaluations, Common Questions Answered. The Chiropractic Report, Vol 22 (5), pp1-8.

2.Von Heymann, W. et al. (2013). Spinal High-Velocity Low Amplitude Manipulation in Acute Nonspecific Low Back Pain: A Double-Blinded Randomized Controlled Trial in Comparison with Diclofenac [Voltaren] and Placebo. Spine, 38(7): 540-548. Cifuentes, M. et al. (2011). Health Maintenance Care in Work-Related Low Back Pain and its Association With Disability Recurrence. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, pp. 190-198. Ekland, A.et al.(2018) The Nordic Maintencance Care program:Effectiveness of chiropractic maintenance care versus symptomatic-guided treatment for recurrent and persistent low back pain —A pragmatic randomised controlled trial xhttps://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0203029&sfns=mo

3.Haavik, H., et al. (2024). Neuroplastic Responses to Chiropractic Care: Broad Impacts on Pain, Mood, Sleep, and Quality of Life. Brain Sciences, 14(11), 1124. https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/14/11/11244o

4. Botelho, M. B., et al. (2018). Spinal manipulation increases strength and cortical drive in elite Taekwondo athletes. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 118:737–749. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-018-3799-x.   Robinault, L., et al. (2021). The Effects of Spinal Manipulation on Motor Unit Behavior. Brain Sciences, 11, 105. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11010105. Holt, K., et al. (2019). The effects of a single session of chiropractic care on strength, cortical drive, and spinal excitability in stroke patients. PMC6389925

5.Does improvement towards a normal cervical sagittal configuration aid in the management of cervical myofascial pain syndrome: a 1- year randomized controlled trial. Moustafa IM, et al. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2018.    https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30419868/