Back Pain Exercise Tips

Stretching and an active lifestyle are often recommended to help reduce back pain and speed the recovery process following an injury. Improving exibility through stretching is also an excellent way to avoid future injuries. Read more - http://bit.ly/1gl3VlS

WE OFFER LUNCH-AND-LEARNS!

Crossroads Chiropractic & Wellness Center is dedicated to bringing health information to individuals to educate them on how to live longer, healthier, more productive lives. We have developed a program to come into your office and present to your employees on various issues that may be affecting their health. This can be scheduled over the lunch hour or any time during the day that is best for your schedule! Read more - http://bit.ly/1f8GPyc#lunchandlearns

Mattress and Pillow Selection

Stop Dreaming About Quality Sleep and Do Something!

 An old Chinese proverb states, "Only when one cannot sleep does one know how long the night is." Anyone who's ever experienced an occasional bout with insomnia—and that's most of us—can relate to this all too well.

In fact, surveys have shown that between 40 and 60 percent of the general population has trouble sleeping. Daily stress and worries, pressures from job and family, body aches and pains caused by uncomfortable beds or pillows, and a host of other issues can keep a person from getting enough quality sleep.

Sleep is critical to good health and functioning, so lack of it is a serious matter. "Sleep is one of the most important functions of the brain," says Frederick R. Carrick, DC, PhD, president of the American Chiropractic Association's Council on Neurology. Through it, our bodies recharge and renew for the next day's challenges.

As wellness experts, doctors of chiropractic can provide patients with a different approach to their sleeping problems— without the use of sleeping pills, which leave many people in a mental haze the next morning. To start, here are a few helpful tips they would recommend for the sleepless in Seattle (or any city, for that matter):

• Exercise regularly. Exercising in the morning is best, but if you must exercise in the evening, do so at least two or three hours before bedtime. Any later, and your increased heart rate can interfere with your sleep.
• Limit your intake of caffeinated beverages such as coffee, colas and tea—try to avoid them altogether late in the day and near bedtime. In addition, for each cup of caffeinated beverages you drink each day, drink an equal amount of water.
• If you have trouble sleeping and then get thirsty, drink tap water at room temperature (cold water may disturb the digestive system).
• Eat an early dinner. Eating after 6 p.m. may interfere with sleep as your body works to digest the food you’ve eaten.
• Go to bed at the same time each night and get up at the same time each morning. The routine will help your body know when it is time to rest.
• Keep your bedroom at a cool, comfortable temperature and try to make it as dark as possible when you’re ready for bed.

Creating a comfortable place to sleep by choosing the correct mattress and pillow is also essential to getting the quality sleep that your body needs to function at its best.

A mattress, for instance, should support the body’s weight evenly and allow the spine to stay in its natural alignment. Choosing the right one is a personal matter.

“There are a wide variety of comfort preferences. It’s very subjective,” says Brian Darcy, operations manager for Springwall, the manufacturer of premium-quality Chiropractic® sleep sets that ACA has endorsed for the past 38 years.

But regardless of whether you like your mattress firm or soft, give it a good trial run before you buy. Darcy recommends lying down on a mattress for a minimum of three to five minutes to get a good feel. Sitting on it simply won’t do.

Useful mattress facts...

• A mattress should provide uniform support from head to toe. If there are gaps between your body and your mattress (such as at the waist), you're not getting the full support that you need.
• If you do have back pain and your mattress is too soft, you might want to firm up the support of your mattress by placing a board underneath it. But do this just until the pain goes away; such firmness is not good for "routine" sleeping.
• Every few months, turn your mattress clockwise, or upside down, so that body indentations are kept to a minimum. It's also good to rotate the mattress frame every so often to reduce wear and tear.
• If you're waking up uncomfortable, it may be time for a new mattress. There is no standard life span for a mattress; it all depends on the kind of usage it gets.
• Be aware that changes in your life can signal the need for a new mattress. For example, if you've lost or gained a lot of weight, if a medical condition has changed the way you sleep, or even if you have changed partners, it could mean that it's time to find a new mattress that will accommodate those changes and help you sleep more soundly.
• If you're not in the market for a new mattress, and your current mattress is too firm, you can soften it up by putting a 1- to 2-inch-thick padding on top of it - usually available at mattress and bedding stores.

Next, pillow talk...
After investing in a quality mattress, don't forget to choose an equally supportive pillow, advises Peter Mckay, DC, who is in private practice in San Diego and also works as a consultant for Innovative Choices, the maker of the Therapeutica Pillow-another ACA-endorsed product. "People will spend thousands of dollars on a mattress and then skimp on a pillow that doesn't support their head and neck properly," he observes. A good pillow will keep the cervical (neck) section of the spine aligned with the thoracic and lumbar (chest and lower back) sections. "[The sections] move together and should be supported together."

• When choosing a pillow, be selective. When lying on your side, your head and neck should remain level with your mid and lower spine. When lying on your back, your head and neck should remain level with your upper back and spine. In other words, your pillow should not be so thick that it causes your head and neck to be propped up or angled sharply away from your body.
• Be wary of pillows that are made out of mushy foam materials. The weight of your head can displace this kind of foam, leaving little support. Choose firmer foam and materials that press back and support the head.
• If you find yourself sleeping on your side with one hand propped under your pillow, that's a clue that you're not getting the support you need from that pillow.
• There is no such thing as a universal fit when it comes to pillows. Find one that is consistent with the shape and size of your body.

Chiropractic Care Can Help...
If you continue to experience pain and discomfort at night or have difficulty falling asleep, visit your doctor of chiropractic. Doctors of chiropractic are trained to treat spinal problems that can interfere with a restful night's sleep. They can also offer nutritional and ergonomic advice that can help improve the quality of your sleep.

Download the Better Sleep GuideThe Better Sleep Council's Better Sleep Guide provides simple solutions that can help improve the quality of your life by improving the quality of your sleep. Find out why you should make sleep a health priority, how much sleep your body needs and how your bedroom and mattress affect the quality of your sleep. Click here to download a PDF copy of the booklet.

SOURCE: http://www.acatoday.org/content_css.cfm?CID=88

Unique Benefits of Yoga for Chiropractic Patients

By Cathy Burke, CYT, Director of Education

According to 2005 and 2003 studies by Yoga Journal, 16.5 million Americans practice yoga and at least 12 percent of the population is very or extremely interested in it. Why are so many drawn to this ancient practice?

With a variety of styles and poses, yoga can fit into many different lifestyles and address a variety of health and fitness needs. According to a 2005 study by the American Council on Exercise, the physical benefits of yoga, such as increased flexibility, strength, endurance and balance, make yoga a terrific option for athletes to complement the often-repetitive motions of training.1 These same benefits are valuable to less-active people looking for a way to add more movement to their days.

By bringing attention to the present moment and working to limit the activity of the mind, yoga provides a way to naturally lower blood pressure and handle stress. For patients dealing with personal crises or body image issues, it can reduce anxiety and help develop more accurate self-awareness.

Regular yoga practice also helps to bring awareness to our negative thoughts, unrealistic expectations, and unnecessary fears. By freeing the mind of these unproductive patterns, the students make space for new information and positive thoughts. Through yoga practice, they learn self-acceptance and nurturing, implement healthy lifestyle changes, and strengthen their abilities. These healthful changes are then carried over into the home, workplace and community. Through awareness, effort and desire to change, the yoga practice helps transform perception, mold positive habits, induce stress-reduction and, over time, improve health and control of the mind.

In addition, yoga emphasizes a wellness approach by promoting regular exercise and simple, unprocessed foods that change with the seasons. Its focus on deep breathing helps to calm the nerves, relieve anxiety, oxygenate body tissues, as well as strengthen and expand the lungs and diaphragm. By involving the energy level, yoga’s approach to health is also very similar to Chinese medicine. Yoga sees prana, or energy, moving through the nadis (energy channels), just as Chinese Medicine sees chi moving through the meridians.2

A Complement to Chiropractic CareChiropractic aims to enhance neurological function by improving the functional relationships of the spine and related structures. Once functional relationships (subluxations) are improved, yoga helps to strengthen the supporting muscles through a series of poses (called “asanas”), designed to improve posture and strength. One example of a strength-building asana is Adho Mukha Svanasana or Downward Facing Dog (see Fig. 1).  Folding poses such as Uttanasana (Fig. 2) not only calm the central nervous system, but also allow the lumbar, thoracic and cervical areas of the spine to stretch and decompress. Bridge (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana) (Fig. 3) further increases the range of motion by moving the spine in the opposite direction.  For those slouching at a workstation all day, Garudasana (Fig. 4), or Eagle, helps open the cervical spine and shoulders, while Reverse Namaste draws the arms behind the back to open the chest.

The poses also help align the mind, body and spirit as students learn to limit the impact of overwhelming thoughts. A flowing approach from asana to asana helps find rhythm and detach from these thoughts.

References:
1. www.acefitness.org/getfit/studies/YogaStudy2005.pdf
2. www.chiroweb.com/archives/21/02/21.html

SOURCE: http://www.acatoday.org/content_css.cfm?CID=2526

How to Prevent Back Pain

• Remain active—under the supervision of your doctor of chiropractic. Avoid prolonged inactivity or bed rest.
  • Exercise regularly. An inactive lifestyle contributes to lower-back pain
• Warm up or stretch before exercising or other physical activities, such as gardening.
• If you must sit for long periods, take frequent breaks and stretch.
• Don’t lift by bending over. Instead, bend your hips and knees and then squat to pick up the object. Keep your back straight, and hold the object close to your body.
• Don’t twist your body while lifting.
• Push, rather than pull, when you must move heavy objects.
• Wear flat shoes or shoes with low heels.
• Maintain a healthy diet and weight.
• Maintain proper posture.
• Sleep on a mattress of medium firmness to minimize any curve in your spine.
• Quit smoking. Smoking impairs blood flow, resulting in oxygen and nutrient deprivation to spinal tissues.
• Consult your doctor of chiropractic to ensure that your workstation is ergonomically correct.
• Drink plenty of water every day to help hydrate the spine.

Wellness for Free: Website and App Review

Most of us don’t have the resources or the time to work with personal trainers or nutrition experts to get us eating right, shaping up, and losing weight. We do, however, have the Internet—an incredible resource for finding free expert resources specific to our personal needs, including online tools that make healthier living easier to accomplish (including apps that can be downloaded to smartphones).

Food and Nutrition

NutritionData.com

Although this website is affiliated with Self magazine, its information is equally valuable to men and women. This website talks about nutrients in the food we eat and which foods have the highest nutritional value. Tested recipes help achieve nutritional goals. The database (largely sourced from the USDA’s National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference) has information on thousands of foods.

Other key features are a nutrition blog and plenty of online tools that compare the nutritional value of foods, search for foods with specific nutrients, and establish dietary goals. The daily-needs calculator is handy for determining individual daily nutrition and calorie needs.

Epicurious.com

Epicurious is about food, recipes, and menu planning. Affiliated with Bon Appétitmagazine, it advertises itself as a website for “people who love to eat.” Recipes are usually creative and challenging—but not necessarily time-consuming. Check out the “quick-and-easy” options.

Links go from the most basic “how to cook” to “around the world in 80 dishes.” Recipe guides come with instructional videos.

WHFoods.com

World’s Healthiest Foods is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to sharing a vast database of science-based nutritional information on fruits and vegetables. Other features include links to the 127 healthiest foods, essential nutrients, recipe of the week, food of the week, in-home cooking demo, and a seven-day menu plan for renewed vigor and energy.

The food advisor questionnaire is a helpful tool that analyzes personal nutritional status, identifies nutritional deficiencies, and recommends healthy foods and recipes. Four-day meal planners for people with specific health conditions are also available.

Food-Related Search

WhatsOnMyFood.org

Created by the Pesticide Action Network, this website provides data on pesticide residues typically found on conventional foods. Searches can be performed according to food or pesticide. Clicking on a food type reveals the most common pesticide residues for that food, according to the USDA Pesticide Data Program, as well as probable routes of exposure, human health effects, and environmental impacts. Links are also provided for relevant journal articles.

A free iPhone app provides a searchable database that links pesticide food residue data with the toxicology for each chemical, providing an easy-to-search format. Pesticide levels can also be compared between organic and conventional foods.

Calorie-Counting

Calorific Noom.com/products/#calorific

This program is anti-calorie counting, which it points out is time-consuming. Instead, foods are classified by color to help users recognize eating habits. Healthy foods are coded green, moderately health foods are yellow, and unhealthy foods are red—a salad would be green and a candy bar would be red.

Calorific calculates a star rating for your eating as the day progresses, providing real-time feedback on the quality of your meals in the form of a three-color pie chart. The “default” goal is 50 percent green, 35 percent yellow, and 15 percent red. Users report the pie chart is an easy and effective way to show eating trends. Calorific can also track water consumption during the day. The drawback of the program for detail-oriented people is the lack of precise food data.

Eatery.massivehealth.com

The Eatery is even less detail-oriented and fact-based than Calorific—instead of colored pie charts, the Eatery approach consists of  taking a photo of your meal, uploading it, and waiting for crowdsource responses on how healthy it is, rating the meal on a scale from fit to fat. Also, when new photos are added to your feed, you can comment on other users’ meal photos.

Although Eatery users find this method motivational and enjoy the social interaction, crowdsource feedback is probably not that accurate and The Eatery does not provide a nutrition database. Even so, users can quickly scan photos of their meals to identify unhealthy eating trends.

Weightwatchers.com

Weight Watchers is well known as an effective way to lose weight. Its mobile app, however, provides just a few basic services, such as a point system for tracking food, success stories, and featured recipes. Each food consumed during the day is given a point value. The objective is to stay within a certain point total for the day.

To go beyond these minimal functions and tap into more useful tools (such as a searchable database of more than 30,000 foods), users must pay a monthly fee to Weight Watchers Online. Plenty of free apps provide these tools for free.  

Myfitnesspal.com

This website/smartphone app makes counting calories easy. The core of the program is a comprehensive database on more than 2.3 million foods and restaurant items, along with an easy-to-use food journal. Users can add foods at any time, including their own recipes. A built-in application uses a smartphone’s camera as a barcode scanner to read UPC codes on food items and access the related information from the database.

Discussion forums allow users to connect with each other, share goals and experiences, and make new friends around the world. This can result in surprisingly strong bonds as individuals provide support and follow each other’s progress.

Fitness and Training

Stepforwrd.com

Joining Step Forward provides access to online tools that track fitness activities, medications and supplements, sleep, and water intake. The site is continuing to build its food database and encourages users to make suggestions. The limited food database can be frustrating, however—for example, there was no listing for string cheese at the time of this writing. For the typical American, the site is probably useful. However, if you are an informed consumer, or eat specialty foods or follow a restricted diet, this website will likely be inadequate for your needs.

Also, for the sleep function, hours cannot be logged in half-hour increments; this makes sleep totals inaccurate, especially for weekly or monthly totals.

Americaonthemove.org

This site provides web-based programs, tools, and resources for individuals, families, groups, and communities, including informative articles and blogs. Food and exercise can be tracked, although entering data can be cumbersome. Many of the tools are fact sheets with basic information. The site’s interactive tools don’t go much beyond step trackers.

Unfortunately, this is a boring site. It is certainly well-intentioned for improving eating and exercise habits, and provides solid information; however, the site lacks creativity and visual stimulation and tends to be slow. In its present state, it can’t compete with what already exists.

Endomondo.com

This smartphone app will track your running, cycling, or other physical activities. It’s easy to calculate your route on a map and monitor key metrics such as distance, time, speed, average speed, altitude, and heart rate. Voice alerts can also be programmed to announce performance milestones or reminders. Other Endomondo users can also give words of encouragement during your run. Users can take a previous workout as a goal and access the audio coach to help them beat it.

On the downside, online reviews say you can’t control the playlist while listening to your iPod.

SportyPal.com

SportyPal is a mapping tool that tracks route, position, speed, distance, elevation, and calories expended. Performance stats can also be generated on maps and graphs, including total time, distance, and maximum speed. Users can still listen to music, make or receive phone calls, or send and receive messages on their smartphones while using the application. A community feature allows users to post results, follow other members, and get new workout ideas.

Cyclists have noted that SportyPal consumes too much battery power on longer rides, sometimes necessitating shutting down the program in order to maintain phone capability. Incoming phone calls and texts may also interfere with tracking. Some users have also recently reported pop-up ads that clutter their screen.

CardioTrainer Noom.com/products/#cardiotrainer

CardioTrainer allows you to track all your indoor and outdoor fitness activity. Functions include counting calories burned, plotting your course, counting steps, and monitoring heart rate. The program will automatically pause when you stop moving. Voice feedback provides real-time information on distance, time, pace, and calories burned. It’s easy to post your numbers and compare your results with other users around the world.

For a fee of $2.99 each, other functions can be added, such as setting up a weight-loss plan or a program for competing against your best times. Although CardioTrainer has received generally solid reviews online, a number of complaints have been made about GPS and audio/music malfunctions.

FitWatch.com

This site enables users to track their fitness and nutrition programs. Members start by opening a calorie tracker account, reviewing the plentiful articles and videos, and designing a personal weight-loss or fitness program. Online tools for calorie deficit, weight-loss target date, body fat percentage, body mass index, basal metabolic rate, and calories burned help determine baseline numbers for tracking progress. Blog entries are well written.

A body-building and weight-training section provides access to training, nutrition, and cardiovascular fitness materials by experts such as Holly Rigsby and Tom Venuto. Titles include “Ten Ways to Exercise at Home with No Equipment.”

Fitness.com

This “global fitness community” offers a vast selection of exercises, articles, and recipes. Many of the everyday exercises can be done around the house without special equipment. Detailed instructions and pictures are provided for each exercise step, making it easy to create customized workout programs.

Other features include sample recipes and exercise videos. In addition to the standard calculators for body mass index and basal metabolic rate, online tools include a five-minute fitness test, 12-minute run test, hidden carb finder, and Greek proportions—which determines your ideal physical measurements based on the ancient Golden Ratio.

RunKeeper.com

Serious runners use RunKeeper to chart routes and monitor and track their running activities and metrics, including speed and distance progress over time. These data can be stored and analyzed to improve workouts and establish new goals. The program utilizes the GPS function in smartphones to provide accurate data regarding pace, distance, time, and calories burned.

Built-in audio cues through the headphones provide stats, updates, and coaching during runs. Weight can also be updated to keep “calories burned” as accurate as possible. Detailed reports showing trends in key metrics during individual runs as well as over time can be accessed. RunKeeper is also a good app for walking, hiking, and biking.

Medicine and Health

EverydayHealth.com

This website has an abundance of information. “Health A-Z” and “Drugs A-Z” are loaded with links that connect readers with articles, recipes, and other key sources of information. Other sections of the website are a symptom checker, food and fitness advice, and groups with live discussions.

Online tools include a recipe box, meal planner, pollen counter, and calculators for body mass index and body fat. There are plenty of free apps too, such as tracking health conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

MedHelp.org

A stroll through this website, which calls itself “the world’s largest health community,” reveals a wealth of articles, advice, forums and discussion groups, and success stories regarding healthy living. Healthy living groups focus on male health, female health, nutrition, parenting, pregnancy, senior care, and weight loss.

If you are looking for health-related smartphone apps, this is the place to start. Nearly 100 applications are available—these include a drug-interaction checker and trackers for food, weight, mood, sleep, ovulation, exercise, and pain.

RealAge.com

“Are you younger than you think?” is the key question asked on this website, which showcases a unique test for calculating apparent “health age.” Physicians Mike Roizen and Mehmet Oz helped develop the test, which is a quick calculation of how old or young your body appears to be. Key data required include family/genetic history, lifestyle, medical history, medications and vitamins, sexual activity, and attitude toward life.

Blogs, articles, videos, support groups, health-condition tests, and action plans for wellness, diet, and fitness are also available. The “new and trending” category presents high-value information, such as a video demonstrating five effective exercises for pain. After taking the real-age test and consulting these other resources, users can create a customized action plan to improve their health and lower their apparent age.

WebMD.com/fitness-exercise

In addition to in-depth materials on a wide variety of health topics, this popular website provides a wealth of valuable information on healthy living, nutrition, food, and recipes. For example, the online “food and fitness planner” tool helps users customize a health plan, record diet and fitness activities, and track results.

Other tools and applications provide nutrition facts, assess diet, and calculate body mass index. The unique portion-size plate tool shows size equivalents for more than 70 common foods to help manage serving sizes. Smartphone applications for drug data andWebMD magazine are also available.

Tapping in to Community

SocialWorkout.com

One way to make exercise fun and more challenging is to create some friendly competition. SocialWorkout achieves this through “social goal-setting for big groups and brave individuals.” Members create a personal homepage, establish health goals, and start working toward meeting those goals. Progress can be tracked and shared with other members. The website has hundreds of goals to choose from—or you can create your own. At the time of this writing 38, 236 people were “crushing” 779 goals.

SocialWorkout also urges members to participate in group challenges, where group members provide encouragement and advice. Some current group challenges are “40 Days of Yoga Life,” “Sleeping Seven Hours a Day,” and “1,000 Minutes of Cardio in 30 Days.” Individual results can be updated on the challenge homepage leaderboard.

SparkPeople.com

The mission of this website is to “spark millions of people to reach their goals and lead healthier lives.” The site is loaded with resources on nutrition, fitness, wellness, and motivation, including food trackers, personalized meal plans, customized fitness plans, a point-based motivation program, message boards, articles, and recipes.

“SparkTeams” are groups of people who share common goals and interests and provide support and encouragement. Teams are started by members with specific interests. For example, “Taming Your Sweet Tooth” and the “Eight-Week Diabetes Weight Loss Challenge” are two current teams. Each team has its own message board forum for sharing tips and providing support.

Fitocracy.com

For those who are motivated by racking up points and advancing to new levels, Fitocracy is the perfect site. Its mission is to “make fitness a more fun, more addictive experience. Play Fitocracy to beat challenges, push your boundaries, and show your friends who is boss.”

“Players” start at Level 1 and are rewarded with points for each workout. Typical “Fitocrats” are motivated to beat their previous point levels each time they work out to attain the next level as quickly as possible. Online tools are available for recording results and tracking progress. Achievement badges are awarded when certain milestones are reached. Members often join groups and forums to share tips and inspire each other to reach their goals.

For more information on prevention and wellness, or to find a doctor of chiropractic near you, go to the Patient Information section on ACA’s Web site at www.acatoday.org or call 800-986-4636.

Written by Mark Crawford and published in the January/February 2013 issue of JACA Online, published by the American Chiropractic Association.

Source: http://www.chirohealthy.com/articles/wellness-for-free-website-and-app-review.asp

Chiropractic Research

A growing list of research studies and reviews demonstrate that the services provided by chiropractic phyisicians are both safe and effective.  Following are excerpts and summaries from a few of the more recent studies. The evidence strongly supports the natural, whole-body and cost-effective approach of chiropractic care for a variety of conditions.

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For Acute and Chronic Pain

“Many treatments are available for low back pain. Often exercises and physical therapy can help. Some people benefit from chiropractic therapy or acupuncture.”

--Goodman et al. (2013), Journal of the American Medical Association  

“[Chiropractic Manipulative Therapy] in conjunction with [standard medical care] offers a significant advantage for decreasing pain and improving physical functioning when compared with only standard care, for men and women between 18 and 35 years of age with acute low back pain.”

--Goertz et al. (2013), Spine

In a Randomized controlled trial, 183 patients with neck pain were randomly allocated to manual therapy (spinal mobilization), physiotherapy (mainly exercise) or general practitioner care (counseling, education and drugs) in a 52-week study. The clinical outcomes measures showed that manual therapy resulted in faster recovery than physiotherapy and general practitioner care. Moreover, total costs of the manual therapy-treated patients were about one-third of the costs of physiotherapy or general practitioner care.

 -- Korthals-de Bos et al (2003), British Medical Journal

“Patients with chronic low-back pain treated by chiropractors showed greater improvement and satisfaction at one month than patients treated by family physicians. Satisfaction scores were higher for chiropractic patients. A higher proportion of chiropractic patients (56 percent vs. 13 percent) reported that their low-back pain was better or much better, whereas nearly one-third of medical patients reported their low-back pain was worse or much worse.”

– Nyiendo et al (2000), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics

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In Comparison to Other Treatment Alternatives

"Reduced odds of surgery were observed for...those whose first provider was a chiropractor. 42.7% of workers [with back injuries] who first saw a surgeon had surgery, in contrast to only 1.5% of those who saw a chiropractor."

– Keeney et al (2012), Spine 

“Acute and chronic chiropractic patients experienced better outcomes in pain, functional disability, and patient satisfaction; clinically important differences in pain and disability improvement were found for chronic patients.”

– Haas et al (2005), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics

“In our randomized, controlled trial, we compared the effectiveness of manual therapy, physical therapy, and continued care by a general practitioner in patients with nonspecific neck pain. The success rate at seven weeks was twice as high for the manual therapy group (68.3 percent) as for the continued care group (general practitioner). Manual therapy scored better than physical therapy on all outcome measures. Patients receiving manual therapy had fewer absences from work than patients receiving physical therapy or continued care, and manual therapy and physical therapy each resulted in statistically significant less analgesic use than continued care.”

– Hoving et al (2002), Annals of Internal Medicine

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For Headaches

“Cervical spine manipulation was associated with significant improvement in headache outcomes in trials involving patients with neck pain and/or neck dysfunction and headache.”

-- McCrory, Penzlen, Hasselblad, Gray (2001), Duke Evidence Report

“The results of this study show that spinal manipulative therapy is an effective treatment for tension headaches. . . Four weeks after cessation of treatment . . . the patients who received spinal manipulative therapy experienced a sustained therapeutic benefit in all major outcomes in contrast to the patients that received amitriptyline therapy, who reverted to baseline values.” ‘

-- Boline et al. (1995), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics

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For Neck Pain

In a study funded by NIH’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine to test the effectiveness of different approaches for treating mechanical neck pain, 272 participants were divided into three groups that received either spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) from a doctor of chiropractic (DC), pain medication (over-the-counter pain relievers, narcotics and muscle relaxants) or exercise recommendations. After 12 weeks, about 57 percent of those who met with DCs and 48 percent who exercised reported at least a 75 percent reduction in pain, compared to 33 percent of the people in the medication group. After one year, approximately 53 percent of the drug-free groups continued to report at least a 75 percent reduction in pain; compared to just 38 percent pain reduction among those who took medication.

 -- Bronfort et al. (2012), Annals of Internal Medicine

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Cost Effectiveness

Low back pain initiated with a doctor of chiropractic (DC) saves 40 percent on health care costs when compared with care initiated through a medical doctor (MD), according to a study that analyzed data from 85,000 Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) beneficiaries in Tennessee over a two-year span. The study population had open access to MDs and DCs through self-referral, and there were no limits applied to the number of MD/DC visits allowed and no differences in co-pays. Researchers estimated that allowing DC-initiated episodes of care would have led to an annual cost savings of $2.3 million for BCBS of Tennessee. They also concluded that insurance companies that restrict access to chiropractic care for low back pain treatment may inadvertently pay more for care than they would if they removed such restrictions.

– Liliedahl et al (2010), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics

“Chiropractic care appeared relatively cost-effective for the treatment of chronic low-back pain. Chiropractic and medical care performed comparably for acute patients. Practice-based clinical outcomes were consistent with systematic reviews of spinal manipulative efficacy: manipulation-based therapy is at least as good as and, in some cases, better than other therapeusis.”

– Haas et al (2005), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics

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Patient Satisfaction

“Chiropractic patients were found to be more satisfied with their back care providers after four weeks of treatment than were medical patients. Results from observational studies suggested that back pain patients are more satisfied with chiropractic care than with medical care. Additionally, studies conclude that patients are more satisfied with chiropractic care than they were with physical therapy after six weeks.”

-- Hertzman-Miller et al (2002), American Journal of Public Health

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Popularity of Chiropractic

“Chiropractic is the largest, most regulated, and best recognized of the complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) professions. CAM patient surveys show that chiropractors are used more often than any other alternative provider group and patient satisfaction with chiropractic care is very high. There is steadily increasing patient use of chiropractic in the United States, which has tripled in the past two decades.”

– Meeker, Haldeman (2002), Annals of Internal Medicine

Source: http://www.acatoday.org/level3_css.cfm?T1ID=13&T2ID=61&T3ID=150