The Advantages of Long-Term Chiropractic Care

How long has it been since you've seen your chiropractor? Chiropractic visits not only offer relief of chronic or acute (sudden) pain but may also provide long-term health benefits. Making time for regular chiropractic care offers a simple way to protect your health.

Why You Should Consider Long-Term Care

Scheduling regular visits to the chiropractor help prevent pain from returning. Although you'll feel much better after a few weeks or months of chiropractic care, your symptoms could recur if you don't receive periodic spinal adjustments and other treatments. In fact, the American College of Physicians includes spinal manipulation in its guidelines for treating non-radiating low back pain. Regular maintenance appointments keep your spine properly aligned and your muscles and joints flexible.

Long-term care also:

• Helps You Avoid Posture-Related Aches and Pains. Working in tight spaces or spending hours in the same position stresses your muscles and joints, increasing your risk of injuries or chronic pain. Whether you're a truck driver, office worker, plumber or mechanic, long-term care can help you avoid aches and pains related to your posture or job.

• Lowers Your Risk of Developing Text Neck. Text neck is a fairly new condition related to the use of digital devices. Looking downward at your smartphone or other devices for hours at a time stresses your neck and spine, causing neck and shoulder pain, muscle spasms, wrist pain, headaches, or numbness in the fingers. Regular chiropractic adjustments, in addition to changing the way you hold your devices, help you avoid these unpleasant symptoms.

• Improves Range of Motion and Flexibility. Chiropractic treatment keeps muscles and joints loose and flexible. Lack of flexibility can impair blood flow to the cartilage at the ends of your bones, causing the cartilage to break down prematurely. When muscles in your legs, arms, neck or back are tight, range of motion decreases and your risk of muscle strains and other muscle or joint issues soars. Poor flexibility or range of motion may also affect your balance and can be a factor in falls.

• Enhances Organ and Immune System Function. Spinal misalignments cause bones or tissues to press on nerves, affecting their ability to send signals throughout your body. These misalignments, called subluxations, can interfere with the normal functioning of your organs and immune system. Adjustments relieve pressure on your nerves and help you stay healthy.

• Helps You Avoid Sports Injuries. You're more likely to injure yourself if your body isn't properly aligned and balanced when you participate in your favorite sport or activity. Regular chiropractic visits help you maintain proper spinal alignment, reducing your risk of strains, sprains, and other sports-related injuries. Long-term care can also quicken recovery time after a workout.

• Eliminates or Reduces Reliance on Pain Medication. Are you worried about the potential side effects of prescription pain relievers or the possibility of addiction? Chiropractic care helps ease your pain naturally and may help you avoid medication completely.

• Makes Breathing Easier. Spinal adjustments relieve pressure on the thoracic nerves that serve the lungs and loosen muscles, making it easier to take deep breaths.

• Keeps Arthritis Pain Under Control. Chiropractic care helps reduce pain, decrease inflammation, and improve joint mobility and flexibility in people who have arthritis.

• Decreases Headache Frequency. Tight muscles, nerve pressure, and spinal misalignment can be factors in tension headaches and migraines. Thanks to long-term chiropractic care, you may experience fewer headache days each month.

• Treats the Source of Your Pain. Although medication can be helpful in relieving pain, the effects soon wear off, causing a spike in your pain level. If you don't identify and address the cause of your pain, symptoms can continue for weeks, months or years. Chiropractic care treats the source of your pain, not just the symptoms, and offers an effective long-term way to keep pain under control.

Could long-term chiropractic help you improve your health? Contact us to schedule your next appointment.

Sources:

Palmer College of Chiropractic: Benefits of Chiropractic

American College of Physicians: American College of Physicians Issues Guideline for Treating Nonradicular Low Back Pain

Chiropractic Economics: Text Neck Pain, Treatment and Prevention, 10/30/19