Chiropractors receive recognized medical degrees and offer spinal manipulations to relieve pressure caused by subluxations. Critics argue that spinal manipulation is potentially dangerous, but chiropractors defend their profession and point to the long-term benefits of their treatments.
On the spectrum of alternative medical treatments, the chiropractic profession falls very close to the main goal. Chiropractors receive recognized medical degrees from specialized schools, and their services are usually covered by health insurance if prescribed by a physician. However, chiropractors spend an inordinate amount of time defending their profession from critics both within and outside the medical field.
Chiropractors receive a general education in human physiology and biology, but their primary focus is the spine. Chiropractors believe that the vertebrae of the spine and neck are routinely misaligned by everyday stressors, and these misalignments (called subluxations) can be the root cause of a myriad of physical and mental ailments. By physically manipulating individual vertebrae or readjusting the entire spine, chiropractors hope to relieve pressure caused by subluxations.
Chiropractors often generate business by offering free spinal exams to the public. During these exams, basic measurements are taken to reveal any imbalance in spinal alignment. One shoulder may be measurably taller than the other, or one arm may provide more stress resistance than the other. Sometimes chiropractors’ clients fall on two scales to determine the heaviest side of the body. Critics suggest that almost every human being has some form of spinal imbalance, but this is not necessarily an indicator of health problems.
It could be said that chiropractic treatments fall somewhere between those provided by a trained spine physician and a physical therapist. The term chiropractic literally means “through the hands”, much of what chiropractors do is manipulation or hands-on adjustment of the patient’s spine and back. Special tables allow chiropractors to place patients in traction or compression. Sometimes the spine is “popped” by applying pressure between each successive vertebra. Other times, chiropractors may use a twisting motion to bring the neck vertebrae back into alignment.
Critics of the chiropractic profession point to all this spinal manipulation as a potentially dangerous practice. These critics argue that almost all joints generate a satisfactory ‘click’ as the gases in the cartilage are released, and that therefore the click does not mean that the joint is more aligned than before the manipulation. Critics of chiropractic medicine also argue that the neck vertebrae are especially vulnerable to fractures that lead to paralysis, making the risks of serious injury outweigh the health benefits.
Chiropractors, however, staunchly defend their profession, pointing to the number of potentially dangerous services, such as prescribing drugs and performing surgery, provided daily by spine surgeons and physical therapists. Chiropractors note that patients benefit from the long-term effects of spinal manipulations, not necessarily a one-time visit; and that physical manipulation of the spine and neck can be compared with deep tissue massage techniques, both of which aim to reduce stress and restore damaged nerve pathways. Chiropractors also point out that many health insurance companies cover their services, which means that enough clients can benefit from chiropractic treatments to justify their expense.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
