The Benefits of Chiropractic Care for Children
Chiropractic treatments aren't just for adults. No matter what their age, kids benefit from gentle treatments designed to relieve pain and promote growth and development. When your children visit the chiropractor, they'll experience these important benefits:
- A Natural Solution to Pain. Rough-and-tumble play sessions, falls on the playground, poor posture, and sports injuries can lead to aches and pains for kids. In addition to injuries, kids can also struggle with aching arms and legs due to growing pains. Chiropractors treat pain holistically with treatments like spinal manipulation (adjustments), massage, soft tissue mobilization, ultrasound therapy, and other treatments. Therapies are specially tailored to your child's needs and modified when necessary to ensure a safe, comfortable experience for your son or daughter.
- Fewer Headaches. Tension and migraine headaches can begin when children are very young. Once they start, headaches can become a lifelong problem for kids. Your chiropractor may relieve headache pain by realigning the vertebrae in your child's neck with spinal manipulation therapy or might loosen tight, painful neck muscles with a soothing massage. In a case report published in the Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research in 2022, chiropractors discussed the effects of spinal manipulation treatment on a 15-year-old boy experiencing chronic migraines. The boy had only five migraines in the two years after treatment, despite experiencing migraines every three weeks before treatment.
- Enhanced Nervous System Functioning. A strong nervous system is essential for your child's growth and development. Nerves carry messages from the brain that help control movement, speech, digestion, breathing, heart rate, and a healthy immune system. Misaligned vertebrae may press on nerves, preventing them from delivering a complete signal from the brain to the body's systems and organs. Chiropractic treatment relieves nerve pressure and supports healthy nervous system function. A strong nervous system is essential for good gut health and a healthy immune system.
- A Gentler Introduction to the World. You're never too young to reap the benefits of chiropractic care. In fact, modified chiropractic treatments are often performed on newborns. The birth process can cause misalignments and imbalances, which may affect your newborn's development and comfort. Chiropractic treatments realign and rebalance the body and may help improve feeding or sleeping issues.
- Improved Athletic Performance. It's difficult to catch a ball or run quickly if your joints and muscles are tight and painful. Chiropractic care enhances flexibility and coordination and improves range of motion in joints. Treatments could also help your child avoid sports injuries. Spinal misalignments and tight muscles and tissues may cause imbalances that make it easier to fall or strain a muscle. Keeping the tissues loose and the spine properly aligned could prevent injuries.
- Help for Colic. Colic occurs when your baby cries for hours for no apparent reason. Doctors aren't sure why some babies experience colic, although the condition might be caused by gas pains, food intolerances, or sensitivity to stimuli, according to MedlinePlus. Fortunately, chiropractic treatment may reduce crying bouts. Crying duration decreased by 1.5 hours for colicky babies receiving chiropractic treatment, according to a research study published in Chiropractic & Manual Therapies in 2021. Crying decreased by one hour in a control group of babies that attended the chiropractic clinic but didn't receive treatment.
- Fewer ADHD Symptoms. Chiropractic treatment might reduce common attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, like hyperactivity, difficulty paying attention, and impulsiveness. Children with ADHD who participated in a study published in Frontiers in Psychology in 2024 received either usual care plus chiropractic treatment or usual care plus sham (fake) chiropractic treatment. Both groups showed improvement in symptoms after treatment. The researchers noted that more research is needed to evaluate chiropractic treatment effects on children with ADHD.
Ready to find out what chiropractic treatment could do for your child? Contact our office to schedule an appointment.
Sources:
Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research: Resolution of Chronic Migraines in a 15-Year-Old Male Following Chiropractic Care: A Case Report & Review of the Literature, 1/11/2022
https://vertebralsubluxationresearch.com/2021/05/29/9859/
MedlinePlus: Colic and Crying - Self-Care, 7/1/2023
https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000753.htm
Chiropractic & Manual Therapies: The Effect of Chiropractic Care on Infantile Colic: Results from a Single-Blind Randomised Controlled trial, 4/19/2021
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12998-021-00371-8
Frontiers in Psychology: The Effects of Chiropractic Adjustment on Inattention, Hyperactivity, and Impulsivity in Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Pilot RCT, 5/5/2024
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1323397/full
American Chiropractic Association: Research Review: Best Practices for Chiropractic Care of Children, 11/30/2017