Regular Chiropractic Care
Most of us see the advantage of having our motor vehicles regularly maintained. It is appreciated that to avoid breakdowns and optimise performance cars require periodic servicing such as oil changes, tyres, wheel alignment and safety checks. Servicing costs over the lifetime of a motor vehicle can be significant with most owners on average spending up to $2000 per annum.
Paradoxically, when it comes to our bodies we are often less inclined to look after ourselves. Over the past few decades the pharmaceutical industry has successfully marketed anti-inflammatory and pain relief medications as being the answer to a long list of ailments including back pain, nerve pain, muscle pain, headaches, etc. Unfortunately, this has led to the mistaken belief that pain is a benign process and can be simply solved by a tablet. Of course pain is our body’s way of communicating to us that we have an underlying problem requiring our attention. The longer pain has been endured the more likely it is that the underlying problem will be more complex to treat. Early intervention is therefore key to achieving positive outcomes.
Periodic spinal check-ups allow the chiropractor to quickly diagnose and manage problems, often before obvious symptoms arise. So, who will benefit from spinal check-ups? Whilst most people will benefit from regular spinal check-ups there are some people who take excellent care of their spines and rarely require chiropractic interventions. These people are usually very fit, have very little incidence of familial spinal problems and have been fortunate to have avoided spinal injuries. Those who will benefit greatly from regular care meet the following criteria:
- A history of spinal trauma – eg. falls, whiplash, lifting, car accidents, etc.
- Physical occupations requiring frequent bending and lifting
- Sedentary occupations involving long periods of sitting
- Family history of osteoarthritis and disc disease
- Scoliosis or other structural spinal abnormalities