October is fast approaching, and it will be National Chiropractic Health Month! The theme for 2017 is “Back to Basics” and the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) will share back injury prevention and strengthening tips and chiropractic information to help foster a conservative approach to back pain treatment. So what are the basics of chiropractic care? This blog will explore how chiropractic care in New Buffalo is different, and how it can help the growing epidemic of not only back pain, but opioid abuse.

Why Chiropractic

Chiropractic is different from mainstream American medicine in that it uses natural and non-invasive techniques to solve pain in the back, neck, and other parts of the body and solve mobility issues. Instead of resorting to invasive surgery or reliance on habit-forming prescriptions, chiropractic seeks to restore healing and balance to the body. Chiropractors go through extensive training and seek to view back and neck problems as a part of a larger imbalance in the body as a whole. This holistic thinking helps chiropractors really get to the root of the problem, and not just offer a bandaid solution to a deeper problem. Chronic pain is something that chiropractors don’t view as normal, or as something to just suppress with medication. They view the body as an amazing machine that is able to heal, repair, and recover from many injuries and abuses. Chronic back and neck pain can limit mobility, interfere with daily activities, and lead to long term health issues. Aside from any chronic pain issues, chiropractic can be great for flexibility, balance, sports, and feeling better in everyday life!

Back Injury Prevention

The holistic view of chiropractic puts a lot of weight on prevention, and this year’s “Back to Basics” is a great chance to focus on what to do to prevent back pain, strains, and stiffness. There are many ways to prevent back injuries, including:

Maintaining a healthy weight: Carrying excess weight can put stress on your back and neck, and can result in joint pain and muscle strain. Excess weight in the stomach strains the lower back and can throw your body out of alignment. Eating a healthy diet, and staying active can keep you at a healthy weight.

Getting enough sleep: While you are sleeping, your body is repairing itself and sending vital nutrients to tissues, muscles, and internal organs. Rest helps your body be ready for the day, and maintaining a healthy sleeping position can help reduce neck and back strain. Evaluate your bed, pillow, and room temperature to ensure that your sleep is the best it can be.

Having good posture: Bad body posture can result in excessive pressure on the discs in the back, and create lifelong alignment issues. Pain is often a result of bad alignment in the spine, which can be greatly helped by watching your posture throughout the day. Sitting at a desk all day, long commutes, or slouching while standing can all force your body into a position that can lead to chronic pain.

Lifting correctly: While many people know the phrase “lift with your legs”, surprisingly few actually follow it. Lifting heavy objects with only your back often leads to strains, pulls, and pain. Engage your core and your legs when lifting, and keep the weight close to your body.

Strength training: We touched on maintaining a healthy weight through exercise, but exercise is also important to build muscles that support the body and prevent back injuries. Your chiropractor can be a great source of ideas for exercises that can prevent back injuries.

Reduce stress: Stress can lead to tension in your muscles, including the back muscles. Tension can lead to pain in your muscles and can predispose you to back injury. Practice deep breathing or meditation daily to alleviate stress and tension in the body.

Regular chiropractic visits: You shouldn’t just see the chiropractor when you are hurting. Chiropractic care is great for keeping your body healthy and helping you avoid back injury.

Incidence of Back Pain

Is back pain that big of a deal? Does it really need a whole month dedicated to getting “Back to Basics”? Turns out, yes it is, and yes it does. As many as 31 million Americans experience back pain at any given time, and low back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide. Back pain is one of the most common reasons for people to miss work, and is the second most common reason for seeing a doctor. One half of all working Americans report back pain each year, and up to 80 percent of the population will experience back pain in their lifetime. So yes, back pain is a big deal, and millions of Americans are suffering every day. Most of these cases are not from a life-threatening cause, but are due to issues of alignment, injury, and overuse. Chiropractic seeks to be a solution to this growing problem that is costing us more than $50 billion a year—with much of that money spent on unsatisfactory treatment or invasive surgeries. With so many people suffering, prescriptions to painkillers have become a common occurrence, which leads to another big problem.

Abuse of Opioids

Chronic back pain can be debilitating, and lead to isolation, depression, loss of work, and more. Because of the devastating effects of back pain, patients are often eager to find any relief, and that often comes in the form of a prescription for an opioid painkiller. As many as one in four patients in the U.S. that have taken prescription painkillers continue to struggle with addiction, and many of these addictions started with an injury or chronic pain. Opioid deaths have quadrupled since 1999, and every day more than 1,000 people are treated in the ER for misusing prescription opioids. The opioid crisis has gotten so bad that it has led the White House to announce that it is designating the crisis as a national emergency. There are approximately 142 Americans dying every day due to this epidemic, and chiropractic wants to be part of the solution.

Back to Basics

Part of National Chiropractic Health Month is to provide alternatives to the opioid epidemic, chronic back pain, and expensive and invasive surgery. Chiropractic seeks to relieve back pain sufferers and restore mobility to people that have had limited range of motion for years. Corrective Chiropractic in New Buffalo is proud to be a part of the chiropractic community, and would love to help you with back or neck pain that you are experiencing. When you choose a chiropractor you are choosing a practitioner that seeks to really get to the root of your problems and relieve, not cover, chronic pain. Start your chiropractic journey today—call us for an appointment!