Wellness is more than simply being free from pain. True wellness involves helping the body function at its best so we can move, work, exercise, sleep, and enjoy life. It also helps ensure we are being proactive and striving towards a greater level of health for ourselves and our families. One important component of overall wellness is maintaining a healthy spine and nervous system. This is where chiropractic care can play an important role.
The spine is the primary structural support of the body and protects the spinal cord, which is a major component of the nervous system. The brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves work together to communicate with virtually every part of the body. Nerves help coordinate movement, sensation, muscle activity, and many automatic functions throughout the body.
Every cell, tissue, organ, and body system depends on communication and regulation within the body. The nervous system helps coordinate these processes by transmitting signals between the brain, spinal cord, and the rest of the body. Because the spine houses and protects the spinal cord, maintaining healthy spinal movement and function is an important part of supporting normal nervous system function.
This principle is not new. In 1921, a research project by Dr. Henry Winsor, M.D. at the University of Pennsylvania, examined human and animal cadavers to explore the correlation between spinal misalignments and internal organ diseases. Dr. Winsor reported a high correlation between specific spinal misalignments in certain regions of the back and disease in corresponding organs supplied by those nerve pathways. The more the spine was misaligned it allowed for increased spinal damage and ultimately increased damage to the organs of the human body. Your spinal health has a direct impact on the health of your cells, tissues, organs, and systems of the body.
Chiropractic care focuses on the relationship between the spine, joints, muscles, and nervous system. Chiropractic adjustments are designed to improve joint motion and the function of the body. By adjusting the spine, we can affect neuromuscular function, pain processing, and other aspects of nervous system activity. This is one reason chiropractic wellness care is not necessarily limited to treating an episode of back or neck pain. Regular chiropractic care helps people maintain mobility, improves movement, and supports healthy musculoskeletal and nerve function. For many patients, chiropractic becomes part of a larger wellness routine that includes exercise, good nutrition, adequate sleep, stress management, and healthy lifestyle choices.
It is important to understand that chiropractic adjustments do not directly “control” individual organs or guarantee that specific diseases will be prevented or cured. However, the spine and nervous system are interconnected with the body’s ability to sense, move, adapt, and regulate itself. Just as Dr. Winsor, M.D. reported in his study, your spinal health has a high correlation to the health of your body. Supporting healthy spinal and nervous system function can therefore be viewed as one component of a comprehensive approach to wellness.
Think of your nervous system as your body’s main communication network. When communication between the brain and body is functioning properly, the body is better positioned to coordinate movement, maintain homeostasis, and function at its highest level. Healthy movement and proper joint function also provide important sensory information to the nervous system.
Wellness chiropractic care is ultimately about being proactive rather than waiting until something hurts. Just as people exercise to maintain strength and visit a dentist to maintain oral health, chiropractic care can be incorporated into a healthy lifestyle to help maintain spinal mobility and function.
Your spine is more than a collection of bones. Your spine helps to protect the most important part of your body. It protects your spinal cord and nervous system. It is vital for the brain’s communication with the body. Taking care of it may be an important step toward maintaining the active, healthy lifestyle you want for years to come.
-by Dr. Brandon Crouch
About the author: Dr. Brandon Crouch is a Chiropractor with Crouch Family Chiropractic. He is an advocate for being proactive when it comes to your health and encourages people to make healthy informed decisions. For more information or questions, you can contact him online at: www.crouchfamilychiro.com.
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