We all want our children to enjoy their time being kids – to have fun playing with friends, have patience in learning, and have the enthusiasm to discover things on their own. But all these can be challenging when they develop poor behavior that just might affect their capability to connect with people around them.
In 2011, roughly 1 in every 10 US school-aged children were diagnosed with ADHD. Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder that can affect children’s success at school including their relationships with the people in their environment. Therefore, most parents choose the fast and most convenient way – to medicate. Although there may be some benefits to using medications to treat symptoms, there may also be side effects ranging from being mild to significant. These include sleeping problems, moodiness and irritability, decreased appetite, fatigue, and the list goes on. Another is the risk of overmedication – children who are dependent on medications typically overmedicate when they become adults and these can lead to health problems or worse, addiction in later life.
Below are three of some of the many reasons why a healthy spine and nerve system through specific chiropractic can help your child overcome behavioral challenges:
- Chiropractic to Correct Subluxations to Optimize Body Functions
Chiropractic focuses on the spine and nervous system without applying medications or using invasive surgery. Referred to as the “central nervous system”, the brains and the spinal cord work together to control and coordinate our functions – walk and talk, our automatic body functions – breathe and digest food – and even our senses, emotions, thoughts, and memory. This means that when your child’s spine shifts, instead of protecting the delicate spinal cord and nerves, it can actually obstruct the communication between your child’s brain and their body’s systems, therefore affecting both their physical function as well as their brain’s ability to accurately perceive the environment and properly adapt to it.
What Chiropractic care does is to correct vertebral subluxations (spinal misalignments interfering with the nerve system) to optimize body functions. Thus, chiropractic care does not only apply to kids showing ADHD symptoms, but to all kids! We all know it’s natural for kids to be naturally curious and tend to be hyperactive at times as well. They run, jump, discover things on their own, and sometimes injure themselves. But by properly managing their spine and nerve system and making their body more stress-resilient to the environment and injuries through Structural Chiropractic Care, they can be back to being happy kids again.
- Chiropractic as an effective tool to retain positive neuroplasticity
In the 1990s, scientists discovered brain plasticity or otherwise known as “neuroplasticity” which is the ability of the brain to change throughout life. The human brain can reorganize itself by forming new connections between neurons. Aside from genetic and environmental factors, how the person lives, or his actions can also affect plasticity- including an injury. When the spine starts to shift from optimal position, stress is transferred to the supply system it houses. Bulging or slipping discs can hinder lymphatic and nervous pathways; stenosis of the spine can restrict nerve and blood flow; and, the longer these systems are negatively affected, the more the brain is deprived.
Linking the goal of chiropractic versus neuroplasticity, studies have been conducted to learn how chiropractic can be considered as a tool to maintain positive neuroplasticity including a study presented at the International Research and Philosophy Symposium held at Sherman College of Straight Chiropractic. The mental activity of 100 participants was monitored through electroencephalograms (EEG). Brain functions showed improvement after Chiropractic care! Also, in a study published in 2016 in the Journal Neural Plasticity by Holt, Haavik, Murphy, and colleagues, they have revealed that adjusting the spine changes brain function. It was later studied and confirmed by an independent medical researcher.
- Chiropractic as Practical Solution for your child’s behavioral issues
There are still a lot of ongoing studies learning about how chiropractic affects neurobehavior and neurodevelopment in children, and for many years, there have been an overwhelming amount of case reports and Chiropractors have received overwhelming feedback from parents that their children are showing significant improvement in behavior, sleep and even becoming more stress-resilient and better able to manage environmental challenges.
As parents, we only want the best for our kids. Seeing them thrive on their full potential would be a sight to behold. Each kid deserves only the best, and that includes the best treatment if needed. That is what Chiropractic Care can offer: a practical, drug-free, and non-invasive solution for your children’s needs.
