Years ago, having been through several car accidents over a span of many years, my back health took a nose dive. I could not as much as sit, sleep or move without pain. Finally I found a chiropractor, and with his help and the help of his colleague, after regular treatments over the span of about 6 months, my back was good as new. Since then I learned to take better care of myself, doing yoga, strength training, and, of course, regular chiropractic adjustments.
Right after I gave birth to Sprout, I noticed that my little girl favored turning her head to the right. We went for walks, she would look to the right, she slept having her head turned to the right, etc. No matter how many times I tried to readjust and redirect, Sprout always went right back to her right side. It was time to find out what is going on and fix it. From my personal experience I knew that no one is better suited for such tasks than chiropractors.
I found a chiropractor who specializes in infant chiropractic care–Dr. Heather Prenger–and took Sprout to see her once a month since. Sprout’s problem was completely resolved and she enjoys a full range of motion with her little neck.
Sprout is now 3 and I still take her to see a chiropractor on a regular basis. Since moving to Washington we found an amazing wife/husband chiropractic duo to take care of our skeletons and we love them! And so does Sprout! She feels as if they are a part of our family, and both of them are spectacular with kids.
(Sprout gets warmed up for her adjustment by adjusting a “Sproutosaurus”)
Not everyone knows the benefits of kids’ chiropractic care, so, when people learn that Sprouts gets adjusted regularly, I get a a plethora of questions: “Why?” “When?” “How?” Since I love educating myself and others on all health topics, I thought it would be amazing to take these questions to Sprout’s former chiropractor [former only because we moved states]. Dr. Heather, as we called her, had graciously answered the most asked questions about kids’ chiropractic care.
Dr. Heather, a Magna Cum Laude graduate, earned her Doctorate of Chiropractic from Palmer College of Chiropractic, Florida. She was honored for her work as a Clinical Teaching Assistant. Dr. Heather continued her education after Palmer, obtaining the postgraduate designation of Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician® (CCSP®). She is trained in many chiropractic adjusting and soft tissue techniques including the Webster Technique for pregnant women and care for infants and children. She practices in the Columbus area, primarily seeing pregnant moms, children family’s, and athletes. Dr. Heather is a mother of 2 young boys and wife of chiropractor, Dr. Greg Prenger, DC. If you are local to Columbus, OH area, you can learn more about Dr. Heather on her web-site: www.ohio-chiropractic.com.
Why Do Children Need Chiropractic Care?
Do you take your children to the chiropractor? If your answer is yes then, fantastic! If the answer is no, then why not?
Your child has a spine and nervous system that need cared for just like an adult. It is actually even MORE important to have your children checked as infancy and childhood are impressionable times of rapid growth and development of the spine and nervous system. Chiropractors examine and evaluate for proper movement, function, and alignment of the spine. Adjustments remove vertebral fixations (joints that are “stuck” and not moving properly) which reduces inflammation and interference to the nervous system. The nervous system controls all of the functions in the entire body. By having your child’s spine checked you are maintaining the health of your child’s entire body, naturally too! Chiropractic care is gentle and safe. Only light force is needed when adjusting an infant or child’s spine. Imagine the pressure needed to press your pinky finger into a ripe red tomato and you get the idea.
But let’s dig deeper into the “why chiropractic for our little ones” question, and let’s start at the beginning.
In utero, the baby is in a small space and could be in awkward positions at times. Secondly, birth can be a traumatic process on an infant’s body, even a smooth and natural birth without interventions. The baby is being squeezed through a small space in a short amount of time. If there are interventions such as pitocin causing more intense contractions, forceps, vacuum, or cesarean it is even more dire that your baby be adjusted as soon as possible after birth. These interventions can involve intense pulling and tractioning on the head and neck, and therefore on the spine and spinal cord. Due to all of these factors, it is very common for a newborn to have a misalignment in their cervical spine (especially the first vertebra, C1), and often the pelvis too. These are very easy to treat and babies respond very quickly. However, if neglected, the ramifications could be many and pronounced. Looking down the road, many children are diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis as adolescents. Idiopathic means unknown cause. I wonder if a misalignment from birth, left untreated, could cause the spine to make compensations leading to abnormal curves of the spine? In my opinion it’s not worth taking a chance and waiting on the research to prove it. Adjustments are simple, quick and painless.
When it comes to infants, chiropractic care helps with breastfeeding problems, colic, digestive problems, allergies, and sleep problems. I have seen a child who was 16 months and not walking took her first steps a day after her first adjustment and a kindergartener stopped his nightly bed-wetting after his treatment. Chiropractic adjustments can affect the body in many positive ways because of its influence on the nervous system.
So when should your child be adjusted and how often? It is important for children to be examined for spinal fixations after birth. I suggest within the first 2 weeks unless there is an immediate problem such as not breastfeeding, then they should be evaluated as soon as possible. For a healthy infant or child, they should be adjusted when they first hold their head up (cervical curve develops at this time) and when they first sit, crawl, and walk (lumbar curve develops at this time). They should be adjusted at the first sign of a cold or ear infection, if they are not sleeping well, have a fall or after especially rough play, and if they are just “out of sorts”, not acting themselves. These are all good times to bring your child in for an adjustment and tune-up for the nervous system. Additional signs your child needs adjusted are if you notice your infant always looking or carrying or holding his or her head in the same direction or position. For example if she always looks to the right when in the car seat, sling or swing. If you notice resistance when turning her head to one direction verses the other. Also if your child’s neck or abdomen is sensitive to touch, and if they are experiencing constipation or frequent gas. And if all of this is too hard to keep track of, a monthly chiropractic visit should cover the bases.
Kids Chiropractic Checklist
I thought it would be helpful to provide you with a quick checklist of life events that would call for chiropractic care for your kiddos.
birth
help with breastfeeding
colic
digestive problems
allergies
sleep problems
bed wetting
physical developmental delays
developmental milestones: begin to hold up head, sitting, crawling, walking
colds
ear infections
falls/rough plays
not feeling themselves
(a future chiropractor in the making?)
Q & A
Vegalicious readers asked Dr. Hearther specific questions.
Q: Will visiting a chiropractor help with a child’s sleep?
A: Yes, it could, if the child has a misaligned vertebra that is causing discomfort or disruption to the nervous system.
Q: Do all chiropractors adjust children?
A: All are trained in treating children but not all are comfortable adjusting children. The best thing to do is ask your local chiropractor if they adjust children; or google your city and chiropractor, infants, children, etc. Also there is a site where you can look for a chiropractor certified in Webster technique for pregnancy. Most webster chiropractors are comfortable and well trained treating children.
Q: Can adjustments help older children sleep better? I have an 11 year old with special needs and he needs to sleep and doesn’t a lot of nights.
A: It might, if he has a spinal misalignment. I think all children with special needs should be checked by a chiropractor. Many special needs involve the nervous system and chiropractic can positively influence the nervous system. A colleague of mine worked on a 12 year old boy who could not walk or talk. By the time he was finished with his treatment plan he was walking out the door on his own saying “see ya later” to his chiropractor. That is an amazing and extraordinary story! Not every case is like that but what if this boy’s parents had never taken him to the chiropractor?
Q: What are the signs to look for in infants which would indicate a need for an adjustment?
A: All of the signs I mentioned in the last paragraph above.
Q: Is there a reason to start infants on Chiropractic care?
A: Yes, hopefully you have a better understanding of that after reading this post
Q: Does it help babies with allergies or sleep patterns?
A: It can help with these issues. If a spinal fixation is affecting the nervous system. Allergies are an overreaction to an outside stimulus. Adjustments can help calm an overreacting nervous system. You won’t know for sure unless you give it a try, and it definitely won’t make the problem worse.
Q: For a healthy infant how often is it good to get adjusted?
A: At developmental milestones or once a month. Also at the first sign of a cold, change in sleeping or behavior.
Q: Are there essential oils that help soothe after an adjustment?
A: I think essential oils are a great asset to have at home. I am not well versed on which oils are best for different issues but Young Living is a great resource and they have several soothing and relaxing blends.
Q: What are the minimum, most important life events for a baby which would require and adjustment?
A: Birth and milestones such as holding her head up, sitting, crawling, walking are most important events for a little one to be checked. Following that up with continued monthly visits if you are really going for a wellness, natural and preventative approach to health.
Questions?
If I missed any questions that are of interest to you, make sure to add them in the comment section, and I will ask our current awesome chiropractors, who are also kid magnets, to answer them for you.
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