If you have children, one of the top priorities is to raise healthy and happy children. This includes everything from eating healthy, exercising, going to checkup appointments, and getting adequate sleep. Like adults, children can suffer from pain, discomfort, and illness. The National Board of Chiropractic Examiners indicates that 17 percent of chiropractic patients are less than 18 years old and 8 percent of that group is five or younger. These findings indicate that more people are becoming aware of the benefits of chiropractic care for children. Let’s take a closer look at how chiropractic care can help your child achieve lasting health and wellness.
Your Child’s Nervous System
The central nervous system includes the brain, spinal cord, and nerves. This vital system controls the body’s functions, such as a child’s ability to grow and develop. If your child has a misaligned spine or subluxation, this can interfere with their nervous system’s ability to effectively communicate with the body.
Children of all ages can suffer from subluxations in the spine. For example, babies may have a misaligned spine due to birth trauma or developmental stress. From birth to age 5, a child’s body produces more neural pathways than any other time during their life. Therefore, it is essential that this neural production is working properly. Indeed, the first five years of a child’s life are crucial for their continued growth and development into adulthood.
Promote Healthy Habits
When you take your child to a chiropractic office, the licensed chiropractor will perform a gentle, safe, and effective adjustment designed for treating children. By properly aligning their spine, the chiropractic adjustment will help encourage effective nervous system functions and brain to body communication.
If the child’s spine misalignments are not treated, this puts excessive pressure on their spine and nerves. This can lead to pain and neurological interference with the child’s brain to body communications. By treating the spine misalignments, the brain can then better communicate with the body and be able to heal itself naturally. Indeed, a child’s body depends on a healthy, functioning nervous system to develop and grow into a healthy grown-up. Chiropractic care can help set your child up for lasting healthy habits from an early age. When children adopt healthy habits during such influential years, they will be more likely to continue making healthy choices as grown-ups.
Assist with Breastfeeding
For new moms and babies, it can sometimes be stressful and challenging to breastfeed. Some moms may find it challenging for their baby to stay or latch on, so the baby can receive the proper nutrients from breast milk. If a baby has a misaligned spine, neck, or shoulders, this can put excessive pressure on the baby’s body. Chiropractors can perform very gentle, safe adjustments designed for newborns. This will treat the baby’s misalignments and thus, reduce or remove any pain or discomfort the baby feels. In turn, the chiropractic adjustment can improve the breastfeeding experience for both mom and baby.
Reduce the Risk of Injury
No matter the age, children are going to get bumps, bruises, and other injuries. Children learn by doing and exploring, which can sometimes lead to accidents. Luckily, young children have more flexible bones than grown-ups. This doesn’t mean they cannot become injured. One helpful tip to reduce the risk of injury is to take your child to a chiropractor. These wellness chiropractors have the skills and knowledge to keep your child’s joints and ligaments flexible.
As children grow, chiropractic care can help promote an easier transition during each developmental phase. This will also help prevent injuries because the child’s body is correctly aligned and the central nervous system can effectively communicate with the body. In turn, this brain to body communication helps the child’s body continue on a path towards improving their health and wellness into adulthood.
We hope you enjoyed our latest article discussing the benefits of chiropractic care for your children. Children can suffer from spine misalignments that impact their health and well-being, just like adults. Contact Enlighten Chiropractic today to learn how we can help your child get an early start towards achieving natural, whole health through our principled chiropractic care. We would love to become your new Lakeville Chiropractors in MN!
