Can Chiropractic Care Boost your Immune System?
The flowers are blooming, the sun is shining, and your nose is constantly running. Happy allergy season, everyone! Your allergies are due to an overactive inflammatory response from your very own immune system. Recent research has implied that chiropractic care can actually boost immune system function, which includes the effects that accompany an overactive one.
Doctors have noticed that patients who subscribe to regular chiropractic care reported faster recovery times when it came to colds, stomach bugs, and even allergies. Is this a coincidence, or could your chiropractic care actually be helping you get over being under the weather? The relationship between chiropractic care and the immune system is a hot topic for chiropractic researchers and has gained momentum over the last 20 years. A pioneering study published in The Chiropractic Journal of Australia in 1993 compared immune system function before receiving adjustments, after adjustments and after receiving fake adjustments. They found improved levels of components vital to the functioning of the immune system in patients after having chiropractic adjustments as compared to their levels before treatment and to those patients who received fake adjustments. Components included antibody levels, phagocyte activity, and B/T lymphocyte numbers found in blood samples. Since the release of the study researchers have been hunting for the link between chiropractic care and immune system functioning.
Clinicians postulate that the immune system burst experienced after adjustments is due to the interplay between the nervous and immune systems. The nervous system plays a vital role in the sensing, targeting, and signaling when something goes wrong in the body. This allows and supports the immune system to carry out effective and appropriate responses. Chiropractic care realigns the spine and various musculoskeletal structures, and thus allows the central nervous system housed within those structures to transmit its signals more efficiently. The exciting thing is that evidence is suggesting that this improved performance extends into immune function. Even further, case analysis indicates that not only do chiropractic adjustments stimulate immune responses, but it specifically reduces the number of inflammatory components (associated with pain, heat and tissue damage) and increases components responsible for early detection and cell repair in the blood stream.
This is just one of the many incredible ways chiropractic treatment can assist your body to be the best it can be. Your care team at Custom Chiropractor is happy to help! Book an appointment or give us a call today!
References
Allen JM “The Effects of Chiropractic on the Immune System: A Review of Literature” Chiropractic Journal of Australia 1993; 23: 132-135.
Slosberg, M. (2011, May 6). Immune Responses to Spinal Manipulation. Retrieved April 27, 2016, from http://www.dynamicchiropractic.com/mpacms/dc/article.php?id=55320
