Top 5 Benefits of Pediatric Chiropractic Care
Pediatric chiropractic care. You want the best for your child’s health and well-being. From their first steps to their first soccer game, you’re there every step of the way. But did you know that there’s a specialized form of healthcare that can contribute to your child’s overall development and optimize their natural healing abilities? It’s called pediatric chiropractic care, and it can be a game-changer.
Pediatric chiropractic care focuses on the unique needs of infants, children, and adolescents, addressing musculoskeletal issues, spinal misalignments, and nerve-related problems that can impact their overall health. And best of all: it’s safe, non-invasive, and drug-free. No surgery, no pharmaceuticals—just gentle, precise adjustments that help your child’s body thrive.
Imagine your child experiencing better sleep, enhanced focus and concentration, a robust immune system, and healthier bone, muscle, and spine development. Sounds incredible, doesn’t it? All you need is a local chiropractor with the proper training and background to set your little one up for a lifetime of success.
What is Pediatric Chiropractic Care?
Pediatric chiropractic care is a specialized branch of chiropractic that focuses on the health and well-being of infants, children, and adolescents. Just like adults, children can face musculoskeletal issues, spinal misalignments, and nerve-related problems that impact their overall health. A chiropractor for children undergoes certified training to gain expertise in evaluating, diagnosing, and treating these conditions in young patients.
The most critical thing to understand about chiropractic care for kids is that it’s safe. Specialists undergo extensive training to ensure they understand young patients’ unique needs and considerations. In infants and babies, pediatric chiropractic sessions limit applied pressure to be on par with “the amount of pressure you can apply to your eyeball without pain.”
Another safety consideration is the non-invasive, drug-free approach to healthcare. Compared to administering surgery or pharmaceuticals to a child, pediatric chiropractic care is much safer.
Sending your child to a chiropractor can help resolve specific musculoskeletal problems, ranging from posture issues and sports injuries to back and neck pain. These are common issues among kids, stemming from rapid growth, heavy backpacks, or playground activities.
On a more general level, pediatric chiropractic care can contribute to a child’s overall health and wellness. Children may sleep better, enhance their immune system, develop healthier bone structures, and minimize acid reflux or colic by maintaining a healthy spine and nervous system. This holistic approach to healthcare aims to optimize the body’s natural healing abilities, promoting a healthy foundation for growth and development.
What are the Top 5 Benefits of Pediatric Chiropractic Care?
One of the foundational principles of chiropractic care is that everything in the human body is connected. Treat one problem or condition, and several symptoms will get better. The same goes for the benefits of pediatric and family chiropractic care. Improving one aspect of your child’s development results in a long list of measurable improvements. So although we’ve listed five benefits of chiropractic care for children below, they ultimately all fall under the same philosophy of holistic care.
Better sleep
Pediatric chiropractic care can play a significant role in improving a child’s sleep patterns. One of the primary ways it achieves this is by addressing musculoskeletal and spinal misalignments that may hinder a child’s comfort and relaxation during sleep.
When children experience discomfort, tension, or misalignments in their spine or other parts of the body, it can disrupt their sleep patterns. This can manifest as difficulties falling asleep, frequent waking during the night, or restless sleep. Pediatric chiropractors use gentle adjustments and techniques to restore proper alignment and relieve tension in the child’s body.
Additionally, pediatric chiropractic care can address underlying conditions affecting a child’s sleep, such as acid reflux, ear infections, or colic (more on this below). These ailments cause discomfort and pain, leading to sleep disturbances. With regular chiropractic adjustments, your child will be able to sleep peacefully.
Enhanced nervous system functionality
The nervous system is responsible for coordinating and controlling the functions of all organs, tissues, and systems in the body, including the brain, spinal cord, and nerves. Spinal misalignments, or subluxations, can interfere with the nervous system’s ability to deliver signals between the brain and the rest of the body. These disruptions can result from several variables, such as birth trauma, falls, poor posture, or repetitive motion injuries.
Pediatric chiropractors can boost nervous system effectiveness and efficiency by improving spine health and alignment. Pediatric chiropractic techniques reduce obstacles along critical pathways to improve communication channels between the brain, spinal cord, and the body’s organs, tissues, and systems.
By enhancing a child’s ability to adapt to various physical stressors, chiropractic care for children makes it easier for kids to deal with mental and emotional stimuli, manifesting as better focus, concentration, and learning abilities.
Improved immune system
Like the nervous system, the immune system plays a crucial role in early childhood development. It defends the body against pathogens and microorganisms. And since the immune system relies on signals from the nervous system, spinal misalignments or subluxations can be tied to more frequent infections, illnesses, and downtime.
By helping a child’s nervous system to work as efficiently as possible, pediatric chiropractic care can help equip their immune system to recognize and respond to sickness quickly. When your kid is sick less often and more active than their playmates, the benefits extend beyond their own development. One study found that parents who sent their children to chiropractic therapy reported being less anxious and more satisfied with their role as a caregiver.
Healthier bone, muscle, and spine development
During early childhood and adolescence, the human body grows and develops rapidly. An unresolved alignment issue is much easier to address at this age than an adult whose musculoskeletal system has been on the wrong trajectory for decades.
Think of it like this, when a child’s spine is misaligned, they begin to compensate with lopsided movements and uneven muscle development. Imbalances in their bones, muscles, and joints become the norm, creating well-worn pathways that get more deeply ingrained and harder to get out of as time goes on. Pediatric chiropractic care helps correct these misalignments, allowing for more balanced and symmetrical growth.
There are several benefits to dealing with imbalances at an early age. You set your child up for a lifetime of healthy posture, physical fitness, and pain-free mobility.
Reduced colic and acid reflux symptoms
Colic is excessive crying, fussiness, and irritability in healthy infants, typically occurring during the first few months of life. Infant or child acid reflux, on the other hand, involves the regurgitation of stomach acid into the esophagus, causing discomfort and irritability.
Pediatric chiropractic adjustments can help relieve tension and promote digestive health, which may reduce symptoms. This works by targeting areas of the spine associated with nerves that control the digestive system, improving nerve function and promoting better coordination and regulation of digestive processes.
A chiropractor specializing in children’s care can also alleviate tension in the muscles surrounding the digestive organs. Like the sleep-related benefits, younger patients can relax more easily and improve movement along the gastrointestinal tract, reducing the occurrence and severity of colic and acid reflux symptoms.
How do I Find the Best Pediatric Chiropractor Near me?
For lots of people, “pediatric chiropractor” is a mouthful. A more straightforward way to search for one is by using simple phrases like “chiropractor for kids in Maple Grove” or “chiropractor for children within 30 minutes of me.” And beyond having a specific page detailing what’s included, look for reviews specific to pediatric chiropractic care. For example, here’s a review of Dr. Tieri from Tee Johnson,
“He is very knowledgeable in his profession & works hard at getting his patients back on track!! He's even worked with my children w/special needs.”
Total Spine Health and Injury Center is one of the best clinics in Maple Grove and Plymouth MN for infant or adolescent chiropractic adjustments. Give us a call or schedule a consultation appointment today!