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REDCLIFFE's FAMILY CHIROPRACTIC CLINIC
17
Silvyn Street REDCLIFFE 4020
Qld
(07) 3284 2065
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SUBLUXATION
Subluxation is a disease occurring worldwide in
epidemic proportions. It is a bodily malfunction or condition, just as diabetes and heart
trouble, for example, are conditions. The difference lies in the fact that subluxation
often causes other conditions to occur. There are two kinds of subluxations:
(1) An acute subluxation produces sudden symptoms which are of short duration and
are sometimes self - correcting.
(2) A chronic subluxation is of long duration and, if not corrected, can cause
severe symptoms and degeneration. The longer a subluxation is allowed to remain
uncorrected, the more extreme the resulting condition can become.
It has been estimated that as much as 90
percent of the world's population suffers from subluxation of varying degree interfering
with the function of the body and, therefore, interfering with normal health.
WHAT IS A SUBLUXATION?
Subluxation is the term used by Doctors of
Chiropractic to describe the misalignment of bones, resulting in nerve pressure or
irritation.' Subluxations of the vertebrae of the spine are by far the most common type.
Even the slightest misalignment can produce pressure and irritation upon nerves, effecting
improper communication of vital nerve impulses to the organs, cells, and tissues of the
body. The greater the misalignment, the greater the possibility of its affecting a nerve,
and to a more severe degree. The more severe the subluxation, the more the discomfort,
pain, and often disabling illness that can result.
SPINE AND NERVES
The skull, which houses and protects the brain
from which most nerves originate, rests atop the spinal column. From the brain, the spinal
cord extends downward through a vertical canal, formed by the vertebrae of the spinal
column, which houses and protects the spinal cord. Thirty-one pairs of nerve roots emerge
from the spinal cord through openings between the vertebrae. Each nerve extends to,
and ultimately controls, a specific area of the body.
CAUSES OF SUBLUXATIONS
 We have said that spinal misalignments
which produce irritation of nerves, or impinge them, are called subluxations. A minor
subluxation may occur from the ordinary, everyday stresses and strains of normal living,
even from such simple acts as twisting or turning. If left unattended, it may become
chronic, resulting in severe, painful conditions. A fall or injury often causes major
subluxations. They can be produced by any type of shock that overloads the nervous
system's protective mechanism. Even the unavoidable and ever present downward pull of
gravity on the upright body often overcomes body balance and produces poor posture, and
misalignment of the spinal vertebrae may result. Abnormal function of cells, tissues, and
organs may be caused by the ensuing nerve irritation produced by this condition of
subluxation.
According to current chiropractic findings, 85
percent of all children have one or more vertebral subluxations before the age of one
year, and many more become victims of vertebral subluxations within the next few years of
their lives. One of the most common causes of vertebral subluxation in the infant is the
birth process itself, especially if forceps have been used in the delivery.
SUBLUXATIONS AFFECT YOUR HEALTH
Research has proven that the slightest pressure
on a spinal nerve root as it emerges from the spine can reduce the function of that nerve
by 60 percent in a matter of minutes. Through research it was also discovered that by
exerting, for a period of one to three hours, the same degree of pressure that
chiropractors find in the average patient's spine, many of the nerve fibres and nerve
roots rupture, producing poisons which spread to the surrounding issues. When absorbed
into the nerves, the poisons will, in time, progressively destroy them.
Everyone knows that a broken neck, broken back,
or similar spinal injury can produce pressure on the nerves to the extent that partial or
even complete paralysis of parts of the body may result. However, one tends to shrug off
the possibility that a subluxation resulting in pressure on these same nerves can be
extremely destructive, causing a condition of decreased activity amounting to a slight
paralysis - or the reverse, a dangerous increase in activity. For instance, a sluggish
liver or gall bladder indicates decreased activity, and an over-active stomach or rapid
heartbeat signifies increased activity. Irritated nerves can cause either decreased or
increased body function in whatever organs those nerves supply.
Affected organs, therefore, must
have the same attention that is given to more severely paralysed body areas. The normal
natural nerve control which has been denied them must be restored. Organs, tissues, and
cells cannot maintain their own state of normal health without guidance from the brain
through nerve impulses.
WHAT ARE THE DANGER SIGNALS?
If you are suffering from headaches, stiffness
of neck, pain between shoulders, backache, pain in arms or legs, numbness in hands or
feet, or general nervousness, you are suffering from one of the eight danger signals that
indicate possible nerve pressure or irritation by a subluxation or subluxations.
Persistent headaches, for example, may be a warning signal of impinged nerves at the base
of the head .4 These eight danger signals are the body's way of warning you that something
is amiss. Left uncorrected, the symptoms will undoubtedly continue to increase and produce
even more severe conditions.
CORRECTING SUBLUXATIONS
The Doctor of Chiropractic locates subluxations
through orthopaedic, neurological, physical, kinesiological, and spinal examinations, as
well as X- ray pictures. By spinal adjustments, in which the vertebra is skilfully and
carefully moved back into normal position, the chiropractor is able to remove the
interference to the body's normal nerve control. Acute subluxations can be corrected with
just a few adjustments while chronic subluxations take frequent adjustments to retrain the
misaligned vertebrae to hold their normal, non-irritating positions. The chiropractor's
goal is to allow a normal flow of communication to and from the brain and every cell,
tissue, organ, and system in the body - a prerequisite to health. Indeed, normal nerve
current returning to the brain (sensory nerves) is as important as normal nerve current
going from the brain (motor nerves).
Through spinal adjustments, body balance is
restored, spinal misalignment is corrected, and the condition caused by the subluxation is
relieved and eliminated. When the correction is completed and the nervous system is
restored to normal function, the body will cure itself: that's the chiropractic
premise. It has worked for nearly 100 years on more than 100 million people. Nature
usually needs no help - it just needs no interference within the nervous system.
HOW CAN YOU STAY HEALTHY?
By eliminating nerve interference, chiropractic
care can not only correct numerous health problems, but also may prevent many conditions
from developing. This enables the body to maintain its natural, inborn resistance to
illness and disease. For continuing good health, the best answer is preventive health
care.
In conjunction with a
program of regular spinal adjustments that will improve the nerve function of your body,
and therefore your overall general health, chiropractic advocates the basic formula of
proper nutrition, adequate exercise, sufficient rest, good posture, and a positive
attitude.
For you to have a longer, healthier, and
happier life, it is imperative that you be aware of the fact that subluxation is truly a
disease that occurs in epidemic proportions. It is a serious condition in itself and can
easily develop into conditions affecting every part of the body. And most people have one
or more vertebral subluxations interfering with some function of the body and, therefore,
interfering with normal health.
Chiropractors are the
only professionals specialising in the detection and elimination of vertebral
subluxations. Take your whole family to visit your chiropractor and let him or her detect
and correct any subluxations you may have. For it is these malpositioned vertebrae which
impair nerve function and ultimately stifle human potential. Don't wait for
health-threatening, or even life-threatening, conditions to develop |
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