5 Things Parents Should Know
Making decisions about your child’s health care is one of your greatest responsibilities as a parent. It can also be one of your greatest challenges. Perhaps your child has symptoms that have you and your pediatrician stumped, or perhaps you just want to be sure that your child is as healthy as possible. Whether you want to address a specific condition or just maintain your child’s overall wellness, your child or teenager may benefit from chiropractic care. Parents often overlook this option, but here are five reasons why a Jupiter Chiropractor is worth considering.
1. Young People Experience Chronic Pain Too
As a parent, you may find it strange to think of a child or adolescent needing chiropractic care. After all, chiropractors specialize in spinal issues, aches and pains, and kids don’t have the same pain issues adults have, do they?
The truth is that children and adolescents can and do experience chronic pain. If your child is complaining of back pain, joint pain or headaches, it is important to take these complaints seriously and seek medical care, which may include a visit to a Jupiter Chiropractor.
Children and adolescents experience pain for many reasons, including:
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Congenital disorders
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Poor posture
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Sports injuries
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Stress or trauma
- Carrying heavy bags and backpacks
Chiropractic medicine is a safe, natural way to decrease pain without medication or surgery. Addressing pain early with natural treatment might help your child avoid more invasive treatment later.
When it comes to health care, you are your child’s most important advocate. Children with chronic pain do not always receive the care they need because adults in their lives dismiss their symptoms, assuming they are too young to have a genuine problem. Unfortunately, ignoring pain symptoms in childhood can lead to a lifetime of complications. Quick action and proper care can keep your child healthy as he or she grows.
2. Chiropractic Care Has Many Benefits
Chiropractic care is not just for kids with back pain. Chiropractic medicine is a diverse field with many different specialties. Not everyone who sees a chiropractor has a musculoskeletal complaint. Some of the most common reasons parents bring their children to a chiropractor have nothing to do with muscle or joint pain.
Sleep Disorders
Quality sleep is essential at any age, but especially for growing children. Children’s bodies grow and change rapidly, and this consumes a lot of energy. Sleep is important to maintaining good mental health and avoiding sickness. Children who don’t sleep well experience many problems, including learning difficulties, mood swings and decreased immunity. If your child is experiencing interrupted sleep at night or fatigue during the day, a chiropractor may be able to help.
Spinal misalignments, also known as subluxations, can prevent children from sleeping through the night. Through gentle adjustments, a chiropractor can correct subluxations, which can relieve muscle tension and improve nerve function. This promotes relaxation and restful sleep, giving your child the energy he or she needs to grow and thrive.
Digestive Issues
It often doesn’t occur to parents to see a Jupiter chiropractor for help with bowel issues, such as constipation. However, if your child is experiencing this common issue, chiropractic treatment may help him or her feel better.
Multiple factors contribute to constipation, including diet, dehydration, bowel disease and nerve issues. Sometimes, a child experiences several days of constipation followed by a painful bowel movement, which leads to the child avoiding the toilet and becoming constipated again. This self-perpetuating cycle is frustrating for the parent and the child.
Fiber supplements and laxatives provide temporary relief, but they cannot fix a recurring problem. An ongoing issue requires an ongoing solution, and regular spinal adjustments may be what your child needs. A chiropractor may also offer nutritional advice and recommend healthy habits to prevent constipation from reoccurring.
Bedwetting
Bedwetting is a common childhood issue that causes frustration for the parents and embarrassment for the child. When a child wets the bed, it is often because the brain does not receive the nerve signal that the bladder is full, so the child does not wake up.
Fortunately, many parents find that chiropractic treatment reduces bedwetting incidents. If a subluxation is interrupting nerve signals, spinal adjustments can help. The treatment improves nerve communication between the bladder and the brain, so the child recognizes the urge to urinate and wakes up to go to the toilet.
Frequent Illness
Some children seem to catch every cold and stomach bug that goes around. If your child fits this description, it could be time to schedule an appointment with a chiropractor. There may be more to the situation than meets the eye.
Spinal subluxations can cause inhibited blood flow, nerve malfunctions, pain and stress, all of which reduce the body’s ability to fight bacteria and viruses. Treating the spine can help your child’s immune system function at its best, reducing the risk of illness and reducing recovery time if your child does get sick.
Behavioral Issues and Mood Swings
When your child is moody or misbehaving, it is easy to become exasperated with the behavior. You may get angry with your child or question your parenting abilities. You may believe discipline is the solution, only to realize that punishment doesn’t have the desired results.
Rather than punish your child for misbehavior, it is important to seek out the root cause of the behavior. When children act out or experience sudden changes in behavior or mood, there is frequently a physical cause.
Often, behavioral and mood changes are associated with stress, pain or lack of proper sleep. A good chiropractor takes a holistic approach to children’s wellness, recognizing the inextricable link between physical and emotional health. Treatment from a chiropractor can improve your child’s physical wellness, which, in turn, can stabilize your child’s mood, improve his or her attitude and alleviate the problematic behavior.
3. Chiropractic Treatment Is Different for Children
If you have visited a Jupiter chiropractor yourself, you may have some idea of what your child’s experience will be like, as well as some concerns. If you’ve received a spinal adjustment and felt sore afterward, you may be hesitant to allow your child to receive similar care. However, the approach to your child’s care will likely be different from what you have experienced as an adult.
Chiropractors understand that every patient is different. Even amongst adult patients, no two people receive the same treatment plan. The care your child will receive will be tailored to his or her individual needs and growing body.
Children’s bones and nervous systems are still developing. A child’s developing spine is more flexible than an adult’s. If the chiropractor needs to perform an adjustment, he or she will use light pressure; the procedure is much gentler than an adjustment for an adult. Unless your child has an injury, the treatment shouldn’t cause any pain.
Seeing a chiropractor for the first time can be intimidating for children, but the right provider will take care to ensure your child’s experience is a positive one.
4. Even Healthy Kids Can Benefit From Jupiter Chiropractic Care
There is no need to wait until your child develops symptoms before you seek care. There are many benefits to seeking regular chiropractic care when your child is healthy. Routine care is beneficial to your child’s brain and nervous system and can play a significant role in preventing health problems, just like routine checkups with a pediatrician. The benefits of chiropractic care for healthy children and teens include:
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Better posture
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Immune system support
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Emotional wellness
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Improved concentration and cognitive ability
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Better sleep
Establishing a relationship with a provider is also a good thing to do before your child experiences an injury or illness. If you already have a chiropractor your child feels comfortable with, it will be easier to seek help if something goes wrong.
5. Not Every Jupiter Chiropractor Treats Children and Adolescents
Once you have decided that chiropractic care is right for your child, you need to find a provider. Finding the right chiropractor makes a tremendous difference in your child’s health care. Some only treat adults, so you can eliminate them right away. Others accept patients of all ages, but this doesn’t mean they are a good fit for your family.
Children and adolescents have complex medical needs just like adults. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to pediatric and adolescent health care. This can make it difficult to make health care decisions as a parent. However, it is hard to go wrong by adding holistic chiropractic care, for your child’s overall wellbeing. Whether your child needs pain relief, preventative care or treatment for other issues, regular visits to a chiropractor can be part of an effective health care approach for your child or adolescent.
Here at Nordik Chiropractic, we are a Jupiter Chiropractor that is very experienced at treating adolescents, children and infants as well. Our Gonstead chiropractors work well with young patients and can give your child the best chiropractic care.
