How Does Chiropractic Care Affect Your Brain Health?

How Does Chiropractic Care Affect Your Brain Health?

If you ever find yourself researching online for chiropractors near me, just out of curiosity, or you want to know more about what they do, you’re not alone.

A lot of people still don’t know what chiropractic treatments are and how chiropractic care can have a positive impact on the mind and body.

Yes, there’s more to it than what many perceive as breaking bones or that snapping sound you often hear during adjustments.

What is chiropractic care?

It’s a type of complementary medicine that operates on the idea that the body has the capacity to heal itself.

With a bit of manipulation from a trained professional, realignment and pain relief can happen without medication.

• Chiropractic treatments help relieve pain affecting your joints, muscles, cartilage, bones, and connective tissues.
• While the main focus is on your spine, the treatment can also be used on other parts of the body, depending on the conditions you’re experiencing.
• Chiropractic care may seem similar to physical therapy, but there are major differences. For one, chiropractors use hands-on manipulation for pain relief instead of stretches and exercises.

How is chiropractic care different from physiotherapy?

Since chiropractic care and physiotherapy deal with the musculoskeletal system, many people mistake one for the other.

While they share similar goals for the patient, the approach they used is different.

• Chiropractors focus on the spine and nervous system, while physiotherapists focus on improving strength, mobility, and physical rehabilitation.
• Chiropractors offer pain relief and alignment of the spine, and physiotherapists help patients achieve pain-free movement.
• Chiropractors use manipulations and adjustments to encourage the body to heal itself, while physical therapists help improve patient conditions through exercises and stretches.
• Chiropractic sessions are often shorter and spread over several repeat visits.
• Most people with back pain, chronic discomfort, and who prefer holistic wellness over medical treatments prefer to visit a chiropractor.
• Patients recovering from surgeries and injuries or following a stroke seek professional help from physiotherapists.

What are the benefits of chiropractic care for your brain and mental health?

Improve focus, learning abilities, and memory

The spine plays an important role in brain health, particularly through the cerebrospinal fluid.

This clear liquid that fills the gaps around the brain and spinal cord can be subjected to extreme pressure in the spinal column, resulting in nausea, neck stiffness, dizziness, and fatigue.

• Chiropractic care helps eliminate the pressure on your spine, improving memory function and brain health.
• By adjusting the misaligned vertebrae, nerve impulses can smoothly travel through the central nervous system, helping you learn better and become smarter.
• It positively influences neuroplasticity, which minimizes the risk of brain fog, memory issues, and motor incoordination.

Reduce stress and anxiety

When you experience stress and anxiety, your brain goes through a series of changes.

• Increased cortisol production causes your blood pressure to skyrocket and affect cognitive function.
• Pain can alter neurotransmitters that push your stress levels further, hurting your brain in the process.
• Chiropractic adjustments can help with physical stress and offer pain relief, eliminating your stress and anxiety. Combined with simple daily habits to stay healthy and happy, you can handle external pressures with ease.

Enhance relaxation response

Stress can be considered the main antagonist in your story of mental and physical health.

If you have the capacity to better handle any stressors, your brain and mental function will be much healthier.

• A well-aligned spine means your nervous system can function efficiently. Faced with a stressful situation, your parasympathetic nervous system is probably activated, helping reduce anxiety and making you feel relaxed.
• Chiropractic sessions help release tension and improve circulation, which also encourages endorphin production.

Blood flow oxygenation

When the spine is misaligned or subluxated, it can greatly restrict blood flow and oxygenation to the brain.

Because the bloodstream is responsible for delivering oxygen to the brain as well as essential nutrients to maintain brain function, any situation that disrupts this process will disrupt cognitive function and clarity of thought.

• A misaligned spine restricts blood vessels, preventing unrestricted access to nutrients for easy transport to the brain.
• Nutrient flow is essential, and if there are restrictions in oxygen flow and blood flow to the brain, numerous symptoms can occur, including brain fog, dizziness, and poor memory.
• Chiropractic adjustments correct spine misalignment, restoring proper circulation that the bloodstream needs to deliver essential resources to the brain.
• With tensions surrounding the spine relieved, blood vessels have a lot of room to expand, increasing blood flow needed to improve cognitive functions and problem-solving abilities.
• With adequate oxygen and nutrients delivered to your brain, more neurotransmitters are produced, which is essential to feeling more energy and for regulating your mood.
• The boost in mental clarity can also contribute to emotional well-being.

Better sleep quality

It’s important for the brain and the body to be in sync, so you can sleep better, retain more information, stay motivated, and comprehend better.

• Chiropractic care works to improve spinal alignment, which, as already mentioned, helps reduce stress. With stress out of the way, you can relax and sleep more deeply.
• Restorative sleep can happen when cortisol levels are low, you feel more relaxed and are more than ready for restful sleep.

As you can see, chiropractic care is more than just bone adjustments.

Taking care of your spine can positively impact your brain health and mental clarity.

Visit IR Chiro (Digital Distinct) to know more about the best chiropractic treatments.