Do you ever notice that when your back hurts, everything hurts? That’s because your spine houses the nerve roots that branch out to the rest of your body, and a problem in the muscles and bones in your back can affect your entire anatomy.
For instance, if you tweak your back and your muscles spasm, or if you’re in an accident and your head and neck whip violently forward and back, or you have a degenerative condition that’s changing the structure and integrity of your spine, your musculoskeletal frame gets misaligned. This leads to a chain reaction of problems, like inflammation, compressed nerves, and chronic pain.
At Peninsula RSI Chiropractic and Wellness Center in Redwood City, California, Dr. Dana Robinson relieves those conditions and more through expert chiropractic care. She helps you achieve better balance, improved flexibility, more energy and strength, and less stress and pain.
So, if chiropractic care is so great for grown-ups, can it possibly help with children as well? Yes. But there are some differences. Here’s what you need to know about pediatric chiropractic care.
Safety first
You may be wondering why a baby or child would need a chiropractic adjustment, and how it could possibly be safe. Both good questions — let’s start with safety.
The first thing to note is that spinal manipulation and any type of manual therapy should only be performed by a highly trained doctor of chiropractic, like Dr. Robinson. General practitioners do not specialize in the necessary techniques.
Experience also matters. Dr. Robinson has been safely helping her patients achieve a better quality of life for more than 15 years. That means she understands the art and science of chiropractic care, including optimal pressure, position, and procedure, and has the track record to prove it.
When it comes to children, she knows that your baby’s body is still forming and that the joints and bones are softer and still developing. She takes that into account by treating your child with gentler force, lighter contact, and shallower movements.
Finally, studies have shown that pediatric chiropractic care, when administered by a qualified licensed practitioner, is very safe.
What pediatric conditions can chiropractic care help?
When you have back pain or pain associated with problems that trace back to your spine, you automatically think about calling a chiropractor. But infants and toddlers rarely have back pain, much less complain about it.
They do, however, have other common issues that chiropractic care can help alleviate.
Nursing
All babies have an instinct to suck and swallow, but not all do it well. If that reflex is blocked because of a stunted communication between the nerves and the brain, Dr. Robinson may be able to restore that flow by mobilizing your baby’s joints and alleviating any compressed nerves to the throat and tongue.
Torticollis
If your baby is cramped in the womb before birth or spent considerable time in the breech position, they may have torticollis. This condition occurs when the long muscle along one side of the neck is shorter than the other side. You typically notice symptoms like a tilted head, difficulty turning, or their chin pointed in one direction.
Through gentle manipulation of the cervical portion of the spine, massage, and stretching of the neck muscles, Dr. Robinson can help correct torticollis.
Chronic ear infections
The top reason parents bring their kids to the doctor is ear infections. In fact, by the time your child is three years old, chances are they will have had at least one ear infection, maybe more. The most common treatment for an ear infection is an antibiotic, but drugs come with a huge risk.
One study showed that an adverse reaction to antibiotics is one of the most common cases seen in emergency rooms, and children are the primary victims: Almost 47% are under the age of 19, more than 40% are under the age of two, and of those adverse effects, more than 86% involve an allergic reaction.
Dr. Robinson gives you a possible alternative. Rather than treating the symptoms of your child’s ear (infection), she may be able to alleviate the root cause: the fluid that’s constantly building up in the middle ear cavity.
Not all cases are the same, but if your child’s chronic ear infections are caused by spasming muscles around the Eustachian tube that won’t allow it to drain properly, Dr. Robinson may be able to relax those muscles, restore the flow, and stop the infections from recurring.
If your baby is experiencing any of these symptoms, call or request an appointment online to talk with Dr. Robinson about how chiropractic care can help your child overcome some common conditions and develop comfortably and safely.