5 reasons your child should see a Pediatric Chiropractor

1.       Birth is hard for babies

We often think about how hard birth is for moms (which it IS), but birth is no small feat for the baby either! In the process of being born, babies are pushed and squeezed and contorted as they move through their mom’s body. This is before we account for any interventions, like forceps or a vacuum, or good old-fashioned fundal pressure. After all of that, anyone would need an adjustment. A study done in 2015 analyzed 100 newborns for somatic dysfunction (what chiropractors refer to as subluxation) and found that 99% of the newborns had at least one somatic dysfunction in their cranium or spine. Removing these subluxations as soon as possible relieves tension or discomfort for the baby and allows their brain to better communicate with the rest of its body.

2.       Kids fall all the time

If you have ever seen a kid learn to walk, you know that kids fall a lot, and they fall hard. As they grow, they continue to fall off of things, tumble down the stairs, and trip over the smallest obstacles. Falling even a short distance can affect the alignment of the pelvis and spine, so regular visits to the chiropractor can ensure kids are aligned and ready for their next tumble!

3.       Kids are exposed to lots of germs

Kids explore their world with their hands and mouths, which puts them in contact with a wide variety of bacteria and microbes. As kids do this, their immune system is building itself up to restrain and resist the intruding germs. Adjustments stimulate the nervous system to encourage natural immune responses and modulate responses that are too intense.

4.       Kids’ brains and nervous systems are growing rapidly

Kids’ brains double in size in their first year and are 90% developed by five years old. The patterns and pathways developed in these pivotal years stay with us for our entire lives unless we intentionally correct them. There is a quote often used in the chiropractic community, “it is easier to grow strong kids than fix broken adults.” Patterns we learn as children, such as stepping with your opposite foot when throwing a ball or the way you hold a pencil, follow us into adulthood and feel unnatural or even impossible to do differently. Things like spinal alignment, posture, coordination, and spatial awareness are all mapped in our brains in these years. Chiropractic helps kids create neurological pathways and patterns that help them stay healthy and active in their later life.

5.       Kids experience stress too

As much as we like to believe we weren’t stressed until we reached adulthood, we all experience stress as children. The stressors can be either positive or negative, primary or secondary, but the fact is that stress of any kind affects the nervous system. Kids who face lots of stress or have a difficult time modulating their stress can find themselves trapped in a sympathetic, or “fight or flight” state. Just like in adults, this neurological state is good in the short-term, but persistent sympathetic activation can lead to anxiety, depression, aggression, or a feeling of being “burnt out.” Chiropractic care is a great way to regulate the nervous system and stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system, aka the “rest and digest” state.