Chiropractic Care for Children: What Parents Should Know
When does your child need Chiropractic care?
We see kids that are 3 days old and some people often think “why would a newborn baby need to see a Chiropractor”?
Birth can be traumatic for both mother and baby and if this is the case then Chiropractors can help to optimise the spine and nervous system early on to ensure that development is not disrupted.
This allows the nervous system to communicate with the rest of the body and optimise growth and overall health.
We check babies and after they have been adjusted the parents report that the child is more settled and relaxed as there is less tension on the spine and nervous system.
If a birth involved instruments such as ventouse or forceps then this can cause problems with the skull and Chiropractors can use gentle tonal and cranial adjustments to help the baby.
We then start seeing kids as they grow. Often a parent will bring a child of 5 years old in if they have had a fall, if they are concerned about their posture or they have had a growth spurt.
Is Chiropractic Safe for Kids?
The adjustments that we do on babies and kids are very different to adult adjustments. There isn’t as much “clicking” if at all and the adjustments are very gentle using a technique called “touch and hold”.
The practitioner will have done some further training in paediatrics to understand the neurological development of a child, the reflexes and the ways to treat them at different ages. The practitioners we have in our clinic are Dr Iris and Dr Charlie (both Doctors of Chiropractic).
What Conditions Can Chiropractic Help With in Children?
Chiropractors help with reducing tension in the body, it can promote relaxation within a child and also improve posture. There are anecdotal case studies of Chiropractors helping with babies sleeping but the research is not conclusive.
What does the research say?
A 2008 observational study by Alcantara, Ohm, and Kunz in the Journal of Paediatric, Maternal & Family Health followed children receiving chiropractic care and reported improvements in sleep, behaviour, and immune function as noted by parents. (Alcantara J, Ohm J, Kunz D. “The safety and effectiveness of paediatric chiropractic: a survey of chiropractors and parents in a practice-based research network.” J Pediatr Matern Fam Health 2009;2009(1):1-9.)
This is not a controlled clinical trial, so while it reflects real-world outcomes, it doesn’t establish a causal relationship.
There is some evidence that chiropractic care can improve spinal function and mobility, especially in cases of poor posture, scoliosis, or musculoskeletal complaints.
However, these studies are more commonly conducted on adolescents and adults, rather than young children. One relevant example:
A 2015 study in the Journal of Chiropractic Medicine showed improvements in posture and spinal alignment in adolescents with hyperkyphosis after a course of chiropractic and exercise-based intervention (Morningstar MW. “Outcomes for patients with Scheuermann’s disease receiving chiropractic rehabilitation: a retrospective review of 18 cases.” J Chiropr Med. 2015;14(4):268£274.)
What to Expect at Your Child’s First Appointment
One of our paediatric Chiropractors will assess your child to determine if they have any issues with their spine, posture or nervous system. They would then take all of their developmental reflexes and see if there are any delays, [plus look at their feeding and sleeping patterns.
How Often Should Children See a Chiropractor?
Not as often as adults. A child’s body is very adaptable and having a few adjustments to start with can set them on the right track, it maybe worth having them on a maintenance plan where they get checked once per month.
I have two kids, 6 and 4 and I check them every 2 weeks to ensure they are developing and growing well.
When people ask me if they should bring their kids or grandkids, I always say “Absolutely, lets just check them and then see what is happening”.
If you are wanting to chat more about the information above then why not book a call with me and we can go into more detail? Click here to book or if you want to get an assessment then Book a consultation with a Chiropractor here
If you do know someone who wants more advice, please send them our details. You can send them this assessment as well to diagnose their back pain. It is a great tool to understand where your back pain is coming from, it is free and takes 60 seconds. Click here for assessment
