Why do parents bring their children to chiropractors?
The most common reason kids come in for care when there has been a complicated pregnancy or birth, to prevent damage from looking down at the tablet for extended periods, for slips and falls on the playground, for poor posture, sports participation, and when there are developmental delays.
Complicated Pregnancy or Birth
This is a very common reason children come into our office. Perhaps mom had a difficult few months leading up to birth or maybe there were some complications during the birth itself… Pregnancy and childbirth, while being beautiful things are still a cause of traumatic strain for both mother and baby no matter how smoothly it goes. Regardless of the situation, there is usually a buildup of tension that can manifest itself in many ways. Some examples of this are difficulty with latching or even developmental setbacks. Informs Dr. Francisco Colón, a West Palm Beach Chiropractor that works on pregnancies and newborns. He recommends ongoing care for moms, both while in the stages leading up to as well as postpartum to help balance out the body. For newborns, Dr. Francisco recommends a checkup as soon as possible to ensure good alignment. This will promote optimal development and function to make sure your little one grows up with as few problems as possible.
Tablet Time and Other “Occupational” Hazards
Tablet time is a big thing in households these days. Often unavoidable, tablet time can cause long-term harm to a child’s growth and development. Looking down at a tablet or a device for extended periods of time causes damage to the normal curves of the spine. Most of us are aware of the issue with forward-head-posture, but what most people do not know is that tablet time promotes it. Our chiropractor can help prevent and fix this problem. Poor posture causes long-term issues that often go unnoticed until they have become so common that many individuals fail to realize their growth has been stunted or they have developed more serious problems like arthritis in the spine. Dr. Ramirez, one of our Lake Worth chiropractors, works with children to ensure that they are developing their muscles properly, which in turn will help prevent future issues like arthritis, herniated disks, or related injuries later on in life.
Over the last few decades with the rise of the internet and handheld devices, the emphasis on posture has gone down significantly. Many parents and caregivers cherish the few minutes of quiet that are afforded to us when our little ones are mesmerized by the blue haze of a glowing screen.
As their brains get excited by TV and tablet use dopamine (our happy hormone) floods the brain, and posture centers get inhibited. More often than not this leads to poor posture and slouching. As slouching gets practiced over and over for prolonged periods of time, the body starts developing a myriad of unhealthy compensations and postures. As these postures are practiced repeatedly our brain rewires the once normal posture for slouching. These issues can also be triggered or worsened by scoliosis or hyperkyphosis.
Developmental Delays
Parents bring their children in for chiropractic care when there are developmental delays like autism, hyperactivity, or ADHD. One reason for this is because chiropractic care aids in relaxation and has been shown to maximize impulse control. This is important for children with neurological or behavioral issues.
As Lake Worth chiropractor Dr. Francisco explains, “When the spine is compromised by subluxations, the nervous system becomes misaligned and this can lead to problems in brain development.” It has been shown that spinal adjustments are helpful for management of autism spectrum disorder, ADHD/ADD, anxiety disorder and other conditions.
Other developmental delays such as coordination, failure to strive and latching have also been shown to be helped with chiropractic care.
One of our happy chiropractic Moms Lori says: “The Colón brothers and the Midtown Clinic of Chiropractic staff are a true godsend! My daughter loves them! She has improved by leaps and bounds. And to think I found them by looking for chiropractor near me. I’m so thankful!”
Slips and Falls
Falls are the leading cause of childhood injuries. Slips and falls, while not always a traumatic event can have long-term effects on a child’s nervous system that may cause developmental delays or other issues down the line. To avoid these issues, our Midtown Clinic chiropractors recommend bringing your child in for an evaluation to help prevent accidents from occurring and help overcome existing injuries/conditions. Slips, falls, and car accidents can set off a chain of events that compromises normal function and the development of the normal alignment of the spine. Because the spine is not usually done developing until about 16 years of age, the best time to address posture and spinal alignment is immediately after an injury, fall, or trauma.
Sports Injuries and Falls
Sporting events often prove difficult for kids these days, especially when there is an emphasis on over-training and coaches who push them a little too hard. A lot of the patients we have been enrolled in young athletics programs such as football, soccer, and dance. They are well adjusted to slip and fall injuries and with a little help/guidance, they get great performance results.
See our article on Sports Injuries and Overtraining for more information on this!