Chiropractors (quacks or legitimate doctors?)

[FartinMowler]

One of my snowplowing contracts is a Chiropractic office. One day I went in to talk to the "Doctor" who runs it and I noticed some parents taking a small child ( age 3-5) into one of the rooms. I was kept waiting and having a conversation with the receptionist and and subtly asked "why would a small child need a Chiropractor?" The receptionist said that a lot of people bring there kids in for "adjustments" and it was very safe. Being a parent and never having gone to a Chiropractor I did a search on the net and found a gammut of info about people having siezures and dieing.

Do you think this is a legitimate health profession? and should they be allowed to "adjust small childrens spines"?

[wreckreation]

yes, maybe not that young though.

[FartinMowler]

http://www.canoe.ca/ChiroYork/home.html


a vast majority of chiropractors routinely treat babies and children with therapies that earned them at least $40 million last year


chiropractic neck manipulation could be responsible for as many as 150 strokes a year


the basic theory of chiropractic medicine remains unproven 100 years after its inception


York officials have done a shoddy job of evaluating CMCC and the chiropractic profession

[O71394658]

My uncle's a chiropractor. I could safely tell you that he knows what he's doing. Just because there are assholes out there that screw with kids' backs doesn't mean that the entire profession is a joke.

[El Blanco]

There are also shitty "legit" doctors too, but I'm still weary of chiropractics. There is a kid in my karate class whose old man is one of those "everything is cured by adjusting the spine" types. He tried to belittle germ theory. I stopped arguing because health ain't my forte and he had "lets drink some Kool-Aid" look in his eyes.

While I am sure there are some real principals that work in it, I would never bring my young child (who is still growing) to a chiropracter.

[Vibecrewangel]

I started seeing a chiropractor a few years ago because NOTHING and I mean NOTHING was helping with my migranes. My x-rays showed that I had some incorrect curvature in my neck that was quite obvious (where it should curve forward it had a backwards curve - this really common in people with desk jobs). I started out seeing him once a week and the migranes stopped completely. We have tapered off to once a month unless I am having a problem like when I popped a rib messing around on a jet ski.
My doctor does not treat children unless they have had an accident or have a health problem that requires treatment. And I don't think he would treat anyone that young.

My personal opinion is that many people become "addicted" to the chiropractor. The adjustments feel good even when they hurt for a moment and the relief is immediate (though may not be long term). However, too many people that I know will go whenever something is bothering them. Pulled shoulder working out....have an adjustment. Slept funny....have an adjustment. Sinus pressure......have an adjustment. Stress at work......adjustment. I often think they have forgotten that in most cases the body will fix itself in a day or two and the adjustment is unnecessary. Western culture, particularly Americans, want a quick fix for everything. Much of Eastern medicine is meant to be used long term in little amounts for overall health. A concept we just don't seem to get. Look at ephedra. Used correctly, in small doses over long periods of time, it does have health benfefits. However the high dose short term use that Americans have been using causes nothing but health problems. Now bitter orange is the new ephedra and in the types of dosages being offered in the US it can be deadly. Yet the Chinese have been using it for centuries with little problems. Stupid Americans.

I guess what I'm saying is I think it has it's place, and works wonders, but like anything else overdoing it has it's own set of problems.

[wreckreation]

i had sculiosis in middle school. I went to a chiropractor. While it can't be PROVEN that the chiropractor was responsible for the results, I never needed surgery that the spinal doctors said with out a doubt would be neccessary.

[Vibecrewangel]

Wreck - no surgery = a good thing!

My vision has improved along with my migranes so I totally get you.

[Jeanette X]

I had my neck and my back manipulated by a chiropractor. It felt great. And the pain went away.

[punkgrrrlie10]

While chiropractors are not MDs that doesn't necessarily mean what they do doesn't work for certain people and doesn't mean there aren't ones out there who don't know what they are doing. I have people who swear by using a chiropractor and others...well I had a friend who used to go to a chiropractor for his back and neck problems and they kept coming back. He went to an acupuncture clinic and hasn't had problems since.

[AChimp]

Chiropractors are just like psychologists... you always have to go back and pay more money. Over and over and over and over, because they never quite fix the "problem." ;)