Why is chiropractic considered alternative?
Question:
No one in the health field considers Chiropractic "alternative " anymore. See my post under "Chiropractic" below. Lisa Interesting that so many consider chiropractic to be an alternative health care modality. It’s covered by insurance just like many other modalities — is accepted by millions (which is emphasized by those in the profession) — has some proof of efficacy, at least with regard to certain musculoskeletal problems & sometimes others — & has thousands & thousands of practitioners using its methods. Certainly not unusual, radical, or "way out" — so why "alternative"? Many of those who see DC’s also utilize MD’s. Many patients combine the use of chiropractic care with other treatments not offered by DC’s like surgery & pharmaceuticals to obtain the best results in treating problems as well as staying healthy. Many DC’s & MD’s have been able to work together for their patients’ benefit. Sounds more like both can complement each other in many situations…… Michele
Response:
Many here do. Don’t know why, but they do. And they often try to pit DC’s & MD’s against each other. Silly. Both can work together & *neither* has to trash the other. After all, both have their good points & of course both have their limitations. Michele No one in the health field considers Chiropractic "alternative " anymore. See my post under "Chiropractic" below. Lisa Interesting that so many consider chiropractic to be an alternative health care modality. It’s covered by insurance just like many other modalities — is accepted by millions (which is emphasized by those in the profession) — has some proof of efficacy, at least with regard to certain musculoskeletal problems & sometimes others — & has thousands & thousands of practitioners using its methods. Certainly not unusual, radical, or "way out" — so why "alternative"? Many of those who see DC’s also utilize MD’s. Many patients combine the use of chiropractic care with other treatments not offered by DC’s like surgery & pharmaceuticals to obtain the best results in treating problems as well as staying healthy. Many DC’s & MD’s have been able to work together for their patients’ benefit. Sounds more like both can complement each other in many situations…… Michele
Response:
Some small sections of chiropractic practice are no more "alternative" in terms of the level of evidence that sustains them than some common practices within physiotherapy and sports medicine. But at the much larger end of chiropractic are those who believe prescientific nonsense that manipulation of the spine is good for all medical problems, and even that we should all get our spines "adjusted’ regularly for health. It is based upon a theory of spinal "subluxations" which has exactly the same vaporous (if not totally discredited in its original formulation) quality as the theories of homeopathy, applied kinesiologists, therapeutic touchers etc. Ask the chiropractors who regularly post here to state precisely what they believe about their treatment methods, or at least what they were taught in their chiropractic colleges, and you will soon discover the answer to your question. P Moran
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Most doctors are taught that 75-85% of all illness is stress related in some form or fashion. If chiropractic can reduce the stress on the neuromuscular system can it then affect in a positive manner 75-85% of all illness? — Rollie Pollie
Response:
Michele it is all a matter of who controls the definitions. The medical profession controls the medical definitions and therefor, any care that is not considered accepted or inclusive in conventional medical care is alternative in nature. Chiropractic has not been incorporated into the medical mainstream (like osteopathy)and therefore remains an "alternative" to medicine. I personally detest the word. When the care demands the expertise of chiropractic care, or when chiropractic care is more effective than standard medical care then the alternative treatment should be the medical care. "Alternative" is commonly used as an "us and them" term of segregation. The most effective care for a condition should be the conventional care and the less effective treatments would be the alternative(s). — Rollie Pollie Interesting that so many consider chiropractic to be an alternative health care modality. It’s covered by insurance just like many other modalities — is accepted by millions (which is emphasized by those in the profession) — has some proof of efficacy, at least with regard to certain musculoskeletal problems & sometimes others — & has thousands & thousands of practitioners using its methods. Certainly not unusual, radical, or "way out" — so why "alternative"? Many of those who see DC’s also utilize MD’s. Many patients combine the use of chiropractic care with other treatments not offered by DC’s like surgery & pharmaceuticals to obtain the best results in treating problems as well as staying healthy. Many DC’s & MD’s have been able to work together for their patients’ benefit. Sounds more like both can complement each other in many situations…… Michele
Response:
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Some small sections of chiropractic practice are no more "alternative" in > terms of the level of evidence that sustains them than some common practices > within physiotherapy and sports medicine. > But at the much larger end of chiropractic are those who believe > prescientific nonsense that manipulation of the spine is good for all medical > problems, and even that we should all get our spines "adjusted’ regularly for > health. It is based upon a theory of spinal "subluxations" which has > exactly the same vaporous (if not totally discredited in its original > formulation) quality as the theories of homeopathy, applied kinesiologists, > therapeutic touchers etc. > Ask the chiropractors who regularly post here to state precisely what they > believe about their treatment methods, or at least what they were taught in > their chiropractic colleges, and you will soon discover the answer to your > question.
I believe that everyone should get adjusted. I dont think it is cure for all medical problems and neither does any other chiropractor. You have misunderstood the chiropractic philosophy. The spine is the "extension cord" to body. All the messages from the brain that control the body travel through the nerves which must travel down the spinal cord and out between each spinal vertebra. Studies have shown that even the slightest pressure exerted (4mm Hg) on nerves impede their activity, thus impeding the function of the structure innervated by the nerve. Newer studies have found that abberrant nociciption(pain), propriception (balance and 3d perception) and mechanoreception (bodies ability to assess joint motion) all affect the sympathetic nervous system (through a loop consisting of the grey and white rami) and can cause the "fight or flight" response to occur for a prolonged period of time which can cause a host of long term problems. This is not even taking into consideration the aberrant motion patterns which can lead to disc breakdown and osteophytosis. I am simplifying this somewhat but I can go into much more detail if you wish. 
So it is pretty easy to see why we believe that everyone should have optimum spinal biomechanics. — Rissew Chiropractic Center at Birkdale 8600 Sam Furr Rd. Suite 180 Huntersville, NC 28078 704-892-2282 http://www.thechiropractor.net
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>Most doctors are taught that 75-85% of all illness is stress related in some >form or fashion. If chiropractic can reduce the stress on the neuromuscular >system can it then affect in a positive manner 75-85% of all illness?
Again wrong. In medical school we were taught to fiercely pursue organic diagnosis in every case. But a few years of everyday primary medical practice, teaches how much of it is stress related or psychosomatic (about 40%, but a lot of the rest of it consists of self-limiting conditions which require only symptomatic treatment). So doctors tend to be selective about those in whom they "fiercely pursue" a diagnosis and adopt a wait and see policy with the rest. The fact that most illneses behave this way is precisely why such an extraordinary variety of medical practices have flourished over the millenia. Well over half your patients are going to be feeling better within a few weeks whatever you do. What a great basis for a scam!!! Peter Moran
Response:
Interesting that so many consider chiropractic to be an alternative health care modality. It’s covered by insurance just like many other modalities — is accepted by millions (which is emphasized by those in the profession) — has some proof of efficacy, at least with regard to certain musculoskeletal problems & sometimes others — & has thousands & thousands of practitioners using its methods. Certainly not unusual, radical, or "way out" — so why "alternative"? Many of those who see DC’s also utilize MD’s. Many patients combine the use of chiropractic care with other treatments not offered by DC’s like surgery & pharmaceuticals to obtain the best results in treating problems as well as staying healthy. Many DC’s & MD’s have been able to work together for their patients’ benefit. Sounds more like both can complement each other in many situations…… Michele
Response:
In this news group Chiropractic is obviously not considered alternative since it is routinely bashed as though it was conventional medicine. I thought people would access such a group in hopes of getting advice or suggestions related to alternative treatments. Instead what I see dominating this group is another form of disease infestation. A select few posters feel the need to INFEST any topic which is brought up (not referring to you Michele). You people and you know who you, are not helping anyone and I know you realize this. I have unsubscribed from this group twice in the last month because I did not feel it was worth my time. But I return because I feel that myself and others who I have followed in these posting have things to offer. The best way to get rid of your enemies is to make them your friends. So I am back. All is well:) Interesting that so many consider chiropractic to be an alternative health care modality. It’s covered by insurance just like many other modalities — is accepted by millions (which is emphasized by those in the profession) — has some proof of efficacy, at least with regard to certain musculoskeletal problems & sometimes others — & has thousands & thousands of practitioners using its methods. Certainly not unusual, radical, or "way out" — so why "alternative"? Many of those who see DC’s also utilize MD’s. Many patients combine the use of chiropractic care with other treatments not offered by DC’s like surgery & pharmaceuticals to obtain the best results in treating problems as well as staying healthy. Many DC’s & MD’s have been able to work together for their patients’ benefit. Sounds more like both can complement each other in many situations…… Michele
Response:
>Michele it is all a matter of who controls the definitions. The medical >profession controls the medical definitions and therefor, any care that is >not considered accepted or inclusive in conventional medical care is >alternative in nature. >Chiropractic has not been incorporated into the >medical mainstream (like osteopathy)and therefore remains an "alternative" >to medicine. I personally detest the word. When the care demands the >expertise of chiropractic care, or when chiropractic care is more effective >than standard medical care then the alternative treatment should be the >medical care. >"Alternative" is commonly used as an "us and them" term of >segregation.
Wide of the mark, Rollie. The ‘alternative’ description would never be chosen by doctors, because it implies a choice between measures with somewhat equal validity for any given condition. We would prefer to use words like "unproven", "dubious", "fraudulent" or "experimental" , depending upon what is known about the specific method and how it is marketed and applied. What " alternative medicine" claims as its own is a mixture of all these with a bit of good old-fashioned folk medicine thrown in. >The most effective care for a condition should be the conventional care and >the less effective treatments would be the alternative(s).
And spinal manipulation is the most effective treatment method for what? All chiropractors should be required to answer this question rather than to constantly get away with vague references to chiropractic as though there is anything other than spinal manipulation that defines it as a system of "medicine". This is at the heart of the dispute with scientific medicine. Present-day dabbling of many in diet, herbalism, homeopathy etc does not change that. Regards Peter Moran
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