The Tribune

By The Bahamas Association of Chiropractic

THE simplest definition of a subluxation is: “A subluxation is a blockage of nerve supply.”

Even though this is over-simplified, it gives the major concept of what a subluxation is.

Since our brain and nervous systems controls how we breathe, how we digest food, how we eliminate waste, how our muscles work etc., it is crucial to examine anything that stops the travel of information from our brain and nervous system to our body.

We know that subluxations occur from all types of stress. Stress can be categorised into three sections: physical, mental/emotional and chemical.

Subluxations occur in every one of us throughout life because of stress.

We know that 83 per cent of all children experience spinal trauma from the birthing process alone.

Some of the research has shown that during a normal vaginal delivery the doctor may put up to 40 pounds of pulling pressure on the baby’s head.

Pick up something that is 40 pounds and try to convince yourself that this amount of force wouldn’t affect a baby’s spine. Even though the doctor is performing a beautiful part of their job by bringing a new life into this world, we also need to be aware of how this process can potentially harm the babies’ spine and nervous system.

As we go throughout life, there are numerous forms of physical stress that affect us daily, week to week, and yearly.

When a child is learning to walk, they fall 50-60 times a day, kids play, wrestle, fall, jump, play sports, etc. As we grow into adults, we have numerous daily physical stress placed on us from our occupations or hobbies. Over the years, we may not keep our bodies as healthy so they are more easily affected by stresses.

Mental/emotional stress affects how our bodies work and create subluxations in equal proportion to physical stresses. Numerous times in life, we go through mental/emotional stress thinking that it is not affecting our health, however the opposite is true.

When mental/emotional stress exists, people tighten up their muscular structure, they change many of the internal responses of their bodies, they may become constipated, they may not be able to eat and digest food, they may have a harder time breathing, they may get headaches, etc.

The only way that mental/emotional stress can affect all of these areas is through our nervous system.

If our nervous system is working improperly, then the muscles and other tissues that support the spine will fail equally.

This in turn leads to subluxations. When the mental/emotional stress is gone, we are left with subluxations that stay.

Because of the numerous ways we develop subluxations, chiropractors teach people that spinal maintenance checks are important. If we allow subluxations to build over many years, our health will continue to decrease over these years.

It is never too late to improve spinal and neurological health.