Why take a healthy child to a chiropractor? Maybe you think of chiropractic as something for adults with whiplash. However, there are signs of spinal misalignments which shouldn’t be overlooked in children and can be gently corrected by a pediatric chiropractor. The benefits are huge in improving your child’s health, development and quality of life!

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Signs that kids need to be checked by a pediatric chiropractor: 

• Postural changes 
• Aches & Pains  
• Headaches 
• Tumbles & Traumas 
• Colic & Fussiness in babies  
• Sleep issues

While scoliosis is a concern, and children should be checked for it, there are other postural concerns too. Forward head posture is rampant, even in kids. Also called text neck, when we look at a person from the side, their head is farther forward than their shoulders. 

This puts a lot of added stress on the upper back and neck. 

According to Physiology of the Joints (1), for each inch forward you hold it, your head gains about 10 pounds of weight! This hunched posture can even start affecting organ function as the organs and nerves become compressed. 

Wearing heavy, unbalanced backpacks can also have a negative effect on children’s posture.

Kids need to grow and develop with a good posture, much like a young tree that needs to be cared for while small to grow straight.

What can you do? You can remind children to change their posture for a minute, but it can be hard to hold when the bones are misaligned, and the ligaments and muscles have become used to the incorrect position. 

Chiropractic adjustments help the bones to move back into their correct position, fixing your posture from the foundation up with time and repetition. 

Torticollis is another postural issue that Dr. Stacy and Dr. Ed check. A baby of a patient came in with their head noticeably pulled to one side. The baby was definitely more comfortable with full range of motion restored by a gentle adjustment!

Headaches in kids is a sign that something isn’t right in their body. When you know a trauma or fall has occurred, then it’s definitely time to get them checked! 

Young athletes put their young bodies through a lot. Being adjusted corrects any misalignments before they can become serious injuries and helps to prevent further injuries as they are more balanced.

When children aren’t comfortable, they don’t rest or sleep well! Chiropractic helps put their bodies back into a “rest and digest” state, which can relieve colic. It can also help kids and teens whose sleep patterns are off, for whatever reason.

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What’s different about a pediatric chiropractic adjustment?

Kids often adjust easily, with very little pressure. With instrument adjustments, Dr. Stacy can use the gentlest setting or even use her fingertip as a cushion between the instrument and the vertebrae. There's no twisting, cracking or popping! 

Many kiddos enjoy their adjustments - and the whole family benefits from happy, comfortable, thriving, healthy kids.

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Benefits of chiropractic for children

Chiropractic focuses on restoring function to the nervous system by relieving pressure from misaligned vertebrae on the nerves as they exit the spinal cord. Those nerves go to every organ, gland and tissue in the body, carrying signals from the brain. 

Without that communication to and from the master control system, the rest of the body doesn’t work at 100% of its capacity. So the greatest benefit is restored function, especially in children who are growing and developing.

Some things that parents frequently notice in children under chiropractic care include:

• Better focus
• Better sleep
• Better digestion
• Better coordination
• Better posture

At Vitality Chiropractic in Rochester, we love being a part of your family’s health journey! We’d love to help you and your children achieve your health goals.