Triggered by painful joints, swelling and inflammation, arthritis is a joint disorder that lowers the functionality of your joints limiting movement and hampering your daily life routine. Arthritis may be triggered due to several reasons like metabolic abnormalities, autoimmune disorder, bacterial infections and hereditary factors.
No matter what the reason may be it’s important to seek treatment for pain management and joint movement. If you’re looking for natural and drug-free ways to lower the symptoms of arthritis then your two best hands on therapies are acupuncture and chiropractic care.
Before I explain to you how these treatments can benefit arthritis, let me first share with you some alarming facts about arthritis and its prevalence in the US:
It’s unfortunate but true that:
- Over 50 million adults have been diagnosed with arthritis in the US—that is 1 in 4 individuals,
- Almost 1in 250 children have arthritis or a rheumatic condition,
- Studies suggest that over 78 million people might be diagnosed with arthritis by 2040,
- Arthritis is the number 1 reason for disability in the US, and
- The risk of developing arthritis increasing with age.
From the looks of these statistics, the good news is that you’re not the only one suffering from arthritis but nonetheless it is painful and you must do something about it to manage and alleviate pain. My patients have had great success with acupuncture and chiropractic care. Let me explain how these two treatments provide benefits in their own respective domains.
Acupuncture
The principle or the theory of acupuncture revolves around qi that is the essential life energy. It flows throughout the human body along with 20 meridians (invisible energy channels). It’s believed that the pain, illness or disease occurs when the flow of the energy is imbalanced or blocked.
There are over 2000 acupuncture points that help connect the meridians. When these points are stimulated with needles, it helps correct the qi flow in the body thereby correcting imbalances and alleviating pain. It also helps to release tight muscles from their resting state while releasing pain fighting endrophins in the body. Additionally, the change in qi flow can influence blood flow to help reduce inflammation which is the number one contributor to arthritis pain.
Chiropractic Care
Chiropractic treatments are designed to maximize the function of the arthritic joint. It focuses on restoring joint mobility which also triggers a calming effect in the nociceptive nerve receptors (pain sensing nerves) while also alleviating swelling in the joints. So patients can enjoy quality living and engage in day to day activities.
Chiropractors use a wide variety of spinal manipulation techniques, AKA adjustments to manage and alleviate pain and maintain or restore joint motion. Chiropractors don’t only adjust the spinal and pelvic joints, we also adjust the bones and joints of the feet, ankles, knees, hops, hands, elbows and shoulders. So, no matter where the arthritis is affecting you, chiropractic can help! They also may use adjunctive therapies like electrotherapy that uses tiny electric pulses to stimulate muscles and nerves thereby lowering pain. Ultrasound is also helpful to reduce inflammation and restore flexibility to stiff ligaments.
Other adjunctive therapies include nutritional therapy and dietary recommendations. Dr. Hoch has a particular interest and skill set in Functional Medicine and helps her patients correct digestive issues, dietary issues and weight issues that can make arthritic pain worse. For more information on these two therapies, get in touch with me.
Dr. Hoch (pronounced Hoke), is a 1988 Graduate of Peotone High School and a 1990 Graduate of Joliet Junior College. She Received both her B.S. in Human Biology (1991) and her Doctorate of Chiropractic (D.C.) (1993) from The National College of Chiropractic in Lombard, IL. She also received her graduate and post-graduate certifications in Acupuncture from NCC. This article is copyrighted and may not be copied or duplicated in any manner including printed or electronic media, regardless of whether for a fee or gratis without the prior written permission.