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Why Do Newborns Need Chiropractic Care?

Jan 21, 2020

It is vital to get our kids adjusted. Getting children under regular chiropractic care allows them to grow and develop properly. We are seeing a skyrocketing increase in kids with joint pain, ADD/ADHD, allergies, dowager's hump (fatty pocket at the base of the neck), poor posture, anxiety, scoliosis, and more. This does not have to happen! All these symptoms are 100% avoidable. Getting to the root of these issues as children, will prevent these issues from becoming major problems as teens and adults.



Improving Pediatric Health


You may think that babies don't experience any kind of physical trauma. However, babies go through an incredible about of stress during the birthing process. Whether a baby is born via cesarean or vaginal, there is massive amounts of pressure, torsion, and compression put onto the baby's spine. Most commonly affected is C1 (or Atlas) which is the first bone in the spine located in the neck. When baby engages with mom's pelvis, C1 can become jammed into the skull bones, which can shift and rotate the proper position.



What can cause birth trauma in infants?

1. Very short labor


2. Very long labor


3. The use of pitocin to strengthen/induce uterine contractions


4. Pain medications


5. Restricted maternal birthing positions


6. Pulling or twisting on the head to deliver the infants body


7. The use of forceps or vacuum extraction


8. Cesarean delivery




Left uncorrected, this trauma continues to impact a baby's spinal growth and development, reducing the healthy function of the nerve system. This can cause many health challenges later in life that could easily have been prevented. Common issues we see in our office with newborns are: nursing difficulties, sleep disturbances, inability to be soothed, constipation, excessive crying, uneven head shape, head tilts, uneven eye size, reflux, tension, inability to meet milestones, and more!




Birth is tough work for both mothers and babies. There are a lot of pressures and forces being exerted onto your baby during their journey into the world. A recent study by Viola Frymann demonstrated that 90% of newborns suffered the effects of birth trauma: associated strain though the neck and cranial areas following birth. Frymann, an American osteopathic doctor, studied more than 1,500 babies periodically across an eight-year period. She examined all babies within the first five days of birth; in fact, many were checked within the first 24 hours.




This study revealed that approximately:


  • 10% of the newborn babies had perfect, freely mobile skulls or cranial mechanisms
  • 10% had severe trauma to the head, evident even to untrained observers
  • The remaining 80% all had some strain patterns in the cranial mechanism



Birth in its many forms can be quite traumatic. While each birth is unique, there is always a chance that the baby suffers some sort of strain due to a variety of reasons. Even the most natural births can result in trauma that goes undetected. As researcher G. Gutmann has written, "The trauma from the birth process remains an under publicized and therefore significantly under treated problem."



The best thing you can do for your newborn is to have them checked for these small yet significant strains in their spine. Without it, they are subject to more complications as they grow. Most symptoms that adults face can be addressed much earlier in life!




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