Approximately 50 million Americans suffer from allergies, and approximately 20 million suffer from asthma. With some overlap, more than 60 million Americans experience either allergies, asthma or both.
    The costs for medications, hospital and emergency room admissions, and loss of business productivity are huge – approximately $18 billion annually.  The impact on children is significant and ongoing – 14 million school days are missed annually due to allergies and asthma. These disorders are the number one reason for school absenteeism.
    Standard treatment for allergies and asthma consists of a variety of medications, and if you have one of these disorders, you know all about the meds. For allergies, typical medications include antihistamines and corticosteroid nasal sprays. You may also undergo more aggressive therapy – desensitization injections, known as immunotherapy, which are given regularly over a period of years.
    The challenge, of course, with allergy and asthma medication is there is no end-point. There is no cure. Asthma and allergies, for the most part, are lifelong conditions requiring lifelong medication. Might there be a better way, an alternative solution?
    “Alternative” is the key word. Medical treatment is designed to combat symptoms, and is successful to a certain extent with allergies and asthma. Underlying causes are not addressed, however, and symptoms continue year after year. What else might be done?
    Enter chiropractic care. Chiropractic health care, with its unique comprehensive approach, is able to offer positive benefits to a variety of conditions and ailments. In the case of allergies and asthma, these “hypersensitivity conditions” may respond well to therapy designed to normalize the body’s flow of nerve signals. To use a metaphor, chiropractic treatment removes roadblocks to the body’s natural healing abilities. Restoring these imbalances may help reduce such hypersensitivity reactions.
    Chiropractic care frequently includes nutritional counseling, a critical component for people with allergies and asthma. Such individuals need as much physical optimization as possible, and nutritional awareness is key. A balanced food plan will help support all metabolic systems, reduce irritation caused by deficiencies, and provide fuel for exercise programs.
    Chiropractic is for more than just neck and back pain.  Millions of people every year are realizing that keeping your spine in line and your nervous system free of spinal irritation, allows your body to heal faster.