More Complementary & Integrative Healthcare Articles
Studies Show Headaches Can Be Helped
More than 15 million Americans suffer from persistent recurring headaches with no obvious cause. According to a U.S. Public Health Service Report, these chronic sufferers spend 300 million dollars each year for headache remedies, remedies that give only temporary relief. Remedies such as over-the-counter analgesics can even be the cause of your headaches. If you look at the side effects of drugs taken for headaches, you'll notice that headaches are often a side effect of that drug. This is referred to as a paradoxical reaction by the pharmaceutical
industry.
There are two major types of chronic headaches, the tension headache and the migraine headache. Numerous studies have found that chiropractic care (manipulation) helps a variety of headaches.
Recent studies show that tension headaches originate in the neck where the cervical vertebrae are located. A medical doctor doing research at Syracuse University, said “We've been able to put together a scientific explanation for how neck structure causes headachesIt's true that chiropractors have been saying this for yearsThey were right about headaches.” A recently published controlled trial concluded, “Spinal manipulation has a significant positive effect in cases of cervicogenic (originating from the neck) headaches.” The study found that chiropractic care reduced the number of headache hours by a whopping 69% and reduced the intensity
of the remaining headaches. If you suffer from headaches this is welcome news.
Migraine headaches, the most common chronic headache and
perhaps the most severe, also res-
pond well to chiropractic care. The
migraine is also the vascular
headache, migraine syndrome or sick headache.
In one study, 74.7% of migraine patients were greatly improved under chiropractic care and the success rate was maintained for two years after the care ended.
Then there was the Parker trial, funded by the Australian government, which found chiropractic care effective for migraines. A follow-up study of the Parker trial concluded, “This trial clearly established that chiropractic was an effective treatment regimen for migraine.”
The chiropractor uses no pain killing drugs so when pain is relieved, the patient can be sure the doctor is working on the underlying cause
and not just the symptoms. Gentle manipulative therapy is often very effective in relieving the cause of nerve irritation taking place in the neck area. Additional treatment consisting of physical therapy, therapeutic exercise, and other conservative measures
may be utilized to effectively treat the condition.
Chiropractic care is not just for backaches. If you suffer with headaches by all means get a spinal check up. The research indicates that chiropractic evaluation and treatment is both safe and effective.
