Can Chiropractic Care Help Keep Your Family Healthy During COVID 19?
We are facing an unprecedented challenge with COVID-19, a pandemic that changed the world. Our lives are completely different now from what they were before the outbreak. Fear has installed throughout the world, and tension strikes in every corner, even among cohabitants of the same house in different day-to-day activities.
Stress and anxiety are more prevalent now than ever. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this pandemic has led to a mental health crisis and taking care of your body counts as a preventive strategy to cope with stress (1).
With this in mind, can chiropractic care contribute to boosting immunity by realigning the nervous system?
Why is the nervous system essential for immunity?
Body functions are deeply interconnected, and immunity cells are not the exception. There’s a strong relationship between the nervous system and immunity. For example, neurotransmitters can trigger an immune response. They can also contribute to cytokine production and inflammation. They even start allergies, autoimmune disease, or immunity suppression during times of stress and anxiety (2).
Based on this fact, chiropractic care may significantly influence immunity and other body functions. The main goal of chiropractic care is detecting and treating spinal subluxations and misalignments that impact neurologic function (3). No wonder why many chiropractors have experienced a reduction of community-shared illnesses in patients who receive regular chiropractic care (4).
But what about COVID-19? Our current understanding of this disease is incomplete, and new variants are now in circulation before we understood how to treat the condition effectively. Research is still ongoing, and chiropractic applications have not been widely studies.
However, a solid rationale is the first step to find clinical applications. This is what we do know:
- Adjusting and correcting joint dysfunction may contribute to central nervous system communications.
- By communicating more efficiently, your nervous system dictates what should be done to recover your health or protect the body against disease.
- Even if you can’t control what happens on the outside, you can definitely do something to support your body from the inside.
What else can you do to prevent a case of COVID-19?
If we had a definite way to beat COVID-19, the virus would not have reached worldwide proportions. However, there is still a lot we can do in our day-to-day to stay protected:
- Live a healthy life, trying to understand and healthily express your emotions
- Do not hesitate to look for professional help if you can’t control depression or anxiety
- Compensate for the physical activity you’re not doing in a home office work, and do some extra exercise if you can
- Lead a nutritious diet based on fruits and vegetables
- Make use of the facemask and adequate protection whenever required, only leaving your home when strictly necessary
- Stay alert for warning signs without giving in to panic and despair
If you have symptoms of COVID-19, do not hesitate to talk to your doctor. Remember that strengthening your body is the first step, and a great preventative strategy. But we cannot pretend to outsmart or control coronavirus without the appropriate medical care.