ickplantYou're cured!
AeriRegularly scheduled warning but chiropractor is not a real doctor and can paralyze you for life.
TransNekoregularly scheduled reminder that real Chiropractors are highly trained and not paid extra money to prescribe you a medication that has a warning label that includes the very minor side effects of… may cause: dizziness, nausea, rashes, cancer, and a mild case of death.
eupraxiathis is my general impression too, the origins of the practice is kinda bunk and it’s probably not worth the risk for a lot of people.
that being said, there are individual chiros out there that do good work. The main person I go to for non-chiro bodywork, who really knows her shit, sees a chiro and highly credits them for her recovery from pretty severe spinal issues.
but generally speaking there’s other alternative therapies I’d recommend over seeing just any random chiro. Acupuncture can be a game changer, craniosacral work is great for some people too, and both of those are a lot less focused on manual adjustment, lowering the risk significantly.
Acupuncture can be a game changer, and is starting to become less “alternative” as some PTs offer “dry needling” now.
Why would you let someone who doesn’t believe in germ theory put needles in your body?
There is no evidence justifying acupuncture.
You’ll find more study in the West of “dry needling”, a technique directly inspired by acupuncture. Here’s one recent review.
I see an acupuncturist because she’s good at what she does, does believe in germ theory, practices in a sanitary way, and doesn’t claim to cure illnesses. These are the norms for modern licensed acupuncturists. I’m not saying every acupuncturist out there is like this, hokey grifters do exist in alt medicine spaces, and that’s kind of my whole point. It really depends on the practitioner.
Many of those studies in that meta analysis show limited short term effects.
Because there is no widely accepted sham protocol for DN research, researchers should incorporate cognitive influences that extend beyond the mimicking of tactile sensations to create a believable simulation of active dry needling.
I also think there’s a serious question about what sham/placebo dry needling would be, and if inconsistent standards could impact results.