“The early symptoms are subtle. There’s no pain because the brain has no pain receptors, and the inner lining of the gastrointestinal mucosa contains no pain fibers. The symptoms are bloating, followed immediately by brain fog.”
— Robert G. Silverman, DC, DACBN, DCBCN, MS, CCN, CNS, CSCS, CIISN, CKTP, CES, HKC, FAKTR
After reading the eye-opening feature article in this issue on the gut-brain axis, that night I went online and bought a probiotic.
Robert Silverman not only illustrates our ongoing understanding of the gut-brain relationship, but lays out a seven-step plan for patients (and DCs) to restore the gut-brain balance via diet, lifestyle and mindset. As with chiropractic health, the key is eliminating inflammation and removing those items (in the case of chiropractic patients, poor posture habits — and in the case of gut-brain health, diet and lifestyle habits) that contribute to our poor health.
It will make you re-assess the phrase, “Listen to your gut.”
Also along the lines of pain and the brain in issue #11 are new study results regarding chronic pain syndrome, and using sEMG as a new chiropractic weapon in dealing with opioid patients.
WHO backs chiropractic
As we went to press the World Health Organization (WHO) came out with a strong recommendation for first-step non-pharmaceutical interventions, such as spinal manipulation, to address lower back pain while avoiding opioids, spinal injections and surgery.
“This report confirms what doctors of chiropractic around the world continue to witness in their practices on a daily basis: non-pharmaceutical, non-surgical care approaches to managing general low-back pain, such as spinal manipulation and exercise, are vastly superior methods,” said Sherry McAllister, DC, executive vice president of the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress. “This is an important study that we hope will help continue to expand the worldwide consensus toward managing low-back pain patients with safer, more effective and longer-lasting pain relief methods that drive increased mobility.”
The WHO and U.S. government are moving the culture toward non-pharmaceutical, non-surgical first-step care for lower back pain, but the chiropractic industry needs to keep leading the charge. Statistics continue to support the shift, as a study published in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine concluded that adults receiving chiropractic care for low-back pain were 55% less likely to fill a prescription for an opioid analgesic in comparison to adults who did not receive chiropractic care.
Point/Counterpoint: CBD
Some of the top industry DCs have already weighed in on Chiropractic Economics’ Point/Counterpoint on CBD and whether it should be on the front line of what doctors of chiropractic offer.
Add your voice to the discussion on the CE Point/Counterpoint Facebook Group at chiroeco.com/point-counterpoint.
To your practice’s health,
Rick Vach
Editor-in-Chief
Chiropractic Economics magazine
