As parents, you naturally wonder if your child is healthy…as healthy as possible. There are many factors that determine the health of your child. There is a vital link, a major component to a healthy child. Your child’s immune function, growth, repair, and overall function are determined by the communication between your child’s brain and body. This occurs through the nervous system. Dr. Brandon January works with children to optimize the proper function of their nervous system. Dr. January is a Family Chiropractor, specializing in Pediatrics, and has one of the largest Pediatric Chiropractic practices in the nation.
What is a chiropractic adjustment? The nervous system is protected by the vertebrae. These “bones in your back” fit together so that the LIFE (nerve supply) produced in your brain may filter down your spinal cord and out over your nerves. This LIFE is responsible for growth, repair, and healing in your entire body. When vertebrae are out of their natural alignment, nerves become stretched or twisted (commonly referred to as a nerve "pinch"), and this vital communication system in the body is disrupted. This neurological disturbance is called a subluxation, and it may result in the failure of one or more parts of the body, as well as health in general. Subluxations can also foster the onset of sickness and disease as the body weakens. Edmond Chiropractor Dr. January specializes in the detection and correction of subluxations. Instead of treating the symptoms of the disease, Chiropractic adjustments are given to correct the subluxation so that normal body functions may take place. This is done by laying our hands on your back and gently lining up the vertebrae in their natural position. This process may take weeks or months, depending on the amount of misalignment. LIFE may then be restored throughout the body, and healing can take place. As your body heals, the symptoms begin to diminish. By having subluxations corrected throughout childhood, your child will have a better opportunity to be as healthy as possible.
When should your child be checked for subluxations? Newborn infants should be checked within hours after birth. The birth process, even under natural and controlled conditions, is potentially traumatic. During the pushing stage of labor, the spine, particularly the neck, may be injured as the baby is compressed and pushed down the birth canal. The most frequent subluxation experienced by newborns results from the pulling, twisting, and compression of the infant's spine during birth. Although birth subluxations may cause immediate symptoms, such as respiratory depression, there may be far-reaching effects that are manifested for years. The child's ability to fight against disease, for example, may be lowered. Colds, ear infections, colic, and other illnesses may result. Subluxations may also interfere with internal organ function, resulting in the inability to produce chemicals responsible for raising and lowering body temperature as needed. Research has also indicated that the body's immune response in the production of antiviral and antibacterial agents to fight infection is greatly compromised due to vertebral subluxations. Chiropractic is safe and natural. The chiropractic approach to health care is natural. It does not try to stimulate or inhibit normal body function. Instead, Edmond Chiropractor Dr. January addresses the important relationship between the nervous system and disease. The systemic effect of vertebral subluxations is complex. Many childhood illnesses may be manifested in the pediatric patient due to abnormal body function caused by subluxations. In light of this, your chiropractor may be the best doctor to help your child. (Billy DeMoss, D.C.)
Children NEED Chiropractic adjustments: All children function better with 100% nerve function. Chiropractic care is safe, gentle and effective. It allows for the opportunity for maximum potential for well-being and immune system function. The first subluxations occur at birth as an infant!!! A chiropractor’s purpose is to remove interference to the natural healing power running through the body. When that power is unleashed the healing that results may be profound. Our pediatric patients typically respond quickly once the low-force adjustments are administered. We see great results with our pediatric chiropractic patients. More and more parents are bringing their children to Edmond Chiropractor Dr. January for day-to-day health concerns we're all familiar with: colds, sore throats, ear infections, fevers, colic, asthma, tonsillitis, allergies, bed-wetting, infections, pains, falls, stomach-aches, and the hundred and one little and big things children go through as they grow up.
Earache & Ear Infections: Earache is the most common reason for office visits to pediatricians. By the age of three years, more than 70 percent of children will have had at least one episode of earache and about a third will have had more than three episodes. It is not surprising, therefore, that earache is also the most common reason for children under the age of five years to enter our office. When a child with earache is diagnosed with middle ear infection by the pediatrician, the usual treatment involves a course of antibiotics. New research has determined that this is often misguided. The cause of the child's middle ear infection may not be due to bacteria, and since antibiotics are only effective against bacterial pathogens, frequently there will be no response. Edmond Chiropractor Dr. January's task is to ascertain if the reason for the body's inability to combat the earache/ear infection is caused by irritation of the small nerves in the spine (called free nerve endings). When these nerve endings are irritated, an abnormal tension is produced in the small muscles of the neck. This muscle tension can place pressure on the lymphatic drainage ducts resulting in inadequate drainage from inside the ear, thus preventing the body from being able to naturally correct the problem. Identification of such a problem is made by detecting increased tension in the neck and paraspinal muscles, usually more tension is felt on the side of earache. Edmond Chiropractor Dr. January also looks for spinal vertebrae which are either slightly out of alignment or are not moving within their normal range. This problem may have been due to any one of the number of bangs, jolts and falls that most children experience in the early years of their life. Often, a short course of spinal adjustments can help restore normal lymph drainage.
Colic: The most widely accepted definition of colic today is "unexplainable and uncontrollable crying in babies from 0 to 3 months old, more than 3 hours a day, more than 3 days a week for 3 weeks or more, usually in the afternoon and evening hours." As your child is born, the neck and back vertebrae can become misaligned due to the stretching and compressing of the body as it emerges into the world. If your delivery included a prolonged pushing stage, forceps or vacuum extraction, or other form of assisted delivery, the chances of a misalignment are great. If the subluxations (misaligned vertebrae) are severe, the functioning of major systems in the body can be compromised. The digestive system can be affected and ineffective digestion of breast milk and formula can cause major discomfort in your baby, leading to colic episodes. Studies have shown that chiropractic adjustments were effective in reducing colic symptoms, most notably the average hours per day spent crying, but also that the use of drugs was not particularly effective, and certainly less effective than chiropractic care. Your chiropractor can evaluate your child's condition and recommend the best approach for maximizing health and wellness.
Birth Trauma: Trauma during birth is associated with physical injury to an infant during the birth process. Health consequences to the newborn from birth trauma range from immediate and severe to hidden problems that may take years to surface. Some of the more immediate results that have been documented are spinal cord and brain stem injuries, brain bleeding and swelling, neurological deficits, and breathing problems. The long-term consequences are as varied as the nervous system itself. Some of the more commonly mentioned problems that have been linked to traumatic birth are learning disabilities, headaches, visual and hearing problems, certain palsies, and a host of immune functional problems. Many studies have relayed scientific documentation of damage that occurs to the nervous system in the neck of newborns during the common birth process. This damage ranges from mild subluxations in the upper neck to more serious subluxations involving spinal cord damage and central nervous system problems. Many studies suggest the position of the mother coupled with the pulling from the delivering physician has a lot to do with the creation of these subluxation problems. When the delivering mother is lying on her back, she is not only working partially against gravity, but she has reduced the pelvic opening size. These two factors then require the attending physician to pull harder on the head of the child. This increased pulling and twisting during the birth process, coupled with a decrease in the pelvic opening and a non alignment with gravity often set the stage for birth trauma, subluxation and the resulting problems. The less force used, if any, the better.
Bed Wetting: Bed-wetting or enuresis is the involuntary passage of urine. Bedwetting is an issue that affects millions of kids every night. It is very common among kids who are 6 years old or younger. About 15% of 6-year-olds wet the bed, while about 5% of 10-year-olds do. Commonly, bedwetting is blamed on immature sleeping patterns or small urinary bladder capacity. One of the common causative factors involved in nocturnal enuresis is categorized as bladder innervation disorder. Chiropractic studies have indicated that bed-wetting has been resolved when vertebral subluxations (nerve interferences) are corrected. When nerve supply or communication is disrupted from the brain to the spinal column, ultimately to all other parts of the body, one or more parts of the body begin to fail. By minimizing nerve interference through chiropractic adjustments, the natural strengths of the human body are maximized increasing the body's capacity to heal itself without the use of drugs or surgery.
Asthma & Allergies: Allergies are characterized by an overreaction of the immune system to substances (either inhaled, ingested, touched or injected) that normally do not cause an overreaction in non-allergic people. Asthma is a condition involved in the respiratory system in which the airways occasionally constrict, becoming inflamed, and are lined with excessive amounts of fluid, often in response to one or more triggers. These episodes may be triggered by such things as exposure to an environmental stimulant such as allergen, environmental tobacco smoke, cold or warm air, perfume, pet dander, moist air, or emotional stress. Asthma is becoming more prevalent in our world, affecting 1 in 4 children. The nervous system helps to runs the body in a perfect manner; it is an individual’s internal Internet. As long as the nervous system is able to control all functions of the body with no interference, a person should have the best body function and health possible. If, however, there is interference to the normal function of this system, the body will not be able to function properly. The nervous system is also in total control of the immune system. As a matter of fact, many researchers now feel that the nervous system and the immune system are actually the same. When the nervous system and the immune system are not functioning normally, the body will react poorly to pollens, food and the environment. By correcting these vertebral subluxations, the nervous system and immune system are allowed to function normally and your child has a better chance of successfully dealing with allergies. Sadly, the medical treatment for asthma and allergies does not offer anything but symptomatic relief through drugs which supplies more toxins for the body to deal with. Chiropractic seeks to correct the underlying cause, inhibited/overactive nervous system function.
Take a look at the reviews Edmond Pediatric Chiropractor Dr. January has received on our testimonials page.