The Power of an Adjustment…positively influences your brain! by Dr. Janna House

The Way I See It…

I see many patients who, immediately following an adjustment or over the course of regular chiropractic care say things like, “I feel so much better,” “I feel less anxious,” “I feel like a new man,” “My hockey game has improved.” My receptionist has noted that the demeanor of people changes for the better over time. She reports that the patients who were once a little solemn or not very personable have become happier and good-humoured. This could be a result of what is referred to as a better brain-body connection.

The Science Behind It…

Chiropractic Adjustments have a Profound Effect on the Brain according to a recent study published in the Journal of Neural Plasticity. [1]

“We do know that spinal function does affect brain function. There’s now solid evidence that adjusting the spine changes brain function.”

“The latest study suggests that the changes that we do see in the brain when we adjust the spine do occur in the prefrontal cortex. That part of the brain is like the conductor in the brain.”

The prefrontal cortex is the area of the brain that is responsible for executive functioning – attention, filtering information, focus, working memory, sequencing tasks, planning, flexibility, problem solving, emotional regulation – apathy, depression, social behavior, memory, intelligence – verbal expression, memory, abstraction, planning, spatial relationship, language – verbal expression and fluency, visual search and focus, and has implications for personality development and psychiatric disorders – ADHD, Autism, Schizophrenia, Depression, Mania, Dementias. [2] The research shows that when we adjust the spine, we significantly increase activity in the prefrontal cortex with a change in brain function by almost 20% on average. [2][3]

This research demonstrates that chiropractic adjustments improve prefrontal cortex activity, one could then speculate that chiropractic adjustments impact things like behavior, decision making, problem solving, memory, attention, intelligence, processing, emotions and mental health.

What This Means to You…

Most people seek out a chiropractor because of pain. Pain is a strong motivator and chiropractic care often helps with improving pain, but there is much more to it as the findings of this study suggest. No matter what’s going on in your life, because chiropractic adjustments have a positive influence on the brain, you are always going to be better off with chiropractic care than without.

References:

[1] Lelic, D, Niazi, IK, Holt, K, Jochumsen, M, Dremstrup, K, Yielder, P, Murphy, B, Drewes, A and Haavik, H (2016), “Manipulation of dysfunctional spinal joints affects sensorimotor integration in the pre-frontal cortex: A brain source localization study,” Neural Plasticity, Volume 2016 (2016). doi.org/10.1155/2016/3704964

[2] Siddiqui SV, Chatterjee U, Kumar D, Siddiqui A, Goyal N. Neuropsychology of prefrontal cortex. Indian J Psychiatry 2008; 50:202-8. doi: 10.4103/0019-5545.43634

[3] https://spinalresearch.com.au/research-beyond-doubt-adjusting-subluxated-spine-changes-brain-function/