Weight loss and chiropractic care
It is no longer news that losing weight is a very difficult procedure. A lot of factors come into play in weight loss. These factors vary individually depending on sex, metabolism, age, and genetics among others. Knowing which route will work best for you can be very difficult especially when there are hundreds and thousands of workout plans, diets, cleanses, protein shakes, meal plans and supplements to choose from. What’s worse, even when you have decided on a line of action and taken it, you’ll soon realize that it does have a limit to the wonders it can work. In times like this, you’ll need some extra help, and fortunately, there is a natural treatment that could help solve the problem. It is chiropractic treatment.
About chiropractic treatment
In chiropractic treatment, the therapist, known as a chiropractor, makes use of his hands to help relieve issues with the muscles, joints and bones. Note that chiropractic treatment is not a conventional medical treatment. It complements conventional medicine.
Chiropractic treatment can help resolve issues with neck pain, back pain, shoulder pain and pains in the elbow. Not much evidence exists on whether chiropractic treatment can help resolve issues affecting other body parts outside the joints, such as allergies, asthma and mental health problems.
During chiropractic treatment, the physician first examines your symptoms to determine whether or not you do need a chiropractic treatment, and what techniques would best resolve your problem. Different techniques are adopted by chiropractors to help treat problems. Such techniques include:
- Spinal manipulation which involves using the hands to apply pressure in or around the spine, bones and the joints.
- Moving your joints gradually into different positions
- Sharp, short thrusting movements.
- Stretching or pulling the muscles into different positions.
Chiropractic treatment does not cause any pain though some people may experience a bit of discomfort.
Chiropractic treatment and weight loss
Chiropractic treatment aids in weight loss by facilitating the ridding of body wastes under safe circumstances. Chiropractors can help by with chiropractic manipulations and also by giving you the best advice on exercise and nutrition. Such chiropractors are well-trained in nutrition science and can assist you in creating a nutrition plan that suits your needs depending on your metabolism and other factors. When you tackle weight gain with multiple strategies, you stand a chance of seeing better results than if you used a single strategy.
When you get chiropractic adjustments frequently, the pressure on your spine will be relieved. This pressure in most cases causes complications such as subluxations or spine dysfunction. Chiropractic treatments can do away with these subluxations, thus enhancing your exercises and making your dieting more effective. Working out without any pain will encourage you to take on prolonged and more intense workouts which will result in burning more calories, thus facilitating weight loss.
Chiropractic treatments can tone up your muscles in some way. Although its efficacy cannot be compared to that of the regular dumbbells used in the gym, you can think of it as a supplement to your lifting just like your protein shakes. Adjustment can burn off the adipose tissue, enhancing your muscle tone. With this, the body finds it difficult to add more weight. You can also derive more benefits by chiropractic adjustments, after you complete your workout by relaxing your muscles, preparing them for the next workout session. During this time, the chiropractor may be able to identify potential injuries, which may help resolve certain ailments before they escalate into issues that might inhibit your weight loss.
Scientific validation?
Studies have been carried out to examine the efficacy of chiropractic techniques in weight loss. The Journal of Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice has published a retrospective study, which examined the outcomes of a weight loss program facilitated by chiropractors. The program featured 30 participants with “Obese” BMI values. Each participant was given special calorie and exercise guidelines based on their individual characteristics. Participants reviewed their daily caloric and weight levels with a chiropractor. The chiropractor was at hand to counsel, advice and conduct spinal manipulations.
At the start of the study, mean weight was 190.46 pounds. The average weight at the end of the program (for the 16 patients who completed it) was 174.94 pounds. This indicates a difference of 15.52 pounds. The BMIs of the patients also reduced by 2.44kg/m2. This lends credence to the fact that chiropractic care enhances weight loss.
Reference
DeMaria et al. A weight loss program in a chiropractic practice: a retrospective analysis. Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice 2013. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1744388113000959