Standards of Care in Chiropractic

Standard, defined as “a level of quality or attainment.” Synonyms for the word standard are quality, guideline, norm, and ideal. Our daily life involves many standards, or guidelines, of care including:

• the food pyramid
• an academic grading scale
• recommended daily physical activity
• ideal weight
• adequate sleep
• water intake
• alcohol consumption
• medical check-ups

Research helps to define the standards we live by today. For example, the surgeon general determined after conclusive research that smoking was bad for your health, specifically linked to lung cancer. Therefore, not smoking is a standard for optimal health just as 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week is the standard. Having guidelines helps us to live as healthy as possible. In the field of chiropractic, there is also a standard of care, too.

One of the most popular myths about chiropractors is that you need to keep going once you start. Yet there is some truth to this myth because of the physicality of the adjustment. The doctor is training the body, much like we do when we exercise. Stopping the adjustments is similar to stopping exercising. We all know what happens when we stop working out. Our weight starts to creep up. We lose muscle mass. Our energy level declines. Chiropractic adjustments keeps our body in alignment so it can function as it is intended to. Without this type of care, daily life negatively impacts our body. Aches and pains return.

Ironically, despite knowing about guidelines and recommendations society tells us that we don’t always follow them. If we did, we would not have an obesity epidemic, smoking would cease, and every student would receive an A. Free will gives us the choice and all too often we choose poorly. The good news however is that we can choose differently which can reverse unhealthy trends.

Standards of care exist chiropractic, as well. This standard is one adjustment per week as it is meant to be proactive. Just like visiting your dentist every 6 months to prevent cavities. Visiting the chiropractor keeps the body functioning as it should rather than letting the daily wear and tear of life compromise it. And yes, that is exactly what life does. We go through each day incurring a series of micro-traumas from falling, playing a sport, working out, and poor posture. Yet a simple and painless adjustment once a week and significantly offset this.

The choice is ultimately ours to make. And while knowledge is power, it really only is when we do something with it.