5 Benefits Of Regular Chiropractic Care For Teens
Many people think of chiropractic care as being for older adults. It helps with stiffness, arthritis, and other issues. However, chiropractic care is not just for older adults. It can also be helpful for younger people -- even for teens! In fact, there are five primary benefits that teens may experience when they get their spines adjusted on a regular basis.
1. Better Sleep
Teens are notorious for sleeping long hours. And while teens need more sleep than adults, one reason they spend so many hours in bed may be that they're not getting good-quality sleep. This could be due to fluctuating hormone levels, back soreness after activities at school, and even mental stress.
Chiropractic care can help teens sleep better because it eases the back pain and stress that may be keeping them up at night. You may notice that your teen has an easier time pulling themselves out of bed in the morning or that they no longer spend all weekend lounging around. Better sleep also leads to a more stable mood, as described below, and often even better grades.
2. Improved Moods
Teens are also notorious for being moody. Some of this moodiness is due to natural changes in hormone levels that happen during puberty, but back tension can also play a role. When the spine is out of alignment, the vertebrae may place pressure on the spinal cord. This can have an impact on the function of certain glands, which are controlled by the nerves in the spinal cord. When a chiropractor adjusts the spine, this alleviates pressure on the spine, and these nerves and glands are left to function as intended. As a result, your teen may experience fewer mood swings.
3. Improved Posture
Unfortunately, many teens spend a lot of their time sitting at desks in school. Sitting in place for hours per day is not healthy, especially if your teen is prone to slouching and sitting with poor posture -- as many do. Over time, the slouching can push the spine out of alignment, leading to back pain and stiffness. But your teen can't do much about their need to sit all day -- it's a school requirement.
When your teen's spine is adjusted, they will have an easier time sitting up with proper posture. This will help break the cycle in which poor posture leads to back pain, and back pain leads to poor posture. Posture is thought to be related to learning ability, so when your child sits up straight in school, they may start learning better and earning better grades.
4. Fewer Injuries
Many teens are very active. They may play sports at school, or they may be involved in extracurricular activities like hiking or mountain climbing. These activities come with the risk of injuries -- especially if the back is out of alignment. A misaligned back can cause your teen to carry weight unevenly across their limbs, putting more strain on one limb than the other and leading to injuries in that limb. After chiropractic adjustments, your teen should carry their weight more evenly, which reduces the risk of athletic injuries. Chiropractic adjustments also tend to increase flexibility, and flexible athletes are less injury-prone as well.
5. Less Stress
There's something relaxing about seeing the chiropractor. Your back pain fades away, you don't feel stiff any more, and as a result, your stress melts away, too. Teens are under a lot of pressure: pressure to get good grades, do well in sports, and get into a good college. They could use a little stress relief, and chiropractic care is a safe and natural way to achieve it.