(Newswire.net — April 11, 2016) — Most people would agree, when it comes to our efforts towards achieving a good quality of life, our physical, emotional, and psychological health play a very big part in that endeavor. With regard to our physical competence specifically, we would measure our fitness by our body’s ability to respond to routine physical demands, with enough reserve to manage unexpected challenges.
An advantageous physical dexterity profile would include: good muscular strength and endurance, such as pushing, pulling, walking with ease, and typical everyday lifting. Unimpaired muscles assist in keeping the skeleton in proper alignment, improve posture, and aid in preventing body aches and pains. In addition, we need good range of motion around our joints. Our flexibility is in part contingent upon factors like our age, gender, posture, how muscular we are, and how much body fat we have.
For example, as children grow and develop, their flexibility increases until they reach young adulthood, at which point diminishment begins to occur. As the aging process continues, there are varying degrees of loss in joint mobility, depending on the individual. Muscles and tendons become shortened and tighter if not consistently used for conditioning, so full range of motion is realized. Job tasks that mimic, and our commitment to exercises and necessary daily movements, help us maintain our balance, coordination, strength and endurance.
The significance of this fundamental formula is widely understood and uncontested. But there is another factor to this equation that is seldom mentioned, that remains unavoidable for most people as a result of being born. Traumatic Birth Syndrome (TBS) is a condition that describes the harm and impairment, as well as the trauma-induced skull and spinal damage and misalignment that occurs, as a result of the birth process. This hugely under-reported condition has been well documented scientifically, and accounts for at least 80 percent of the health maladies chiropractors, and conventionally educated and practicing physicians who have osteopathic medical training (D.O.), and practice osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT), see in adults.
Research at Sweden’s Karolinski Institute has extensively documented the effects of birth trauma on later physical and behavioral symptoms in childhood. Their assertion is that significant research positively correlates birth trauma to physical and psychological health challenges later in life such as: anxiety, behavior problems in children, childhood neurosis, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, learning disabilities, sensory processing dysfunction, and immune system disorders, among a longer list of health problems that parallel with birth trauma.
Another study of 1250 newborn babies conducted at the Osteopathic Center for Children, and published in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, demonstrated that only 10 percent of infants ‘are without’ significant trauma to their body structure, including those anatomical frameworks that make up the head or skull, and hold the brain and spinal cord. This scientific research was the first publication revealing these findings by the highly respected Viola Frymann, D.O. Despite her popularity, she dedicated her life to improving the lives of children.
It is helpful to understand the differences between, and orientation undertaken by, healthcare physicians who may, or may not detect or suspect symptoms associated with TBS, or non-TBS related indications that exist as a result of damage or disturbance to the body structure. Medical doctors (M.D.s) and Osteopathic physicians (D.O.s) attain similar education in the United States. Both must obtain a 4 year undergraduate degree, and their graduate training equals a 4 year medical or osteopathic medical degree.
Medical doctors and doctors of osteopathic medicine must complete a 1 year internship; satisfy 2 or more years of residency training, depending on their specialty; and are legally allowed to practice the complete spectrum of medical and surgical specialties in all 50 states, providing they possess licensure in that particular state. They are also allowed to prescribe medications. The osteopathic profession (D.O.s), which was founded by Andrew Still M.D. in 1874 as a science of healing, differs from M.D.’s training since it requires at least 300 to 500 hours of additional classes and instruction on the neuro-musculoskeletal system, and the interaction of the body with diseases. They are indoctrinated to ask questions about medical conditions from both a medical and lifestyle perspective.
Doctors of osteopathic medicine (D.O.s) are also trained in Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine, or OMT (Osteopathic Medical Treatment), a hands-on treatment skill intrinsically holistic in its scope. With a focus on restoring the body’s natural balance, they typically go beyond spinal alignment using direct and indirect thrusting methods, myofascial release, muscle energy, and visceral manipulation. It also involves, but is not limited to, very light touch, specific stretching, mobilizing joints with a calculated and directed impulse, to ligament/soft tissue, and even cranial release techniques.
While some D.O.s are more conventional in their method of healthcare delivery, resembling many M.D.s, those who use OMT typically address health issues like back and neck discomfort or pain, headaches and shoulder problems, knee and joint complaints, and carpel tunnel syndrome. It is also beneficial in people with other concerns affecting gastrointestinal, cardiac, pulmonary, and other health systems, as reinforcement to their medical therapy.
Doctors of chiropractic medicine (D.C.) are required to have at least 90 hours of college credits, while some chiropractic colleges require a 4 year degree. Then they must achieve a 4 year chiropractic degree (D.C.), with hands-on clinical practice with patients, manipulating the spine and skull base to restore or maintain their proper alignment. Chiropractors are not considered a physician like M.D.s or D.O.s, rather their scope of chiropractic practice is defined by a statute as: “Including the diagnosing and locating of misaligned or displaced vertebrae, and, through the manipulation and adjustment of the spine and other skeletal structures, treating disorders of the body. Administering the practice of chiropractic does not include the use of drugs or surgery, or the practice of osteopathy, obstetrics, or any other branch of medicine.”
Chiropractors and D.O.s are trained to identify when one or more of the bones of the body (vertebrae) move out of position and create pressure on, or irritate spinal nerves. This is also called ‘subluxation’. Your nervous system controls and coordinates ‘all’ the functions of your body. If the signals traveling over the nerves experience interference such as pressure or irritation, those nerves will malfunction causing some part of the body to work improperly.
Childbirth is a very challenging and delicate part of life. Each birth is unique, and there is always a chance that the baby suffers some sort of strain for a medley of reasons. The most natural methods of birth can result in undetected trauma.
When a woman is in labor, the baby’s head descends into the mother’s pelvis causing the pubic bone to exert pressure on the presenting part of the baby’s skull. If these forces exceed the limit of the tissue, the baby’s head may become strained. If these strains are not treated, they become a dysfunction.
Trauma can occur from: a very short labor; a very long labor; failure of the cervix to dilate; use of forceps or vacuum extraction; use of Pitocin to strengthen or induce uterine contractions; epidurals for pain relief require women to alternate sides while in a lying position, which sometimes slows down labor or stops it, and inhibits the mother’s ability to sense how much force is being exerted, at times leading to added medications, maneuvering, or delivery-aiding tools; Cesarean delivery due to lack of progress; pulling and twisting on the head, neck, shoulders, or any other part of the spine and pelvis of the infant; and the cord around the baby’s neck.
Women lying on their backs (supine position) does not allow gravity to assist the infant’s descent down and outward. This position is historically rooted in the convenience of physicians, not research evidence. The supine position allows the practicing physician easier access to the birthing woman. Aside from exceptional situations that might necessitate a back-lying position, it is disadvantageous for the woman. Lying on the back reduces the pelvic outlet by 30 percent, forcing the woman to put direct pressure on her sacrum (tailbone) that flexes it upward, forcing it into a curved position. This restricts the diameter of the pelvic outlet, and can inhibit the baby’s descent through the maternal pelvis.
Effectively, the birth canal is placed in an uphill orientation, forcing the mother to push upward against gravity to expel the baby. In addition, this unfortunately increases the risk to the infant. Ineffective birth positions compress major blood vessels interfering with circulation, and lowering maternal blood pressure. This, consequently, lowers fetal transcutaneous oxygen saturation as much as 90 percent—decreasing fetal heart rate, or contributing to other forms of fetal distress, including cord compression. This often leads to continuous internal fetal monitoring, and increased risk of shoulder problems with fetal presentation, or a prolonged pushing phase.
Highly renowned European researchers in the field of physical medicine, Dr. Gottfried Gutmann M.D., and Dr. H. Biederman M.D., have done extensive studies on TBS, referenced by many physicians and chiropractors today. They found a subluxation in the upper neck area can affect the respiratory centers of the spinal cord, and a baby can literally stop breathing while asleep. Today, this condition has been referred to as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Harvard University pathologist Dr. Abraham Towbin M.D., found evidence of spinal injury common as a result of the birth process, and correlated these spinal injuries to infant respiratory conditions, and SIDS.
Dr. Gutmann also found that 80 percent of all children tend to have a subluxation in the upper part of the neck, which potentially increases their susceptibility to a number of diffuse symptoms, leaving some physicians puzzled. His findings demonstrated that this type of subluxation can cause lower resistance to infection, frequent colds, ear problems, hyperactivity, asthma, bed-wetting, ADD/ADHD, digestive problems, as well as what he termed, “central motor impairment”. His recommendation to parents is: “a spinal checkup after birth should be obligatory.” An interesting study by Dr. Gutmann involving 1000 infants yielded impressive results. He concluded that blocked nerve impulses at the level of the first vertebrae can be the cause of central motor impairment, and lower resistance to infections, especially those of the ear, nose, and throat.
His research revealed the 1000 children treated had success, almost without exception, for a variety of ailments by spinal adjustments at the atlas (top vertebra in the neck). Symptoms with favorable responses included: congenital torticollis, disturbed mental and especially linguistic development, recurrent rhinitis, bronchitis tonsillitis, enteritis (inflammation of the intestine), persistent conjunctivitis, restless sleep, unmotivated central seizures, cerebral spasms, disturbed motor responses with repetitive falls, infantile scoliosis, distortion of ilio-sacral joint, ‘growing pains’, appetite disturbance, and the inability to thrive.
“If the indications are correctly observed, Dr. Gutmann explains, chiropractic can often bring about amazingly successful results, because the therapy is a causal one. With developmental disturbances of every kind, the atlanto-occipital/A-O joints should be examined, and in each case be treated manually in a qualified manner. The success of this treatment eclipses every other attempt at treatment, including especially the use of medications.”
Although the majority of U.S. hospitals are set up for women to give birth in the supine position, they are gradually becoming in alignment with research evidence regarding the importance of mobility during the early and active stages of labor. Upright standing, and squatting positions are more conducive to a smoother labor experience for the mother and the infant, honoring the benefit of gravity, and reducing complications and unnatural intervention.
For many centuries, midwives provided most of the maternity care before the development of forceps, which introduced physicians to maternity care. In many states, women can opt to have a midwife or doula present during delivery. Although midwives are professionally trained in technical capacities, their attention is often directed towards the mother and baby’s safety. The doula generally concentrates on the emotional and physical comfort of the woman so she can feel emotionally supported.
It is encouraging that many M.D.s today are acquiring additional training beyond their lengthy medical school requirements to learn OMT. Like many D.O.s, they are seeking a more integrative approach to healthcare delivery, and to benefit their patients since there is an increased interest in complementary care on the part of consumers. It is comforting to know, many insurance companies, to include workers’ compensation plans, Medicare and Medicaid, cover chiropractic care. Chiropractic care is also available to active-duty members of the armed forces on many military bases.
It is important to keep in mind that practically anything we do recreationally, occupationally, to include indoor and outdoor chores and running errands, eventually causes misalignment in the body. On a daily basis, most of us take part in activities without considering if our physical approach is ergonomically correct. Children fall, jump, and play hard. Being properly aligned through regular adjustments ensures other conditions are not compounded or developed, and allows their body to reach its full potential. Also, make sure your child’s backpack is not too heavy. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), there are more than 6,500 reported emergency room visits each year by children and teens, ages 5 to 18, that stem from injuries related to heavy backpacks, or book bags.
Further research shows that by the end of their teen years, 60 percent of young people experience at least one low-back pain episode. Backpack loads are documented as being responsible for a significant amount of back pain in children, teens, and college students. TBS disruption is very challenging to equate as being associated with current health maladies in adults, due to many years of activity and contact. As a result, people cannot rely on pain as a sign of this condition, or any other symptom that might stem from unrelated musculoskeletal misalignment. Said another way, physiological dysfunction stemming from musculoskeletal malalignment can be present, even without the experience of pain.
When seeking a qualified OMT practicing physician or chiropractor, learn about their methods and why they use them. Seek a consultation before securing a treatment visit so that you can ask questions, and determine if there is a comfort level between you, or your child, and the practicing healthcare provider. As it pertains to treatment for children, make sure your practicing provider has experience administering pediatric OMT, or chiropractic care.
Pregnant mothers should attend Lamaze or childbirth classes selectively. They should seek classes taught by instructors who are qualified to explain and demonstrate the difference between, and benefits of, non-supine delivery positions, and when a Cesarean section delivery is absolutely necessary. Learning as much as you can, and preparing in advance, ensures you will make the best possible decision for you and your child, now and later.