Pleasure and pain can be experienced thanks to our body’s nervous system; tactile sensations send neural impulses to our brain that are registered as pleasurable or painful and allows our body to react naturally. Although modern science and medicine is just now understanding our body’s processes, pleasure and pain have been long understood since the time of Aristotle in the 3rd century BC as a part of human conditioning. While it is easy to understand pleasure and pain, there are millions of Americans that suffer from chronic conditions and experience little else than constant back or neck pain.
How Pain Affects Americans
At any given time there are approximately 31 million Americans experiencing lower back pain; worldwide there are around 1.5 billion people that suffer from some kind of chronic pain — almost a quarter of the global population. Many experts believe that as much as 80% of the population will experience some kind of back problem during their lives; currently over half of all working Americans admit to having some kind of back pain symptoms every year. Around 28% of adults that suffer from lower back pain state that it places some significant limitations on their daily activities, in fact back pain is the leading cause of disability in the U.S. for citizens under the age of 45.
Chiropractic Benefits
When it comes to treating chronic back and neck pain, there are generally three options available. The first is to see a physician; physicians will try to understand and diagnose the pain using medicine — this can sometimes work if the pain is caused by an inflammation or some kind of disease but this is rarely the case. The second option may be to visit an orthopedic surgeon; using a combination of surgery and therapy, orthopedic surgeons are able to treat the causes of pain only after an extensive healing process that many people may not be prepared for. A third option is to visit a chiropractor for chronic pain. Chiropractic benefits take the form of massages and other spine manipulations that can be relieving and even pleasurable to a certain extent. Studies found that injured workers with back pain are up to 28 times less likely to have spinal surgery if their first point of contact is a chiropractor rather than a surgeon; in addition, chiropractic benefits include a treatment cost that is up to 20% less than someone that starts with a physician.
Finding Local Chiropractic Care
Some may be skeptical about chiropractor services, as they can be considered to be a form of alternative medicine. Rest assured that chiropractors are licensed doctors with formal medical education; in fact due to the rapid rate at which the field is developing, chiropractors must complete continuing education every few years in order to maintain their status as a licensed chiropractor. Chiropractors successfully treat over 27 million Americans that suffer from one or more chronic conditions every year. All 32 National Football League teams rely on chiropractors to optimize the endurance, conditioning, and functionality of players through chiropractic treatment of neuromusculoskeletal injuries including neck pain, lower back pain, strained hamstrings and quads, and whiplash. For those looking for an alternative approach to treat chronic pain without surgery, consider trying a local licensed chiropractor to start experiencing life’s pleasures instead of its pains.
