A bit on ear infections…
Everyone knows that ear infections in children are definitely not fun, for them or for parents! Unfortunately, most children develop an ear infection at some point in their life and, whether it’s a swimmer’s ear or a middle ear infection, if one is not careful this can become a recurring problem for you and your child. Indeed, one of the most common reasons why we see babies or young kids in our office is because they’ve been dealing with chronic ear infections. More often than not parents will report that their child is pulling on an ear, is complaining of ear pain, they’ve been inconsolable for days, and/or that they’ve had a low grade fever. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) agrees that a strong immune system can fight off an ear infection, but in the cases where this doesn’t happen, antibiotics are often prescribed to manage it. If ear infections become too frequent, ear tube surgery may be considered as well.
While antibiotics and ear tube surgery are effective at managing ear infections, many parents are seeking more natural and conservative approaches to helping to prevent and address them. The biggest concern is that too many rounds of antibiotics at a young age can affect a baby’s gut health and can increases the chance of bacterial resistance. In addition, some studies have found that early exposure to antibiotics can increase the chance of a child developing chronic asthma and allergies. Because of this concern, chiropractic care is commonly used as a complementary and conservative approach to help prevent and address ear infections.
How does chiropractic care support a child with ear infections?
During an adjustment, your chiropractor will identify and correct misalignments in your child’s spine with the goal of correcting structural imbalances and removing interference in nerve communication. If you’ve ever seen a toddler play or be on the move, you know just how much they’re constantly tripping over their feet and falling over. These constant bumps and the physical trauma of birth itself can create these structural and nerve dysfunctions. Additionally, if these misalignments occur in the regions that are associated with drainage of the ear and immune system support, then we can get children who suffer from recurring ear infections, multiple rounds of antibiotics, and the possibility ear tube surgery.
Although we don’t claim to directly treat ear infections, because the nervous system plays a role as messenger and regulator of the immune system, by addressing misalignments through these areas chiropractic adjustments can be beneficial to helping kids develop ear infections less frequently and be able to recover from them quicker. Think about it like this: if structural and nerve imbalances make it so that your child’s nervous system functions with a hand ‘tied behind its back’, removing this interference gives them an advantage to better thrive and lead healthier lives.
What to expect for the first visit:
After scheduling your child for the first appointment, you can expect to receive a warm welcome where we’ll then take your child’s medical history. Following this, we’ll perform a physical exam, we’ll assess certain neurological reflexes, and if your child has an active ear infection, we’ll likely perform a chiropractic adjustment on him or her that same day. During this visit, we’ll answer any questions that you may have and provide further information on next steps.
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