Blood pressure. Hypertension. It’s a subject among friends and family members and patient/physician interactions even in yoga classes and via meditation apps. Our tense world has us all stressed out, back pain and neck pain makes us worry, chronic pain anywhere stresses our bodies, nudging blood pressure higher. New Hampshire Spine and Sport shares recent studies that show some potential promise of chiropractic and spinal manipulation’s ability to beneficially change blood pressure.
SPINAL MANIPULATION AND THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
Spinal manipulation’s effect on the nervous system, specifically its sympathetic (“fight or flight” reactionary part) and parasympathetic (“rest and digest” calm part) functions of the autonomic nervous system, is garnering notice in the clinical setting with normal clients as well as in the sport setting with athletes. A study of utilizing spinal manipulation versus a sham treatment with recreational athletes found that spinal manipulation before exercise elicited a shift toward intensified parasympathetic system function giving rise to diminished performance. (1) That is not all bad in the clinical setting! New Hampshire Spine and Sport knows it is all about delivering the right type of treatment at the right time to get the best outcomes. Parasympathetic dominance to enhance pain reduction is good for athletes suffering with back pain after their events.
CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM, HYPERTENSION, AND MANIPULATION
Manual therapies like Southern New Hampshire spinal manipulation and mobilization at New Hampshire Spine and Sport are recognized for their ability to treat, reduce, and manage spinal pain related conditions. As an additional benefit, alterations to the cardiovascular system have been documented. With hypertension being the global health concern (and even cause of death) that it is, such changes are potentially quite critical. Blood pressure control is complex, relying on the autonomic nervous system for its regulation while genetics and physiology may also play a role. Quite a few patients - 20-30% of them - with blood pressure issues don’t respond to usual medications. Consequently, alternatives are being studied like chiropractic spinal manipulation therapy. An evaluation of the published literature discovered promising outcomes that inspire more study. (2) A recent study found that spinal manipulation and mobilization had a statistically significant reduction in systolic blood pressure as well as diastolic blood pressure and heart rate variability though these were statistically non-significant in this study. (3) More research is most definitely called for. Systolic blood pressure reflects the force on the blood vessels when the heart beats (top number) while diastolic reflects the pressure in the arteries when the heart rests between beats (bottom number). Doctors most often focus on the top, systolic number, so spinal manipulation’s effect would be welcome if more studies continue to show such effect. New Hampshire Spine and Sport offers gentle spinal manipulation treatment via the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management. It’s research-documented and effective for reducing back and neck pain.
CONTACT New Hampshire Spine and Sport
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes how the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management may assist the autonomic system.
Schedule your next Southern New Hampshire chiropractic appointment with New Hampshire Spine and Sport now. Hypertension may well meet its match - or at least back down a bit - with chiropractic spinal manipulation! Let’s figure it out together.