Birth Trauma and Chiropractic

Science is now starting to document something that chiropractors have been observing and warning about for years. For decades chiropractors have been warning the public of the danger to newborns from the common birth processes used today. Birth is a natural phenomenon that should not be viewed or treated as a medical condition. However, in an attempt to “manage” the birth process, many problems are created.

The most prevalent danger chiropractors have been warning about when it comes to the birth process is the creation of subluxations. Numerous articles and symposiums have relayed scientific documentation of damage that occurs to the nervous system in the neck of newborns during the common birth process. This damage ranges from mild subluxations in the upper neck to more serious subluxations involving spinal cold damage and central nervous system problems.

Many authorities suggest that the position of the mother coupled with pulling from the delivering physician has a lot to do with the creation of these subluxation-related problems. When the delivering mother is lying on her back she is not only working partially against gravity but she has reduced the pelvic opening size. These two factors then require the attending physician to pull harder on the head of the child. This increased pulling and twisting during the birth process, coupled with a decrease in the pelvis opening and a non alignment with gravity, often set the stage for birth trauma, subluxation, and the resulting problems.

Health consequences to the newborn from birth trauma range from immediate to severe to hidden problems that take many years to surface. Some of the more immediate and tragic results that have been documented are spinal cord and brain stem injuries, brain bleeding and swelling, neurological deficits, breathing problems, and even sudden infant death syndrome.

The long-term consequences are as varied as the nervous system itself. Some of the more commonly mentioned problems that have been linked to birth trauma are learning disabilities, headaches, visual and hearing problems, certain palsies, and a host of immune functional problems.

Experts are suggesting that birth be handled as a normal and natural process (the approach taken by many midwifes). Many experts suggest the birthing position of choice be in the upright position, with sitting or squatting being the most advantageous. The less force used, if any, the better. Chiropractors have been stressing for years the importance of having a newborn checked for vertebral subluxations. The importance of a developing child being free from nerve interference from subluxations cannot be understated.