Health and Chiropractic
Health is a perception of wellness. A positive health experience is what we long for. Though health is an abstract concept, the correct understanding of which help us live a healthy life.
Health is not the absence of disease
Disease or health: Stuart Miles, Shutterstock.com
The biomedical model of medicine focuses on eradicating disease but it does not promote wellness. The notion that health is the absence of disease describes health in negative term and degrades human into biomachinery. This concept has been diluted with the establishment of the WHO Constitution (1946) which defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
Health is the ability to adapt
Adaptability: alexmillos, Shutterstock.com
The phrase “a complete state” exposes the discriminative nature of this definition. It excludes those who happily enjoy their lives despite suffering from genetic disorders, chronic diseases, or sequel of previous illnesses. It was not until 2011 that a new definition was proposed by the medical profession--health is the ability to adapt and self manage in the face of social, physical, and emotional challenges.
Health is a balance of all aspects of life
Balanced scales: Toby Hudson, Wikimedia Commons
Our health is significantly influenced by our animate and inanimate environment (e.g. ecology and climate), and our inborn and acquired particularities (e.g. genetics, socioeconomic status, human relationship, lifestyle and the way we cope with stress). Those factors that move health in the positive direction are assets (e.g. strong family support), and the converse are liabilities (e.g. lower levels of education).
Inevitably, we would encounter disease and death at certain time in our life. If we have abundance of health assets we can readily stay atop. On the contrary, if we have a lot of health liabilities, we must struggle hard to survive. It is only reasonable for us trying to increase our assets and decrease our liabilities for the sake of our health.
The brain helps us to adapt
Brain: via Wikimedia Common
The brain is the master control centre for all the body’s functions, such as walking, talking, swallowing, breathing, taste, smell, heart rate and so on. It also controls all our thinking functions, our emotions, how we behave and all our intellectual (cognitive) activities, such as how we attend to things, how we perceive and understand our world and its physical surroundings, how we learn and remember and so on. Normal functioning of the brain enables us to meet the challenges we have in life--internally and externally, mentally and socially.
Postural imbalance demands more from the brain
Dizziness: Luciano Cosmo, Shutterstock.com
It is known that 90% of the brain's activity is used to balance the body within the gravitational field of earth, the other 10% controls all the other body functions such as breathing, digestion and cognition. A body that is not balancing well demands more than 90% of power from the brain, consequently affects the other activities of the body, and cause the body less able to adapt to changes in environment.
Chiropractic is a healthy lifestyle
Hoping Tree hands: america365, Shutterstock.com
Chiropractic works by identifying the source of aberrant postural sensory input and adjusting the dysfunction; to enable normal functioning of the brain. It does not target at treating or preventing disease, but aims at promoting health by empowering and maintaining the body's innate adaptive ability. It is a lifestyle rather than a short term means.
Health is not a destination, health is a journey…
