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Chiropractic and Cranial Treatment for Babies and Children Chiropractic and Cranial Treatment for babies and children is a very gentle approach to identifying and correcting any underlying problems and ensuring a healthy start in life to our precious little ones and growing children. Chiropractic and cranial treatment for babies at Barnes Chiropractic Healthcare is a gentle and safe way to correct the stresses caused by the birth process on the whole of the baby's body, this is particularly relevant where labour has been too fast, slow or where intervention such as ventouse or forceps had to be used, or when a caesarean has been needed. Treatment can greatly help babies with feeding problems, colic, reflux, plagiocephaly, torticollis, glue ear, sleeping problems, and generally settle them into their new environment. There are a number of factors that can influence the stresses placed on the baby prior to birth and during it. Our pregnancy section and our articles provide further reading about causes of intrauterine constraint and how the position of the baby can be influenced by the health of the mother’s pelvis and supporting muscles.
The Birth Process and Its Effects on Your Baby The mechanisms of labour are complex and unique for humans compared to other mammals as a combination of a pelvis adapted to upright weight bearing, a long gestation period and the large size of the human brain, means that a baby’s journey involves the cranial structures ‘moulding’ to accommodate the shape of the birth canal. Some of the bones ‘telescope’ under pressure but ‘lock’ together and protect the brain to prevent neurological damage. Also the head and neck of the baby has to rotate during descent and the shoulders have to compress. The baby’s head is subjected to a combination of shear, rotation and vertical pressure stresses during birth and these are absorbed into the cranial tissues and vertebral column. Normalising the cranial moulding should occur naturally within 24 hours of birth. However, on many occasions this does not happen and cranial examination would be strongly advised. Major birth injuries are usually spotted early on and will therefore be diagnosed and treated. Such injuries include fractures, lacerations, ruptures, dislocations and nerve lesions. The majority of injuries I deal with fall into the category of ‘minor’ birth trauma. This is often undiagnosed at birth. Parents are left with an apparently ‘healthy’ but unhappy baby and are often told that she will “grow out of it”. Birth Trauma – What Causes it? Some of the most common causes of birth trauma are:
There is often a cascade of events that could include many of the above factors. What are the Signs and Symptoms of Birth Trauma? Birth trauma commonly results in at least one or a combination of the following symptoms, all of which can be distressing for parents and baby alike. With gentle cranial and chiropractic treatment these are often resolved by the team at Barnes Chiropractic Healthcare.
*Commonly seen now with new recommendations to lie exclusively on the back (although not strictly the only recommendation, as lying on side is also to be advised; special pillow can be purchased to aid this positioning), plagiocephaly is thought to occur when there has been a disruption of the connective tissues of the cranial base caused by poor intrauterine position or abnormal stresses during delivery. Starts to show up as the baby’s head grows (so is not normally seen for first few weeks). Can be made worse if there is asymmetrical neck tension causing the baby to favour one head position. (The developmental outcomes of children with NSDP were looked at in a study by Miller and Craven (2000). 39.7% of children with NSDP in the study received special help in primary school. The authors concluded children with NSDP comprised a high risk group for developmental difficulties). Gentle Treatment for Little People Treatment of babies involves extremely gentle and focused pressure on parts of the skull, spine and pelvis in order to decompress and unwind the stresses that have become ‘locked’ into the system of connective tissues. This has the effect of relieving the physical discomfort of these stresses and ‘down-shifting’ the resulting over-stimulation or dysfunction of the nervous system. Relief from the effects of these stresses on the various and many nerves that supply areas such as the diaphragm, digestive system, muscles of suckling and swallowing, and muscles of the neck will have very positive effects on improving the many conditions mentioned in the ‘Signs and Symptoms?’ list.
The Long Term Benefits of Treating Babies & Children Emotional and physical well-being and optimal health are worthy goals. An untreated child will in time adapt around the pain or dysfunction, but will have used up much of their ‘buffer zone’ in doing this. This is believed to bring down tolerance to further stresses and challenges to the mind and body leading to irritability, anger, frustration, low attention span, headaches, digestive problems, sleep problems, learning difficulties, fatigue and less resilience to illness. Much is invested on gadgets and gizmos for our babies. A natural and effective approach to improving the well-being of our children is one of the worthiest investments we are privileged to be able to assist with. Otitis media, and other childhood illnesses and conditions such as asthma and bedwetting, are problems that can cause misery for children, parents and siblings, but which can be dealt with in an effective and gentle way with cranial and chiropractic treatment and Barnes Chiropractic Healthcare. We aim to reassure parents that by taking a proactive approach and identifying the root cause of a problem, we can help keep our little ones happy and healthy. Otitis Media (Middle Ear Infection) - A Common Ailment Almost half of all children will have had at least one episode of otitis media before they’re a year old. By three years old, two thirds will have had at least one such infection. Up to one third of all children will have six or more episodes before starting school and some can have up to twelve episodes per year. Signs and symptoms range from pain, temperature, vomiting, irritability, tugging at the ear, a pussy discharge from the ear and hearing loss. Although it can also be asymptomatic – picked up only on routine ear examination. Medical treatments include antibiotics, antihistamines, decongestants and, in chronic cases, surgery which involves a general anaesthetic and insertion of ‘grommets’ or ear tubes and in some circumstances removal of the adenoids (enlarged adenoids may block the Eustachian tubes - the tube connecting the middle ear to the throat, and cause the mucous build up to become sticky and glue-like, a condition known as glue ear). There is little evidence of the effectiveness of these therapies and GP’s in the UK are advised initially to prescribe only pain-relief in simple cases as the condition tends to be self-limiting. Although no randomised controlled studies yet exist showing the effectiveness of chiropractic care for otitis media there are encouraging results from a pilot study carried out in the US, and certainly in our own experience at Barnes Chiropractic Healthcare it is a condition we have often treated with positive outcomes for babies and children alike. Parents have been very happy with not having to resort to grommets or another batch of antibiotics. Treatment involves encouraging lymphatic and fluid drainage around the neck and throat and restoring spinal, jaw and cranial function that may have been affected by the birth process, by poor posture, or by grinding of the teeth that in turn may be causing poor drainage around the Eustachian tubes. Identifying diet issues is also necessary. Early cow’s milk consumption may predispose to otitis media. Other foods that also thicken the mucous such as orange juice, peanuts and peanut butter, bananas, wheat, sugar and additives are worth avoiding. Feeding position is an essential thing to look at. In a study conducted in 1980, the practice of giving a child a bottle in bed was the primary factor associated with persistent fluid in the middle ear. This may be due to the shape of the Eustachian tube in children having a more horizontal position making it easier for fluid to back up and cause irritation and infection. To address any weakness in immunity, we may discuss appropriate nutritional supplements in children above the age of one year, and encourage the use of probiotics from infancy – particularly if antibiotics have been used.
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Quick Navigation Chiropractic and Cranial Treatment for Babies and Children The Birth Process and Its Effects on Your Baby Birth Trauma – What Causes it? What are the Signs and Symptoms of Birth Trauma? Gentle Treatment for Little People
Articles Cranial And Chiropractic Treatment - A Helping Hand For Baby Health
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