Asthma, Respiratory Disorders, and Chiropractic

Breathing is the process by which your body takes in "raw air" and extracts the proper amounts of gasses for cells, tissues, and organs. Because raw air is often too cold, dry, and dirty to use immediately, it must be filtered, warmed, cleansed, and humidified by the nasal apparatus in your nose and nasal cavities before it enters your trachea (windpipe), bronchi, and lungs.

Your trachea is a tube in your throat, surrounded by rings of cartilage. You can feel it just underneath your Adam's apple. In your chest your trachea divides into two branches--the left and right bronchi. They enter the lungs where they branch over and over to form what look like an upside down tree (the bronchial tree). The tiniest branches are called the bronchioles, and these actually touch the lungs. It is where oxygen enters the blood and carbon dioxide and water vapor leave it, to be exhaled out of your nose and mouth. The bronchi and bronchioles must remain clear at all times. Many problems arise when they are not.

During an asthmatic attack the bronchioles become swollen, go into spasm and fill with mucus. Asthmatics feel as if they're being strangled. They struggle to get air into their lungs and once in, the air is trapped behind the mucus and then it's nearly impossible to exhale. Asthmatics struggle for every breath, literally gasping and wheezing for life. Attacks can last from several minutes to several hours, varying greatly in severity. In long time sufferers the chest becomes a "barrel chest" (permanently enlarged). Attacks can be triggered by allergic reactions, stress, physical exertion, or irritants like cigarette smoke.

Asthma was never a killing disease, but since the 1960s there has been an "epidemic" of asthma deaths among young persons. In 1985 there were 300, but since 1994 there have been more than 5,000 deaths each year, with over 15 million suffering from it. Asthma is now the leading chronic illness among children. Why? Childhood vaccinations have been suspect as a possible cause for this increase.

In chronic bronchitis, there is increased mucous secretion in the trachea and bronchial tubes which causes a mucous cough or "smoker's cough"--so called because cigarette smoking is the condition's most important single cause. In a non-smoking adult, bronchitis is very rare and is usually associated with an allergy.

Chronic emphysema is usually associated with long-term smoking. Many bronchioles are blocked, and the lung itself is destroyed with its breathing surface reduced to less than one-quarter its normal size. With less lung, the body gets less oxygen, and this can cause high blood pressure, which can overload the right side of the heart and cause heart failure. People with chronic emphysema can suffer from severe hypoxia (air hunger) and too much carbon dioxide in the blood (hypercapnia). These conditions cause lethargy, muscle weakness, impairment of mental function, and in severe cases, a slow death.

The standard medical approach offers no cure for asthma, bronchitis, or emphysema. Patients are told to avoid physical or emotional irritants and given temporary relief with drugs like cortisone and bronchiodilator inhalers. These drugs may cause severe side effects including addiction. Sadly, heavy use of common asthma drugs have been linked to a greater risk of dying from the disease. Desensitization shots have varying effectiveness with asthmatics. Many people with respiratory ailments feel condemned to a lifetime of taking drugs without ever being rid of their condition. Many others, however, are turning to the drugless healing of chiropractic.

Chiropractic benefit for asthma and respiratory problems was first noticed in clinical histories, but now research exist to show the benefits of chiropractic care with these conditions. Please keep in mind that the chiropractor's primary aim is to remove nerve interference or spinal subluxations. The chiropractor will remove nervous system interference, allowing the body to heal itself.

There is an intimate relationship between the spinal column, the nervous system, and the breathing apparatus. The osteopathic writer Stottard stated: "In asthma the mechanical factor [vertebral subluxation] may be so important that until the mechanics are put right the symptoms will persist".

Many sufferers of respiratory problems have discovered the benefits of regular chiropractic care. Those with asthma, bronchitis, emphysema, or other chronic lung conditions need to ensure that their lungs and bronchi are receiving uninterrupted nerve communication from their spine. Chiropractic is the only healing art that can remove vertebral subluxations and in many cases, from a lifetime of taking drugs for their "incurable" condition.

Asthma Study on Benefits of Chiropractic

Asthma has become a large health concern for children in recent years. Over the past 20 years the incidence of asthma has doubled. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)estimated that in 1998, approximately 17,299,000 people in the United States, or 6.4% of the population, with cases among very young children up 160%. As reported in the June 16, 1999 issue of JAMA, the CDC also noted that between 1980 and 1994, the number of people self-reporting asthma grew 75%.


In a study conducted in 1996 by the Michigan Chiropractic Council (MCC), a panel of doctors performed an out-come assessment study to test the qualitative and quantitative effectiveness of chiropractic care on children with asthma. The high demand of parents seeking alternative care for pediatric asthma was shown by the overwhelming interest in the study. More than 500 parents called the MCC seeking to get their child involved in the chiropractic study.

The study, which took place during May and June of 1996, examined the chiropractic effectiveness in correcting the cause of asthma in patients from birth to age 17. The average age of the participant was 10 years. "After 30 days of chiropractic health care, patients averaged only one attack, whereas prior to the study they were experiencing more than four attacks," said MCC Dr. Bob Graham, who directed the study. "Medications, which can be costly, were decreased by nearly 70 percent. Finally, patient satisfaction was rated 8.5 on a scale of 10." More than 70 chiropractors from 62 cities in Michigan studied more than 80 children suffering from asthma.

Childhood Asthma and Chiropractic

It is estimated that up to 15 million people suffer from asthma. Of those, 14.8 million are children under the age of 18. In 1993 alone, there were 198,000 hospitalizations for asthma. In that same sample year, 342 people under the age of 25 died due to this problem. In money terms, the direct cost of managing a patient with severe asthma has been estimated at more than $18,000 per year. The following statistics about asthma come from the Better Health & Medical Network. Asthma has increased 46% from 1982-1993 with an 80% growth in children under 18. In the 5-17 age group, asthma causes an annual loss of more than 10 million school days per year.

Asthma accounts for more childhood hospitalizations than any other childhood disease. Children with asthma spend approximately 7.3 million days per year restricted to bed rest. In 1990, there were 7.1 million physician visits for asthma. Health care costs for asthma were estimated to be $6.2 billion, which is almost 1% of the total US health care costs. More than 5,200 Americans died from asthma in 1991.

Recent articles in publications such as "The American Chiropractor", and "Today’s Chiropractic" describe strong links between people who suffer from these conditions and nerve interference from subluxation. Subluxations are when bones in the spine pressure or irritate nerves causing abnormal nerve function. An article appearing in the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research Vol. 1 No. 4, also demonstrated the positive effects of chiropractic care on 81 children with asthma. According to Richard Pistolese, research assistant for the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association, "Based upon information currently available, chiropractic care represents a safe non-pharmacological health care approach, that may be associated with a decrease in asthma-related impairment, reduced respiratory effort, and a decrease incidence of asthma attacks." Pistolese goes further to say, "The correction of vertebral subluxation is a non-invasive procedure, which could reduce or eliminate the need for medication, and potentially ease the severity of the asthmatic condition."

One third of Asthmatic Children In Canadian Province Use Non-Medical Care.

In an article from Reuters Health Information, printed in the Journal of the AMA is a report of a survey that showed many children with asthma were seeking what the article termed, “complementary medicine” for their problem.

Dr. Sheldon Spier, of Alberta Children's Hospital in Calgary, surveyed the parents of 117 pediatric asthma patients. Thirty percent reported using complementary medicine to help manage their children's asthma symptoms, most commonly herbal medications, chiropractic, homeopathy, and vitamin C supplementation. One of the common reasons given for the usage was, the non-medical practitioners were perceived as "treating the whole patient."

The International Chiropractic Pediatric Association lists several studies on their web site (www.4icpa.org/) discussing the benefits of chiropractic for children with asthma. The following are some of those excerpts: “76.5% of patients with bronchial asthma said they benefited from chiropractic treatment. Peak flow rate and vital capacity increased after the third treatment. Significantly lower quality of life impairment rating scores were reported for 90.1% of children after 60 days of chiropractic care. During this same time period the average number of asthma attacks decreased an average of 44.9%, and asthma medication usage was decreased an average of 66.5%. Among parents of asthmatic children who had received chiropractic treatment, 92% considered this treatment beneficial.”