Giving Thanks for Health and Healing

With Thanksgiving around the corner, November is the perfect time to pause and give thanks for the incredible things our bodies do every single day. Every breath, every movement, and every moment of healing is a reflection of how powerful and intelligent the human body truly is. We often forget how much we ask of ourselves, whether it is working outside, chasing the kids around over the holidays, helping our parents with some outlandish chore, running a marathon, or just trying to stay active at the gym. We are DEMANDING creatures!!! It is imperative to recognize that and take a moment to be grateful that we are able to do so many of these things, and recognize that with these activities, it is inevitable that our bodies begin experiencing stress and interference.

When we remove subluxations, we help restore that natural flow within the body and remove the interference that “living” can cause. This allows our systems to function at their most optimal levels and reminds us that true health comes from within. Our bodies are designed to heal, to adapt, and to thrive when given the opportunity. Sometimes all they need is a little help clearing the path so everything can work as it should so we can get back to doing the things that we love and expect to be able to do.

Being thankful for our bodies also means taking the time to care for them. It’s easy to overlook just how much our bodies do for us each day and how capable they truly are. We often don’t think twice about moving, working, or pushing through our daily routines until something starts to slow us down. Showing gratitude means listening to what our bodies need, giving them proper rest, movement, and attention, and recognizing that caring for ourselves is one of the best ways to give thanks.

We also want to take a moment to thank our amazing patients. You are the reason our office feels like such a special place. Your trust, consistency, and dedication to your health inspire us every day. We are truly honored to be part of your health care team and so thankful that you’ve chosen us to walk alongside you on your journey toward better health.

From all of us, we wish you a happy, healthy, and restorative Thanksgiving season. May it be filled with gratitude, connection, and appreciation for all the incredible ways your body takes care of you.

In Good Health,

Drs. Mark, Matt & Tami
(www.mifflintownchiro.com)

PS: Remember to check back often to our website.  Please leave feedback on the layouts!

PSS:  If you would like an email reminder of your appointments please stop by at the front desk and talk to Sharon. 

References:

1: De Geer CM. Intervertebral Disk Nutrients and Transport Mechanisms in Relation to Disk Degeneration: A Narrative Literature Review. J Chiropr Med. 2018 Jun;17(2):97-105. doi: 10.1016/j.jcm.2017.11.006. Epub 2018 Jun 14. PMID: 30166966; PMCID: PMC6112070.

Newsletter Articles
October 2025

• Seniors Who Receive Chiropractic in Publicly Funded Facility Benefit Greatly
• Remission of Abdominal Migraines Following Chiropractic Care
• Chiropractic Care Helps Athletic Performance
• Resolution of Persistent Sleepwalking with Chiropractic

Seniors Who Receive Chiropractic in Publicly Funded Facility Benefit Greatly

The Cambridge University Press published the results of a study on August 8, 2025, in the Canadian Journal on Aging that showed that seniors who got chiropractic care in a publicly funded facility received significant help with musculoskeletal pain issues.

This study specifically looked at seniors who received chiropractic care in public facilities in Canada. The authors of this study explained the purpose of this study by saying, "This study describes the characteristics, clinical management, and patient-reported outcomes of older adults with spinal pain who present for chiropractic care at a publicly funded community health centre [sic] serving marginalized populations."

This study looked at the records of 240 adults who underwent chiropractic care for musculoskeletal pain. The study included 158 middle aged adults between the ages of 45 and 59 years and 82 individuals aged 60 and over. The study reviewed the pain outcomes of the subject in the study to see how effective chiropractic care was for these groups. Pain was rated using a number system with 0 representing no pain and 10 representing the worst pain possible.

The study reports that both age groups saw a significant reduction in the pain experienced at the onset of chiropractic care. The study notes that the average pain level upon starting chiropractic care was in the range of 7 to 10 for those patients with chronic long-term pain. Chiropractic care was able to reduce this pain level on average to between 4 and 6. The study points out that those patients with acute pain experienced an even greater level of pain relief.

The study also revealed that those people who visited chiropractors were less likely to need additional visits to primary medical providers for their pain issues. The authors stated, "Overwhelmingly, both middle-aged (79.1%) and older adults (89.0%) reported that a visit to the chiropractor saved them a subsequent visit to their primary care provider."

One additional finding that the researchers found interesting was that both groups of patients saw relatively the same levels of improvement in their pain improvement from chiropractic care. They commented, "…there were no differences between age groups addressing our objective. Regardless of age, overall adult patients from this study with access to chiropractic care had the opportunity to reach a meaningful reduction in pain in any spinal or extremity region."

In their conclusion the authors wrote, "Older adults with spinal and extremity region pain from a socioeconomically challenged population experienced statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements in pain associated with a publicly funded pragmatic course of chiropractic care."

Remission of Abdominal Migraines Following Chiropractic Care

Published on August 12, 2025, in the open access journal Cureus, was the results of a case study documenting chiropractic care helping a pediatric patient who was suffering from abdominal migraines.

The American Migraine foundation described this condition on their website as, "Abdominal migraine is a form of migraine with abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting episodes. It’s different from typical migraine attacks because it doesn’t usually have head pain as a symptom. This disease is mostly seen in children. Attacks can last from two to 72 hours, and in between attacks, a person has no symptoms."

The author of this study begins by pointing out that abdominal migraines (AM) are a debilitating condition that affects about 1% to 4% of the pediatric population. During these attacks, the child may experience moderate to severe stomach pain as well as feeling sick and vomiting. These AM attacks are not accompanied by headaches.

In this case, a 10-year-old girl was brought to the chiropractor for help with mild scoliosis and back stiffness. Although the scoliosis was mild, there was a noticeable asymmetry in her posture and occasionally the girl did experience some discomfort during prolonged sitting or physical activities, like sports. In addition to these issues, the girl was also suffering with moderate to severe recurrent stomach pains for the past 16 months. The stomach pains would typically last from 2 to 24 hours and was accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite. This issue had caused the girl to miss eight days of school in the last six months alone.

A chiropractic examination with spinal x-rays confirmed the presence of a mild scoliosis. Specific forms of age-appropriate chiropractic care were started along with recommendations for home exercises. The girl was initially seen at the rate of three visits per week for the first month, after which her frequency was reduced as she showed improvement.

The study reports that by the second month of care, the stomach pains had significantly reduced. Shortly thereafter, the stomach pains had completely stopped. The girl also showed improvement with her back and overall movement. Three months into her care, a second set of spinal x-rays were taken which showed significant improvements in her scoliosis. In an eleven-month follow-up, the girl was still completely symptom free.

In the conclusion of this study, the author explained, "The resolution of symptoms following chiropractic manipulations suggests a possible interplay between spinal misalignment and gastrointestinal symptoms, possibly mediated by the autonomic nervous system." He continued, "This novel case indicates that chiropractic care may serve as a promising non-pharmacological option, calling for further trials to assess its effectiveness against traditional therapies and to investigate processes such as gut-brain axis modulation in the management of abdominal migraines."

Chiropractic Care Helps Athletic Performance

The journal Advances in Chronic Diseases published the results of a study on May 26, 2025, documenting that chiropractic care for athletes not only helps the athletes recover from injuries, but also helps athletic performance in athletes. This study was an evidence-based evaluation that conducted a literature review of other scientific studies on chiropractic care for athletes.

The author of this study is not a chiropractor, and he begins by explaining, "Chiropractic treatment is a form of manual therapy that targets the regulation of the nervous system and the functional balance of the musculoskeletal system through manipulations applied to the spine and surrounding structures."

Many people believe that cardiovascular function is the main key to athletic performance. The author of this study explains that much more is involved. "Enhancing athletic performance is not solely dependent on cardiovascular capacity or endurance, but is also closely linked to neuromuscular efficiency, muscular strength, and coordination."

The study notes that it is the athletes themselves who have driven the increase in chiropractic usage for performance enhancement. "While chiropractic services were once rarely provided even to amateur athletes, today, chiropractic care is increasingly preferred by professional and Olympic-level sports teams." He continues, "Some athletes, despite not presenting musculoskeletal symptoms, insist on receiving chiropractic treatment prior to competitions to optimize performance, with 94% reporting immediate improvements."

The research included in this study was obtained from previous studies over a 20-year period from 2004 to 2024. High quality papers on chiropractic care for athletes were reviewed and the data combined to see the effects of chiropractic on athletic performance.

The results of this overview study showed that chiropractic not only was helpful in care of injured athletes but also helped prevent injuries and increased the athlete’s performance. The author explained how chiropractic adjustment on the spine can help athletes. "A foundational concept of chiropractic care is that the health and functionality of the nervous and musculoskeletal systems are closely tied to the proper alignment of the vertebral column."

The author cited multiple other studies and research that confirmed chiropractic care helping athletes with endurance, muscle strength, balance, accelerated injury recovery, increased range of motion, and enhance physical performance.

In his overview conclusion, the author noted chiropractic helped athletes on a number of critical levels. "…chiropractic care contributes not only to short-term performance improvements but also, although to a more limited extent, to long-term health outcomes."

Resolution of Persistent Sleepwalking with Chiropractic

On October 1, 2025, the Asian-Pacific Chiropractic Journal published the results of a case study showing chiropractic care helping a patient resolve the issues of sleepwalking and headaches. The medical term for sleepwalking is somnambulism. The Sleep Foundation describes this condition by saying, "Sleepwalking is a sleep disorder involving walking or other behaviors during sleep. Sleepwalking can affect both children and adults, but is more common during childhood."

The study begins by noting how important good sleep is to overall health, and how detrimental poor sleep can be. "Insufficient sleep is associated with adverse health outcomes, both in the short- and long-term. In the short-term, poor sleep can impact work performance and safety, cognition, and emotional resilience. Long-term outcomes include an increased risk of many conditions, such as hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and colorectal cancer."

In this case, a 41-year-old woman sought chiropractic care primarily for complaints of headaches and neck pain. She reported that the neck pain had been constant for several years and she self-rated it as a 7 out of 10 in severity. She explained that her headaches had been present for as long as she could remember and had gotten worse in the last six months.

While the headaches and neck pain were the main reason she decided on chiropractic care, her health history revealed that the major disruptive problem in her life was sleepwalking. For the last six months, the woman would get up once or twice every night and proceed to punch her husband while still asleep. She would wake up the next morning and have no memory of these events. These sleeping events became such an issue that her husband was forced to start sleeping in a guest room in their home.

The woman had consulted an ear nose and throat specialist, an endocrinologist, neurologist, and ophthalmologist. The results were that she was wearing a CPAP at night and had been prescribed diuretic medication. These approaches did not resolve her problems.

A chiropractic examination was performed which included x-rays, posture analysis, spinal palpation, orthopedic and neurological testing. As a result of the examination, it was determined that multiple subluxations were present in the woman’s spine. With these findings, specific forms of chiropractic care were started, initially at the rate of three visits per week.

A follow-up examination was conducted three months after the start of chiropractic care. This update showed that the woman had achieved an 80% reduction in neck pain and was no longer having headaches. At that time, she also reported a 25% reduction in sleepwalking episodes. Chiropractic care was continued at a reduced frequency, and another evaluation was performed at the one-year point. At that time, the woman reported that sleepwalking had completely stopped and had not recurred.

The study authors included a quote from the woman about the results of her care. "I feel almost perfect now. A year and a half ago, I felt like everything in my body was not working right. Now, I sleep well and have no headaches, only the occasional neck stiffness. The changes have been dramatic."