Background:
Since 1957 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has surveyed Americans about their overall health and approaches to health care. Recently, the surveys have looked at the use of chiropractic and other complementary health care.
How Many Americans Use Chiropractic?
The number of Americans who utilize chiropractic care has increased greatly over the years. The latest figure is that almost 55 million Americans have visited a chiropractor at least once (24% of the population) and almost 20 million have visited in the past year (8.5%)
Why do American Seek Chiropractic Care?
The survey lumps together the categories of general wellness and disease prevention and found that 44% see a chiropractor to maintain good health or to seek help for “disease”—typically back or neck pain. However, a high number of patients want to improve their energy or athletic ability 32%. 11% of visits are to improve immune function and 5% seek to improve memory or concentration.
What do Patients Feel are the Benefits of Chiropractic?
The biggest benefit patients felt they received from chiropractic was a improvement in their overall health and a sense of feeling better: 67%. Sleep was helped in 42%. Stress was lessened in 40%. And an ability to feel better emotionally was noted by 27% of those surveyed. These figures add up to more than 100% because many people experienced more than one benefit.
Does Chiropractic help in Maintaining Health and Well-Being?
48% felt chiropractic was very important in maintaining their overall health and well-being, and 30% found it somewhat important.
Did Chiropractic Help to Solve a Specific Health Problem?
Indeed it did help a bunch. 65% felt it helped a great deal and 26% got some relief.
What is the Lesson Learned? Chiropractic patients continue to see their chiropractor once the issue that troubled them at the outset is resolved. Simply stated, many feel that their overall health and wellness is improved, they have more energy, they feel better, sleep better and feel they are in better shape emotionally. Chiropractic care is clearly for more than just back pain.
Yours for better health,