Chiropractic Sleep Support: Rest, Recover, Recharge
Chiropractic adjustments reduce stress on your spine and nervous system, helping your body relax naturally.
Did you know that chiropractic care may help you sleep better? A 2012 United States survey showed that over 40% of people reported that chiropractic care improved their sleep.
When it comes to what is the ideal sleep situation – it is a case of not too much and not too little.
Why is sleep so important?
Sleep is vital for human health as it allows the body time to heal and recharge. A lack of sleep or broken sleep has been linked to many health problems including an increased risk of obesity, diabetes, hypertension, stroke, cancer, mood disorders, anxiety, and depression.
Sleep and Immune Function
A lack of sleep creates a stress response in the body and increases the levels of cortisol in our body, which is a stress hormone that is important for immune system regulation.
References
- Adams, J., Peng, W., Cramer, H., Sundberg, T., Moore, C., Amorin-Woods, L., … & Lauche, R. (2017). The prevalence, patterns, and predictors of chiropractic use among US adults. Spine, 42(23), 1810-1816.
- Kronholm, E., Partonen, T., Laatikainen, T., Peltonen, M., Härmä, M., Hublin, C., … & Sutela, H. (2008). Trends in self‐reported sleep duration and insomnia‐related symptoms in Finland from 1972 to 2005: a comparative review and re‐analysis of Finnish population samples. Journal of sleep research, 17(1), 54-62.
- National Sleep Foundation. Washington, DC: National Sleep Foundation; 2005. Sleep in America Poll 2005: summary of findings.
- Paruthi, S., Brooks, L. J., D’Ambrosio, C., Hall, W. A., Kotagal, S., Lloyd, R. M., Malow, B.A., Maski, K., Nichols, C., Quan, S.F., Rosen, C.L., & Wise, M. S. (2016). Recommended amount of sleep for pediatric populations: a consensus statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Journal of clinical sleep medicine, 12(6), 785-786.
- Consensus Conference Panel, Watson, N. F., Badr, M. S., Belenky, G., Bliwise, D. L., Buxton, O. M., Buysse, D., Dinges, D.F., Gangwisch, J., Grandner, M.A., Kushida, C., Malhotra, R.K., Martin, J.L., Patel, S.R., Quan, S.F., & Tasali, E. (2015). Recommended amount of sleep for a healthy adult: a joint consensus statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 11(6), 591-592.
- Hirshkowitz, M., Whiton, K., Albert, S. M., Alessi, C., Bruni, O., DonCarlos, L., Hazen, N, Herman, J., Katz, E.S., Kheirandiah-Gozal, L., Neubauer, D.N., O’Donnell, A.E., Ohayon, M., Peever, J., Rawding, R., Sachdeva, R.C., Setters, B., Vitiello, M.V., & Hillard, P. J. A. (2015). National Sleep Foundation’s sleep time duration recommendations: methodology and results summary. Sleep health, 1(1), 40-43.
- Xie, L., Kang, H., Xu, Q., Chen, M. J., Liao, Y., Thiyagarajan, M., O’Donnell, J., Christensen, C., Nicholson, J., Takano, I., Deane, R., & Nedergaard, M. (2013). Sleep drives metabolite clearance from the adult brain. science, 342(6156), 373-377.
- Peigneux, P., & Smith, C. (2010). Memory processing in relation to sleep. Principles and practice of sleep medicine, 5.
- Hauglund, N. L., Pavan, C., & Nedergaard, M. (2020). Cleaning the sleeping brain–the potential restorative function of the glymphatic system. Current Opinion in Physiology, 15, 1-6.
- Mirescu, C., Peters, J. D., Noiman, L., & Gould, E. (2006). Sleep deprivation inhibits adult neurogenesis in the hippocampus by elevating glucocorticoids. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 103(50), 19170-19175.
- Mueller, A. D., Pollock, M. S., Lieblich, S. E., Epp, J. R., Galea, L. A., & Mistlberger, R. E. (2008). Sleep deprivation can inhibit adult hippocampal neurogenesis independent of adrenal stress hormones. American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, 294(5), R1693-R1703.
- Roman, V., Van der Borght, K., Leemburg, S. A., Van der Zee, E. A., & Meerlo, P. (2005). Sleep restriction by forced activity reduces hippocampal cell proliferation. Brain research, 1065(1-2), 53-59.
- Guzman‐Marin, R., Suntsova, N., Methippara, M., Greiffenstein, R., Szymusiak, R., & McGinty, D. (2005). Sleep deprivation suppresses neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus of rats. European Journal of Neuroscience, 22(8), 2111-2116.
- Ayas, N. T., White, D. P., Manson, J. E., Stampfer, M. J., Speizer, F. E., Malhotra, A., & Hu, F. B. (2003). A prospective study of sleep duration and coronary heart disease in women. Archives of internal medicine, 163(2), 205-209.
- Buxton, O. M., Pavlova, M., Reid, E. W., Wang, W., Simonson, D. C., & Adler, G. K. (2010). Sleep restriction for 1 week reduces insulin sensitivity in healthy men. Diabetes, 59(9), 2126-2133.
- Chattu, V. K., Manzar, M. D., Kumary, S., Burman, D., Spence, D. W., & Pandi-Perumal, S. R. (2019, March). The global problem of insufficient sleep and its serious public health implications. In Healthcare (Vol. 7, No. 1, p. 1). Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute.
- Fernandez-Mendoza, J., Vgontzas, A. N., Liao, D., Shaffer, M. L., Vela-Bueno, A., Basta, M., & Bixler, E. O. (2012). Insomnia with objective short sleep duration and incident hypertension: the Penn State Cohort. Hypertension, 60(4), 929-935.
- Jike, M., Itani, O., Watanabe, N., Buysse, D. J., & Kaneita, Y. (2018). Long sleep duration and health outcomes: a systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression. Sleep medicine reviews, 39, 25-36.
- Spiegel, K., Knutson, K., Leproult, R., Tasali, E., & Cauter, E. V. (2005). Sleep loss: a novel risk factor for insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes. Journal of applied physiology, 99(5), 2008-2019.
- Vgontzas, A. N., Liao, D., Pejovic, S., Calhoun, S., Karataraki, M., & Bixler, E. O. (2009). Insomnia with objective short sleep duration is associated with type 2 diabetes: a population-based study. Diabetes care, 32(11), 1980-1985.
- Bryant, P. A., Trinder, J., & Curtis, N. (2004). Sick and tired: does sleep have a vital role in the immune system?. Nature Reviews Immunology, 4(6), 457-467.
- Haspel, J. A., Anafi, R., Brown, M. K., Cermakian, N., Depner, C., Desplats, P., Gelman, A. E., Haack, M., Jelic, S., Kim, B. S., Laposky, A. D., Lee, Y. C., Mongodin, E., Prather, A. A., Prendergast, B. J., Reardon, C., Shaw, A. C., Sengupta, S., Szentirmai, É., Thakkar, M., … Solt, L. A. (2020). Perfect timing: circadian rhythms, sleep, and immunity – an NIH workshop summary. JCI insight, 5(1), e131487. https://doi.org/10.1172/jci.insight.131487
- Besedovsky, L., Lange, T., & Born, J. (2012). Sleep and immune function. Pflügers Archiv-European Journal of Physiology, 463(1), 121-137.
- Massar, S. A., Liu, J. C., Mohammad, N. B., & Chee, M. W. (2017). Poor habitual sleep efficiency is associated with increased cardiovascular and cortisol stress reactivity in men. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 81, 151-156.
- Leproult, R., Copinschi, G., Buxton, O., & Van Cauter, E. (1997). Sleep loss results in an elevation of cortisol levels the next evening. Sleep, 20(10), 865-870.
Who sees a Chiropractor?
More and more people will see a chiropractor, but you may be surprised to know exactly why chiropractic care is becoming so much more popular. A recent study found that about 1 in 4 Americans have visited a chiropractor, and almost 20 million Americans see a chiropractor each year.
Chiropractic care helps improve your health and well-being
Why Chiropractic Care?
Although back and neck pain was the main specific health problem people gave for seeing a chiropractor, almost half of the chiropractic patients said they went for general wellness or disease prevention.
Benefits of Chiropractic Care
So why do so many people go to see a chiropractor?
It’s not just because they get a lot of help if they suffer from pain and other health problems. They go because they want to perform better on the sporting field or athletics track. They want to sleep better; they want to deal with stress better and to be better able to relax. They go because they want to improve their overall health and function at their best.
References
- Adams J, Peng W, Cramer H, et al. The Prevalence, Patterns, and Predictors of Chiropractic Use Among US Adults: Results From the 2012 National Health Interview Survey. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). Dec 1 2017;42(23):1810-1816.
How often should you see your chiropractor?
When you first see your chiropractor, you may be among the many people who ask, “how often do I need to come?”. The answer that you may want to hear is once. But chiropractic care, like most things that are really good for us, rarely makes a long-term difference to your health and wellness after just one visit.
Seeing your chiropractor can be a little like going to the gym. It takes time, frequency and follow up to retrain the spine to function well.
Maintenance Care
One reason for having to see a chiropractor regularly is because it usually takes years for the problem to develop which motivates someone to first see a chiropractor and it can take many visits to the chiropractor to correct that problem.
Care Plans
When you go and see your chiropractor know that their recommendations for your plan of care are based on what their clinical experience tells them is best for you and that the research suggests more frequent adjustments have the biggest positive impact on your health and wellness.
References
- Hodges PW, Moseley GL. Pain and motor control of the lumbopelvic region: effect and possible mechanisms. J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2003;13(4):361-370.
- MacDonald D, Moseley GL, Hodges PW. Why do some patients keep hurting their back? Evidence of ongoing back muscle dysfunction during remission from recurrent back pain. Pain. Apr 2009;142(3):183-188.
- Ferreira ML, Ferreira PH, Hodges PW. Changes in postural activity of the trunk muscles following spinal manipulative therapy Manual Therapy August 2007;12(3):240-248.
- Haas M, Bronfort G, Evans R, et al. Dose-response and efficacy of spinal manipulation for care of cervicogenic headache: a dual-center randomized controlled trial. Spine J. Feb 23 2018.
Visiting a chiropractor
When you first see your chiropractor, you may be among the many people who ask, ‘how often do I need to come?’ Often the answer people want to hear is ‘once’ but chiropractic care, like most things that are really good for us, rarely makes a longterm difference to your health and wellness after just one visit.
One reason a single visit to your chiropractor may not make a long-term change is that it usually takes years for the problem to develop that motivates someone to first see a chiropractor and it can take many visits to the chiropractor to correct that problem.
Seeing your chiropractor can be a little like going to the gym. It takes time, frequency and follow up.
One way of looking at it is that it can be like the thousandth straw that breaks the camel’s back. A problem can build up day after day as you sit hunched over your desk, or bend and twist as you lift, or tense up as you deal with your daily stress and then one day, you bend to tie your shoelaces and all of a sudden something hurts! You can rest assured that tying your shoelaces isn’t what caused the problem, it’s simply the thousandth straw that broke the camel’s back (or was too much for your back) and that’s why you’re in pain.
There will usually be changes to the way the supporting muscles in your spine work that build up over time until your muscles can’t cope anymore and symptoms appear.1-2 So, seeing your chiropractor can be a little like going to the gym. It takes time, frequency, and follow up. Working with you to correct the problem and help your brain and the muscles in your spine communicate or ‘talk’ with each other again so you can regain the stability you need to function properly and resolve your aches and pains.3
But how long will this take and how often do you need to be checked by your chiropractor? Everybody is different, so your chiropractor will be guided by their clinical experience, and what your goals are when they recommend a care plan for you.
US Research Study
A new research study was recently published that suggests, in the early stages of chiropractic care, the more often you get adjusted, the better the results you enjoy, and this can also be better for you in the long term as well.4
In this study, that was conducted by scientists in America, they looked at 256 people who had chronic, regular headaches and divided them into groups who either received chiropractic care once a week, or twice a week, or three times a week, for up to six weeks, or they received no chiropractic care at all and instead were given light massages over the same 6-week period. Previous studies have shown that people with this kind of headache often respond well to chiropractic care.
The scientists in this study were most interested in how many visits per week to the chiropractor showed the best results. They looked at how many days a week a patient suffered from headaches at the end of the study and whether any changes in headache frequency between the groups were still there up to one year later. What they found was that the patients who were seen by their chiropractor most regularly, so up to three times a week, had fewer headaches than those who were seen once or twice a week, and they were much better than the patients who received no chiropractic care at all.
In fact, after one year, the patients that had been seen three times a week had over three fewer headaches per month compared to the patients who only received a light massage. So, these effects obviously lasted.
The more you get adjusted, the better the results that you will enjoy.
This study was done in people with chronic headaches, so we can’t be sure if the same differences occur in people with other problems who see a chiropractor. A similar study in patients with chronic low back pain did find that people who were adjusted more often had the best results, but the results weren’t as clear as the study done on patients with headaches.5
The studies suggest that seeing a chiropractor more often when you begin care has real, beneficial, long-term effects to the way your spine and nervous system works, but how much you benefit may depend on what’s wrong with your spine when you begin care.
So, when you go and see your chiropractor, know that their recommendations for your plan of care are based on what their clinical experience tells them is best for you, and that the research suggests more frequent adjustments has the biggest positive impact on your health and wellness.
References
- Hodges & Moseley. J Electromyogr Kinesiol 2003;13(4):361-70.
- MacDonald et al. Pain 2009;142(3):183-8.
- Ferreira et al. Manual Therapy 2007;12(3):240-48.
- Haas et al. Spine J 2018. 18(10): 1741-1754.
- Haas et al. Spine J 2014;14(7):1106-16.
Chiropractic Sleep Support: Rest, Recover, Recharge
Chiropractic adjustments reduce stress on your spine and nervous system, helping your body relax naturally.
