HISTORY OF
CHIROPRACTIC
The history of chiropractic can be traced back as far as 17,500 BC. Hippocrates was of the opinion that a misaligned spine contributed to an individual’s health.
There is an extensive history of chiropractic treatments dating back more than a century. The first chiropractic adjustment was made on September 18, 1895, by Dr. Daniel Palmer.
Dr. Palmer, born in Canada in 1845, was a keen student of the healing arts and was a pioneer in magnetic healing. Magnetic healing used the body’s natural magnetism to heal. During the year 1886, Dr. Palmer opened his first practice of magnetic healing in Burlington, Iowa. Later in 1887, he opened another office in Burlington, Iowa, which he continued to operate for the rest of his life.
In his research, he sought to determine the causes and effects of the disease. He aimed to find out how sickness affects the human body, as well as why it causes sickness. In 1895, the first chiropractic adjustment that he performed on a patient with impaired hearing was on a man who had lost his hearing 17 years previously.
He reported to Dr. Palmer that, at the time of losing his hearing, he had strained his back and that when this happened, he heard a noise in his back. He suspected that there was a spinal misalignment, so Dr. Palmer examined him and found a misaligned vertebra. The spine was realigned by Dr. Palmer, and the man’s hearing quickly improved.
HISTORY
Dr. Palmer’s theory was proved true, that if the spine is aligned correctly, the nerve flow to each part of the body will flow correctly, and accordingly the body will be healthy and disease-free. As Dr. Palmer was excited about this discovery, he began to think that he may have discovered a cure for everything.
Many people, most notably the medical community, criticized the use of this new healing technique since it did not engage the traditional medical mechanisms of determining health. Throughout the decades, many attempted to discredit chiropractic, and it was continuously ridiculed and referred to as quackery.
Unfortunately, misunderstandings still occur today for much of the reasons listed above. Chiropractic is not understood by many people since a lot of stigmas have been attached to it. The early 1970s marked the first time insurance companies were willing to pay claims for chiropractic care and began to recognize chiropractic as a legitimate health care option.
The Palmer Infirmary and Chiropractic Institute was opened by Dr. Palmer, and it was the first chiropractic school. The Palmer Chiropractic Institute was established in Davenport, Iowa in 1897. In 1907, the name was changed to Palmer School of Chiropractic. In 1906, there were only 24 students enrolled in the school, but since then more than 20 schools have enrolled more than 10, 000 students.
Learning the history of chiropractic has shown us how much science and proof there is behind chiropractic. Years of research and saved lives have proved what we know to be irrefutable: your health is made exceptionally better by regular chiropractic care.
Conditions
Treated
Patients often suffer from a wide range of pain and discomfort caused by various conditions. These are only a few of the conditions we help patients manage. A thorough analysis allows us to treat the root cause of your condition rather than just alleviating the symptoms.
