Infants Benefit from Chiropractic Care According to UK Study

A study published in the May 2016 issue of the Journal of Clinical Chiropractic Pediatrics showed that a vast majority of parents who brought their infants in for chiropractic care in the United Kingdom were pleased with the results. The study was conducted at the Anglo European College of Chiropractic, Bournemouth, United Kingdom.

This study surveyed parents who brought their children to a university affiliated chiropractic teaching clinic on the southern coast of England. The survey used was a parent reporting outcomes instrument, known as the the United Kingdom Infant Questionnaire (UKIQ).

The study notes that 21 percent of the patients who received care at the Anglo European College of Chiropractic clinic between 2006 and 2010 were pediatric patients. The age ranged from infants to 15 years of age. The study reports that 98 percent of the pediatric patients at the clinic were infants.

The reasons why parents brought their infants for chiropractic care included personal experiences, lack of appropriate treatments available from conventional medicine, and referral from a medical physician.

In this study, every mother of an infant brought in for care was given a 12 question form to fill out. At the completion of care, the mothers were then asked to complete a form with 13 questions. The questions were set to monitor the progress of the child's care and to obtain an overall picture of the baby's complaints or discomfort as well as the mother's concerns.

The most common health concerns for which the infants were brought in for chiropractic care included 21 percent for crying, 20 percent for feeding issues, 19 percent for uncomfortable spine, 16 percent for sleeping issues, 16 percent related to difficult birth or checkup, and 8 percent for head shape issues. Only 25 percent were brought to the chiropractor first while 75 percent had been to medical professionals before chiropractic care.

The survey showed that 97 percent of the mothers who brought their children in for chiropractic care reported a positive improvement in their babies. Of this, 34 percent commented that their infants were "...completely better, like a different baby." During the course of the entire study, no adverse events were reported.