Terry A. Rondberg, D.C.

the evolution of CHIROPRACTIC


TerryA.Rondberg,D.C. 2683ViadelaValle SuiteG629 DelMar,CA92014 Copyright2011byTerryA.Rondberg Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookorsitemayberepro ducedorredistributedinanyformorbyanyelectronicor mechanicalmeans,includinginformationstorageandretriev alsystems,withoutpermissioninwritingfromTerryA.Rond berg,D.C.,exceptbyareviewerwhomayquotebriefpassag esinareview. Theauthorofthisbookdoesnotdispensemedicaladviceor suggesttheuseofanytechniqueasaformoftreatmentfor physical,emotional,ormedicalproblemswithouttheadvice ofaqualifiedwellnessprofessional,eitherdirectlyorindirect ly.Intheeventyouuseanyoftheinformationinthisbook, theauthorandthepublisherassumenoresponsibilityfor youractions.Theauthorandpublisherareinnowayliable foranymisuseofthematerial. Firstedition2011 10987654321 ISBN10:0615561330 ISBN13:9780615561332

Abouttheauthor

Fewwellnesspracti tionersandauthors havehadasprofound animpactonthechiro practicprofessionas TerryA.Rondberg,D.C. Duringhis30+years workinginandforthe chiropracticcommunity, hesbeencalledevery thingfromthemodern dayBJPalmertothe mostdangerousmanin chiropractic. Respectedbysupportersandfearedbyopponents, hislifehasbeendedicatedtosafeguardingevery personsrighttochoosenonmedicalwellnessap proachesfortheirhealthcare.Throughacommu nicationnetworkthathasreachedtoallcornersof theworld,hehascommunicated,withpassion,the fundamentalpreceptsofchiropracticasadrug free,noninvasive,andvitalisticwellnessdiscipline.

Dr.Rondberghaswrittenandfoughtagainstthose criticswhoveattemptedeithertocategorizechi ropracticasatherapyforbackpainortoeliminate italtogetherasaseparateanddistinctprofession. Hesseenchiropracticevolvefromanenergybased systemfocusedonimprovingtotalneurological functiontoamedicalizedsubsetofphysicalthera pyandbackagaintoitsrootsasanart,science, andphilosophyofbeingthattranscendsthelim itsoftraditionalideasofdiseasecare.Morethana passivespectator,hesbeenadrivingforceforthe returnofchiropractictothoseroots,andisnow leadingthewaytoevengreaterexpansionofthe professionbypositioningitasthekeyelementina wellnessparadigmthatembracesphysical,mental, emotional,environmental,andevenspiritualwell being. AfterhisgraduationfromLoganCollegeofChiro practic,Dr.Rondbergbuiltsuccessfulprivateprac ticesinSt.LouisandPhoenix.Hewasnotedforhis emphasisonpublicandpatienteducationaswell ashisinnovativebusinessprocedures.

In1986,Dr.Rondbergbeganpublishingwhathas becomeoneoftheleadingmonthlychiropractic newspapersTheChiropracticJournalwitha worldwidereadershipofmorethan70,000.Inan nouncingitslaunch,hestated:TheJournalwas bornoutofabeliefthatmembersofthechiroprac ticprofessionneed,wantanddeserveareliable, crediblesourceofnewsandinformationrelatingto ourprofession.Wewantanewspaperthatwillre spectourintelligencebybringingusthefactsrelat ingtoimportanteventsgoingonintheassocia tions,courts,legislativehalls,collegesandother placeswhereourfutureandthefutureofourpro fessionisbeingdetermined. Hewentontosay:Chiropracticisawonderful professionpracticedbymanyfinemenandwom en.Wehopetobringanabundanceofgoodnews ofitsaccomplishmentsandthoseofindividual doctors.Wetrustinuniversalprinciples.Webe lievethemembersofthisprofession,ofwhatever schoolofthought,possessmuchwisdom,honesty anddedication,butdonothaveacorneronthose orothervirtues.

Today,TheChiropracticJournalremainstheprima rysourceofinformationonaffirmativeactivities withintheprofession,includingglobalhumanita rianefforts,individualachievements,andpositive mediacoverage. Dr.RondbergalsofoundedandpublishedtheJour nalofVertebralSubluxationResearch(nowthe JournalofSubluxationResearch),apeerreviewed scientificjournalpublishingoriginalresearchonthe impactofsubluxationonhumanneurologicfunc tion. In1989,Dr.RondbergestablishedtheWorldChi ropracticAllianceasaninternationalprofessional organization,creatingaglobalnetworkofcontacts andresources.Usinghighlyrefinedmotivational methods,athoroughknowledgeofelectronic communication,andexceptionalorganizational talents,heguidedthegroupfromitsearlieststages throughitspresentstatusasamajorassociation recognizedasanNGO(NonGovernmentalOrgani zation)withthePublicInformationOfficeofthe UnitedNations,withmembersonfivecontinents.

Duringthecourseofhiscareer,atcriticaljunctures Dr.Rondberghasbeenintenselyinvolvedinthe politicalprocessonboththestateandnationalle vels.ThroughhisworkinWashington,D.C.,he formedproductiverelationshipswithnumerous Senators,Representatives,andothergovernment officials,aswellastoplobbyists.Demonstratinga keenunderstandingofthepoliticalprocess,hewas instrumentalinthepassageofamajorpieceofleg islationthatwassignedbyPresidentGeorgeW. Bushin2001,aswellasseveralotherbillsandgov ernmentactions.HealsoservedontheDepart mentofDefenseChiropracticAdvisoryCommittee tohelpestablishtheprotocolformakingchiroprac ticservicesavailabletoactivedutymilitaryperson nel. Overthepastdecade,Dr.Rondberghaswritten andpublishedthreehighlyacclaimedbooksthat havesoldmorethanhalfamillioncopiesthrough outtheworld,generatingwidespreadpublicity alongwithareliablesourceofrevenue.Asought afterspeakeratchiropracticevents,healsoau thorsseveralblogsandwebsites,takingfulladvan

tageofelectronicmediatocommunicatehismes sagetotheprofessionandthepublic. Dr.Rondbergslatesteffortshavebeendirectedto providingseveralvitaltoolsforwellnesspractition ersandtheirclientsandpatients,includingIntegra tiveOutcomeMeasurements,ascientifichealth relatedqualityoflife(HRQOL)assessmenttool, whichprovidesasubjectiveevaluationofvarious componentsofwellness. Inthisvolume,Dr.Rondbergreviewstheevolution ofchiropracticfromhisuniqueperspectiveasa chiropracticleader,supporter,andpractitionerand explainsthestagesofitsgrowth.Additionally,he considersitsultimatedestinyasatruevitalisticap proachtowellbeingthatcanhelpallpeoplelead healthier,happier,andlongerlives. OtherbooksbyTerryA.Rondberg,D.C.
ChiropracticFirst UndertheInfluenceofModernMedicine Chiropractic:CompassionandExpectation ThePhilosophyofChiropractic(Greenbooklets) ChiropracticMalpracticePreventionProgram(co authoredwithTimothyFeuling)

TableofContents
Chapter1...TheBeginnings Chapter2...HistoricalFoundations Chapter3...MedicalizingofChiropractic Chapter4...TheFinalStep:EnergyHealing Chapter5...TheNewChiropracticandScience

CHAPTER1 TheBeginnings
In 1895, there were fewer than two billion people on the planet. Yet, one of them, David Da niel (DD) Palmer, founded a profession that would change the face of health care forever. The achieve ment can never be over stated, especially consi dering that his creation (chiropractic) became the first and only alternative approach to loosen the medical industrys iron griponhealthcare. In his book The Chi ropractor, DD Palmer was open and honest about how he came to discover chiropractic. The me thod by which I obtained an explanation of certain physical phenomena, from intelligence in the spiri tual world, is known in biblical language as inspi ration,hewrote.

 Never restricted by known physical sciences, Palmerestablishedasthebasisofhisentireconcept the existence of a Universal Intelligence that mani festsitselfinlivingbeingsasInnateIntelligence. He further proposed that health is the expres sion of this Innate Intelligence through Innate Mat ter,viaInnateEnergy. As a magnetic healer, he understood the work of magnetic and energy forces in play throughout the environment and in our own bo dies. His application of chiropractic was his unique wayofinfluencingthosesubtleenergyfields. Palmers son, Bar tlett Joshua (BJ) Pal mer, later took up the work his father had begun and developed chiropractic into a field that in a few short dec ades became so in fluential it posed a threat to the domina tion of allopathic med icine. These two men

 the founder and developer of chiropractic were intelligent, farsighted, dedicated and determined individuals. The profession, and the entire world, owesthemagreatdebtofgratitude. They werent, however, infallible, which doesnt make them any less great. It simply means we need to view them in the context of their times totrulyunderstandtheirconceptsandgoals. The same is true of so many other great indi vidualsinhistory.GeorgeWashingtonandThomas Jefferson, for example, were true political and so cial geniuses who overcame great odds to found a new nation based on ethical and moral principles. Yet, both owned slaves, a situation we now natu rally find abhorrent. Would they, if they lived to day, own slaves? Of course not. The times and atti tudeshavechangedradically. No doubt if DD Palmer were alive today, he would alter some of his concepts and conclusions in light of advanced scientific findings and our un derstanding of the interconnectedness of all energy forces on earth. He was never reluctant, even in his own lifetime, to change his ideas and conclusions. He wrote his books on paper; he didnt chisel them instone.

 In his book, The Glory of Going On, BJ Pal mer told his fellow chiropractors: You HAVE in YOUR possession a SACRED TRUST. Guard it well. He admonished them to keep this principle and practice unadulterated and unmixed. Still, BJ was an openminded teacher, who encouraged his studentstousetheirownreasoningpowertoarrive atsolutionstoproblems. And BJ loved new technology. He owned the first automobile in the Davenport, Iowa area. In 1922, when the medium was still in its infancy, he purchased a local radio station to spread the chiro practic message. He adapted existing technology to the Palmer School of Chiropractic, and built new instrumentation and research tools. He was un afraid of trying new things and of advancing the science of chiropractic to keep up with the sciences ofphysics,biology,chemistry,andmedicine. Yet,heneverforgotthemainprinciplespassed down by his father, DD Palmer, that the essence of chiropractic was the elimination of interference to the vital energy forces governed by Innate Intelli gence. In rethinking chiropractic for the 21st century, its important to maintain our strong admiration

 for the Palmers and all those who worked with them in the opening decades of the profession. We need to remind ourselves of the pioneering and courageous work they did and the remarkable achievementstheymade. Its also essential to keep the basic chiropractic principles at the heart of our understanding of the discipline the bottom line premises about the existence of Universal and Innate intelligence, as well as a grasp of how that intelligence works throughmatterviaenergy. Thanks to advances in quantum physics, an abiding respect for the Palmers is NOT incompat iblewithastrongscientificgrounding.Asthisbook will explore, their original views on chiropractic meshes perfectly with todays awareness of bio energy fields, cellular biology, and bodymind connection.

CHAPTER2 HistoricalFoundations
Throughout their lives and careers, DD and BJ Palmer refined their ideas about the process of chi ropractic, subluxations, nerve interference, and otheraspectsoftheprofession.Theytried,adapted, and discarded new technologies. Yet, the basic chi ropracticfoundationneverchanged. The major underlying precepts were (and re main): There exists a Universal Intelligence, which brings organization to all matter and main tainsitsexistence; All living things have inborn, or Innate Intelligence which adapts universal forces andmatterforuseinthebody; Every living thing has ALL the Innate Intel ligence it requires to maintain its life and optimalhealth; HealthistheexpressionoftheInnateIntelli gence through Innate Matter, via Innate Energy;

 When theres interference with the trans mission of Innate Energy, the result is a de crease in the expression of Innate Intel ligence, which chiropractors call disease (nottobeconfusedwithdisease!). A review of these basic precepts is always helpful.

UniversalIntelligence
Our existence isnt mere luck as nothing in thenaturalorderoftheuniverseisrandom. Since chiropractic is a deductive science, it be gins with a major premise upon which all other conclusions are based. That primary assumption is that a Universal Intelligence is in all matter and continually gives to it all its properties and actions, thusmaintainingitinexistence. Blind faith or religious fervor had nothing to do with the adoption of this premise. This is a con clusion based upon observation of physical evi dence. Just look around you. Is it logical to think that everything in the universe is the result of ran dom selection or mere chance? Is it luck that a birds wing is perfectly designed for flight, right down to the tiniest pinfeather? Is it just accidental

 that a plants roots travel downward into the ground where it will find water and minerals, and its leaves grow upward where it will find sun and air? If we lived in a truly random universe, at least some plants would send their roots straight up ward, and bury their leaves in the soil. Its unlikely anyonehaseverreportedseeingsuchaplant. Believing the universe is devoid of intelligent organization is like thinking that the Great Pyra mids of Giza were the result of a rock slide. Could any random action have possibly created them? The Empire State Building? A birds wings? The rootsandleavesofaplant? Intelligence is clearly behind the naturalwon ders that surround us, just as architectural won ders owe their existence to human intelligence. Ob viously,humanintelligenceisntresponsibleforthe complex order of the universe it hasnt yet begun to understand even a tiny part of it! It had to be something much greater. Thatsomething is what wecall UniversalIntelligence.Whilewearentsure what it is, where it came from, what its intent is or even if there is an intent involved we do know thatitmustexist,ornothingelsewould.

 Is this Universal Intelligence God? No one knows. Theres no way to prove the existence of God, or describe Gods characteristics. Nor is there a way to prove the existence of Universal Intelli gence, or describe its characteristics. How, then can anyonesaywhethertheymeanthesamething? Some people believe God is the source of that Universal Intelligence. Others can accept the con ceptofaUniversalIntelligencewithoutbelievingin aGod.Eitherway,throughobservationanddeduc tive reasoning we know that such an intelligence has to exist in order to prevent all matter from passingintochaos. During the Age of Technology such notions were often criticized as being unscientific. What critics really meant was that the premise couldnt be proved, and wasnt arrived at through inductive reasoning.Ofcourse,neitherwastheideaAllmen are created equal, or that there were vacuum cleaners called black holes (a theory, by the way, also scoffed at when first announced). Yet, the first axiom doesnt require proof, and the second was valid even before proof was found. And so it is withthepremiseofUniversalIntelligence.It,too,is

 atruth so basic that it transcends science and can bearrivedatonlythroughdeductivelogic. Today, a broader view is being accepted as science expands in the areas of new physics and quantum mechanics. New ideas are cultivated, with deductive reasoning recognized as a valid form of logic. At last, the realization that a Univer sal Intelligence must exist is being taken for granted. Chiropractors smile at the notion thatscience is only now discovering that idea. After all, the entire profession is built around that profound yet simple truth. Doctors of chiropractic understand theres order and intelligence to the whole uni verse. By deductive reasoning, they also know this order and intelligence applies to every part of the universe,includingthehumanbody. Thatconclusionleadsdirectlytoanotherofthe principal premises of chiropractic philosophy: A living thing has an inborn intelligence within its body,calledInnateIntelligence. No word in chiropractic philosophy is as filled withmeaningasthewordInnate, forit referstothe sole element that sets living beings apart from non

 living things, and is the reason that chiropractic exists.

InnateIntelligence
Innate Intelligence is in every living thing guidingitonthepathtohealth. In discussing Innate Intelligence, its necessary to clarify the concept of intelligence. Its important to understand were not talking about education or the ability to learn things. Human beings can at tend school and learn computer programming, or pick up several foreign languages when they tra vel. But this isnt whats meant when we say intel ligence. The intelligence were talking about is the knowledge that every living entity is born with, and which allows it to adapt to the environment in order to survive. If you put a plant on the window sill, in a day or so itll have positioned its leaves to facethelight.Turntheplantaroundandinanother day or so, it again will have turned its leaves to re ceive the light it needs to maintain its normal func tions.

 The plant doesnt use logic to figure out that it needs light, or decide to turn its leaves around to face the window. It isnt selfaware, and while it doesnt think, the intelligence it possesses allows it to go from a tiny seed to a lush plant; to send roots into the soil to find water and nutrients; to search out and utilize light and air; to transform those elements into additional leaves, roots, sprouts, and even more seeds, which will be car ried on the wind to start the process all over again somewhere else. Not random action, but intelli gence. Not education, but inborn knowledge. In nateIntelligence. But what is this intelligence? Where does it come from? How does it work? Nobody has defin itive answers to these questions. Living things arent chance collections of molecules and atoms. Theyre all organized into functioning entities that adapttotheirenvironment.Therefore,weacceptas a basic principle that theres an order to the body, whichwevechosentocallInnateIntelligence.Like Universal Intelligence, we dont have the ability to understand exactly what this intelligence is or how itworks.Weonlyknowitexists.

 Its the Innate Intelligence that regulates the number of heart beats per minute in a newborn ba by. It tells the baby how to ingest and digest nu trients and eliminate waste, how to develop and utilize white blood cells to fight infections, how to communicate its need for outside assistance. No onehastoteachaninfantthesethings. Yet, Innate Intelligence can only guide the childs internal functioning. It cant enable her to manipulate her environment or do more than her body will permit. Anymore than a plant can turn on a lamp if it needs more light, the baby cant, for instance, walk over to the refrigerator and get a snack if shes hungry. That action will take training and education rather than inborn (Innate) intelli gence. Its remarkable that every living thing pos sesses 100% of the Innate Intelligence it needs. Youll never see a plant thatknows its roots need to grow into the soil, but doesnt also know its leaves need to grow upward toward the light. Can you imagine the poor plant pushing both its roots and its leaves downward because it only had 50% ofitsInnateIntelligence?

 By its very definition, Innate Intelligence is al ways normal, and its function is always normal. This means our bodies know exactly what they needandhowtoadapttotheenvironmentinorder tofunctionbest. If our physical and emotional health relied ex clusively on our Innate Intelligence, wed all be perfectly healthy. But there are other factors at work. A master carpenter might be an expert in building a table, but with his arm in a cast he cant apply force to his hammer, or without the proper tools its unlikely the table hes working on will comeoutverywell. Your Innate Intelligence runs your body ex pertly, unless its hampered by the lack of force (Innate Energy) or proper tools (Innate Matter). Withoutthese,theresultwillbealessthannormal functioning. Since Innate Intelligence has the expertise to properly maintain the human organism, chiro practors dont address that area. Neither do they concentrate upon the tools the body and inter nal organs. Instead, theyre concerned with the In nate Energy (or force) providing the link between theInnateIntelligenceandInnateMatter.

UniversalForces...InnateEnergy
Tame a lightning bolt and you have the Innate Forceinthehumanbrain. The universe is filled with natural forms of energy. In fact, astronomers say the universe was created by a burst of energy, which predated all matter. The big bang theory is still debated, but we need no theories to witness energy at work all around us. Wind rushes through the trees, water cascades down a mountain, lightning streaks throughthesky,solarradiationheatsourearth. For the most part, these environmental forces coexist peacefully with all life forms. At times, however, they demonstrate their magnificent pow er and destructive potential. The wind increases to hurricane velocity and rips roofs off houses; flood waters carry buildings away; lightning sets off rag ingfires. Such destruction can seem meaningless, so we often talk about Mother Nature going crazy. But scientists and environmentalists now acknowledge that the devastation has its purpose in the natural schemeofthings.

 A fire started by lightning, for example, is an efficient way to thin a stand of trees. When a forest becomes overgrown, the lush vegetation cuts sun light off at the ground level, making it impossible for new seedlings to grow. The destruction of a fire provides the new generation of trees the light andcompostitwillneediftheforestistosurvive. When that same forest is managed by hu mans, the naturally set fires are often extinguished. Then, these same caretakers deliberately set fires to do the job the extinguished fire would have done. Theresapurposetothefires,andtothehurricanes andfloods. Theres an order to their appearance, and an intelligence in their functioning. The Universal In telligence knows that forests need thinning, and uses the Universal Matter available to it to accom plish this. The link that enables the intelligence to use the matter is natural energy, or Universal Forces. For most of human history, the most we could do was try and stay out of the way of these forces. In modern times, our educated minds have devel oped means of adapting them for constructive pur poses.Webuildwindpoweredgenerators,hydroe

 lectric plants, irrigation canals, dams, and solar heating panels to harness these energy sources. Weve even learned to adapt for our purposes the electricityshowcasedinalightningbolt. Living things are like microcosms of the un iverse. Weve seen how theyre each endowed with a portion of the Universal Intelligence, called the Innate Intelligence. They also possess the specia lizedversionofUniversalForces,whichchiroprac tors call Innate Energy. Our Innate Intelligence takestheUniversalForceofelectricityandadaptsit for constructive use, just as our educated minds haveadaptednaturalforces. Its well documented that the human body runs on electricity. Many medical testing instru ments record and measure the electrical impulses generated (or, some say, converted from some oth er source) by the brain for use in the body. There may also be other innate forces at work in our bo dies that we havent yet identified, but electricity is theoneweveproventoexist. Because Innate Energy is being adapted in the body by the Innate Intelligence, it can never be de structive as canwild Universal Forces. And, since Innate Energy is created and directed by the Innate

 Intelligence, 100% of whats needed by each partic ularlivingthingisavailable.Theenergyisrequired toimpelthecellstofunctionaccordingtothewish es of the intelligence. In nature, matter remains in ert until energy is applied. Air and water remain stagnant, and the internal molecular structure of the tree stays stable until energys applied. Only then do changes occur in the matter to cause mo tionandfunction. Its the same process in the body. The Innate Intelligence cant manipulate matter without ener gy. Muscles are unable to expand or contract ac cording to the instructions of Innate Intelligence unless energy is present. In fact, in the absence of Innate Energy, the body ceases to function ceases tolive. Innate Energy, then, serves as the vital link that enables the intelligence to express itself through matter. Taken together, these three ele ments Innate Intelligence, Innate Energy, and In nate Matter make up theTriune of Life, one of the most important concepts in chiropractic philos ophy. In some respects, the energy component of chiropractic is the key concept. Today, we apply

 more scientific terms to it, such as neurological functioning or bioelectrical current, and the field of energy medicine is growing in acceptance even amongthemostempiricalscientificresearchers. The importance of the neurological component of the subluxation, and of chiropractic, cant be un derestimated. Time and again, DD and BJ Palmer spoke of this concept and it was an absolutely es sentialfactor. We Chiropractors work with the subtle sub stance of the soul, said BJ Palmer.We release the imprisoned impulse, the tiny rivulet of force that emanates from the mind and flows over the nerves to the cell and stirs them into life. We deal with the magic power that transforms common food into living, loving, thinking clay; that robes the earth with beauty, and hues and scents the flowers with thegloryoftheair.

TheTriune
The Triune of Life = Innate Intelligence + In nateEnergy+InnateMatter. According to the precepts of chiropractic phi losophy, every living thing has 100% of the Innate

 Intelligence it needs AND 100% of the Innate Force it needs. It also has a given physical form, to make upthethirdelementoftheTriune. In order to have perfect health, there must be 100% of intelligence, 100% of force, and 100% of matter. In other words, all three elements must be present in optimum quantity and quality. Weve already seen that this is always true of the first two elements. Nevertheless, the structure of our mat ter our physical bodies is sometimes less than 100%. There may be flaws in them or their ability (temporary or permanent) to allow expression of theintelligence. That means that perfect health is a relative term for human beings. Each of us can only be as healthy as the limits of our physical matter. Those born with a congenital heart defect, for instance, can only be as healthy as their structures will per mit. People whove undergone amputation of an arm cant regrow the limb, even when theres 100% intelligence and 100% energy. There are limi tations inherent in the human body that cant be transcendedbyInnateIntelligence.

 However, within the limits imposed by our particular physical structure, our Innate Intelli gence and Innate Energy will strive to maintain the highest level of health possible. Sometimes, that effort is thwarted by interferences to the normal transmissionoftheenergy. To see what kind of interference a body may be experiencing, we need to understand how the Innate Intelligence directs the body parts through InnateEnergy. As noted, the brain generates, or converts, the electrical impulses, which spur the individual cells and tell them what they have to do to adapt to the bodysneeds.Thoseimpulsesarepropelledalonga complex system of nerves connecting the brain to theorgans,tissues,glands,andcellsofthebody. Think of the nerve system as a thick rope, made of numerous individual strands bundled to gether. When this nerve rope exits the brain, it travelsdownthespine,protectedbyaflexiblebony structure. As it progresses downward, sections of the rope separate and pass through small openings between the spinal bones (vertebrae). Later, they separate further until each individual strand con nectswithitsdesignatedtarget.

 Occasionally, the vertebrae become subluxated (outoftheirproperalignment),andcloseoffpartof the opening. This can impinge on the nerve and decrease or distort the normal flow of Innate Ener gy through the body. The result is similar to putting a kink in a water hose the water still flowsthroughthehose,butnotatfullstrength. When there are subluxations, they interfere with the 100% expression of intelligence through 100% energy and the body is said to be in dis ease.Thisshouldntbeconfusedwiththetermdis ease, which refers to specific conditions medical doctorsname,diagnose,andtreat. The chiropractic term disease refers to a situa tion where theres less than 100% expression of In nate Intelligence. Since everyones body is different and every bodily change can have many different ramifications, chiropractors dont become involved in the futile exercise of labeling a condition or try ing to administer drugs or therapy to treat its symptoms. Chiropractic goes to the root of the problem and works to restore the bodys ability to reach 100% expression of its Innate Intelligence. It does thisbyfindingandremovinganysubluxationsthat

 might interfere with the flow of Innate Energy. Once that flow is restored, the body will resume its naturalstrivingforoptimumhealth. The working of the Triune of Life Innate In telligence,InnateEnergy,andInnateMatteristhe supreme accomplishment of Universal Intelligence. Itwouldbeignorantaswellasarroganttothinkits designcouldbeimprovedupon. Chiropractors dont attempt such a task. In stead, they focus their efforts on permitting that design to function as it was meant to without in terference.

CHAPTER3 MedicalizingChiropractic
Although many of the first students to receive training in chiropractic were medical doctors, the concept of a drugfree, noninvasive way to allow the body to heal itself didnt appeal to the medical establishment. It wasnt long before the medical industry perceived chiropractic as the competition; even as a threat. The attacks on chiropractic (and any other alternative form of health care) were swiftandaggressive.Chiropractorswerethrownin jail, denounced as quacks, and threatened with bodilyharmaswellasprofessionalcensure. Doctors of chiropractic reacted in two different ways. Some stood their ground, defiantly refusing to change the original chiropractic principles and purpose. They continued to define chiropractic as a way to allow the body to experience normal nerve function,withoutinterferencebysubluxation.They continued to emphasize the impact of adjustments onneurologicalfunction.

 Yet, others felt the medical industry might be appeased if they were to carve out a smaller niche for chiropractic. Instead of addressing health issues in general, they pinpointed back pain as the major target of chiropractic care. They backed off the con cept of impacting the whole neurological function ing of the body, and framed chiropractic as a mus culoskeletal therapy. They also adopted medical or quasimedical terminology in order to gain at least someacceptancebyallopathicmedicine. Applauded by some DCs and condemned by others, the adaptation of medical purpose, vocabu lary, techniques, instrumentation and even dress had a profound effect on the chiropractic profes sion. Slowly, a portion of the profession moved into the medical sphere, forgetting or ignoring the neu rological component of subluxation and redefining chiropractic solely as a mechanical manipulation ofvertebraetorelievemusculoskeletalconditions. At first, this move appeared to reduce the pressure put on chiropractic by the medical profes sion. But, as chiropractic grew in popularity, the resistancewasrenewed.

 Until 1983, the American Medical Association (AMA) had labeled chiropractic an unscientific cult and barred its members from even associating with DCs. Finally, in 1976, a group of chiropractors headed by Dr. Chester Wilk took the AMA and other medical groups to court, accusing them of violating antitrust laws and conspiring to destroy chiropractic. They introduced evidence showing that the antichiropractic actions were primarily based on economic factors. The AMA was afraid of the loss of income caused by millions of people mi gratingfrommedicaltochiropracticcare. In1987,afederaljudgeruledagainsttheAMA, finding it and several other aligned organizations guilty of an unlawful conspiracy in restraint of tradetocontainandeliminatethechiropracticpro fession. In her ruling, she noted that the AMA hadenteredintoalonghistoryofillegalbehavior. While the AMA was no longer permitted to openlyforbidmemberstoworkwithchiropractors, the ruling failed to stop the organization from en gaging in more subtle forms of antichiropractic rhetoric and practices. It reinforced the idea of chi ropractic as a limited therapeutic approach, push ing it into progressively smaller boxes until it was

 designated as a possible alternative, under medical supervision, for the treatment of low back pain in adults.

Medicalalternatives
While the AMA was working to expose chi ropractic, the scientific community and the press were becoming more and more open about expos ing the risks and faults of medical interventions. Despite efforts to rein in the news media, reports surfaced about dangerous drugs, unnecessary sur geries, conflicts of interest in research journals, and governmentcomplicitywithdrugmanufacturers. As stories became more frequent, the drug in dustry stepped up its advertising and marketing campaigns. Billions of dollars were poured into print and broadcast media outlets that were reluc tant to risk losing income by offending their ad vertisers with negative news coverage. Increasing ly, news stories related the latest socalled medical miracle. Still, it was impossible to keep a lid on the growing problems of medical errors and risks. Numerous negative statistics, reports, and articles

 made it into the news during the postWilk vs. AMA case period. And, it would be an unders tatement to say that many if not a majority of these problems increased in frequency and severity ashealthcaremovedintothe21stcentury. The following sections provide a glimpse of the risks inherent in medical treatment, as docu mentedbyscientific researchpapers orreported by thepress.

Plightoftheelderly
Medicine created the attitude that growing old is a disease that needs to be treated, practically en suring senior citizens would become one of the mostvulnerablesegmentsoftheU.S.population. For one thing, misdiagnosis is an everpresent reality, especially where the expectation exists that a particular condition comes with the territory of being old. Despite better knowledge today about theagingprocess,stereotypesremainevenifsub consciously affecting the way materia medica ap proaches seniors mental and physical health needs.

 Then, there are those countless numbers of el derly Americans taking multiple drugs at the same time (its been estimated as many as 15 different prescriptions and frequently many more). Yet, as incredible as it may seem, their doctors often arent even aware of the potentially dangerous effects of drug combining. And, as will be shown, its unrea listic to expect that pharmacies will catch the omis sionsandmistakesdoctorsmake. Additionally, there are the notinfrequent inci dents of the elderly being administered inappro priatemedications. This unfortunate situation can be partially ex plained by doctors and hospitals commonly re commending visits, drugs, and tests that will be covered by Medicare or Medicaid. Recommending adietandexerciseprogramproventoreduceprob lems associated with arthritis, for example, doesnt generateincome. Ultimately, the sole way the profitdirected medical and pharmaceutical industries can perpe tuate themselves is by making certain people con tinue to see their doctors and fill their prescrip tions. And the only way to guarantee that is to by pass natural and relatively inexpensive therapies

 that would be likely to make them truly (and safe ly)healthy.

HalfofallAlzheimers patientsdontreallyhavethedisease
New research shows that Alzheimers disease and other dementiatype illnesses are often mis diagnosed in the elderly, leading to incorrect treatmentandmedications. That was the conclusion of a study released in 2011 that was to be presented as part of a plenary session at the American Academy of Neurologys 63rdAnnualMeetinginHonolulu. Diagnosing specific dementias in people who are very old is complex, but with the large increase indementiacasesexpectedwithinthenext10years in the United States, it will be increasingly impor tant to correctly recognize, diagnose, prevent and treat agerelated cognitive decline, said study au thor Lon White, M.D., M.P.H., with the Kuakini MedicalSysteminHonolulu. For the study, researchers autopsied the brains of 426 JapaneseAmerican men who were residents of Hawaii, and who died at an average age of 87

 years. Of those, 211 had been diagnosed with a dementia when they were alive, most commonly attributedtoAlzheimersdisease. The study found that about half of those diag nosed with Alzheimers disease did not have suffi cient numbers of the brain lesions characterizing thatconditiontosupportthediagnosis. Most of those in whom the diagnosis of Alz heimers disease was not confirmed had one or a combination of other brain lesions sufficient to ex plain the dementia. These included microinfarcts, Lewy bodies, hippocampal sclerosis or generalized brain atrophy. In most of these cases, however, the patient had been treated incorrectly for Alzhei mers,basedonthemisdiagnosis. Misdiagnoses increased with older age. They also reflected nonspecific manifestations of de mentia, a very high prevalence of mixed brain le sions, and the ambiguity of most neuroimaging measures. Larger studies are needed to confirm these findings and provide insight as to how we may more accurately diagnose and prevent Alzheimers disease and other principal dementing disease processesintheelderly,saidDr.White.

 SOURCE: American Academy of Neurology, pressrelease,Feb.23,2011.

Pharmacycomputersdontcatch dangerousdruginteractions
Asof2009,atotalof3.9BILLIONprescriptions for more than 24,000 different drugs were dis pensed. The average number of retail prescriptions perpersonintheUSwas12.6. Given these numbers, its not surprising that many people leave the drug counter of their local pharmacy with pills that, when taken together, have harmful or even deadly side effects. Its esti mated that at least 2025% of all patients are given prescriptions that pose dangers when taken togeth er. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 27,658 unintentional drug deaths occurred in the United States in 2007 alone most of them causedbyprescriptionmedicines. To solve this problem, sophisticated com puterprogramscalledclinicaldecisionsupportsys tem software were developed to alert pharmacists to potential problems with drug interactions. How ever, a study conducted at the University Of Ari

 zona College Of Pharmacy found that only 28% of pharmacies clinical decision support software sys tems correctly identified potentially dangerous drugdruginteractions. The study was conducted at 64 pharmacies across Arizona. Members of the research team tested the pharmacy software using a set of pre scription orders for a standardized fictitious pa tient. The prescriptions consisted of 18 different medications that posed 13 clinically significant drugdrug interactions. Of the 64 pharmacies, just 18 correctly identified all of the eligible drugdrug interactionsandnoninteractions. These findings suggest that we have a funda mental problem with the way interactions are eva luated by drug knowledge databases, said Daniel Malone, Ph.D., UA professor of pharmacy and lead investigator on the study. The weakness of these systems could lead to medication errors that might harm patients. Pharmacists should become familiar with how their computer system identifies drug interactions. Consumers should always inform their doctor and pharmacist about all medications and other therapies they are using. The risk of harmfromdangerouscombinationscanbereduced

 when patients create and maintain a medication list. A better approach would be to seek drugfree care or, at least, reduce the number of prescription andoverthecountermedications. SOURCE: Journal of American Medical Informat ics,2011;18:3237doi:10.1136/jamia.2010.007609

Study:Millionsofelderly givenwrongdrugs
Astudypublishedin2010revealedthat17%of all elderly patients are given potentially inappro priate medications (PIMs).The study, which ap peared in the March issue of Academic Emergency Medicine journal, reviewed the records of 470,000 patients over 65 who were admitted to an emer gencydepartment(ED)between2000and2006. Approximately 19.5 million patientsof eligi ble ED visits were associated with one or more PIMs,researchersnotedintheirreport. There are certain medications that probably arenotgoodtogivetoolderadultsbecausethepo tential benefits are outweighed by potential prob

 lems, admitted lead author, William J. Meurer, M.D. Examples: The two powerful sedatives prome thazine and ketorolac. Promethazine accounted for about 40% of the errors and can cause side effects such as confusion and even, in rare cases, seizures. Ketorolacisanonsteroidalantiinflammatorydrug (NSAID) used as an analgesic, fever reducer, and antiinflammatory. Similarfindingshadbeenpublishedmorethan 15 years ago in a July 1994 Journal of the American Medical Association report, revealing nearly 25% of allelderlypatientsreceivedwrongdrugs. Amongitsfindings: ** 1.8 million seniors were given prescriptions for dipyridamole, a blood thinner that, the re searchers said, is useless for all except people with artificialheartvalves. ** More than 1.3 million older Americans were prescribed propoxyphene, an addictive narcotic no betterthanaspirininrelievingpain. ** More than 1.2 million were put on the drug diazepam or chlordiazepoxide, longacting seda tives and sleeping pills that can make patients groggy,dizzy,andpronetofalls.

 Standard published sources support the view that the 20 drugs in our primary analysis should virtually never be prescribed for the elderly, re searchersstatedatthetime. SOURCE: Academic Emergency Medicine journal(2010;17:231).

Themiracleofantibiotics
When antibiotics were first developed, they were considered a miracle drug because they seemed to be able to aid the body in fighting off infections and invading bacteria. The drugs actual ly were helpful for some people with weakened immune systems who needed outside intervention to get through immediate and acute health crises. Butevenamiraclecanbeabused. Medical doctors began prescribing the drugs after nearly every office visit even for conditions that couldnt be helped at all by antibiotics. They pumped the drug into our systems and now, dec ades later, were paying the price with antibiotic resistant superbacteria and impaired natural anti body functions. Tragically, despite repeated warn ingsfromtheWorldHealthOrganizationandmore

 progressive health care experts, M.D.s still rely heavilyonthedrugs.

Antibioticscandestroygood bacteriaforyears
AresearcharticlepublishedNov.3,2010inthe journal Microbiology came to the startling conclu sionthatevenashortcourseofantibioticscanleave normal gut bacteria harboring antibiotic resistance genesforuptotwoyearsaftertreatment. What many people forget is that the body is filled with both good bacteria such as the nor mal microbial flora of the human gut as well as bad or pathogenic bacteria. Antibiotics can alter thecompositionofmicrobialpopulationsandallow microorganisms that are naturally resistant to the antibiotic to flourish. This reduces the ability of the body to react to the pathogenic entities, potentially leadingtootherillnesses. Theimpactofantibioticsonthenormalgutflo ra had previously been thought to be shortterm, withanydisturbancesbeingrestoredseveralweeks after treatment. However, the review of the long term impacts of antibiotic therapy reveals this isnt

 always the case. Studies have shown that high le vels of resistance genes can be detected in gut mi crobes after just seven days of antibiotic treatment and that these genes remain present for up to two years even if the individual has taken no further antibiotics. The consequences of this could be potentially lifethreatening, explained Dr. Cecilia Jernberg, of the Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Con trol, who conducted the review. The longterm presence of resistance genes in human gut bacteria dramatically increases the probability of them be ing transferred to and exploited by harmful bacte ria that pass through the gut. This could reduce the success of future antibiotic treatments and poten tially lead to new strains of antibioticresistant bac teria. The review highlights the necessity of using antibiotics prudently. Antibiotic resistance isnot a new problem and there is a growing battle with multidrug resistant strains of pathogenic bacteria. The development of new antibiotics is slow and so we must use the effective drugs we have left with care, stated Dr. Jernberg. This new information about the longterm impacts of antibiotics is of

 great importance to allow rational antibiotic ad ministration guidelines to be put in place, she said. SOURCE: Microbiology 156 (2010), 32163223; DOI10.1099.

Antibioticuseincreaseswhen insurancepaysforit
The serious problem of antibiotic overuse is al ready well documented and medical doctors have been warned not to yield to patient demands for the drug. M.D.s dont seem to be listening, howev er. AssoonasMedicarePartDdrugcoveragewas expanded to pay for more antibiotics, doctors be gan writing more prescriptions. In a report pub lished in the August 9, 2010 issue of Archives of In ternalMedicine,researchersnotedthatantibioticuse appears to have increased among older people since the coverage was added, with the largest in creases occurring for broadspectrum, newer, and moreexpensivedrugs. Overuse of antibiotics is a common and im portant problem, potentially leading to unneces

 sary spending for prescription drugs, increased risks of adverse effects with no associated benefit and the development of antimicrobial resistance, theauthorsnotedinthearticle.Multipleprograms have aimed to reduce inappropriate antibiotic use in inpatient and ambulatory care settings. Al though many of these interventions have helped curb antibiotic prescribing for acute respiratory tractinfectionsandotherconditions,theremaystill besubstantialroomforadditionalreductions. Several studies have shown that as medication costs increase, patients are less likely to fill pre scriptionsortakedrugsprescribedfortheirchronic conditions. The same appears to be true of antibio tics, concluded Yuting Zhang, Ph.D., and col leagues at the University of Pittsburgh. They looked at the records of 35,102 older adults before and after implementation of Medicare Part D. This expansion of prescription drug coverage was esti mated to reduce outofpocket spending between 13%and23%. Participants fell into one of four groups, three of which had no or limited drug coverage between 2004 and 2006; the fourth had stable drug coverage

 without caps through their employer throughout thefouryearstudy. In Jan. 2006, the three groups with no or li mited coverage enrolled in Medicare Part D, which greatly decreased the outofpocket costs for anti biotics. We found that the use of antibiotics in creased in response to reductions in outofpocket price after Part D implementation, the authors found. Relative to the comparison group, antibiotic use increased the most among participants who transitioned from no drug coverage to Medicare Part D. These individuals were more likely to fill prescriptions for nearly every class of antibiotic, once Part D Medicare began paying for them. In addition, the two groups with previously limited drugcoverageweremorelikelytofillprescriptions for broadspectrum antibiotics after enrolling in PartD. For the medical researchers, this increase was considered beneficial in a few cases. For pneumo nia, for instance, Part D implementation was asso ciated with triple the rate of antibiotic treatment amongthosewhopreviouslylackeddrugcoverage. Given the high mortality associated with commu nityacquired pneumonia among the elderly, the

 finding that changes in drug coverage improve the likelihoodoftreatmentisencouraging,theauthors commented. However, we also found increases in antibiot ic use for other acute respiratory tract infections (sinusitis, pharyngitis, bronchitis and nonspecific upper respiratory tract infection) for which antibio tics are generally not indicated, the authors con clude. Our study suggests that reimbursement mayplayaroleinaddressingthesubstantialroleof inappropriateantibioticprescribinganduse. SOURCE: Ambulatory Antibiotic Use and Prescription Drug Coverage in Older Adults, Arch InternMed.2010;170[15]:13081314.

Forthesakeofthechildren
Next to the elderly, children are in the greatest danger from the medical mindset so prevalent in this country. We all want whats best for our kids, and weve been brainwashed to believe that this means pumping drugs into them from the moment theyre born. The belief that medicine is needed to ensure health in children is so strong that parents have actually been accused of child abuse because

 they refused to allow their children to be subjected to the risks of vaccines, medications, and other in vasivemedicalprocedures. Most children are born into this world with perfectly healthy bodies, which innately know how to maintain the highest level of health possi ble. They have the right chemicals, in the right amounts, to function properly in this world. Yet, medicalsciencebelievesitcanimproveontheorig inal design and immediately bombards that body with dangerous sometimes potentially deadly chemicals. Impaired, not improved, function is the result. That tiny body not only has to adapt to its environment, but now has to assimilate foreign chemicalsinitssystem. Infants, toddlers, adolescents, and teens are all subjected to the same treatment with the obvious result that childhood health problems are soaring. Chronic ear infections, asthma, childhood diabetes, and new diseases like attention deficit disorder (ADD), are all at epidemic proportions and getting worse. The reliance on medical treatment hasnt helpedatall,yetparentsarereluctanttorejectitfor a better way and the medical and drug industries continuetohidethetruthfromthem.

 While the key phrase of the medical doctors Hippocratic Oath is Do No Harm, its obvious that the overuse and abuse of prescription drugs continues despite the harm it does to our nations children. Then, the pharmaceutical industry relen tlesslypumpsoutdrugsmarketeddirectlyatchild ren,oftenusingmarketingtechniquesthatexploita parentssenseofguiltorhelplessness. Theres no question this must stop before we further impair the present and future health of an entiregeneration. Yet, it seems unlikely the change will come from the medical community, and it definitely wont be championed by the drug makers. That means parents must learn to just say no to unne cessary overthecounter and prescription drugs. If they arent the ones to do it, their children will re main unprotected from those who apparently are willing to let them become ill and even die rather thansacrificeprofit.

70,000kidshospitalized foraccidentaldrugpoisoning
A study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) found that twothirds (68.9%) of the 100,340 emergency department (ED) visits made in 2008 for accidental ingestion of drugs were made by children five yearsofageoryounger. Twofifths (42.3%) of the visits involved two year olds, and almost one third (29.5%) involved oneyearold patients. The report showed that malesaccountedforslightlymorethanhalf(55.7%) of the ED visits for accidental drug ingestion amongchildrenfiveorunder. The survey also indicated the incidents in cludeddrugsthatactonthecentralnervoussystem (CNS)(40.8%),withthetwomainCNSdrugsbeing pain relievers (21.1%), and drugs for insomnia and anxiety (11.6%). The study also found that 15.7% of the ED visits involved drugs for treating heart dis ease,followedbyrespiratorysystemdrugs(10.3%). Poisoning is one of the most common child hood injuries. Most of the time it happens right at home, said SAMHSA Administrator Pamela S.

 Hyde, J.D.Locking up drugs and properly dispos ingleftoverorexpireddrugscansavelives.Studies like this one that measure the impact on the health care system of accidental ingestion of drugs also provides us an opportunity to get the message out to parents and caregivers that there are simple steps they can take to prevent accidental drug in gestion. The study also looked at whether these young patients needed additional care and treatment, fol lowing their initial treatment at the hospital emer gency department. Most of the children who were taken to an emergency department because of acci dental drug ingestion were treated and released followingthevisit(85.3%).Yet,about1in10(8.7%) were admitted for inpatient care and 5% were transferredtootherhealthcarefacilities. The study was developed as part of SAMH SAs strategic initiative on data, outcomes, and quality an effort to inform policy makers and ser vice providers on the nature and scope of beha vioralhealthissues. SOURCE: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Office of Applied Studies. (September 14, 2010). The DAWN Report: Emer

 gency Department Visits Involving Accidental In gestion of Drugs by Children Aged 5 or Younger. Rockville,MD.

Hospitalizedchildrenincreasingly dyingfrominfectionsAntibiotic overusemaybemajorfactor

Hospitalized children in the United States are becoming infected with the bacteria Clostridium difficile more frequently, and children who acquire the infection are more likely to die or require sur gery, according to researchers from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) andCincinnatiChildrensHospitalMedicalCenter. ThefindingsappearedintheArchivesofPediatrics& AdolescentMedicine. C difficile, which can colonize the gastrointes tinal tract and lead to infection, may show no symptoms in infected patients, while others devel op diarrhea, toxic megacolon (extreme inflamma tion and distention of the large intestine), perfo rated bowels or other potentially fatal complica tions. In recent years, the incidence of C difficile infection, number of hospitalizations, associated

 deaths and severity in adults have been increas ing,theauthorswrote. Somechildrenappearedmorelikelytobecome infected, including those who had other co occurring diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, organ transplant, or cancer. The risk of in fection was also higher among those who were white, lived in the West or in urban areas, or had privateinsurance. We dont know exactly why we see these populations have an increased risk. However, it likely has much to do with antibiotic exposure, which is a major risk factor for development of C difficile, said study lead author Air Force Maj. (Dr.) Cade Nylund, an assistant professor of Pedia trics at the USU and pediatric gastroenterologist at the National Capital Consortium pediatric gastro enterology fellowship at Walter Reed Army and NationalNavyMedicalCenters. According to Dr. Nylund: When pediatric pa tients are finally hospitalized they tend to be more complex and more susceptible to infections like C difficile. At the same time, the patients, especially hospitalized children, are less able to fend off the

 serious effects of these infections, making them morelikelytodie. Nylundperformedthisresearchduringhisfel lowship in pediatric gastroenterology at Cincinnati Childrens in collaboration with Drs. Anthony Goudie, Jose Garza, Gerry Fairbrother, and Mit chell Cohen. Nylund added that a strain of C diffi cile found in hospitals, known as the North Ameri canPulseFieldtype1(NAP1),maybeapartiallyto blame for the increasing trend of C difficile infec tions in children. There may also be increasing awareness among health care providers, leading to increasedtestinginsymptomaticpatients,hesaid. Basedonnationalhospitaldischargedatafrom 1997, 2000, 2003 and 2006 collected by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the research ers reviewed records representative of more than 10.5 million patients, of whom 21,274 (0.2 percent) had C difficile. They found the number of cases in creased by 15% each year from 3,565 in 1997 to 7,779in2006. Additionally,childrenwithCdifficileinfection had an increased risk of death or colectomy (sur gery to remove all of part of the colon), longer hos pitalstays,andhigherhospitalizationcharges.

 SOURCE: Clostridium difficile Infection in Hos pitalized Children in the United States. CM Ny lund, MD; A Goudie, PhD; JM Garza, MD; G Fair brother, PhD; MB Cohen, MD. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med.Published online January 3, 2011. doi:10.1001/archpediatrics.2010.282

Thehouseofdeath
Hospitalsaresupposedtobeplaceswheresick people go to get well. Instead, all too often, theyre places where sick people get worse and very sick people die in pain and despair. And, they make hundreds of millions of dollars for medical and pharmaceuticalcompanies. Of course, there are wellmeaning and caring individuals who work in hospitals, but the main purpose of most hospitals today is to be a profit center for huge health care conglomerates. Admin istrativeandmedicaldecisionsarefrequentlymade on the basis of economic advantage, with little at tention paid to the needs of patients or their fami lies. Worse yet is the fact that many hospitals, par ticularly those in rural areas, have become the re

 pository of careless or illtrained medical person nel. Death rates at some of these hospitals have been so high theyve prompted government inves tigations. Still, Americans continue to flock to hospitals in record numbers, expecting to find humane and proper health care. We should, instead, be heeding the advice of most health care advocates who warn ustostayoutofthehospitalatallcosts!

Medicalerrorshurt18%of hospitalpatients
A report published in the New England Journal ofMedicinerevealedsometroublingstatistics.Near ly one fifth (18%) of all patients were injured by medical mistakes during their stay in a hospital. Our findings validate concern raised by patient safety experts in the United States and Europe that harm resulting from medical care remains very common,researchersadmitted. In almost 3% of the cases in the study, the in jury resulted in or contributed to the death of the patient.Another3%resultedinapermanentinjury, and 8.5% were lifethreatening. Nearly 43% of the

 injuriesorharmsastheresearcherscalledthem required some intervention by doctors or nurses andresultedinanextendedstayinthehospital. To reach their conclusions, the researchers randomly selected and reviewed nearly 2,400 recordsofadultpatientsfrom10hospitalsinNorth Carolina.NorthCarolinawasselectedforthestudy because it has been noted as one of the leaders in patientsafetyreform. The report was particularly disturbing since it indicates little progress has been made since the 1999InstituteofMedicinestudyshowingthatmed icalmistakeswereresponsibleformorethan98,000 deaths and more than one million injuries each year. That report was considered a wake up call to hospitals, which were supposed to take greater steps in preventing such errors. The Institute of Medicine had set a goal of a 50% reduction during afiveyearperiod. SOURCE: Christopher P Landrigan, MD, MPH; Gareth J Parry, PhD; Catherine B Bones, MSW; Andrew D Hackbarth, MPhil; Donald A Goldmann, MD; and Paul J Sharek, MD, MPH. N EnglJMed2010;363:21242134November25,2010.

Hospitalcharges:upto $18,000perday
As though news of the rampant infections, medical mistakes, and dismal effectiveness rates werent enough to convince us to avoid hospitals, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has now reported that hospital stays can cost as much as $18,000 per day for conditions such as heartattacks. According to the analysis by the federal agen cy, the average was based on about 2 million pa tient stays for the most expensive cases such as treatmentofsepticemia,orbloodinfection,harden ing of the arteries, and heart attacks. These stays lastedanaverageof19days. Even though these most expensive cases ac count for only 5% of all hospitalizations, the other 95% didntget off cheap. Daily hospital bills for the remaining95%ofpatientstaysaveragedjustunder $7,000 and 4 days, and were most likely for child birth,pneumonia,andheartfailure. The report used data from the 2008 Nation wide Inpatient Sample, a database of hospital inpa tient stays in all shortterm, nonfederal hospitals,

 and included patients regardless of insurance type, aswellastheuninsured. SOURCE: AHRQ News and Numbers, October 13, 2010. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality,Rockville,MD.

TheotherdrugprobleminAmerica
The biggest health risk facing the average per son today isnt cancer or heart disease. Its the side effects from medication. Prescription drugs can cause more health problems and even death than all the major diseases we worry so much about. More than 90% of all office visits end with the doctorhandingthepatientatleastoneprescription, even if the visit lasted only a few minutes. Its rare for patients to be told about possible dangerous side effectsof their medication. Yet, every drug has side effects, and most have a frighteningly long list of them. If as much attention were paid to the dan gers of drugs as to their supposed benefits, we would treat them with the same concern as we do loadedguns.

Thousandsofpatientsprescribed highriskdrugs
According to research published at BMJ.com, GPs prescribed highrisk medications for thou sands of patients in Scotland who are especially vulnerable to adverse drug events (ADEs), expos ingthemtopotentialharm. A number of medications or scenarios pre viously flagged as high risk included nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs for certain patients, pre scribing a new drug to a patient on the blood thinning medication warfarin, prescribing drugs when patients have heart failure, and prescribing antipsychoticdrugsforpatientswithdementia. Prof. Bruce Guthrie from Dundee University and colleagues expanded this list, developing 15 indicators to examine how often patients suscepti ble to ADEs were prescribed highrisk, potentially harmfuldrugs. They used the indicators to review data from 315 Scottish General Practices with 1.76 million pa tients, of which 139,404 (7.9%) were identified as beingparticularlyvulnerabletoADEs.

 The results showed that 19,308 (13.9%) who were in the vulnerable group were prescribed one ormorehighriskmedications. Some prescribing will be appropriate, as pre scribers and patients balance risks and benefits when there may be no clearly correct course of action, but the study also uncovered significant variation in the prescribing practices between the GPs surgeries surveyed. Since the variation couldnt be explained by the patient case mix, the researchers say it suggests theres considerable scopetoimprovethoseprescribingpractices. Led by Prof. Guthrie, the authors pointed out how prior studies showed GP prescribing can cause considerable harm, and they highlighted that adverse drug events (ADEs) account for 6.5% of all hospital admissions, over half of which are judgedtobepreventable. Patientsmightbevulnerabletohighriskdrugs due to their age, other existing illnesses, or because of other prescription medications they may be on. The authors cautioned that GPs need to be alert to these risk factors, and be careful about the drugs theyprescribetothesepatients.

 SOURCE: High risk prescribing in primary care patients particularly vulnerable to adverse drug events: cross sectional population database analysis in Scottish general practice BMJ, June 22, 2011.

Fewerdrugprescriptionswould savelivesandmoney
Lives and money would be saved if a more cautious approach were taken by medical profes sionals who prescribe drugs, according to a study from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) CollegeofPharmacy. Thestudyappearedintheonlineeditionofthe Archives of Internal Medicine as part of the journals LessisMoreseries. According to Bruce Lambert, coauthor of the paper and UIC professor of pharmacy administra tion, several studies over the past decade have con cluded that the use of many new and frequently prescribed medications was either harmful or not beneficialtopatients. Using the prior research as a guide, 24 prin ciples were developed that can help prescribers

 avoid excessive and harmful prescribing, said Lambert, director of UICs Center for Education andResearchonTherapeutics. None of these principles are particularly nov el, nor should they be terribly controversial, he pointed out. But taken together they represent a radical shift in the way clinicians think about and prescribedrugs. The radical shift is known as conservative prescribing, and if adopted by every prescriber, couldsavemanylivesanddollars,Lambertsaid. Physicians need to move away from the mind set that leads them to heavily prescribe the latest and greatest new drugs, to fewer and more time tested is best, stated Dr. Gordon Schiff, associate professor of medicine at Harvard University, who coauthored the report. Medical and pharmacy schools should not solely teach the pharmacology of drugs, but principles that would make practi tioners better and more cautious prescribers and usersofdrugs,hesaid. TheUICCenterforEducationandResearchon Therapeuticsisoneof14suchcentersintheUnited Statestostudyhowconsumersandcliniciansmake critical treatment decisions about therapeutic

 productsandinterventions.Theprogramisfunded bytheAgencyforHealthcareResearchandQuality (AHRQ), part of the US Health and Human Servic esdepartment. Other coauthors on the study were Dr. Wil liam Galanter, associate professor of clinical medi cine; Amy Lodolce, clinical pharmacist, pharmacy practice; and Michael Koronkowski, clinical assis tantprofessor,pharmacypractice,allofUIC. SOURCE: Principles of Conservative Pre scribingbyGordonD.Schiff,MD,et.al.Archivesof InternalMedicine.PublishedonlineJune13,2011.

Nosafedrugs
Even people who realize that prescription drugs can be dangerous are often lured into think ing that overthecounter (OTC) drugs are safe. After all, would the FDA really allow dangerous or ineffective medications to be sold to the American public? They would, and they do. And they fail to regulate any but the most extreme abuses by drug companies. A Senate investigation on overthecounter drugs once concluded that the majority of these medications were completely useless, and most

 posed at least some health dangers. But it didnt change the pharmaceutical industry or even the regulations that are supposed to keep the drug companiesinline. Since neither they nor the government will do it, its left to the American people to protect them selves from unsafe medications. We need to read thefactsandchangethewaywethinkabouthealth care. Wellness wont be found in pill form on any drugstoreshelf.

Commonpainkillerslinked toirregularheartrhythm
Yet another research study has uncovered po tentially fatal side effects of commonly used pain killers. Many pills used to treat inflammation (includ ing nonselective nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs [NSAIDS] as well as new generation anti inflammatory drugs, known as selective COX2 in hibitors) were linked to an increased risk of irregu lar heart rhythm (atrial fibrillation or flutter), con cludedastudypublishedonbmj.comJuly5,2011.

 These drugs had already been linked to an in creased risk of heart attacks and strokes, but no study had examined whether they increase the risk of atrial fibrillation a condition which is asso ciated with an increased long term risk of stroke, heartfailure,anddeath. So a team of researchers, led by Professor He nrikToftSrensenatAarhusUniversityHospitalin Denmark,usedtheDanishNationalRegistryof Pa tientstoidentify32,602patientswithafirstdiagno sis of atrial fibrillation or flutter between 1999 and 2008. Each case was compared with 10 age and sex matched control patients randomly selected from theDanishpopulation. Patients were classified as current or recent NSAID users. Current users were further classified as new users (firstever prescription within 60 days ofdiagnosisdate)orlongtermusers. The researchers found that use of NSAIDs or COX2 inhibitors was associated with an increased riskofatrialfibrillationorflutter. Compared with nonusers, the association was strongestfornewusers,witharound40%increased risk for nonselective NSAIDS and around 70% in

 creasedriskforCOX2inhibitors.Thisisequivalent to approximately four extra cases of atrial fibrilla tion per year per 1,000 new users of nonselective NSAIDS and seven extra cases of atrial fibrillation per1,000newusersofCOX2inhibitors. The risk appeared highest in older people, and patientswithchronickidneydiseaseorrheumatoid arthritis were at particular risk when starting treatmentwithCOX2inhibitors. The authors concluded: Our study thus adds evidence that atrial fibrillation or flutter need to be added to the cardiovascular risks under considera tionwhenprescribingNSAIDs. This view is supported by an accompanying editorialbyProf.JerryGurwitzfromtheUniversity of Massachusetts Medical School. He believes that NSAIDS should continue to be used very cautious ly in older patients with a history of hypertension orheartfailureregardlessofwhetheranassocia tionbetweenNSAIDsandatrialfibrillationactually exists. SOURCE: Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug use and risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter: population based casecontrol study, BMJ, July 5, 2011.

Capsulesofgold
If medication was given away for free or if there were price limits on drugs the number of prescriptions written in this country would drop tremendously. But in our free market economy, pushing pills (even the legal prescription and over thecounter type) is one of the most profitable businessesaround. This has led to having dangerous and some times potentially deadly drugs marketed like breakfast cereal or athletic shoes using celebrity endorsements, glitzy television ads, coupons, spe cialpromotions,andfullpagemagazinespreads. The fact that these promotions can be mislead ing doesnt seem to deter drug company execu tives, who judge their success solely on their bot tom line without regard to the health and welfare of the people who are lured into taking their prod ucts.

USspends$233billionperyear onprescriptiondrugs
A report from the Agency for Healthcare Re search and Quality (AHRQ) shows that, in 2008, insurers and consumers spent nearly $233 billion on a wide array of prescription drugs. The number oneclassofdrugs(accountingfor$52.2billion,22% ofthetotal)wasmetabolicmedicineusedtocontrol diabetesandcholesterol. The next four biggest sellers of outpatient prescriptiondrugsin2008were: Central nervous system drugs, used to re lieve chronic pain and control epileptic seizures andParkinsonsDiseasetremors$35billion. Cardiovascular drugs, including calcium channelblockersanddiuretics$29billion. Antacids, antidiarrheals, and other medi cinesforgastrointestinalconditions$20billion. Antidepressants, antipsychotics, and other psychotherapeuticdrugs$20billion. Overall purchases of these five therapeutic classes of drugs totaled nearly $156 billion, or two thirds of the almost $233 billion that was spent on

 prescription medicines used in the outpatient treatmentofadults. Most industry experts say the prescription and spending figures have continued to climb since 2008 and will soon top $300 billion, despite over whelming evidence that diet can effectively control bothdiabetesandcholesterolinalmostallcases. A study published in the Sept. 1, 2009 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, found that 56% of patients following what has been called the Medi terranean diet (a diet high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and healthy fats, including olive oil, with an emphasis on lean protein sources such as fish, chicken and nuts) were able to control their blood sugar without medication. That same group also showed improvements in triglyceride and HDLcholesterollevels. In addition, there is significant clinical evi dencethatchiropracticcare,includingcorrectionof subluxation,canimpactneurologicfunctionand,as a result, have a beneficial effect on both blood sug ar and cholesterol levels. By educating patients about alternatives to prescription drugs, chiroprac tors can help reduce the negative effects of these conditions.

 SOURCES: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), Statistical Brief #313,Expenditures for the Top Five Classes of Outpatient Prescription Drugs, Adult ages 18 and Older, 2008, by Anita Soni,PhD,February2011. Effects of a MediterraneanStyle Diet on the Need for Antihyperglycemic Drug Therapy in Pa tients With Newly Diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes, Annual of Internal Medicine, Sept. 1, 2009, vol. 151 no.5306314.

CHAPTER4 TheFinalStep: EnergyHealing

Tothereliefofmany,amovementbeganinthe 1980s to restore the vitalistic nature to the chiro practic profession, and reinforce its identity as a drugfree wellness approach separate from the medicalsphere. Afterveeringoffintoastrictlymusculoskeletal paradigm, in keeping with the popularity of the body as machine view, chiropractors began to re discover the original writings of DD and BJ Palmer thatemphasizedvitalisticprinciplesandtheneuro logical component of subluxation. And, at least for a portion of the profession, chiropractic once more became about something far more than the moving ofspinalbonestoreducesymptoms. The vitalistic principle was enunciated in the very earliest of DD Palmers writings on the new field of chiropractic. The words Founded on Toneareinscribedontheopeningpageofhis1910

 text, Book of the Science, Art and Philosophy of Chiropractic. In that volume, DD Palmer stated: Life is the expression of tone... In that sentence is the basic principleofChiropractic.Toneisthenormaldegree of nerve tension consequently; the cause of dis ease is any variation of tone nerves too tense or tooslack. Among other writings that reinforced the neu rological basis of chiropractic was BJ Palmers 1931 essay, The Hour Has Arrived, which focused at tentiononthenerveinterferencecausedbythesub luxation, and noted that it was the chiropractors jobtoremoveinterference,notstraightenspines.BJ further stated that the misalignment is but an os seous symptom of a subluxation, and any attempt at realignment would be a treatment upon effect, andnotanadjustmentofcause. He wrote: it is generally believed that you could locate a subluxation by palpation; with an x ray; by the location of tender nerves, taut fibers, or contractured muscles. None of these can locate a subluxation. Any or all of these will locate misa lignments. The majority of Chiropractors work withtheconceptthattheyaretheallimportantfea

 ture of adjusting subluxations; that it is what they do that replaces a subluxation; and it is with this thought they proceed to push vertebra into po sitionstheythinktheyneedtobepushedinto.Ad justing in their minds means pushing bones into adjustedpositions. BJ continued: I never have such a concept. To me adjusting a vertebra is what happens when my hands leave the back; it is that reaction that occurs when innate recoils in the body of the patient, which resets the bone into normal position. My work is an enticement to get INNATE to make the adjustment. Invariably, when Innate adjusts the subluxation it stays longer and the (NCM) reading remains absent much longer and the patient gets well much quicker, and I can take more dangerous cases and get them well, where otherwise anything Ididwouldhavefailed. BJ Palmer also said; A shove and push ad justment, where we want to feel something move and hear something crack, think we know where it ought to be put, and proceed to put it there. This Chiropractorwonderswhyhiscasegetsbetter,gets worse, and might get well by accident; but leaves him up in the air as to what actually happened. He

 knows Chiropractic is right because it occasionally works. In short, it was the original premise that there is a critical difference between a subluxation that causes neural interference and a misalignment of thevertebralbones. While the terminology has been updated, such understanding meshes perfectly with the emerging fields of energy healing based on discoveries of quantum mechanics and cellular biology. The basic premise is that the body is, in essence, a complex energy field and imbalances in that field can result in illness. By rebalancing the bodys energy field healthcanberestored. Theultimateprogressioninthescience,artand philosophy of chiropractic is, in some ways, the completion of a circle in that it returns us to DD Palmersrootsasamagnetichealer. Magnetismisoneformofenergyandthework done in the late 19th and early 20th century in magnetic healing was a forerunner of todays ener gymedicine. The advantages we, as 21st century wellness providers have, are the incredible advances in science and technology that have allowed us to un

 derstand and even measure the energy inherent in thesmallestparticleofmatter.Theseadvances,par ticularly in quantum physics and cellular biology, haveprovenbeyondadoubtthatwhatchiropractic pioneers theorized was correct: the universe con sistsofenergyandintelligence. The discovery that astounded nearly everyone was that even the particles themselves at a sub atomic or quantum level are actually a manifesta tion of energy. This energy is present even in an absolutevacuum,wherenophysicalparticlesexist. Matter, when deconstructed to its absolute smallest units, is energy organized in an intelligent matter. This applies to all matter throughout the universe.Therearenotrulydistinctbitssince,on a quantum level, there is an interchange of energy within particles and even the space between par ticlesisfilledwithenergy. This was hinted at by Einstein in his famous E = mc2 equation: energy is mass vibrating at the speed of light squared. Speed up the vibration suf ficiently, and mass turns into energy (an oversim plifiedbutfundamentallyaccurateexplanation). What distinguishes various particles of matter fromeachotheristhespeedatwhichthemolecules

 vibrate. All matter vibrates to a precise frequency and scientists have even begun to assign vibration al quantum numbers to various energy levels. When particles vibrate at a very slow energy fre quency,weviewitasphysicalmatter.Particlesthat vibrate at speeds which exceed light velocity are knownassubtlematter. Recent research has extended this notion of vi brational signatures to nonphysical phenomena such as thoughts. Each thought pattern vibrates ataspecificfrequency,makingitpossibletoliteral lyreadanindividualsthoughts.Thisknowledgeis being put to work in the development of brain machine interfaces to allow disabled people to ma nipulate wheelchairs and other devices via their brainwavesalone. It has also been shown that the normal har monic resonance or vibrational frequency can be disrupted in a human being through stress, diet, trauma, subluxation, environment, and other fac tors. Although rediscovered by chiropractors and other wellness professionals in the past two dec ades, energy healing is ancient, dating back further thananytypeofallopathictreatment.

 Both eastern and western cultures have a long historyofperceivingalllivingthingswithadualis tic nature: physical and nonphysical. The latter was understood by many ancients to be a form of energy. In Chinese (especially early Daoist philos ophy), it was termed qi or chi, indicating vital force. Sanskrit labeled it prana, meaning vital life. In Hebrew, the term was ruach, or spirit, breath. Ancient Greece called it pneuma, vital spirit or creative energy. The Latin equivalent was spiritus. The glowing auras and halos found in Christian religious paintings are thought to depict thespiritsurroundingJesusandtheSaints. Throughout the ancient world, healers knew that this invisible something energy, spirit, breath, life force, etc. was an essential element of lifeandhealth. For todays wellness professions, the concept of the body as an energetic being is vitally impor tant and a critical departure from the traditional medical paradigm of the human body as a closed physicalandchemicalsystem. By focusing on an individuals energy system, wecanallowthebodytofindandmaintainitsown vibratory signature. This is the ultimate healing

 approach and has the potential to eliminate the need for almost all medical interventions. Ironical ly, the medical industry is discovering this as well, althoughittendstoputadistinctlymedicalspinon theapproach. A number of mainstream hospitals includ ing Greenwich Hospital in Connecticut (a major academic affiliate of Yale University School of Medicine and a member of the YaleNew Haven Health System) have begun using a form of ener gy therapy known as Healing Touch. Trained vo lunteers place their hands on or above the energy centers of a persons body to strengthen the bodysabilitytohealitselfbyrestoringbalanceand harmonytothebodysenergysystem. Energy healing therapy involves the channe ling of healing energy through the hands of a prac titioner into the patients body to restore normal energy balance and, therefore, health, as described bytheNationalInstitutesofHealthsNationalCen ter for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, statedtheGreenwichhospitalinapressrelease. It will be a long time before the medical indus try truly embraces this advanced approach (if it ev er does). That gives chiropractors a distinct edge

 since we have been at the forefront of the energy healingmovementfromthestart.Wepioneeredthe modern field of handson healing and have spent more than a century facilitating the flow of vital energythroughthebody. The next advance for chiropractic and other wellness approaches will be a total recognition of the human body as a network of complex energy fields interacting with the greater field of energy surroundingit.

Spiritualimplications
Despite the ridicule heaped on the early lead ers of the New Thought movement, DD Palmer neverhidthefactthathewasaspiritualseekerand openly stated he received his inspiration for chiro practic from the nonphysical realm. In fact, at the beginning,hereportedlyexploredthereligiousand spiritual ramifications of his discovery and consi dered putting chiropractic forth as a spiritual prac ticeratherthanasahealthcareregime.Thisiswhat other teachers of the time did. Religious Science (today primarily known as Centers for Spiritual Living), Unity School of Practical Christianity (now

 referred to as Unity), the Church of Divine Science, andothersallhavestronghealthapplications. Inretrospect,wecanseethattheNewThought teachings of the late 19th century were touching on concepts that would be validated later by quantum physics, and interpreting them in a way that was consistentwiththeirspiritualandreligiousbeliefs. DD Palmers references to Universal Intelli gence and Innate Energy are what we, today, call the information and energy found in the quan tum level throughout the universe. He understood that the innate energy within the human body is the same energy as within the stars in the further galaxies, what Alan T. Williams calls the funda mental, irreducible primordial energy and what others call the zero point field that sea of ener gy, which by logical deductive reasoning, had to preexistmatter. This energy, as Williams puts it exists in the absence of matter, but matter is entirely dependent upon nonmaterial primordial energy and cannot existintheabsenceofprimordialenergy. Since this energy is the ultimate source of all matter, it is also known as the creative source ener gy,orsimpletheSource.

 As noted before, all matter is made up and ex ists as part of this energy, although our unique vi brational frequency (or rate of vibration) gives us thesensoryillusionofseparateentities. Author Wayne Dyer aptly described the rela tionship between the individual and the Source us ingthemetaphoroftheocean.Ifyouwatchawave crested toward the shore, that wave is an indivi dualized entity. You can see it, photograph it, measure it, and surf on it. But the appearance of a wave as separate from the ocean is quickly dis pelled when it hits the shoreline and merges back into the ocean. It was never truly separate from the ocean, despite the evidence of our physical senses. Humans exist as a bundle of energy within the vastoceanofenergy,constantlyexchangingenergy with the Source at gross and subtle levels. While we can never be totally separated from the Source, our health and well being (on all levels, including mental, emotional and physical) depend on our at tunement to the Source and on the free flow of energybetweenthetwo. But lets not forget the other component of the equation: Intelligence or information. The way

 energy is organized and behaves, even at a sub atomic level, isnt random. As Einstein put it, God doesnt play dice with the Universe (the actual quote, in a letter to Max Born, was I, at any rate, am convinced that He does not throw dice.). All the stored wisdom of creation exists within and as partoftheSource,whichisbothSourceEnergyand UniversalIntelligence. DD Palmer emphasized this point in his 1910 book, The Chiropractors Adjuster when he stated: ... the Intelligent Energy that operates the human machine is derived from an Infinite Source, the Universal Intelligence, and is, therefore, limited only by the capacity of the brain to transform and individualizeit... Another underlying precept is that this Uni versal Intelligence is loving to put it in human terms. Thatis, to ensure the survival of all creation, its always directed toward preservation, expan sion, and growth. To put it in more spiritual terms, weliveinabeneficentUniverse. This omnipresent (everywhere present), om niscient (all knowing), omnipotent (all powerful) and beneficent (all loving) Source Energy is what humankind has always thought of and called the

 Divine, or when imbued with a more personal natureGod. Discussing it in these terms takes the entire topicoutofthestrictlyscientificrealmandintothat gray area between science and spirituality or reli gion. But when we shed the problematic terminol ogy, we see there is common ground between the two camps. In fact, science and religion both dis cussthesamething,butindifferentways. While most (mainly western) religions have traditionally seen the desire for evidence as a lack of faith and therefore required of their adherents belief without proof, science has long limited itself to the world of physical phenomena. It has re mained concerned with what can be seen and measured or at least (at both the macro and quan tum levels) theorized through deductive reasoning based on existing evidence anything beyond the physicalbeingconsideredtooairyfairyforscien tificscrutiny. Today, many scientists are acknowledging the existence of unseen energy fields and of an under lying Universal Intelligence. At the same time, deeply spiritual believers are embracing quantum theory as a way to substantiate the existence of a

 divine presence. The two camps are drawing closer and chiropractic is poised at the intersection of the two. Its impossible to ignore the spiritual implica tions of chiropractics ability to help the body re store its innate energy balance and achieve reson ancewiththesurroundingenergyfield. By embracing that remarkable ability and fully comprehending the immensity of the impact we can have, well be taking chiropractic to the next andpossiblyultimatestageofdevelopment.

CHAPTER5 TheNewChiropractic andScience

Jeff Rockwell, D.C., a 1986 graduate of Life University, and a prac ticing D.C. in California, is a longtime teacher of chiropractic philosophy and technique. He has become one of the lead ing proponents of chiro practic as a bastion of vitalism,naturalism,and holism.Heexplainsinremarkabledetailandclarity how the understanding of chiropractic as a type of energy healing is both revolutionary and a return toitsorigins. The following are selected articles by Dr. Rockwell, reprinted especially for this volume, withhispermission.

Closingthegapbetweenwhatweare andwhatwecouldbe
byDr.JeffRockwell,D.C.
Several months prior to matriculating to Life University in Marietta, Georgia (then Life College of Chiropractic) I had the privilege of spending a day alone with the late R. Buckminster Fuller. I could write a book about that day and maybe someday will, but I want to invoke his ever evolving spirit as I begin this article and share a pieceofwhatIlearnedfromhimthatday. I made the trip to Venice Beach, California to visit him at the rather ramshackle motel he was staying in, my head brimming with many ques tions. One question I asked him was what he con sidered to be our greatest challenges in the years to come. He quickly responded,There are three, as I see it: the first is disbelief in science, where we choose to ignore the scientific findings that may challenge our assumptions and turn our long cherished theories on their head. The next I refer to as escapee mysticism, where people stick their heads in the sand and refuse to see what is going

 on in the world around them. The last challenge facing us is what I refer to as radical relativism, in which the truth can be made into whatever you want it to be. I see these three challenges as being intimatelyconnected. Science is not our enemy and, in the field of chiropractic, is coaxing us to allow a new, ex panded description of the subluxation to emerge. Some choose to ignore current trends in the new sciences, like the person with his head in the sand. Others cling to what the forefathers of the profes sion said as if it was religious doctrine. And still others, in spite of the mounting evidence, revel in not moving forward, much like the old hippie dec laring that the summer of love is still going on to day. The chiropractic profession currently attracts into its various offices between 612% of the popu lation. Even if we still saw 20% of the population, however, I would not declare this a success not for a profession that has been in existence since 1895. The purpose of this article is to consider even the possibility of a more contemporary, expanded viewofthevertebralsubluxation.

 BJ Palmer, the son of the founder of chiroprac tic, said in 1909, thatChiropractors have found in every disease that is supposed to be contagious a cause that lies in the spine. There is no doubt in this authors mind that whatever the vertebral sub luxation may or not be, it can adversely affect the health of an individual by interfering with commu nication between the central nervous system and the organs, muscles, and glands of the body. There has been a good deal of research on this, much of which was done under the auspices of the late os teopathic researcher Irwin Korr, Ph.D. Much less has been done by our own profession, perhaps be cause Dr. Korr was taking a lesslinear approach to the spine, namely a functional one, while the ma jorityofchiropracticresearchhaslongfocusedona linear, Newtonian view of the spine as a stack of buildingblocksneedingtobeinperfectalignment. Itisremarkablethatin2011,theprofessionstill refers to the vertebral subluxation as abone out of place, or, worse, the silent killer. It seems we havetakenasymptom,asmuchsoasarunnynose or the flu or heart disease, and have sought to era dicateitthroughthechiropracticadjustment.

 Some more enlightened chiropractors today view the subluxation not as the cause of anything, butasamanifestationofanother,evenmorecausa tivefactor.Theapplicationofcontemporaryscience to this issue sheds new light and offers an empo weringperspectiveonchiropractictheory. Traditionally,wehaveusedthetermsubluxa tion strictly in terms of the spine and nervous sys tem. We are entering into a newer era, which if we continue to grow as we should, will someday be supplanted by yet another, even morepartially correctideaofthesubluxation. For starters, it may be worthwhile to drop the word vertebral from how we describe the clinical entitythatweaddress.Thesubluxationismoreofa nervoussystemthing,andlessofaspinalthing. Additionally, to define the subluxation in such terms limiting the scope of chiropractic to the spine and nervous system while it made sense based upon the science available at the time of the discovery and development of chiropractic, makes little sense today. I seriously doubt that Dr. DD Palmer, the founder and intender of the profes sion, would still choose to use mechanistic, reduc tionisttermstodescribehisclinicalintent.

 It is now known by everyone not living under a rock that the nervous system is not the only communication system utilized by living systems. Dr. Candace Pert has shown, for three decades now, that the nervous system is not the only com munication system in the body. She has eloquently detailed the role that the biochemical/neuropeptide system plays in functioning as a circulating com munication system outside the jurisdiction of the centralnervoussystem. Neurocardiologists have described the heart as another brain, and the good people at the Heart Math Institute in Boulder Creek, California have created many elegant ways of enhancing it and, by doingso,thewholebodymind. European researchers such as L. Stecco and R. Schleip have demonstrated how the entire connec tive tissue system functions as aconnective tissue nervous system, one which through its piezoelec tric properties helps the central nervous system to heal itself, something the CNS is too slow to do on itsown.Thelistgoeson. Wewerenevermeanttosimplyfeellumpsand bumps and misalignments. We have sufficient in formation on the bodys basic inherent rhythms

 and interconnectivity to understand, and work from the knowledge of, how the linked systems of the body act together. This would be a very differ ent use of the hands than is done in any other type ofmanual,nottomentionmedical,care. The ways in which sensory impressions come toourhandscould,ifweweresettledenoughwith inourselvesandtookthetimetodeveloptheskills, tell us what might historically have been health for thatpersonorwhatmightbecomehealthsomeday. Putting this into words is, admittedly, as diffi cult as describing exactly what we hear and feel when we listen to great music. However, as doc tors, if we can sense what a state of health would actually physically feel like in a particular patient, we could work with that individual without inter feringintheirongoingprocessofhealth. We need to work not only with the relation ship between structure and function, body and mind, and parts to whole, but individual to envi ronment,personaltotranspersonal.Ourgoalmight be I hesitate to say should be to carefully, yet effectively, encourage the body, via its own phys ics, into a remembrance and reinvention of its health. How and where to adjust will be dictated

 by the bodys own purposeful direction and ex pressionofitsinherentdesign. This mayseem like rather nebulous speech but I dont think it to be any less practical and specific than beloved terms such asmental force andin nate intelligence. Speaking of which, embryolo gistsinGermanyhave,sincethe1940s,beenableto detect a rhythm that pulsates through the embryo and fetus and can even be taught to be perceived in anadult every 100seconds, a pulse which they believetobeamanifestationofwhatwewouldcall innateintelligence. Through clinical experience, I have noted reli ably positive changes, some of which have seemed miraculous, when I allow that rhythm within my self to synchronize with that of the patients. Even if, as doctors, we simply learn how to sit each morning consciously engaging or perceiving this rhythm, we would go a long way toward being able to find the health both within ourselves and the patients we seek to serve. To not do so, in light of what has long been known by those outside of our profession, is, in my opinion, chiropractic mal practice.

 If you went to chiropractic college in the last decade you receive an education that hopefully was much richer than you might have received in the 1930s. Depending on the school you went to, you might have been able to use a little, or even a lot, more chiropractic training, but the scientific in formation available to us now assuming it is be ing presented in chiropractic colleges is breath taking. There are many areas within the new sciences that serve to deepen their understanding of the on going, evolving chiropractic principle. One such area is the field of embryology. I have long felt that the best textbook on innate intelligence is an em bryology text. Embryology particularly the branch of it referred to as biodynamic is the science of a process; it details the universal guide linesofthephysicalhistoryofahumanbeing.Ifwe understand how the body develops, we can get a better picture of its history and how its inherent planforhealthisdealingwithit.Wecanconscious ly work along with the vast memory of a very pro found process that takes a long time to etch itself intothehumanform.

 Lets say, for example, you have a valuable machine and it breaks. The parts are all there, but the problem seems to be with some essential inte ractions.Youdontknowwhichonestorepair.You can bring in a repair service to make adjustments, zap it with chemicals, or replace some parts. Or you can call on an engineer who knows the design. The way the machine was materially created offers insightintohowitmightberetunedfortheexpres sionofgreaterhealth. The engineer is not just the chiropractor. The engineer is the patient. The chiropractor exists to heighten, with receptive attention and informed action, the health universally inherent in the pa tients design. The result isnt just an increase of health, but also an increase in awareness and other psychosocialqualities. At the foundation of the philosophy of chiro practic, of course, are the major premise and the Triune of life. The major premise states:Universal intelligence is in all matter and continually gives to it all its properties and actions. This is a beautiful statement and one which can be consciously per ceived. It is also not singular to chiropractic. DD Palmer studied the metaphysics of his day both

 with and apart from Dr. A. T. Still, the founder of osteopathy. For decades, chiropractors have been reluctant to admit the connection between the two men, especially reluctant to acknowledge that Pal mer was a student of Stills at the Kirkland College of Osteopathy. To do so does not diminish chiro practic one iota. Instead, it reconnects us with a very important piece of our history, our lineage, even. It helps us to recognize that just as the body is a living system of interacting relationships, so is chiropractic. I,forone,valuethesometimesovertlyspiritual quality of DDs writings and feel that we have im poverished ourselves as a profession by hiding from them. I draw great inspiration daily from his saying that The purpose of chiropractic is to reu nite God the spiritual with man the physical. In vestigating the new field of neurophysiology and integrating the best it has to offer with the best that bothofthePalmershadtosayonthesubjectofspi ritualityandhealthwouldonlyempowerthedirec tionourprofessionmovesin. So, how many research articles do you read daily? The day I met Buckminster Fuller he asked me how many books I read in a year. He was not

 pleased with my answer, replying,If you told me that you slept more than two hours a day and read less than one book a day I would fire you from the universe forever. Hopefully he was using some hyperbole here. I like my sleep and I do not read a book every day, but I dig into the scientific litera ture daily and feel that it greatly enriches both my clinical practice and my understanding of my pro fession. Theres no need to fear the scientific litera ture it will not bite you and if it does it will not killyou. We have a responsibility to allow our profes sion,asalivingsystem,tobewhatitwantstobe,to be alive and evolving. We also, concurrently, have theresponsibilitytobe bothpractitionersandscho lars. Could you explain, for example: the principle of tensegrity andhow itrelates to chiropractic care; the work of Dr. Bruce Lipton and the nuances of themental subluxation; Dr. Candace Perts work on the neurochemistry of emotion; the cellular me chanics of touch and its relation to the reflexive ef fectsofpreparingtogiveandgivinganadjustment; the relation of autonomic balance to both sympto matic and nonsymptomatic subluxations; how the patients body instinctively moves towards correc

 tion, normal function and pain relief, and how not to interfere with that; what neural tension feels like and how, both in the central and peripheral nerv ous systems tissues, it poses an impediment to oneshealth;biofeedback,EMDR,andPTSDresolu tion and the role it can play in your practice; the Eat Well, Move Well, Think Well model of Dr. James Chestnut; the Brain Reward Cascade System and Brain Reward Deficiency Syndrome; even the rudiments of Dr. Ted Carricks Functional Neurol ogy;and,especially,somaticreeducation? A note on the latter: if innate intelligence is real, and science knows that it is, do you really think it is so insubstantial or weak that it always requires an outside party to remove interference to it? In my opinion, adjusting a patient without so matically reeducating them is simply manipulating them. Interestingly, the nonmedical disciplines shown to be most helpful with Parkinsons, MS, and Alzheimers have been Somatic: Feldenkrais andAlexanderTechniquetobespecific. I hope you scored well regarding the above questions. If so, congratulations! If not, you have a lotofrewardingworktolookforwardto.

 For too long, we have hung our hat, so to speak, on a particular version of vitalism, namely, that if we remove interference to the central nerv oussystemthroughavertebraladjustmentthevital force that we callinnate intelligence could be res tored to normal expression and function. In other words,ifwetookourfootoffthehose,innatecould flow again. In the process, though, we left out the principles of naturalism and holism. Big mistake. Severalofmybestprofessorsinchiropracticcollege true leading lights in our profession refused to change their health habits, eating whatever they wantedto,smokinganddrinking,butalwaysfaith fully getting their weekly adjustment. And they either dropped dead or died a slow, painful death intheirmid50s. How has your study of and practice of chiro practic changed you? For me, chiropractic has re quiredmetokeepgrowing.Ithasalsorequired me to live my life in a congruent manner. One cannot practice at their best if their entire life is not con gruent. There are a lot of things in life one can do wellenoughbyjustgoingthroughthemotions,but chiropracticisnotoneofthem.

 Can we are we willing to allow our beliefs to be stretched to new, more expansive horizons? Are we willing to practice in congruence with the new sciences, to transcend and include the Green Books, to serve as adults, and not children or ado lescents, of the chiropractic profession? Are we willing to allow chiropractic to be what it is a magnificent,dynamic,livingsystem?

Thelifethatawaitsus
byJeffRockwell,DC
Maybethepatronsaintofchiropracticshould be Curious George. Ive always been curious about how things work, including and especially chiro practic. As a child my parents sometimes admo nished me for this trait. My mother would say, Curiositykilledthecat.IguessIwassupposedto file that valuable information along with other lines of wisdom such as money doesnt grow on trees. It wasnt until years later, when I was living in the South, that someone told me the rest of the old clich:Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction broughtitback.

 In recent years, we saw the explosive success of the bookand filmThe Secret. For many ofus it wasespeciallygratifyingasitfeaturedaprominent chiropractor. Many peoples lives were, and con tinue to be, impacted in a positive way by such books and movies. But often the results dont last long. Theres a piece missing that shortcircuits the process unless its incorporated into the changing of ones mind. I believe that missing piece is chiro practiccare. Most of us were raised in families, churches, and other social communities where we were taughtwhatandevenhowtothink.Ratherthan exposing us to their values, people imposed them on us. No ones to blame here. This is how things are done in a subluxated world. In the first seven years of life, were all like Little Buddhas, effor tlessly slipping into altered states, seeingenergy, talkingwithimaginaryfriends,andsoakingup our worldandsensoryexperienceslikethirstysponges. But not every belief we were exposed to was healthyforournervoussystems. Some experts in child development consider the typical indoctrination process to be a form of child abuse, a violation of the human spirit. Dr.

 Andrew Newburg, at the University of Pennsylva nia, has conducted studies showing that dogmatic, separatistthinking,especiallywhenaccentuatedby anger,damagesthebrain.Ifthisisntaformofsub luxationIdontknowwhatis. As we move further into the 21st century, were recognizing that subluxation isnt a spinal phenomenon, but a neurological one. This really shouldnt be news to anyone, as vitalistic chiro practors have always been attempting to engage the nervous system to facilitate the expression of healthintheirpatients. Manyofthebeliefsstirringupthemosttrouble intheworldtodaydatebacktotheIronAge.While some claim believing never hurt anyone, we see many beliefs played out that are not the least bit benign. And as we find ourselves in increasingly sophisticated technological territory, there are po tentially grave consequences to holding onto anti quatedbeliefs. Consider, for example, that without the aid of todays technology, humans killed more than 160 millionotherhumansinwarfarebasedonreligious andnationalisticideologies.In2011,therearemore than 20 religious conflicts going on, according to

 Amnesty International. The destruction that used to require armies of thousands can now be created byasinglebelieverwithasuitcasebomb. In chiropractic, we speak about changing the worldone spine at a time. Advocates of The Law of Attraction may talk about changing the world one thought at a time. Theres truth in both posi tions, and we can leverage those truths for greater gain if we exercise our curiosity regarding this thingcalledthesubluxation. Subluxation is a disease. That wasnt a typo. I didnt mean to say subluxation is disease. You read it right the first time. Subluxation is a disease of perception, in which outdated beliefs become and remain somatized as part of our neurology andrealityifleftchiropracticallyunchallenged. Dr. Bruce Lipton has demonstrated that when we repeat the same beliefs over and over, we be come a closed system functioning on autopilot. Hes noted that taking a living system as divinely profound as the human organism, and rendering it into a sophisticated sort of automaton, causes the brain to actually shrink in size and atrophy. The hindbrain,withitspropensityforreactiveemotions and dualistic perception of the world, enlarges,

 while the prefrontal cortex, with its capacity for compassionate thinking and unitive awareness, shrinksinsize. I recall a time, back inthe 1980s, when someof ourkinder detractorssaidthingslike,Chiropractic may help those with back pain, or Chiropractic adjustments may, at least, help people to become moreflexible.Ifindthelatterstatementintriguing, if not a little patronizing. To me, one of the healthiest and most loving things we could do for ourselves is to consistently court flexibility of body through chiropractic care, and flexibility of con sciousnessaswell. Functional MRI studies are now revealing that strong, inflexible beliefs, especially negative ones, do not make neurological sense to the brain. In response, it builds up tension in its emotional cen ters which most definitely include the spinal cord and cause the production of nociceptive irritants, painproducing chemicals, and keep a person in a sustained fight or flight neurological state. These neurological and chemical changes create nerve tissue atrophy further down the central nervous systemchain.

 We may read one selfhelp book after another, listen to one positive thinking guru after another, and we change for a few days, a few weeks, even a few months. This doesnt make for longterm hap piness, but can even become dangerous as evi dencedbythestatisticsmentionedearlier. When asked what makes people think what they believe is true, many respond that they just feel it. Of course they do. The beliefs have become embedded into the emotional neurological centers whichwenowknowincludestheentireposterior portion of the spinal cord causing adverse nerv ous system changes and increasing the likelihood that theyll continue beating up on anyone who doesnt agree with them, regardless of whether or not their beliefs are true. This includes beating up onourselves,aswefightwiththevoicesandcondi tioning of our early past, information thats be come, to the extent were subluxated, cemented in place. Weve all seen this in our patients, and if were honest, in ourselves. Were fighting a losing battle because, in a very real sense, were fighting rather than flowing with our lives. A flexible neu rology and a flexible consciousness, along with a

 flexible spine, allow us to flow with the ever changingmysterythatlifeis. Thatallsoundssweetandpoetic,butwhatdoI really mean? Most of us are familiar with the neu robiologist Candace Pert, PhD. The author ofMo lecules of Emotion. She nearly won the Nobel Prize in medicine in the early 1970s for her work in identifying the chemical cause of the runners high endorphins. Her later work demonstrated that these type of chemicals, called neuropeptides, were not only produced by the brain but in other parts of the body. It was these chemicals that she namedmoleculesofemotion. Suppose you were to win the lottery tonight. Great thought, right? If that were to happen, a group of chemicals would be produced that would enable you to experience the elation worthy of a personwhodjustwonalargesumofmoney.If,on theotherhand,youfellmadlyinlovewiththeman or woman of your dreams, your body would pro duce a different array of chemical molecules and you would experience some version of the intox icating, melting feeling we associate with romance. If, instead, you had a religious conversion expe

 rience you might experience divine ecstasy, if the rightchemicalsgottriggered. Some people have resistance to thinking of love, joy, or ecstasy as chemistry. Obviously, theyre more than mere chemical phenomena. They, you might say, transcend and include chemi stry. But, weve all struggled at some point, trying tochangeahabit.Perhapsitwasattemptingtostop smoking or drinking coffee. Maybe it was trying to eliminate procrastination or improve selfesteem. Probably it was difficult, our own personal version of insanity doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result. So, whats the deal? The molecules of emotion are like chemical keys that need to find the right shapedlocks in order to produce a specific feeling. These locks are called receptor sites and, according to Dr. Pert, the keys or emotional molecules, must locate, as they circulate through the body, receptor sites on cells that are structurally suited to receive them. If the receptor site has had its shape altered, through mechanical or emotional stress for example, the molecules cant bind with them. You can win the lottery, fall in love, and find God all on the same

 day, and what should be a profound experience will be minimized by the inability of these neuro peptides to find ahome. How often have we seen patients come into our offices whose ceiling of happiness orceiling of health and wellness is so lowthatitssad. Pert writes: Memories and beliefs are stored not only in the brain, but in the psychosomatic network extending into the body, particularly in the ubiquitous receptors between nerves and bun dles of cell bodies called ganglia, which are distri buted not just in and near the spinal cord, but all the way out along nerve pathways to internal or gansandtheverysurfaceofourskin. An element I think we are skipping in our discussion of practical applications for mindbody health is bodywork: the touch therapies of chiro practic and other modalities that include the body as a means of healing the mind and emotions. It is true that we do store some memory in the brain, but by far, the deeper, older messages are stored in the body and must be accessed through the body. Your body is your subconscious mind, and you cannothealitbytalkalone!

 At a research conference, I once heard Dr. Pert say,How we experience our world is in large part governed by the structure and function of our spine. Remember those receptor sites? The region of the body that has the largest population of them is the posterior portion of the spinal cord, specifi cally the dorsal horn. Dr. Pert feels that this is the anatomical location of the subconscious mind and refers to it as an extension of the brains limbic sys tem. In fact, the emotional brain is not confined to the brain, but extends down the spine and is knowntodayasthemesolimbicsystem. Subluxation alters the function of the spine. Dysfunction of the spine causes ischemia or lack of blood flow to the associated spinal cord and spinal nerve root tissues, inhibiting their physiology. This includes, very specifically, the receptor sites we are talking about. Subluxation alters their physiology in an adverse manner, making it difficult, at best, forhighqualitymoleculesofemotiontobindthere, thus limiting ones experience, embodiment, and expression of health, happiness, and wholeness. This distorts our emotional experience of ourselves and of our world, making it, by necessity, a more stressful one. Molehills become mountains. We

 shiftourphysiologyfromsafetyandtrusttodefen siveness and divisiveness, misperceiving signs of threat where there are none. Thats why, to me, subluxationrepresentsadiseaseofperception. Pert continues: The body becomes the battle field for the wargames of the mind. All the unre solved thoughts and emotions, the negativity we hold onto, shows up in the body and makes us sick. Joseph Campbell once said,We must be will ing to get into the life we have planned, so as to havethelifethatisawaitingus.Theoldskinhasto be shed before the new one is to come. This is what happens every day in the greatest of chiro practicofficeshopefullyyours.Growthandtrans formation requires a sacrifice, a shedding of old skin. Practice members commit to chiropractic as part of their lifestyle. They dive further into the life theyve planned. We adjust their nervous systems and allow their bodies to work together as a dy namic whole. And our practice members meet perhapsforthefirsttimethelifethatawaitsthem. Chiropractic is a holistic science. Today we know that the three classically separated areas of neuroscience, endocrinology, and immunology,

 with their various organs the brain; the glands; and the spleen, bone marrow, and lymph nodes are actually joined to each other in a multidirec tional network of communication, linked by infor mation carriers known as neuropeptides. What weve been talking about throughout this article is information.Idliketospeculatethatmentalforce is the flow of information as it moves among the cells, organs, and systems of the body. The health and integrity of our core, the central nervous sys tem, permits this holistic informationnetwork to flourish.Wecanthensee,rightinfrontofoureyes, that there truly is an intelligence running things, what we as chiropractors are privileged to inti matelyknowasinnateintelligence. Instrumentation One of the major hurdles that had to be over come by chiropractic (and any other wellness field influencing the bodys neurologic and energy fields) was the lack of instrumentation capable of detecting and measuring those fields. Although some sophistical devices are capable of detecting electromagnetic energy in the minute quantities generated by the human body, quantifying subtle

 energy has been more difficult, particularly in chi ropracticfieldoffices. Instead of measuring the energy emanations themselves, we normally rely on measuring the clinical outcomes of chiropractic interventions. Us ing standard outcome measurement protocols such asHealthRelatedQualityofLife(HRQOL)studies, it is possible to quantify the impact of chiropractic adjustmentsonthebodysneurologicalsystems. This has already, in fact, been done frequently although primarily within the medical paradigm of disease treatment. Influencing the energy fields through interventions such as chiropractic, qigong, acupuncture and acupressure, magnetic and light therapy, and healing touch have been shown to have measurable impact on a number of specific health conditions, as well as general healthrelated qualityoflife. HRQOLasmeasurementofwellness The move toward measuring overall wellness and quality of life, as opposed to simply diagnos ing diseases, is a fundamental shift in the health care culture and one that is essential to the under

 standing of chiropractic as a means of energy heal ing. On April 7, 1948, the World Health Organiza tionestablisheditsdefinitionofhealthas:...astate of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing andnotmerelytheabsenceofdiseaseorinfirmity. The definition, which was considered radical in its time because it took a more holistic view of theterm,isstillinusetoday. A more recent and expanded definition, from the Quality of Life Research Unit at the University of Toronto states that quality of life encompasses the goodness and meaning in life, as well as peoples happiness and wellbeing. From our pers pective, the ultimate goal of quality of life study and its subsequent applications is to enable people tolivequalityliveslivesthatarebothmeaningful andenjoyed. In its groundbreaking report, Measuring Healthy Days, the US Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted that, despite the WHO definition health in the U.S. has traditionally been meas ured narrowly and in the negative. What is meas ured is ill health in its severe manifestations, those

 which are verifiable through physical examination and other objective procedures or tests Such tra ditional measures of morbidity and mortality pro vide information about the lowest levels of health, but they reveal little about other important aspects of an individuals or a communitys level of health. Thats why, in recent years, health and well ness professionals have sought new ways to get a more complete measurement of an individuals to talstateofwellbeing,orqualityoflife. The multidimensional SelfReported Quality ofLifesurvey(suchasthatprovidedbyIntegrative Outcome Measurements) is based in part on two independentsurveys: 1) the SF36 Health Survey, a standard quality of life test developed by the RAND Corporation andextensivelyadministeredandvalidated.Useof the SF36 in scientific and medical research has been documented in nearly 4,000 publications, and it has been used to measure healthrelated quality oflifeforsamplesofthegeneralpopulationaswell as groups with specific conditions, ranging from asthmatospinalcordinjury;and

 2)theSelfReportedQualityofLife(SRQOL),a survey developed for use in specific healthy popu lations. The SRQOL contains 41 questions covering physical, mental/emotional, stress evaluation and life enjoyment domains of health. This instrument has been validated and applied to several other populationsundergoingwellnessinterventions. The National Center for Chronic Disease Pre vention and Health Promotion HealthRelated Quality of Life noted that: Physicians have often used healthrelated quality of life (HRQOL) to measure the effects of chronic illness in their pa tientstobetterunderstandhowanillnessinterferes with a persons daytoday life. Similarly, public health professionals use healthrelated quality of life to measure the effects of numerous disorders, short and longterm disabilities, and diseases in different populations. Tracking healthrelated qual ity of life in different populations can identify sub groups with poor physical or mental health and can help guide policies or interventions to improve theirhealth. Likethefounderanddeveloperofchiropractic, todays chiropractors do not look only at the spine or limit their expertise to moving bones to reduce

 misalignments of vertebra. Instead, they see the human body as a fully integrated energy field that can be affected by structural adjustments. In short, weve come full circle and gathered important in formationandunderstandingsalongtheway.

 LearnmoreaboutDr.Rondbergandhisworkat anyofthefollowingwebsites: TheChiropracticJournal IntegrativeOutcomeMeasurements TheWorldChiropracticAlliance WCAHealthNewsUpdate