Can Chiropractic Make You Taller?

While chiropractic care has been gaining prominence in the past few years, there’s a lot that people are yet to know about it. Many misconceptions and mysteries surround chiropractic care. Most people don’t think of contacting a chiropractor until they need some injuries fixed or realign spines. But very few are aware that there’s a lot more to chiropractic care than widely believed.

It’s well established by now that chiropractic care can be invaluable in alleviating pain, reducing stress and decreasing inflammation. But there are some hidden benefits of the care that evade attention. Can chiropractic care make you taller?

Indeed! You can notice a change in your height after a few sessions with your chiropractor. No. We don’t mean to imply that chiropractors can actually make you a few inches taller. The secret lies in the spinal adjustment and posture changes that occur with chiropractic care.

So how does this work? Why do you feel taller and lighter after chiropractic care? And how does your spine determine your height? Let’s find out!

The Secret Of Growing Taller With Chiropractic Care

You must have often been told by your elders to stop slouching. Why is that? Because the slouching makes you appear shorter, and this is what chiropractors work on. There’s a reason that you feel a few inches taller right from your first session. There’s no magic in this. It’s actually quite straightforward.

Chiropractors work to correct your postural issues. It is these postural aberrations that lead to a person stooping or appearing shorter if not treated on time. Hence, chiropractic adjustments correct the root of the problem, thereby making you feel taller.

People often ask others if they appear shorter. And there is a reason for that. A lot of them believe that their height shrinks with age. Yes! It is true to a certain extent. After all, degeneration indeed occurs in the spine with age. As you age, the intervertebral discs of your spine thin and wear out. These discs function as shock absorbers, contributing significantly to your height. With the process of degeneration, thinning of the discs commences, resulting in shrinking the spinal space. As a result, you feel shorter.

But shrinking isn’t always associated with old age. And it is not always the spinal discs at fault. Your height and stature are significantly influenced by your posture. Of course, postural changes don’t happen overnight. They have a gradual onset. Indeed, it might be several years before you even realize there’s a problem. Due to such postural issues, misalignment develops not only in the spine but also in the connective joints, hips, muscles and even spinal ligaments. Subsequently, they are shortened and compressed. Yes! So much can go wrong only because of the way you carry yourself.

All this leads to a visible decrease in height. After all, all the structures that enable you to stand straight and make you tall are pulled down. Your natural posture becomes stooped and uneven, leaving you with a slouched appearance.

Confused? Here’s a simpler way to understand this. Imagine yourself holding a string straight and taught. And then apply some slack to it. When you do so, a curve appears. Although the size of the string remains the same, the straight one seems longer while the one with a curve looks shorter. The same happens with your spine.

A well-aligned spine is supported by muscles and ligaments, which keep it straight, making it appear longer. Due to poor posture or misalignment, the spine is compressed by the muscle, resulting in curves, making you look shorter.

Of course, the length of your spine remains the same. Hence, when the chiropractor adjusts your postural issues and corrects the misalignment, you feel an improvement in your height.

How Do Chiropractic Adjustments Work?

Typically, chiropractic adjustments are performed on the neck, back, hips and joints. However, if need be, they can be done in any of the bones and joints of the body. During this adjustment, the chiropractor applies a short lever thrust to a vertebra where the subluxation is most prominent. The subluxation is an indication that the bone has been displaced, and the spine is misaligned at this position.

The purpose of the chiropractic adjustment is simple. The subluxation has to be minimized and corrected so that your body and spine are wholly aligned. After the adjustment, all the bones get back to their position, resulting in the lengthening of soft tissues, including muscles, ligaments and tendons. As the muscles are stretched, the pressure on the spinal nerves is alleviated as well. Hence, you get rid of frequent backaches while simultaneously having an improved range of motion. And of course, your posture is improved too.

Why Is It Vital To Correct Poor Posture?

Yes, poor posture affects your height. But is that all? No! You compromise your health and overall wellbeing by failing to correct your postural problems.

How? A proper posture ensures that stress is distributed evenly through the ligaments, muscle and spine. As a result, there’s a decreased risk of wear and tear on any particular vertebra or joint. But if you have a poor posture, the ligaments and muscles are pulled down. They are strained and excessive pressure is exerted on them as they struggle to support the misaligned spine. This can give rise to many problems and compromise your health severely. Some of the issues you can encounter due to poor posture include

• Frequent shoulder pain and backache
• Tension headache
• Worsening of stress and depression
• Digestive problems

Time To Take Action

Let’s make one thing clear. Correcting posture requires time and dedication. Yes, you can feel a difference after a couple of sessions, but the change wouldn’t be permanent if you don’t give it time. It took years for the posture to be affected. You can’t expect everything to get back to its original form after merely a few sessions. And it gets even more challenging if you have a sedentary office environment.

You need to find yourself a trusted chiropractor and be willing to put in the time for a series of chiropractic adjustments. Only then can your subluxations be reduced. Chiropractic care also includes massage and physical therapy that lengthen the ligaments and muscles that have been compressed. Additionally, the tense muscles can be relaxed via soothing treatments like hot laser therapy. All this leads to the expansion of spinal discs and vertebra back to their natural height.

It is this expansion that gives you the feeling of additional height due to chiropractic care. Indeed, the chiropractor won’t make you taller magically. He will merely straighten out and stretch your spine, thereby increasing your appearance a few more inches.

So if you feel your height has shrunk over time or that your posture needs improvement, chiropractic care can make a world of difference.

Conclusion

Chiropractic care influences your whole body wellness. It isn’t merely a means to combat injuries or alleviate pain. There are a lot more benefits that can come your way if you find yourself a trusted and licensed chiropractor. And feeling taller is just one of them. So don’t worry if your postural issues have been giving you a tough time. This is nothing that a few sessions with a chiropractor wouldn’t be able to fix.