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Dear Singapore Women’s Weekly, please fact check your chiropractic expert

chiropractor singapore
With such low quality content being published, it’s no wonder head and body pain cost us $8.4 billion each year.

An entire article featuring a single Singapore chiropractor without any references to support his claim. Unfortunately, this is the quality of writing we are getting today.

No wonder pain sufferers are having a hard time getting better.

What are the benefits of ergonomic?

low back pain recommendation, ergonomics in the workplace
Best treatment for back pain? Exercise and education. Worst? Ergonomic interventions perhaps?

The first thing the featured chiropractor talked about was ergonomics. I don’t know how many times we have shared this but there is evidence to support that workplace ergonomic doesn’t work!

According to The Lancet low back pain series, it is ineffective. This is the world’s most authoritative medical journal telling you there is NO benefit.

Do I need chiropractic adjustments?

jesse cai, chiropractic adjustment
Back in the day when I was still dishing out spinal adjustments to please my clients. It was a real crowd pleaser. Now I stick to what works. Yes, exercise works. It’s a bit of a bummer cos it takes hard work from you. However, deep down inside you, you already know it is what it will take for you to get real results.

The whole article is pretty much about why you need chiropractic adjustments. I have written extensively about why it is a inferior pain solution, and I have even written a second article on why useless treatments can sometimes seem to work.

In my well-cited opinion, you do not need spinal adjustments.

Uncorrected birth trauma leads to pressure on the spine or neck which will impact spinal growth and development. This ignorance will lead the newborn away from optimal health resulting in health issues.

It offends me a lot when chiropractors peddle their opinion as professional advice without citing a damn piece of research. It offends me more when it is advice that is both self-serving AND potentially detrimental.

Honestly, why is Women’s Weekly publishing such fear-mongering horseshit. The entire idea that spinal manipulation can improve effects of birth trauma has never been demonstrated by research.

To downright call such parents ignorant, is in my opinion, pretty hypocritical. Especially since there is absolutely no credible research to back your claim!

“In God we trust, all others must bring data.”

Light fingertip pressure is not going to correct spinal misalignments

Any decent chiropractic school would teach their students anatomy and physiology. As part of my training at least, we are taught that spines of newborns are not fully ossified at birth (i.e., more cartilage than bone).

Cartilage is often described as a flexible connective tissue. A fingertip pressure on any cartilage is not going to move anything anywhere!

baby seat
If our spine can be easily corrected by nudging them around, why don’t gymnast end up shattered in a pile of their own bones by the end of their routine? Yes, you can make your joints gap when you crack your knuckles. That doesn’t mean you are actually shifting them into any special alignment.

Logically speaking, if a fingertip pressure is enough to move spinal segments into place, then shouldn’t your baby deform from spending time in a newborn seat?

I am pretty sure 3.2kg of body weight acting on the spine is a lot more than your so-called fingertip pressure.

Is body posture really important?

neck pain infographic
Such graphics are compelling at getting you to believe that bad posture is bad for you. However, do you know the numbers in this infographic is based off an engineering simulation software for buildings? Last I check, we are not a blob of steel and concrete.

If you are telling me that sitting in a “better” posture is relieves some of your neck pain, I do believe you. That doesn’t mean that “bad” posture is harmful for you.

Again, no research has supported this. I’ve written a long article about how body posture is really a social aesthetic construct.

There was a recent paper that suggested posture was associated with neck pain. However, the studies they drew the conclusions from where terrible in methodology!

square one active recovery, pain solutionI do agree that changing your posture can temporarily relieve your discomfort. This no different to how adjusting our sitting position during long haul flights do help us feel more comfortable. This, however, doesn’t mean that we cannot support “bad” posture.

Just because you can’t run 10km today doesn’t mean running 10km is bad for you. It also doesn’t mean that your body cannot support running 10km.

Your body is innately robust and resilient. Trust me.

Stop letting chiropractors fear monger you into believing their rubbish.

80 year old man with sciatica
You can be in your 80s, fit, and recovered from sciatica. All of this without requiring any adjustments!

Putting a halt in chiropractic adjustments will lead to a build-up of stress on the spine and nervous system.

Look, chiropractic was founded in 1895. The first modern human (H. sapiens) walked the earth 300,000 years ago.

We survived for hundreds of thousands of years without chiropractic adjustments just fine.

Chiropractic care utilisation is comparatively low all around the world. In spite of this, life expectancy and healthspan is still increasing.

Recent research have also clearly indicated that spinal manipulation are no better than sham treatment. Beyond the theatrics and perceived shiokness, it has zilch effect on you!

No, just don’t let chiropractors fear monger you into buying chiropractic packages. Even if he is the CEO of the biggest chiropractic chain in Singapore.

Save yourself the money. You’d probably be just fine halting chiropractic treatments.

WANT TO GET STARTED IMMEDIATELY?

Frustrated by the lack of results-driven and ethical chiropractic clinics in Singapore, Chiropractor Jesse Cai found Square One Active Recovery to deliver meaningful and sustainable pain solutions.

Our goal? To make our own services redundant to you.

*We do not offer temporary pain relief such as chiropractic adjustments, dry needling, or any form of soft tissue therapy.