How Chiropractic Care Can Improve Breathing
Sometimes, people may be suffering from various types of breathing problems, and they may seek advice from different doctors. Oftentimes, it may never cross their minds to consult with a chiropractor, as many people have a very limited understanding of what chiropractors are capable of treating. For example, someone may call a chiropractor for a backache, but not a headache, simply because they might not be aware that a chiropractor is capable of treating both. Chiropractic care has an extremely wide variety of health benefits, and one of those benefits includes the ability to positively improve breathing. So, if you are wondering how chiropractic care can improve breathing, then RxWellness Tysons can help you better understand.
What could be affecting your Breathing
Seeking help from a chiropractor may not be the first thing that comes to mind when dealing with difficulty breathing, but the effect of an adjustment can be life-changing. If you are currently dealing with any of the following conditions, then consider working with a qualified chiropractic professional:
- Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
- Allergies
- Asthma
- bronchitis
Conditions like the ones listed above are categorized by decreased airflow, and the inability of the lungs to be able to take in enough oxygen. Working with a chiropractor and receiving regular chest adjustment may be able to improve your chest expansion and flexibility over time, this will allow the lungs more room to expand and take in more oxygen.
Sometimes, however, the problem may not be the lung’s inability to fully expand, but the inability of them to sufficiently receive the message to take in more air. In such cases, patients may have difficulty breathing freely as a result of subluxations in the spine compressing the nerves that regulate the lungs. In this case, if the brain is sending signals to the lungs to increase its oxygen intake, but the nerves that regulate the lungs are compressed by subluxations, then the lungs will never receive the message. If the lungs never received the message, then they will never increase their air intake, and the quality of your breathing will remain strained. Working with a chiropractor to correct subluxations will aim to correct this problem.
What are subluxations?
Subluxations are misalignments in the spine that interfere with the function of the nerves around them. Depending on where the subluxation is, it can affect different parts of the body. They can affect the neck, back, or head, and result in chronic back and neck pain, or tension headaches. They can also cause numbness, burning, tingling, or pain in the affected area.
Ways to improve Breathing at Home
If you are looking for ways to improve the quality of your breathing, then the best thing you can do is book a consultation with a qualified chiropractor at RxWellness Tysons, and get a full consultation and treatment. However, if you are looking for ways to improve breathing quality at home, then you can try some of the techniques below:
- Diaphragmatic Breathing
- People tend to rely on the chest, ribs, upper back, neck, and shoulders to facilitate breathing, as opposed to the diaphragm.
- The diaphragm is the primary muscle that makes breathing more efficient.
- It’s important to strengthen the diaphragm and practice inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth to improve the efficiency of bringing oxygen into the lungs.
- Rib Stretch
- Stand with your hands over your hips, take a deep breath, hold in for a few seconds, and then exhale.
- This helps increase the flexibility of the ribs, and over time they can allow the lungs more room to expand.
- Pursed-Lip Breathing
- This is when you take twice as long to exhale as it took for you to inhale.
- This is helpful because inflamed airways may prevent air from circulating through the lungs, which results in stale air being trapped in the lungs for too long. This prevents fresh air from entering.
- The longer exhales are designed to give stale air more time to leave the lungs.
- Increasing your activity level
- Be more active and strengthen the muscles involved in breathing
- Participate in biking, swimming, running, or any activity that engages your lungs
Chiropractic Treatments for Improving Breathing
One of the most effective treatments a chiropractor might recommend for trouble breathing is a chiropractic adjustment. The adjustments would aim to target and align the specific problem that is affecting your breathing, regardless of if that problem is the result of the ribs constricting the lungs or a subluxation affecting the nerves. At RxWellness Tysons, we will help you improve the quality of your breathing by first doing a full examination and then recommending specific treatments to help improve your breathing quality.
Contact Us
Just remember, the purpose of chiropractic care is to keep the body functioning at its optimal levels, where it can complete its daily processes without interference or difficulty. Whether that means preventing the rib cage from constricting the lungs or inhibiting subluxations from compressing nerves, chiropractic care aims to align the body so it can function with ease. Hopefully, this has given you some insight on the benefits of working with a qualified chiropractic professional, and the positive impact it can have on the quality of your breathing. If you have any questions or would like to book a consultation, give us a call at 571-348-1540 or book an appointment online.