During my time in chiropractic college, I witnessed some interesting events regarding research.
Sometimes, research goes the way you planned, and other times…not so much.
This is the purpose of research, to find out what works and what doesn’t. This is typically referred to as ‘evidence based research.’
During one research project in particular, there were 4 groups of people with osteoporosis (weak and brittle bones). The first group received a well known medication to help harden bones, known as a bisphosphonate. The second group received a chiropractic adjustment. The third group received a chiropractic adjustment and juiced leafy greens once per day. The fourth group received no treatment whatsoever.
Involved in this process were chiropractors and a medical doctor (in Georgia, where I went to school, there are no prescriptive rights for chiropractors, thankfully, so an M.D. was a necessity).
When the results came back from the DEXA scans (a scan to determine bone density) the medical doctor quit and refused to be a part of the study.
This is the equivalency of a kid losing in a game of backyard football, throwing a temper tantrum, then saying, “This is my ball. I’m leaving and taking it with me so you can’t play anymore!”
The group receiving chiropractic adjustments alone outperformed the medicine. The group receiving chiropractic adjustments and juicing grew more quality bone in 1 month than the medicine could provide in 4 years. The group that did nothing was only marginally worse off than the one receiving the medication.
Ouch!
To my knowledge, this study was never published, and likely never will be. When one of the main players decides the results only serve to undermine their career, it’s an easy decision to not bite the hand that feeds you and walk away (with or without their binky). Anyhow, that is all water under the bridge.
If you’re osteoporotic or osteopenic here is a brief list of items to incorporate (or remove) into your daily diets that will help build the proper bone density so that you can enjoy an active lifestyle well beyond your retirement.
Spend a little extra time and money investing in your health! In the long run, it is still much cheaper than the bills you’ll wrack up from a broken hip.
In Health,
Dr. Andrew R. Burns
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