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Terry A. Rondberg, D.C.
the evolution of
CHIROPRACTIC
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Terry A. Rondberg, D.C.
2683 Via
de
la
Valle
Suite G 629
Del Mar, CA 92014
Copyright © 2011 by Terry A. Rondberg
All rights reserved. No part of this book or site may be repro‐
duced
or
redistributed
in
any
form
or
by
any
electronic
or
mechanical means, including information storage and retriev‐
al systems, without permission in writing from Terry A. Rond‐
berg, D.C., except by a reviewer who may quote brief passag‐
es in a review.
The author of this book does not dispense medical advice or
suggest the use of any technique as a form of treatment for
physical, emotional,
or
medical
problems
without
the
advice
of a qualified wellness professional, either directly or indirect‐
ly. In the event you use any of the information in this book,
the author and the publisher assume no responsibility for
your actions. The author and publisher are in no way liable
for any misuse of the material.
First edition
2011
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
ISBN‐10: 0615561330
ISBN‐13: 978‐0‐615‐56133‐2
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About the
author
Few wellness practi‐
tioners and authors
have had as profound
an impact on the chiro‐
practic
profession
as
Terry A. Rondberg, D.C.
During his 30+ years
working in and for the
chiropractic community,
he’s been called every‐
thing from the “modern
day BJ Palmer” to “the
most dangerous man in
chiropractic.”
,
e
ee, non‐invasive, and vitalistic wellness discipline.
Respected by supporters and feared by opponents
his life has been dedicated to safeguarding every
person’s right
to
choose
non
‐medical
wellness
ap
‐
proaches for their health care. Through a commu‐
nication network that has reached to all corners of
the world, he has communicated, with passion, th
fundamental precepts of chiropractic as a drug‐
fr
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Dr. Rondberg
has
written
and
fought
against
those
critics who’ve attempted either to categorize chi‐
ropractic as a therapy for back pain or to eliminate
it altogether as a separate and distinct profession.
He’s seen chiropractic evolve from an energy bas
system focused on improving total neurological
function to
a medicalized
subset
of
physical
thera
‐
py – and back again to its roots as an art, science,
and philosophy of “being” that transcends the lim‐
its of traditional ideas of disease care. More than a
passive spectator, he’s been a driving force for th
return of chiropractic to those roots, and is now
leading the
way
to
even
greater
expansion
of
the
profession by positioning it as the key element in a
wellness paradigm that embraces physical, mental,
emotio
ed
e
nal, environmental, and even spiritual well‐
eing.
n as well
s his innovative business procedures.
b
After his
graduation
from
Logan
College
of
Chiro
‐practic, Dr. Rondberg built successful private prac‐
tices in St. Louis and Phoenix. He was noted for his
emphasis on public and patient educatio
a
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In 1986, Dr. Rondberg began publishing what has
become one
of
the
leading
monthly
chiropractic
newspapers – The Chiropractic Journal – with a
worldwide readership of more than 70,000. In an‐
nouncing its launch, he stated: “The Journal was
born out of a belief that members of the chiroprac‐
tic profession need, want and deserve a reliable,
credible source
of
news
and
information
relating
to
our profession. We want a newspaper that will re‐
spect our intelligence by bringing us the facts relat‐
ing to important events going on in the associa‐
tions, courts, legislative halls, colleges and other
places where our future and the future of our pro‐
fession is
being
determined.”
He went on to say: “Chiropractic is a wonderful
profession practiced by many fine men and wom‐
en. We hope to bring an abundance of good news
of its accomplishments — and those of individual
doctors. We
trust
in
universal
principles.
We
be
‐lieve the members of this profession, of whatever
school of thought, possess much wisdom, honesty
and dedication, but do not have a corner on those
or other virtues.”
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Today, The Chiropractic Journal remains the prima‐
ry source
of
information
on
affirmative
activities
within the profession, including global humanita‐
rian efforts, individual achievements, and positive
media coverage.
Dr. Rondberg also founded and published the Jour ‐
nal of
Vertebral
Subluxation
Research
(now
the
Journal of Subluxation Research), a peer‐reviewed
scientific journal publishing original research on the
impact of subluxation on human neurologic func‐
tion.
In 1989,
Dr.
Rondberg
established
the
World
Chi
‐
ropractic Alliance as an international professional
organization, creating a global network of contacts
and resources. Using highly refined motivational
methods, a thorough knowledge of electronic
communication, and exceptional organizational
talents, he
guided
the
group
from
its
earliest
stages
through its present status as a major association
recognized as an NGO (Non‐Governmental Organi‐
zation) with the Public Information Office of the
United Nations, with members on five continents.
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During the course of his career, at critical junctures
Dr. Rondberg
has
been
intensely
involved
in
the
political process on both the state and national le‐
vels. Through his work in Washington, D.C., he
formed productive relationships with numerous
Senators, Representatives, and other government
officials, as well as top lobbyists. Demonstrating a
keen understanding
of
the
political
process,
he
was
instrumental in the passage of a major piece of leg‐
islation that was signed by President George W.
Bush in 2001, as well as several other bills and gov‐
ernment actions. He also served on the Depart‐
ment of Defense Chiropractic Advisory Committee
to help
establish
the
protocol
for
making
chiroprac
‐
tic services available to active duty military person‐
nel.
Over the past decade, Dr. Rondberg has written
and published three highly acclaimed books that
have sold
more
than
half
a million
copies
through
‐out the world, generating widespread publicity
along with a reliable source of revenue. A sought‐
after speaker at chiropractic events, he also au‐
thors several blogs and websites, taking full advan‐
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tage of electronic media to communicate his mes‐
sage to
the
profession
and
the
public.
Dr. Rondberg’s latest efforts have been directed to
providing several vital tools for wellness practition‐
ers and their clients and patients, including Integra‐
tive Outcome Measurements, a scientific health‐
related quality
of
life
(HRQOL)
assessment
tool,
which provides a subjective evaluation of various
components of wellness.
In this volume, Dr. Rondberg reviews the evolution
of chiropractic from his unique perspective as a
chiropractic leader,
supporter,
and
practitioner
and
explains the stages of its growth. Additionally, he
considers its ultimate destiny as a true vitalistic ap‐
proach to well‐being that can help all people lead
healthier, happier, and longer lives.
Other books
by
Terry
A.
Rondberg,
D.C.
¾ Chiropractic First ¾ Under the Influence of Modern Medicine ¾ Chiropractic: Compassion and Expectation ¾ The Philosophy of Chiropractic (Green booklets) ¾ Chiropractic Malpractice Prevention Program (co‐
authored with Timothy Feuling)
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CHAPTER 1
–
The Beginnings
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 industry’s iron
grip on health care.
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,” he wrote.
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Never restricted by known physical sciences,
Palmer established as the basis of his entire concept
the existence of a Universal Intelligence that mani‐
fests itself in living beings as “Innate Intelligence.”
He further proposed that health is the expres‐
sion of this Innate Intelligence through Innate Mat‐
ter, via Innate Energy.
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
way of influencing those subtle energy fields.
Palmer’s 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 –
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the founder and developer of chiropractic – were
intelligent, far‐sighted, dedicated and determined
individuals. The profession, and the entire world,
owes them a great debt of gratitude.
They weren’t, however, infallible, which
doesn’t make them any less great. It simply means
we need to view them in the context of their times
to truly understand their concepts and goals.
The same is true of so many other great indi‐
viduals in history. George Washington and Thomas
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‐
tudes have changed radically.
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 didn’t chisel them
in stone.
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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 open‐minded teacher, who encouraged his
students to use their own reasoning power to arrive
at solutions to problems.
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
of physics, biology, chemistry, and medicine.
Yet, he never forgot the main principles passed
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,
it’s important to maintain our strong admiration
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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
achievements they made.
It’s 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
through matter via energy.
Thanks to advances in quantum physics, an
abiding respect for the Palmers is NOT incompat‐
ible with a strong scientific grounding. As this book
will explore, their original views on chiropractic
meshes perfectly with today’s awareness of bio‐
energy fields, cellular biology, and body‐mind
connection.
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CHAPTER 2
–
Historical Foundations
Throughout their lives and careers, DD and BJ
Palmer refined their ideas about the process of chi‐
ropractic, subluxations,
nerve
interference,
and
other aspects of the profession. They tried, adapted,
and discarded new technologies. Yet, the basic chi‐
ropractic foundation never changed.
The major underlying precepts were (and re‐
main):
⇒ There
exists
a Universal
Intelligence,
which
brings organization to all matter and main‐
tains its existence;
⇒ All living things have inborn, or “Innate” Intelligence which adapts universal forces
and matter for use in the body;
⇒ Every
living
thing
has
ALL
the
Innate
Intel‐
ligence it requires to maintain its life and
optimal health;
⇒ Health is the expression of the Innate Intelli‐
gence through Innate Matter, via Innate
Energy;
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⇒ When there’s interference with the trans‐
mission of Innate Energy, the result is a de‐
crease in the expression of Innate Intel‐
ligence, which chiropractors call dis‐ease
(not to be confused with disease!).
A review of these basic precepts is always
helpful.
Universal Intelligence
Our existence isn’t mere “luck” as nothing in
the natural order of the universe is random.
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,
thus maintaining it in existence.
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
birdʹs wing is perfectly designed for flight, right
down to the tiniest pinfeather? Is it just accidental
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that a plantʹs 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. It’s unlikely
anyone has ever reported seeing such a plant.
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 bird’s wings? The
roots and leaves of a plant?
Intelligence is clearly behind the natural ʺwon‐
dersʺ that surround us, just as architectural won‐
ders owe their existence to human intelligence. Ob‐
viously, human intelligence isn’t responsible for the
complex order of the universe – it hasnʹt yet begun
to understand even a tiny part of it! It had to be
something much greater. That ʺsomethingʺ is what we call Universal Intelligence. While we aren’t sure
what it is, where it came from, what its intent is –
or even if there is an intent involved – we do know
that it must exist, or nothing else would.
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Is this Universal Intelligence God? No one
knows. There’s no way to ʺproveʺ the existence of
God, or describe Godʹs characteristics. Nor is there
a way to prove the existence of Universal Intelli‐
gence, or describe its characteristics. How, then can
anyone say whether they mean the same thing?
Some people believe God is the source of that
Universal Intelligence. Others can accept the con‐
cept of a Universal Intelligence without believing in
a God. Either way, through observation and deduc‐
tive reasoning we know that such an intelligence
has to exist in order to prevent all matter from
passing into chaos.
During the Age of Technology such notions
were often criticized as being ʺunscientific.ʺ What
critics really meant was that the premise couldnʹt
be proved, and wasnʹt arrived at through inductive
reasoning. Of course, neither was the idea ʺAll men
are created equal,ʺ or that there were vacuum
cleaners called black holes (a theory, by the way, also scoffed at when first announced). Yet, the first
axiom doesnʹt require proof, and the second was
valid even before proof was found. And so it is
with the premise of Universal Intelligence. It, too, is
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a ʺtruthʺ so basic that it transcends science and can
be arrived at only through deductive logic.
Today, a broader view is being accepted as
science expands in the areas of ʺnew physicsʺ 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 that ʺscienceʺ
is only now ʺdiscoveringʺ that idea. After all, the
entire profession is built around that profound yet
simple truth. Doctors of chiropractic understand
there’s 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, including the human body.
That conclusion leads directly to another of the
principal premises of chiropractic philosophy: A
living thing has an inborn intelligence within its body, called Innate Intelligence.
No word in chiropractic philosophy is as filled
with meaning as the word Innate , for it refers to the
sole element that sets living beings apart from non‐
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living things, and is the reason that chiropractic
exists.
Innate Intelligence “Innate Intelligence” is in every living thing
guiding it on the path to health.
In discussing
Innate
Intelligence,
it’s
necessary
to clarify the concept of intelligence. It’s important
to understand we’re not talking about education or
the ability to learn things. Human beings can at‐
tend school and learn computer programming, or
ʺpick upʺ several foreign languages when they tra‐
vel. But
this
isn’t
what’s
meant
when
we
say
intel
‐
ligence.
The intelligence weʹre talking about is the
ʺknowledgeʺ 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
it’ll
have
positioned
its
leaves
to
face the light. Turn the plant around and in another
day or so, it again will have turned its leaves to re‐
ceive the light it needs to maintain its normal func‐
tions.
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The plant doesnʹt use logic to figure out that it
needs light, or decide to turn its leaves around to
face the window. It isn’t self‐aware, and while it
doesnʹt ʺthink,ʺ 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‐
nate Intelligence.
But what is this intelligence? Where does it
come from? How does it work? Nobody has defin‐
itive answers to these questions. Living things
aren’t chance collections of molecules and atoms.
They’re all organized into functioning entities that
adapt to their environment. Therefore, we accept as
a basic principle that there’s an order to the body, which we’ve chosen to call Innate Intelligence. Like
Universal Intelligence, we don’t have the ability to
understand exactly what this intelligence is or how
it works. We only know it exists.
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It’s 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
one has to teach an infant these things.
Yet, Innate Intelligence can only guide the
child’s internal functioning. It can’t 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 canʹt, for
instance, walk over to the refrigerator and get a
snack if sheʹs hungry. That action will take training
and education rather than inborn (Innate) intelli‐
gence.
It’s remarkable that every living thing pos‐
sesses 100% of the Innate Intelligence it needs.
Youʹll never see a plant that ʺknowsʺ its roots need
to grow into the soil, but doesnʹt also ʺknowʺ 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%
of its Innate Intelligence?
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By its very definition, Innate Intelligence is al‐
ways normal, and its function is always normal.
This means our bodies ʺknowʺ exactly what they
need and how to adapt to the environment in order
to function best.
If our physical and emotional health relied ex‐
clusively on our Innate Intelligence, we’d all be
ʺperfectlyʺ 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 canʹt
apply force to his hammer, or without the proper
tools it’s unlikely the table he’s working on will
come out very well.
Your Innate Intelligence runs your body ex‐
pertly, unless it’s hampered by the lack of force
(Innate Energy) or proper tools (Innate Matter).
Without these, the result will be a less‐than‐normal‐
functioning.
Since Innate Intelligence has the ʺexpertiseʺ to
properly maintain the human organism, chiro‐practors donʹt address that area. Neither do they
concentrate upon the “tools” – the body and inter‐
nal organs. Instead, they’re concerned with the In‐
nate Energy (or force) providing the link between
the Innate Intelligence and Innate Matter.
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Universal Forces
...
Innate
Energy
Tame a lightning bolt and you have the Innate
Force in the human brain.
The universe is filled with natural forms of
energy. In fact, astronomers say the universe was
created by a burst of energy, which pre‐dated all
matter. The ̋big bangʺ 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
through the sky, solar radiation heats our earth.
For the most part, these environmental forces
co‐exist
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‐
ing fires.
Such destruction
can
seem
meaningless,
so
we
often talk about ʺMother Nature going crazy.ʺ But
scientists and environmentalists now acknowledge
that the devastation has its purpose in the natural
scheme of things.
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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 ʺdestructionʺ of a
fire provides the new generation of trees the light
and compost it will need if the forest is to survive.
When that same forest is ʺmanagedʺ 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.
There’s a purpose to the fires, and to the hurricanes
and floods.
There’s an order to their appearance, and an
intelligence in their functioning. The Universal In‐
telligence ʺknowsʺ 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. We build wind‐powered generators, hydroe‐
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lectric plants, irrigation canals, dams, and solar
heating panels to harness these energy sources.
Weʹve even learned to adapt for our purposes the
electricity showcased in a lightning bolt.
Living things are like microcosms of the un‐
iverse. Weʹve seen how they’re each endowed with
a portion of the Universal Intelligence, called the
Innate Intelligence. They also possess the ʺspecia‐
lizedʺ version of Universal Forces, which chiroprac‐
tors call Innate Energy. Our Innate Intelligence
takes the Universal Force of electricity and adapts it
for constructive use, just as our educated minds
have adapted natural forces.
It’s 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 haven’t yet identified, but electricity is the one we’ve proven to exist.
Because Innate Energy is being adapted in the
body by the Innate Intelligence, it can never be de‐
structive as can ʺwildʺ Universal Forces. And, since
Innate Energy is created and directed by the Innate
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Intelligence, 100% of what’s needed by each partic‐
ular living thing is available. The energy is required
to impel the cells to function according to the wish‐
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 energy’s applied. Only
then do changes occur in the matter to cause mo‐
tion and function.
It’s the same process in the body. The Innate
Intelligence can’t 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
to live.
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 the ʺTriune of Life,ʺ 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
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more scientific terms to it, such as neurological
functioning or bioelectrical current, and the field of
energy “medicine” is growing in acceptance even
among the most empirical scientific researchers.
The importance of the neurological component
of the subluxation, and of chiropractic, can’t be un‐
derestimated. Time and again, DD and BJ Palmer
spoke of this concept and it was an absolutely es‐
sential factor.
“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
the glory of the air.”
The Triune The Triune of Life = Innate Intelligence + In‐
nate Energy + Innate Matter.
According to the precepts of chiropractic phi‐
losophy, every living thing has 100% of the Innate
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Intelligence it needs AND 100% of the Innate Force
it needs. It also has a given physical form, to make
up the third element of the Triune.
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. We’ve
already seen that this is always true of the first two
elements. Nevertheless, the structure of our ʺmat‐
terʺ – our physical bodies – is sometimes less than
100%. There may be flaws in them or their ability
(temporary or permanent) to allow expression of
the intelligence.
That means that ʺperfect healthʺ 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 who’ve undergone amputation of an
arm can’t re‐grow the limb, even when there’s
100% intelligence and 100% energy. There are limi‐
tations inherent in the human body that can’t be
transcended by Innate Intelligence.
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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
transmission of the energy.
To see what kind of interference a body may
be experiencing, we need to understand how the
Innate Intelligence directs the body parts through
Innate Energy.
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
body’s needs. Those impulses are propelled along a
complex system of nerves connecting the brain to
the organs, tissues, glands, and cells of the body.
Think of the nerve system as a thick rope,
made of numerous individual strands bundled to‐
gether. When this nerve ʺropeʺ exits the brain, it
travels down the spine, protected by a flexible bony
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‐
nects with its designated target.
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Occasionally, the vertebrae become subluxated
(out of their proper alignment), and close off part of
the opening. This can ʺimpingeʺ 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
flows through the hose, but not at full strength.
When there are subluxations, they interfere
with the 100% expression of intelligence through
100% energy and the body is said to be in ʺdis‐
ease.ʺ This shouldn’t be confused with the term dis‐
ease , which refers to specific conditions medical
doctors name, diagnose, and treat.
The chiropractic term dis‐ease refers to a situa‐
tion where there’s less than 100% expression of In‐
nate Intelligence. Since everyone’s body is different
and every bodily change can have many different
ramifications, chiropractors don’t 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 bodyʹs ability to reach
100% expression of its Innate Intelligence. It does
this by finding and removing any subluxations that
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might interfere with the flow of Innate Energy.
Once that flow is restored, the body will resume its
natural striving for optimum health.
The working of the Triune of Life – Innate In‐
telligence, Innate Energy, and Innate Matter – is the
supreme accomplishment of Universal Intelligence.
It would be ignorant as well as arrogant to think its
design could be improved upon.
Chiropractors donʹt attempt such a task. In‐
stead, they focus their efforts on permitting that
design to function as it was meant to – without in‐
terference.
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CHAPTER 3
–
Medicalizing Chiropractic Although many of the first students to receive
training in chiropractic were medical doctors, the
concept of
a drug
‐free,
non
‐invasive
way
to
allow
the body to heal itself didn’t appeal to the medical
establishment. It wasn’t 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
swift and
aggressive.
Chiropractors
were
thrown
in
jail, denounced as “quacks,” and threatened with
bodily harm as well as professional censure.
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, without interference by subluxation. They
continued to emphasize the impact of adjustments
on neurological function.
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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
quasi‐medical terminology in order to gain at least
some acceptance by allopathic medicine.
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”
of vertebrae to relieve musculoskeletal conditions. At first, this move appeared to reduce the
pressure put on chiropractic by the medical profes‐
sion. But, as chiropractic grew in popularity, the
resistance was renewed.
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Until 1983, the American Medical Association
(AMA) had labeled chiropractic ʺan unscientific
cultʺ 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 anti‐chiropractic actions were primarily
based on economic factors. The AMA was afraid of
the loss of income caused by millions of people mi‐
grating from medical to chiropractic care.
In 1987, a federal judge ruled against the AMA,
finding it and several other aligned organizations
guilty of an unlawful conspiracy in restraint of
trade ʺto contain and eliminate the chiropractic pro‐
fession.ʺ In her ruling, she noted that the ʺAMA
had entered into a long history of illegal behavior.ʺ
While the AMA was no longer permitted to
openly forbid members to work with chiropractors, the ruling failed to stop the organization from en‐
gaging in more subtle forms of anti‐chiropractic
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
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designated as a possible alternative, under medical
supervision, for the treatment of low back pain in
adults.
Medical alternatives 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
government complicity
with
drug
manufacturers.
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 so‐called 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
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made it into the news during the post‐Wilk 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
as health care moved into the 21st century. The following sections provide a glimpse of
the risks inherent in medical treatment, as docu‐
mented by scientific research papers or reported by
the press.
Plight of the elderly 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
most vulnerable segments of the U.S. population.
For one thing, misdiagnosis is an ever‐present
reality, especially where the expectation exists that
a particular condition “comes with the territory” of
being old.
Despite
better
knowledge
today
about
the aging process, stereotypes remain – even if sub‐
consciously – affecting the way materia medica ap‐
proaches seniors’ mental and physical health
needs.
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Then, there are those countless numbers of el‐
derly Americans taking multiple drugs at the same
time (it’s been estimated as many as 15 different
prescriptions – and frequently many more). Yet, as
incredible as it may seem, their doctors often aren’t
even aware of the potentially dangerous effects of
drug combining. And, as will be shown, it’s unrea‐
listic to expect that pharmacies will catch the omis‐
sions and mistakes doctors make.
Additionally, there are the not‐infrequent inci‐
dents of the elderly being administered inappro‐
priate medications.
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
a diet and exercise program proven to reduce prob‐
lems associated with arthritis, for example, doesn’t
generate income.
Ultimately, the sole way the profit‐directed
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
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that would be likely to make them truly (and safe‐
ly) healthy.
Half of all Alzheimer’s
patients don’t really have the disease
New research shows that Alzheimer’s disease
and other
dementia
‐type
illnesses
are
often
mis
‐
diagnosed in the elderly, leading to incorrect
treatment and medications.
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 Neurology’s
63rd Annual
Meeting
in
Honolulu.
“Diagnosing specific dementias in people who
are very old is complex, but with the large increase
in dementia cases expected within the next 10 years
in the United States, it will be increasingly impor‐
tant to correctly recognize, diagnose, prevent and
treat age
‐related
cognitive
decline,”
said
study
au
‐
thor Lon White, M.D., M.P.H., with the Kuakini
Medical System in Honolulu.
For the study, researchers autopsied the brains
of 426 Japanese‐American men who were residents
of Hawaii, and who died at an average age of 87
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years. Of those, 211 had been diagnosed with a
dementia when they were alive, most commonly
attributed to Alzheimer’s disease.
The study found that about half of those diag‐
nosed with Alzheimer’s disease did not have suffi‐
cient numbers of the brain lesions characterizing
that condition to support the diagnosis.
Most of those in whom the diagnosis of Alz‐
heimer’s 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‐
mer’s, based on the misdiagnosis.
Misdiagnoses increased with older age. They
also reflected non‐specific 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 Alzheimer’s
disease and other principal dementing disease
processes in the elderly,” said Dr. White.
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SOURCE: American Academy of Neurology,
press release, Feb. 23, 2011.
Pharmacy computers don’t catch
dangerous drug interactions
As of 2009, a total of 3.9 BILLION prescriptions
for more
than
24,000
different
drugs
were
dis
‐
pensed. The average number of retail prescriptions
per person in the US was 12.6.
Given these numbers, it’s 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.
It’s
esti
‐
mated that at least 20‐25% 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
caused by
prescription
“medicines.”
To “solve” this problem, sophisticated com‐
puter programs called clinical decision support sys‐
tem software were developed to alert pharmacists
to potential problems with drug interactions. How‐
ever, a study conducted at the University Of Ari‐
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zona College Of Pharmacy found that only 28% of
pharmaciesʹ clinical decision support software sys‐
tems correctly identified potentially dangerous
drug‐drug interactions.
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
drug‐drug interactions. Of the 64 pharmacies, just
18 correctly identified all of the eligible drug‐drug
interactions and non‐interactions.
ʺThese findings suggest that we have a funda‐
mental problem with the way interactions are eva‐
luated by drug knowledge databases,ʺ said Daniel
Malone, Ph.D., UA professor of pharmacy and lead
investigator on the study. ʺThe 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
harm from dangerous combinations can be reduced
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when patients create and maintain a medication
list.ʺ
A better approach would be to seek drug‐free
care or, at least, reduce the number of prescription
and over‐the‐counter medications.
SOURCE: Journal of American Medical Informat‐
ics, 2011;18:32‐37 doi:10.1136/jamia.2010.007609
Study: Millions of elderly
given wrong drugs
A study published in 2010 revealed that 17% of
all elderly patients are given ʺpotentially inappro‐
priate medications
(PIMs).
ʺThe
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‐
gency department (ED) between 2000 and 2006.
ʺApproximately 19.5 million patients…of eligi‐
ble ED
visits
were
associated
with
one
or
more
PIMs,ʺ researchers noted in their report.
ʺThere are certain medications that probably
are not good to give to older adults because the po‐
tential benefits are outweighed by potential prob‐
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lems,ʺ 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.
Ketorolac is a non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drug
(NSAID) used as an analgesic, fever reducer, and
anti‐inflammatory.
Similar findings had been published more than
15 years ago in a July 1994 Journal of the American
Medical Association report, revealing nearly 25% of
all elderly patients received wrong drugs.
Among its findings:
** 1.8 million seniors were given prescriptions
for dipyridamole, a blood thinner that, the re‐
searchers said, is useless for all except people with
artificial heart valves.
** More than 1.3 million older Americans were
prescribed propoxyphene, an addictive narcotic no better than aspirin in relieving pain.
** More than 1.2 million were put on the drug
diazepam or chlordiazepoxide, long‐acting seda‐
tives and sleeping pills that can make patients
groggy, dizzy, and prone to falls.
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ʺStandard published sources support the view
that the 20 drugs in our primary analysis should
virtually never be prescribed for the elderly,ʺ re‐
searchers stated at the time.
SOURCE: Academic Emergency Medicine
journal (2010; 17:231).
The ‘miracle’ of antibiotics 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.
But even a “miracle” can be abused.
Medical doctors began prescribing the drugs
after nearly every office visit – even for conditions
that couldn’t
be
helped
at
all
by
antibiotics.
They
pumped the drug into our systems and now, dec‐
ades later, we’re paying the price with antibiotic‐
resistant super‐ bacteria and impaired natural anti‐
body functions. Tragically, despite repeated warn‐
ings from the World Health Organization and more
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progressive health care experts, M.D.s still rely
heavily on the drugs.
Antibiotics can destroy ‘good’
bacteria for years
A research article published Nov. 3, 2010 in the
journal Microbiology
came
to
the
startling
conclu
‐
sion that even a short course of antibiotics can leave
normal gut bacteria harboring antibiotic resistance
genes for up to two years after treatment.
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
the composition of microbial populations and allow
micro‐organisms that are naturally resistant to the
antibiotic to flourish. This reduces the ability of the
body to react to the pathogenic entities, potentially
leading to
other
illnesses.
The impact of antibiotics on the normal gut flo‐
ra had previously been thought to be short‐term,
with any disturbances being restored several weeks
after treatment. However, the review of the long‐
term impacts of antibiotic therapy reveals this isn’t
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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
life‐threatening, explained Dr. Cecilia Jernberg, of
the Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Con‐
trol, who conducted the review. “The long‐term
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 antibiotic‐resistant bac‐
teria.”
The review highlights the necessity of using
antibiotics prudently. “Antibiotic resistance is not a
new problem and there is a growing battle with
multi‐drug 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 long‐term impacts of antibiotics is of
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great importance to allow rational antibiotic ad‐
ministration guidelines to be put in place,” she
said.
SOURCE: Microbiology 156 (2010), 3216‐3223;
DOI 10.1099.
Antibiotic use increases when
insurance pays
for
it
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 donʹt seem to be listening, howev‐
er.
As soon as Medicare Part D drug coverage was
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‐
ternal Medicine , researchers noted that antibiotic use
appears to
have
increased
among
older
people
since the coverage was added, with the largest in‐
creases occurring for broad‐spectrum, newer, and
more expensive drugs.
ʺOveruse of antibiotics is a common and im‐
portant problem, potentially leading to unneces‐
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sary spending for prescription drugs, increased
risks of adverse effects with no associated benefit
and the development of antimicrobial resistance,ʺ
the authors noted in the article. ʺMultiple programs
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
tract infections and other conditions, there may still
be substantial room for additional reductions.ʺ
Several studies have shown that as medication
costs increase, patients are less likely to fill pre‐
scriptions or take drugs prescribed for their chronic
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 out‐of‐pocket spending between
13% and 23%.
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
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without caps through their employer throughout
the four‐year study.
In Jan. 2006, the three groups with no or li‐
mited coverage enrolled in Medicare Part D, which
greatly decreased the out‐of‐pocket costs for anti‐
biotics. ʺWe found that the use of antibiotics in‐
creased in response to reductions in out‐of‐pocket
price after Part D implementation,ʺ 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
drug coverage were more likely to fill prescriptions
for broad‐spectrum antibiotics after enrolling in
Part D.
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
among those who previously lacked drug coverage.
ʺGiven the high mortality associated with commu‐
nity‐acquired pneumonia among the elderly, the
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finding that changes in drug coverage improve the
likelihood of treatment is encouraging,ʺ the authors
commented.
ʺHowever, we also found increases in antibiot‐
ic use for other acute respiratory tract infections
(sinusitis, pharyngitis, bronchitis and non‐specific
upper respiratory tract infection) for which antibio‐
tics are generally not indicated,ʺ the authors con‐
clude. ʺOur study suggests that reimbursement
may play a role in addressing the substantial role of
inappropriate antibiotic prescribing and use.ʺ
SOURCE: ʺAmbulatory Antibiotic Use and
Prescription Drug Coverage in Older Adults,ʺ Arch
Intern Med. 2010;170[15]:1308‐1314.
For the sake of the children Next to the elderly, children are in the greatest
danger from the medical mindset so prevalent in
this country.
We
all
want
what’s
best
for
our
kids,
and we’ve been brainwashed to believe that this
means pumping drugs into them from the moment
they’re 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
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they refused to allow their children to be subjected
to the risks of vaccines, medications, and other in‐
vasive medical procedures.
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,
medical science believes it can improve on the orig‐
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
chemicals in its system.
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 hasn’t
helped at all, yet parents are reluctant to reject it for
a better way and the medical and drug industries
continue to hide the truth from them.
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While the key phrase of the medical doctor’s
Hippocratic Oath is “Do No Harm,” it’s obvious
that the overuse and abuse of prescription drugs
continues despite the harm it does to our nation’s
children. Then, the pharmaceutical industry relen‐
tlessly pumps out drugs marketed directly at child‐
ren, often using marketing techniques that exploit a
parent’s sense of guilt or helplessness.
There’s no question this must stop before we
further impair the present and future health of an
entire generation.
Yet, it seems unlikely the change will come
from the medical community, and it definitely
won’t be championed by the drug makers. That
means parents must learn to “just say no” to unne‐
cessary over‐the‐counter and prescription drugs. If
they aren’t 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
than sacrifice profit.
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70,000 kids hospitalized
for accidental drug ‘poisoning’
A study by the Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) found
that two‐thirds (68.9%) of the 100,340 emergency
department (ED) visits made in 2008 for accidental
ingestion of drugs were made by children five years of age or younger.
Two‐fifths (42.3%) of the visits involved two‐
year olds, and almost one third (29.5%) involved
one‐year‐old patients. The report showed that
males accounted for slightly more than half (55.7%)
of the ED visits for accidental drug ingestion
among children five or under.
The survey also indicated the incidents in‐
cluded drugs that act on the central nervous system
(CNS) (40.8%), with the two main CNS drugs being
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, followed by respiratory system drugs (10.3%).
ʺPoisoning is one of the most common child‐
hood injuries. Most of the time it happens right at
home,ʺ said SAMHSA Administrator Pamela S.
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Hyde, J.D. ʺLocking up drugs and properly dispos‐
ing leftover or expired drugs can save lives. 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.ʺ
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
following the visit (85.3%). Yet, about 1 in 10 (8.7%)
were admitted for inpatient care and 5% were
transferred to other health care facilities.
The study was developed as part of SAMH‐
SA’s strategic initiative on data, outcomes, and
quality – an effort to inform policy makers and ser‐vice providers on the nature and scope of beha‐
vioral health issues.
SOURCE: Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration, Office of Applied Studies.
(September 14, 2010). The DAWN Report: “Emer‐
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gency Department Visits Involving Accidental In‐
gestion of Drugs by Children Aged 5 or Younger.”
Rockville, MD.
Hospitalized children increasingly
dying from infections – Antibiotic
overuse
may
be
major
factor
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) and Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center.
The findings appeared in the Archives of Pediatrics &
Adolescent Medicine.
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
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deaths and severity in adults have been increas‐
ing,” the authors wrote.
Some children appeared more likely to become
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
private insurance.
“We don’t 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
National Navy Medical Centers.
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
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serious effects of these infections, making them
more likely to die.”
Nylund performed this research during his fel‐
lowship in pediatric gastroenterology at Cincinnati
Children’s 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‐
can Pulse Field type 1 (NAP1), may be a partially to
blame for the increasing trend of C difficile infec‐
tions in children. “There may also be increasing
awareness among health care providers, leading to
increased testing in symptomatic patients,” he said.
Based on national hospital discharge data from
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 7,779 in 2006.
Additionally, children with C difficile infection
had an increased risk of death or colectomy (sur‐
gery to remove all of part of the colon), longer hos‐
pital stays, and higher hospitalization charges.
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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
The house of death Hospitals are supposed to be places where sick
people go to get well. Instead, all too often, they’re
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
pharmaceutical companies.
Of course, there are well‐meaning 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‐
istrative and
medical
decisions
are
frequently
made
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‐
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pository of careless or ill‐trained medical person‐
nel. Death rates at some of these hospitals have
been so high they’ve 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
us to stay out of the hospital at all costs! Medical errors hurt 18% of
hospital patients
A report
published
in
the
New
England
Journal
of Medicine revealed some troubling statistics. 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,” researchers admitted.
In almost 3% of the cases in the study, the in‐
jury resulted in or contributed to the death of the
patient. Another 3% resulted in a permanent injury,
and 8.5% were life‐threatening. Nearly 43% of the
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injuries – or “harms” as the researchers called them
– required some intervention by doctors or nurses
and resulted in an extended stay in the hospital.
To reach their conclusions, the researchers
randomly selected and reviewed nearly 2,400
records of adult patients from 10 hospitals in North
Carolina. North Carolina was selected for the study
because it has been noted as one of the leaders in
patient safety reform.
The report was particularly disturbing since it
indicates little progress has been made since the
1999 Institute of Medicine study showing that med‐
ical mistakes were responsible for more than 98,000
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
a five‐year period.
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
Engl J Med 2010; 363:2124‐2134 November 25, 2010.
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Hospital charges: up to
$18,000 per day
As though news of the rampant infections,
medical mistakes, and dismal effectiveness rates
werenʹt 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
heart attacks.
According to the analysis by the federal agen‐
cy, the average was based on about 2 million pa‐
tient stays for the ʺmost expensiveʺ cases such as
treatment of septicemia, or blood infection, harden‐
ing of the arteries, and heart attacks. These stays
lasted an average of 19 days.
Even though these ʺmost expensiveʺ cases ac‐
count for only 5% of all hospitalizations, the other
95% didnʹt get off cheap. Daily hospital bills for the
remaining 95% of patient stays averaged just under $7,000 and 4 days, and were most likely for child‐
birth, pneumonia, and heart failure.
The report used data from the 2008 Nation‐
wide Inpatient Sample, a database of hospital inpa‐
tient stays in all short‐term, non‐federal hospitals,
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and included patients regardless of insurance type,
as well as the uninsured.
SOURCE: AHRQ News and Numbers , October
13, 2010. Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality, Rockville, MD.
The ‘other’ drug problem in America The biggest health risk facing the average per‐
son today isn’t cancer or heart disease. It’s 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
doctor handing the patient at least one prescription,
even if the visit lasted only a few minutes. It’s rare
for patients to be told about possible dangerous
side effects of 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
loaded guns.
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Thousands of patients prescribed
high‐risk drugs
According to research published at BMJ.com,
GPs prescribed high‐risk medications for thou‐
sands of patients in Scotland who are especially
vulnerable to adverse drug events (ADEs), expos‐
ing them to potential harm. A number of medications or scenarios pre‐
viously flagged as high risk included non‐steroidal
anti‐inflammatory 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 antipsychotic drugs for patients with dementia.
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 high‐risk, potentially
harmful drugs. 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
being particularly vulnerable to ADEs.
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The results showed that 19,308 (13.9%) who
were in the vulnerable group were prescribed one
or more high‐risk medications.
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
couldn’t be explained by the patient case mix, the
researchers say it suggests there’s considerable
scope to improve those prescribing practices.
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
judged to be preventable.”
Patients might be vulnerable to high‐risk drugs
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
they prescribe to these patients.
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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.
Fewer drug prescriptions would
save lives
and
money
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)
College of
Pharmacy.
The study appeared in the online edition of the
Archives of Internal Medicine as part of the journal’s
“Less is More” series.
According to Bruce Lambert, co‐author 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
beneficial to patients.
Using the prior research as a guide, 24 prin‐
ciples were developed that can help prescribers
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avoid excessive and harmful prescribing, said
Lambert, director of UIC’s Center for Education
and Research on Therapeutics.
“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
prescribe drugs.”
The radical shift is known as “conservative
prescribing,” and if adopted by every prescriber,
could save many lives and dollars, Lambert said.
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
co‐authored 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
users of drugs, he said.
The UIC Center for Education and Research on
Therapeutics is one of 14 such centers in the United
States to study how consumers and clinicians make
critical treatment decisions about therapeutic
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products and interventions. The program is funded
by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
(AHRQ), part of the US Health and Human Servic‐
es department.
Other co‐authors 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‐
tant professor, pharmacy practice, all of UIC.
SOURCE: “Principles of Conservative Pre‐
scribing” by Gordon D. Schiff, MD, et.al. Archives of
Internal Medicine. Published online June 13, 2011. No ‘safe’ drugs
Even people who realize that prescription
drugs can be dangerous are often lured into think‐
ing that over‐the‐counter (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 over‐the‐counter
drugs once concluded that the majority of these
medications were completely useless, and most
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posed at least some health dangers. But it didn’t
change the pharmaceutical industry or even the
regulations that are supposed to keep the drug
companies in line.
Since neither they nor the government will do
it, it’s left to the American people to protect them‐
selves from unsafe medications. We need to read
the facts and change the way we think about health
care. Wellness won’t be found in pill form on any
drugstore shelf.
Common painkillers linked
to irregular heart rhythm
Yet another research study has uncovered po‐
tentially fatal side effects of commonly used pain‐
killers.
Many pills used to treat inflammation (includ‐
ing non‐selective non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory
drugs [NSAIDS]
as
well
as
new
generation
anti
‐
inflammatory drugs, known as selective COX‐2 in‐
hibitors) were linked to an increased risk of irregu‐
lar heart rhythm (atrial fibrillation or flutter), con‐
cluded a study published on bmj.com July 5, 2011.
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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,
heart failure, and death.
So a team of researchers, led by Professor He‐
nrik Toft Sørensen at Aarhus University Hospital in
Denmark, used the Danish National Registry of Pa‐
tients to identify 32,602 patients with a first diagno‐
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
the Danish population.
Patients were classified as current or recent
NSAID users. Current users were further classified
as new users (first‐ever prescription within 60 days
of diagnosis date) or long‐term users.
The researchers found that use of NSAIDs or COX‐2 inhibitors was associated with an increased
risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter.
Compared with non‐users, the association was
strongest for new users, with around 40% increased
risk for non‐selective NSAIDS and around 70% in‐
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creased risk for COX‐2 inhibitors. This is equivalent
to approximately four extra cases of atrial fibrilla‐
tion per year per 1,000 new users of non‐selective
NSAIDS and seven extra cases of atrial fibrillation
per 1,000 new users of COX‐2 inhibitors.
The risk appeared highest in older people, and
patients with chronic kidney disease or rheumatoid
arthritis were at particular risk when starting
treatment with COX‐2 inhibitors.
The authors concluded: “Our study thus adds
evidence that atrial fibrillation or flutter need to be
added to the cardiovascular risks under considera‐
tion when prescribing NSAIDs.”
This view is supported by an accompanying
editorial by Prof. Jerry Gurwitz from the University
of Massachusetts Medical School. He believes that
NSAIDS should continue to be used very cautious‐
ly in older patients with a history of hypertension
or heart failure … regardless of whether an associa‐
tion between NSAIDs and atrial fibrillation actually
exists.
SOURCE: “Non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory
drug use and risk of atrial fibrillation or flutter:
population based case‐control study,” BMJ , July 5,
2011.
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Capsules of gold 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‐
the‐counter
type)
is
one
of
the
most
profitable
businesses around.
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‐
cial promotions,
and
full
‐page
magazine
spreads.
The fact that these promotions can be mislead‐
ing doesn’t 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.
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US spends
$233
billion
per
year
on prescription drugs
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
one class of drugs (accounting for $52.2 billion, 22%
of the total) was metabolic medicine used to control
diabetes and cholesterol.
The next four “biggest sellers” of outpatient
prescription drugs in 2008 were :
• Central
nervous
system
drugs,
used
to
re
‐
lieve chronic pain and control epileptic seizures
and Parkinson’s Disease tremors – $35 billion.
• Cardiovascular drugs, including calcium
channel blockers and diuretics – $29 billion.
• Antacids, antidiarrheals, and other medi‐
cines for
gastrointestinal
conditions
– $20
billion.
• Antidepressants, antipsychotics, and other
psychotherapeutic drugs – $20 billion.
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
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prescription medicines used in the outpatient
treatment of adults.
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
both diabetes and cholesterol in almost all cases.
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
HDL cholesterol levels.
In addition, there is significant clinical evi‐
dence that chiropractic care, including correction of
subluxation, can impact neurologic function and, 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.
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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, February 2011.
“Effects of a Mediterranean‐Style 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. 5 306‐314.
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CHAPTER 4
–
The Final Step: Energy Healing
To the relief of many, a movement began in the
1980s to restore the vitalistic nature to the chiro‐practic profession, and reinforce its identity as a
drug‐free wellness approach separate from the
medical sphere.
After veering off into a strictly musculoskeletal
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
that emphasized vitalistic principles and the neuro‐
logical component of subluxation. And, at least for
a portion of the profession, chiropractic once more
became about something far more than the moving
of spinal bones to reduce symptoms. The vitalistic principle was enunciated in the
very earliest of DD Palmer’s writings on the new
field of chiropractic. The words “Founded on
Tone” are inscribed on the opening page of his 1910
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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
principle of Chiropractic. Tone is the normal degree
of nerve tension… consequently; the cause of dis‐
ease is any variation of tone – nerves too tense or
too slack.”
Among other writings that reinforced the neu‐
rological basis of chiropractic was BJ Palmer’s 1931
essay, “The Hour Has Arrived,” which focused at‐
tention on the nerve interference caused by the sub‐
luxation, and noted that it was the chiropractor’s
job to remove interference, not straighten spines. BJ
further stated that the misalignment is but an os‐
seous symptom of a subluxation, and any attempt
at re‐alignment would be a treatment upon effect,
and not an adjustment of cause.
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
with the concept that they are the all important fea‐
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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‐
sitions they think they need to be pushed into. ‘Ad‐
justing’ in their minds means pushing bones into
adjusted positions.”
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
I did would have failed.”
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
Chiropractor wonders why his case gets better, gets
worse, and might get well by accident; but leaves
him up in the air as to what actually happened. He
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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
the vertebral bones.
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 re‐ balancing the bodyʹs energy field
health can be restored.
The ultimate progression in the science, art and
philosophy of chiropractic is, in some ways, the
completion of a circle in that it returns us to DD
Palmer’s roots as a magnetic healer.
Magnetism is one form of energy and the work
done in the late 19th and early 20th century in
magnetic healing was a forerunner of today’s ener‐
gy “medicine.”
The advantages we, as 21st century wellness
providers have, are the incredible advances in
science and technology that have allowed us to un‐
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derstand and even measure the energy inherent in
the smallest particle of matter. These advances, par‐
ticularly in quantum physics and cellular biology,
have proven beyond a doubt that what chiropractic
pioneers theorized was correct: the universe con‐
sists of energy and intelligence.
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
absolute vacuum, where no physical particles exist.
Matter, when deconstructed to its absolute
smallest units, is energy organized in an intelligent
matter. This applies to all matter throughout the
universe. There are no truly distinct “bits” since, on
a quantum level, there is an interchange of energy
within particles and even the space between par‐
ticles is filled with energy.
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‐
plified but fundamentally accurate explanation).
What distinguishes various particles of matter
from each other is the speed at which the molecules
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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, we view it as physical matter. Particles that
vibrate at speeds which exceed light velocity are
known as “subtle matter.”
Recent research has extended this notion of vi‐
brational “signatures” to non‐physical phenomena
such as thoughts. Each thought pattern “vibrates”
at a specific frequency, making it possible to literal‐
ly read an individual’s thoughts. This knowledge is
being put to work in the development of brain‐
machine interfaces to allow disabled people to ma‐
nipulate wheelchairs and other devices via their
brainwaves alone.
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
than any type of allopathic treatment.
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Both eastern and western cultures have a long
history of perceiving all living things with a dualis‐
tic nature: physical and non‐physical. 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 “ch’i,” 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
the “spirit” surrounding Jesus and the Saints.
Throughout the ancient world, healers knew
that this invisible “something” – energy, spirit,
breath, life force, etc. – was an essential element of
life and health.
For today’s 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
physical and chemical system.
By focusing on an individual’s energy system,
we can allow the body to find and maintain its own
vibratory signature. This is the ultimate healing
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approach and has the potential to eliminate the
need for almost all medical interventions. Ironical‐
ly, the medical industry is discovering this as well,
although it tends to put a distinctly medical spin on
the approach.
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 Yale‐New 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 person’s body to strengthen the
body’s ability to heal itself by restoring balance and
harmony to the body’s energy system.
“Energy healing therapy involves the channe‐
ling of healing energy through the hands of a prac‐
titioner into the patient’s body to restore normal
energy balance and, therefore, health, as described
by the National Institutes of Health’s National Cen‐
ter for Complementary and Alternative Medicine,”
stated the Greenwich hospital in a press release.
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
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since we have been at the forefront of the energy
healing movement from the start. We pioneered the
modern field of hands‐on healing and have spent
more than a century facilitating the flow of vital
energy through the body.
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
surrounding it.
Spiritual implications Despite
the
ridicule
heaped
on
the
early
lead‐
ers of the New Thought movement, DD Palmer
never hid the fact that he was a spiritual seeker and
openly stated he received his inspiration for chiro‐
practic from the non‐physical realm. In fact, at the
beginning, he reportedly explored the religious and
spiritual
ramifications
of
his
discovery
and
consi‐
dered putting chiropractic forth as a spiritual prac‐
tice rather than as a health care regime. This is what
other teachers of the time did. Religious Science
(today primarily known as Centers for Spiritual
Living), Unity School of Practical Christianity (now
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referred to as Unity), the Church of Divine Science,
and others all have strong health applications.
In retrospect, we can see that the New Thought
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
consistent with their spiritual and religious beliefs.
DD Palmer’s 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
pre‐exist matter.
This energy, as Williams puts it “exists in the
absence of matter, but matter is entirely dependent upon nonmaterial primordial energy and cannot
exist in the absence of primordial energy.”
Since this energy is the ultimate source of all
matter, it is also known as the creative source ener‐
gy, or simple “the Source.”
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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
the sensory illusion of separate entities.
Author Wayne Dyer aptly described the rela‐
tionship between the individual and the Source us‐
ing the metaphor of the ocean. If you watch a wave
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
vast ocean of energy, constantly exchanging energy
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
energy between the two.
But let’s not forget the other component of the
equation: Intelligence or information. The way
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energy is organized and behaves, even at a sub‐
atomic level, isn’t random. As Einstein put it, God
doesn’t 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
part of the Source, which is both Source Energy and
Universal Intelligence.
DD Palmer emphasized this point in his 1910
book, ʺThe Chiropractorʹs Adjusterʺ when he
stated: ʺ... 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
individualize it...”
Another underlying precept is that this Uni‐
versal Intelligence is “loving” – to put it in human
terms. That is, to ensure the survival of all creation,
it’s always directed toward preservation, expan‐
sion, and growth. To put it in more spiritual terms, we live in a beneficent Universe.
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
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Divine, or – when imbued with a more personal
nature – God.
Discussing it in these terms takes the entire
topic out of the strictly scientific realm and into that
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‐
cuss the same thing, but in different ways.
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
physical being considered too “airy fairy” for scien‐
tific scrutiny. 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
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divine presence. The two camps are drawing closer
and chiropractic is poised at the intersection of the
two.
It’s impossible to ignore the spiritual implica‐
tions of chiropractic’s ability to help the body re‐
store its innate energy balance and achieve reson‐
ance with the surrounding energy field.
By embracing that remarkable ability and fully
comprehending the immensity of the impact we
can have, we’ll be taking chiropractic to the next
and possibly ultimate stage of development.
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CHAPTER 5
–
The New Chiropractic
and Science Jeff Rockwell, D.C.,
a 1986 graduate of Life University, and a prac‐
ticing D.C. in California,
is a long‐time 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. He explains in remarkable detail and clarity
how the understanding of chiropractic as a type of
energy healing is both revolutionary and a return
to its origins.
The following are selected articles by Dr.
Rockwell, reprinted especially for this volume,
with his permission.
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Closing the
gap
between
what
we
are
and what we could be by Dr. Jeff Rockwell, 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
piece of what I learned from him that day.
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, ʺThere 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
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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
intimately connected.ʺ
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 6‐12% 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
view of the vertebral subluxation.
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BJ Palmer, the son of the founder of chiroprac‐
tic, said in 1909, that ʺChiropractors have found in
every disease that is supposed to be contagious a
cause that lies in the spine.ʺ There is no doubt in
this authorʹs 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 less‐linear approach to
the spine, namely a functional one, while the ma‐
jority of chiropractic research has long focused on a
linear, Newtonian view of the spine as a stack of
building blocks needing to be in perfect alignment.
It is remarkable that in 2011, the profession still
refers to the vertebral subluxation as a ̋bone out of place,ʺ or, worse, the “silent killer.” It seems we
have taken a symptom, as much so as a runny nose
or the flu or heart disease, and have sought to era‐
dicate it through the chiropractic adjustment.
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Some more enlightened chiropractors today
view the subluxation not as the cause of anything,
but as a manifestation of another, even more causa‐
tive factor. The application of contemporary science
to this issue sheds new light and offers an empo‐
wering perspective on chiropractic theory.
Traditionally, we have used the term “subluxa‐
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 more‐partially
correct idea of the subluxation.
For starters, it may be worthwhile to drop the
word “vertebralʺ from how we describe the clinical
entity that we address. The subluxation is more of a
nervous system ʺthing,ʺ and less of a spinal ʺthing.ʺ
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‐
tionist terms to describe his clinical intent.
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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
central nervous system.
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
doing so, the whole body‐mind.
European researchers such as L. Stecco and R.
Schleip have demonstrated how the entire connec‐
tive tissue system functions as a ʺconnective tissue
nervous system,ʺ one which through its piezoelec‐
tric properties helps the central nervous system to heal itself, something the CNS is too slow to do on
its own. The list goes on.
We were never meant to simply feel lumps and
bumps and misalignments. We have sufficient in‐
formation on the bodyʹs basic inherent rhythms
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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
of manual, not to mention medical, care.
The ways in which sensory impressions come
to our hands could, if we were settled enough with‐
in ourselves and took the time to develop the skills,
tell us what might historically have been health for
that person or what might become health someday.
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‐
fering in their ongoing process of health.
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, personal to transpersonal. Our goal might
be – I hesitate to say ʺshould 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
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by the body’s own purposeful direction and ex‐
pression of its inherent design.
This may seem like rather nebulous speech but
I donʹt think it to be any less practical and specific
than beloved terms such as ʺmental forceʺ and ʺin‐
nate intelligence.ʺ Speaking of which, embryolo‐
gists in Germany have, since the 1940s, been able to
detect a rhythm that pulsates through the embryo
and fetus – and can even be taught to be perceived
in an adult – every 100 seconds, a pulse which they
believe to be a manifestation of what we would call
innate intelligence.
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 patient’s. 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.
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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‐
lines of the physical history of a human being. If we
understand how the body develops, we can get a
better picture of its history and how its inherent plan for health is dealing with it. We can conscious‐
ly work along with the vast memory of a very pro‐
found process that takes a long time to etch itself
into the human form.
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Letʹs 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. You donʹt know which ones to repair. 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
insight into how it might be retuned for the expres‐
sion of greater health.
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‐
tientʹs design. The result isnʹt just an increase of
health, but also an increase in awareness and other
psychosocial qualities.
At the foundation of the philosophy of chiro‐
practic, of course, are the major premise and the
Triune of life. The major premise states: ʺUniversal intelligence is in all matter and continually gives to
it all its properties and actions.ʺ 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
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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 Still’s 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, for one, value the sometimes overtly spiritual
quality of DDʹs 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 ʺThe purpose of chiropractic is to reu‐
nite God the spiritual with man the physical.ʺ In‐
vestigating the new field of neurophysiology and
integrating the best it has to offer with the best that
both of the Palmers had to say on the subject of spi‐rituality and health would only empower the direc‐
tion our profession moves in.
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
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pleased with my answer, replying, ʺIf 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.ʺ 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. Thereʹs no need to fear the scientific litera‐
ture – it will not bite you and if it does it will not
kill you.
We have a responsibility to allow our profes‐
sion, as a living system, to be what it wants to be, to
be alive and evolving. We also, concurrently, have
the responsibility to be both practitioners and scho‐
lars. Could you explain, for example: the principle
of tensegrity and how it relates to chiropractic care;
the work of Dr. Bruce Lipton and the nuances of
the ʺmental subluxation;” Dr. Candace Pertʹs work
on the neurochemistry of emotion; the cellular me‐chanics of touch and its relation to the reflexive ef‐
fects of preparing to give and giving an adjustment;
the relation of autonomic balance to both sympto‐
matic and non‐symptomatic subluxations; how the
patientʹs body instinctively moves towards correc‐
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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
oneʹs health; biofeedback, EMDR, and PTSD resolu‐
tion and the role it can play in your practice; the
ʺEat Well, Move Well, Think Wellʺ model of Dr.
James Chestnut; the Brain Reward Cascade System
and Brain Reward Deficiency Syndrome; even the
rudiments of Dr. Ted Carrick’s Functional Neurol‐
ogy; and, especially, somatic reeducation?
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 non‐medical disciplines
shown to be most helpful with Parkinson’s, MS,
and Alzheimer’s have been Somatic: Feldenkrais and Alexander Technique to be specific.
I hope you “scored well“ regarding the above
questions. If so, congratulations! If not, you have a
lot of rewarding work to look forward to.
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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‐
ous system through a vertebral adjustment the vital
force that we call ʺinnate intelligenceʺ could be res‐
tored to normal expression and function. In other
words, if we took our foot off the hose, innate could
flow again. In the process, though, we left out the
principles of naturalism and holism. Big mistake.
Several of my best professors in chiropractic college
– true leading lights in our profession – refused to
change their health habits, eating whatever they
wanted to, smoking and drinking, but always faith‐
fully getting their weekly adjustment. And they
either dropped dead or died a slow, painful death
in their mid‐50s.
How has your study of and practice of chiro‐
practic changed you? For me, chiropractic has re‐
quired me to keep growing. It has also required 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
well enough by just going through the motions, but
chiropractic is not one of them.
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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, living system?
The life that awaits us by Jeff Rockwell, DC
Maybe the
ʺpatron
saint
ʺof
chiropractic
should
be Curious George. Iʹve 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,
ʺCuriosity killed the cat.ʺ I guess I was supposed to
file that
ʺvaluable
ʺinformation
along
with
other
lines of wisdom such as ʺmoney doesnʹt grow on
trees.ʺ It wasnʹt until years later, when I was living
in the South, that someone told me the rest of the
old cliché: ʺCuriosity killed the cat, but satisfaction
brought it back.ʺ
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In recent years, we saw the explosive success
of the book and film ʺThe Secret.ʺ For many of us it
was especially gratifying as it featured a prominent
chiropractor. Many peopleʹs lives were, and con‐
tinue to be, impacted in a positive way by such
books and movies. But often the results don’t last
long. There’s a piece missing that short‐circuits the
process unless it’s incorporated into the ʺchanging
of oneʹs mind.ʺ I believe that missing piece is chiro‐
practic care.
Most of us were raised in families, churches,
and other social communities where we were
taught what – and even how – to think. Rather than
exposing us to their values, people imposed them
on us. No oneʹs to blame here. This is how things
are done in a subluxated world. In the first seven
years of life, we’re all like ʺLittle Buddhas,ʺ effor‐
tlessly slipping into altered states, seeing ʺenergy,ʺ
talking with imaginary friends, and soaking up our
world and sensory experiences like thirsty sponges. But not every belief we were exposed to was
healthy for our nervous systems.
Some experts in child development consider
the typical indoctrination process to be a form of
child abuse, a violation of the human spirit. Dr.
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Andrew Newburg, at the University of Pennsylva‐
nia, has conducted studies showing that dogmatic,
separatist thinking, especially when accentuated by
anger, damages the brain. If this isn’t a form of sub‐
luxation I donʹt know what is.
As we move further into the 21st century,
we’re recognizing that subluxation isn’t a spinal
phenomenon, but a neurological one. This really
shouldn’t be news to anyone, as vitalistic chiro‐
practors have always been attempting to engage
the nervous system to facilitate the expression of
health in their patients.
Many of the beliefs stirring up the most trouble
in the world today date back to the Iron Age. While
some claim ̋believing never hurt anyone,ʺ 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‐
quated beliefs. Consider, for example, that without the aid of
todayʹs technology, humans killed more than 160
million other humans in warfare based on religious
and nationalistic ideologies. In 2011, there are more
than 20 religious conflicts going on, according to
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Amnesty International. The destruction that used
to require armies of thousands can now be created
by a single ̋believerʺ with a suitcase bomb.
In chiropractic, we speak about changing the
world ʺone spine at a time.ʺ Advocates of The Law
of Attraction may talk about changing the world
ʺone thought at a time.ʺ There’s truth in both posi‐
tions, and we can leverage those truths for greater
gain if we exercise our curiosity regarding this
ʺthingʺ called the subluxation.
Subluxation is a disease. That wasn’t a typo. I
didn’t mean to say subluxation is ʺdis‐ease.” 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 –
and reality – if left chiropractically unchallenged.
Dr. Bruce Lipton has demonstrated that when
we repeat the same beliefs over and over, we be‐
come a closed system functioning on autopilot.
He’s 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, with its propensity for reactive emotions
and dualistic perception of the world, enlarges,
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while the prefrontal cortex, with its capacity for
compassionate thinking and unitive awareness,
shrinks in size.
I recall a time, back in the 1980s, when some of
our kinder detractors said things like, ʺChiropractic
may help those with back pain,ʺ or ʺChiropractic
adjustments may, at least, help people to become
more flexible.ʺ I find the latter statement intriguing,
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‐
sciousness as well.
Functional MRI studies are now revealing that
strong, inflexible beliefs, especially negative ones,
do not make ʺneurological senseʺ 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,
pain‐producing chemicals, and keep a person in a sustained ʺfight or flightʺ neurological state. These
neurological and chemical changes create nerve
tissue atrophy further down the central nervous
system ʺchain.”
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We may read one self‐help 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 doesn’t make for long‐term hap‐
piness, but can even become dangerous as evi‐
denced by the statistics mentioned earlier.
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
– which we now know includes the entire posterior
portion of the spinal cord – causing adverse nerv‐
ous system changes and increasing the likelihood
that they’ll continue beating up on anyone who
doesn’t agree with them, regardless of whether or
not their beliefs are true. This includes beating up
on ourselves, as we fight with the voices and condi‐
tioning of our early past, information that’s be‐
come, to the extent we’re subluxated, cemented in
place. We’ve all seen this in our patients, and if we’re honest, in ourselves. We’re fighting a losing
battle because, in a very real sense, we’re fighting
rather than flowing with our lives. A flexible neu‐
rology and a flexible consciousness, along with a
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flexible spine, allow us to flow with the ever‐
changing mystery that life is.
That all sounds sweet and poetic, but what do I
really mean? Most of us are familiar with the neu‐
robiologist Candace Pert, PhD. The author of ʺMo‐
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 ʺrunnerʹs
highʺ – 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
named ʺmolecules of emotion.ʺ
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
person who’d just won a large sum of money. If, on
the other hand, you fell madly in love with the man
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‐
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rience you might experience divine ecstasy, if the
right chemicals got triggered.
Some people have resistance to thinking of
love, joy, or ecstasy as chemistry. Obviously,
they’re more than mere chemical phenomena.
They, you might say, transcend and include chemi‐
stry. But, we’ve all struggled at some point, trying
to change a habit. Perhaps it was attempting to stop
smoking or drinking coffee. Maybe it was trying to
eliminate procrastination or improve self‐esteem.
Probably it was difficult, our own personal version
of ʺinsanity… doing the same thing over and over
again, expecting a different result.ʺ So, whatʹs the
deal?
The molecules of emotion are like chemical
ʺkeysʺ that need to find the right shaped ʺlocksʺ in
order to produce a specific feeling. These “locks”
are called receptor sites and, according to Dr. Pert,
the ʺkeysʺ 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 can’t bind with them. You can win the
lottery, fall in love, and find God all on the same
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day, and what should be a profound experience
will be minimized by the inability of these neuro‐
peptides to find a ʺhome.ʺ How often have we seen
patients come into our offices whose ʺceiling of
happinessʺ or ʺceiling of health and wellnessʺ is so
low that it’s sad.
Pert writes: ʺMemories 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‐
gans and the very surface of our skin.
ʺAn element I think we are skipping in our
discussion of practical applications for mind‐ body
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
cannot heal it by talk alone!ʺ
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At a research conference, I once heard Dr. Pert
say, ʺHow we experience our world is in large part
governed by the structure and function of our
spine.ʺ 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 brainʹs limbic sys‐
tem. In fact, the emotional brain is not confined to
the brain, but extends down the spine and is
known today as the mesolimbic system.
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,
for high quality molecules of emotion to bind there, thus limiting oneʹs 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
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shift our physiology from safety and trust to defen‐
siveness and divisiveness, misperceiving signs of
threat where there are none. Thatʹs why, to me,
subluxation represents a disease of perception.
Pert continues: ʺThe body becomes the battle‐
field for the war‐games 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, ʺWe must be will‐
ing to get into the life we have planned, so as to
have the life that is awaiting us. The old skin has to
be shed before the new one is to come.ʺ This is
what happens every day in the greatest of chiro‐
practic offices – hopefully yours. Growth and trans‐
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
they’ve planned. We adjust their nervous systems
and allow their bodies to work together as a dy‐namic whole. And our practice members meet –
perhaps for the first time – the life that awaits them.
Chiropractic is a holistic science. Today we
know that the three classically separated areas of
neuroscience, endocrinology, and immunology,
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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
we’ve been talking about throughout this article is
information. I’d like to speculate that ʺmental forceʺ
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 information‐network to
flourish. We can then see, right in front of our eyes,
that there truly is an intelligence running things,
what we as chiropractors are privileged to inti‐
mately know as ʺinnate intelligence.ʺ
Instrumentation One of the major hurdles that had to be over‐
come by chiropractic (and any other wellness field
influencing the body’s 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
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energy has been more difficult, particularly in chi‐
ropractic field offices.
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
as Health‐Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) studies,
it is possible to quantify the impact of chiropractic
adjustments on the body’s neurological systems.
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 health‐related
quality of life.
HRQOL as measurement of wellness 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‐
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standing of chiropractic as a means of energy heal‐
ing.
On April 7, 1948, the World Health Organiza‐
tion established its definition of health as: ʺ... a state
of complete physical, mental and social well‐ being
and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.ʺ
The definition, which was considered radical
in its time because it took a more holistic view of
the term, is still in use today.
A more recent and expanded definition, from
the Quality of Life Research Unit at the University
of Toronto states that quality of life encompasses
ʺthe goodness and meaning in life, as well as
peopleʹs happiness and well‐ being. From our pers‐
pective, the ultimate goal of quality of life study
and its subsequent applications is to enable people
to live quality lives – lives that are both meaningful
and enjoyed.ʺ
In its ground‐ breaking report, ʺMeasuring
Healthy Days,ʺ the US Department of Health and
Human Servicesʹ Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention noted that, despite the WHO definition
ʺ…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
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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 individual’s or a community’s level of
health.ʺ
Thatʹs why, in recent years, health and well‐
ness professionals have sought new ways to get a
more complete measurement of an individualʹs to‐
tal state of well‐ being, or quality of life.
The multi‐dimensional Self‐Reported Quality‐
of‐Life survey (such as that provided by Integrative
Outcome Measurements) is based in part on two
independent surveys:
1) the SF‐36 Health Survey, a standard quality‐
of‐ life test developed by the RAND Corporation
and extensively administered and validated. Use of
the SF‐36 in scientific and medical research has
been documented in nearly 4,000 publications, and
it has been used to measure health‐related quality
of life for samples of the general population as well
as groups with specific conditions, ranging from
asthma to spinal cord injury; and
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2) the Self‐Reported Quality of Life (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
populations undergoing wellness interventions.
The National Center for Chronic Disease Pre‐
vention and Health Promotion Health‐Related
Quality of Life noted that: ʺPhysicians have often
used health‐related quality of life (HRQOL) to
measure the effects of chronic illness in their pa‐
tients to better understand how an illness interferes
with a personʹs day‐to‐day life. Similarly, public
health professionals use health‐related quality of
life to measure the effects of numerous disorders,
short‐ and long‐term disabilities, and diseases in
different populations. Tracking health‐related 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
their health.ʺ
Like the founder and developer of chiropractic,
today’s chiropractors do not look only at the spine
or limit their expertise to moving bones to reduce
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misalignments of vertebra. Instead, they see the
human body as a fully integrated energy field that
can be affected by structural adjustments. In short,
we’ve come full circle and gathered important in‐
formation and understandings along the way.
¡
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Learn more about Dr. Rondberg and his work at
any of the following websites:
The Chiropractic Journal
Integrative Outcome Measurements
The World Chiropractic Alliance
WCA Health News Update