While our clinic certainly caters very well for the many adult patients we see, a tour through our clinic will soon reveal the many little extras we have provided to ensure that children too, feel very much at home when they visit us.

These include a special children's play area, toys, books and building blocks. There is also  a specially designed children's adjusting room complete with 'horsey' adjusting table, puppet theatre, more toys as well as colourful fun posters.

Our team runs regular competitions and fun activities for our child patients as well as providing a small gift (like a sticker, balloon or colouring sheet) for every child every time they visit our clinic. These are just some of the many ways that our team make the child feel welcome.

So the children love visiting our clinic. But as a parent you too can feel comfortable that you are in the right place. All of the chiropractors at our clinic have undertaken postgraduate training in the area of Chiropractic Paediatrics and are very experienced with children.

So how can Chiropractic benefit children?

'As the twig is bent & so grows the tree!' Just like adults your children have nervous systems that control and coordinate all of their body functions.  And, just like you, they can become subluxated which may interfere with their ability to express their maximum health potential. The unfortunate fact however is that children still have an entire lifetime ahead of them in which to manifest the results of the problems that have been created today.

A Vertebral Subluxation can occur at any stage of your child's life. In fact your child's very first subluxation may well have occurred at birth.  This is why parents who understand the importance of having a healthy spine and nervous system have their newborns checked by their chiropractor as soon after birth as possible.

As a parent it is important for you to realize that the longer a Vertebral Subluxation is present, the greater the potential for lasting irreversible damage.

Is my child truly healthy?

As concerned parents, you may sometimes wonder whether your child is as healthy as they could be. Many factors contribute to your child's overall health. A very important  part of how healthy your child can be is determined by the communication between your child's brain and body ... the most vital link controlling the growth, repair, and function of every tissue and organ in their body.

By having Vertebral Subluxations corrected throughout childhood, your child will have a better opportunity to be as healthy as possible and hence more likely to achieve their maximum health potential.

When should your child be checked for subluxations?

Newborn infants ideally should be checked within hours of the birth. The birth process, even under natural and controlled conditions, is potentially traumatic for the newborn child. A condition known as Traumatic Birth Syndrome can result at birth. This condition has been well documented scientifically.  During the pushing stage of labour, the spine, particularly the neck, may be injured as the baby is compressed and pushed down the birth canal. Injury from forceps or deliveries by vacuum extraction as well as over-eager hands can do even more damage by pulling, forcing and twisting the baby's young spine. The pulling, twisting, and compression of the infant's spine during birth often results in damage to the newborn spine and related nervous system. Having your baby checked at birth allows you to resolve any problems in your child's spine thereby decreasing the chance of ongoing problems later in life.

Extensive clinical experience supported by an ever increasing amount of scientific research has shown that a wide range of childhood symptoms may respond favourably to chiropractic.

These include:

Migraine - Gastric Reflux - Recurrent Chest Infections - Hyperactivity - Bedwetting - Fatigue - Recurrent Throat Infections - Arm and Leg Pain - Headache - Asthma - Poor Co-ordination - Sleeping Problems - Irritability - Colic - Growing Pains - Ear Infections - Learning Difficulties - Back Pain - Stomach Ache - Visual Problems - Digestive Disorders - Scoliosis - Poor Posture

Chiropractic Adjustments for Infants

The chiropractic adjustment for a child is a very gentle procedure. And with no more pressure applied than you would use to test the ripeness of a tomato, the adjustment is also very safe.  The effectiveness of the chiropractic adjustment for children has been demonstrated in numerous research studies. In fact many parents see instant improvements in the well-being of their child as a result of this adjustment.

Later, regular chiropractic checkups are helpful to monitor spinal development as infants: sit upright, begin to support their head, learn to crawl and take their first brave steps. Many experts believe that uncorrected spinal problems during this early stage of development play a major role in the chronic, hard-to-correct Vertebral Subluxations frequently seen in adults.

What to expect on your Child's first visit to our clinic. Your child's initial visit to our clinic is free of charge. The purpose of this first visit is to determine whether or not chiropractic may be of benefit to your child. Your Doctor of Chiropractic is interested in your child's total health and well being. Therefore they may ask you specific detailed questions about your child's health history.

 This may include questions about previous illnesses, accidents and even questions about your child's birth. The answer to these questions may give your chiropractor vital clues as to the source of your child's problems.

We will then perform a physical examination. This may include a postural examination as well as a detailed spinal examination. Relevant orthopedic and neurological tests may also be necessary. Most importantly with every child we take the time to ensure that you, the parent, have a thorough understanding of your child's condition.

No treatment is provided to your child until both parents have an understanding of firstly what is wrong and secondly what needs to be done to resolve the problem. Our commitment to you the parents is that any care provided to your child will be very gentle and most importantly will be completely safe.

Traumatic Birth Syndrome This  is a condition which describes the damage to an infants spine as a result of the birth process. This condition has been well documented scientifically. A researcher by the name of Duncan, measured the amount of force it would take to severely injure a baby's neck during delivery.

He found that 90 pounds of force was enough to cause still birth, while less than that would cause the spinal joints to sprain. Duncan commented, "this is not what most obstetricians would consider a great force."

Dr. G. Gutmann, a German medical researcher discovered that over 80% of the infants he examined shortly after birth were suffering from injury to the cervical spine (the neck), causing all types of health problems.

Dr. Abraham Towbin, from the Harvard Medical School Department of Pathology presented research at the Eighteenth Annual Meeting of the American Academy For Cerebral Palsy. In his research, he states that "the birth process, even under optimal conditions, is potentially a traumatic, crippling event for the baby."  He continues "Spinal cord and brain stem injuries occur often during the process of birth but frequently escape diagnosis and death may occur during delivery or, with respiratory function depressed, a short period after birth. Infants who survive the initial effects, may be left with severe nervous system defects."

What about those babies who don't show immediate signs and symptoms of Traumatic Birth Syndrome? What if the signs and symptoms don't appear until later on in life? What is the effect on that infant? How does it interfere with the babies potential to express their maximum health potential?  What kind of symptoms and diseases could it cause later on in life?

Traumatic Birth Syndrome, whether it causes symptoms immediately or just diminishes human potential over the course of a lifetime, must be dealt with and dealt with immediately.
Don't be fooled if your medical doctor says your baby is fine. Medical doctors get no training in the detection and correction of the Vertebral Subluxation complex and will almost certainly miss it.

Chiropractors, on the other hand, have been detecting and correcting Birth Trauma Syndrome and the Vertebral Subluxation Complex for over a 110 years.

All children should be examined by a Chiropractor immediately after birth. Take this critical step to ensure that your children are as healthy as our maker designed them to be.

Our clinic offers complimentary examinations for all children.