Chiropractic Researchers Study Effects of Eclipse on Spinal Health.....

Falls Church, VA - The April 8th Great North American Eclipse was a once-in-a-lifetime chance for people from Mexico, the United States, and Canada to experience a true wonder of the natural world. It also represented a unique opportunity for chiropractic researchers to study its effects on spinal health.

A woman, shown here in awe as she takes in one of nature's most incredible sights and right before her spine is ripped from her body by the powerful gravitational force of a combined Sun and Moon

"While millions of people were taking in the majesty of the rare celestial phenomenon, we were hard at work in study sites all along the path of totality," chiropractic geophysicist Frank Grimes, DC explained. "We didn't have the luxury to strap on protective goggles and join the crowds. Who even knows when, or even if there will be another eclipse. I mean, we didn't find out about this one until Steve noticed it was getting dark earlier than usual."

The study of eclipses take as much luck as hard work given the random nature of their appearances. According to Grimes, however, expanding our knowledge of how the human spine responds to a sudden blocking of the Sun by the Moon is worth the effort. "A total eclipse allows researchers in relevant chiropractic fields to study changes from the ionosphere down to the individual vertebrae, which might lead to important breakthroughs in clinical practice or exciting new practice building opportunities."

Chiropractors have long served as experts in the diagnosis and treatment of disturbances in the human spine known as subluxations. Subluxations are most primarily linked to common conditions such as neck and back pain, but the development of severe subluxations involving more than one spinal bone can be much more serious. The most concerning subluxation sequelae is Accordion syndrome, first described in 1907 by Robert Accordion, which is when the failure of key support structures results in a total spinal collapse. 

These subluxations, which are often too subtle to be picked up by even advanced medical imaging modalities, have also been discovered in wide variety of non-human animal species when examined by chiropractic experts. Grimes adds that new populations are being found all the time. "We treat horses, elephants, even giraffes. I know a guy who specializes in blue whales. It's inconsistent work, but so rewarding when he gets to watch one head back out to sea with a fully optimized nervous system."

Both the Sun and the Moon are known to have powerful influences over structures on Earth. Anyone who has gotten a sunburn or has been swept out to sea by the ocean tides can attest to that. So it is plausible that their combined might could result in some serious changes to the human body, including the spine. Grimes and his team set out to loo for these changes by evaluating the spines of thousands of patients during the eclipse, and what they found may forever change chiropractic and human healthcare. "They all had subluxations. Every single one of them. And as soon as we fixed one, two more would pop up in its place. I've never seen anything like it, and I attended all six weekends of my fellowship in spinal geophysics."