Can Chiropractic Help My Breech Baby?

Where It All Begins

A regular phone call we receive goes something like this “I’m ___ weeks pregnant and I found out my baby is breech? Can Chiropractic help?”

The short answer is yes, Chiropractic may be able to help.

Babies that are in the breech position are flipped upside down with the buttocks down toward the pelvis and the head up towards the chest. It is not an ideal position for delivery and can make it difficult.

The predominant theory for why a baby turns breech is because there is less room in the womb due a condition know as intra uterine constraint (in-utero constraint). This condition occurs when the mothers uterus doesn’t open completely and gives the baby less room then normal to grow and develop. When the baby feels the stress of this it will turn to try and gain more room in the womb, which leads to the breech positioning.

Remember the uterus is a muscle and all muscles don’t act alone. They only do as they are told by the nervous system. When someone is stressed you can see the muscles of their body tense up, especially in the upper back and shoulders. However when we have neurological stress due to a condition called subluxation, a misalignment in the spine creating stress and tension on the nervous system, it does something very similar to the muscles of the uterus. When stress due to subluxations affect the nerves going to the uterus this can create tension in the muscles of the uterus and create in-utero constraint.

So Can Chiropractic Help Turn A Breech Baby?

Let me be clear, our goal as Chiropractors isn’t to turn your baby face down. This can happen as a byproduct of our care but it is not our goal. Our goal is to remove the stress on the nervous system that is creating tension in the uterus. In doing so our goal is to allow the uterus to open up as much as possible to allow the baby to turn face down again.

Dr Brady is ICPA certified in the Webster Technique. The webster technique is highly specialized for pregnant women, with a specific emphasis on sacrum, where the nerves that supply the uterus reside, and the pelvis.

Throughout your pregnancy Dr Brady will utilize the webster technique to ensure your have your best pregnancy possible!

Check out our video on pregnancy care.

Why Is My Child Constipated?

Constipation has been something we’ve been coming across more and more with infants and children in our community. Many times we’re told it’s behavioral and maybe sometimes it is. That’s why here in our office we don’t guess, we test! We want to be sure if we can help or not.

Why Are So Many Children Affected?

This really is a two prong issue. First part is their nervous system, which is always the base since the nervous system “runs the show” digestively through the vagus nerve and other parasympathetic nerves. The second part is diet – what’s getting into their system.

For most of our infants we find the birth process can play a large role in developing constipation. The birth process can be jarring for a newborn and can be amplified in the cases where birth interventions are used such as induction, forceps, vacuum, or c-section. Many of these processes can place tremendous pressure on a newborns delicate spine and nervous system. Most importantly in the cases of forceps, vacuum, and c-section pressure can be placed on the upper neck, which houses the Vagus Nerve.

The vagus nerve is an incredibly important nerve exiting from the skull near the top bone in the spine and traveling down into the gut. When this nerve gets choked or irritated it can disrupt communication between the brain and digestive system, altering proper digestive function and leading to constipation, gas, bloating, etc.

It’s All Connected

The colon is a muscle. It’s job is to absorb the last amounts of water and expel whatever is left over by contracting in waves to push it out. All muscles are able to act only because the nervous system is telling them to contract.

When the nerves supplying the colon get choked off or irritated due to a condition known as subluxation, which is a misalignment in the spine that creates inflammation and stress on the nervous system, therefore altering the function of the colon.

We find by removing the stress and tension of the spine and nervous system, children slowly start to regain normal bowl movements as the brain can now better communicate to the rest of the body.

What We Eat

The other part of this equation tends to be the diet. I’ve found that as a child transitions to more solid foods, one of the most common foods suggested in rice cereal. Rice cereal as well as grains can be inflammatory to the gut and create constipation. Diets that contain dairy, grains, or sugar lead to inflammation in the gut, which can cause inflammation.

Even mothers who are breastfeeding need to be aware as well. Mothers may notice that dairy or gluten in their own diet may be a precipitating factor as well.

Our advice is to first get your child checked to make sure subluxations are interfering with their bodies ability to be well. Also try eliminating dairy and gluten from you and your child’s diet for a week to see if you notice a difference.

Call Today to Get Started

(805) 379-3653