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3 mins
TRUE OR FALSE. What is chiropractic really worth?
TRUE OR FALSE. What is chiropractic really worth? – (franceinfo)
Some chiropractor videos generate millions of views. We see manipulations of the spine which could relieve or even cure back pain. So, do these practices really work, and where do they come from?
Videos of chiropractors are viewed millions of times. The discipline of chiropractic was founded in the late 19th century by Daniel David Palmer, a farmer-turned-magnetist. One day, he would have taken care of the concierge of his building, who had been deaf for 17 years. A simple pressure on his spine would then have given him back his hearing. Daniel David Palmer would have concluded that the spine could help heal everything in the human body. This is the birth of chiropractic.
Today, Sophie Baltaci, a chiropractic practitioner, explains that “the idea” of discipline is to “realign the nervous system”of “restore the correct nerve impulses to the muscles and joints so that they make optimal movement”. And for “realign” this system, a not really scientific concept, the practitioner performs crunches. The price is 90 euros for the first 45-minute session.
A lack of clear evidence
What does research say about this discipline? Several chiropractors cite a 2011 study, which concluded that chiropractic was potentially effective in certain indications, but without proven superiority compared to more traditional alternatives. The doctor consulted for the study, Olivier Gagey, professor emeritus at Paris-Saclay University, is regularly cited by chiropractors. However, he himself recognizes a lack of clear evidence. For François Rannou, head of the musculoskeletal rehabilitation and rehabilitation department at Cochin Hospital (AP-HP), in addition to being ineffective, this practice is dangerous.
