A February, 2001 report from the Foundation for Chiropractic Education and Research finds that chiropractic patients experience improvement in the frequency and severity of their headaches. The study, a literature review performed at Duke University in Durham, NC, collected information from more than 2500 sources. According to the report, Chiropractic adjustments “appeared to result in immediate improvement in headache severity” in patients experiencing cervicogenic headache.
Source: Foundation for Chiropractic Education and Research, February, 2001
Over 95% of all headaches, including stress headaches, menstrual headaches, migraines, and cluster headaches are caused by Atlas neurovascular syndrome. Atlas neurovascular syndrome is a condition in which the nerves and arteries that exist between the Atlas and the skull become compromised. The joint between the Atlas (the first bone of your cervical spine/neck), and skull become misaligned and compromise the nerves and arteries that exit between them (See Photo below). The misalignment can be due to stress, poor posture, sleeping in a poor position, birth trauma, whiplash from a car accident or participating in contact sports.
The nervous system in the region of your neck carries pain sensations from your head to your brain, so if the nerves in your neck are irritated, then it can result in a headache. Compromise of the arteries travelling from your neck to your head can add a throbbing sensation to your headache. If your muscles become tense, then a sensation of tension can be added to your headache. By realigning the joints of your cervical spine, the proper flow of the nerves and arteries are restored and the severity of the headache decreases or it goes away.
Chiropractors are trained to locate, analyze and correct misalignments of the spine. So before you pop that next Advil or Mortrin, see a chiropractor. You will get much better results, without the side-effects.
If you can't make it to the chiropractor, there are great natural herbal supplements that are effective for headaches:
Turmeric by DaVinci Laboratories is recommended for general headaches.
Turmeric + C-Flav is recommended for migraine and cluster headaches.
Turmeric + Gabanol is recommended for tension headaches.