If you turn on the TV, the radio, or streaming Internet long enough to get to a commercial break, you’re likely to be bombarded by pharmaceutical advertisements. If you’re breathing, there’s probably a prescription someone somewhere thinks you need. If you weren’t feeling somewhat ill or uncomfortable before listening to the advertisement, there’s a good chance you will afterward. You may be left thinking, “what’s a person to do?” If your body isn’t feeling well or working the way you expect it to, what are your options?
In a FastStats report released by the Center for Disease Control, 48.7% of Americans have used at least one prescription drug in the past 30 days. And according to that same report, 74.2% of the visits to a physician’s office in the United States involve drug therapy. With these high rates of prescribing medications, the odds are good that you’re likely taking a prescription medication now or will be.
Is this normal? Is it helping?
The pharmaceutical industry is large and lucrative. In fact, the United States is the world’s largest pharmaceutical market. According to SelectUSA, the pharmaceutical industry, directly and indirectly, supports about 4.4 million jobs in the United States. Much money is invested in the research, development, marketing, and administration of prescription medications.
While these drugs are meant to help heal the body, relieve pain, and save lives, it’s not unusual to forget that there are other ways of approaching how we can care for our bodies when we’re experiencing pain.
Finding drug-free options to reduce pain and increase overall wellness begins with a different approach to health. Rather than focusing on symptoms and looking outside of our bodies for healing, we can start by looking at the conditions that caused the illness or pain within our bodies. As we gain a better understanding of the cause of our conditions, we can often take steps toward better health.
Drug-free alternatives are often simple and easily overlooked, but they can also be highly effective and inexpensive. So what are some of these options?
Depending on your current health, you could find pain relief and increased wellness from:
No matter which type of treatment you choose to help heal your body, consult with a healthcare professional to ask questions and gain a better understanding of the options you are considering.
If the list above surprised you by including chiropractic care, you’re not alone. Most people don’t know that, unlike physicians who may prescribe surgeries or drugs, chiropractors approach healing by using their hands to perform chiropractic adjustments. These adjustments are meant to improve spinal function and thereby alleviate pain, relieve muscle tension, and reduce joint irritation.
Chiropractic care is often associated with alleviating back pain. It is also helpful for treating other conditions related to the musculoskeletal system, such as mobility issues and some types of headaches. For people suffering from chronic low back pain, the American College of Physicians now recommends first using a non-invasive, non-drug treatment before resorting to drug therapies.
While the pharmaceutical industry continues to evolve, some people are beginning to question our nation’s reliance on prescription drugs. Are you one of them? If you would like a career in healthcare that allows you to prescribe a way of living rather than a bottle of pills, perhaps a doctor of chiropractic degree is for you.
Cleveland University-Kansas City (CUKC) is a nonprofit, private, healthcare-focused university in Overland Park, Kansas, a suburb of the Kansas City metro.
Our history in chiropractic education began in 1922 when the College of Chiropractic was founded. Today, CUKC is the only chiropractic university still guided by the founding family. More than 11,000 chiropractors in the U.S. have a chiropractic degree from our College of Chiropractic.
Becoming a chiropractor puts you on track for a satisfying – and challenging – people-first career as a healthcare practitioner. The job outlook for chiropractors is for 11% growth from 2020 through 2030, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Now’s the time to request a free copy of the eBook, Your Complete Guide to the Chiropractic Profession today!
