At this stage of development your child is still rapidly growing, learning, and most likely falling. While falls are a normal occurrence for toddlers it may lead to misalignments of their spine. Your child most likely doesn’t show any symptoms, but left unchecked these misalignments could lead to symptoms arising in the future. Two common symptoms at this stage are ear infections and allergies.

EAR INFECTIONS

If your child experiences recurrent ear infections, chiropractic can help by restoring normal drainage of the lymphatic vessels. Almost half of all children will suffer from at least one middle ear infection (otitis media) before they're a year old, and two-thirds of them will have had at least one episode by age three. The symptoms of otitis media include ear pain, fever, and irritability. If you investigate the ear of a child who has otitis media, you will be able to see a buildup of fluid behind the ear drum, and the inside of the ear will appear inflamed. Otitis media is caused by either a bacterial or viral infection and frequently results from another illness such as a cold. For many children, it can become a chronic problem, requiring treatment year after year, and putting the child at risk of permanent hearing damage and associated speech and developmental problems.

In either case, the underlying root cause of otitis media is usually a mechanical problem. There is either a reduced or blocked drainage of the lymph vessels in the neck lymphatic chains that causes a buildup of fluid in the inner ear, or a loss of normal function of the small muscle at the opening of the eustacean tube in the throat that allows bacteria and viruses from the mouth to enter the inner ear. Instead of treatment that tries to kill the bacteria or virus, a more natural approach would be to restore normal drainage of the ears and neck lymphatics. This is most effectively done through chiropractic.

If your child experiences recurrent ear infections, it is important that you talk to your chiropractor. Doctors of Chiropractic are licensed and trained to diagnose and treat patients of all ages and will use a gentler type of treatment for children. By helping to restore the normal function of the tissues of the neck, otitis media can usually be significantly reduced or eliminated in most children, without the use of antibiotics and surgery.

ALLERGIES/ASTHMA

At this stage of development some children begin to develop allergies and/or asthma symptoms. Many allergic and asthmatic reactions are caused by hypersensitivity of the immune system and chiropractic care can help.

Allergies are often treated with chiropractic care. Researchers have found that the immune and respiratory systems depend on normal communication from the brain and spinal cord to control and coordinate their functions properly.

Therefore, if your child’s neck is misaligned, it could cause an imbalance in their nervous system function. This upper cervical spinal joint irritation could possibly produce or exaggerate asthmatic and allergic symptoms. For example; many asthma and allergy sufferers experienced traumas such as head injuries or falls which could have injured their upper cervical spines (The average toddler falls nearly 25 times a day!). The good news is that we can perform an upper cervical examination to determine if chiropractic care can reduce your child’s allergic and asthmatic reactions.

 Other symptoms your toddler may experience:

• Chronic colds
• Eczema
• Night terrors
• Irritability
• Mood swings
• Diarrhea
• Constipation
• Delayed Milestones
• Respiratory Infections

If you don’t see a symptoms listed or would like more information on any of these symptoms, please reach out to us!