The 1918 Flu Pandemic & Chiropractic

The 1918 influenza pandemic has been labeled in history as one of the most devastating outbreaks in the history of the world with deaths estimated at between 20 and 40 million people. Over 675,000 American citizens lost their lives due to this awful epidemic. Why are we talking about this? The 1918 flu crisis has been labeled in the Chiropractic profession as the reason for our success and proliferation as an occupation. Here are some of the statistics that give merit to the power of the Chiropractic adjustment:

In Davenport, Iowa 50 medical doctors cared for 4,953 cases with 274 deaths. Also in Davenport, 150 chiropractors saw 1,635 cases with only one death. In the state of Iowa, medical doctors treated 93,590 patients, with 6,116 deaths, a loss of one patient out of every 15. In the same state, excluding Davenport, 4,735 patients were seen by chiropractors with a loss of only six patients – a loss of one patient out of every 789.

National figures show that 1,142 chiropractors cared for 46,394 for influenza during 1918, with a loss of 54 patients – one out of every 859. In New York City, 950 out of 10,000 cases died with medical methods while 25 out of 10,000 died using drugless methods.

Yes, the medical profession was seeing a majority of the worst of the worst; however, one of the greatest statistics backing chiropractic care comes from the state of Oklahoma. There were 233 cases in which the medical doctors had cared for patients and eventually pronounced them as “lost” or beyond hope… chiropractors took care of all 233 with only 25 deaths.

Chiropractic’s journey into health care took a huge leap forward thanks to its incredible effect on the thousands of Americans during the flu crisis. What I hope you all gain from this is the incredible results of the chiropractic adjustment. When you get adjusted, you decreased sustained sympathetic tone in your nervous system (bad), which subsequently leads to an increase in immune function (good), among many other consequences (Journal of Neurophysiology, February 2007). An increase in immune function is important for everything from the cold and runny nose to influenza, cancer, and heart disease, not to mention the great enhancing effects on a healthy individual. This is why we encourage you all to come in to get checked despite if you are not feeling the best. An adjustment will stimulate your immune system to better fight off any illness in your body.

The stresses that people endured in the early 1900s were entirely different than those we incur presently. In order to achieve these dramatic results you must not only get adjusted, but also make changes in your lifestyle so your body can at least have an opportunity to heal. A few simple steps can maximize the effects of your adjustments. Eat more green, leafy vegetables with every meal, take a 20 minute walk outside every day, and have a more optimistic view on life. similar stories