Immune System Function

Can Chiropractic Care Help Your Immune System Work Better?

The nervous system, the endocrine system, and the immune system are inextricably linked, like a three-legged stool.  (For some great articles on this concept, click here, here, here, here, here, and here)  Several research studies have suggested that chiropractic care may support immune system function.  Below are a few articles give some insights into how this might happen.

The nervous, immune, and endocrine systems share tiny messenger molecules that mediate communication between them.  One of these messenger molecules, IL-2, used to be classically thought of as an immune system molecule; however, studies published within the past decade have clearly shown IL-2's presence and activity in the nervous system (click here for more information).  One intriguing study,"Enhancement of in vitro interleukin-2 production in normal subjects following a single spinal manipulative treatment"(click here for the article) clearly demonstrated an increase in IL-2 levels and also in the function of T-cells, which are key players in the immune system's army of cells, following chiropractic adjustment.  The authors concluded that chiropractic adjustment can influence the biological immune response. 

A series of studies published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Theraputics (JMPT) by Brennan and Triano showed that several types of immune system cells, including phagocytes, neutrophils, and PMNs, showed increased biological activity after chiropractic adjustment.  Links to the PubMed abstracts can be found here and here.  These studies all suggest that chiropractic adjustment can affect immune system function.

And let's not forget that the endocrine system is the third leg in the stool of neuro-endocrine immunology.  The endocrine system's main players are epinephrine (also known as adrenaline), nor-epinephrine, and cortisol.  These molecules are produced in the adrenal glands, endocrine glands which have direct connections with the nervous system by way of a division called the sympathetic nervous system.  Cortisol in particular is a stress hormone that inhibits the immune system (which is why stress really can make you sick!)  So if the sympathetic nervous system is too "turned on" due to stress and subluxation, it may increase the adrenal glands' synthesis of cortisol, in turn affecting the immune system.  Vertebral subluxation promotes this exact situation (see here for and article abstract and here for an full article describing this).  

Recently, the Foundation for Vertebral Subluxation created a Best Practices Guidelines compendium describing the utility of chiropractic care for restoring or enhancing immune system adaptability.  Click here to access full text of these Guidelines, "Immunity and Clinical Practice."