Can a Chiropractic Adjustment Help Clear Your Sinuses?

While most of our patients come to see us in search of relief for their low back pain, we see it as our duty to utilize visits as an opportunity to dive deeper to see if there are other ways we can help them live a better life. Often times, we discover that treating some of their aches and pains can actually provide relief in other areas of their body as well. From sciatica to sinus pain, chiropractors have a deep understanding of how the musculoskeletal system works closely with the nervous system to trigger sensation, including pain and pressure, throughout the body. One of the lesser known treatments is adjustments focused on relieving sinus pressure from sickness or allergies.

Battling Allergy Season with Chiropractic Adjustments

A common cause of sinus pressure and pain is the common cold or allergies, causing what is known as sinusitis. This is a result of the tissue lining in your sinus cavities becoming inflamed and blocking drainage of mucus and pollutants, increasing pressure, clogging nasal passages, and sometimes inciting swelling in the face and eyes. This build-up of fluid that can cause intense pressure in the sinus pathways of the face.
While many people turn to cold or allergy medication to relieve the symptoms, a chiropractic adjustment of specific bones in the face, neck, and back could provide relief to the cause, and in turn the symptoms. It can also be seen as a preventative therapy to keep things moving in your sinuses before they get backed up. By leveraging the musculoskeletal system’s communication with the nervous system, the nervous system can then stimulate the immune system that controls the body’s reaction to outside elements like pollen, ragweed, and germs.

What to Expect

Whether you’re already a chiropractic patient or are trying it for the first time, the doctor will want to get to know your sinus issues, specifically. You will likely have to answer questions that can lead to the root cause of the issue, whether it be allergies, a deviated septum, or simply a common cold and possibly receive an X-ray to help discover possible misalignments.

Chiropractic Manipulation

Most likely, your chiropractor will perform a hands-on chiropractic manipulation in the sinus areas of your facial region, behind your ears, or the vertebrae in your neck that can influence the muscles in your face to encourage the relief of pressure to the sinuses and allow drainage.

Activator Method

Another method that is commonly used at the Tuck Clinic offices is known as the activator method. Using a small hand-held pressurized tool, our doctors are able to pinpoint the trigger areas in the face that will loosen up the sinuses to allow the drainage of mucus build up.

Eating Well

Choose what you eat wisely if you suffer from sinus problems often. Foods like dairy and sugar can increase inflammation and worsen the effects of an allergic reaction, sinus infection, or long-term sinus problems. If you have a hard time resisting these foods, do your best to balance them with anti-inflammatory foods like fruits, vegetables, and turmeric.
Bonus Tip: Bee Proactive When you start peak allergy season off eating honey that is harvested locally to your area, you may be able to build up some level of immunity to the local pollen that would most commonly influence an allergic reaction.
If you’re experiencing sinus pressure and pain, ask your chiropractor at your next visit how they may be able to help! Then, you can get back to stopping and smelling the flowers.