I found a great article titled, " Can Sports Specialization Cause Youth Injuries?" which tries to explain the the connection between injuries and sports specialization. They make some compelling arguments in favor of athletes who play multiple sports as appose to single sport athletes.  The major issue that they present is an issue that I as a chiropractor have been speaking about since I began chiropractic school.  The issue of balance! More specifically in this case, the issue of muscular balance. 

The premise of "Chiropractic" is that if we create a balanced spine free from nerve interference which comes in the form of a "subluxation"or an "articular fixation" we will live a healthy and happy life.  These subluxations/articular fixations can occur in any of the 26 vertebra in the spine in addition to any other joint in the body, ie. ankle knee, shoulder etc.  The issue here is that your spinal cord travel down the spinal canal and exits through openings called foramina.  These subluxations/fixations compromise the flow of information/energy from the brain to the body and the body to the brain. This is the primary cause of your " imbalance."  

Now that we know the primary cause of an imbalance now we need to ask the question, How do we become imbalanced?  In this article one of the explanations is that we focus too much on one activity.  The following is a quote directly from the article,

"With sports academies, travel teams, All-Star league and off-season tournaments growing in numbers, children as young as 10 years of age find themselves concentrating on a sport all year-round much like a professional."

"There are multiple factors, but a major one is specialization. They play only one sport. Plus, they play that sport a lot. They don't just play soccer for three months, they might play it for eight or nine months. They are training all year. More practice, more games, maybe three games in close succession at a weekend tournament. The intensity and volume is higher. And so is the risk."

I agree with all of this but they have not answered the question which is, How do we protect our young athletes from these injuries?  This is where your local chiropractor becomes invaluable to the health and future of your child.  The chiropractic adjustment is focused on removing those subluxations/articular fixations found in the spine which is the center point of movement. The muscles from your arms and the muscles from your legs anchor to the spine/torso. If your spine is not flexible and free from subluxation/articular fixation your body will compensate and create imbalances in the musculature which is being used repeatedly during practice and during games.  We must also take into account all the bad hits, twists, and falls that occur repeatedly.

Here in my office we have invested in what's called "Surface Electromyography (SEMG)" which allows us to evaluate the tone of your musculature and thereby determing whether you are balanced or not. We are able to evaluate whether you have to much muscular tone otherwise known as" hypertonicity" or too little tone otherwise known as "hypotonicity."

The graph below shows us the difference between our imbalance and proper balance. The scan on the left represents our goal which is equal tone on the left and right side of the body and the green represents a level of tension that is required to maintain an erect posture during a relaxed standing position.  The scan on the right is the patient, a 10-year-old soccer player spends approximately 4 to 5 days a week playing soccer.  This should be self explanatory at this point.  The improvements are also self explanatory and this is why we have invested in this technology.  Why fly blind when you can use radar?

The benefit of using this type of technology is that it allows us to evaluate the patient as they enter our office on the first visit and then we can objectively monitor progress. This technology also allows us to qualify the patients progress and make adjustments/modify the treatment plan if necessary.  No more flying blind. 

The question of frequency can now be answered objectively by the use of this type of technology which is used in research and medical textbooks.

Let's take a proactive approach to keep our children happy, healthy and strong.

  If there is an imbalance we can find it - Call today for a full evaluation and scan  201-489-3400.

http://www.thepostgame.com/features/201202/sport-specialization-may-lead-injuries-youths