Clinical Kinesiology/Chiropractic (CK)

Clinical Kinesiology is a system of chiropractic care that evaluates the structural, chemical and mental aspects of health using hand modes and manual muscle testing along with other standard methods of diagnosis.  CK addresses the chemical, mental/emotional and structural factors that balance the major health categories.  Every aspect of your body interacts with every other aspect and all levels must be evaluated in order to uncover the underlying cause of a problem.  A health problem on one level can affect the other levels and thereby cause an overall dysfunction.  For example, a chemical imbalance can cause mental/emotional symptoms. In addition, a chronic structural problem like a disc bulge can also cause depression or anxiety.  Clinical Kinesiology enables the doctor to evaluate the body's balance and direct therapy toward the imbalanced parts(1).

The doctor using Clinical Kinesiology finds a muscle that is weakened and then attempts to determine why that muscle is not functioning properly.  The doctor evaluates, using specific hand modes, the treatment that will best balance the patient's health.  Treatments may involve specific joint manipulation or mobilization, various myofascial therapies, massage, cranial techniques, meridian and acupuncture protocols, clinical nutrition, dietary management, counselling skills, evaluation of environmental irritants and various reflex procedures.(2)           

CK is derived from the original muscle response research called Applied Kinesiology (AK), founded by Dr. George Goodheart in 1964.  Dr. Goodheart postulated that simple body movements (especially muscle movements) can be used to evaluate physical functioning.  In 1975, Dr. Alan Beardall, a protégé of Dr. Goodheart’s,  began innovating and testing the Clinical Kinesiologytechnique by using specific hand modes in order to create a way to sequentially bring order and a linear understanding of when and where to use the various treatments listed above.

Clinical Kinesiology relies on the extremely precise energy connection between mind and body.  Your body has been pre-programmed to sustain life.  Each cell, body part, organ and energy system is genetically encoded to work for continued survival of the organism.(3) The muscle testing and hand modes of CK rely upon evaluating the nervous system’s ability to send signals to and from the brain without interruption.  Just like in a relationship between two people, when the lines of communication are open, the relationship flourishes.  If communication breaks down, the relationship is doomed.

How does stress affect your health? 

If a particular stressor is introduced into your system, a misalignment of the spine will result.  In Chiropractic, this type of misalignment is called a subluxation.   A vertebral subluxation is a misalignment of the bones of the spine that protect the spinal cord which is comparable to a leak in the roof, or a kink in the wiring of your nervous system.  The severity of the subluxation can vary, and there are a number of potential contributing factors that can be physical, emotional, mental, or chemical. 

We all have a critical threshold for how much stress our bodies can adapt to.  When either one stressor or the summation of all of the stressors exceeds that critical level, subluxations result.  They are the consequence of the body compensating for the multiple stressors our bodies are exposed to moment by moment.  Clinical Kinesiologists are interested in locating and removing subluxations of the spine as well as identifying and reducing or removing the stressors that caused those subluxations in the first place. 

What are the four major stressors that CK can address?      

Structural:Gravity, Physical trauma, Poor posture,Vibration from driving a car,Subluxations that result from the body compensating for all other stress.
Electromagnetic:Cell phones and pagers, Electromagnetic waves from electrical devices (heaters, lights, hair dryers...),
Blockages in the acupuncture meridians.
Emotional: This is what most people think of when they hear the word “stress”.
Chemical: Poor diet – i.e. too many trans-fatty acids, too few nutrients, Too many supplements, Food and environmental allergies and/or hypersensitivities, Poor physiology – i.e. enzyme & hormonal imbalances.

Your body contains the information for what’s wrong – along with what is needed to bring itself back to balance and optimal health.  CK testing may be used to determine which aspects of treatment will be most helpful.  CK allows you to prioritize and unwind the knot of all these stressors in the body, in the most efficient and effective order.  Another way to look at it is this; removing the stressors using CK muscle testing with hand modes is like peeling the layers of an onion and addressing each priority as it displays itself until we get to the root or underlying cause of the problem.