Does Chiropractic Care Release Toxins from the Body?

If you’re preparing for your first chiropractic visit, you may have heard of toxic release. After your first adjustment, you may experience cold or flu-like symptoms. No, this isn’t because you caught a bug at the chiropractor, but because of toxic release. Here’s what you need to know about what happens when toxins are released from the body.

What is Toxic Release?

Approximately 20% of chiropractic patients experience toxic release following an adjustment. It might sound a little scary, but it’s actually a positive reaction to chiropractic treatment. Your body is releasing toxins due to spinal manipulations, which is a good thing. Unfortunately, releasing those toxins from muscles and joints has some temporary and unpleasant symptoms. If you are part of the small percentage of people that experience toxic release symptoms, you can take comfort knowing that your body is adjusting to the expulsion of negative toxins and the symptoms will soon fade.

Toxic Release Symptoms

If your body does go through toxic release, though most people don’t, the symptoms include fatigue, headache, night sweats, tight muscles, and cold and flu-like symptoms. Feeling tired is also common after a chiropractic adjustment because your body is adjusting to the way your nervous system is responding to the treatment. Before your spine and joints are returned to proper alignment, your nervous system is likely jammed up by subluxations. After an adjustment, your nerves function optimally, which can be tiring to the body at first as it has been deprived of this for some time.

Toxic Release 101

All throughout the day, your body is reacting to chemical signals between the spinal cord and the brain. When that energy flow is disrupted due to subluxations, that action slows down. Clearing those blockages and returning the proper flow of energy results in an adjustment period for the body, which can cause it to feel tired and even sick.

Think about it this way: imagine your nervous system is a garden hose. When the hose has a kink, the water gets backed up and can’t flow properly. The same idea applies to your nervous system. If there is a subluxation in your spine, it blocks communication and energy flow while causing pressure to build up. That pressure can result in many different ailments, from chronic issues to headaches. When spinal manipulations release that pressure, the new flow of energy is what causes those cold-like symptoms. The good news is that toxic release doesn’t last long and it indicates chiropractic adjustments are working.

To learn more about toxic release and what to expect during a chiropractic adjustment, click here to contact your local South Florida chiropractor.