04/08/2026
How Specific Chiropractic Saves Your Brain
I recently took 2 courses on the neurobiology of sleep and chiropractic’s effect on the brain. What I learned confirmed WHY I’m so fired up about what we do in our office. You can see on the chart below which areas of your body are affected when you don’t have normal motion of the first 2 vertebrae in your neck, called Upper Cervical segments. You get spinal cord tension, decreased drainage of CSF and blood flow to and from your brain. Your balance suffers. Your stress levels go up because the brain perceives all of this as a fight or flight situation. Your pain levels increase, and function suffers in all areas of your body.
On the flip side, every time you get a specific, scientific upper cervical adjustment (what we do in this office based on your x-rays) here’s what happens to your brain:
Nerve Growth Factor increases, which stimulates the growth of nerve cells in the brain.
Cerebrospinal Fluid pumps and cleans the brain, ridding it of Beta Amyloid protein, the main causative factor in Alzheimer’s Disease.
Brain Derived Neurotropic factor is released, building more neuron connections in your brain for a strong memory.
Glucose is delivered to the brain, reducing Beta Amyloid protein in your brain (again think Alzheimer’s).
Notice I said specific, scientific chiropractic adjustments. I did NOT say: Physical therapy exercises, a “pop and pray” adjustment from The Joint, a theragun massage, trigger point therapy or stretching.
Those things are fine (well, not the pop and pray adjustment) but they don’t correct upper cervical subluxations or misalignments. When you get adjusted today, give yourself a mental high five for taking care of the most important part of your body - your BRAIN!
THE UPPER CERVICAL AREA
The Craniocervical junction is a complex region where the skull and the two first vertebrae atlas & axis connect. Due to the complexity of this area and the important structures surrounding it, a misalignment in the upper cervical spine can have a detrimental effect on overall