Chiropractic and Earaches

Young children have a shorter and more horizontal ear canal than adults. This sets them up for a higher possibility for earaches, as fluid can build up behind the ear drum and cause misery for a child.

Chiropractic care of children can help. The simple action of realigning small neck bones has a myriad of effects. Chiropractic adjustments help neck, face, and ear muscles function better, they help lymph to flow and drain, and they allow your child’s body to effectively fight off infection. 

My recommendation for treating an earache in your child is a hierarchy of care. Start with the least invasive treatment first, which is the chiropractic adjustment of the upper neck. Some great home remedies include warm oil (not hot!) in the ear, increasing vitamin C and water intake to flush toxins and fluid and boost immune function, and limit sugar intake until the earache is better. (Sugar dampens the immune system and feeds bacteria.) If these things do not help after a few days, then consult the medical professional. It may be that your child has a bacterial infection that can be best treated with antibiotics. 

My dismay with the typical medical treatment of childhood earaches is that, more often than not, the child is given antibiotics right off the bat. Antibiotics are only effective if A) there is an infection causing fluid to build in the ear and B) that infection is actually a bacteria, not a virus. Antibiotics do absolutely nothing in the case of a viral infection, unless you count causing lethargy and lowering the natural fighting ability of your child’s immune system. If the antibiotics do not seem to do the trick in clearing up the earache, piercing the eardrum and inserting drainage tubes is the next step. I have seen lots of children do well after having this procedure, and I have never seen a child that I think actually should have had the procedure. The ear already has an internal drainage system. Helping this to work better makes more sense to me than putting a hole where there shouldn’t be one, opening up a sensitive area to outside infection.

The good news is that the American Medical Association has, in recent years, taken a “watch and see” approach, and more often anxious parents and kids are being sent home to let time work its magic. Most ear infections do, eventually, work themselves out. If your child has an earache, or if your child has experienced chronic earaches, get them to your chiropractor. A few cervical spinal adjustments may do wonders.