The Underestimated Effect of Chiropractic Adjustments: It’s All About the Neural Pathways

Written By Cuan Wayne Coetzee .

Welcome back to MoveMed! Today, I want to talk about a fascinating and often overlooked benefit of chiropractic adjustments. We’re all familiar with the usual outcomes: improved range of motion, better blood flow, reduced pain, and enhanced daily function. But there’s another, deeper effect that we rarely highlight—one that’s all about the brain and its connection to your body.

The Neural Effect: Waking Up Your Brain-to-Joint Connection

When a joint has been restricted for a while, whether due to injury, poor posture, or repetitive strain, something happens on a neurological level. The neural input from that joint to the brain decreases or, in some cases, stops altogether. Think of it like a telephone line going silent. This lack of communication between the joint and the brain leads to dysfunction, weakness, and often, pain.

But here’s where chiropractic care comes in.

What Really Happens During an Adjustment?

When we adjust a joint—moving it beyond its usual physiological range of motion—we activate something called mechanoreceptors. These are specialised nerve endings that detect changes in joint movement, and they play a critical role in proprioception (your body’s awareness of where it is in space). In other words, mechanoreceptors tell your brain what your joints are doing.

When these receptors get activated through an adjustment, it’s like turning the volume back up on that silent telephone line. The brain starts receiving signals again from the joint, waking up the neural pathways that had been dormant. This process of reactivating these neural connections is vital for restoring proper function.

A recent study suggests that chiropractic adjustments significantly enhance neural signalling between the spine and brain, improving motor control and proprioception .

Repetition and Rehabilitation: Strengthening the Neural Pathway

One adjustment is a great start, but it’s the repetition of adjustments combined with proper rehabilitation exercises that really strengthens this brain-to-joint connection. When we repeatedly activate these mechanoreceptors through adjustments and then show you how to maintain proper movement patterns, we’re not just treating your symptoms—we’re rewiring your nervous system.

Over time, with consistent treatment and the right exercises, the brain forms a stronger, more permanent connection with the previously restricted joint. This process is called neural plasticity, and it’s the foundation of our functional approach to chiropractic care.

Research highlights the importance of combining manual therapy with rehabilitation exercises to create lasting improvements in joint function and neural control .

Why Neural Function is Our Primary Focus

At MoveMed, we always focus on function first. Our main goal is to restore your body’s ability to move freely and efficiently, and this starts with re-establishing the brain’s connection to your joints. The increased range of motion, pain relief, and better function that most people seek are actually byproducts of this restored neural communication.

When we treat the root cause—neural dysfunction—the rest falls into place naturally. By retraining your brain and body to move well again, we help you not only recover from injury but also prevent future issues.

The Long-Term Benefits: Moving Beyond Symptoms

The neural effect of chiropractic adjustments offers long-term benefits that extend far beyond symptom relief. By improving the way your brain communicates with your body, we help you achieve lasting improvements in mobility, strength, and function. This is why we emphasise movement, rehabilitation, and education in every treatment plan—because true health comes from restoring and maintaining good neural function.

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References:

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  2. Lelic D, Niazi IK, Holt K, Jochumsen M, Dremstrup K, Yielder P, Murphy B, Drewes AM, Haavik H. Manipulation of Dysfunctional Spinal Joints Affects Sensorimotor Integration in the Prefrontal Cortex: A Brain Source Localization Study. Neural Plast. 2016;2016:3704964. doi: 10.1155/2016/3704964. Epub 2016 Mar 7. PMID: 27047694; PMCID: PMC4800094. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4800094/

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  4. Proske U. A reassessment of the role of joint receptors in human position sense. Exp Brain Res. 2023 Apr;241(4):943-949. doi: 10.1007/s00221-023-06582-0. Epub 2023 Mar 3. PMID: 36869268; PMCID: PMC10082099. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10082099/

  5. Short S, Tuttle M, Youngman D. A Clinically-Reasoned Approach to Manual Therapy in Sports Physical Therapy. IJSPT. 2023;18(1):262-271. doi:10.26603/001c.67936

  6. Wilhelm M, Cleland J, Carroll A, Marinch M, Imhoff M, Severini N, Donaldson M. The combined effects of manual therapy and exercise on pain and related disability for individuals with nonspecific neck pain: A systematic review with meta-analysis. J Man Manip Ther. 2023 Dec;31(6):393-407. doi: 10.1080/10669817.2023.2202895. Epub 2023 Apr 24. PMID: 37092822; PMCID: PMC10642331. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10642331/

  7. Katic Secerovic N, Balaguer JM, Gorskii O, Pavlova N, Liang L, Ho J, Grigsby E, Gerszten PC, Karal-Ogly D, Bulgin D, Orlov S, Pirondini E, Musienko P, Raspopovic S, Capogrosso M. Neural population dynamics reveals disruption of spinal circuits' responses to proprioceptive input during electrical stimulation of sensory afferents. Cell Rep. 2024 Feb 27;43(2):113695. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.113695. Epub 2024 Jan 19. PMID: 38245870; PMCID: PMC10962447. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10962447/

Cuan Wayne Coetzee .
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