Portland Applied Kinesiology | Mind Body Medicine | Naturopathic Medicine | Whole Food

Applied Kinesiology (AK) is a diagnostic and therapeutic practice developed in the field of chiropractic medicine and is used by doctors in many fields (dentists, medical, osteopathic, and naturopathic doctors). Its diagnostic principles are based on Traditional Chinese Medicine in which every muscle in the body is related to an organ, gland or acupuncture meridian. By testing specific muscles, the doctor can identify areas of dysfunction in the body and apply the appropriate method of treatment. AK blends therapeutic modalities from Cranial-Sacral therapy, Sacral-Occipital Technique, Acupuncture Meridian therapies, Chiropractic, Naturopathy, Osteopathy, Clinical Nutrition, and Energy Psychology.

The practice of AK differs from other types of medical practices in the following key ways:

• AK is holistic medicine - This practice recognizes and examines how the many various aspects of the body and mind that compose your health are all related. When one or more aspect of health is unbalanced, other factors of health are affected as well. For example, when one is feeling stressed or upset, the digestive system temporarily shuts down and it becomes more difficult to digest foods. Or, when one has the flu, the brain is signaled to feel tired so that you rest for recovery. It is truly amazing how the many various "parts" are interconnected. They are so much so, that there really aren't "parts" at all. Although we can talk about the various aspects and name them, they are all working together. AK treatment addresses the function of your body's muscles, organs, glands, spine, joints, nervous system, lymph, meridian flow (based on Chinese medicine), emotions, and nutrition.
• AK balances the structural, chemical and mental sides of health. The symbol representing AK is an equilateral triangle (see below) demonstrating that health is composed of structural, chemical and mental factors that should be balanced. AK allows the doctor to evaluate and improve this balance. AK takes a holistic approach to health instead of the single-sided approach of other kinds of therapies.

  Structure refers to the way that your body is moving or not moving properly. When joint and spinal areas are not aligned and moving smoothly, we experience discomfort and possibly disability. When muscles are tightened or weakened from not getting the nerve and blood supply that they need, we also experience discomfort, which can create other health problems as well. AK works with the spine and extremities to re-align bones. This allows for the needed nerve, blood and energy flows for the health of the rest of your body. AK also works with the muscles ( which move the bones), to create balance in the body by strengthening the weak ones and relaxing the tight ones.

  

  Chemical refers to what your body may need on a nutritional level to function optimally and heal. AK principles are focused on whole food nutrition, and getting the building block nutrients that our bodies need from the foods we eat. When the body needs additional support, AK diagnostic techniques reveal the necessary nutrient (nutrition, herbal, homeopathic, or pharmaceutical) that will help to correct and heal your body's imbalance.

  Mental refers to the mental and emotional facets of whole body and mind health. How we are feeling mentally and emotionally directly impact our health. For example, Dr. Candice Pert, PhD writes about how your body's cellular membranes change depending on what kind of attitude you have and what stressors you are experiencing in life (Molecules of Emotion). With poor response to stress, and negative thinking or attitude, these cellular changes are shown to lead to dysfunction and disease. With calming coping skills to stress and life optimism, cells respond in a positive way. The reverse is also true. When we are feeling ill and experiencing disability or poor health, our mental and emotional states are often affected.

AK techniques aid the doctor and patient in revealing the primary sources of distress, altering the body's response to stress, and helping to reduce and balance the charge of emotional issues. Other AK techniques help with issues related to brain function (such as learning disabilities, memory, dyslexia, and mood) by optimizing nervous system communication.

Symptoms can develop when any of these aspects of health are imbalanced. For instance, with a chronic misaligned vertebra whose nerves supply information to and from the lungs an individual may experience chronic shortness of breath. This shortness of breath may result in the inability to get exercise on a regular basis. Without regular exercise, an individual may be prone to weight gain. This may result in feelings of fatigue and depression. It becomes apparent how each of these three factors (structural, chemical and nutritional) affect each other. Significant improvements in health can be made when all three are corrected and balanced. AK provides the advantage of healing on deep levels with its multi-modality approach.

Conventional types of therapy usually offer a single-sided approach:

In conventional medicine, the doctor mostly evaluates the chemical side of the triangle, and prescribes drugs to control body functions. The doctor also attempts to control the other two sides of the triangle with substances such as tranquilizers and antidepressants for the mental side, and muscle relaxants and pain-killers for the structural side. Unfortunately, drugs mask health problems, and don't eliminate them. Drugs can also create dependence on the part of the patient, and cause unwanted side effects or damage to other aspects of body.

In chiropractic care, the main focus is on structure, the base of the triangle. This therapy can produce excellent results. But many health problems are able to be addressed and healed on a more thorough level when biochemical and emotional aspects are equally examined.

In mental health care, psychiatrists, psychologists and counselors provide invaluable help and insight into mental/emotional wellbeing. The benefits of professional counseling cannot be replaced when an individual needs support for life patterns, skills and events. When this is the case, AK greatly complements counseling for improving overall health and wellbeing by uncovering particular sources of distress, improving the body and mind's response, and balancing the charge of emotional issues.

AK is functional medicine - The term "functional" refers to how the body is functioning. So, functional medicine implies using diagnostic techniques to see how the body is functioning and using natural therapies to optimize the functioning of organs, glands, nerves, muscles, etc.

This approach is different from conventional medical practice which diagnoses and treats states of disease. For example, conventional medical tests diagnose absolute conditions, such as hypothyroidism (Hashimoto's), and hypoadrenia (Addison's disease), but are not designed to look at the relative states between health and disease. When absolute Hashimoto's or Addison's is not present, functional medicine recognizes when an organ or gland may not be functioning adequately or optimally. In many cases, a thyroid blood test may appear within normal ranges, but the gland is working subclinically. The patient may be experiencing symptoms and would benefit from therapeutic thyroid support. Functional medicine examines this spectrum of organ and gland functioning.

An AK doctor is able to examine how areas of the body (organ, glands, etc) are functioning, locate the cause of any dysfunction, and apply therapy towards the specific areas to restore and maintain health. In this way, AK is able to help the areas that need the support, and prevent pathology and disease before it occurs.