There are many relentless urban legends that continue to baffle the crowds such as alligators roaming underground in New York City's sewers and that there is no echo when a duck quacks. The one misconception I often deal with is that visiting a chiropractor makes you addicted and you have to keep going.

This misunderstanding probably started due to a simple lack of information. For generations, the public has held the belief about aging that little can be done about the chronic conditions that develop over time. I watched my grandmother struggle with her health issues most of my childhood. The part that stood out the most was her passive attitude that told me, “That's just the way it is.”

As I embarked on a career of finding out what makes people tick, I learned how the body has a great capacity to heal. Yet in the body's wisdom to heal quickly, injuries must heal incompletely leaving subtle weaknesses in the spine. Over time the stresses accumulate in the nervous system short circuiting energy and metabolism. Because stress never goes away, chiropractic care on a regular basis finely tunes the nervous system so vital messages to the organs are not blocked.

For people who have experienced the benefits of ongoing care, we are just a bunch of health nuts to everyone else. This concept is not new, however. Dentists, optometrists and gynecologists among many health professionals also tout the advantages of routine care and check ups.

The world's most famous chiropractor, Dr. Jack Lalanne, is a great example of what regular chiropractic care can do for overall health. A study of 75- 85-year-olds who utilize regular chiropractic care were less like likely to take prescription medications and less likely to be hospitalized and live in nursing homes.

While going to the chiropractor makes great sense, saying it is an addiction is an unfortunate twisting of language. It belittles the true problem of addictions. We easily make jokes by saying people are addicted to text messaging, shopping or their 3 o'clock lattes, but lives are ruined by the serious addictions that lead to bankruptcy, prison time and premature death.

The field of addictionology has made recent breakthroughs and chiropractic has made its contribution, as well. In the last decade, reward deficiency syndrome has become the new buzz word to describe neurobiological and genetic causes of addictions.

There is a genetic predisposition affecting the metabolism of the limbic system. It alters normal sensory interpretation so a person seeks out undesirable substances and behaviors to fill the void. The most important finding is that the limbic system is more prevalent within the spinal cord rather than the brain. Chiropractic adjustments of the spine have been shown to help with cravings, withdrawal, retention rates, anxiety and pain.

While old ideas, gossip and urban legends abound, chiropractic stands out as a life saving approach to today's many social and chronic problems. The accurate and corrected adage is chiropractic profoundly changes lives. And who wouldn't want more of that?

Lisa Ann Homic, M.Ed. D.C., may be contacted at www.DrHomic.com