It’s human nature. We’re quick to fix problems, but not so quick to prevent them. When it comes to health, most people wait until something hurts before they act. That’s why for many, chiropractic care begins with a car accident, a stiff neck, or ongoing back pain. Of course, you should turn to chiropractic care in a crisis. But if you only use it in those moments, you’re underutilizing chiropractic care, one of the most powerful tools for lifetime health.

Setting the Stage

Why do we underutilize chiropractic care? Let’s take a look at our healthcare system. Often, it’s not you or even your doctor who determines what type of care or how much you receive. Who makes that decision? It’s your insurance company. And we all know that they’re not exactly champions of prevention.

In our article, The Fine Print, we showed how the government views preventive care, including chiropractic. Here’s what the current Medicare Guidelines say in Section 2251.3:

2251.3 Necessity for Treatment.
Maintenance Therapy — Chiropractic maintenance therapy is not medically reasonable or necessary and is not payable under the Medicare program. Maintenance therapy includes services that seek to prevent disease, promote health, and prolong or enhance quality of life, or maintain or prevent deterioration of a chronic condition.

In other words, if care helps you stay well or live better, Medicare won’t cover it. And since private insurers often follow Medicare’s lead, many of them limit or exclude preventive care, including chiropractic, altogether.

When insurance companies talk about “overutilization,” what they really mean is: we’re not willing to pay for that much care. The system isn’t built to keep you healthy; it’s built to respond when you’re already sick.

What’s Your Lifestyle?

So, if no one else is looking out for your long-term well-being, that responsibility falls to you. You know that your spine and nervous system are the communication highways for everything your body does. They don’t just support your body, they run it.

Keeping them healthy every day of your life means taking a look at your lifestyle. At The 100 Year Lifestyle^Ⓡ, we say the intensity of your care should match the intensity of your life. If you eat well, exercise, manage stress, and move often, you might need less frequent adjustments than someone who sits all day, grabs fast food, and rarely moves. That said, many people do end up in the chiropractor’s office, in pain, but they go until they feel better, and then they stop.

That’s where underutilization begins. When care stops too soon or only happens during pain, symptoms come back, problems worsen, and the cycle continues. Feeling better isn’t the same as being stable. True stability means your body has corrected, healed, and strengthened. And achieving that takes time and consistency. What you want to do is live at 100% every day of your life. That’s not overutilization, it’s common sense.

The Right Care for a Lifetime

Chiropractic care isn’t one-size-fits-all. Your needs depend on your history, goals, and lifestyle.

• A competitive athlete or high-stress professional may need weekly adjustments to stay sharp.
• Toddlers and kids involved in sports take plenty of tumbles and benefit from regular adjustments to grow properly.

• Those recovering from stress, injury, or degeneration may need more frequent care early on before moving into long-term lifestyle care.

At every stage of life, the right level of care helps your body function at its best.

From Crisis Care to Lifestyle Care

At The 100 Year LifestyleⓇ, we help people shift from crisis care (fixing problems) to lifestyle care (staying healthy for life). When your care matches your needs, there’s no such thing as under- or overutilization. You’re always getting just the right amount of support to help you function, move, and live at 100%.

If you’re ready to take responsibility for your own health and want to function at your highest level today and every day, find a 100 Year LifestyleⓇ provider near you and discover the right chiropractic care for you.