There are five addictions: chemical, work, eating disorders, sex and gambling.

This includes but is not limited to the compulsive disorders such as ADHD, Tourette’s Syndrome, depression and anxiety disorders. Interestingly, there are three causes of subluxation: mental, chemical, physical. In the first days of its second century, chiropractic may be a bold, effective, and inexpensive treatment for the alarming problem of addictions. An estimated 20% of the U.S. population suffers from some form of addiction, and over 80% of all crime is traceable to substance abuse and addiction. According to the National Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, addiction is implicated in 69% of drownings, 68% of manslaughters, 49% of murders, 50% of all traffic fatalities, and 35% of all suicides. Add to this deaths from drug overdose and substance abuse-related health complications, and you have a health problem of staggering proportions. And chemical dependency can be fatal.

According to recent research reported in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, torque release chiropractic has demonstrated remarkable effectiveness in patients suffering from addiction. The purpose of this research was to determine if neurological correction would allow for greater fulfillment of human potential in the arena of well-being, a fundamental principle within chiropractic philosophy. However, until now, no randomized placebo-controlled studies have put chiropractic’s philosophy to the test. This is the first time chiropractic research has been published in a journal of such international importance and prestige in the scientific community.

Dr. Holder, inventor of the torque release technique, chose addicts for the study population since addicts best represent those persons suffering from Reward Deficiency Syndrome (a lack of state of well-being) and its relationship to the Brain Reward Cascade (the chemicals in the human body responsible for well being). The study was conducted at Exodus Addiction Treatment Center, a 350-bed addiction hospital located in Miami, Florida. During the 18-month study, the patient population was divided into three test groups. Group I received standard addiction treatment including group therapy, psychotherapy and medical care. Group II received the same addiction treatment but was also provided torque release chiropractic adjustments using the Integrator adjusting instrument. Group III was the placebo group which received the same addiction treatment performed in Group I and II, but was also provided placebo chiropractic adjustments by modifying the Integrator to fire without any force or frequency characteristics.


Addiction Treatment Program

Just 56 per cent of Group I finished their treatment program, compared with 75 per cent of Group III (placebo group).

However, 100 per cent of the patients in Group II receiving true torque release chiropractic adjustments finished their treatment program. This 100 per cent Retention Rate has never been accomplished by any other modality including pharmaceutical, psychological or medical treatment. Retention Rate is the “gold standard” in the field of addiction treatment. It is the primary yardstick for funding treatment programs that government funding agencies and drug courts use to fund and/or refer patients to for treatment. There are now over 400 drug courts requiring treatment instead of incarceration throughout the United States.

This ground breaking research revealed torque release chiropractic care lowered depression and anxiety levels to a normal state based on the industry standard assessments within 3-4 weeks. This is monumental because this usually took one year of medication and psychotherapy to achieve similar results. The study clearly showed a strong association between torque release chiropractic care and significant improvement in state of well-being and increased retention of patients in an addiction treatment program. Currently, retention is a major hurdle in treating addictions.

Addicts who finish a 30-day substance abuse treatment program have a much better chance of overcoming their addiction and staying clean.

However, nationally, only 72 per cent of all participants manage to complete such a program. That’s why the 100 per cent retention rate offered by torque release care and subluxation correction in this study is so important. Too many people who could be helped by these substance abuse treatment programs are dropping out too soon. If we can get patients to stay in the program, we can begin to see real progress in our battle against addictions. Success can be attributed to a “major change in the anxiety levels, which went down much more dramatically in the torque release chiropractic group. “In these kinds of treatment facilities, if you make an effort that’s successful to reduce anxiety, you can keep people around longer,” my colleague Dr. Robert Duncan added.