Why Organic Chemistry Matters in Chiropractic: Understanding the Biochemical Roots of Vertebral Subluxation

A Message to Chiropractic Students on the Clinical Relevance of Chemistry, Birth Trauma, and Regulatory Battles
McCoy Press
May 17

“You don’t need organic chemistry to be a chiropractor.”

That’s a phrase I’ve heard echoed in chiropractic classrooms far too often. And I get it — memorizing carbon chains, reaction mechanisms, and enzyme pathways can feel a world away from palpating spines or delivering specific adjustments. But if you believe vertebral subluxation is real, impactful, and deserving of scientific rigor, then you must understand that organic chemistry is not only relevant — it’s essential.

And here’s the truth that’s often overlooked:

You cannot understand biochemistry without understanding organic chemistry and you can’t understand biomechanics without it.

The structures, reactions, and pathways that drive the subluxation-degeneration process are governed by the rules of organic chemistry. Without that foundation, you are simply memorizing isolated facts — not grasping the underlying science of human function and dysfunction. You become a technician - not a doctor.

“You cannot understand biochemistry without understanding organic chemistry.”

Organic chemistry teaches you how molecules are built, how they interact, and how they change, which is essential for understanding how enzymes catalyze reactions, how cellular membranes form, how receptors bind ligands, and how inflammation is triggered at the molecular level. These are the micro-foundations of biochemistry, but they are also the molecular preconditions for healthy biomechanics.

Why? Because tissue behavior — including how ligaments stretch, how cartilage responds to stress, and how discs resist or succumb to compression — depends on the chemical composition and structural integrity of the molecules that make them up. Collagen cross-linking, proteoglycan hydration, calcium metabolism, and oxidative stress in the intervertebral joint space are all governed by principles from organic chemistry.

From there, biomechanical disruptions caused by faulty joint motion lead directly to neurological consequences — altered afferent input, dysregulated reflex arcs, and maladaptive neuroplasticity. But these changes don’t happen in a vacuum. They are rooted in chemistry — in the production and metabolism of neurotransmitters, in the transport of ions across membranes, and in the synthesis of myelin and synaptic proteins.

“Organic chemistry forms the root, biochemistry the trunk, biomechanics the limbs, and neurology the canopy of the tree of chiropractic science.”

When you understand this continuum, you’re not just treating misalignments — you’re addressing the very chemistry of adaptation, interference, and health restoration.

The Biochemical Cascade Behind Vertebral Subluxation

What starts and sustains the degenerative process that follows a vertebral subluxation? It’s not just a mechanical jam or a bone out of place. It’s a complex interplay of chemical signals, inflammatory responses, biomechanics and neurochemical disruption — all of which stem from organic biochemical reactions within the body.

“Within hours of joint immobilization, the degenerative process begins — and chemistry is at its core.”

When joint movement is restricted — as it often is in the wake of birth trauma or spinal injury — the lack of mobility triggers an inflammatory cascade. Within hours, pro-inflammatory mediators like prostaglandins, cytokines, and reactive oxygen species are released. These chemical messengers are not abstract textbook terms — they’re organic compounds, born from the very mechanisms you study in organic chemistry.

Understanding how arachidonic acid is metabolized into inflammatory prostaglandins, for example, is not just biochemistry — it's organic chemistry in action.

Degeneration Starts Sooner Than You Think

Let me share a an actual clinical example that underscores why this is more than just academic.

A chiropractor faced disciplinary action for providing care to an infant shortly after a traumatic birth. The baby had visible and clinical signs of trauma — torticollis, cranial asymmetry, and subluxation — and the chiropractor, trained in pediatric assessment, began gentle care immediately. One of the most hotly debated points in the case was how soon the degenerative process — the so-called “immobilization degeneration” — begins following birth trauma.

The regulators argued the chiropractor acted too soon. But the science tells us a different story;
Within hours of joint immobilization, the degenerative process begins. Cartilage begins to dehydrate. Glycosaminoglycan synthesis slows. Oxidative stress rises. These are biochemical changes — and to grasp them clinically, one must first understand how molecular structures interact and change — which is the domain of organic chemistry.

A Cautionary Tale from Australia

In Australia, chiropractors are currently banned from caring for infants. The government and chiropractic regulatory board have cited safety concerns — not based on a wealth of data, but largely driven by political pressure and a failure to appreciate the clinical science behind early intervention.

“If we want to defend chiropractic care for infants, we must understand the chemistry behind birth trauma and subluxation.”

If regulators, educators, and even some chiropractors fail to understand the biochemical reality of vertebral subluxation, it becomes easy to dismiss early chiropractic care as unnecessary or unscientific. That is why you, as the next generation of chiropractors, must be armed not only with palpation skills and adjusting techniques but with a deep appreciation for the foundational science that supports what you do.

The Neurochemical Connection

Vertebral subluxation doesn’t just affect structure — it disrupts the nervous system. Altered proprioceptive input from spinal joints affects neurotransmitter balance, autonomic function, and systemic regulation. Organic chemistry is the language we use to understand these neurotransmitters — from acetylcholine to norepinephrine — and how they are synthesized, degraded, and recycled.

“From axoplasmic transport to immune regulation, organic chemistry is what connects chiropractic philosophy to human physiology.”

Biochemistry may describe the pathway, but organic chemistry explains the structure, bonding, and function of the molecules involved. Without it, you're missing the "why" behind the "how" and you’ll never get to the biomechanics.

Axoplasmic Transport and the Nerve Compression Hypothesis

Let’s take another example that brings organic chemistry squarely into the subluxation discussion: axoplasmic transport— the mechanism by which materials are moved along the axon of a nerve.

In the classic nerve compression hypothesis, interference with nerve conduction is said to arise not only from gross mechanical pressure, but from impairment of axoplasmic flow. This transport system is mediated by motor proteins like kinesin and dynein, which require ATP hydrolysis and interact with microtubules via highly specific protein-ligand binding — interactions grounded in organic chemistry.

For axoplasmic transport to function properly:

• Energy substrates like glucose must be metabolized efficiently (involving glycolysis, the Krebs cycle — and again, organic chemistry).

• Vesicular transport of neurotransmitters, enzymes, and structural proteins must occur via precision biochemical reactions.

• Any interruption in these pathways, even at the molecular level, can impair nerve function long before frank pathology sets in.

Understanding the chemical structure of these molecules — how they fold, bind, and interact — is central to grasping how subluxation may interfere with nervous system communication well before clinical symptoms emerge.

Lessons from the Pandemic: Chemistry and the Immune Response

If ever there were a case study in the dangers of scientific illiteracy within our own ranks, it came during the COVID-19 pandemic. Multiple leaders, state boards, chiropractic colleges, and even researchers within the profession hastily asserted that there was no credible evidence that chiropractic adjustments had a beneficial effect on immune function — not because the data was clear, but because they didn’t understand the organic chemistry underlying immune responses and how altered biomechanics affect it.

“When chiropractors ignore chemistry, they undermine the scientific foundation of their own clinical rationale.”

The immune system is a chemically-driven web of cytokines, immunoglobulins, and signaling molecules — all regulated by neuroendocrine interactions and stress responses that are themselves influenced by spinal input. Subluxations disrupt sympathetic tone, impair cortisol regulation, and alter cytokine signaling — processes rooted in the chemistry of steroid hormones, neurotransmitters, and second messengers.

To claim that spinal adjustments have no impact on immunity while ignoring this neurochemical and molecular interplay reveals a profound misunderstanding of human physiology — and it underscores why chiropractors must be fluent in chemistry if they wish to speak credibly in scientific and public health discussions.

Salutogenesis, Not Just Pathology

Some will argue that focusing on chemistry, inflammation, and degeneration places chiropractic squarely in a pathological paradigm — missing the mark on our salutogenic, vitalistic approach to health. But this is a false dichotomy.

“Salutogenesis requires an understanding of how adaptive processes break down — and chemistry shows us where to intervene.”

Understanding the mechanisms of degeneration is not the same as obsessing over disease. Rather, it empowers us to detect subluxation early, intervene before downstream damage occurs, and promote the restoration of adaptive capacity— the cornerstone of salutogenesis.

Biochemical and neurochemical disruptions are not final destinations; they are signposts of adaptation gone awry. A salutogenic chiropractor recognizes these patterns not as inevitable outcomes, but as windows of opportunity to restore balance and function.

Why This Matters for Your Future Practice

You may one day find yourself defending your clinical decisions to a board that doesn’t believe what you do is scientific. When that day comes, it won’t be enough to say “I felt a subluxation.” You’ll need to explain how biochemical changes occur immediately after spinal trauma, how early chiropractic intervention addresses those changes, and how delaying care can worsen the neurochemical and structural cascade.

This knowledge will also provide you with the certainty you will need to deal with the constant misinformation about chiropractic thrown at the public by those within health care that have cultural authority but are mired in ignorance and prejudice. Like it or not chiropractic does not enjoy this authority - yet. But you will be armed with the knowledge and confidence that what you are teaching your patients is based in hard cold facts about science and healing.

And to do that, you’ll need to understand and speak the language of chemistry.

Final Thought

Chiropractic is at a crossroads. We can either embrace the depth and complexity of our science or allow others to define us as simplistic back crackers. The choice is yours. But if you want to stand tall in a courtroom, in a clinic, or in a policy debate — you’d better understand the chemistry.

And that starts with organic chemistry.