Is ‘growing pains’ the worst diagnosis ever? Article from Horley Spinal Health

Phil Mitchell, from Horley Spinal Health, is here to advise on growing pains and the solutions that he offers in his local clinics.

According to the NHS growing pains are common and although they can be very painful, they are harmless. The cause is unclear but they can run in families.

They are not serious and are NOT caused by growing!

NHS advice for helping children with growing pins is to gently massage the legs, use a hot water bottle and wear supportive shoes. They note that having a warm bath before bed may help.

We see many children in clinic with ‘growing pains’ and the good news is they can definitely be helped. 

What we commonly see is that low vitamin D is a major factor, alongside the neuro-mechanical dysfunctions that can be helped by our hands on treatment. Vitamin D is widely deficient in the UK due to our low levels of sunshine and our avoidance of sun exposure, especially in children.

A study from France in 2014 of 33 children with growing pains showed that there was an average level of Vitamin D that was below normal. This was 37.5 nmol/l (below 50 nmol/l is deficient in the NHS guidelines). The researchers then gave the children high doses of Vitamin D and after three months this improved the levels up to 85 nmol/l. In this short space of time the average pain scale measurements went from 7.5/10 down to 2.7/10, and 8 of the children were pain free.

A study in Turkey also found a 60% reduction in pain levels in a three months study of Vitamin D supplementation in children.

Vitamin D is also crucial in helping to grow strong and healthy bones, for a healthy immune system, inflammation regulation and energy levels and we find it helps many of our adult patients as well.

For more information please contact me at the clinic, we offer FREE checks for children when mentioning RaringtoGo, so you can come in and see how we could help. 

Philip Mitchell BSc Hons, Doctor of Chiropractic and Clinical Director.

About our clinics

At Crawley and Horley Spinal Health clinics, we offer Chiropractic, Spinal Therapy, and Low-Level Laser and have on-site x-rays. We also offer the pioneering MBST Cell regeneration therapy for arthritis, disc injuries, tendonitis and sports injuries, osteoporosis, and wound healing. Visit the MBST website at www.mbstmedical.co.uk for more information.

“My experience from start to finish has been amazing , I’ve experienced real results and so much relief just generally moving around ! Great friendly staff always felt welcome and well looked after 😀 highly recommend Phil and his team” 🙏Tallulah G.

Visit Horley and Crawley Spinal Health website for further information or to book your free health check!

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