Straight chiropractic
A non-therapeutic primary portal of entry health care profession whose objective is to contribute to health through the correction of vertebral subluxation. It is based in an evolving philosophy and is practiced as an art.
Objectives and procedures, inconsistent with the above definition, have been embraced by a faction of the profession. This faction has historically been known as "mixing" chiropractic, while that faction which adheres to the traditional objective of chiropractic has been designated as "straight" chiropractic. Although the "mixing" faction has deviated strikingly from the chiropractic objective, it has not been well explained to the public. For this reason, the adjective "straight" (as defined by Webster: "...undeviated, unmixed...") has been employed to distinguish those who adhere to the above definition from those who do not ("mixers").
History
The term chiropractic literally means "done by hand" and was adopted by chiropractic's founder, Daniel David Palmer, to describe a system of therapy that involved the physical manipulation to move joints and organs that are out of position, a condition Palmer termed "subluxation." Palmer, a layman with an interest in the metaphysical health philosophies of his day such as magnetic healing, phrenology, and spiritualism, imbued the term "subluxation" with a metaphysical meaning holding that Palmer's "subluxations" interfered with the body's "Innate Intelligence" (spark of life or spirit).
In 1895, Palmer claimed to have restored the hearing of a nearly deaf janitor by manipulating his spine. Palmer believed that he had discovered the primary cause of disease and theorized that 95 percent of all disease was caused by spinal subluxation.