When you have a persistent backache, or something is a true “pain in the neck,” a friend may suggest you try going to a chiropractor.

That’s been a traditional reason for people to seek chiropractic assistance. And it’s still one of the main factors bringing patients to their offices, local chiropractors say.

But during National Chiropractic Month, they’d like people to know how their profession has advanced and now provides a wide array of care for people throughout their entire lives.

According to the American Chiropractic Association, chiropractic is “a health care profession that focuses on disorders of the musculoskeletal system and the nervous system, and the effects of these disorders on general health.”

It’s a drug-free, hands-on way of improving health, association literature states.

For some local practitioners, chiropractic medicine is not only their calling; it continues a family tradition.

“I’m the third generation on both sides. Both grandfathers and my mother and father graduated from chiropractic school,” said Dr. Christian R. Abels of Abels Chiropractic Centre.

And Dr. Brianna Batey practices with her stepfather at Miller Chiropractic Clinic.

“We help our patients with diet and exercise, as well as keeping their backs aligned,” she said.

The three chiropractors focus on the patient’s entire health, offering nutritional supplements, a range of diagnostic equipment and therapy at both clinics.

“Exercise is very important, and I think we need to stress it here,” said Batey, citing a statistic she recently heard that Cherokee County has one of the highest obesity rates in the nation.

“People come here for everything from acupuncture to helping them lose weight,” she said.

She has helped pregnant women prepare for childbirth, and has practiced on their babies once they’re born. Her oldest patient is nearing the century mark.

Dr. Christian A. Abels said chiropractic medicine is suitable for all ages, from birth until their nervous system stops working at death.

All say people who have benefited from chiropractic care frequently want to see their families experience the same results, and sometimes bring in families for regular adjustments, just as they take their cars in for regular tuneups to keep them running well.