RALEIGH — To bring awareness to the benefits of chiropractic, North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory has declared October 2015 as “Chiropractic Month” in North Carolina.

The profession that used to be the butt of sitcom jokes has become a popular form of pain relief in recent years due to its natural, drug-free approach.

What is Chiropractic? Well, according to the fictional mother from the television comedy That ‘70s Show, Kitty, “it’s like a doctor, but you don’t have to be as smart.”However, this statement is far from true. According to Governor McCrory, in a recent proclamation, the education of the average Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) is equal in comparison to allopathic and osteopathic medical schools, meaning chiropractic is not the joke television comedies would have viewers believe.

According to a recent Gallup Poll released September 8, 2015, approximately half of all adults in the United States have seen a chiropractor, 14% of US adults go to a chiropractor regularly and more than 33 million adults went to a chiropractor in 2014.

The shift in public opinion and increased usage of chiropractic can be attributed to education on the effectiveness of chiropractic and the growing awareness of the overuse of opioids in the United States. According to the previously mentioned proclamation by Governor McCrory, “The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified the overuse and abuse of prescription pain medication in the United States as ‘epidemic.’” It also states that pain medication can convince patients that their condition is less severe than it actually is and lead to over-exertion and delayed healing or permanent injury. Chiropractic serves as a form of pain relief without the use of potentially addictive opioids and other prescription drugs.

More information on chiropractic and chiropractors in North Carolina can be found at www.ncchiro.org.