Room temperature is a vital component for optimal sleep. For me, it has to be 68-70 degrees. Even at 72 degrees (just a 2-degree difference), there can be a notable difference in my sleep quality.

There are many reasons why sleep is important. Principally, it’s a period of restoration. Your body requires adequate sleep so that it can rejuvenate. If you’re not sleeping very well, there’s a good chance that your body isn’t doing a stellar job repairing itself.

Again, that’s room temperature. What about body/skin temperature? Many doctors subscribe to the idea that a “normal” temperature is 98.6 degrees. When this number increases by just 2-degrees, suddenly you have a fever… So the margin of change is quite small.

As early as 400 B.C., ancient Greeks were keenly aware of body temperature differences. Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, would smear wet mud on the backs of his patients for the purpose of seeing which areas along the spine dried first. One of his most famous quotes likely stemmed from this process: “Look well to the spine, for it is the requisite of many diseases.”

Socrates advised, “If you would seek health, look first to the spine.”

Upper Cervical chiropractors have a modern (and much less messy) way of analyzing skin temperature. Using technology known as Computerized Infrared Thermography (CIT), doctors gain insight into patient pathology. CIT is an extremely sensitive, non-invasive, risk-free, and accepted procedure that images neurophysiology via cutaneous infrared emissions.

A “normal” range of temperature variation exists between 0.00 and 0.80 degrees (Celsius). A difference greater than 0.80 degrees suggests that a neuropathophysiological process is occurring. The CIT scanners have a scale from 0.00-2.00 degrees. It’s not uncommon for patients to exceed this range, reaching temperature differences as high as 4.00 degrees!

This data helps Upper Cervical doctors determine if a patient needs to be adjusted. It can also be used to determine the effectiveness of your spinal correction following the adjustment. So it’s a valuable tool that helps doctors and patients objectively see improvements being made.

You have to wonder… if just 2-degrees can impair sleep or be considered “feverish,” what effect does a 2-degree temperature difference have on isolated body functions and overall health?

Most people can’t differentiate a 2-degree difference in the weather… Similarly, if you’ve never received a thermal imaging scan, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to perceive this 2-degree difference either. So if you’re fortunate enough to have an Upper Cervical chiropractor in your area, I encourage you to stop by their office for a checkup. It’s a smart thing to do!