By Tedd Koren, DC

Measure their height.  That's it.  It works, very, very, very well IF 
done properly.  I've done it for years and when I showed other 
doctors how to do it they too got excited patients.

Long standing subluxations create spinal degeneration: discs get 
thinner, spines distort, meninges tighten, posture is affected and 
people get smaller. They lose height.  Sometimes a lot of height in a 
short period of time.  And they don't know it happening until you 
show them.  It hits them like ice water. That's what's so scary about 
it.

Most people are very sensitive about their height.  Loss of height 
means getting old, bent over and frail. I can't think of many happy 
things loss of height signifies. Being tall signifies strength, power, 
wisdom, command and control.  Being small means insignificant, 
weak, inconsequential. We say "Your Highness" to kings and queens.  
"Your Smallness" sends you to the dungeon, if not the executioner.

People speak about their doctors the same way: "I go to a really big 
doctor. One of the biggest. You have to wait six months to get an 
appointment."

HOW TO DO IT

You have to do it right for maximum effect.  You can use a fancy 
doctor's scale or a cheap tape measure.  In your office you can have a 
measuring device attached to the wall.  Medical supply houses sell 
all kinds of gadgets to measure height.

Here's how to do it: You say, "Stand here, please." Measure their 
height.

DON'T TELL THEM WHAT IT IS.  Not yet anyway.  First ask them what 
they think their height is. You will hear something like, "I'm 5 foot 9 
inches."

"Hmmm (make a real doctor sound). Well, you just measured 5 foot 7  
inches." (It's true, almost everyone has lost height as an adult, 
sometime as an adolescent).

"What? 5' 7   "?  No way.  Check it again.  I must have slumped a 
little."

"OK, hmmmm. Yes, it's 5' 7  . When was the last time you had your 
spine checked?"

"Doctor, this is terrible.  How did this happen?  I can't believe I lost 
so much height."

"Do you know about subluxations and spinal degeneration? When was 
the last time you had your spine checkedä.?"

Try it yourself.  People get scared.  No one wants to get smaller. 
Your patient (or prospective patient) is now very concerned. All of a 
sudden he/she has an image of themselves in ten years - shrunken, 
bent over, frail and being mugged by a gang of teenagers or girl 
scouts.  Not a pretty sight.

At this moment of concern and vulnerability, you might quietly 
suggest a good tailor who can alter their clothes as they continue to 
disappear.  Or, there is an alternative: chiropractic care.

"If you want to prevent this height loss from continuing and maybe 
even restore some height you'll need to get under chiropractic care 
so your spine will heal."

Tell them about spinal degeneration caused by the vertebral 
subluxation complex - fill in the page on spinal degeneration and the 
inside cover (you can pick a few other pages as well from our 
introduction to chiropractic booklet: Chiropractic - Bringing Out the 
Best in You! Fill out our Vital Connection poster and give them a copy 
of a page from the pad to take home and put on the refrigerator, and 
give them brochures on chiropractic (60
great titles to choose from) call 800-537-3001 or 
www.korenpublications.com)

"I'll be in for care, Doc. Can I bring my wife? Will you measure her 
and check her spine?  I don't want her shrinking away."

"Of course, bring her with you when you come. Let me tell you about
subluxations and your childrenä"

Do this anywhere - at screenings, in your office (it should be part of 
your exam), after (or during) a lay lecture or spinal class. It works 
very, very, very well.