Natural Healing: The inner ear is key to the body's balance

Last week we discussed the role of sensory nerves and the how they control body functions.

There are many aspects to the sensory system, but most of them directly relate to communicating to the brain where you are in space and where other objects are in relation to you. One of the most profound sensory inputs is from what is called the vestibular system. Or in simpler terms, the inner ear.

We are going to talk about two areas of the inner ear, the utricle/saccule, and the semicircular cannels. These two areas are responsible for telling the brain where your head is in space. Dysfunction of these areas are responsible for dizziness or vertigo, a condition that effects about 30 percent of people over 65. There are three semicircular cannels in each inner ear. Each cannel is oriented at 90 degrees to each other. Basically each cannel acts like a builder’s level. If you have ever seen a level, you will recognize a little bubble in the center of the level. The bubble will rest between two lines when the object being tested is level in a certain plane. The semicircular cannels act much the same, when the head moves in a certain plane, fluid moves through the cannel and stimulates small hair cells that are sensitive to this movement.

Each cannel is paired with a cannel in the other ear, so each movement of the head creates a signal from each ear. This signal is tied directly to eye movements, and allow you to focus on an object even when the head is moving. It is often dysfunction of this system that caused problems like motion sickness. Imagine if your vision bounced every time you moved or took a step. Instead, every time your head moves your eyes perfectly move in an equal and opposite direction.

Now the other side of the inner ear is the utricle/saccule system. Imagine a sensitive trampoline inlaid with rocks. The rock provide weight, which is sensitive to gravity. This system allows you to sense gravity, and know which way is down. This system can sometimes become distorted under diving conditions. Under these circumstances, the diver simply doesn’t know which way is up or down, a very dangerous situation.

Now we spoke a little about vertigo, and how common this conditions is. The most common cause of vertigo starts with the utricle/saccule system, specifically the rocks in the trampoline, if you will. Sometimes some of these rocks break away from the trampoline. Once some of these rocks come free, they can migrate into the semicircular canals.

Normally these cannels only have fluid in them, but if some of these rocks find their way into the cannels, we have a problem. These rocks create a drag on the fluid in the cannels and create a different input into the brain. Now the eye reflexive movements are directly tied into the stimulus from the cannels, so when one cannel sends a different signal than the other, the eyes bounce back and forth, trying to respond to each signal. This bouncing back and forth is called nystagmus.

Thankfully, these stones can easily be repositioned through simple, non-invasive techniques.

Dr. Joseph Fraley D.C. is the owner of Alpha Omega Chiropractic, 106 Alpine Village Road. Contact Fraley at 575-258-5999.