Abstract
Background: Chronic disease as a result of poor nutrition is a worldwide problem in which South Africa is not excluded. South Africa faces problems of two extremes, obesity as well as malnutrition. Since chiropractors are primary health care providers, they hold an essential role in preventing disease and promoting health. This research provides information on whether chiropractors in South Africa utilised nutritional guidance in their patient management to achieve holistic health in their treatment protocol. Aim: The primary aim of this research was to investigate whether qualified chiropractors working in South Africa incorporated nutritional guidance in their patient management. The secondary aim of this research was to gain a deeper understanding regarding the chiropractors who did utilise nutritional guidance, in terms of what guidance was used and for which type of conditions. Additionally, this research aimed to discover possible reasons why certain chiropractors did not incorporate nutritional guidance in their patient management. Method: This study was a cross sectional, descriptive study which made use of an online self-administered survey. The survey was modified to a South African context based on the survey composed by Lee, Amorin-Woods, Cascioli & Adams, (2018) for the study titled “The use of nutritional guidance within chiropractic patient management: a survey of 333 chiropractors from the ACORN practice-based research network”. Participants were recruited via the Allied Health Professions Council of South Africa (AHPCSA) and the Chiropractic Association of South Africa (CASA) databases. An email was sent to both databases which contained all the information relevant to the study as well as the survey link. The data was summarised in the form of frequencies, descriptives, empirical factor analysis and reliabilities...
M.Tech. (Chiropractic)