The Poor Posture Cascade
Bad posture affects more than just your good looks. Poor posture is often a precursor of back pain. The structural changes created by bad posture overload the muscles of the back or the intervertebral discs; this is a common precursor of numerous types of back conditions and back pain.
The effects of bad posture go further than that, however. We’ve written elsewhere about the effects of one of the most common posture imbalances: forward head posture, which is the precursor of age-related dowager’s hump. However, there are many other ways in which poor posture affects your physical health.
One group of researchers, led by John Lennon, BM, MM. C. and Norman Shealy, M.D. put it this way: “[We believe] that posture affects and moderates every physiologic function from breathing to hormonal production. Spinal pain, headache, mood, blood pressure, pulse, and lung capacity are among the functions most easily influenced by posture.
The most significant influences of posture are upon respiration, oxygenation, and sympathetic function. Ultimately, it appears that homeostasis and autonomic regulation are intimately connected with posture. The corollary of these observations is that many symptoms, including pain, may be moderated or eliminated by improved posture.” (See quote source below.)
Translation? Posture impacts all bodily functions, in particularly breathing and therefore whether or not the body’s cells get proper oxygen supply. Posture also affects the sympathetic function of the body, and thereby its ability to regulate its internal environment in response to outside changes.
To elaborate: The spinal cord is the central channel through which flow all the nerves of the central nervous system. The central nervous system, of course, is the central command center which coordinates the activity of all parts of the body.
The spinal cord houses the nerves, which carry messages between the brain and the rest of the body. The central nervous system is responsible for maintaining the homeostasis, or internal balance, of the body. Through the flow of nerve information back and forth, it monitors, detects, interprets, and responds to changes in the internal and external environment. The nervous system then responds by sending electrochemical impulses through nerves to muscles, glands, and other parts of the body needed to respond to changes in the external environment.
Osteopaths and chiropractors have told us for many years: structure impacts function. Bad posture may impact the health of the body by hampering the function of the central nervous system—the proper flow of nerve information from the peripheral parts of the body to the brain. If the integrity of the spinal cord deteriorates due to poor posture, the integrity of the flow of nervous system information to the brain may be affected. Structure impacts function.
As the researchers further state: “Posture and normal physiology and function are interrelated. Abnormal posture is evident in patients with chronic pain-related conditions including backache, headache, and stress-related illnesses.”
The bottom line: Doctors of osteopathy and chiropractic have long maintained that structural imbalances put people at greater risk for functional imbalances, i.e. it increases the susceptibility to disease. The most common structural imbalance people face is bad posture.
The good news of course is that bad posture is also the structural imbalance over which you have the most control. The poor posture cascade can be reversed by taking steps to correct your posture.
Corrective posture exercises, posture support braces, and core strengthening activities are a great place to start—as is simply paying attention to your posture and bearing throughout the day.
Remember, bad posture is created moment by moment, predominantly by poor habits and weakened posture support muscles. Good posture is created moment by moment as well—by reversing your moment-to-moment posture habits and strengthening core posture support muscles, you will be able to gradually reshape and improve your posture.
Source: John Lennon, BM, MM, C. Norman Shealy, MD, Roger K. Cady, MD, William Matta, PhD., Richard Cox, PhD, and William F. Simpson, PhD, American Journal of Pain Management, Vol. 4, No. 1, January, 1994
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