Why is Posture So Important?
Check out this quote about posture:
“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.“
— Lennon et al, AJPM 1994 4:36-39
Let’s say you sit at your job all day. And the posture you hold looks great at 9 a.m. – but by 5 p.m., you look like you’ve been curled up into a ball. Over time, your body starts to think that is normal…and for you it may be, but it’s not what your body wants to be normal.
Gradually, the body starts to deteriorate. Muscles and ligaments are doing jobs that they are not used to – or supposed to be – doing. They start to weaken, your entire structure starts to weaken, and the nerves that are supposed to be protected by your spine are caught in the crossfire.
Studies going as far back as 1957 (!) have shown that this weakening of your posture can ultimately lead to a shorter lifespan. Listen to what this medical doctor said about the subjects in his study on posture:
“Aging in the spinal discs caused postural deviations leading to intestinal diverticula, hemorrhoids, varicosities of the legs, osteoporosis, hip and foot deformities, overall poor quality of health and life, as well as a shortened life span.”
— Joseph Freeman, MD, JAMA October 19, 1957
Unfortunately, modern medicine does not have an answer for poor posture. Most doctors believe that nothing can be done about a weakened posture, and even fewer promote the link between poor posture and our health, as mentioned in the articles referenced above.
Most importantly, it’s not just pain that shows up with poor posture, as you can now see.
So, now what? If you have bad posture, what do you do?
Thankfully, a select few chiropractic techniques have evolved to allow your body to restore a stronger, more proper posture over time. We’ve chosen those techniques for our patients.
Our first job is to see where you are now, at multiple points: pain, daily function, range of motion, strength, and several other factors. We then determine what your posture looks like right now and take measurements to find out how far away from normal your posture is. Your treatment plan will then be based on how quickly we expect to restore proper function and get you as close to a normal posture as possible.
Most people ask, “how long will it take?”
There is no simple answer, given that we all have different postures. In general, the body will respond in proportion to how long your postural and pain issues have been present.
In other words, someone who has had back pain and poor posture for 25 years will likely have a longer healing pattern than someone with better posture who strained their back 3 days prior. We’ll give you our expectations of how long we expect stability to occur once we perform our initial evaluations.
What’s important to note is that we do not accept every patient – we only take those we have the highest confidence that we can improve and are equally committed to their health at the highest levels. We are serious about improving your spine and your health, and hope that you are as well.
To see if you qualify, click the button below to select an appointment time and get started!
