If you’ve ever been told to “sit up straight”, it’s for a reason. A healthy back and spine should follow a straight alignment, allowing evenly-distributed pressure to go throughout the body with movement. Having improper posture can cause negative health effects over time, as your body moves out of that straight alignment. Find out why posture is important to prevent back pain, avoid injuries, and to help the body stay strong throughout life!
Your Back and Spine
Your back is your support base for all our limbs. It houses your spine, which protects your central nervous system of the spinal cord and brain. Without that essential system, your entire body would be unable to function. That core central nervous system is protected from your head to your bottom by the spinal column made up of 33 vertebrae. Those vertebrae are a series of interlocking thick bones, hold together by joints connected to ligaments, muscles, and various tissues.
The vertebrae encase your central nervous system to protect it, while pivoting joints allow you to move and function throughout your day. The structure of the spine is the same in every human body. However, factors such as posture, chronic conditions, therapy treatments, exercise, and how you use your back can determine if your back is healthy or not. Without proper care, breakdown can happen with the joints and discs, and neuropathy symptoms can happen.
Back Pain Is the Most Common Pain
Did you know that back pain is the most common type of chronic pain that people experience? The American Chiropractic Association reports that back pain is the “single leading cause of disability worldwide”, affecting up to 80% of people at some point. Lower back pain is the most common type of back pain, as the lumbar spine takes the most pressure from daily movements and exertion.
Think of you lower back as the center of your entire body. When you sit, you bend forward and move using your lower back. When crouching down, your lower back sinks towards the floor. In sports and with exercise, you are using your lower back extensively. If you think about all the ways you use your lower back, and your back as a whole, it’s no wonder injuries happen!
Degeneration over time is the most common way that people injure their backs. Posture is a main factor in back pain and back problems, as many people don’t sit, stand, lift, pull and exercise correctly. Other factors that lead to chronic back problems include arthritis, obesity, psychological stress, overexertion, and aging.
How Posture Leads to Back Pain
When it comes to your health, small actions can make all the difference in how healthy you stay throughout the years. Posture is one of the easiest ways to reduce your risk for back problems and to help back problems you currently have. When you sit up straight, your back and spine can stay in a straight, natural position.
If you sit hunched over, slouched forward or you stand mostly on one leg, your spine will be off balance. This can create uneven pressure on different joints of your body, which can build up over time, especially if you have uneven or improper posture over years. Posture is especially important when working or moving objects. People often herniate discs, pinch nerves or pop their backs out of alignment because they have improper posture. You never want to twist your back while holding something heavy.
You also never want to lift heavy objects with your back instead of your legs. Sudden jerks, short falls, car accidents, overstretching, and even exercising moderately can create back pain and injuries if you don’t know what type of posture you should have. With any new exercise, with lifting, or with anything strenuous, always make sure you have the right posture for the job so you don’t injure yourself.
Benefits of Good Posture
Even though poor posture can lead to extra wear and tear on your back over time, good posture can have the opposite effect: it can keep your back healthier for years! When you hear “sit up straight”, it is actually for your benefit. When you sit straight and you have proper back support, your back is able to carry your body better. You won’t get muscle aches or fatigue like you would sitting hunched over. Some people may need a pillow to support their lumbar spine if the lower back is an area of chronic pain or aches.
Good posture can help keep your height the same throughout the years, as stooping and sitting hunched can curve your spine over time, making you shorter. Proper posture will prevent abnormal wear and tear on different joints, which decreases inflammation buildup that destroys cartilage. With patients that have arthritis, they can experience fewer aches and pains with frequent chiropractic adjustments to help their posture and pressure distribution on the joints. Joints stay fluid, able to move, which can help patients when exercising, training and simply moving throughout the day. The better posture you have, the less abnormal stress you put on your body, which can keep tissues and joints healthier for years longer.
Better Posture, Less Stress
To have good posture, make sure you sit up straight, pulling your shoulders back as if you were trying to make them touch a wall. Use a back support pillow if you sit in a chair or work at a desk for most of the day. When standing up, make sure you keep your belly sucked in and your shoulders back, and that you stand on both feet evenly, so your weight is distributed.
Simply evening out stress and pressure in your body will not only help you look taller and thinner, but it will reduce your health problems and back pain throughout the years. For specific tips and treatments to combat chronic pain, back pain or ideas for better posture, call Spine Correction Center of the Rockies at (970) 658-5115!
