May is National Correct Posture Awareness Month

May is National Correct Posture Awareness Month

Correct posture is more important than you might think. Research from the Journal of the American Medical Association indicates poor posture can cause intestinal problems, hemorrhoids, varicose veins, osteoporosis, hip and foot deformities, poor health, decreased quality of life, and even a shortened life span.

 One Nobel Prize winner claims that 90% of the brain's energy is used to maintain good posture. May is designated as National Correct Posture Awareness Month because of it's importance to everyone's health and wellness.

There are many health conditions that people suffer from, but posture is often overlooked as one of those.  Some consider poor posture as a leading cause of declining health with advancing technology contributing to the epidemic at an earlier age than any other time in history.  Mobile devices are increasingly used by younger and younger individuals, forcing the neck into flexion several hours a day. Doctors are seeing more and more patients with poor posture and the resulting health issues caused from the neglect of correct posture.

 

There was a very powerful Article in the American Journal of Pain Management that talks about the importance of posture and your health:

American Journal of Pain Management:

Postural and Respiratory Modulation of Autonomic Function, Pain, and Health 
by John Lennon, BM, MM, C. Norman Shealy, MD, Roger K. Cady, MD, William Matta, PhD, Richard Cox, PhD, and William F. Simpson, PhD Volume: AJPM Vol. 4 No. 1 January 1994 pgs 32-35

Abstract:
Posture and normal physiology and function are inter-related. Abnormal posture is evident in patients with chronic pain-related conditions including backache, headache, and stress-related illnesses. Posture training and gravity-centered breathing may play a role in comprehensive treatment of patients with chronic pain and stress related problems.

Highlights

"Despite considerable evidence that posture affects physiology and function, the significant influence of posture on health is not addressed by most physicians."

 

"Observations of the striking influence of postural mechanics on function and symptomatology have led to our hypothesis 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."

 

"For many years physiologists have shown that the position of the head on the neck is vital because it governs all postural reflexes.  If the head is misaligned, other parts of the body move in and out of line to maintain balance and thus energy is expended to counteract the effects of gravity."

 

"Korr concluded that long-term hyperactivity of the sympathetic system is harmful both to the body as a whole and specifically to individual organs affected by segmental "sympathicotonia", induced by spinal and paraspinal musculoskeletal dysfunction.  Areas of focal sympathetic hyperactivity are correlated with musculoskeletal strain, and such areas can be produced experimentally by postural insults such as placing three-eighths inch lift under one foot."

 

"Reich included posture and respiration in his concepts of health. For instance, he believed that tension led to decreased blood flow and that this decrease in tissue oxygenation was a major factor in disease, including cancer."

 

"At the Shealy Institute, clinicians have consistently observed striking postural abnormalities in virtually every patient with back pain, headache, or depression."

 

"Postural abnormalities seem to contribute some degree of autonomic, myotonic, and sensory facilitation in most patients with headache; even modest improvements in posture often assist patients in achieving greater comfort."

 

"Optimal posture and its accompanying improved respiration/oxygenation offer potentially powerful influences upon autonomic nervous system functions."

Bob Waeger  |  Medical Sales Director

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