Good Posture = Good Health

San Francisco Chiropractor Comments:

We have been preaching the message that posture and health are connected for 18 years at Executive Express Chiropractic(formerly Front Street Chiropractic) in downtown San Francisco.

What is your posture anyway? Here are some dictionary definitions:

The carriage of the body as a whole. The arrangement of the body and it's limbs. The attitude of the body.  

 Here is my definition: Your posture is a reflection of the position of the spinal bones, muscles, ligaments and tendons. Your posture is a window to your spine.

Another-words...we can tell from the outside (of the body) by looking at your posture what the spine looks like on the inside (this is an art).

When we are looking at your posture at a particular moment in time, we are looking at the end product (a snapshot) of every physical activity you have ever done, every emotion you have ever felt, and every chemical stress you have ever been exposed to over your entire lifetime. There are also congenital factors built into your posture such as a short leg or a scoliosis.

In any case, the reason all this matters is...inside the spine and skull is the brain and spinal cord which control every cell, gland, and organ in the body. Nerves branch off of the spinal cord and exit from in between the spinal vertebrae and travel to all the body parts. These nerves carry instructions and information from the brain to the body telling it what to do. 

As long as there is no interference...say from a vertebral subluxation (a misalignment of the spine), this process happens as intended and we express 100% health. There are 24 spinal vertebrae...they all stack on top of each other to create 3 nice curves...cervical, thoracic, and lumbar. When one of the bones in the stack is out of alignment it changes the entire configuration as the other bones have to adapt, as do the muscles, ligaments and tendons (and your extremities)...resulting in abnormal posture, which can lead to nerve interference and poor health. 

This is why chiropractors are so concerned with posture. I admit...it's not such an obvious connection...Posture-Nervous System-Subluxation-Health. But it's my job to connect the dots. In fact, we plan on making the entire month of January 2010 "Posture Awareness Month".

So sure, chiropractors can help posture...that's what we do. But we also want to teach you about the 3 types of stresses that cause what we treat...physical stress, mental stress, and chemical stress. If we can teach patients how to reduce stress with education (including this blog) on topics such as exercise, ergonomics, sleeping positions, nutrition, relaxation techniques, yoga and breathing...and at the same time correct the subluxations created by these imbalances, we can help patients to achieve that balance point (that is different in everybody) where optimum posture and nervous system function manifests as optimum health.

                                                                             

And you don't have to wait until "Posture Awareness Month" to have us check your posture.

To find out if you are a candidate for care at Executive Express Chiropractic at the SF Embarcadero Center, please call 415-392-2225 or request an appointment online. 

 

 

Comments

[Dr. Kevin Smith]

Fantastic article. Every person needs to read this. Forward head posture is an epidemic. I'd say probably 98% of the population has this problem, and none of them know what to about it. They need to be under the care of somebody like Dr. Davis who has the knowledge and skill to correct this structural issue.

[David hogard]

It is heard by us that “Eat less, and exercise more." But how many of us say, "I'll do that tomorrow" or "I'll start my diet next week?" We tend to think we're unbeatable and would rather indulge today than follow healthy diets and get regular exercise for something that may not pay off for years.

http://healthfreak2.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/the-importance-of-good-health/

[Mary Lou Schilling]

I try to live as healthy as I can be with proper diet and exercise, but I guess I never really thought about my posture.

I believe I have a forward head posture... maybe because of being in front of a computer because of my job. Time to research more about it and consult a chiro in my area.

Thanks for the article