Healthy Posture

A healthy posture can prevent most back pains and problems like cervical disorders and muscle pull. Healthy posture is not just effective in lessening problems related to the spine and muscles, it also saves millions of dollars that would otherwise be lost through sick leave and lowered productivity at work. In fact, healthy posture is a favorite topic with office ergonomics experts!

Some of the major ways of maintaining a healthy posture are: keeping the spine straight, avoiding leaning to the sides and resting the feet completely on the floor. Do not sit on a chair with your legs crossed, since it puts pressure on the lumbar vertebrae. Once the vertebrae lose their alignment, problems like back pain start. An excellent way to reduce the pain and other nervous disorders is to undergo chiropractic treatment.

Another thing to keep in mind is movement- you must be careful not to put sudden strain on the back. For example, if you are seated in a chair, and need to pick something up from the floor, don’t bend sideways, bend forward. Watch how you stand up from a seated position. Your back should be straight, not bent forward when you stand up. Also, you should learn how to lift heavy objects properly- it is recommended that you do not lift objects that are too heavy by yourself.

One of the best ways to maintain a healthy posture is by exercising regularly. Exercise strengthens the back and other areas of the body. This in turn, allows you to hold a healthy posture, and prevents the slouch that results when you tire after keeping your back straight for long. 

The consequences of incorrect posture range from lower back pain to misalignment of vertebrae. The neck muscles may be damaged through postures that require you to crane your neck forward too much, or sleep on unsuitable pillows.

Lower back pain that results from incorrect posture is due to nerves in the spine being “pinched”, or compressed by the subluxated vertebrae of the body. This subluxated vertebra then puts pressure on a nerve, and you feel pain. This can be rectified by a chiropractic therapist, who will help to bring the problematic vertebra back into alignment with the rest of the vertebrae.

But you should not stop the exercise prescribed by the chiropractic, or forget the rules of healthy posture once the pain is gone. This is the mistake people make most often, making unhealthy posture the reason for many recurring problems. So even if your symptoms of pain arising from bad posture subside on chiropractic treatment, you should keep following the recommendations of your therapist to prevent a relapse.