Posture is Life Influencing Longevity through Postural Correction

Posture is Life: Influencing Longevity through Postural Correction

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress The Posture Connection • Posture has become one of the most overlooked aspects of good health and longevity. • Research has shown a clear and direct connection between poor posture and diminished quality and longevity of human life. • Spinal pain, headache, mood, blood pressure, pulse and lung capacity are among the functions most easily influenced by posture. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Personal Experience • “You are only as young as your spine. ” -Jack La. Lanne, DC FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Anterior Head Movement • As the head moves forward all measures of health status are significantly reduced. • Rene Cailliet, Director of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Southern California, concluded that forward head posture can add up to thirty pounds of abnormal leverage on the spine, and can reduce lung capacity by as much as 30%, which can lead to heart and blood vascular disease. • He determined a relationship between forward head posture and the digestive system, as well as endorphin production affecting pain and the experience of pain. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Imagine Your Head as a Bowling Bowl • And your neck as the hand that holds that ball. Imagine letting the bowling ball sit in the palm of your hand with your arm tucked tight into your body. • Slowly move your arm away from your body while continuing to palm the ball. • The weight of the ball will put more and more stress on your arm as it moves away from your body until the weight causes failure or injury to occur. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress According to Kapandji, Physiology of the Joints, Volume III • For every inch that the head moves forward in posture, it increases the weight of the head on the neck by 10 pounds. • In the example to the left, a forward neck posture of 3 inches increases the weight of the head on the neck by 30 pounds and the pressure put on the muscles increases 6 times. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress The British Regional Heart Study • As a part of the British Regional Heart Study, scientists found that men who lost 3 cm in height were 64% more likely to die of a heart attack than those who lost less than 1 cm and that over the 20 year period of the study, men lost an average of 1. 67 cm. • That height loss was associated with a 42% increased risk of heart attacks, even in men who had no history of cardiovascular disease. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Our Posture = Our Emotional State • We can tell a lot about a person from the way they carry themselves. • For instance, picture the way someone stands when they are feeling depressed: mid-back and shoulders rolled forward, head hanging, gaze focused on the ground. • Not exactly the picture of health. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Yoga gurus have long said that it is impossible to be depressed with your armpits open. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Posture and Life Expectancy • A group of scientists led by Dr. Deborah M. Kado wanted to see if there was any correlation between postural distortion and a person’s health. • They started with the biggest health problem: death. • They asked: “Was there any correlation between a person having a hyperkyphosis and having a decreased life expectancy? ” FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress The Frightening Long-Term Effects • Dr. Kado reported in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society that persons with hyperkyphosis (hunched over – head and shoulders rolled forward) were two times more likely to die from pulmonary causes. • They were also 2. 4 times more likely to die from cardiovascular disease than those without poor posture. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Too Much Sitting Can Shorten Your Life • According to a study from the American Cancer Society the amount of time you spend sitting can affect your risk of death. • Prolonged periods of sitting have a negative influence on key metabolic factors like triglycerides, high density lipoprotein, cholesterol, and a number of other biomarkers of obesity and other chronic diseases. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress To live a long, active, energetic life, few things matter more than posture. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress This quote by Thomas Meyers, Author of Anatomy Trains, says it all… “Movement becomes habit, which becomes posture, which becomes structure. ” FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Postural Assessment is Key • Postural assessment and correction is the key in the majority of non-traumatic neck pain. • It's not uncommon to observe 2" of anterior head placement in new patients. • Would you be surprised that your neck and shoulders hurt if you had a 12 pound bowling ball hanging around your neck? FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Pair Up with Your Partner and Check From the Front: • Are the points between the eyes, chin, breastbone, pubic area and midpoint between the ankles aligned? • Are the shoulders, hips and knees of equal height? • Is the head held straight, and not tilted or turned to one side? From the side: • Can you easily see three natural curves in the back? • From the back: Are the little bumps on the spine in a straight line down the center of the back? FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress Kids, Parents and Posture • Standing up straight is important for everyone, but at no time is it more crucial to develop the habits of good posture than in childhood. • Many adults with chronic back pain can trace the problem to years of bad posture habits or injuries in childhood. • Because they are growing and more active, children may be at even greater risk for injury to the back and spine. • Check your friends and family when you return home and go to work tomorrow. FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS

Foundation for Chiropractic Progress FOUNDATION FOR CHIROPRACTIC PROGRESS