Did you know that good posture can extend your life? It’s true! It also plays a large role in you overall health and helps determine your quality of life. Maintaining good posture ensures minimal stress on your body and allows your spinal cord to rest comfortably in your spinal column. If a spinal cord is “taught” inside the spinal column it can lead to serious organ problems. In other words, keep your head up and your shoulders back! Proper posture can keep you staying active longer, give you a more youthful appearance, reduce stress and anxiety, and reduce back and neck pain.
Keeping good posture can be difficult, although, for some it can be a matter of life and death. The human body is designed to move and in today’s technology driven world, we too often find ourselves sitting down, slouching forward (most of the time in front of a screen). This leads to neck and back pain, which is only the beginning. Bad posture can lead to heart disease and organ failure because your spinal cord isn’t working at its optimal level. If you sit down at work and while relaxing at home, counterbalance all that sitting with some movement. Consistently taking long walks (with your head up and your shoulders back) is a great way to work on your posture while also increasing your oxygen levels.
How to Check Your Posture
Have someone put both hands up to the bottom of your earlobes; are they at the same height? They should be. Now have someone look at you from the side view; are your ears over your shoulders? Again, they should be, although, forward head posture is becoming an epidemic thanks to our phones. This technique also works on your shoulders and your hips. If you are properly aligned and your posture is good then your skeletal system should be A-symmetric.
If you would like to have a posture exam done by a highly trained chiropractic assistant, it is free of charge at Chiropractic Plus.