Posture Dysfunction
What is it? The word ‘posture’ in most common usage almost exclusively refers to the way a person sits or stands, and is generally termed ‘good posture’ or ‘bad posture’. We all have positions we spend a lot of time in. If one of these positions puts your spine and other joints out of their normal balanced alignment, this is a postural dysfunction – and your muscles will adapt and become unbalanced.
Common Myths
It is popular to believe that slouching is due to laziness, or because the person doesn’t want to sit up straight. However, the major factor which determines the way a person sits or stands is the shape of their spinal bones. That shape can be determined by an injury which occurs in a few seconds when the person is young or by poor nutrition or disease which weakens their bones and causes the change in a few weeks or months.
Correct posture at the computer eliminates discomfort and possible injury. “Picture-perfect” posture can be extremely fatiguing. If you commute to work and sit most of the day, you can be sitting for 10 to 12 hours a day.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Statistics
- ‘Ergonomics in the Workplace’ – is mostly commonly referred to posture and sitting position in front of the computer.
- On average, 95% of an office workers’ day is spent sitting in front of the computer. View Ergonomics Case Studies.
- Musculoskeletal injuries resulting from poor workplace ergonomics account for 34% of all lost workday injuries and illnesses.
“All crooked or constrained bodily positions affect respiration injuriously. Reading, writing, sitting, standing, speaking, and working with the trunk of the body bent forward are extremely hurtful by overstretching the muscles of the back, compressing the lungs, and pushing downwards and backwards the stomach, bowels, and abdominal muscles.”
A good posture cannot be achieved unless the base, the feet and ankles are strong and healthy. The type of shoes you wear directly affects the health of your feet. When the foundation (your feet) is crumbling, the building (your body) crumbles and eventually collapses.
Head of Olympics Soft Tissue Therapy Services, Brad Hiskins, details how he evaluates thoracic spine dysfunction. He says that, inevitably, much of postural dysfunction resides in the thoracic spine.
Comprehensive Back Pain Solutions
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