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Bad Posture - it's not Something to Look Forward To
Are you concerned with the position and posture of your head? Forward head posture is a common occurrence and often leads to feelings of neck pain, headaches and other more serious health complications in some cases (1).
The correlation between forward head posture and neck pain has been known for some time (2).
Your team at Lyons Road Family Chiropractic have written this posture article to provide advice so you can make an informed decision about your health.
Forward head posture is also known as ‘text next’, ‘scholar’s neck’ or ‘computer posture’ due in part to the activities that you are doing that change your posture.
There are things you can do to fix (or correct to some degree) forward head posture however they take time. It’s advisable to seek professional advice, such as that from a chiropractor, on ways you may address your posture concerns.
What is Forward Head Posture?
Forward head posture is commonly considered a degenerative posture, contributing to musculoskeletal health concerns. It is characterised by the anterior (forward) positioning of the cervical (neck) spine. Unless action is taken to correct it, the posture may further worsen with time.
Why is Good Posture Important?
Your health is one of your most valuable assets. Do you know that your posture may determine your level of health? A recent study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (1) looked into the association between hyperkyphotic posture (forward-curved posture of the upper back or thoracic spine) and rate of mortality in older persons.
The study as able to conclude, “older men and women with hyperkyphotic posture have higher mortality rates.”
Indeed, chiropractors have a good understanding of the connection between your posture and overall health levels. Good posture allows you to move and function as nature intended, minimises risk of injury and helps boost confidence and self-esteem.
What Causes Forward Head Posture?
Many factors contribute to forward head posture, including:
- The effects of gravity
- Poor posture habits
- Prolonged periods of sitting
- Poor office ergonomics (computer screens that are too low)
- Injury and trauma
If you experience forward head posture, you may also experience the following:
- An obvious shift of your head in front of your centre of gravity
- Ears not inline, and in front of, your shoulders
- Upper back and neck pains
- Headaches
- Feelings of irritability, discomfort and perhaps lack of concentration
- Pain when working on a computer or looking down
- Jaw ‘clicking’ or episodes of pain
What Can I Do?
- Seek out specialist advice from a chiropractor or manual therapist
- Behaviour change
- Adopt new and better posture habits
- Orthotic devices, as recommended by your chiropractor
- Specific stretches (tractioning), such as ‘neck extensor and pectoralis major stretches and deep neck flexor and shoulder retractor strengthening exercises’ (Harman et al)
- A series of chiropractic adjustments, joint mobilisations, activations and/or soft tissue work.
Remember, addressing and correcting a structural issue takes time.
Commit to better Posture
Chiropractic commonly helps many types of aches, pains and structural dysfunctions. To book a consultation with Dr Paul Calladine (Chiropractor) please contact us today.
To secure your favourite adjustment time please call us today on (02) 9819 6182. See you soon.
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References
- Kado DM, Huang MH, Karlamangla AS, Barrett-Connor E, Greendale GA ‘Hyperkyphotic Posture Predicts Mortality in Older Community-dwelling Men and Women: A Prospective Study’ J Am Geriatr Soc 2004 (Oct); 52 (10): 1662—1667.
- Nejati P, Lotfian S, Moezy A, Nejati M. The study of correlation between forward head posture and neck pain in Iranian office workers. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2015;28(2):295-303. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26182924
- Katherine Harman, Cheryl L. Hubley-Kozey, and Heather Butler ‘Effectiveness of an Exercise Program to Improve Forward Head Posture in Normal Adults: A Randomized, Controlled 10-Week Trial’ Journal Of Manual & Manipulative Therapy Vol. 13 , Iss. 3,2005.
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