How it can affect our health
Due to our sedentary pace of life with long hours spent sitting in front of a screen, much of the population now suffers from back pain and other conditions that result from poor posture.
Having a bad posture in the office or in any other area of daily life is not only a matter of appearance; it also affects the way our body works, leading to numerous health problems. If you have poor posture, your bones are not properly aligned, and your muscles, joints, and ligaments will suffer excessive stress.
It is important to know that more than 90% of the brain’s activity is directed at keeping the body aligned in its gravitational field. Therefore, the less energy is expended on posture, the more energy is available for healing, digestion, and thinking.
A good posture is linked to energy, confidence, health and happiness, while a bad posture is linked to illness, depression, sadness and negativity. With time, changes in habits, and chiropractic adjustments, it is possible to get rid of the damage caused by poor posture.
What is the correct posture in the office?
We spend most of the day at work; we can sit at our computer from six to twelve hours a day.
A large percentage of visits to the chiropractor are due to pain in the neck or back caused by poor posture in the office. If this discomfort evolves, it can lead in turn to dizziness, vertigo, and balance problems, among other health issues.
Some tips to maintain good posture at work:
1. Choosing an ergonomic seat: Choosing a seat that suits our needs is key when we settle into our workplace. The ideal seat allows you to adjust its height and maintain the proper distance between your body and the screen. To determine the height of your seat, your feet should be in contact with the ground and your knees should be at a right angle, staying at hip level. For optimal lumbar support, the lower part of your seat should line up with the natural curve of the lower back.
2. Chest straight: Try to keep your chest straight with your back against the back of the chair. When we work in front of a computer we tend to advance our posture by resting our shoulders on the table, therefore leaning our chest forward.
3. Back resting on the backrest: As we explained in the previous point, keeping your back close to the back of the chair is one of the most basic corrections to maintain a good posture. In this way, the spine will be straight.
4. The knees should be at the same height as the hips: The ideal desk posture is legs apart, resting on the floor, and knees at the same height as the hips.
5. Straight head and neck: To avoid cervical pain it is important to keep the neck straight, that is, to place the computer screen at such a height that it will not be necessary to bend the head to do our work.
6. Computer screen at 45 centimeters: To build on the previous point, the ideal separation between the screen and our face is 45 centimeters. The screen should also be placed at eye level to avoid tilting the neck.
7. Do not lift your shoulders to type: Ideally, keep your elbows flexed on the table at a 90-degree angle and your shoulders relaxed.
8. Optimizing the work surface: The work surface is another important point to keep in mind to adopt a good posture in the office. To avoid muscle discomfort, it is recommended to keep the objects you use most close to you. If you have to do a job that requires handling paper documents, place them between the screen and the keyboard. Place the objects you use occasionally out of your reach; this way, you will force yourself to get up, change your posture and stimulate circulation.
Consequences of poor posture
Two well-known postural syndromes in the chiropractic setting are the Upper Crossed Syndrome (head too far forward) and the Lower Crossed Syndrome (very pronounced lumbar curve with hyperlordosis). Both syndromes have to do with muscle imbalance and need specific correction.
Poor posture in the office or in other areas of life can cause vertebral subluxations: when one or more spinal vertebrae lose their alignment, they move from their original position and cause interference in the spinal cord or adjacent spinal nerves, altering the continuous flow of energy and communication between the brain and the rest of the body and preventing us from functioning at 100%.
If the normal alignment of the spine is lost, or there is a lack of movement in the joints, pressure is exerted on the nerves that exit from between the vertebrae of the spine. These nerves control all the tissues, vessels and organs in the body, and if there is any kind of pressure on them, they lose the ability to properly monitor the body and it begins to fail.
Recall that 90% of the brain’s energy is used to link the physical body to gravity. Only 10% is used for thinking, metabolism, and healing, so if you have poor posture, your brain uses energy from thought, metabolism, and immune function to deal with abnormal gravity-posture processes.
When we have an incorrect body posture, our muscles, ligaments and joints are subjected to inadequate pressures that can cause inflammation, pain, and tiredness. Poor posture can have negative consequences not only on health but also on how the people around us see us.
How does chiropractic improve posture?
The body has a muscle memory. For example, if you sit for a long time in the wrong way, the spine is affected as it begins to memorize this wrong way of sitting. Therefore, it is very difficult to erase that information and regain a correct posture.
One of the best ways to correct posture is with chiropractic care. By working with the spine, the chiropractor helps restore that incorrect postural information, optimizing communication between the body and the brain.
Chiropractors look for and fix subluxations (spinal misalignments) through specific and safe spinal adjustments. After years of spinal stress caused by poor posture due to injuries, sports, accidents, stress, poor diet, daily work in front of the computer, driving for long hours, exerting efforts, housework, etc., subluxations form and both the spine and health begin to degenerate.
When the chiropractor adjusts the spine, this not only restores its normal alignment and movement, it also takes pressure off the nerves, allowing the body to function better naturally.
Studies show that thousands of people around the world have avoided unnecessary surgery or pain relievers by choosing natural chiropractic care.
In addition to helping with the relief of various ailments and discomforts of the body, another benefit of chiropractic care is increased energy. People who adopt a bad posture constantly feel tired and exhausted, which causes difficulties in moving properly and prevents us from doing our work efficiently.
A correct posture promotes blood circulation since less muscle tension leads to less resistance, allowing the blood to flow correctly. It also helps us to have improved concentration and to breathe better and ensures that more oxygen reaches the brain.
"Having a good posture goes beyond aesthetics. It is extremely important to our health, well-being, and overall performance in every area of life. If you want to improve your posture and increase your quality of life,".