Is Your Posture Accelerating the Aging Process? | Chiropractor Thousand Oaks
Are you accelerating the age of your spine? As a chiropractor Thousand Oaks, spinal arthritis and degenerative disc disease are common findings, but old age isn’t the only reason for the disease. Spinal arthritis can occur from metabolic diseases, sports injuries, whiplash, inflammatory diseases, and, you guessed it, sustained poor posture, or postural faults.
Postural faults are patterns of poor posture that have become engrained. Whether developed over time, or quickly as a result of an injury, they cause a loss of your spine’s natural curvature and are therefore damaging to your health.
Left over time, postural faults can place uneven pressure on your spine and speed the aging process. Imagine driving your car for hundreds of miles on tires that are out of alignment. The tread will wear out faster and unevenly as only one side of the tire is in contact with the ground. Your body can suffer similar effects when not properly aligned.
It takes time to develop, so don’t expect to correct a postural fault overnight. They cause the many ligaments supporting your spine to become shortened and molded into faulty positions. Sustained traction is often needed to reshape these ligaments.
Does sitting up straight fix the problem? Standing straighter and sitting in an ergonomically correct chair is not a fix, as the faults have become engrained, but creating an ergonomically friendly environment is helpful to prevent further postural faults.
Do you know if you have a postural fault? They can not always be seen with the naked eye. Get evaluated by a professional who can assess your posture, before degeneration and accelerated aging begins.
Photo provided courtesy of Ambro