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Good posture, good health

by

Erica Techo

Sit up straight. Chin up. Plant your feet on the floor.

These are not instructions called out during an etiquette class. Rather, they were recommendations given at the Greater Shelby Chamber of Commerce’s luncheon on Aug. 30. The luncheon was put on by the chamber’s health services work group and featured the third annual health care professional of the year awards program.

Guest speaker Dr. Taylor Mason of Precision Chiropractic focused her keynote speech on the importance of good posture as well as how posture can affect overall health.

“Posture has been a hot topic over the past couple of years, especially in the workplace and especially with health care workers because they’re finding out it has such a drastic effect on long-term health,” Mason said.

Idea posture includes a level chin, shoulders held back and even distribution of weight, among other things, Mason said. That stance puts the spine in the “best biomechanical position to protect all of your vital organs,” she said, and keeps its four natural curves in line.

Some common issues faced today include what Mason called “text neck,” which is the craning of one’s neck to look down at a phone or other handheld device. Not only can this cause a strain on the neck, she said, but it also shifts the amount of pressure your head is putting on the rest of your spine.

When someone’s head is held high and in line with the natural curves of their spine, it puts about 12 pounds of pressure through the neck and shoulder region, Morgan said. If their neck is craning even just 2 inches forward, however, that pressure goes up to 32 pounds of pressure.

In addition to causing spinal issues such as compressed disks or other maladies, posture can influence other health factors as well. The brain sends signals to nerves, and spine misalignment can cause issues with that transmission.

“When the bones in our spine become misaligned, they can put pressure and irritation on those nerves and those disks, and then that signal that the brain is trying to communicate to the spinal nerves doesn’t get through effectively,” she said. “And that’s when we start to see all kinds of aches, pains and dysfunction take place in the body.”

To combat poor posture, Morton suggested making changes even in an office setting. Using a standing desk or keeping a computer monitor at eye level can help prevent neck problems, she said, and things like chiropractic care can help realign the spine and prevent more problems.

“Does your posture have you in a slump?” Morton said. “And what I mean by that is maybe a lot of the health issues you have or people that you deal with have may be stemming from a lack of proper curvatures in their spine.”

During the luncheon, the “Health Care Professional of the Year” award was also presented, and it was given to Dr. Marty Lovvorn of Precision Chiropractic. The chamber also named Rep. April Weaver the Health Care Advocate of the Year for her work on a resolution that created the first rare disease council in the state.

Other nominees for Health Care Professional of the Year included:

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