What Influence On Health Can A Bad Posture Have?

[Motif]

I got bad neck and back tensions over half of my life.

Could this lead to issues like histamine intolerance for example?


I started all kinds of "farmer walks" and I think it's pretty helpful to fix bad posture.

 

[yerrag]

I think that while good posture helps, good posture is better achieved with a firm structure. I noticed that after 6 months on therapeutic magnesium supplementation, it was easier and more natural for me to stand straight.

 

[rebuke]

Someone mentioned in another thread that kyphosis is correlated with estrogen and prolactin to promote lactation and to maintain that posture.


It seems more likely that these hormones promote kyphosis rather then posture > hormone production. Or that their one in the same.

 

[orangeUglad]

I think that while good posture helps, good posture is better achieved with a firm structure. I noticed that after 6 months on therapeutic magnesium supplementation, it was easier and more natural for me to stand straight.

What magnesium supplement do you use?

 

[yerrag]

What magnesium supplement do you use?

I was able to improve my posture on 5 months of daily supplementation with magnesium chloride at 4800mg/day, which is about 1200mg elemental magnesium. But in hindsight, I would have used magnesium bicarbonate as prolonged use of magnesium chloride causes serious acid-base imbalance and health is compromised.

Making your own magnesium bicarbonate is best, but it involves a little work and spending a small amount on equipment. But it still works out over the long run. You can buy magnesium bicarbonate but it becomes very expensive. Because it's not just as simple to make your own, most people don't use magnesium bicarbonate but end up using other forms such as magnesium glycinate. But since I haven't used them, I can't go into much detail on them.

There's a recent thread on magnesium with a link to a well-written article :
https://raypeatforum.com/community/...d-need-to-supplement.24292/page-5#post-351896

And lastly, it's just not magnesium but since magnesium is more often than not the mineral that is often deficient, magnesium is emphasized. But it would help to also take more potassium, as potassium is often deficient when magnesium is deficient, because magnesium deficiency makes it hard for the body to absorb potassium, and intakes of potassium are simply excreted in urine. Other minerals such as calcium and sodium are important as well. So be sure to meet your RDA on them, as one way or another there is an impact from deficiency.

 

[Greg says]

If your posture is dysfunctional your breathing will be dysfunctional. I believe a typical forward head posture [upper cross syndrome] causes you to breath 40,000 times a day instead of 20,000 times day. This is activating a continual stress response. Magnesium may alleviate symptoms and allow your muscles to relax but structurally the dysfunction will remain. I had a chronically tight hamstring for 10 + years and Magnoil fixed it in the first dose. But the dysfunction came from a sway back posture which came from old injuries. I went to see someone who had trained in P-DTR who corrected my posture. Posture is very important and your posture reflects your health.

 

[Barliman]

Poor posture is simply catastrophic on multiple levels. The most serious one is the craniocervical junction.

The nett result of it is at a minimum a chronically activated stress response - which pushes up cortisol and so down the sex hormones.
More serious levels include cervico medullary syndrome, where a combination of vascular and mechanical issues impinge on medullary function 9which, of course includes all regulation of the autonomic nervous system ( higher structures can send signals, but the medullary nuclei are the effector organs).

There are multiple levels at which posture can cause a problem. It will inevitably lead to osteoarthritis and malalignments in the spine. Then it drives an asymmetrical posture, and then you get say one sided hip or shoulder arthritis.

Honestly this needs a book. It is that important.

 

[Barliman]

If your posture is dysfunctional your breathing will be dysfunctional. I believe a typical forward head posture [upper cross syndrome] causes you to breath 40,000 times a day instead of 20,000 times day. This is activating a continual stress response. Magnesium may alleviate symptoms and allow your muscles to relax but structurally the dysfunction will remain. I had a chronically tight hamstring for 10 + years and Magnoil fixed it in the first dose. But the dysfunction came from a sway back posture which came from old injuries. I went to see someone who had trained in P-DTR who corrected my posture. Posture is very important and your posture reflects your health.

Greg,
the hamstring tension question is interesting. Ive had enormous issues with it- which are improving now that my chiro explained that the hamstrings were working as stabilisers of my sacroiliac joints, which were being constantly put out by my whole spine dysfunction.

 

[Barliman]

Now the end result of chronic forward head posture is osteoarthritis especially of the cervical and thoracic spine.

There are a number of serious consequences of this: the straightening of the spine and bulging forward of the discs (and also impingement of the odontoid process of the second cervical vertebra) stretch and compress the upper spinal cord, triggering an NMDA receptor ENOS mediated process of apoptosis in the spinal cord and brainstem. There are kick on effects to the downstream neurones in the brain that were receiving their input from the dead neurones. Thus a cascade of trans-neuronal degeneration is started through the brain.

The next problem is the correlation of cervical/upper thoracic osteoarthritis with decreased cerebral perfusion:
Medscape: Medscape Access

also at https://www.researchgate.net/public..._and_Upper_Back_Pain_Preliminary_Observations

Conclusion: In this group of patients with neck and/or upper back pain, NDI scores strongly predicted cerebral hypoperfusion. Spinal joint dysfunction may be involved via hyperactivity in the regional sympathetic nervous system.

Ive done plenty of work in aged care (20 years in one family practice) and one observation that was very clear to me was this:
Many of the independent elderly would start their deterioration with an increase in their thoracic curvature ( say being temporarily disabled following a fall). However the worsening posture would accelerate, usually followed by nocturia, then increasingly clumsy legs, and then increasing memory and thought disorder. Other patient with Alzheimers would stabilise both cognitively and posturally, sometimes for years. I cant help wondering if there was a link.

 

[yerrag]

I remember an article about Weston Price on visiting aboriginal tribes making the observation about their posture. These are people who are not lacking in nutrients from their primitive lifestyle and being near to nature. They aren't lacking either in activity. I doubt that a chiropractor or a sports or physical therapist will ever be needed in this setting. They are like cats allowed to roam free, in contrast to cats cooped up in small condos. Of course, cats roaming free still need good nutrition.

Just relying on therapy isn't enough. The nutritional component in improving posture is often overlooked.

 

[Barliman]

Someone mentioned in another thread that kyphosis is correlated with estrogen and prolactin to promote lactation and to maintain that posture.


It seems more likely that these hormones promote kyphosis rather then posture > hormone production. Or that their one in the same.

One of the big problems we face at the moment is that allopathic medicine has all our attention focussed on the biochemical level. The hormone and supplement approach often defaults to conventional medicine restricted to using OTC products. We even find invalid ocncepts such as "ADHD is a disorder of dopamine metabolism" carried forwards to form the template for non allopathic treatments.

Ive been very impressed by the model advanced by the osteopath Leon Chaitow looking at internal influences on health as being based on a triad of biochemical- emotional cognitive - and structural influences. Each one can influence the other. None can be understood without both of the others.


The most hormones can really do is affect energy supply, and maybe muscle growth. They will not have a specific postural effect- other than the effect of a sympathetic activation state- buteven those depend on the exact emotional context. ( fight involves some upper body flexion, calm alertness is much more upright, like a sentinel meerkat, or someone meditating in Vajra posture.

The real rulers of posture are the vestibular system and their role in turning on the key postural muscles.
Having said that the neurones in the vestibular system are the most highly metabolically active of all. They are always on, and respond to your every movement.

In fact, once in upright posture you are in a position that requires little effort to maintain- and that is reflected in the EMG studies that show low activity in these posture.

For most of us posture is very difficult to achieve because not only are we fighting against spinal malalignments, but our bodies have forgotten the activation pattern required for good posture.

 

[fradon]

I got bad neck and back tensions over half of my life.

Could this lead to issues like histamine intolerance for example?


I started all kinds of "farmer walks" and I think it's pretty helpful to fix bad posture.

yes Joseph Pilates believed that having good posture would lead to good health

and i think it was hippocrates that said when ill look to the spine

 

[ecstatichamster]

My posture improved when my breathing improved and I notice this with my students.

 

[Motif]

@Barliman

What treatment would you recommend for overall good posture?

I really think Farmer walk variations are the best thing I tried yet.

All stretching and working out for the back in the gym did not much

 

[yerrag]

My posture improved when my breathing improved and I notice this with my students.

Why do you think that is?

 

[Douglas Ek]

I got bad neck and back tensions over half of my life.

Could this lead to issues like histamine intolerance for example?


I started all kinds of "farmer walks" and I think it's pretty helpful to fix bad posture.

I think it's the opposite. Bad nutrition leads to bad posture. check out copper deficiency leads to bad neck, tensions and bad posture

 

[ecstatichamster]

Why do you think that is?

I suspect because low CO2 causes breathing from neck and chest muscles not diaphragm and this causes head forward compensation that leads to posture problems. Fixing the CO2 makes the compensation too much work and the body reverts to more originally intended posture.

 

[yerrag]

I suspect because low CO2 causes breathing from neck and chest muscles not diaphragm and this causes head forward compensation that leads to posture problems. Fixing the CO2 makes the compensation too much work and the body reverts to more originally intended posture.

I know nothing about the impact of low CO2 on breathing mechanics as you just explained. Is there a book on it? But if so, I can appreciate how having sufficient CO2 could impact how one sings, since singing requires breathing with the diaphragm.

I think it's the opposite. Bad nutrition leads to bad posture. check out copper deficiency leads to bad neck, tensions and bad posture

From Water Medicine by Mark Sircus:

For every 100 mg per day increase in Mg, there was an approxumate 2 percent increase in whole-body BMD, said Dr. Kathryn Rider.
(Journal of the American Geriatric Society November, Vol 53 No 11, pp 1875-1880)

"Bones average about 1% phosphate of magnesium and teeth about 1% phosphate of magnesium. Elephant tusks contain 2% of phosphae of magnesium and billiard balls made from these are almost indestructible. The teeth of carnivorous animals contain narly 5% phosphate of magnesium and thus they are able to crush and grind the bones of their prey without difficulty," wrote Otto Carque (1933) in Vital Facts About Foods.

Back in the 1950s Dr. Barnett examined the bone content of healthy people and compared it with the content of people suffering from severe osteoporosis. He found there was little difference among the calcium, phosphorus, and fluoride content of the bones of the individuals. The magnesium content in the bones of the healthy people, however, was 1.26%. That of the osteoporosis victims was 0.62%.

 

[Motif]

My copper was always low, but I'm too scared of supplementation cause a lot of people talk about copper toxicity

 

[Douglas Ek]

My copper was always low, but I'm too scared of supplementation cause a lot of people talk about copper toxicity

Jesus christ there you have it. I swear on my mothers grave if you start taking copper you will feel a lot of improvements. The copper toxicity is a myth. Your body has a mechanism of excreating extra intake through your bile. Toxicity is for people with hereditary genetic diseases causing your body not to produce ceruloplasmin. upper safe dosage is 10mg per day. I've done 16mg a day with no problem only seeing benefits since to was also copper deficient at one point. Buy a chelated copper supplement like copper glycinate and start taking 4mg a day with food to avoid nausea and you'll see within a month you're aches will be gone. You probably notice improvements after first dose.
Do yourself the favor