I am extremely grateful that my work as a Doctor of Chiropractic has enabled me to help many people overcome pain and disease. I know that my life’s work is helping people lead healthier, happier lives.
The work we’re doing in our Monmouth County office takes this objective a step further.
In addition to helping patients with their pain, we focus on postural correction to provide optimal structural alignment for the patients we treat. Ensuring correct posture and spinal alignment will guarantee a longer life.
Around the time I was born in 1970, the average number of years a man could expect to live was 70.8. Since that time, the population has become better educated on a number of fronts; we understand more about proper diet and fewer people smoke. Today, life expectancy in the United States is 77.7 years. Of course, this number varies between gender (women live longer than men) and across socioeconomic classes.
I know that we can do better.
A recent study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society* has confirmed what many of us have known all along—that posture is directly related to longevity. The study followed 1,353 patients for an average of 4.2 years. It confirmed, at least theoretically, what many chiropractors have been saying for years: poor posture, including forward head posture, slumped shoulders, and excessive kyphosis in the mid-back, is a major cause of decreased lifespan.
When viewed from the side, the neck should have a c-shaped curve. Poor posture, which can be caused by a variety of factors, leads to a loss or even a reversal in the normal curvature of the neck. Often, it results in a forward head position. Additionally, poor posture can lead to something call hyperkyphosis or increased forward bend in the torso. This position overtime will lead to degeneration of one’s health by means of several physiological processes such as organ compression, nerve compression, and arthritis just to name a few.
Hyperkyphosis is a ubiquitous problem in geriatric populations. It comes as no surprise that this forward slumping posture is more common in men than women (it is found in 44% and 22%, respectively), since we already know that women live longer than men.
The study results showed that patients with hyperkyphosis had a greater rate of mortality than those without this postural issue (1.44 times greater). It was also discovered that the worse the hyperkyphosis, the likelier the patient would suffer from an early death.
Basically, hyperkyphotic posture predicts increased mortality because the problem increases the rate of physiological aging. People are dying earlier deaths because of a problem that can be corrected!
Proper Posture for Longer Life at Monmouth Spine and Rehabilitation
Our practice is dedicated to correcting posture and ensuring proper spinal alignment so that our patients can live the longest, healthiest lives possible. Our facility emphasizes the importance of correcting postural distortion by remodeling the spine to a normal position through the use of Chiropractic Biophysics (CBP). CBP corrects whole spinal misalignments and posture in order to achieve better overall well-being and extended life.
Based on biomechanics and physics, CBP surpasses the goal of reducing the symptoms of hyperkyphosis. The purpose of this treatment is to restore the spine to structural normalcy in order for the body to function properly in every way.
Treatment for hyperkyphosis and all postural concerns at Monmouth Spine and Rehabilitation is one of our primary commitments. Please contact our facility to learn more about our full range of services.
*Hyperkyphotic Posture Predicts Mortality in Older Community-Dwelling Men and Women: A Prospective Study
Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
From: Volume 52 Issue 10, October 2004, Page 1662
Deborah M. Kado, MD; Ms. Mei-Hua Huang; DrPH; Arun S. Karlamangla, MD, PhD; Elizabeth Barrett-Connor, MD and Gail A. Greendale, MD.
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