Back to Health with Correct Ergonomics and Chiropractic Care: Sitting (Part 3) is about how to make changes in your daily life (sitting posture) for better posture and health. So posture is the way that you hold your body at any given moment, whether sitting, standing, or being active. And ergonomics is a science dedicated to studying human posture that is the most healthy for our bodies.
Many patients seek chiropractic care for pain relief, but your chiropractor should also help you decide which aggravating activities are unnecessary and must be eliminated. This is important for prevention of rein-jury and for further future trauma. Get started with some facts in our latest post.
Sitting Posture
The fairly typical poor posture of someone sitting is: flattening of the lumbar spine (low back), excessive thoracic (mid back) kyphosis (exaggerated, forward rounding of the upper back), round – shouldered posture, anterior head (forward head ) positioning , and a depressed chest.
How can this poor sitting posture effect your health?
Firstly, this discourages normal diaphragmatic breathing (abdominal breathing and deep breathing). The diaphragm is a thin muscle that separates the chest from the abdomen and abdominal muscles. And Diaphragmatic breathing involves slowly breathing in through the nose and then out through the mouth using the diaphragm. Secondly, diaphragmatic breathing helps boost the amount of oxygen in the blood, lowers blood pressure and heart rate, and reduces muscle tension. Thirdly, diaphragmatic breathing (e.g. relaxation technique) may be used to help relieve stress, pain, and anxiety.
Moreover, poor sitting posture restricts thoracic (mid back) expansion. Additionally, this abnormal breathing leads to a compensation pattern and overload of the cervical (neck) muscles of accessory respiration. So when prolonged, such poor sitting posture results in muscle and joint stress and eventually pain.
Improving poor sitting posture when working at a computer:
-Your chair should have a backrest, a seat which is slightly hollowed out at the bottom to allow room for the buttocks, and firm upholstery.
-Seat height should be low enough so that your feet rest flat on the floor without compression of the thigh by the front edge of the seat.
-A foot rest may be used, if necessary, to avoid under-thigh compression.
-The lower edge of your back rest is positioned to support the lumbar spine (low back). And the upper edge of the backrest should reach high enough to cover and support at least the inferior (lower) edges of your scapulae (shoulder blade).
-Computer monitors which are too high or too low, or with glare on the glass, cause abnormal cervical (neck) postures. This occurs while you are trying to read the screen. Indeed, the screen can be cleaned. And a phone book can raise a computer screen that is too low. Also, seating adjustments may correct a screen that is too high. Lastly, special screen covers can cut unnecessary glare.
-If working on a computer, your keyboard should be kept as close to lap level as possible. If no keyboard table is available, it is better to have the keyboard on the knees (lap) than on a desk. Similarly, if typing, the under surface of the typing table should fit just above the knees/lap. This is so that your arms and shoulders do not need to be raised to reach the typewriter keys. As mentioned previously, if necessary a separate keyboard can fix this problem.
Chairs to be used for reading, socializing or watching TV, (not for eating)
The chair must have armrests that are high enough to provide support for the elbow. Without armrests, there will be a tendency to cross the arms in front of the chest for comfort. This causes the muscles across the front of the chest to shorten and rounds the shoulders forward.
If reading or writing, your chair should be pulled as close to the desk as possible. Your work should be kept as close to the body as possible. And the eyes instead of the head/neck should be turned down to look at the work.
Your chiropractor is your partner in your healthcare.
At Meiri Chiropractic in West Palm Beach, we’ll work with you to get the relief and health you need through chiropractic care. Together, we can be on the lookout for life and work situations where you experience pain in relation with poor posture. Pain is our body’s way of warning us of problems, so don’t ignore it. Shape up your life! Check your posture today.📞Contact Meiri Chiropractic today at 561-253-8984 to make an appointment or to learn more about Back to Health with Correct Ergonomics and Chiropractic Care: Sitting Posture (Part 3).