Why is posture is so important to health yet overlooked in our society? Medicine has forgotten the value of good posture and what it represents. Good posture signifies a healthy body. Medicine is so specialized it overlooks the fact all the systems in the body are motion dependant. The body functions as a whole and should be addressed as such. As a result Americans have their symptoms treated piecemeal with drugs and surgery and get sicker as they age. We see our health, our parents health and the health of loved ones slowly deteriorate. We can however take control of our health and be responsible for our wellness and feel great. Improving your posture is one way to ensure you do not succumb to the health "care" crisis in our country.

What is "posture" and why is it important for health?

Physics 101: FORM FOLLOWS FUNCTION. "Form" is our posture. Posture is created by the position of our bones dictated by muscle balance and tension through the use, disuse or lack of use of these muscles. "Function" refers to how well our musculoskeletal system is working.

Poor posture or "postural collapse" is a result of our dreadful modern life style. We spend most of our time at a work station, drive everywhere, and channel surf at night. We rely on modern tools and gizmos to perform just about everything in our daily lives instead of using our bodies like our grandparents and ancestors. Getting an hour of exercise a day through walking or intense cardio or the machine circuit at gym will not address the ill affects of our lifestyle on your postural muscles.

Your posture is directly related to what you do with your body on a daily basis. All of the body's systems (cardiovascular, immune, digestive - to name a few) are interdependent and perform best when we are mobile and active. The musculoskeletal system and its condition is the common denominator for all these systems. "Move is or loose it" could not be more appropriate here. Loose your motion and you slowly loose your health.

Your posture has everything to so with your back, neck, knee, and headache pains and conditions such as Fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, herniated discs, mild depression, and arthritis. (That covers a lot of different illnesses). Remember all of the body's' systems are interrelated and rely on healthy muscles and.

For example: We are inactive and hunched over all day. We are not using our muscles as they were designed to leading to structural misalignments and stress on our joints. This leads to inflammation in joints (arthritis) and tears in cartilage. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia is in part, due to postural collapse. The breathing muscle (diaphragm) bisects the abdominal and chest cavities, cannot expand fully with poor posture resulting in decreased oxygen and increased carbon dioxide in our blood stream. This creates a problem on a cellular level and affects every metabolic process in every system in our body.

What can you do to improve your posture and your health?

Empower yourself: Create goals to improve your posture and health. Visualize them and put a positive feeling behind them (This makes it easier).

Take action: Work with a health care professional who specializes in exercise and posture. Learn about ergonomics for the work station. Take micro breaks at work and stretch. Walk up and down the stairs at work when you use the bathroom. In short move your body and move it often with the right kind of motion.

Our health sick system is not the solution. You are.
Improve your posture and improve your life!