Forward Head Carriage
Forward head carriage (FHC) is a commonly recognised stressor to a person's health. Good posture is simple and eloquent by design in form and function. The body is designed to have the head, rib cage and pelvis perfectly balanced upon one another in both the front and side views.
If the posture is deviated from normal, then the spine is also deviated from the normal healthy position. Any measurable deviation from normal posture causes weakening of the spine as well as increased stress on the nervous system which adversely affects overall health.
Unfortunately, abnormal posture has been associated with the development and progression of many spinal conditions and injuries including: increased muscle activity which leads to premature and chronic muscle fatigue, disc injury, scoliosis, work lifting injuries, sports injuries, back pain, neck pain, headaches, carpal tunnel symptoms, shoulder and ankle injuries as well as many other conditions. Additionally, postural abnormalities in adolescent years have been recognised as one of the sources of pain syndromes and early arthritis in adulthood, whilst also contributing to structural abnormalities such as scoliosis, and the more common FHC. Therefore, posture should be checked and corrected in children before more serious problems can occur.
For every 1 cm that a persons head is carried forward, the relative weight of their head increases exponentially. A 5.4 kg head that is 3.5cm forward places a relative stress weight of 24.2 kg load on the body.Chiropractic evaluation involving digitised postural and spinal assessment including x-ray can evaluate a persons spinal and postural balance. Once identified, chiropractic adjustments, specific spinal stretching (commonly achieved by spinal orthotics) and postural muscular strengthening are proven techniques in correcting or limiting further spinal and postural abnormalities.
Assessments and therapies of this nature are available at Healthspace clinics. Come in for a visit and we'll start the process of getting on the path to good posture and good health.
