Posture and back pain.

Most people experience back pain at some time during their life, and sometimes the pain seems to appear out of nowhere! Back pain does not always stem from specific trauma, it can occur as a result of prolonged unhealthy postural habits. Let me explain. The spine is made up of spinal vertebraes which are separated by a cushioning disc and behind that 2 joints called facet joints (which help to guide and control the motion of each segment) then we have capsule and ligaments which are passive restraints which help protecting us from going too far, and to exceed the normal range of motion in our spine. And lastly there is a cover of muscles which controls the fine tuning and larger movements of the spine. Pain could not exist without nerve supply, but pain is not the reason for nerves being there. In a healthy back the ligaments and muscles containing small nerve receptors sends signal back and forward through our spinal cord to inform the body of which actions to take to perform its function. This sensory input is called proprioception, which helps us maintain balance and to coordinate the effort of our muscles. Without the proper input it would be easy to exceed to normal limitations of our spine which could lead to sprains and strains of the muscles and ligaments. Poor posture could cause overstretching of ligaments and muscles and thus proprioceptive control may be affected and pain could be the result, as lack of segmental control could cause excessive spinal segmental mobility and wear and tear and inflammation could set in.
Ergo posture is more important than we think and we ought to look after our backs as improper control of segmental motion could cause unnecessary pain and suffering.
PT1964