Posture Perfect

My Drew

My great-nephew, Drew, is one of the most important people in my life.  We bonded almost from the time of his birth, five short years ago.  We love spending time together playing ball, racing toy cars, reading, whatever he wants to do.  I try to be a good steward of that time by teaching him something of value, although I did make the mistake of calling him a nincompoop one day and he picked right up on the word, using it at every opportunity.  I had to explain myself out of that one by telling him that he must not call anyone that, that it was just a word between him and Aunt Pam to tease each other!

We had been outside playing at his great-grandparent’s house, one Sunday afternoon.  We went inside the house for a drink of water.  While there, Drew decided he wanted to eat a piece of birthday cake.  He climbed into the chair at the kitchen table.  I sliced him a piece of cake and reached for the drawer to get him a fork.  “I don’t need a fork.” He said.  He picked up the cake with his hands, and just as he aimed for his mouth, it fell out of his hands and onto the floor, icing side down.  “That’s why you need a fork!” I explained. “Now, sit up there, because I’m going to teach you to act like somebody!”  He thought that was hilarious.

 For the next few minutes, I taught him about table manners. I reasoned why he should sit up nice and tall, with one hand in his lap.  He soaked up the information like the little sponge that he is. 

 Later that afternoon, his daddy came to pick him up.  He told his dad that “Aunt Pam taught me how to act like SOMEBODY!” 

 This reminded me of something my mother taught me. “Sit up straight!”  She would say.  “If you slump like that, your back will form that way.”  Her instructions were reinforced by my schoolteachers.  I recall my high school typing teacher telling the class that we would lose two inches off our waists if we would be aware of our posture.

Parents and teachers, we should be emphasizing this with our children. We need to be posture aware, too.  With sitting at computers all day, like many of us do, we can find ourselves in a real slump. 

Practicing good posture is an essential element of our health.  You see, when we let our spine sag, we can develop a postural deviation known as kyphosis, or hunchback.  Structural kyphosis is caused by osteoporosis, (the loss of bone mass), or can be an abnormality of the spine.  What I’m speaking of is postural kyphosis, which can be caused by poor posture, and weak abs.

Kyphosis creates an outward curvature of the spine, and a forward curve of the neck.  This creates a strain on supporting ligaments, which results in a sagging rib cage.  When the rib cage sags, it narrows the abdominal space.  When the abdominal space is decreased, the organs, such as the intestines, have nowhere to go except to protrude.  Respiratory function and heart action are restricted, and ailments like acid reflux can develop.

When we slump, our chest muscles become tight and the muscles in our back are overstretched.  Sitting at the computer isn’t the only cause of this.  Runners and cyclists can develop kyphosis if they don’t spend some time stretching the muscles of the chest and strengthening the muscles of the upper back.

Sitting for long periods of time causes tight hip flexor and hamstring muscles.  This creates a pull on the pelvis, resulting in the collapsed rib cage.  Stretching these muscles regularly will help to avoid this.

The best way to correct posture is to practice good posture.  When standing the crown of the head should be the tallest part.  At least one of your chins should be pulled in and your ears should align with your shoulders.  Chest lifted high, and shoulders pulled back and down, while holding in the abdominal muscles, result in a naturally aligned spine.

In a seated position, you should sit tall. The knees should be slightly higher than the hips.

 When walking, keep the head tall, and avoid a forward head.

 By regularly performing exercises to stretch muscles that are tight, and strengthening those that are weak, will improve your posture. Take time every hour to open up the chest with a nice stretch.  Take breaks often.  Get up and walk to improve your circulation.

 With just a little effort, you can be like Drew.  You can improve your posture and learn to act like somebody, too!

Check out Straighten Up America , and see what you can do to improve your health in just three minutes per day.

We’re Killing Ourselves

The October, 2009 issue of AARP bulletin listed the 50 most prescribed drugs in the U.S. in 2008.  At first look, one might scroll through the list and see where the prescriptions that they take fall in the line-up.  As I was reading through the list,  I saw a pattern emerging; a very disturbing one.  I totalled the numbers for prescriptions for the same ailments and came up with the four leading ones:

#4 – The number of prescriptions written for Type II Diabetes 40.1 million! = 1.78 billion dollars in pharmaceutical sales.

#3 – Americans must be in a lot of pain, because doctors wrote 214.7 million prescriptions for pain medications; another 1.78 billion dollars.

#2 - Apparently we needed 238 million prescriptions for depression and/or anxiety, for a cool 2.4 billion dollars for the drug industry.

#1 - And, I’ll bet you can guess what the doctors were busy scribbling on their prescription pads.  You got it!  3 billion dollars were spent on meds to treat hypertension or better known as high blood pressure.

America is sick!  And you know what the saddest fact about it is?  All four of these diseases could be avoided or controlled with an active lifestyle, regular exercise, healthy eating, rest, and de-stressing.    Now, before you jump all over me, let me say that I recognize that prescription medications are absolutely necessary in many situations.  I don’t have a thyroid, so I have to take Synthroid the rest of my life.  I am a Fibromyalgia sufferer, so without medication, my body will not function.  But, there are many meds that doctors have tried to force on me that I don’t need and refuse to take.  Others are pre-disposed, by genetics, to certain diseases. So, I do know there are those of us who require medication.  My furor and passion rests with the meds that we don’t need,  and the fact that by living healthier many could be avoided.   This is what gets me riled!

For twenty plus years, I have preached, encouraged, cajoled, and begged people to adopt these principles of healthy living.  I’m tired of it!  I’m tired of spending my hard earned tax dollars on people who don’t help themselves.  None of us can whine or pound our fists over healthcare reform.  We’ve already spoken…loud and clear…with the state of our health!  We’re LAZY, LAZY, LAZY!  In my opinion, if we aren’t personally doing anything to improve our health, we can’t expect the government to bail us out of our illness.

Just look at the billions of dollars we are spending to fund an industry that consistently rapes us.  The pharmaceutical industry spends millions of dollars per year to provide meals and other niceties to our physicians, who in turn write their prescriptions, and pass out their samples, with little or no knowledge of what that poison can ultimately do to our bodies.  Without question, we accept it.

A couple of years ago, I went to my doctor.  I told her that I wanted to come off some medication that had been prescribed a few years earlier, for menopausal symptoms and fibromyalgia.  Instead, she wanted to add two new meds!  I questioned her and refused the meds.  I had already researched those particular meds and wasn’t having anything to do with them.  I took myself off the meds and went to a natural approach.  I’m doing great!

Lower blood pressure is a walk-in-the-park, literally.  Exercise helps to decrease blood pressure.  It decreases the risk of Type II Diabetes, and if you already have it, it will decrease your need for medications.  Exercise boosts endorphins, which are the body’s natural pain killer.  Exercise improves mood, lessens feelings of depression, and decreases symptoms of pre and post-menopause.  You’ll sleep better, look better, and feel better about yourself if you will exercise.

Seventy percent of all illness is caused by stress.  De-stress!  Practice deep breathing and relaxation.  Do yoga, Pilates, go for a walk, stretch, light those candles, soak in the tub, go to a movie, dance…whatever it takes to relieve stress, do it!

Take time for your spiritual health.  My mother used to sing a song, “Whisper a prayer in the morning.  Whisper a prayer at noon.  Whisper a prayer in the evening.  It will keep your heart in tune.” 

I didn’t set out to get my preach-on , but if that’s what it takes to get you to the altar of repentance from sick habits, then it’s worth you getting upset with me.  I care about you!

I realize there is illness that we must take medications for, but I do believe that there are many ways we can avoid them.  Determine right this minute that you will make a concerted effort to do your part to get healthier by adopting a healthier lifestyle.  Think of what we could do with those billions of dollars we would save on medications.  We could pay for healthcare for those who really need it.  We could pay off some of our national debt.  We could…..