Postural Awareness
Being a chiropractor, I talk to my patients all the time about the ill effects of bad posture. Poor posture can lie at the root cause of headache problems, neck pain, back pain, etc.
Oddly enough, whenever I think about my posture I find that I need to correct something. I will either find my upper back slumped forward, my head extended out in front of my body, my lower back rounded forward or my shoulders rolled forward.
Posture is difficult to maintain. I would guess that probably half of my patients end up in my office because of some injury, old or new, that is further aggravated by postural stress. Eliminate postural stress and many cases of neck pain and back pain would be eliminated as well.
One of the problems that we encounter with posture is that our awareness of our posture declines as we focus on other duties. Posture is especially difficult to maintain when we are seated in front of our computers. Our natural response toward any type of work that we perform is to lean into it. Getting close to our work helps us focus. Unfortunately, getting close to our work in this way instigates poor posture and the resulting stress can cause a number of different aches and pains.
Poor posture has become habit among most of us. The only way to improve your posture is to become aware of your bad posture and practice maintaining good posture. Sounds simple but it takes self awareness and plenty of dedication.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.
Better Health Steve Jones
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Posture and Back Pain
Posture and Back Pain
Have you ever hurt your back and scratched your head wondering – how did this happen when my back has felt fine until now?
Patients present to my Chiropractic clinic on a regular basis with neck pain, back pain and other related symptoms that not only lack a history of pain in that area but have no recent injury or accident to explain their current painful symptoms.
This is frustrating for the patient yet a typical presentation for me. When patients come in for care with this type of history recent injury, my inquiries usually lead to a situation that involves excessive postural stress for that patient.
Ongoing postural stress affects our body much like the old analogy of the straws on the camels back. Our bodies are capable of compensating for quite a it of stress before symptoms appear. This is good and bad.
The good part of this situation is that if we didn’t compensate for all the little stresses that we are subjected to, we would be uncomfortable all the time. The bad part about compensation is that we often are not keen enough to recognize when our bodies are being exposed to ongoing low levels of stress.
Once the stress levels build to a certain point, the body part in question reacts with irritation, inflammation and muscle spasm. This combination produces pain and tightness and usually is the reason that patients call my office.
Postural stress can place an amazing amount of stress on your spine. One of my reference books has a chart that describes how different body positions affect the amount of pressure on your discs in the low back. The differences are amazing.
When standing straight up with ideal posture, the pressure in the discs of the low back is 100%. When lying flat on your back the pressure is at 24%. While sitting straight with good posture, the pressure is at 140% but when slouching forward with poor posture the disc pressure goes to a staggering 190%.
Considering that most of us sit for a good portion of the day, simply sitting becomes a significant source of stress for the lower back.
This kind of ongoing stress combined with an awkward twist or bend can generate a crisis for the low back leading the patient to wonder exactly how turning to pick that cup of coffee off the desk behind him / her lead to such a severe back spasm.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.
Better Health Steve Jones
Have you ever hurt your back and scratched your head wondering – how did this happen when my back has felt fine until now?
Patients present to my Chiropractic clinic on a regular basis with neck pain, back pain and other related symptoms that not only lack a history of pain in that area but have no recent injury or accident to explain their current painful symptoms.
This is frustrating for the patient yet a typical presentation for me. When patients come in for care with this type of history recent injury, my inquiries usually lead to a situation that involves excessive postural stress for that patient.
Ongoing postural stress affects our body much like the old analogy of the straws on the camels back. Our bodies are capable of compensating for quite a it of stress before symptoms appear. This is good and bad.
The good part of this situation is that if we didn’t compensate for all the little stresses that we are subjected to, we would be uncomfortable all the time. The bad part about compensation is that we often are not keen enough to recognize when our bodies are being exposed to ongoing low levels of stress.
Once the stress levels build to a certain point, the body part in question reacts with irritation, inflammation and muscle spasm. This combination produces pain and tightness and usually is the reason that patients call my office.
Postural stress can place an amazing amount of stress on your spine. One of my reference books has a chart that describes how different body positions affect the amount of pressure on your discs in the low back. The differences are amazing.
When standing straight up with ideal posture, the pressure in the discs of the low back is 100%. When lying flat on your back the pressure is at 24%. While sitting straight with good posture, the pressure is at 140% but when slouching forward with poor posture the disc pressure goes to a staggering 190%.
Considering that most of us sit for a good portion of the day, simply sitting becomes a significant source of stress for the lower back.
This kind of ongoing stress combined with an awkward twist or bend can generate a crisis for the low back leading the patient to wonder exactly how turning to pick that cup of coffee off the desk behind him / her lead to such a severe back spasm.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.
Better Health Steve Jones
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Is Computer Work Killing You?
Is Computer Work Killing You?
I have a love / hate relationship with my computer. When I went to college in the early 80’s, computers were expensive, underpowered and not readily available.
I remember doing research papers that would entail chasing down medical journal articles from my schools library and several local colleges. Hours or days would pass with me searching through the libraries of Stanford, San Jose State and Berkley just to find the content for one paragraph of a research paper.
What I would have done for the ease of our current internet. All of this research could have been performed in a matter of minutes from the comfort of my desk. It is this convenience that inspires the “love” in the love / hate relationship that I have with my computer.
Now for the downside, the “hate” of my love / hate relationship with this computer.
The more time that I spend sitting at my computer, the more I realize that it is the postural stress that my work station generates that is responsible for the “hate” part of my relationship with the computer.
Even though I am a doctor who has taken a special interest in the effects of postural stress secondary to computer use, I too succumb to the stresses of Computer Related Postural Stress Syndrome.
Computer Related Postural Stress Syndrome or CRPSS is a term that I coined to describe the effects of the postural stress that a poorly thought out work station places on the body.
CRPSS often causes neck and shoulder pain, back pain, arm pain and chronic tension headaches.
You have probably heard and used the term “ergonomics”. Ergonomics is the study of how we can make a particular work station adapt to meet the physical demands of that stations operator. The idea is to reduce the physical stresses that the work station places on the operator to a minimum. We can use basic office ergonomic principals to reduce or eliminate many of the stresses that cause CRPSS.
CRPSS can result from any one or combination of:
Poor Seating Conditions
Incorrect Monitor Placement
Incorrect Keyboard Placement
Over-reaching for the Mouse
Poor seating can be remedied with the purchase of a chair with the following characteristics:
Ability to adjust the seating height
Adjustable armrests ( up and down)
Tilting back support
Tilting seating surface
These features combined with a chair that actually feels comfortable when being sat in can be very helpful in reducing Computer Related Postural Stress Syndrome.
Incorrect monitor placement is also a common source of postural stress and neck pain. Your monitor should be positioned directly in front of you. Your eyes should be parallel with the top one third of your monitor when you are looking straight ahead. A monitor that is positioned in a way that requires the operator to look up or down will stress the neck and eventually lead to neck pain.
Much like the monitor, your keyboard should be placed directly in front of you. Its height should allow your arms to rest comfortably next to your body while your elbows are bent no more than 90 degrees and your wrists are as straight as possible. A properly placed keyboard can help reduce neck pain, shoulder pain, elbow pain wrist pain and hand pain.
The final major factor in reducing the effects of CRPSS involves over-reaching. A mouse operated on the desk top lends itself to producing an over-reaching situation. This is bad news if you do a substantial amount of mousing. A mouse that is beyond your comfortable reach zone is likely to become a primary source of postural stress and aggravation. The solution to this problem is to position your mouse as close to your body as possible. This can be accomplished with a mouse platform that mounts to the armrest of your chair. There are several of these on the market that will do the trick. Make sure that the mouse platform that you choose is adjustable.
Anecdotal evidence from my chiropractic clinic in San Diego suggests that over-reaching for the mouse is a primary factor in the development of neck pain, shoulder pain, elbow pain, wrist pain and hand pain.
Reducing the postural stresses associated with computer work stations can prevent you from developing aggravating conditions that can lead to a lifetime of disability and a loss of employment (I see this in my office all the time). In many cases, simple rearrangements of the primary components of your work station can go a long way in reducing your chances of developing CRPSS.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.
Better Health Steve Jones
I have a love / hate relationship with my computer. When I went to college in the early 80’s, computers were expensive, underpowered and not readily available.
I remember doing research papers that would entail chasing down medical journal articles from my schools library and several local colleges. Hours or days would pass with me searching through the libraries of Stanford, San Jose State and Berkley just to find the content for one paragraph of a research paper.
What I would have done for the ease of our current internet. All of this research could have been performed in a matter of minutes from the comfort of my desk. It is this convenience that inspires the “love” in the love / hate relationship that I have with my computer.
Now for the downside, the “hate” of my love / hate relationship with this computer.
The more time that I spend sitting at my computer, the more I realize that it is the postural stress that my work station generates that is responsible for the “hate” part of my relationship with the computer.
Even though I am a doctor who has taken a special interest in the effects of postural stress secondary to computer use, I too succumb to the stresses of Computer Related Postural Stress Syndrome.
Computer Related Postural Stress Syndrome or CRPSS is a term that I coined to describe the effects of the postural stress that a poorly thought out work station places on the body.
CRPSS often causes neck and shoulder pain, back pain, arm pain and chronic tension headaches.
You have probably heard and used the term “ergonomics”. Ergonomics is the study of how we can make a particular work station adapt to meet the physical demands of that stations operator. The idea is to reduce the physical stresses that the work station places on the operator to a minimum. We can use basic office ergonomic principals to reduce or eliminate many of the stresses that cause CRPSS.
CRPSS can result from any one or combination of:
Poor Seating Conditions
Incorrect Monitor Placement
Incorrect Keyboard Placement
Over-reaching for the Mouse
Poor seating can be remedied with the purchase of a chair with the following characteristics:
Ability to adjust the seating height
Adjustable armrests ( up and down)
Tilting back support
Tilting seating surface
These features combined with a chair that actually feels comfortable when being sat in can be very helpful in reducing Computer Related Postural Stress Syndrome.
Incorrect monitor placement is also a common source of postural stress and neck pain. Your monitor should be positioned directly in front of you. Your eyes should be parallel with the top one third of your monitor when you are looking straight ahead. A monitor that is positioned in a way that requires the operator to look up or down will stress the neck and eventually lead to neck pain.
Much like the monitor, your keyboard should be placed directly in front of you. Its height should allow your arms to rest comfortably next to your body while your elbows are bent no more than 90 degrees and your wrists are as straight as possible. A properly placed keyboard can help reduce neck pain, shoulder pain, elbow pain wrist pain and hand pain.
The final major factor in reducing the effects of CRPSS involves over-reaching. A mouse operated on the desk top lends itself to producing an over-reaching situation. This is bad news if you do a substantial amount of mousing. A mouse that is beyond your comfortable reach zone is likely to become a primary source of postural stress and aggravation. The solution to this problem is to position your mouse as close to your body as possible. This can be accomplished with a mouse platform that mounts to the armrest of your chair. There are several of these on the market that will do the trick. Make sure that the mouse platform that you choose is adjustable.
Anecdotal evidence from my chiropractic clinic in San Diego suggests that over-reaching for the mouse is a primary factor in the development of neck pain, shoulder pain, elbow pain, wrist pain and hand pain.
Reducing the postural stresses associated with computer work stations can prevent you from developing aggravating conditions that can lead to a lifetime of disability and a loss of employment (I see this in my office all the time). In many cases, simple rearrangements of the primary components of your work station can go a long way in reducing your chances of developing CRPSS.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.
Better Health Steve Jones
Friday, October 2, 2009
Chiropractic Care in is popular.
Our population has a passion for fitness and exercise. Chiropractic treatment helps keep neck pain, back pain and other body aches from slowing us down.
Neck pain and back pain typically respond very well to chiropractic treatment. Chiropractic care helps restore normal joint motion which is vital to a healthy neck and back.
One of the wonderful benefits of chiropractic treatment is its ability to help active people avoid neck pain, back pain and other spinal injuries.
Getting chiropractic adjustments in a regular basis helps your spine maintain its full range of motion and flexibility. Typically, it is a loss of normal range of motion and flexibility that exposes us to injuries. Chiropractic care that is delivered prior to an aggravation, in other words “when the patient is not in pain” is a perfect example of preventative healthcare.
Chiropractic adjustments gently push the joint through its entire range of motion. When your joints are moved through their full range of motion by a trained chiropractor, tight muscles associated with that joint are stretched out and scar tissue that has formed in and around those joints is broken down.
Usually, having your spine adjusted is not a painful procedure. Most of the time, the patients in my chiropractic clinic feel a sense of pressure relief and relaxation in their backs when they are adjusted.
This feeling of pressure release and relaxation is due to a number events that occur during an adjustment.
When the spine is adjusted, there is a reflexive relaxation of tight muscles that occurs. Relaxed muscles are much more comfortable than tight, spasmed muscles.
Another event that takes place with an adjustment involves the “pain gate”. Adjustments trigger the “pain gate” in the nervous system which, as it implies, decreases our sensations of pain.
On a mechanical level, chiropractic care stretches tight muscle and ligaments and helps breakdown restrictive scar tissue. This effect improves our spines’ range of motion resulting is feeling of increased flexibility.
As a chiropractor, a healthy percentage of my treatments revolve around spinal maintenance and improving athletic performance.
Chiropractic treatment is a vital part of maintaining your health.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.
Better Health Steve Jones
Our population has a passion for fitness and exercise. Chiropractic treatment helps keep neck pain, back pain and other body aches from slowing us down.
Neck pain and back pain typically respond very well to chiropractic treatment. Chiropractic care helps restore normal joint motion which is vital to a healthy neck and back.
One of the wonderful benefits of chiropractic treatment is its ability to help active people avoid neck pain, back pain and other spinal injuries.
Getting chiropractic adjustments in a regular basis helps your spine maintain its full range of motion and flexibility. Typically, it is a loss of normal range of motion and flexibility that exposes us to injuries. Chiropractic care that is delivered prior to an aggravation, in other words “when the patient is not in pain” is a perfect example of preventative healthcare.
Chiropractic adjustments gently push the joint through its entire range of motion. When your joints are moved through their full range of motion by a trained chiropractor, tight muscles associated with that joint are stretched out and scar tissue that has formed in and around those joints is broken down.
Usually, having your spine adjusted is not a painful procedure. Most of the time, the patients in my chiropractic clinic feel a sense of pressure relief and relaxation in their backs when they are adjusted.
This feeling of pressure release and relaxation is due to a number events that occur during an adjustment.
When the spine is adjusted, there is a reflexive relaxation of tight muscles that occurs. Relaxed muscles are much more comfortable than tight, spasmed muscles.
Another event that takes place with an adjustment involves the “pain gate”. Adjustments trigger the “pain gate” in the nervous system which, as it implies, decreases our sensations of pain.
On a mechanical level, chiropractic care stretches tight muscle and ligaments and helps breakdown restrictive scar tissue. This effect improves our spines’ range of motion resulting is feeling of increased flexibility.
As a chiropractor, a healthy percentage of my treatments revolve around spinal maintenance and improving athletic performance.
Chiropractic treatment is a vital part of maintaining your health.
Writers Bio
Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.
Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.
Call Steve Jones at
(619) 280 0554
San Diego Chiropractic
Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.
Better Health Steve Jones
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