The connection between posture and good health has been known for a century, but has unfortunately been all but eliminated from general medical practice.
Posture shapes both your thoracic and abdominal cavities which means posture exerts influence on every internal organ which can get stressed from changes in pressure, position and blood flow. If you have any doubt, just take a deep breath while slouching and compare it to the air you inhale while standing or sitting straight. You get about 30% more air. Your body likes that. Your heart doesn’t like to be squeezed any more than your liver or kidneys do.
Structure and function are married. There is an undeniable relation between the two on many levels in the body.
This is true when studying the relationship between posture and digestion. We tend to think of digestion in chemical terms. There is no denying it; digestion is, in part, chemical. And in the case of functional issues with digestion, the therapeutic focus seems to often be chemical. I think we are missing out on a significant component of that system. That component is the mechanics of digestion.
The digestive system is exactly that, a system. It is made up of various organs that work in unison towards one goal: to break down and process foods.
These organs, in order to accomplish their task, move. Think of the esophagus or the stomach for example. Without proper movement, the chemical side of things cannot express itself properly. Therefore, your digestion and assimilation is altered and every one of your body’s cells suffers.
And what if the stomach, liver and intestines all need to move together… what could be the engine of that system? THE DIAPHGARM!
It is the diaphragm that literally pumps the internal organs all day and night. The diaphragm is the link between the abdominal and thoracic cavities. It is muscle that is highly sensitive to posture in the sagittal plane.
It is known that just about ¾ of the population presents with an anterior scapular plane. In a nutshell, their thorax sits in front of their pelvis.What effect does that have on the mobility of the digestive system? How does that affect the very function of the diaphragm? It stiffens up the diaphragm, which then slows down the rhythm of the digestive system, as a whole.
March is Nutrition Month! As you think about what you are going to put in your mouth, it would be just as wise to think about the capacity for your digestive system to break it down. That breakdown is directly related to your posture !
The Posturepro Team
Superior Performance
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