Neck Pain – Better health chiropractor Andrew Richards discusses

Neck pain is most commonly caused by forward head posture where the head is pushed forward of the base of support. This is turn promotes rounding of the mid-back and shoulders.

The image here is a very common example of this sort of postural distortion. Here are some important points to consider:

1)      The approximate weight of this person’s head based on height and weight is 5.1kg

2)      Given the forward shift here of 5.17cm forward of the shoulders the effective weight of the head now becomes 31.8kg. This is an amazing 624% increase in the amount of load that has to be supported by the bones, ligaments muscles and tendons of the spine.

Is it no wonder that with this sort of posture someone would complain of neck pain and stiffness and that this would ultimately lead to some degree of osteoarthritis. Because of the pain that occurs in the overworking muscles most people tend to go running off for a massage to get some relief. While this would appear to make sense it is also needs to be recognised that massaging the overworking muscles is not going to fix the underlying postural cause of the problem. Without correction of the forward head posture any relief from work on the muscles will be short lived.

 

Chiropractic adjustments are key to addressing your neck pain

The image to the left is the same person 2 months later following a course of corrective chiropractic care involving spinal adjustments, soft tissue release and postural corrective exercises. It is clear to see that change, in his instance there is now a negligible forward head shift and corresponding effective head weight of 9.5kg. This a is huge reduction in stress and strain on the neck and shoulders. Getting a massage now would lead to longer lasting relief and benefit.

The key with any injury is to do the right things in the right order for maximum benefit and lasting results. If you suffer from chronic neck and shoulder pain consider the benefits of chiropractic corrective adjustments to help treat the underlying cause.

If you would like a chiropractic assessment of your spine and posture please contact me at Better Health on 9518 0722

 

Yours in Better Health,