Sitting Affects Health!?!

To most of us it would appear that sitting in a chair is the most comfortable posture to be in while awake: it's restful, relaxing and easy. However, for hours at a time on a daily or almost daily basis, sitting a lot will lead to several problems over time.

Here is a picture of a normal spine, standing.

Sitting in a chair changes the normal standing posture by first causing the low back to arch back instead of the normal forward. Secondly, it puts pressure on the spine from below: when standing there is no pressure directly on the base of the spine due to the way the hips support from the sides. In addition to spinal changes, sitting on chairs cuts off blood supply and presses on nerves running through the backs of our legs.

After many hours of this kind of stress, several things can happen. Circulation can be reduced to legs and feet. Nerves can get pinched, causing sciatic pains in the hips and legs. Low back pain can result from this posture. Disks in the back, designed to fit into the normal curvature of the back, are squeezed on the anterior sides by the seated posture and subjected to extra pressure from below. This can lead to disk degeneration, bulges, or herniations over time.

It is recommended that we get up to stretch at least once an hour. When seated at a computer, try not to crane into the screen - draw the chin inwards slightly and keep the back of the head upright in order to stretch the cervical spine upright. The taichi image is that the head is suspended at the very crown by a thread from above, and the rest of the body hangs from this point, giving a sense of traction.

Whenever possible, try using different sitting angles - kneeling chairs, balls, and squatting without any support. Changing up the pressure keeps it from building up in one place. And relax! It's amazing how much tension we carry just sitting - especially if we are concentrating on something stressful. Breath, relax, smile. Things always turn out better that way!