Poor Posture - Causes of Poor Posture

Causes of Poor Posture

Poor posture can stem from many sources; one of the most significant sources deals with repetitive motion without frequent breaks. If one spends a substantial part of one's day in a certain position without frequent reprieves, the spine tends to orient itself to that movement. For example if someone is constantly leaning over to pick up objects, gradually the spine will start to develop a more exaggerated forward curve of the thoracic spine. Sullivan comments on poor posture saying; "These problems are often the result of chronic muscle tension, physical injuries or even emotional trauma, such as grief or depression. Conditions like these throw the musculoskeletal system out of alignment, and if not corrected, poor posture eventually feels normal." Emotions, as wells as physical activities, affect the state of one's posture.

Other causes include sustained immobile posture for long periods of time. Taylor, Consmüller, and Rohlmann in their article "A novel system for the dynamic assessment of back shape" in the Medical Engineering & Physics journal, say: "Low back pain is an increasing problem and can be aggravated by prolonged static posture. Sitting for prolonged periods is a great hindrance to good posture. Poor sitting posture is hard to rectify. Jenny Pynt in The Physiotherapy Theory & Practice journal states, "In sitting there is no one ideal posture, nor should one posture be sustained. Healthy sitting posture therefore is best thought of as an active not static phenomenon." Poor posture is affected by prolonged periods of repeated motions, or remaining fixed in one particular position.