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What if I could tell you the future or give you a pretty good idea how something in your body would be 20-30 years years from now? To even take it a step further, what if the information we uncovered saved you potentially 10’s of thousand of dollars in time lost at work, lost leisure time, and unwanted medical bills? Would you want to know? Of course you would. Just recently over the past few weeks I’ve had 2 patients contact me who I haven’t seen in almost 18 years. I’m going to make this really short and simple.

 I saw both of them before the new millennium and they both had completely reversed cervical curves. Both of them chose at the time not to make their problem a priority. At the time there only complaints were neck pain and stiffness. Flash forward to 2017 one has already had spinal fusion surgery. The other is considering it if we are not able to structurally restore the neck curve. I’m not a fortune teller but know with 100% certainty that if you loose your cervical curve (especially at an early age) your spine will age a much more accelerated rate. Arthritis, degenerative disc disease, shoulder problems, carpal tunnel syndrome, numbness and tingling in your arms and hands, digestive issues, and breathing issues are all possibilities. Its important to know that the nerves and spinal cord in your neck influence your entire body. It’s usually not a matter of not if you’re going to have a problem, but when.

IT’S ALL PHYSICS!!

Simply put, your head weighs 10-12 pounds. If your head moves forward of your shoulder joint from the side it weighs more in our gravitational field. If this happens you loose a very important mechanical advantage. Not only do the muscles in the back of your neck and upper back have to work harder to hold your head up all day but you also shift a good portion of the weight of your head to the front of your spinal vertebrae. This accelerates the aging process. Think about it…if you had to carry around a bowling ball all day would you carry it close to your body or away from your body?

So what should you do?

1) Take a picture or video of yourself from the side by propping your phone up on a counter or dresser. Remember your head should be in line with your shoulder.

2) Go get one neck x-ray from the side! (Even if you don’t have pain) Spinal decay is painless just like tooth decay. An X-ray is the only way to know 100%.

3) If you’ve indeed lost your cervical curve, find a doctor who can help you restore it. 

4) If you have children in today’s technologically advanced society get them checked. Reason being is that their heads are in a flexed/down position a lot during the day looking at their devices and computers. Talk to them about the importance of good posture. Start by teaching them to keep their heads up.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”