Sitting Position Affects Much More Than Just Posture

The Covid Pandemic has caused havoc over the past 2 years, and medical researchers are just now discovering the serious impact on the mental states of all members of society, be it anxiety, physical and emotional stress, social isolation, leading to suicidal thoughts and actual suicides.

Society was compelled to rely on online academic pursuits, social media for connection, TV for entertainment, etc. Subsequently, young and old spent their time sitting, not engaged in any form of physical activity or even their sport. Therefore, ‘sitting’ in whatever way has become the norm and personal habit, and has resulted in an increase in medical issues.

Facts: 

  • Nearly 65 million Americans report a recent episode of back pain, according to experts. Some 16 million adults and 8 percent of all adults — experience persistent or chronic back pain, and as a result are limited in certain everyday activities. Back pain is the sixth most costly condition in the United States. 

  • These statistics seem to indicate that back pain is one of the most common types of pain among US adults. Such pain can be caused by strained muscles or ligaments, excessive weight, poor posture, psychological problems, or everyday activities. A statistical survey found that 29 percent of US adults with back problems believed that stress was the cause of their pain, while 26 percent blamed weak muscles or a lack of exercise.

  • An overview of the responses to questions concerning back pain in a 2017 (June 29) US study for all participating sports disciplines showed that elite athletes’ lifetime prevalence of back pain was 89%, 12-month prevalence was 81%, 3-month prevalence was 68%, and point prevalence was 49%. 

What about younger children and adolescents? Researchers report that a child's back pain is most often due to injuries from sports or play, falls, or unusual strain caused by wearing a heavy backpack (next month November edition discusses the impact). 

Poor posture when sitting to do academic homework, walking with the head bent downward or held low because of being on the tech gadget, and lack of physical exercise to strengthen and correct postural flaws has resulted in the common back and shoulder slouch symptom.

Some Positions Leading to Back Problems: 

Everyday activities typically involve a combination of actions, such as walking, sitting, standing, bending, lifting, and lying down. Common habits that one may develop while performing these actions include:

  • Slouching or sitting slumped on a chair or couch

  • Lying on the belly on the bed while working on a laptop or reading a book or using the tech gadget

  • Sitting on a bed and working on the laptop

  • Standing with the weight of the body concentrated on one leg

  • Walking in a hunched manner without supporting the head or the trunk

  • Lifting heavy objects off the floor by bending the back

If using one or more of these incorrect postures, it is likely that one will experience back pain. A sedentary lifestyle or lack of physical activity can cause more stress and pain to develop in the lower back section.

Poor Posture Causes Back Pain:

When using incorrect posture, several areas of stress may develop within muscle tissues, spinal joints (lumbar facets), and discs. These may be relieved once the offending posture is corrected or may continue to accumulate, slowly weakening the affected structure, for example:

  • Prolonged hunching while standing or sitting can cause the back, core, and abdominal muscles to become strained and painful, reducing the blood supply, and slowly developing stiffness and weakness in the trunk and lower back. 

  • An unsupported sitting position places a small forward bend on the spine. Over time, this forward bend may place a load on the lower spinal discs, causing herniation. 

  • An incorrect-lifting technique can cause the lumbar disc to herniate, causing it to refer pain in the lower back and/or radiate pain into the leg through a nearby spinal nerve.

  • Working on a laptop or reading while lying on the belly can cause the lower back and hip to extend (bend backward) excessively, altering the dynamics of the lower spinal curve. 

It typically takes less effort to maintain correct posture than an incorrect one… though becomes quite challenging to keep up the correct posure when corrcting a flawed posture. Changing from a habitual incorrect posture may take time and constant awareness, dedication, and motivation to ‘do something about it!’

A new study from John Hopkins University examined the impact of poor posture and the posture held when intaking vitamins and medication as this affects the way the body absorbs these, in essence, the posture held at the time of time of ingestion matters!

The team discovered this after testing via a simulation how quickly pills and tablets dissolve in the human body. They found that leaning to the right, rather than sitting up straight, results in the fastest absorption rate. "We were very surprised that posture had such an immense effect on the dissolution rate, according to Rajat Mittal, a computer scientist and team member in the study. I never thought about whether I was doing it right or wrong, but now I'll definitely think about it every time I take a pill." The team tested four different postures in total through their computer simulation of a human stomach, which was based on body scans of a 34-year-old male: leaning right, leaning left, lying down, and sitting upright. 

The model followed the path of a supplement moving through the digestive tract in the body, and the rate at which it opened up into the stomach and entered the duodenum (the entry point of the small intestine where nutrients start to be absorbed). 

Researchers found that lying or leaning to the right while taking the vitamin would result in the pill going into the deepest part of the stomach and dissolving twice as quickly. When lying or leaning to the left, the team noted that the dissolution took up to five times longer to absorb.

Now What?

Given the fact that back pain is a common medical problem and that the pandemic has intensified emotional, mental, and physical issues, coaches need to consider integrating some recommendations:

  • Assess athletes’ posture in Preseason, Mid- and Postseason for original weakness 

  • The collected data should be recorded and kept on file for each athlete 

  • After asessment, exercises should be designed for common postural flaws and for each individual athlete. If coaches are not educated in this domain, access an expert or physiotherapist. While I had the education due to my training, I still selected to hire a professional expert to counter any potential parental resistance. The therapist charged a minimal group fee and was afforable.

  • The exercises need to be integrated into training programs on a regular basis, either in the Pre-or Post training phase (former Warm-up/Cooldown) or in conditioning sessions.

  • Athletes need to be encouraged to engage in their individual exercise routine at home on a daily basis for 1-15 minutes because correcting and/or improving posture is a slow process that takes time.

  • Athletes, coaches, and parents have to realize that incorrect posture affects any sport skill learning or performance whether in training, competition or game, no matter the athletic talent.

The Kalos 8-year study on developing physical literacy focused on developing correct posture on a regular basis within the training regime and had a high success rate at the completion of the study! It proves that maintaining such an exercise program – if done correctly and consistently – really works.

References: 

Baker, N. (2022, August 17). How you’re sitting can actually affect how well your body absorbs vitamins and medication, new study says.

Schloder, M.E. (2017). Physical literacy for children and youth through FUN, fitness and fundamentals. Calgary, Alberta, Canada: www.coachingbest.com

Schloder, M.E. (2016). Ballet for swimmers: Modified exercises for cross-training. Calgary, Alberta, Canada: www.coachingbest.com

 Schloder, M.E. (2016). Ballet for athletes: Modified exercises for cross-training. Calgary, Alberta, Canada: www.coachingbest.com

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