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What causes scoliosis?

Essentially there are two types. One is due to a malformation of your spinal vertebrae which then leads to the abnormal curvature (congenital scoliosis). The other is most commonly due to an imbalance in the spinal muscles (idiopathic/functional scoliosis).

How can scoliosis be treated?

If the scoliosis is due to a malformation of the spinal vertebrae, bracing or surgery may be warranted, all dependent upon the severity. If scoliosis is due to an imbalance in spinal muscles, we first must determine what’s causing the imbalance. Functionally speaking, the imbalance is most commonly due to some altered function in the kidney’s or bladder. You’ll also see a functional weakness and tightness of the corresponding psoas muscle, which is on the front side (anterior) of the spine.

I commonly find that people with functional scoliosis have heavy metal toxicity and inability to utilize certain minerals. They are also dehydrated and stressed out to the max!

Here’s my recommendations:

• Find a chiropractor well trained in functional medicine who understands manual muscle testing (especially an Applied Kinesiologist). He or she will probably make nutritional recommendations as well as detoxification recommendations.
• Get your spine in alignment. By stimulating specific nerve pathways, your body can relax the spastic muscles and turn on the inhibited muscles.
• Get hydrated. Drink at least 1 liter of water for every 50 lbs of body weight.

What constitutes good posture?

If you drop a line down from your head to your feet it should pass directly through the following:

Ear canal

Shoulder joint

Hip joint

Knee joint

Ankle joint

Effects of poor posture

The immediate effect of having poor posture is that you’ll start to develop abnormal pains in your body.  These are pains that you have no idea why they’re there.  You’ll begin to notice that you’ll have upper neck, back and low back pain.  You may even develop foot, knee and hip pain.

How do you correct poor posture?

Step 1: Make sure that you are analyzed by a competent Chiropractic physician (preferably one who focuses on postural alignment and is also very familiar with Applied Kinesiology or Muscle Response Testing.  When you call in to an office, ask the receptionist if the doctor uses Applied Kinesiology or Muscle Testing).

Step 2: Remove structural interferences in all affected joints.  As Chiropractors, we term these interferences “subluxations.”  These subluxations interfere with your joint’s normal motion and restricted motion is the first step toward postural distortions.

Step 3: Focus on retraining the surrounding stabilizing muscles.  This is most important to a lasting postural correction.  Along with making sure the surrounding muscles are “firing at optimal” your chiropractor should then make sure all the surrounding muscles move together in a synchronous pattern.  When the muscles move synchronously you decrease the wear and tear on the joint.

Step 4: Focus on general postural enhancing exercises. There are specific exercises that will help you to regain proper posture.  Some include: chin-tuck, abdominal bracing and pelvic rocking.