Posture Pursuit

The way we hold and move our bodies in our daily activities is more important than most people realise. It is desirable to be able to stand erect and to have the parts of the body balanced so that easy and graceful movement occur. These ideas about how we stand and move are important for full health and economic efficiency of the body. The most economical way to use the body is with proper poise. This allows more energy to be available for whatever task is required. Any time a structure departs from the balanced state, energy is wasted and efficiency is reduced. An imbalance can cause one part of the body to be strained more than another, but no one part can be strained without affecting the whole body.

It would seem to be a matter simply of common sense to expect better health with the body so poised or balanced that all of the organs are in their proper positions and the muscles are in proper balance. Likewise with the poise such that the viscera of both the abdomen and thorax must be out of place, as can easily be demonstrated with X-rays, the best health could hardly be expected. The malposition of an organ will disturb its function. If malposition continues long enough, permanent damage will result, but if the faulty mechanics is corrected, damage will be prevented.

From article by:
Dr Joel E. Goldthwait
Orthopaedic Surgeon
Harvard Medical School