Health News and Views

There is a lot of attention in the media today concerning obesity and its effect on health.
Diabetes, heart, circulatory, and bowel problems as well as high blood pressure and breathing difficulties are a few commonly mentioned.
Besides these there are other noticeable effects. Seat manufacturers, theatres and airline companies are also discovering that the average person is becoming wider. Who hasn’t had to accommodate the overflow of an obese fellow passenger sitting alongside, forcing you to eat like a praying mantis?

But probably not so well known is the effect that obesity has on the human spine. The increased weight causes the spine to assume abnormal and extreme curves as well as compromising the discs between the vertebrae. All of which affect nerves, muscles and blood vessels.

As the accompanying diagram illustrates, obesity causes a forward motion of the centre of gravity. This affects the neck, causing the head to tilt forward and upward, often severely straining neck muscles. The same goes for the lower back due to the corresponding backward movement of the body. This alteration to the centre of gravity has consequent influences on spinal facet joints and other organs.