Will Bad Posture Cause Scoliosis?

More and more people have bad posture. That’s sad considering that bad posture contributes to neck or back pain. But will bad posture cause scoliosis?

Let’s find out.

But first, we’ll talk about scoliosis, what is it and how bad posture can cause it.

What is Scoliosis? 

Mayo Clinic defines scoliosis as “a sideways curvature of the spine that occurs most often during the growth spurt just before puberty.”

Many conditions can cause scoliosis. These would include cerebral palsy and muscular dystrophy. However, many scoliosis has no known causes. Sadly, 3% of adults have this spine condition.

Although many cases of scoliosis are mild, they can get severe as you get older. Unfortunately, this condition can affect your everyday life.

If you have a severe spinal curve, your lungs will not function properly or they’ll have difficulty functioning well.

But will scoliosis form when you slouch or practice bad posture?

Can You Get Scoliosis from Slouching? 

If you sit with your body slanted to one side, it won’t cause idiopathic scoliosis. As mentioned earlier, scoliosis is an uneven growth of the spine as a result of various genetic factors.

However, bad posture can cause postural scoliosis, which is reversible.

Bad posture refers to a posture in which the structures of the body must work harder just to maintain a particular potion.

But if you have good posture, your muscles will work the least.

When you look from the side, proper posture looks like your ear is above the shoulder and the shoulder is above the hip. Deviating from it will require more effort from the muscles.

If you sit slanted to one side requires more muscle work on one side of your body leading to tightness and overuse of muscles.

If you stay in a faulty posture for a lot longer, it causes an imbalance in your muscles. There’s uneven muscle tension. Your spine will be curved, which is now called posture scoliosis.

However, it isn’t the same as scoliosis because of bone deformities. If you undergo an x-ray examination in a lying position, posture scoliosis won’t be found on the film.

Thus, to answer your question whether or not bad posture can cause scoliosis, yet it will cause posture scoliosis but it won’t cause bone deformity.

It means that your posture scoliosis can be reversed by simply practicing proper posture or re-training your body to achieve good posture.

Exercise can also help in achieving upright posture.

Does Good Posture Help Scoliosis? 

Posture scoliosis is reversible by practicing proper posture every day.

But how about in the cause of idiopathic scoliosis? Can posture corrector help?

The best time to treat and prevent it from progression is before the child reaches adolescent growth spurt.

When it comes to bracing treatment, the ideal posture corrector is a rigid back brace. With this type of brace, it lowers the chances of any spinal deformity getting worse.

A posture corrector in this case is prescribed. Your doctor will request an x-ray to check if the Cobb angle reaches 25 degrees.

If it’s less than that but the progress is at least 5 degrees within 6 months of follow-up appointment, then back bracing may be used.

However, if your scoliosis is near full skeletal maturity, bracing may no longer be effective.

The back brace will keep scoliosis manageable.

However, if you have postural scoliosis, then a posture corrector will work. It’s a conservative treatment for this type of scoliosis.

But the severity of your scoliosis will be taken into account. If it’s just a slight curvature of the spine, a posture corrector can help without additional treatments.

Furthermore, if you wish it to work effectively, you need to wear it every day for at least 20 to 25 minutes. The longer you wear it, the better the outcome will be.

However, if you have a severe S curve, a posture corrector may not be enough. You may need to consult a chiropractor to help in straightening your spine.

If you don’t correct your bad posture and postural scoliosis, then you may suffer from other spine problems.

Can Bad Posture Cause Spine Problems? 

Bad posture can have an impact on your spine. Our society now encourages a long period of inactivity. If you sit for long hours, it can cause severe spine issues.

If you’re tied to your computer every day, your spine will sore and stiff. You’ll feel pain.

Indeed, sitting can be relaxing. However, it also puts too much stress on the muscles and discs of your neck and back. A wrong sitting position can tighten your hip flexor.

The longer you stay in a seated position, the more likely your posture slides. And slouching can lead to spinal ligaments stretching beyond their limit. In other words, poor posture will strain your spinal discs.

Spending each day sitting can cause significant spine issues in the long haul. It speeds up wear and tear on your spinal discs. As a result, you’ll experience neck and back pain daily.

Unfortunately, sitting all day isn’t the only reason you have bad posture. Stress can also lead to poor posture.

Your shoe choice can also contribute to your bad posture. When your wear heels, for instance, they throw your body weight forward. They can easily cause misalignment of your spine.

To avoid having bad posture from sitting all day, you should consider investing in an ergonomic chair.

You should also invest in a posture corrector so you can maintain proper posture while you’re sitting down and glued to your computer.

But it’s not enough. You still need to stand up after 20 minutes of sitting down. You should stretch your muscles.

It’s one reason yoga is an ideal exercise after long hours of work.

Pilates may also work.

If you don’t like these exercises, try tai chi. It’s more fun.

You should also avoid sitting in the same position for longer periods. You should vary your posture by standing and moving around. Doing so will help your spinal joints, tendons, and ligaments to loose and be pain-free.

Conclusion 

Will bad posture cause scoliosis? It will cause postural scoliosis but not idiopathic scoliosis.

For postural scoliosis, you just need to force yourself to stay in proper posture. If it’s too difficult for you, wear a posture corrector, avoid sitting in the same position for longer periods, move around and do yoga, Pilates, or tai chi.

Wondering where to buy a posture corrector for your postural scoliosis? Please visit our Posture department to find the posture corrector that fits your issue.