Are Our Devices Making Scoliosis Worse? [ Find Out Here ]

Practicing a spine-friendly lifestyle is important when it comes to preserving spinal health and function, but what about our heavy use of devices in the modern age? How does modern spinal health measure up to the spinal health of our ancestors, and how does device usage impact conditions like scoliosis?

Scoliosis involves the loss of healthy spinal curves, and while we don't know what causes most cases of scoliosis to develop, we do know degenerative scoliosis is caused by spinal degeneration that can be affected by posture and lifestyle, and we also know that any type of spinal degeneration is bad for scoliosis.

Screen usage and looking down at devices is a large part of modern life, so let's talk about how it affects overall spinal health and conditions like scoliosis.

A Healthy Spine

What does a healthy spine do for us? It allows us to stand upright, practice good posture, engage in a wide range of flexible movement (bending, lifting, twisting), it gives the body structure, and the spinal cord within works with the brain to form the body's central nervous system (CNS).

The central nervous system is a vast communication network that facilitates brain-body communication, so is involved in the function of virtually every working part and system within the body, and this is why spinal conditions can cause such a wide range of effects felt throughout the body.

A healthy spine has its natural curves in place, and this means that its vertebrae (bones) are stacked on top of one another in a straight and neutral alignment.

When you look at a healthy spine from the front and/or back, it will appear straight, but when you look at it from either side, it will have a soft 'S' shape, and that's because of the spine's healthy curves.

The spine's natural and healthy curves make it stronger, more flexible, and better able to absorb and distribute mechanical stress incurred during activity, and the spine is curved at each of its main sections.

The spine has three main sections: the cervical spine (neck), thoracic spine (middle/upper back), and the lumbar spine (lower back).

In order for the spine to function optimally, its curves need to fall within a healthy range; curvature sizes can vary from person to person, but if a curvature size becomes under- or over-pronounced, the curve can become problematic and atypical.

Having good posture and leading a spine-friendly lifestyle can help prevent a number of spinal conditions, injuries, and issues, and unfortunately, the modern world and our heavy reliance on screens and devices can cause bad posture, text neck, forward head posture, adverse spinal pressure, and premature spinal degeneration.

The spinal discs are a huge part of how the spine functions, so I want to specifically focus on intervertebral disc health because it is key to overall spinal health.

Intervertebral Disc Health

A healthy spine has healthy intervertebral discs, meaning they are hydrated and have a central position between adjacent vertebrae; discs separate vertebral bodies.

The discs perform many key functions in maintaining spinal health; they give the spine structure as adjacent vertebrae attach to the disc in between.

The discs combine forces to help facilitate flexible movement, and they also act as the spine's shock absorbers, affecting its ability to evenly absorb and distribute mechanical stress.

The discs also provide cushioning between adjacent vertebrae so friction isn't generated during movement as this will cause the vertebral bodies to degenerate faster.

So once the discs start to degenerate, they can affect the spine in a number of ways, and posture and excessive device usage can increase general and disc degeneration.

The discs consist of two main structures: a soft gel-like inner nucleus and a tough durable outer annulus.

A bulging disc involves the inner nucleus bulging outwards, pushing against the outer annulus and causing the disc to project excessively into its surroundings, and a herniated disc is the next stage when the bulging nucleus has caused a tear in the outer annulus, through which the inner nucleus projects into the space around the disc.

Disc issues are very common spinal injuries and complaints, and when it comes to spinal degeneration, it's most often the intervertebral discs that are the first spinal structures to feel the effect; degenerative disc disease is a contributing factor in the development of a number of spinal conditions/issues.

So we've briefly explored basic spinal health, and now let's focus on scoliosis, and then connect the effect of modern device usage, spinal health, and scoliosis.

What is Scoliosis?

Scoliosis diagnosed means the spine has lost one or more of its healthy curves and been replaced with unhealthy spinal curves, and this introduces a lot of uneven forces to the spine, its surrounding muscles, and the entire body.

A scoliotic spine doesn't just bend unnaturally to the side, it also twists, making scoliosis a complex 3-dimensional condition.

In addition, scoliosis is progressive, meaning its nature is to get worse over time, and the condition also ranges widely in severity from mild scoliosis to moderate and severe to very severe scoliosis.

If scoliosis is left untreated and/or in severe cases, complications including disruptions to pulmonary function, lung function, and digestive issues can develop, and scoliosis only gets more complex to treat the more it progresses, hence the importance of proactive treatment.

There are also different types of scoliosis a person can develop, and while it's more commonly diagnosed in children, scoliosis affects all ages.

Most scoliosis cases are idiopathic, meaning the cause is unknown, and idiopathic scoliosis accounts for approximately 80 percent of known diagnosed cases, and the remaining 20 percent are associated with known causes: neuromuscular scoliosis, congenital scoliosis, and degenerative scoliosis.

So in cases of idiopathic scoliosis, we don't clearly understand the types of factors that contribute to the condition's development, and in cases of neuromuscular scoliosis, we know the scoliosis develops as a secondary complication of a larger neuromuscular condition such as spina bifida, cerebral palsy, and muscular dystrophy.

Cases of congenital scoliosis are rare, affecting approximately 1 in 10,000, and it's caused by a malformed spine that develops in utero, so babies are born with the condition.

So of these 4 primary types of scoliosis (idiopathic scoliosis, neuromuscular scoliosis, congenital scoliosis, and degenerative scoliosis), the type that's likely to be the most affected by poor posture and excessive screen usage is degenerative scoliosis.

Degenerative Scoliosis and Screen Usage

Degenerative scoliosis is most often diagnosed in older adults, and is more commonly diagnosed in females due to the changes in bone density and hormones caused by menopause.

As the name suggests, degenerative scoliosis is caused by natural age-related spinal degeneration and the cumulative effect of negative lifestyle factors.

While there is a certain amount of spinal degeneration to be expected with age, there are lifestyle factors that can contribute to a person's level and rate of spinal degeneration, and these factors include:

• Carrying excess weight
• Leading a sedentary lifestyle
• Chronic poor posture
• Repeatedly lifting heavy objects incorrectly
• Excessive consumption of alcohol and/or smoking

As mentioned earlier, when it comes to spinal degeneration, it's most often the intervertebral discs that are the first to start to deteriorate, and this commonly involves them becoming desiccated and changing shape as a result.

When a disc changes shape, it affects the position of adjacent vertebrae that are attached to it, and it also affects the disc's surroundings, including the spinal nerves, as the disc is taking up space it wasn't before when its central position between vertebrae was maintained.

So of those lifestyle factors that can contribute to the development of degenerative scoliosis, and a number of other spinal issues, in the context of devices, we're talking about leading a sedentary lifestyle, carrying excess weight, and chronic poor posture.

How Do Our Devices Impact Overall Spinal Health?

Modern society is heavily dependent on devices. We use computers for work, and more people are working from home than ever before, and no commute means more time spent sitting.

Having the world at our fingertips can be enticing, and it can increase daily average screen time for a number of people, and this generally means more time sitting, and the more a person sits during their day, the less their bodies are moving, and this impact's the spine's movement-based design over time.

Less Movement

With less movement and exercise, not only does the spine lose its flexibility and strength, the strength of its surrounding muscles is also affected.

Sitting for long periods of time means a lot of pressure on the lumbar spine, and this can impact the health of its discs and cause them to become compressed.

As core strength is lost due to lack of movement and exercise, the muscles surrounding the spine are less able to support it, and the spine needs optimal support and stabilization to maintain its natural curves and alignment.

Leading a sedentary lifestyle also affects the health of the intervertebral discs; as the spinal discs are the largest structures that don't have their own vascular supply, they are slow to heal from damage, and this, coupled with the many roles of the discs, is why they are generally the first parts of the spine to deteriorate.

Not having their own vascular supply means there is no direct path into and out of the discs, through which important nutrients and oxygen needed for repair can be absorbed, and waste can be eliminated.

Exercises and movement increase circulation, and this increase in blood flow is beneficial for disc health as they can absorb what they need from their surroundings.

Carrying Excess Weight

A lack of regular exercise and movement can lead to obesity, and this is also a negative lifestyle factor that greatly impacts spinal health and function.

Carrying excess weight means more pressure on the joints, including the spine, and this means more pressure on its individual structures, like the intervertebral discs.

If the body's joints have to work harder and are strained in their effort to support the excess weight, they are going to be more vulnerable to injury and will degenerate faster.

Chronic Poor Posture

Practicing good posture is important for spinal health, and being heavily reliant on screens and constantly looking down at devices does not facilitate healthy posture, and over time, chronic poor posture can affect the spine's surrounding muscles, nerves, and the structure of the spine itself.

Chronic poor posture can expose the spine to adverse spinal tension and uneven wear and tear on its individual parts.

The results of chronic poor posture can involve back pain, pain that radiates into the extremities due to nerve compression, balance issues, headaches, spinal dysfunction, rounded shoulders, respiratory issues, nerve and blood vessel constriction, and a protruding stomach.

Bad posture means taking the spine from its natural and straight alignment and putting it in unnatural and strenuous positions.

The cervical and lumbar spinal sections are particularly vulnerable to the effects of poor posture because the cervical spine has to support the weight of the neck, the head, and enable the neck's range of motion.

The lumbar spinal section has the added role of supporting the weight of the spinal sections above, the entire trunk, and it feels the effects of bending, lifting, and twisting motions.

A common postural mistake many people make is slouching, and this tends to become more pronounced after prolonged periods of sitting while scrolling through mobile devices; this means the body's upper weight isn't evenly distributed over the pelvis and legs, causing problems and changes to gait.

Now that we have talked in general terms about the type of lifestyle factors that can shape a person's overall spinal health and function, let's now address how those factors affect people with scoliosis and whether or not our use of devices is bad for scoliosis.

Scoliosis and Device Usage

Scoliosis introduces a lot of uneven forces to the body, and as a progressive condition, those uneven forces are going to increase, as are their effects.

The condition's uneven forces disrupt the body's overall symmetry; in children, the main symptoms of scoliosis involve postural changes, and in adults, the main symptom of scoliosis is pain because scoliosis doesn't become a compressive condition until skeletal maturity has been reached.

So scoliosis causes postural changes such as:

• Uneven shoulders
• Uneven shoulder blades
• The development of a rib cage arch
• Uneven hips
• Arms and legs that appear to hang at different lengths

In addition, changes to posture, balance, and gait are also common, and as we've seen, poor posture is a lifestyle factor that can contribute to excessive rates of spinal degeneration and the development of degenerative scoliosis.

Scoliosis and Poor Posture

So as scoliosis progresses, poor posture is a growing concern, and if a patient already has poor posture, it's likely that faster progression could be a factor because introducing more adverse spinal tension and pressure is bad for scoliosis.

The excessive screen-time amounts that are causing people to spend more time sitting is also bad for scoliosis for a number of reasons: not keeping the spine flexible, not keeping the spine's surrounding muscles strong, and not maintaining good circulation so the spinal discs can remain hydrated, and a spine that's more rigid is one that's not going to be as responsive to treatment.

In addition, a spine that's rigid is one that's less capable of performing certain therapeutic exercises that are an important part of treating scoliosis.

Scoliosis and Muscle Strength

Leading a sedentary lifestyle that contributes to a weak core means less support and stabilization for the spine, and for a scoliotic spine that pulls its surrounding muscles in different directions, having optimal support from strong abdominal muscles is important.

In fact, physical therapy and scoliosis-specific exercises are a large part of conservative scoliosis treatment, and the goal is to strengthen the spine's surrounding muscles so they can optimally support and stabilize it.

Anything that's bad for overall spinal health and/or that increases the rate of spinal degeneration is going to be bad for scoliosis; a scoliotic spine is being exposed to compression and adverse spinal tension because of the condition, so leading a spine-friendly lifestyle is particularly important for people with scoliosis.

A common and modern condition that shows the importance of good posture and paying attention to spinal health while using devices is known as text neck.

What is Text Neck?

Text neck develops as a person's neck is excessively strained due to looking down at devices, and over time, this can cause a number of issues.

Each of the spine's main sections supports the health of the others, so when one spinal section has lost its healthy curve, it doesn't just affect its immediate surroundings, but also the entire spine as its biomechanics are disrupted.

The cervical spine is important not only because it contains the first seven vertebral bodies of the spine, but also because it connects the brain to the rest of the body, facilitating brain-body communication, and has to support the weight of the neck, head, and facilitate a wide range of motion in the neck.

When a person is constantly looking down at their device, this forward head posture introduces adverse tension and pressure to the vertebrae of the cervical spine, and this can cause a loss of the neck's healthy curve.

It's said that when the neck shifts forward in posture as little as one inch, the weight of the head on the cervical spine increases by approximately 10 pounds.

Over time, the overuse of the cervical vertebrae and the muscles of the neck and upper back to support the strain of constantly looking down can cause headaches, neck pain, shoulder pain, arm pain, and breathing issues.

Conclusion

When it comes to preserving optimal spinal strength and function, regular checkups to ensure a spine-friendly lifestyle is being practiced, and staying strong through activity means a spine that has optimal support from its surrounding muscles.

When it comes to the use of devices in the modern age, new conditions like text neck and forward head posture to develop, and scoliosis is a highly-prevalent spinal condition that involves a loss of its healthy curves; as a progressive condition, small curves can become large curves, and having poor posture and not practicing a spine-friendly lifestyle can cause increased rates of progression.

Scoliosis is diagnosed through combined physical examinations and X rays that tell me what's really happening in and around the spine.

When it comes to treating scoliosis, a conservative treatment approach can include condition-specific chiropractic care, physical therapy, scoliosis-specific exercises, the use of a corrective scoliosis brace, and rehabilitation.

Scoliosis patients have to pay extra attention to their posture, flexibility, and strength because these factors affect the spine's responsiveness to treatment and can affect a person's rate of spinal degeneration.

It's not just the spine that has to maintain its natural curves and alignment, but also the spine's surrounding muscles, muscle strength, muscle memory, muscle spasm, and flexibility.

While there are never treatment guarantees, scoliosis treated proactively can impact scoliosis curves on different levels.

An unnatural spinal curvature and developing scoliosis means that the biomechanics of the spine have to be improved and preserved; if the spine curves unnaturally to the side and rotates, exposing it to more adverse spinal tension and pressure due to poor posture and excessive screen usage is bad for scoliosis.

Here at the Scoliosis Reduction Center, I use condition-specific chiropractic care to adjust the position of the unnatural spinal curve's most-tilted vertebrae, and I work towards more support for the spine through physical therapy and the use of scoliosis-specific exercises, and corrective scoliosis back braces can help push the spine into a straighter position.

When it comes to healthy phone and screen usage, pay attention to posture, that the spine is being held in a straight and neutral position, that frequent movement breaks are being taken, that devices are held at eye level, and that the health of the spine is being prioritized.