Doctors explained the relationship between posture and brain function
Slouching is not an aesthetic problem, but a physical restriction on breathing, blood flow, and brain function. With a round back, the diaphragm is half-working, the lung volume is falling, and the brain is not getting enough oxygen. On October 16, Lyudmila Elisavetskaya, an osteotherapist, myofunctional specialist, founder of the Mito-Balance Center for Osteoplasty and Rejuvenation, and Evgenia Murashkina, a physiotherapist at Meditsina JSC (Academician Roitberg Clinic), told Izvestia about how posture controls breathing and brain function.
Why slouching impairs breathing and brain function
When a person sits with a round back and head pushed forward, the ribs and pelvis come closer, intra-abdominal pressure increases, and it becomes physically more difficult for the diaphragm to move. She's only half-working, and her lung volume is falling. According to research, with severe thoracic kyphosis, lung capacity can decrease by up to 30%. Elisavetskaya explained that in this condition, a person cannot take a deep breath, even if he really wants to.
When the diaphragm fails, the body looks for a replacement: compensatory upper rib breathing is activated, and the muscles of the neck and shoulders work. These muscles are not designed for constant respiratory work, they become clogged and cramp, and pain appears in the neck, shoulders, and back of the head. Slouching makes you breathe superficially, and shallow breathing increases slouching.
With chronic stooping, a person begins to breathe more often and shallowly, but shallow breathing reduces the level of carbon dioxide in the blood. And carbon dioxide is needed for oxygen to "detach" from hemoglobin and enter the tissues. When it is low, the blood becomes more alkaline, and oxygen remains bound without reaching the brain and muscles.
"This is where the "fog in the head" comes from, drowsiness by lunch and the inability to focus for more than five minutes. This is not laziness, this is physiology: neurons simply do not have enough fuel due to incorrect posture," Murashkina explained.
How diaphragmatic breathing affects the brain and anxiety
The physiotherapist noted that the diaphragm is the main respiratory muscle that divides the chest and abdominal cavities like a dome. When slouching, it turns out to be compressed. Proper diaphragmatic breathing works as a biomechanical lever: it helps to stabilize intra-abdominal pressure and gently stretches the spine. As for the brain, the vagus nerve, the main artery of the parasympathetic nervous system, comes into play here.
"There are receptors in the diaphragm and lungs themselves that, when properly moved, send a powerful signal along the vagus nerve directly to the brain stem. This signal says: "We are safe, we can relax," said the physiotherapist.
Elisavetskaya, in turn, explained the mechanism of anxiety. With chronic stooping, a person breathes quickly and shallowly. This reduces the level of carbon dioxide in the blood, and it is needed for oxygen to "detach" from hemoglobin and enter the tissues. When carbon dioxide is low, oxygen remains bound without reaching the brain. Thus, paradoxical hypoxia occurs: there may be enough oxygen in the blood, but it does not reach the brain. The symptoms of this condition are identical to a panic attack.
How to correct your posture
Murashkina advises starting from the neck position. As long as the head is pushed forward, the diaphragm will not be able to work properly physiologically. In a neutral position, an adult's head weighs about 5 kg. But with a forward tilt of only 15 degrees, the load on the cervical region increases to 12 kg, and with a tilt of 60 degrees — up to 27 kg.
Elisavetskaya added that when slouching, an upper cross syndrome is formed: the trapezius muscle, the muscle that lifts the scapula, the pectoral muscles are overloaded, and the deep neck flexors and rhomboid muscles are weakened. Exercises can fix this, but first you need to relieve the spasm from overloaded muscles and turn on the weakened ones, otherwise you can strengthen those that are already working at their limit.
"In rehabilitation, we take turns: first we return the neutral position of the head above the shoulders, then we open the thoracic region and only after that we teach the diaphragm to breathe at full range. One thing won't work without the other," the doctor noted.
To compensate for sedentary work, Murashkina recommends breathing with sound, "square breathing" with your hands behind your head, as well as exercises in the workplace: "reverse lock", "shoulder relief" and breathing with resistance. At the same time, aggressive hyperventilation practices are contraindicated for people with impaired posture and cervical osteochondrosis — they can lead to vascular spasm, dizziness and loss of consciousness.
The first changes — easier breathing, less neck pain — appear after a couple of weeks. Improvement of breathing function and posture is noticeable after 4-8 weeks, complete retraining takes 3-6 months.
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