Balancing Act

"Sit up straight," the age-old order to children, does more harm than good, in the opinion of Southwestern Medical College's Dr. Paul C. Williams. Last week Orthopedic Surgeon Williams told 800 doctors at the Oklahoma City Clinical Society that people would do well to forget all about "correct posture." Reason: it is the cause of backache in about half the adult population.

Dr. Williams traces low-back pain to man's upright stance. To support the body's "massive superstructure" on two feet, he says, is like balancing a baseball bat on a fingertip. In achieving the feat, man gets a hollow (lordosis) in his back. Cushions between the vertebrae give way under abnormal pressure, and nerves may be pinched or muscles cramped, causing severe pain. The old military strut and gym-class prance are to blame for many an aching back of this type, said Dr. Williams, because throwing the chest out and the shoulders back deepens the hollow.

His advice is to walk "as if you were climbing a hill," with the chest thrown forward, the shoulders hanging naturally (not slouched, but relaxed), and the rump rolled under. "The abdominal muscles should be short when you are in a walking position," he says. "Most of your weight should fall on your heels, rather than on the ball of the foot. Walk as if you were getting ready to attack something."

For sitting, Dr. Williams prescribes: "Keep your back in a continuous outward curve by keeping the knees higher than the hips. Crossing your legs above the knees helps, because even one knee higher than the hips helps to eradicate that hollow in the back." As for sleeping: "Roll up in something like the fetal position, with both knees drawn up, to take pressure off the joints and nerves. Or ... lie on your side with one knee drawn up. Never lie flat on your abdomen."

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