Five Tips for a Happy Spine

A healthy spine positively affects the health of your entire body – although it is often overlooked in favor of other pressing issues. People who have poor posture, spinal injuries, and other spinal issues can expect other problems as a result – including poor sleeping habits, a lowered immune system, and stress. Luckily, there are many ways to keep your spine doing it’s intended job. With that in mind, here are a few tips for keeping your spine happy. The better shape your spine is in, the more “well-adjusted” your body will be – pun intended!

1. Staying active – for many of us, our first instinct is to slump on the couch after getting home from work. We’ll stay there until it’s time to go to bed, sleep, wake up, and go to work to sit in front of our computers all day. While this is the reality of a daily routine, it is not the best way to keep your body and spine healthy.  Staying active keeps your spine limber and flexible – so make time to get exercise on a regular basis.
2. Eat Healthy – don’t neglect your diet. Maintaining a balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables is important for your spine and your body as a whole. Combining your healthy diet with the aforementioned exercise will help keep your body at a healthy weight, which is important – excess weight is a stressor on the spine.
3. Quit Smoking – Studies have shown that over time, smoking affects the ability of your body to deliver blood effectively to all your body parts – this includes your spine! A healthy blood flow is crucial to the discs in your back, which cushion your vertebrae – you don’t want a sluggish blood flow to affect your spinal health. Quitting smoking (or better yet, never starting) will help your heart pump blood effectively to your spine.
4. Drink Plenty of Water – hydration is essential to keeping your body healthy, and this includes your spine. The discs in your spine can begin to shrink due to lack of hydrate. So drink lots of water throughout the day!
5. Stretch – Ideally, you should be doing a few brief stretches every day. Stretching your spine is important to keeping it flexible – in addition, tight hamstrings can lead to back pain over time. Put together a stretch routine and perform your stretches each morning before you start your day.

You can boost your spinal health, and prevent future spinal problems, with the above tips. All of these tips promote health in many other areas of your body, as well – so using these practices regularly can lead to a healthier you as a whole!