‘Anima sana in Corpore sano’- healthy mind rests in a healthy body. Since the evolution of speech humans have tried to reference our body in general conversation to allude to aspects of behavior, character, interactions, etc. There are numerous references to human body parts in literature and language. In English they say ‘Use your Head’, ‘He/She has a big heart’, ‘ to stand on someone’s shoulders’ , ‘to turn weak at the knees’, ‘ rib ticking funny’, ‘Spineless fellow’, ‘show some spine’, send shivers down the spine’.
Since the time evolution has given man his/hers erect posture the Spine has been associated with Stability, strength, gumption. Sitting or walking with a straight Spine is associated with height, stature, correctness, command, power. Slouching is seen as a sign of weakness, laziness, subdued nature. Many a patient have complained to me about the hump they have developed in their middle ages – a result of a lifetime of incorrect posturing. Scoliosis or abnormal curvature of spine has been – incorrectly- associated with cunning, shrewd nature.
As the agent of human evolution no other body part, probably with the exception of the brain, took more precedence and more adaptation than the change of a horizontal Spine to an erect Spine. It is the one adaptation that has allowed mobility and more importantly prehension- use of the arms and hands- that eventually brought about the evolution of the human society. We give much less credit and even lesser attention and care to our spine than it absolutely deserves. It is the one organ that we take for granted that we really shouldn’t.
Why should we think about our spine in day to day life? Well, Bones are the scaffold for the body functions, heart, lungs, brain, bladder etc. Function follows form. And although a single structure, the Spine is the most complex of all the Bony structures in the body that protect, nurture organs, facilitate movement and are a direct projection of someone’s health. With its 33 vertebrae (bones), 27 Discs, 50 joints, numerous ligaments, countless muscle attachments, 12 degrees of freedom (movement), Spine is the most versatile of the structures contributing to human movement. If we factor in the most vital of its function which is to house the Spinal Cord and the Nerves it bears unparelled importance to human function. Dr. Navneet Saraiya says that It is only exemplified to someone who develops a pathology and suffers pain that attributes to the spine. And such is the relief when that pain is relieved by treatment-surgical or non-surgical.
So think about your spine, close your eyes and let your awareness wander to your back, move the back and maintain its flexibility and strength and the rest of the body will follow. ‘Steel your spine’ and keep smiling, as they say….
Dr. Navneet Saraiya
FRCS Trauma & Orthopaedics
Consultant Spine Surgeon
