The Importance of Your Spine

Your spine allows you to do almost everything you do in your life. Proper spinal function allows you to do things well - and most of the time, pain-free. Poor spinal function forces you to do things poorly or not at all, not to mention the agony spinal distress can cause.Consider for a moment everything you did today. Almost every movement you made, from getting out of bed in the morning until you got back into bed at night, required your spine to work in very complex ways that you've probably never thought about. Not only did your spine perform delicate mechanical functions, but it also facilitated the majority of your nerve function, another aspect of proper spinal function that most people never consider ... until there's a problem.Your spine consists of 26 bones, called vertebrae, which run from your head sits to your tailbone. These vertebrae essentially stack one on top of the other in your vertebral column, floating on intervertebral discs. Every other bone in your body is attached in some way to your spinal column. Your spine also has 31 pairs of spinal nerves that exit at some point from your spinal column. These spinal nerves can become irritated, or inflammation can occur, when your spine fails to function properly. These irritations or inflammation can impact the nerve flow to the vital organs throughout your body.Your body will tell you when your spine is not functioning normally. Your body will speak in the form of pain, discomfort, stiffness or a lack of function in your spine or extremities. Many people take pain relievers to address the problem and others ignore the pain until their body adapts. The body puts the spine in a state of spasm to protect the delicate nerves and allow the inflammatory process to subside. Removing the pain often causes more problems because the body's protective mechanism has been removed. It's similar to pulling out the wire under the dashboard of your car when a warning light comes on. The light is no longer visible, but the problem remains and will continue to get worse.