Beware! The magical back correction device with sales of hundreds of thousands may cause harm to your back!

Many of our friends have heard their elders repeating since childhood: "You must keep your back straight", "Hold your head and chest out" so that you can be "upright and elegant", "Hold your posture upright, be happy XXX", "Improve the bad sitting, standing and walking habits of teenagers", "Be the happiest baby"... The advertisement of a certain brand of back corrector that was inserted over and over again on TV is the childhood memory of many of our friends.

In recent years, correction devices have become active again on major e-commerce platforms. Merchants claim that they can "quickly correct hunchbacks" and "improve bad postures", and they have even become fitness equipment favored by Internet celebrities. However, regarding the "effects", many netizens have sparked controversy.

Today we will study together:

Can the back correction device really improve hunchback?

What is the cause of hunchback?

What is the correct way to improve hunchback?

01 Is it a "tax on IQ " or a "ray of hope"?

In fact, as early as 2021, Wang Fengxian, deputy chief physician of the Department of Orthopedics at Dongzhimen Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, published an article in the Journal of Popular Health titled "With the help of the "Internet celebrity magic weapon", is there a cure for hunchbacks?"

In the article, the doctor clearly pointed out that kyphosis can be divided into passive and active types .

Passive kyphosis, such as kyphosis caused by diseases such as ankylosing spondylitis, forms a rigid bony deformity in the skeletal system of the spine, which cannot be corrected by braces and often requires surgery .

For active kyphosis, the main problem is muscle imbalance , which is a soft kyphosis. It can be recovered to a certain extent by adjusting the posture . At this time, the use of correction has a certain effect .

However, wearing a correction belt for a long time will, to a certain extent, reduce the opportunities for muscle exercise and will not relax tired muscles . Instead, it is detrimental to spinal health.

In summary, experts encourage everyone to use braces as an auxiliary means of correction , but the effectiveness is limited, and long-term wearing may damage the health of the spine.

02 A brief discussion on the causes of hunchback

In fact, many hunchbacks are not caused by spinal curvature . The key lies in the imbalance of back muscle strength .

The back muscles of the human body are the second largest muscle group , with a total of more than 20 muscles , which are used to support and protect the spine and lumbar vertebrae.
Only when the front, back, left and right muscles are balanced and exerted can the spine and shoulder blades be kept stable and an upright posture be displayed. When the upper body is bent too much, some muscles will become tense, while other muscles may become too weak , leading to an imbalance in the back muscles and causing hunchback problems.

As the duration of hunchback increases, the gap in muscle strength will become larger and larger to a certain extent, the hunchback phenomenon will become more and more serious, and even enter a vicious circle .

At this time, the back muscles will be unable to maintain the normal state of the spine to a certain extent, which will eventually lead to spinal deformity .

03 Scientific exercise and simple correction

1. Reverse motion method

Reverse exercise refers to the exercise that is completely opposite to the habitual movements in daily life. It can fully exercise the nerves , muscles and other motor organs of the human body to a certain extent, help to strengthen the muscles of the back, thus establishing a new balance , and has the effect of strengthening the body and curing diseases .

▲ Stretch the spine: Stretch your hands out and raise them above your head, cross them and hold them with your palms turned upward, stretch your arms backward with force, and tilt your head and neck backward with force, hold still for a certain period of time, and relax when you feel soreness and swelling, and practice repeatedly.

▲ Chest expansion: bend both elbows in front of your chest at the same height as your shoulders, lift your chest and head, and swing both elbows backwards at the same time to squeeze your shoulder blades inwards. Repeat this exercise.

▲ Wide push-ups: Lie on your stomach with your legs straight, your hands wider than your shoulders, your elbows spread out, and try your best to squeeze your shoulder blades inward when doing push-ups.

Push-ups can effectively strengthen the muscles behind the head , neck, waist and back, stretch the shoulders and back, and adjust the physiological curvature of the spine.

▲ "Boat shape" exercise: Lie prone with upper limbs straight and raised above the head. The upper limbs, head and chest and lower limbs, knees and ankles are simultaneously lifted off the ground and stretched backward and upward, with only the abdomen touching the ground.

Try to maintain this posture as much as possible. When you feel soreness in your back, neck, and waist muscles, relax and practice repeatedly.

▲ "Arch Bridge": Lie on your back, bend your legs and draw them inward as much as possible , support the ground with your feet and hands or feet and shoulders, and lift your buttocks off the ground.
Push your waist and abdomen upward as far as you can, and when you feel soreness in your back and waist muscles, relax and let go. Practice repeatedly.

2. “Flying Swallow” Spreads Its Wings

Clasp your hands together, place them on your hips, tilt your head and neck back, and straighten your waist and back.

Slide your hands far away and stretch your back as far as possible, feeling that your hands are in opposition to the backward bending of your neck and waist , and hold for 10 to 20 seconds

3. Chair back stretch

Sit upright on a chair, relax your feet and spread them shoulder-width apart, stretch your arms back and hug the back of the chair, press your buttocks against the back of the chair, slowly push your chest forward, feel the expansion of your chest and the contraction of your back, hold for 10 to 20 seconds , then slowly return to the starting position, pause for a while and repeat 10 to 15 times.