This article was previously published January 24, 2021, and has been updated with new information. In this interview, Dr. Peter Martone, a Boston-based chiropractor and physiologist, shares some incredibly important techniques that can help you achieve proper cervical posture while sleeping, as well as other strategies to help prevent degenerative disc disease. About 10 years ago, when we first met at an event, Martone pointed out I had problems in my cervical spine. I ended up going to see him for a proper diagnosis. Digital X-rays revealed degeneration in the fifth and sixth vertebrae. Martone prescribed a set of home treatments that I've been doing ever since. He describes what motivated him to, in part, reinvent how he looks at chiropractic:
What Causes Degeneration?"Use it or lose it" is one of the adages that apply to your physical body, both muscles and bones. If you don't use a joint for a long time, degeneration sets in. As noted by Martone, "your body adapts to the consistent stresses placed on it over a long period of time." How then do you regenerate that degeneration? It stands to reason that if lack of motion has caused degeneration of a joint, restoring motion causes regeneration. By looking at a person's X-rays, Martone is able to pinpoint how long the damage has been accruing, which will then give him an idea of how to "backtrack" and undo the damage based on the various laws governing physiology.
How Cervical Curvature Is DamagedMartone has developed a hybrid approach involving exercise and chiropractic adjustments to regain ideal cervical curvature, improve disc height and help resolve degeneration over time. Martone struggled with chronic back pain for about 15 years, then herniated L5 about five years ago in a mountain biking injury. His own recovery led him to understand how your sleeping position can influence your recovery and regeneration. After reviewing 2,000 X-rays, he discovered a pattern previously unmentioned in the literature. He concluded that his own longstanding back problems were not due to extreme sports; rather, the problem originated in his neck.
In summary, when your head comes forward, your body compensates. Your psoas major muscle goes into spasm, which rotates your pelvis. The psoas major is made up of a series of overlapping fascicles or bundles of fibers that connect bilaterally to your lumbar intervertebral discs. The spasms weaken the particular disc the psoas major is attached to, thereby allowing it to herniate. Also, because your head is in a forward position, your body loses proprioception — balance and awareness in space — which causes your spine to curve. Your head weighs about 15 pounds, and when your head is forward, with your chin jutting out, it places enormous stress on your neck, which then contributes to arthritic changes. It also decreases cerebrospinal fluid flow. What's the Solution?Part of Martone's solution was to figure out how to properly support his cervical spine while sleeping. Initially, he came up with a novel way to do that using a down pillow to support his neck, not his head. Chiropractic adjustments are also important, as this will encourage your body to replenish the water in the degenerated disc, thereby increasing the space between the vertebra. Martone explains:
A third strategy that is really important is working on restoring your balance. As mentioned, when your head is in forward position, you lose proprioception, which in turn ends up atrophying a portion of your brain called the vermis.
Weight DistributionYour bilateral weight distribution also plays a role in your spinal curvature and health. Martone uses two scales during his initial evaluation to ascertain whether the patient is distributing their weight more onto the right or left foot. Your body follows where your eyes go. So, if you lean your head to one side, you're going to put more weight on that side. If you have damage in your neck, cervical spine or any part of the atlas, scar tissue may be holding your head to one side or the other, causing you to lean and have uneven weight distribution. This too will cause your spine to curve in order to keep your head straight.
The Rationale for Sleeping on Your BackMartone believes it is critically important to sleep on your back in a neutral sleeping position. However, there are a large number of people whose airway will close during the night. This can easily be prevented by applying paper tape over your lips before you go to sleep. I have been doing this for a few years now and is part of my night time ritual. He explains:
The Neck NestYou know you're in the correct position when your eyes are looking straight up toward the ceiling and your chin is pointed up to the ceiling as well. Martone eventually developed Neck Nest1 — a special pillow designed to provide ideal support for the cervical spine. When used in conjunction with other treatment strategies, it's been shown to restore the natural 45-degree angle in the neck.
Cervical Traction Units and Weighted HeadbandsMartone also likes to integrate the use of cervical traction units that you can put over your door. I've been using such a device for a few years now, and it seems to have a powerful synergy with the nighttime passive traction. Martone explains the purpose for active cervical traction:
Another device that is widely recommended is the use of a weighted headband that you wear. As you lean your head to one side, you stimulate and strengthen the muscles on the opposite side. I've been doing this for a few years as well, and my X-rays show a fairly significant improvement. It's important to note that I was never symptomatic. I had no neuropathies, no nerve tingling or pain, but it's key to address any abnormality as early as possible. The earlier you address it, ideally before you have symptoms, the more likely you are to resolve it at a deep fundamental level. Again, ideally, you'd want to hit it from several angles, getting regular chiropractic adjustments, sleeping on your back with proper cervical support, and using a cervical traction device. As explained by Martone:
More InformationIn our interview, we also review a number of ways you can improve your sleep more generally, aside from sleeping on your back, so for more details, be sure to listen to it in its entirety. If you're committed to improving your sleep and cervical spine, consider getting Martone's Neck Nest pillow. On his site, you'll also find X-ray images of patients before and after using the Neck Nest pillow, showing visible improvement in their cervical spine curvature. Again, early diagnosis is important, since it gives you much more time to counteract the damage taking place. Had Martone not diagnosed my problem, which I had no idea I had, it would have continued to degenerate, causing problems in my later years. As noted by Martone, you cannot degenerate and regenerate at the same time. You're going one way or the other. Had I not taken action to regenerate my cervical spine, it eventually would have fused, Martone says. Fusion, in turn, results in lack of motion, nerve compression and atrophy of the central nervous system. And, since each nerve goes somewhere, a range of effects can take place. Perhaps it affects your thyroid gland or throat. Tingling in the fingers can occur, or weakness in your arm. Once you have bone-on-bone fusion, there's very little you can do to restore your function. So, truly, prevention is the name of the game here. It's so key, which is why I'm excited to share Martone's knowledge with you. from http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2021/10/31/correct-sleeping-posture.aspx
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