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Posturology explores the intricate mechanisms that govern human posture and balance, considering the dynamic interplay between sensory inputs, muscular interactions, and neural pathways. By understanding these dynamics, posturologists aim to address underlying factors contributing to postural imbalances and related dysfunctions. Through a multidisciplinary approach, posturology offers insights into optimizing posture, movement efficiency, and overall well-being. It represents a holistic approach to posture, emphasizing the interconnectedness of the body’s systems for promoting optimal health and mobility.
When the feet, eyes, abdomen, joints, and muscles do not communicate properly, it triggers biomechanical disorders. These disorders involve muscular and articular adaptations, resulting in chronic pain.
When the feet, eyes, abdomen, joints, and muscles do not communicate properly, it triggers biomechanical disorders, leading to chronic pain. These can be categorized as follows:
By addressing the underlying factors contributing to these dysfunctions, posturology aims to optimize posture, movement efficiency, and overall well-being.
A Postural Analysis will identify your body’s dysfunctions. The postural assessment analyzes the origin of dysfunctions and determines the treatment. It is a comprehensive functional examination (systemic) that analyzes the interactions—whether good or bad—of all sensory organs in your body. This assessment requires a series of general and specific tests (validated by research) aimed at identifying the sensory stimulations that can optimize your postural strategies and body biomechanics.
This examination does not determine the physical integrity of the organs (organic lesion); that is the role of the physician. The postural assessment is conducted on patients suffering from chronic pathologies who have already consulted a physician. Each sensory organ has a function regulated by reflex loops organized into functional units. Understanding the function of each sensory organ and the functional units (functional synergy) that make up the postural system is important.
Posture corrective insoles act on the entire body simultaneously, with the foot system serving as the foundation for postural regulation. Every point of contact with the ground functions as an extremely precise sensory organ, where each body position in space corresponds to a distribution of pressures serving as a true sensory reference. This entire system is integrated by the central nervous system (CNS), particularly the brainstem and cerebellum. Posture corrective insoles subtly alter pressure distribution, thus modulating the entire posture.
The goal of posture corrective insoles is to recenter the center of gravity, thereby optimizing the biomechanics of the body for minimal energy expenditure.
Features of posture corrective insoles include the management of conscious and unconscious antalgic positions, notably Plantar Irritative Pressure Points (PIPPs). Sensory stimulations must respect the sensitivity threshold of mechanoreceptors, utilizing only the necessary areas of support. Otherwise, the effects will cancel out. An analytical postural assessment with functional tests before and after foot stimulation indicates the appropriate treatment.
An insole that stimulates the entire plantar surface (thermoformed) cannot be considered a posture corrective insole; at best, it provides generalized stimulation of the foot system without precise regulation. When the unconscious representation of the body is optimized, functional disorders throughout the body disappear. If an individual expresses multiple functional complaints, posture corrective insoles could help alleviate them all simultaneously.
Thus, insoles just a few millimeters thick can assist in relieving foot pain, lower back pain, neck pain, headaches, pseudo-vertigo, and more (see competencies in the site menu). Consequently, overall body biomechanics will be optimized, and this treatment can alleviate numerous symptoms.
Chronic pain (lasting more than 3 months) must be diagnosed by your physician as non-organic lesion pain. Since the treatment acts on the entire body, there are no limits. This includes musculoskeletal pain (in any part of the body), visceral pain, and neurogenic pain (neuralgia, headaches, migraines, CRPS), among others.
Posturology only addresses functional pains, which do not have a lesion as their cause. That’s why consulting your physician before undergoing a postural assessment is crucial. Once this condition is met, everything becomes possible. In general, posturology is highly effective for functional chronic pains lasting more than 3 months.
Head/Face
Neck
Trunk
Leg
Foot
It is necessary for you to have already consulted your physician and likely a speech therapist, and they have not found anything or the treatment is not sufficiently effective.
This includes conditions such as dyslexia, dysorthographia, lack of concentration (especially if it is linked to perceptual or emotional issues), and difficulty performing dual tasks like walking and talking, listening and writing, among others.
To go further:
The skeleton follows the muscles, which follow the nerves. Postural regulation is automatic and therefore unconscious, utilizing the nervous system and reflexes. From birth, postural reflexes are acquired unconsciously through trial and error, based on primitive (innate) reflexes that lay the groundwork for later postural reflexes. Over time, our body develops strategies to maintain an upright posture and interact with the environment.
In a static position, the body constantly sways around the ankles, indicating stability rather than balance. In dynamic movement, posture results from a set of unconscious strategies that coordinate the intention for action or interaction. The body axis elements—feet, legs, pelvis, spine, shoulders, and occiput—stabilize the body both statically and dynamically, with the foot playing a particularly crucial role in stabilizing posture.
Free segments (open chains) theoretically should not participate in stabilization as their function is to interact with the environment (arms, jaw, tongue, eyeball). Free segments, especially the eye, orient posture. Stabilization is a prerequisite for orientation; the goal of posture is to stand upright and maintain a stable head. The head acts as the control tower for most sensory organs, and an unstable head affects the proper functioning and precision of these organs: vision, hearing, eye movement, jaw, and tongue movement.
In short, the organs of the unconscious (foot, pelvis) stabilize, allowing the conscious organs (arms, eyes, tongue) to interact. If the feet are not functional, compensation begins. We stabilize our bodies unconsciously to free our consciousness for other tasks: communicating, analyzing, and learning. Tonic postural reflexes are present throughout the body.
When you turn your head to the right, all the extensor muscles on the right side increase in tone (Fukuda’s nuchal reflex). When pressure is applied to the inner edge of the foot sole, the same-side extensor muscles and contralateral flexors increase in tone. Thus, the coordination of all these unconscious reflexes enables us to stand upright and adjust our movements and interactions with the environment in anticipation, allowing our consciousness to remain available for analyzing situations and planning interactions.
Posture can be simplified as a stack of blocks, referred to by neurophysiology researchers as modular organization (J. Massion, Brain and Movement, p60). The head rests on the trunk, which rests on the pelvis, which rests on the legs, supported by the feet. Each module interface is an autonomous functional unit composed of joints, muscles, and skin. Like sensory building blocks, the stability of each module depends on the stability of the underlying module.
To move a module distinctly, the underlying modules must be stable, providing a stable reference point. The most important modules are the feet and the pelvis. “How posture works” can give you an idea of the specific function of certain modules.
Proprioception plays a crucial role in the development and use of strategies. Posture mainly functions through anticipation via Anticipatory Postural Adjustments (APAs). In a standing position, the foot can be considered the conductor of APAs, as it anticipates and stabilizes the entire body up to the head, influencing the visual system as well. Thus, the foot system plays a key role in daily posture stabilization.
When the foot experiences sensory disturbances (misperceptions), the consequences include a sensation of instability (pseudo-vertigo), loss of balance (repeated falls in children or the elderly), chronic sprains, repetitive tendonitis, and muscle and joint pains at all levels as they compensate for the foot’s instability. This can lead to knee pain, lower back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, and visual fatigue.
If left untreated, the body develops compensation strategies that can lead to pain or excessive attentional load. In postural podiatry, we improve the stability of the foot system by restoring its sensory functional capacities.
Postural insoles:
Postural Insoles Influence on the Knee:
Influence on Posture for People with Fibromyalgia:
Using Validated Tests to Optimize Treatment:
Foot’s Role in Maintaining Posture:
Connection Between Mouth and Posture:
Posture Change with Plantar Stimulation:
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