PALO ALTO, Calif., Jan. 7 (UPI) -- A California acupuncturist traces back pain to a lack of natural posture.
Esther Gokhale says 85 percent of the population in the United States will suffer from back pain in their lifetimes; however, in the African nation of Chad, the incidence of back pain is only 5 percent.
Gokhale observes that in many cultures, people still have natural posture and movement that prevents pain and enhances health.
Both manual laborers and sedentary workers from remote villages in Brazil and rural Portugal, she says, have not forgotten how to sit, stand, walk and sleep in harmony with their bodies' design.
At her wellness center in Palo Alto, Calif., she has developed the Gokhale MethodSM -- a systematic approach for finding the body's way back to pain-free living.
Gokhale, author of "Eight Steps to a Pain-free Back," says stretch sitting and stretch lying are two techniques that decompress the spine, improve circulation and breathing, relax muscles and reduce stress while working at the computer, watching TV and sleeping through the night.
