Secrets of the Spine

3 min readFeb 26, 2017

The Aorta is located immediately in front of the spine as shown below. Aortic Stiffness is a surrogate marker for spinal stiffness. Spinal stiffness defines stiffness of the body’s core.

The mobility of the ‘Great Cavities’ shown below (spine and brain/chest/abdomen/pelvis) is strongly related to spinal stiffness. The Great Cavities contain the bodies life-sustaining organs that are negatively affecting by increasing spinal stiffness leading to decreased Core Mobility.

The Diaphragm muscle has a curvature that exactly matches the superior curvatures of the liver, stomach, spleen and kidneys. With each breath, the diaphragm compresses and then releases pressure on the soft and spongelike organs. This compression/release cycle supports organ microcirculation, organ function and overall health.

With increasing spinal and chest wall stiffness there is decreased diaphragmatic excursion on a breath by breath basis. This affects organ microcirculation. In addition, with decreased respiratory diaphragmatic excursion there is a lessening of the negative intrathoracic pressure generated on inspiration with less motive force to return blood and lymphatic fluid to the heart.

The spine is a connecting and organizing structure physically and physiologically.

Aortic Stiffness is well known to predict the risk of death from all causes. The relationship between Aortic Stiffness, spinal stiffness and Core Mobility is central to an understanding of this relationship.

My efforts to provide people with a simple and easy way to measure Aortic Stiffness began when my Tai Chi teacher, a Taoist Monk, asked me to show people health benefits resulting from stretching between the heart and the kidneys. Yoga and Tai Chi have for centuries promoted the importance of spinal flexibility for health and longevity.

There are very clear cardiovascular consequences of Aortic Stiffness including Essential Hypertension, Left Ventricular Hypertrophy, reduced Diastolic Coronary arterial flow and peak systolic pressures damaging cerebral blood vessel intimal surfaces. These cardiovascular effects, while of great significance, are not sufficient to explain the relationship between Aortic Stiffness and risk of death from all causes. It is the relationships between Aortic Stiffness, Spinal Stiffness, Core Mobility and organ health that underlie this relationship.

Circulation of Cerebrospinal Fluid is an especially relevant topic. Circulation of CSF is largely dependent on respiratory based pressure changes. With decreased diaphragmatic excursion as a result if reduced Core Mobility there will be reduced CSF flow and reduction in Chorionic Villi mediated CSF resorption and secretion. CSF is completely replaced four times daily and Core Mobility is important in this process. Hypertension is the leading risk factor for Dementia. Hypertension is a direct consequence of increased Aortic Stiffness.

Health will persist with an understanding of the relationship between Aortic Stiffness, spinal stiffness and Core Mobility.

Secrets of the Spine

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Written by Jess Goodman