Question
I recently had a massage and the woman said I had a curved spine. My mom did too and so did my sister. She said I had it since birth and if I wnat to fix it i have to sit up straight, eat calcium and go to her often. Hmm... I have a check up tomorrow so I will ask the doctors also ... but I'd like to know why this happens. Does just eating a lot of calcium help a curved spine? I'm still growing, i'm 16, 5'6" and 105 lbs. I'm quite thin and I try to drink fortified soy milk and eat calcium and work out (when I can remember haha)
I've heard that calcium, from cows milk isnt effective, rather to work out often would be better. but my spine... the massage lady told me she would stretch my spine and stuff... would yoga help? Surgery necessary?  

Answer
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Dear Michelle,

When we normally look at a person from the back, The spine is a straight line with the head centered over the pelvis. When the spine is not straight from this point of view, we call it Scoliosis.
When looking at a person from the side, the spine is normally curved: backwards at the neck, forward at the thorax , and backwards at the waist. The backward curve is called Lordosis, and the forward curve is called Kyphosis.  Every person has a certain degree of normal Lordosis and Kyphosis. Scoliosis is never normal, but it usually isn't a problem either.
I have no idea what the massage lady was referring to when she claimed your back is not straight, but external massage is incapable of straightening Scoliosis. Your daily intake of calcium is important to your growing skeleton, but you have to be severely undernourished for the spine to develop scoliosis from dietary deficiencies. If you are healthy, eat a balanced diet, and meet  the minimal daily ration for minerals and vitamins, there is no need for planned supplementation of calcium.

If you are concerned about the possibility of having scoliosis, you should consult your family physician. He/she can easily examine you and tell you if additional evaluation and treatment is needed.

I hope this helps,


Dr. Rahamimov