We live in an age where many of us rely on our GPS to tell us where we are and where we’re going. Smartphones and vehicles now come loaded with these as standard equipment. But that isn’t unique to smartphones and cars. Our bodies come equipped with GPS, too! There are sensory receptors called proprioceptors in your joints, skin and muscles that tell your brain where your body is in space, which is known as proprioception. This is what allows you to close your eyes and be able to touch your finger to your nose without looking in a mirror, and it is crucial for your body’s ability to balance.
These receptors are all throughout the body, but there are more proprioceptors in the top of your neck, at the base of your skull, than most other places in your body. They tell your neck how to hold your head to keep your head level.
A paper published in 2018 in the Journal of Oral & Facial Pain and Headache titled “Impaired Standing Balance in Individuals with Cervicogenic Headache and Migraine” presented a study that tested three groups of participants for standing balance and sway: 24 people with cervicogenic headaches (a neck problem that turns into a headache), 24 with Migraines, and 24 that had no symptoms. The participants were tested on either a firm or soft surface, with their eyes open or closed, and in a wide stance (feet shoulder width apart) or a narrow stance (feet together). The results showed that the migraine and cervicogenic headache groups had a much larger sway pattern than the group without symptoms, meaning the participants with head and neck pain had more difficulty keeping their balance than those without those issues.
The study shows a possible relationship or link between cervicogenic headaches and migraines, and balance. This could mean that the neck proprioception is off in the people with head and neck pain. When neck proprioception is off, it can create problems with standing balance and coordinating movement.
Chiropractors call the head and neck the upper cervical spine area. For some people, cervicogenic headaches, migraines, balance issues, and proprioception problems, might all be connected in the upper cervical spine. The Craniocervical Foundation partners with the upper cervical chiropractic specialists at Arete Chiropractic to provide subsidized care to active duty military, veterans, and those in financial need. Upper cervical chiropractors work with the top two cervical vertebra gently and with a specific correction to bring balance between the head and the neck.
You can learn more about this topic by watching a live Facebook video by Dr. Evans from Arete Chiropractic where he discussed the paper above as well as a 2014 paper published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience titled "Neck Proprioception Shapes Body Orientation and Perception of Motion".
