Why Cause Crooked Skulls and Crooked Bodies

Genetics – our inheritance – is only as strong as we allow it be.  If we don’t nourish our genetics properly, it falls short of the mark. If we put mechanical pressure on our faces, our genetics can't push back hard enough to resist deformity.

In the famous “Pottenger Cat Study” it took one generation for the deterioration both physical and mental to occur when diet was inadequate and a further four  generations on an optimal diet for their physical condition to return to that of the original cats.....  

Dr Francis Pottenger

 Disturbing as these observations might be, the impaired balance, the lack of energy, the dental deterioration, some of the most significant findings emerged as Pottenger extended the study down to the second and third generation.

Almost immediately Pottenger noticed that the raw meat diet for 2 generations appeared larger than the cooked meat cats.

Nutritional studies often look at skeletal development as a rather vital index of dietary sufficiency. The raw meat animal, has a full round face, a later examination of the skull showed a firmly developed zygomatic arch. The frontal sinuses where complete and the calcium content of the bones of the body, ranged from 12 to 17% by weight. The skulls of adult cats with a long ancestry of raw foods diet are surprisingly constant. With the development of second-generation cooked meat animal, the head has begun to flatten and is actually smaller than the comparable raw meat animal. The skulls show the major reason for this change. The zygomatic arch is not completed, the nasal development is somewhat irregular and the calcium content has fallen to 10%. Third generation cooked meat animals show the most remarkable skeletal change. The skull is considerably smaller it is flat with pointed features, the skull shows a poorly developed zygomatic arch. The bones are paper thin and soft like rubber, the frontal sinuses have developed in a particular fashion and the calcium content of the bones had fallen to 3% in weight.

Moving into the third generation of experimental animals the degeneration was even more pronounced.

Offspring developed nasal and ocular allergies, and asthma.

Again there is marked dental deterioration, abscesses, poor colouring and gingival irritation. Pronounced exhaustion was a typical observation amongst the third generation of cooked meat kittens as well as impaired coordination.

What are we to make of these numerous observations? Changes that were discovered in the Pottenger cats are comparable to many life changes in human beings.

The historical work of Dr Weston A Price corroborates the Pottenger study by charting the graphic degeneration of primitive tribesman as they moved from their traditions and dietary customs to the civilized world. Food for thought!

Sleep Postures Influence on Facial Symmetry and Arch Development

Sleep posture has an enormous influence on facial and skeletal development during periods of growth.... there should be a back to sleep campaign.... The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Back to Sleep Campaign recommend that babies under 1 year of age be placed on their backs to sleep in order to lower the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). Since the start of the Back to Sleep Campaign in 1994, the number of babies dying of SIDS has decreased by more than 50 percent. But many babies still sleep on their tummies or sides, and babies are still dying of SIDS. Nevertheless if the child is slept on their back on a flat matress an unanticipated, and relatively minor sequelae of this program has been the dramatic increase in the numbers of babies with acquired posterior cranial deformities, specifically occipital flattening.

If the correct support pillow is chosen then beautiful cranial development occurs, and the flattening of the back of the head is avoided. Sleeping on your back wins out as the overall best position. Pressures are evenly distributed on bones that can stand stress; paired sets of muscles are the same length (remember you grow when you are asleep); and because back sleepers move less in the night, you probably rest better in that position.
Sleeping on your back is fine except for producing the tendency to snore. Why? The pillow – look how the head is tipped by the pillow. This neck position can make one snore. Not always, but the predisposition is definitely there. The pillow needs to be large enough to support the spine in your neck but that’s all. Your head should be in line with the rest of your body.

There are two problems developing in young tummy sleepers, orthodontic and orthopaedic. Orthodontic problems are those limited to tooth positions. Orthopaedic problems are those limited to bone.

• The tummy sleeper excels all other types of sleep patterns in their ability to distort facial bones with resultant "bad" tooth position and interfere with growth patterns.

                    Dr Harvey Stallard ....sleep posture affects facial development…