Great Posture, Great Health - A Community-Based Postural Intervention for Improving Holistic Health

This project promotes community health through postural movement to demonstrate strong physical and mental health benefits. Specifically, Great Posture, Great Health will address two of the top five priorities of general health concerns: 1) obesity and 2) mental health. First, obesity is on the rise although more individuals are meeting or exceeding the current federal physical activity guidelines based on the data provided by the US Department of Health and Human Services (2020). Obesity is a common problem in adults with all socioeconomic status and all races, except Asians. In fact, Asians have low rates of heart disease, asthma, cancer, and a longer life expectancy than other races, potentially due to health behaviors, environment, and stress coping strategies (Acciai et al., 2015). Therefore, we should not overlook the importance of stress coping strategies practiced in Asian countries on obesity. It is becoming more evident that chronic stress (such as elevated cortisol levels) and steroid-based medications are strongly associated with obesity and chronic diseases. It is critical to develop and validate community health strategies to address both priorities. Great Posture, Great Health will introduce one of the most common mind-body postural exercises practiced in Asian countries to a large and diverse population.