Whether it’s from a sudden impact in sports or prolonged use of a computer or smartphone, the neck is subjected to high levels and durations of stress daily. These forces can lead to injuries such as concussion, whiplash associated disorder (WAD), and an array of cervical injuries and chronic pain. The neck naturally serves as the body’s build in shock absorber and is designed to mitigate these forces. Once we understand how the neck operates, the mechanisms or injuries, and the threats that exist from in-car competition to the work environment, we can transform the neck from a liability to an asset. Don’t neglect the neck!

Impact of neck strength on concussion:

To help decrease the effective magnitude of forceful impact, neck muscles need to rapidly contract at the instant an impact occurs. Isometric neck strengthening alone is not sufficient to enhance the head-neck dynamic restraint mechanism. (Mansell et el 2005).

Anticipatory muscle activation plays a dominant role on impact outcomes. Increased neck strength can decrease the time to compress the neck. (Jin et al 2027).

So how does the neck move?

The muscles in the neck are primarily diagonal fibres, which allows for a greater range of movements across all three movement planes: coronal, sagittal and transverse.

Strengthening the neck muscles in all three of these planes of movement has direct benefits in reducing head acceleration and mitigating forces before they injure the brain.

Coronal plane: Eccentric lateral flexion to absorb impact of the side of head
Sagittal plane: Eccentric neck flexion to absorb impact in the front and back of head
Transverse plane: Eccentric neck rotation strength to absorb impacts of the jaw

Liner and Rotational Forces

Concussion at a physiological level is caused by rotational and angular forces to the brain, and the direct impact to the head is not required. Shear forces disrupt neural membranes, causing fluctuations in the flow of ions and reducing cerebral blood flow.

How does this impact on the brain?

“As the head rocks back and forth, it’s also twisting a little on the brain stem and it’s those accelerative and rotational forces as the brain is impacting inside the skull that are really causing the concussions. A stronger neck means you are reducing those accelerations and rotational forces.” – Dawn Comstock, Colorado School of Public Health