The Nervous System
The number one job of the vertebral column is to house the nervous system
which is the most important tissue component of the entire body. The nervous system regulates and directs all of the systems of the body. If there isn't a nerve hooked to it then it doesn't exist in the brain.
The nervous system consists of the brain, spinal cord, and
nerves.
The brain lives in the skull at the top of the vertebral stack of bones.
The spinal cord originates from the base of the brain and runs down through the central canal of the spine.
At each vertebral level, a pair of spinal nerves peel off the cord and exit the spine through the lateral recesses and out the foramen.
Each nerve has an organized destination, location, and function that is the same from individual to individual.
Most of the nerves trunk up with 2 or 3 other nerves to form a main nerve then send out branches. These branches are sent to muscles, skin, joints, organs, and blood vessels.
The nerves from the low back or lumbar area go to the legs where they plug into the skin so that the brain can feel, the muscles so that they can contract, and the joints so that the brain always knows where the body is in space.
Each nerve has a destination location and function that is the same from person to person. All of the nerves from the lumbar levels route down to the leg to plug into muscles, joints, and skin. It is very common for the nerve to be pinched in the vertebral area but feel pain or weakness only in the leg.
If my problem is in my back, then why does my leg hurt?
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