Have you ever bumped into someone because you were focused on your phone while walking? Yes, we know that feeling. The fixation with cell phones and other electronic devices has the potential to cost us our spinal health. The Internet age and this era of social media makes us highly dependent on our devices for news and entertainment. We are all guilty even I. After all, I’m also using this medium to pass a message. However, as with everything, if we do not go about it safely, our overall well-being would be at risk.
According to Florida chiropractor Dean L. Fishman, D.C., Text neck is an overuse syndrome or a repetitive stress injury, where you have your head hung forward and down looking at your mobile device for extended periods. He further explains that for every one inch of forward head movement, the weight of the head increases by 100%. This positioning of the neck leads to excessive strain on the spine and could cause permanent damage over time. A recent study shows that 79℅ of the population between 18-44 have their cellphones with them almost all the time – with only 2 hours of their waking day spent without their cell phone on hand. Wow!
In the past, we assumed this posture to read but after reading, we continued with other activities. But today, this posture is more constant because we spend time using various devices for various functions throughout our day. It’s time for us to start making life changing adjustments to avoid early onset of arthritis.
Symptoms are:
- Neck pain and soreness
- Chronic headaches
- Upper back pain
- Shoulder pain
Treatment
- Prevention
1) Try to keep your devices at eye level during use
2) Take frequent breaks. Do not focus on these gadgets for too long
3) Always maintain correct posture even when performing other tasks
- Rehabilitation
1) It is important to strengthen your core muscles by specific neck exercises. It is best to seek the help of a Physiotherapist to guide you.
2) There’s an app that could help you too. Thanks to Dr Fishman, we now have a “Text Neck” app for Android users which offers immediate real time feedback about your posture.
Hopefully, when we begin to make lifestyle changes, we won’t need a sign like this. *wink*
Image Credit: @health_and_safety
