How
many times in a day do you find yourself staring down at a screen? How many
times do you look across the room and see every member of your family looking
down at a screen? Whether this is cell phone use, watching a movie on your
laptop or playing a game on your iPad, the act of holding your head flexed down
and forwards while looking at your device, places your neck in a stressed
position. Our neck normally has a slight curve in it that gives it the strength
and power to keep our head on our shoulders. However, when this curve is
straightened with prolonged forward posture, it places a lot of strain on the
structures in the neck.
Maintaining
this head-forward posture can lead to muscle strain, disc injury, nerve
impingement, and arthritic changes in the neck. This increases the potential
for ongoing neck and shoulder pain, headaches, and pain that goes down the
arms. Thus, “text neck” or now more appropriately “tech neck” because it’s not
just texting, was born. All this screen time has the potential to damage the
neck.
For
every one inch of forward head posture, the weight of your head increases by
10lbs. The more your neck drifts forward, the more weight it has to carry and
support. This disorder is associated with chronic headaches, upper back pain
and neck pain. Medical research has also uncovered evidence that this forward
posture can be related to early onset arthritis and can even decrease lung
capacity. Try this experiment: Have your head tucked back over your shoulders
and take a deep breath. Now push your head forward and try to take that same
deep breath. Was it more difficult to take the second breath?
So
what can we do to fight “tech neck”? These devices are going to be a part of
our life for a long time, so we need to find a way to modify our behaviours to
prevent serious health issues from occurring. Here are seven simple ways to
incorporate change in your everyday life to prevent the negative effects of
this condition:
1.
Exercises and Stretches- Postural exercises can help improve your posture,
strengthen your neck and create better habits for everyday life. To aovid
developing degenerative neck changes due to posture, incorporate these
exercises and stretches into your daily routine.
2.
Set Time Limits- Limit the amount of time and frequency that you use your
device. If you have to use it for an extended period of time, take plenty of
breaks. Develop a habit of taking a three minute break for every 20 minutes
that you use your device. Make sure that you change your posture during these
breaks and ideally move around to get your blood flowing.
3.
Set Automatic Reminders- Utilize an automatic alarm with your device to remind
you to take a break. These reminders will ensure that you don’t get too focused
on your task to take a break and the automation ensures that you don’t forget
to stop. Make sure you don’t ignore these reminders, or you may pay for it
later on.
4.
Use a tablet holder- Purchase a holder to elevate your device to significantly
reduce the amount of neck flexion and forward posture. Try to keep the device
as close to eye level as possible to prevent the strain in the neck when
looking down for long periods of time. A tablet holder, cell phone holder, and
propping your laptop up to eve level are all easy options that can reduce the
amount of strain on the neck.
**For
students out there, propping up your textbooks in the same manner will prevent
the same issues from happening when studying for prolonged periods of time.
5.
Sit in a Proper Chair: Switch to a chair with a headrest, proper lumbar support
and one that prevents you from slouching forward. By making sure that the back
of your head is always in contact with the headrest while using your devices,
you can ensure that you’re not looking down with your head flexed forward. No
matter the quality of the chair though, it’s important to still take breaks!
6.
Use Pain as a Warning: If you’re experiencing headaches, pain in your neck,
pain between the shoulder blades, or numbness and tingling going down into your
arms, there may be a serious issue going on. Pay attention to these warning
signs and act quickly to make changes to reduce or eliminate the head-forward
posture that is straining your neck.
7.
See a Chiropractor: Chiropractic treatment is the best option for any of these
issues. Getting an assessment and adjustment can help not only with the
symptoms but can also help prevent this issue from occurring in the future.
If
you are having any of these symptoms, or simply just want a checkup for you or
your children, book an appointment today. The sooner you seek treatment, the
more likely it is that you’ll find success in treating the problem.
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