Do you suffer from “tech neck”?

How often do you spend looking at your phone, tablet or laptop? Studies suggest we look at our phone between 110 and 150 times a day, or around 2-4hrs per day, and those times are excluding tablet and laptop use. That’s a lot of time spent looking down. Obviously your neck is built to hold the weight of your head, which when you’re in neutral posture weighs around 5kgs, but have a look at the image below and see how gravity increases the weight of your head the further forward you tilt.

The increased weight while you’re in this position is putting some serious strain on your back, neck and spine and can cause headaches along with muscular and joint pain. We’re always plugged in, so how do we combat the stresses our technology puts on our bodies?

• Try to cut back your phone use. Quick responses to emails etc. are fine, but if you find you need to write someone a detailed email, read a long article or watch a long video, switch devices.
• Ensure you’re having regular breaks from your devices.
• MOBILITY! Move and stretch. Give your body a break.
• Adjust your equipment according to your posture – not your posture to your equipment.
• Seek treatment for pain. Sometimes untreated pain can lead to worse or more permanent damage. Don’t ignore symptoms; see a Physiotherapist for treatment and a management plan.

More reading

• https://cbsminnesota.files.wordpress.com/2014/11/spine-study.pdf
• http://www.biznews.com/light/2015/06/19/rise-of-text-neck-check-how-you-hold-your-phone/
• http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/8811596/Mobile-phone-users-suffering-from-text-neck.html