I've just come across this really interesting article on CBS NEWS
Humans were designed to stand upright. And yet in this modern world,
too many of us spend our days with our heads slumped over for a simple
reason: we're staring at the tiny screen of a smartphone.
People
spend an average of 2 to 4 hours each day with their neck bent at this
unnatural angle while shooting off emails or texts. That's 700 to 1,400
hours a year.
The success of social media is has led to an epidemic of bad smartphone posture.
Dr. Kenneth Hansraj/Surgical Technology International
The
average adult head weighs 10 to 12 pounds when it's in the upright or
neutral position. However, because of that pesky thing called physics --
gravitational pull -- the cranium becomes heavier the more you bend
your neck.
Several times heavier, according to research from Dr. Kenneth
Hansraj, chief of spine surgery at New York Spine Surgery and
Rehabilitation Medicine, which will be published in Surgical Technology
International.
His study found that bending your head at a 60
degree angle to get a better look at your selfie is putting 60 pounds'
worth of pressure on your cervical spine, the portion of the spine above
the shoulders. That's more than the weight of the average 7 year old.
"The
weight seen by the spine dramatically increases when flexing the head
forward at varying degrees," write the authors in the study. "Loss of
the natural curve of the cervical spine leads to incrementally increased
stresses about the cervical spine. These stresses may lead to early
wear, tear, degeneration and possibly surgeries."
But it's not
just the big slump that could eventually cause you to look like Lurch.
Tilting your head a mere 15 degrees puts 27 pounds of pressure on your
spine; a 30 degree neck tilt could equal 40 pounds of pressure; a 45
degree tilt adds the force of 49 pounds.
It's no secret that
correct posture is better for your back. According to the researchers,
"good posture is defined as ears aligned with the shoulders and the
'angel wings,' or the shoulder blades, retracted."
"In proper alignment, spinal stress diminished," they write in their paper. "It is the most efficient position for the spine."
Standing
tall doesn't just make you look better, it optimizes your health, too.
Other studies have found good posture elevates testosterone and
serotonin in the body, and also reduces levels of the stress hormone
cortisol. Good posture has even been linked to personality traits such as tolerance for risk-taking.
To read the full artile please go to http://www.cbsnews.com/news/omg-youre-texting-your-way-to-back-pain/
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