Over the course of human evolution, the spot where the spinal cord connects to the head has moved closer to the base of the skull. Scientists believe this gradual movement coincided with our gradual ability to walk upright. Unfortunately, our body’s natural upright posture has conflicted with our technological society. With the growing popularity of electronics over the last 20 years, the number of people who use these devices with poor posture is growing.
A recent article from Times of India, India’s largest English newspaper, warns of a multitude of health risks from poor posture while sitting. Office workplaces are notorious for having cramped spaces, poor lighting and uncomfortable chairs. Additionally, in many developed countries, long hours are spent sitting at these office workplaces.
Most people know that poor posture causes neck pain. In fact, surveys done among Sudanese office workers show that most respondents blame poor posture for neck pain [1]. Further studies done in Hong Kong and Europe also show agreement [2][3]. People around the world tend to agree poor posture is at least one of the causes for neck pain.
How poor posture causes neck pain. Source: “Why is my hand tingling?” by Total Performance Physical Therapy. Used under Section 29 of the Copyright Act (Revised 2016)
As shown in Figure 1, poor posture causes unwanted changes in the body. Dropped shoulders, a common feature in poor posture, compress the nerves and artery in the region. This can lead to discomfort in the neck if poor posture is held for long periods of time.
However, fewer people know why they have such poor postures in the first place. Indeed, a recently published research paper studied this very issue [5]. It concluded that working in a poor posture was related to neck pain but theorized the causes of poor posture. Another published research paper points to various causes, including high head protrusion and lack of a chair back rest.
So, what can we take from these recent studies on posture? Posture is a position which we can resolve by changing the way we curve our back and neck. One of the first steps we can do is to sit upright and move the centre of the monitor to resting eye level. This forces you to look at the screen while keeping your posture approximately at your natural back posture. Use textbooks or other materials to raise your monitor if your seat isn’t adjustable. A demonstration is shown in the video below.
A demonstration of poor posture and good posture with a computer monitor. Source: “Correct Posture When Using Laptop Computer” by COPE – Youtube. Used under Section 29 of the Copyright Act (Revised 2016).
Many of us, in our rush to finish online assignments and blog posts, forget about good posture. Over time, constant poor posture leads to neck pain. This pain is inconvenient leads to lost productivity. Science is in agreement that poor posture is one of the causes of neck pain but the causes of poor posture is still being studied.
[1] http://ehjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1476-069X-7-33#Abs1
[2] http://www.hkmj.org/system/files/hkm1204sp3p13.pdf\
[3] http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00586-004-0864-4#Abs1
[5] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3996423/#__abstractid1065716title
Kelvin Au
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