ADVERTISING: Advertorial — Text Neck continues to be a huge health concern
Dr. Wayne M. Fichter Jr.
Technology today is constantly changing and expanding by leaps and bounds. It’s not for just the young anymore. Young and old alike have to “staying connected” all the time via social media, email and interactive gaming. The modern convenience of our mobile devices is incredible.
I don’t know how we ever lived without the ability to pull up a restaurant location or ask for directions. All these conveniences are really nice, but they come with a price tag that can really have negative effects on your health.
Ever heard of the term “Text Neck?” Text Neck is a result of staring down or staying hunched over an activity for too long. This posture isn’t exactly new; people have done this for centuries with reading books, sewing, and many other activities. The condition is referred to as “Text Neck” because the abundance of mobile devices, and our addiction to them, has increased the amount of time we spend hunched over. The term Text Neck was coined to describe the repeated stress to the body caused by excessive texting and usage of any handheld electronic device. The condition originates from the cervical spinal being in a forward head posture or cervical flexion caused by frequent and prolonged positioning of your head and neck while looking down at mobile devices.
“The hazards of Text Neck were confirmed in a recent study published in Surgical Technology International’s 25th edition. New York spine surgeon Kenneth Hansraj conducted a study which found “bending your head to look at your mobile device held in your hands can put up to 60 pounds of pressure on your neck.” He compared what happens when subjects bent their head at 15, 30, 45 and 90 degrees to see with devices. In the neutral position, ears over shoulders, the average human head weighs about 10 pounds. However, with every inch, the head is tilted forward, the pressure on the spine doubles. Looking down when texting can easily create 20 or 30 pounds of pressure on the spine.”
This problem is not only for teens in the U.S. It is estimated that over 2/3 of the world’s population has a mobile phone. Americans average almost 3-5 hours a day on their phones. It’s not just cell phones that are the problem. Mobile technology has expanded.
Dr. Fishman states, “Text Neck is not just a texting problem… Text Neck is a gaming problem. Text Neck is an e-mailing problem.”
A whopping 75% of the world’s population is at risk of developing Text Neck due to the hours they spend “hunched over their handheld devices with their heads flexed forward” every day.
Common complaints of Text Neck are “pain felt in the neck, shoulder, back, arm, fingers, hands, wrists and elbows, as well as headaches and numbness and tingling of the upper extremities. “The structural results of Text Neck include “changes in the cervical spine curve, supporting ligaments, tendons, and musculature, as well as the bony segments, commonly causing postural change.”
If untreated, these symptoms may be become chronic and lead to more serious problems:
Flattening of the Spinal Curve
Onset of Early Arthritis
Spinal Degeneration
Spinal Misalignment
Disc Herniation
Disc Compression
Muscle Damage
Nerve Damage
Loss of Lung Volume Capacity
Gastrointestinal Problems
With severe consequences and a real threat to our health, the focus must be on prevention. It is unlikely that we will become less connected to our technology in the near future, probably just the opposite. Without education and prevention, the cases of Text Neck will continue to grow.
If you have already started having neck pain or headaches, it’s not too late. A chiropractor can offer exercises and/or stretches to help strengthen the spine, as well as specific chiropractic adjustments to help reverse the negative effects of Text Neck and prevent it from recurring.
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Dr. Wayne M. Fichter Jr., D.C., is a chiropractor at Natural Spine Solutions. The business is located at 3913 Schreiber Way in Coeur d’Alene. For more information, please contact us at 208-966-4425.