On average your head weighs about 10-12 lbs. With your head at a 60 degree angle – a common hunched-over texting position – your head can weigh up to 60 lbs. That’s like walking around with my Dalmatian AND my little Cloey wrapped around your neck all day. With that much pressure on your neck and shoulders, it’s no wonder a new health condition, deemed Text Neck, is rapidly gaining recognition with health practitioners around the world.
At first I laughed when I heard the term “text neck” and references to this new condition being seen as a “global epidemic”. I mean come on, I know we spend too much time with our faces buried in our handheld devices, but a global epidemic? But after doing a little research, I’m finding that over time, our obsession with smartphones is doing more damage than just making us socially-awkward human beings. There are actually long-term, legit health risks tied to our hunchy texting postures. Here are just some of the health concerns that have been found to be associated with Text Neck:
If left untreated, Text Neck can result in serious permanent damage including*:
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
Growing up, people used to compliment me on my “perfect posture”. My years of ballet training had taught me to walk with my head held high, my neck long, and my shoulders back.
Nowadays I often have headaches and suffer from constant neck and shoulder pain, but I’ve always just shrugged it off as being as a result of having 3 kids, a busy schedule, and not enough sleep. I do tend to hunch over my laptop when I work, and when I nurse my baby, I look like Gollum, hunched over my baby like she’s “the precious” as I feed her. But neither of those habits take up as much of my time as my iPhone does. When I think about it, I’m hunched over that thing all. day. long. After reading a few studies and learning more about this latest health concern, I’m left to wonder : Do I suffer from Text Neck?
Well don’t fret my technology-loving friends. If you do suffer from Text Neck, there are ways to “practice safe text”. This recent news clip shows you some handy exercises that you can do to avoid the longterm effects of this newly-spawned health epidemic. Check it out, and happy texting!
