Wait, Does Texting Damage Your Spinal Cord? Read This ASAP
We spend a lot of hours every day hunched over our cell phones. How many? Between two and four, according to a new study in Surgical Technology International—which may not seem like a lot at first blush, but think about it: That's essentially the same time frame as an entire movie or two. Annually, that adds up to as much as 1,400 hours of looking down at your phone, which the new study shows can increase the risk of spinal stress and, overall, bad posture.
So, the average grown-up head weighs about 10 to 12 pounds (despite what we were told in Jerry Maguire). When it's bent at a 60-degree angle—what's about normal when people look down at their phones—the neck has to endure 60 pounds of pressure, according to the study. That adds up quickly.
The solution? Keep your back straight and your head looking forward, and bring your phone or tablet to eye level in order to look at it.
Another idea: Take a break from the thing. Dr. Ezriel Kornel, a neurosurgeon with Brain and Spine Surgeons of New York, says: "Maybe there should be an app that reminds people when they've been looking at their device for more than 15 minutes to take a break, stretch their necks, reposition, and adjust. That's an easy thing to do."
Do you ever get cell-phone neck or back pains?