the worst. They could conceivably spend an additional 5,000 hours in this position, Hansraj says.
“The problem is really profound in young people,” he shares. “With this excessive stress in the neck, we might start seeing young people needing spine care. I would really like to see parents showing more guidance.”
Medical experts have been warning people for years. Some say for every inch the head tilts forward, the pressure on the spine doubles.
Tom DiAngelis, president of the American Physical Therapy Association‘s Private Practice Section, told CNN last year the effect is similar to bending a finger all the way back and holding it there for about an hour.
“As you stretch the tissue for a long period of time, it gets sore, it gets inflamed,” he notes. It can also cause muscle strain, pinched nerves, herniated disks and, over time, it can even remove the neck’s natural curve.
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What to do
1. Be sure you stretch throughout the day – Take a few minutes every couple of hours by moving your neck and shoulders back and forth in a circular motion to relieve stress.
2. Use reminders on your phone – You can use your phone to help you with this too! Set reminders throughout the day to look up, stretch and relax those stressed muscles.
3. Enjoy life – sometimes you just need to put your phone down and instead of taking that selfie or posting pics to your favorite social network, just enjoy life around you–in real-time.
