Consultancy Corner: Tech Neck, a growing problem among youngsters

The term Text Neck or Tech Neck or turtle neck syndrome is being used to describe tightness of neck muscles, which is due to prolonged forward head position while using (staring at) electronic devices such as mobile phone, laptops and computer monitors resulting in undue stress on the vertebrae of the lower neck. This leads to early degeneration of disc material which is the precursor of cervical spondylosis if left untreated.

Reports and statistics show, while adults from older generations check their smartphones on an average of five times a day, youngsters tend to browse around 110-115 times per day — that’s roughly 1/3rd of the day that spent with gadgets. Similarly, nearly 60 per cent of the adults spend five or more hours per day in front of their computers as compared to the 40 percent of youngsters who spend 9-11 hours in front of their devices.

At 0 degrees of head tilt (neutral neck position), your head weighs about five kg. As you can imagine, the further forward the head tilts and the neck bends, the heavier the head becomes. By 30 degrees of head tilt, your head weighs 18 kg. By the time your head is at 60 degrees, it weighs about 27 kg. It’s just like holding a small child on your shoulders People are unaware of the fact that sitting for long periods of time causes up to twice as much pressure on discs on the spine as to standing as well as weakens the gluteal and thigh muscles which exaggerates the problem. One of the major reasons for such problems are wrong posture of the spine due hunching and slouching that most of us have while using our devices which in turn increases the risk of neck and back pain.

Other symptoms of Tech Neck are shoulder pain, tingling or numbness in the fingers, headaches and increased thoracic kyphosis (rounded upper back). To avoid Teck Neck, sit straight while you are at work. Many people are unaware that staying in the same position for longer period can cause unnecessary strain on the back. It’s important to take regular breaks from your screen to relieve the built-up tension in your lower back. Adjust your computer screen. If you are regularly using a computer, make sure you’re sitting properly with your screen level with your eyebrows and your chair tipped slightlyforward so that your knees are slightly higher than your hips. If your chair doesn’t have a headrest, it’s worth switching to one that does.