From Dr. Waldron: Social media is hard on your neck and spine

Text neck is the harmful and dangerous physical condition of consistently looking down for long periods of time — and it takes a huge toll on the body and your spine.

Smart phone users spend hundreds of hours — and some even thousands of hours — in a hunched position as they text, compose emails, surf the Internet or read articles on their devices. My patients are suffering from neck pain, headaches, along with neck and shoulder muscles spasms.

Many individuals experience these symptoms because we are not designed to be in that improper position. Proper posture is the center of the ear over the top of the shoulder. Try it now as you read this article. Sit back and square your ears with your shoulders. The average head weighs approximately 10 pounds and your neck supports that weight. For every inch that your head is leaning forward due to gravitational forces, it’s an additional 10 pounds. If a person is texting and their head is leaning two inches forward, then that means that their neck is now supporting 30 pounds.

These problems do not include the unseen problems such as cervical (neck) degeneration and arthritis due to improper posture.

As a corrective and preventive measure for text neck, I recommend holding your cell phone or tablet at eye level to maintain proper posture. This will help you avoid neck issues and headaches.

If you are experiencing aches and pains related to text neck, call our office at 425-778-9600 for a consultation.

— Dr. Waldron

Leave a reply