Below are five simple steps to prevent “tech neck”—neck pain that results from constantly looking down at a handheld device and/or laptop screen.

http://www.spine-health.com/blog/5-simple-steps-prevent-tech-neck

Text Neck? You may be looking at your devices too much...

Text neck is the term used to describe the neck pain and damage sustained from looking down at your cell phone, tablet, or other wireless devices too frequently and for too long.

http://www.spine-health.com/blog/modern-spine-ailment-text-neck

Sciatica: Interactive Video

If you think sciatica is a confusing topic, you are not alone. This video has been created with the intention of helping you clearly visualize the how sciatica develops, originating in your spine and radiating down the back of your leg and possibly into your foot.

http://www.spine-health.com/video/sciatica-interactive-video

Childhood obesity may be prevented through reducing the amount of time kids spend using screen media

http://www.dailyrx.com/childhood-obesity-may-be-prevented-through-reducing-amount-time-kids-spend-using-screen-media

Reduce Screen Time To Trim the Fat

Childhood obesity may be prevented through reducing the amount of time kids spend using screen media

(dailyRx News) Trimming TV time may take childhood obesity down a notch. To help parents and inactive kids take a stand against childhood obesity, public health experts recommended cutting down screen media time among kids.

In a recent report, the Community Preventive Services Task Force (CPSTF) found that reducing the amount of TV and screen media helped lower kids' risk of being overweight and obese. Screen media time is time spent in front of a television, computer or cellphone screen.

Based on a past study, the task force confirmed that childhood obesity was tied to screen media exposure. In this new report, strong evidence supported that limiting screen time was effective in improving youth health and weight status, the task force authors wrote.

Barry Sears, MD, president of the Inflammation Research Foundation in Marblehead, MA, and creator of the Zone diet, told dailyRx News that simply reducing kids’ screen time alone would not be enough to stop childhood obesity. Parents can take other steps to keep their children healthy, he said.

“If the goal is to reduce childhood obesity, then there are more effective measures than simply reducing sedentary screen time," Dr. Sears said. "First and foremost is better meal planning that promotes [fullness] as opposed to hunger."

Dr. Sears continues, "The second is spending more interactive time with the child as opposed to using the computer or TV as a babysitter. Third is getting the child outside the house making it less likely to easily get to the kitchen."

The CPSTF — a group of public health experts formed by the US Department of Health and Human Services — reviewed 49 past studies that focused on the benefits of interventions only limiting screen time (screen-time-only interventions) and those both limiting screen time and adding other health components (screen-time-plus interventions).

Interventions were defined as ways to reduce inactive leisure screen time. They were also designed to help kids change their behavior to maintain low screen time. The CPSTF said this would help kids spend less time in front of the TV or computer in the long run.

The CPSTF noted that interventions could include classroom-based education, family- or friend-based social support, ways to track and monitor screen time, and coaching or counseling sessions.

The data showed that, for screen time watched, screen-time-only interventions reduced about 82 minutes of media per day. Screen-time-plus interventions reduced about 22 minutes per day.

Screen-time-plus interventions helped kids become more physically active. Kids who reduced their screen media time took and average of 130 more steps per day.

Concerning diet, screen-time-only interventions resulted in kids eating about 75 calories fewer per day on average. Screen-time-plus interventions resulted in kids eating about 118 calories fewer per day.

Reducing screen time among kids improved their health, the CPSTF said.

“Behavioral screen time interventions were found to be effective among children aged 13 years and younger,” the task force wrote.

The CPSTF noted, though, that only children ages 13 and younger were included in this review. They recommended that future reviews also study the effects of reducing screen time among middle and high school students, as well as adults.

This study has not yet been published but is available in The Guide to Community Preventive Services.

The authors disclosed no funding sources or conflicts of interest.

Computer Generated Neck Pain

I've been sitting at the computer for some time now and I'm experiencing neck pain. I should know better!! Neck pain is a common symptom for people who spend considerable amounts of time on a computer but does it have to be? Absolutely not.

Many factors contribute to feeling pain but all are controllable. Neck pain results from strains that occur to the muscles and ligaments supporting our spine when the spine is not maintained in a neutral position for an extended period of time. This is particularly true of spines that are already compromised by previous injury, arthritis, misalignment, scoliosis...etc.

Your head weighs approximately 8-12 lbs. It sits atop a column of 7 stacked vertebrae making up the neck. Between each adjacent vertebra, a cushion-like tissue called a disc acts to absorb the weight of your head onto that portion of our spine. Our neck spinal column normally curves forward creating a "C" or reversed "C" depending on what side of a person you're looking at. This allows the spine to bend to further absorb the weight of your head. The ligaments attach the vertebrae together to help maintain them in place. We have a variety of muscles that attach not only vertebrae to vertebrae but also vertebrae to other bones such as our shoulder blades, collar bones, skull...etc. They act as guide wires to help balance the head on the spinal column.

Neck pain is most commonly caused, initially, by these muscles getting fatigued. When we maintain good posture, our head balances on this spinal column with very little strain to these supporting muscles. However, when we look down at a keyboard for an extended time or we slouch causing our head to extend back to see the screen, those same muscles must work much harder to prevent your head from falling off your shoulders because it has veered from its center of gravity.

The concept is best demonstrated by attaching a bowling ball (your head) to the top of a broomstick (your neck spinal column called the cervical region). If you then align it perfectly with its center of gravity, you could balance it on the tip of your finger. Let it fall away from that center of gravity and you must use considerable muscular effort by grabbing it with both hands to prevent it from falling further from its center of gravity. In the same way, look down at the keyboard and your neck muscles have to work much harder to keep your head from falling further which eventually leads to fatigue and pain.

So, what's a person to do?

Maintain good posture to minimize fatigue. Take mini breaks to reduce sustained positions that may lead to muscle fatigue. I recommend getting up every 15 mins to at least walk around the desk and stretch briefly before continuing to work at your desk. Any interruption of that prolonged position will help. Pay attention to proper ergonomics as well. Also, exercise regularly to "burn off" that building muscle tension.

Dr Rick Jardon