Thursday, September 29, 2016

The Perils of Smartphones

We spend about 5 hours a day on our mobile phones.  Here are some ways they could be harming your health and what you can do about it……………


Text Neck
A whopping 90 percent of us text with our necks bent, which strains muscles, tendons and ligaments. Flexing the neck forward at a 60-degree angle also puts 60 pounds of weight on the spine, leading to degeneration and arthritis. Your thoracic spine is overloaded from taking the brunt of this and most people don’t realize that neck & shoulder problems come from tightness in this area.

The fix: Stand upright and keep your phone 12 to 14 inches from your face. Apps such as the Text Neck® Indicator alert you when you’re doing this wrong.

Bum Thumb
Sending hundreds of texts a day? All that digit bending can cause inflammation in your fingers, leading to tendinitis or arthritis. And watch out for “trigger finger,” a condition that causes fingers to get stuck in a bent position. (You may need surgery to fix it.)

The fix: Use voice-to-text, and take breaks when you’re typing on your phone. Try to send most of your emails from your computer keyboard. If you feel discomfort, stop and rest your hands, then gently stretch your thumbs and other fingers.  Do some ball release with your small spiky balls on the entire hand both front and back. 

Eyestrain
Some 65 percent of Americans suffer from digital eyestrain, a condition characterized by dry, itchy eyes and blurred vision. Also, the blue light emitted by your phone may damage your retinas, leading to macular degeneration. 

The fix: Ask your doctor about antireflective lenses, or try blue-light-blocking glasses from Gunnar ($69–$299) or Swannies ($89). Plus, try to blink frequently — at least 18 times a minute and use homeopathic eye drops such as Similasan.

Distractibility
It’s tough enough to focus these days, but a smartphone can make this worse: It can take up to 27 seconds after disconnecting from a hands-free device to regain attention.  Don’t text and drive!  If you find yourself tempted to abuse this, pull over to the side of the road to conduct your business.


The fix: Turn off notifications, and check texts and emails only at particular times (and never while driving); iPhone users can put their phones on Do Not Disturb, yet allow family or work calls to get through.

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