Americans spend around 4 hours a day looking at their smartphones. 4 hours. That number has quadrupled under stay-at-home orders and four mind-numbing months of binge-watching on computers and tablets. The result is a painful health problem called tech neck. Joining us with advice, Dr. Hooman Melamed, a board-certified orthopedic spine surgeon. Good morning.
Morning, guys. How are you guys doing?
We’re doing good. Thank you. So, the the idea of this tech neck, the reasons we explained, watching things on your tablet and your phone, how much pressure does actually put on our spine, and tell us what it does to our neck?
Very, very good question. You know, I’m seeing a record number of patients, you know, during this pandemic that are complaining about, you know, a lot of neck pain, especially in the young people. A lot of people are sitting at home on their bed, sofa, couch, lazy boy chair, they’re and they’re [inaudible] they’re your view and this, the longer you’re looking down and the more your neck is basically pinching forward, exactly like you’re showing, you know, your spine can feel like there’s 60 lb of pressure on it where normally it should be 10 lb. So, you’re six times in the force, which is not good at all long term.
And and is it just the… Do you just literally have a pain in the in the neck, or are there other symptoms associated with this?
Well, initially you start having some neck pain, sure. You start having neck pain. God, no, my neck feels bad, pain back here. And then you start having pain on your on your shoulders, the trapezius here, and you start eventually getting headaches, and then you can [inaudible] you start having shooting pain down your arms, burning, tingling, numbness, and this is like as it progresses.
And so, what are some of the things that, I guess, the long-term effects if we were to, you know, constantly be looking down like that and all those things you mentioned? What are we looking at down the road?
Very bad. Sorry, a very, very bad long-term. I worry about our younger generation and the kids I’m seeing. In fact, this week I saw literally two patients in their 20s who are starting to have reversal of their neck alignment. Your neck is supposed to be curving backward, but they’re starting to curve forward, and that can become permanent. You can have disc herniation, spinal cord pressure, nerve pressure, bone spurs, ligament damage, which is not good long-term. Very bad.
I would imagine that one of the things you can do to minimize this is to stop looking at your phone so much, but are there other things we can do to minimize tech neck?
Well, you hit it. The most important point, honestly, you got to pay attention to your posture and your alignment. Have your phone at an eye level like this, basically. Have it up at an eye level like that. Don’t keep looking down. Pay attention to your ergonomics at work, meaning eye level. Make sure everything is an eye eye level.
Your neck is curved. Do I… Sure, you can do some stretching, you know, gentle stretching as you do in Pilates and yoga, which I recommend. Pilates and yoga is very good about focusing on your posture alignment. And also, there are apps out there that would notify you if you’re in the wrong position, but most importantly, just pay attention to your form.
And… And when you’re sitting at or standing. Would it ever lead to surgery if it was bad enough?
Oh, absolutely. If you do not check this, you know, there’s only so much your neck can take. You know, after it starts wearing out, and I’m starting to see, as I said, the two ladies I saw, the patients, they both have ruptured discs in their neck. You’re not supposed to see a ruptured disc on a on a 20-plus-year-old. That’s too early to get these problems, and it can lead to surgery, sure.
Every time we talk to Dr. Melamed, I feel like I have to sit up straight. I feel very self-conscious. But it’s a good reminder. Once again, thank you, Dr. Hooman Melamed, board-certified spine surgeon. For more information about back pain topics, check out his website, TheSpinePro.com, and follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.
