You know it: Smartphone use is perilous
to your neck! The forward head posture we all fall [prey|victim]3] to when looking
through texts or checking the news or watching
the latest reel is not good for your neck. Executive Chiropractic of Iowa
delivers gentle treatment for the West Des Moines neck pain and
associated arm pain which is quite helpful!
We also offer a few tips on how to use
your cell phone less harmfully to your spine.
NECK PAIN AND SMART PHONE USE: Exercise May Help
Neck pain thanks to cell
phone popularity is rising! Young and old alike
experience it. We are all on our smartphones
while walking, sitting, visiting. (In the old days, we’d visit without phones.
Not so much today!) A
meta-analysis of 26 published papers analyzing neck posture’s influence on neck pain patients of all ages
documented that the craniovertebral angle of the neck varies
among them with respect to age, gender, pain (with or without) and
correlated negatively with neck pain. (1) A newer
study stated that the most awkward posture for
head and neck angles while using smartphones
was sitting in a chair without a backrest. The authors offered some
comfort in that they found some corrective exercises that help decrease
neck pain severity by 36.6% and disability by 13.3%. (2) Executive Chiropractic of Iowa has a
few exercises in our chiropractic treatment plan that we’d be happy to share if you are
interested!
CELL PHONE USE AND HEAD POSTURE: Lift Your Chin
Executive Chiropractic of Iowa also shares how changing your head posture might
be beneficial. Comparing asymptomatic people with and without
forward head posture, researchers saw statistically
significant differences in sensorimotor and somatosensory processing factors
with increases in forward head posture. The
positive news was that they also discovered that with each
1° increase in craniovertebral angle of the neck (ie.e. less forward
head posture carriage), the somatosensory factors got better. (3)
The take-away: Lift your chin up!
NECK POSTURE, FORWARD HEAD POSTURE and PHYSICAL FITNESS
Further, forward head posture was shown to alter
sensorimotor processing and integration measures in both athletic and
non-athletic people. College
athletes with such forward head posture compared to those with
normal head posture displayed such issues as
well as less efficient skill-related physical fitness (like balance, leg power,
agility). (4) Executive Chiropractic of Iowa’s use of the gentle, safe, non-rotational
treatment of painful necks with Cox® Technic may have
a role in reducing neck pain and affecting
related issues. Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. Shay Corbin on The Back Doctors Podcast with
Dr. Michael Johnson as he details his chiropractic care
of a patient suffering with neck and arm pain implementing The
Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management.
CONTACT Executive Chiropractic of Iowa
Schedule your West Des Moines chiropractic
visit to deal with any neck pain, sensorimotor and/or somatosensory
issues you may be having that are associated with any of your hazardous smartphone practices!