You may have heard of a military neck, stiff neck, or just a plain old pain in the neck, but have you heard of a Tech Neck? What is it and why is it more important to recognize as we all go back to school? The answer is that kids nowadays interact with screens more than any previous generation, and those hours of looking down at screens can lead to a lifetime of bad posture and pain. Proper posture development at an early age can benefit your child throughout their life and decrease unnecessary pain in the neck and upper back.
As more and more young children, teenagers, and even adults spend hours looking downwards at that enticing 6-inch screen in their hands they are causing damage to their posture.
As humans, we may have a skeleton to support our posture, but it is myotendinous tissues such as muscles, ligaments, and tendons that hold those bones in their proper positions. What's interesting about myotendinous tissue is that it has memory, and the more time this tissue spends in a certain position then the more likely it will hold that position in the future.
The average head weighs 11 lbs, and every inch forward that our head moves from normal is another 10lbs that our neck has to hold up.
If we begin holding our heads forward as children then that's many more years of extra work that our necks have to endure. A smart man once said, "as a branch grows then so does the tree." A growing child looking down for long periods will inevitably begin to develop harmful posture in the form of Tech Neck.
So how do you treat Tech Neck?
Chiropractic care can help!
Chiropractic adjustments help reduce tension in muscles and joints and allow the spine to rest in a more balanced position.
At BBC Health in Lewisville, TX, we specialize in assessing posture and finding tense muscles that need help. By taking an integrative team approach to healthcare our chiropractors and medical providers work together to improve posture, relieve muscle trigger point, and ease pain caused by Tech Neck.
Contact us today to schedule your appointment and see how we can best serve you.
