A recent study completed in China showed that 41% of students who used their ipads or tablet computers were more prone to getting neck and shoulder pain. The study was published in the medical journal Spine and used questionnaires from 2842 high school student in 30 schools in Shanghai China.
Dr. Zhao Qinghua one of the experts in the study stated that "Neck and spine pain can impact life quality and cause further damage to spine in the future,"His goal was to help teenage kids overcome neck and shoulder pain.
Dr. Zhao stated that he sees over 10 university students for neck and shoulder pain every day while working at the hospital's branch near a college town.
In China, the last year of high school can be extra stressful because students are preparing for college entrance exams. This is a major cause for spine problems in China.
"Data showed that students with less academic stress have lower prevalence of neck and shoulder pain than other students," Dr.Zhao said. If you compare other countries, China's students have more academic pressure. In the Netherlands, only 11.5 percent of teenagers suffer from neck and shoulder pain.
While other activities (such as watching tv or playing video games) can be the cause of neck and shoulder pain, long term use of a tablet computer can do more damage to the neck and shoulder areas.
Zhao stated that particularly using a tablet type of computer such as the ipad can be harmful "Because people only use one hand while using iPad and lie on the bed instead of sitting proper on a chair, which is bad for the spine,"
The study further found that using an iPad for over 1.5 hours per day or facing a screen six to 10 hours per week is highly risky.
Additional Reading:
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- I have a hump inthe back of my spine at the top...how do i treat this?
- Do you sit on the computer ALL day long? Maybe you are developing a tech Neck??
- Know Thy Posture to Keep Free of Pain
Source: Overuse of Ipads Blamed for students neck and shoulder pain
