Healthy Times
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Fall 2001: Making your computer work station 'user-friendly'
The computer on your desk may appear harmless but operating it from an improper position, or for excessive periods of time, can lead to serious soft tissue injuries. Such injuries may result in neck, back, and shoulder pain, headaches and carpal tunnel syndrome (i.e. pain and or numbness in the hand). Painful soft tissue injuries not only reduce strength and flexibility, but may worsen over time unless corrective action is taken. It is important to appreciate that improper or excessive computer use is a major cause of postural and repetitive strain injuries.
Injuries can be avoided by making sure your computer work station is set up in the most beneficial position for you. This means that while you are working at the computer you are easily able to maintain good posture.
Good sitting posture which is essential to optimal health is achieved by maintaining the three normal curves in the spine. An inward curve at the neck, an outward curve at the mid-back, and another inward curve at the lower back make up the spine's normal curves. To maintain the normal spinal curves while sitting, your seat height should be level with, or slightly higher than, your knees. Your feet should be in firm contact with the floor or a foot rest. The seat bottom should be level or slightly angled downward at the front.
A lower backrest support aids in sustaining the inward curve in the lower back. To make use of the backrest support, it is important to continuously maintain firm contact with both the backrest and the chair back by sitting well back in the chair seat. An arm rest should only be used if it lies close to the sides of your body and is at the height of your elbows. Otherwise it is best not to use an arm rest.
Proper positioning of the computer monitor, keyboard and mouse are also necessary in order to correctly set up your work station. The monitor should be directly in front of you with the top part of the screen at eye level. An easy way to check that the monitor is at the right height is to close your eyes and think about good posture with your entire back in mind (i.e. head directly above the shoulders looking straight ahead so that the normal curve in the neck is maintained). Then open your eyes and see whether the top part of the monitor screen is in your direct line of vision. If the monitor screen is not in that position, it should be raised or lowered on its stand until it is.
The center row of the letter keys on the computer keyboard, and the mouse, should both be level with the bottom of your elbows.
At this height your forearms should be parallel to the floor when your fingers are resting on the middle keyboard row.
Your wrists should be comfortably positioned so that the back of your hand is not tilted up or down from your wrist. The elbows should rest directly at your sides while typing. Without the use of an arm rest, even as little as an inch forward is improper positioning of the elbows as this unnecessarily engages the muscles of the upper back. The computer mouse should be on your handed side and should be close enough that it may be used without any reaching.
If you are reading what you type, it is best to use an attachment that fits on either side of your monitor and holds the reading material in a vertical position. This keeps your head level while typing what you read. As for the telephone, it should be on your non-handed side so that you have your other hand free to write. Better yet, if you are on the phone a lot it is preferable to use a head set.
Even with good posture using all the techniques described above, fatigue and strain may occur if that posture is held too long. It is strongly advisable to take short breaks, or alternate between work tasks, throughout the day in order to reduce the stress from sitting in only a single postion.
For Your Information - 17 More Reasons to be Physically Active
Recent research has determined that two out of three Canadian adults are not active enough for optimal health benefits, and three out of five children and youths aged 5-17 years old are not active enough for optimal growth and development. It has also been found that physical inactivity increases the incidence of at least 17 unhealthy conditions, such as diabetes, almost all of which are chronic diseases or considered risk factors for chronic diseases.
Health Quiz
1. Illness due to inactivity is costing the Canadian health-care system at least how much
annually?
a) 75 million b) 250 million c) 1 billion d) 2.1 billion
2. Which of the following is considered to be a soft tissue?
a) muscle b) tendon c) ligament d) nerve e) all of the above
Answers to the Health Quiz can be found on the bottom of the this page
For your free video on how the spine affects our health phone the British Columbia Chiropractic Association at: 1-877-390-1100 or local in Vancouver at: 270-1332.
Health Quiz Answers:
1.d Illness due to physical inactivity is costing the Canadian health-care system
at least 2.1 billion annually.
2.e Muscles, tendons, ligaments, and nerves are all considered to be soft tissues.
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