Sitting Disease

Dr. William Cook warns that too much sitting can cause great consequences when it comes to your health. There are many new research studies that show how prolonged sitting in a work place or at home with technology can do real harm to your health, even early mortality.

The most common symptoms of sitting disease are headaches, neck pain, back pain, fatigue, and carpel tunnel. You can help and sometimes even eliminate these conditions if you take a few steps to improve your work place habits and ergonomics.

Start with taking brain breaks every 20 minutes; get up, get a drink of water, and walk around for a couple minutes. While sitting, take stretch breaks and raise your arms above your head; give yourself a hug, holding the position for a few seconds. Take your neck through full range of motion: look down, look up, and look side to side. For your lower back, bend forward and hang for a few seconds, push your back into a slight extension, bending backwards and holding for a couple of seconds. Rotate side to side and bend left to right.

For your ergonomics, here are a few tips: use a standing desk if possible, if you are sitting, try using a wobble ball on your seat, or sit on a large exercise ball. All of these can help your core as well as keep your lower back disc well hydrated. Lastly, blocker glasses can help with eye strain and many times will eliminate technology headaches.

If you would like more information about sitting disease and help with your work place environment, Dr. Cook is available to assist you and your work team right at your workplace. Call for details on our Lunch and Learn Work Programs and we can book an event for you. Contact our event coordinator Jaclyn at (586) 731-7730.