Cultivate Healthy Computer Usage
Computer aches and pains are felt in the neck, shoulder, and upper and lower back,wrist and elbow joints. These symptoms can occur lead to repetitive strain injury, which may include damage to tendons, muscles, nerves and other soft tissue from repeated physical movements over time. There is number of factors that lead which is as under:
Posture; is the most critical component. Slouching at the keyboard puts your spine and limbs in positions that contribute to increased strain and tension and the risk of eyestrain.
Office set up; a poorly designed work station.
Worker technique; pounding the keyboard, using your wrists to move the mouse, or gripping the mouse tightly increase the demands on the hand and wrist.
Work habits; sitting for extended periods of time without changing position .do not ignore early signs such as weakness of your grip ,numbness ,and discomfort pain in the arms, hand ,shoulders. Early diagnosis and treatment are vital to ensure recovery from the symptoms of RSI and here are some handy means to avoid it:
Stretch; include regular stretching into your work routine. Every 20 to 60 minutes do three or four stretches for hand, shoulders, neck and trunk.
Move; get up from your work station for a short stretch or walk around to promote blood flow.
Add it up; add variety to your tasks ,take every break as an opportunity to go for a short walk and stretch ,keep track of activity and build up to 30 minutes of stretching and exercise every arms close to your body or resting comfortable on the armrests, which should be positioned close to your sides.
Reduce strain; make sure you are sitting correctly with your back support, keep your eyes level within range of the top third of the screen.
Keep your work ,keyboard and mouse in front of the monitor and close to you,
Use a good quality mouse, mouse that minimal pressure to click, and be sue to position it on the same level and as close to the keyboard as possible .keep your wrist straight and move the mouse with whole arm movements;
Use ergonomic computer accessories, such as document to encourage natural neck posture and head set to avoid awkward neck posture while interfacing with the computer and telephone;
If you are working on a computer all day at work, you may want to limit your computer –time at home.
By Shamim Bokhari(204/10)
