I think you knew this already, but "bending your head down to look at your phone can have serious consequences for your spine, according to a new study by Kenneth Hansraj, Chief of Spine Surgery at New York Spine Surgery and Rehabilitation Medicine" (Daily Telegraph 24/11/2014). This follows a statement by the United Chiropractic Association earlier this year that "poor posture arising from over use of smart phones posed as big a health risk as obesity". According to Dr Hansraj, the adult head weighs 10-12lb in a neutral position (far left in this diagram); as the head tilts forward, the force on the neck increases, so that at an angle of 60 degrees (far right), the force is equivalent to 60lbs. Unless young people learn to pay attention to maintaining a healthy head-neck-back relationship - which is a key component of the Alexander Technique - they can expect a hi-tech future blighted by pain and injury. One simple change you can make right now is to hold your phone higher.
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