Next time you are standing in line, look around and watch people on their mobile devices. Technology has certainly made things easier for us, but at what cost? Forward head posture, rounded shoulders and hunching (“iPosture”) can cause myriad health problems such as neck pain, upper back pain, mid back pain, low back pain, headaches, jaw pain, migraines and accelerated aging of the spine and discs; to name just a few. More importantly, poor posture causes stress to your nervous system which provides energy to all of your vital organs. This can translate to overall poor health, dysfunction and disease.

Now even young kids have these mobile devices and are learning poor postural habits at an early age. It use to be that we were 40 or 50 before we started having “back pain”, now we are seeing the effects of poor posture at an earlier age… in our teens and 20’s! It’s time we learn how to use these devices properly and teach our children to do so as well.
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Most people are required to sit in front of their computers to perform highly engaging tasks. Brain is active, but body is not. The human body is designed to move, not to be still.  Sitting still causes muscles to get “cold” and have little blood circulation. Lack of circulation means lack of oxygenated blood to your muscles, causing them to contract. This results in tension, discomfort, and pain. Incorrect posture and body mechanics also lead to aggravation of nerves and muscle tension.

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Holistic workplace wellness programs should address each of the key aspects of the dimensions of wellness (University of California, 2016; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration [SAMHSA], 2016):

• physical health is an employee’s ability to maintain a healthy quality of life with minimal physical stress or fatigue
• emotional health relates to an employee’s ability to cope with life’s challenges in a healthy way
• spiritual health helps to ensure that employees maintain a state of peace and harmony
• occupational health involves an employee’s personal satisfaction with the job; this helps to ensure that all individuals remain engaged
• environmental health requires employees to recognize how they impact their physical environment and take responsibility for protecting it
• intellectual health is an employees’ ability to be open minded about new ideas and experiences

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In 2015, healthcare spending in the U.S. topped $3 trillion dollars annually; more recent statistics indicate that the costs of care continues to rise with a per capita expense of approximately $10,345 per (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid [CMS],2015; Alonso-Zaldivar, 2016).  Per the Centers for the Disease Control (CDC), approximately 75% of healthcare costs is directly attributed to the onset of chronic diseases (2015).  Chronic illnesses can be mitigated by eating nutritiously and being physically active; for most individuals affected, preventative health education initiatives can aid in reducing health disparities (CDC, 2015).

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