TEXT NECK

November 1, 2015

“A new study claims that poor posture caused by texting is becoming an epidemic. I’m not sure if I’ve been affected, but I have a hunch.” Seth Meyers, Late Night on NBC

TEXT NECK

Dr. Dean Fishman, a chiropractor and leading health care provider for technology induced injuries, originated the phrase Text Neck in 2008 to explain the repetitive stress injury to the body caused by excessive texting and overuse of handheld mobile devices (doctors used to call it Forward Head Posture). This condition is derived from the onset of cervical spinal degeneration resulting from the repeated stress of frequent forward head flexion while looking down and texting for long periods of time. This new MSD (musculoskeletal disorder) is plaguing mobile device users all over the world. Of the 6 billion people in the world, 4 billion have mobile phones and over 2.2 trillion text messages are sent annually.

In a recent interview with Dr. Larry Adams of the Adams Chiropractic Neurology Group of Sonoma, he states that “Text Neck is a recent phenomenon that is happening among young people, as well as older people, because of the increased usage of cell phones, tablets and laptops while leaning in an anterior posture, looking down and causing a significant reversal in the cervical spine. It also causes weakness in the posterior muscles in the upper back which promotes a slouched and weakend posture which can affect the stability of the spine which in turn leads to neck and back pain weakness and a predilection to neck and back injuries.”

SYMPTOMS

The symptoms associated with Text Neck include chronic headaches, upper back pain, shoulder pain, neck pain and increased curvature of the spine. The problem with texting is that it adds one more activity that causes us to look down more than we did in the past. In addition, it could possibly cause permanent damage to the spines of growing children.

STARING AT YOUR PHONE?

The average person stares at their mobile device for nearly three hours a day. As we stare at these devices at chest or waist-level looking down at a 45 degree angle, it causes the neck muscles to be shortened and tightened and the shoulders to be rounded forward. This can cause cosmetic, muscular and neurological problems.

Repeated bending of the neck with the head tilted downward creates a specific crease just above the collar bone in the thin and delicate neck skin. According to research commissioned by Yves St. Laurent, wrinkles and sagging of the jowls and neck traditionally develop in late middle age, however, in the last ten years it has become a problem for the younger generation (18-39 year olds). This is contributing to more lines and skin laxity, loss of facial volume, sagging skin and less defined contours.

In the movie Jerry Maguire, Dorothy Boyd’s son asks, “Jerry, do you know the human head weighs 8 pounds?” According to Dr. Kenneth Hansraj, chief of spine surgery at New York Spine Surgery and Rehabilitation Medicine and author of a recent study published in Surgery Technology International, “when the human head tilts forward, the forces seen by the neck surge to 27 pounds at 15 degrees, 40 pounds at 30 degrees, 49 pounds at 45 degrees and 60 pounds at 60 degrees. With such aggressive stressors on the neck, the wear and tear on the spine can develop tears within the disc or cause slipped or herniated discs.” Hansraj warns that chronic screen-staring could “deteriorate the back and neck muscles to the point of needing surgery”.

GOTTA KEEP YOUR HEAD UP

So, what can you do to avoid straining your neck and back muscles? Try these simple techniques developed by Bill Boissonnault, associate professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

1. Hold your mobile or portable device at eye level allowing your head and neck to stay erect.

2. Place your hand under your chin so your neck muscles are not supporting the entire weight of your head.

3. Use a hands-free bookstand, music stand or pillow to bring your device closer to your face at eye-level.

4. Move your head and shoulders around. Gently roll your head to it’s normal position. Roll your shoulders and squeeze your shoulder blades together and down.

If you experience any kind of neck, shoulder or back pain you can:

1. Stretch at home

2. Get a massage

3. Go to a Pilates or Yoga studio

4. See a chiropractor or physical therapist

ADVICE FOR THE OFFICE

1. Place your computer monitor directly in front of you

2. Take regular breaks every 15-30 minutes

3. Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water

THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT!

There are several apps for the iPhone that can help you improve your posture and avoid Text Neck. The free app called Save Your Neck includes several different neck exercises. Neck & Shoulders Stretching Exercises, a 99-cent app developed by Intellipro Solutions, offers neck and shoulder extension, flexion, rotation, resistance, retraction and stretching exercises. And for Android users, the free app called Text Neck Indicator LITE helps prevent, reduce and/or reverse the harmful effects of Text Neck. It includes specific exercises designed to help improve the strength of the muscles affected by the Text Neck posture.

Problems with Passwords

September 1, 2015

“I needed a password that was eight characters long so I picked Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.” Nick Helm, English Comedian

“I changed all my passwords to incorrect. Whenever I forget, it tells me, Your password is incorrect.” Michael Scott, The Office

The problem with passwords is that after creating them for the multitudes of accounts we use everyday in the digital world, we inconveniently forget them when our computer or smartphone unexpectedly prompts us to enter them. “Why doesn’t the computer just remember the stupid password?”, we ask. Finally, when we get locked out of our account for repeatedly entering the wrong one, we throw up our hands and exclaim, “How can I ever remember all these damn passwords?”

Password Strategies

First of all, you are not going to remember all of your passwords, so write them down. You can create a password-protected document on your computer or enter the information in a small address book. List the account name, user name, password, secret questions and answers plus the date you created or updated the account. And, unlike Seinfeld’s George Constanza, who wouldn’t divulge his password to his fiancée, you may want to make a copy for someone you trust in the event you lose or misplace this list. You could also place a copy in your bank’s safe deposit box.

When you answer the account’s secret questions (name of your first pet, childhood friend, first grade teacher, favorite movie, etc.) make sure that this information is not available through any biographical or social media. To add another level of security, spell your answers in reverse. Sonoma becomes Amonos or Citizen Kane becomes Enak Nezitic. You can have the strongest password in the world, but if someone knows your pet’s name or the city where your parents met, then your account can be reset and compromised.

Don’t give out passwords or personal information to anyone over the phone, online or through social media. Cyber criminals are getting more advanced in their tactics (fake banner ads, adware, malware, ransomware, shareware, etc.) to encourage unsuspecting consumers to divulge their personal information, so don’t call or contact them to help you with any of your secure information.

Password Creation

Here’s a few ideas to help you create secure passwords.

•Use at least 8 characters, including an uppercase and lowercase letter plus a number and/or special character

•Avoid using common words or names that are found in the dictionary

•Don’t use the same password for all your accounts

•Create a unique user name and password for your online banking account

•If the account supports it, use two-step verification, which sends a confirmation text message to your mobile phone for secure password creation and authentication.

•Test the strength of your password at www.passwordmeter.com

Password Statistics

These are the Top 50 most used passwords. The word password used to be the most widely used password in the world. It was recently surpassed by the equally insecure 123456.

25-33% of all help desk requests and tech support calls are the result of forgotten passwords or locked accounts.

In the United States last year, over 40 million consumers were victims of information theft at a cost of over $160 billion.

A recent survey conducted in the U.S. and U.K. by mobile identity company TeleSign, found that 40 percent of those surveyed say they had an account hacked, password stolen, or were given notice that their personal information had been compromised. The survey also discovered that 75% of all consumers use duplicate passwords, many of which have not been changed in five years or more.

Conclusion

With all this really helpful research and newfound password strategy under my belt, I logged in to the password reset page on one of my social media accounts and entered MyPen!5 for my new password. It was rejected with the following error message, “Password error, not long enough.”