Creating an Ergonomic Home and Office is Key to a Healthy Future

BLOOMINGTON, Minnesota – Nearly half of all worker-compensation costs reported to the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics each year represent ergonomic-related disorders. According to the National Safety Council, cumulative-trauma disorders (CTD) occur over time and represent injuries to specific body parts, including the back, hand, wrist, forearm, and neck. The repeated trauma to those specific body parts is the result of poorly designed work environments, poorly designed tools, and individual health considerations. The trauma often occurs because muscles are repeatedly stressed, tendons become inflamed, nerves get pinched, or blood flow becomes restricted.

Ergonomics is defined as the study of the problems of people in adjusting to their environment, and it specifically looks at ways of reducing fatigue by focusing on how work affects people. In recent years, many organizations have implemented ergonomic guidelines for office workstations to maximize productivity and efficiency.

Rachel Franklin, DC, an assistant professor and faculty clinician at Northwestern Health Sciences University in Bloomington, Minn., says that having an ergonomic work area is very important in reducing stress on the body and reducing the chances of injury.  Dr. Franklin, who practices in the University’s Bloomington Natural Care Center, notes that people who don’t have an ergonomic home or office may be prone to feel pain in the body, experience carpal tunnel symptoms, aches, pains, and muscle strains.

Dr. Franklin suggests 10 things people can do at home or in the office to make their spaces more ergonomic:

• Pay attention to posture and habits while sitting or standing. That is, do you lean to one side or always put your weight on one foot? Make sure to trade off and do the opposite.
• When washing dishes, ironing, or any task that requires standing in one place for a period of time, put a foot up on something to decrease stress on the low back.
• Learn the golfer’s lift! If you drop something light (paper, a pencil, etc.), lift one leg up behind you while bending forward on the other to decrease stress on the low back.
• Don’t sit in one position for extended periods of time. If you are in an airplane, movie theater, or chair of any type with poor support, put a pillow or a rolled-up towel/blanket behind your back for additional support.
• When using a computer, try to keep the screen straight ahead of you. Also, set the monitor so that your eyes are at the level of two to three inches from the top of the screen.
• Use your computer mouse with both hands. It may sound challenging, but switching from left to right will balance out repetitive stresses.
• Get a headset. Cradling the phone between your ear and shoulder is stressful to many structures. By using a headset, your hands are free for other tasks and stress on the neck from cradling will be gone.
• Take micro breaks. Anytime you are in one place for extended periods of time you need to give your body a break. Every 20 to 30 minutes, stop what you are doing, move away from your task, and stretch for 15 to 30 seconds. It will refresh your body and your mind.
• Always lift with your knees and not with the low back. Avoid bending at the waist to lift even if the object is light.
• Do stretches everyday. Make sure they are relaxed and slow and frequent. Avoid bouncing or stretching to the point of pain. Hold for three to five relaxing breaths and be sure to stretch both sides.

For more tips on ergonomics, visit http://www.nwhealth.edu/nns, a health and wellness Web site hosted by Northwestern Health Sciences University.

Editor’s note: The Natural News Service is a public information program provided by Northwestern Health Sciences University. If you choose to use this release, please attribute the information accordingly.  The University offers a wide array of choices in natural health care education including chiropractic, Oriental medicine, acupuncture, therapeutic massage and integrative health and wellness. The University has 850 students on a 25-acre campus in Bloomington, Minn.