‘Text Neck’: A Potentially Devastating Distortion Of The Modern Age.

Chiropractic Article

Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. It certainly applies to the human spine. Distortion or misalignment of the spinal column can affect one’s well-being and quality of life. We now have an epidemic of a condition called ‘Text Neck’. It is a scourge of living in the modern-day technological world

The structural problem with text neck is a distortion––a reversal of the standard neck curve. Many issues affect a person’s well-being when there is a loss of the forward neck curve—called lordosis. One undeniable result of a neck reversal—known as kyphosis— is that the centre of gravity shifts dramatically forward. The average adult head weighs approximately 2.5 kilograms. When the neck shifts backwards, the weight of the head shifts forwards. You can imagine the stress that this puts on the whole system.

The implications of the reverse curve are that because of the relationship of the spinal cord and spinal nerves to the vertebrae; there can be far-reaching effects. In the 1980s and 90s, this came to the fore with the explosion of computer usage. Repetitive Strain Injury, or RSI, was very prominent in those days because there was little ergonomic understanding of what happens when people use technology for long hours. 

Our way of life has changed dramatically in the last 50 years, and the impact is seen from childhood because children are exposed to a whole host of devices: computers, mobile phones, tablets and so on

1950s 2023

So what are the effects of spinal distortion due to ‘Text Neck’?