RSI warning over text messaging

The BCA observes that Britain is a nation obsessed with texting. According to new figures from the Mobile Data Association (MDA), in January 2003 alone, a total of 1.65 billion texts were sent person to person, with an average of 53 million messages being sent every day.

Tim Hutchful, a BCA spokesperson said:

"BCA chiropractors recognise that text messaging regularly, over a long period of time, could cause repetitive strain which may cause both short and long term injuries.

"As mobile phone technology develops, mobiles are getting smaller, with buttons closer together. Small, fine movements tend to aggravate more than larger movements - this coupled with the smaller buttons can lead to injury as smaller buttons are harder to activate."

Text exercises

The British Chiropractic Association recommends that the following exercises should be done before and after text messaging (and between individual messages if you're texting continuously over a long period):

1. Shoulder shrug: Shrug your shoulders towards your ears. Hold for 2/3 seconds, then relax. Repeat 3 times. Because it's easier to relax a muscle after you've tightened it, you will relax the muscles in the shoulder, and allow the blood to flow into the arm.
2. Make a fist: Hold the arm at right angles from the elbow. Make a fist and tense it, and the whole of your arm. Hold for 2/3 seconds, then relax and let the arm flop to your side. Repeat 3 times. This will help the blood flow and tone the muscles.
3. Wrist stretch: Stretch the wrist backwards, hold for 2/3 seconds, then stretch it forwards and hold for 2/3 seconds. Repeat 3 times. When you are texting, you tilt your thumbs towards your wrists, so straining the tendons. This exercise prevents a tightening of the wrists.
4. Finger spread: Spread the fingers as wide apart as you can, hold for 2/3 seconds, then bunch them into a fist and hold for 2/3 seconds. Repeat 3 times. This will keep your fingers and thumbs supple and mobile.
5. Neck muscle stretch: Texting usually involves looking down at the phone which means the head is held unsupported, so it is helpful to the neck muscles to sit relaxed with the shoulders supported and to 'retract' the chin - try to make a double chin, to stretch the muscles at the base of the neck. Hold this position for 2 to 3 seconds and repeat 3 times. Always stretch very slowly.

These exercises are also recommended for those who spend a lot of time on game consoles.

Tim Hutchful added:

"When you are text messaging, you tend to hold your shoulders and upper arms tense. This cuts down the circulation to the forearm, when in fact it needs a greater than normal blood flow to achieve the fine movements of the thumbs and fingers."

Safe text

The British Chiropractic Association also offers the following general tips for text messagers:

Support your arm on a chair or table to take the 'load' off the neck and shoulder muscles

Massage your arm from the wrist to the elbow at regular intervals

Swap hands regularly

Sit in a neutral upright position - head over shoulders and arms comfortably near the body

The weight of a phone may not feel much, but it is significantly increased if the arm is held out stretched, as it will increase the load of muscles and joints

Remember - pain is a warning sign - don't ignore it, and consult your local BCA chiropractor if it persists