It sounds like the latest gadget from Apple. But ‘iPosture’ is being blamed for an alarming level of back pain among 18 to 24-year-olds.
The term is being used to describe the stooped body shape adopted by those texting, emailing or playing games on their iPad or smartphone.
Some 84 per cent of those aged 18 to 24 admitted to having suffered back pain in the past year, in a survey by the healthcare provider Simplyhealth.
This age group now loses more working days a year to back pain than those in their parents’ generation.
Dr Brian Hammond, chairman of BackCare, the national back pain charity, said: ‘The vast majority of people experience back pain in the lower back.
‘Over half the population experience pain in the neck or lower back every year.
THE STUDY IN NUMBERS
- 1.5 more working days per year are lost to back pain by 18-24 year olds, compared to the number of days lost each year by their parents’ generation
- 84 per cent of 18-24 year olds have admitted to suffering back pain in the last 12 months
- Over 55s spent an average of 6.64 hours a day in front of a computer screen
- A typical 18-24 year old spends 8.83 hours a day in front of a screen
- 66 per cent of this younger age group agree they either slouch or hunch in front of their PC
‘This survey shows that 18 to 24-year-olds are more likely to experience pain in the upper back and neck.
‘It is likely that slumping and hunching over computers and hand-held devices is a contributory factor in the different types of back pain reported by different generations.
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