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Good ergonomics can help students reduce repetitive injuries

Published in The Aggie on January 23, 2007

As computers become more omnipresent, so do the physical ailments that come with long hours of computer use.

In the past five years, the Cowell Student Health Center has seen a significant increase in the number of wrist, neck and back injuries in students. The perpetrator? According to Henriette Bruun, a physical therapist on campus, it's laptops.

"Laptops are an ergonomic disaster because you can't separate the monitor from the keyboard," Bruun said.

Ergonomics, the science of matching work environments to individuals to increase efficiency and reduce repetitive motion injuries, can help students avoid neck, shoulder and back pain, as well as eyestrain, blurred vision, dry and irritated eyes and headaches.

Use the ergo-friendly tips below and avoid a trip to the campus physical therapy clinic.

Keep good posture

Maintaining good posture is one habit ergonomics specialist Craig Carrero believes all students need to adopt. Sitting straight, with the legs and torso creating a 95 degree to 110 degree angle, is the ideal posture.

If you use a laptop, invest in an external keyboard for home use so that you can bring the position of the monitor up to eye level. When away from home, use a backpack to help raise the level of your laptop to avoid hunching over.

Also, do not plant wrists directly on the table or prop them; use a technique called "floating," keeping the wrists a little above the table.

Move around

Take lots of breaks and move around. Stretch the back, neck, shoulders and fingers.

Follow the 20/20/20 rule by taking a 20-second break every 20 minutes and look 20 feet away to rest your hands and eyes. Bruun suggests setting a kitchen timer as a reminder to get up and take a break.

Protect your eyes

To help eliminate eyestrain, adjust the screen distance and font size to match your preference so you can look at the screen without tilting your head. Avoid squinting or leaning toward the screen.

To reduce irritation and dryness in the eyes, lubricate them by blinking frequently.

Bad lighting can cause eyestrain, so try indirect lighting to take some strain off those eyes. Low contrast between the light of the computer screen with the light source in the room is recommended, so screen brightness should match the general brightness of the room.

Also, try to reduce glares by positioning yourself perpendicular to windows instead of facing them.

Be aware

Above all, pay attention to fatigue. Once the body begins to register pain, repetitive damage has already occurred.

For more information about ergonomics, visit the Environmental Health and Safety department Ergonomics page at ehs.ucdavis.edu/ergo/index.cfm.

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