How email can be hazardous to your health

You’ve heard of sleep apnea, but how about “email apnea?”

It’s the newest “condition” that comes along with being “connected” all the time.

A side effect that comes from doing email, texting, and even just sitting in front of your computer playing Candy Crush.

First, researchers say, our posture is to blame.

Sitting in front of a screen or holding a phone or tablet encourages really bad posture. Posture so sloppy it would make your mom cringe.

And that posture, with your arms and shoulders forward, makes it next to impossible to take a good breath in, and then fully exhale.

Believe it or not, it seems that there’s still a lot of anticipation when it comes to reading email. You would think we’ve gotten used to this technology by now, but apparently not.

So we hold our breath for a moment when checking messages. Combine that with our terrible posture and you’ve got a recipe for bad breathing.

And that all translates to higher levels of stress hormones.

Now don’t just think this applies to people over…say 40, because it doesn’t. It looks like around 80 percent of us do this. Kids and teens included.

One doctor told CBS news that he thinks this can cause “subtle consequences” to our blood pressure and heart health. Things that may put us at similar risk to what people can get when they have sleep apnea.

This isn’t the first time all those electronic devices we use constantly have been linked to heart and lung problems.

This spring, I told you about what a group of British chiropractors called “hyperkyphosis,” a similar condition caused by hunched shoulders and poor breathing habits.

But the fix is easy. Hold small electronic devices at eye level instead of looking down at them.

And when you’re sitting at your computer make sure you’re breathing deeply and doing what your grammar school teacher always told the class…sit up straight!

Sources:
“The perils of technology, the dangers of ’email apnea’ November 24, 2014, CBS New York, newyork.cbslocal.com