Specialists from the Texas Back Institute say that the right office equipment and furniture can help prevent repetitive strain injuries (RSI) of the neck, back, wrists or eyes.
• Desk Chair: Choose an adjustable chair that provides support for your back's natural curve and allows you to reach the keyboard with shoulders relaxed, wrists straight, and elbows at 90-degree angles.
• Footrest: Feet should rest comfortably flat on the floor with your knees at 90-degree angles. If they don't, get a footrest or improvise by stacking a phone book or two.
• Wrist Rests: Keep wrists straight and slightly elevated while typing; using a wrist rest while typing increases strain through your wrists, neck and back.
• Computer Keyboard: One keyboard variation splits the keys of the keyboard into two halves and turns the bottom of the keyboard into an arc, allowing arms and wrists to rest at natural angles to the body. Another keyboard variation rearranges the placement of the keys so that the stronger fingers strike the most frequently used letters.
• Anti-Glare Screen: Fits over computer screens to reduce glare from lights or windows that causes eyestrain.
• Eyeglasses: Some people need glasses to assist mid-range vision required for working at a computer and to help relieve symptoms of computer vision syndrome (CVS) such as eye fatigue or soreness, headaches, blurry vision, neck and shoulder pain.
Still Coughing?
Updated treatment guidelines recommend that adults opt for older nonprescription antihistamines and decongestants over new "nondrowsy" formulas to relieve coughs due to the common cold.
Experts add, however, that chronic coughs from other causes may also disrupt family life and discourage sufferers from social activities, such as going to the movies.
"The three main causes of chronic coughs are post-nasal drip, asthma, and acid reflux," explains New York pulmonologist Dr. Peter Dicpinigaitis. Women have a more sensitive cough reflex than men and, as a result, are more likely to suffer the side effects, such as cough, of ACE inhibitors taken for cardiovascular disease. Asthma medications known as leukotriene receptor antagonists are particularly useful in treating cough due to asthma, he adds.
Skin Cancer and Kids
New research stresses the importance of teaching youngsters about skin cancer. Americans receive 50 percent of their total lifetime sun exposure before the age of 18, according to a review article published in Pediatric Dermatology.
Melanoma and nonmelanoma skin cancers account for an increasing number of cancer deaths in the United States where tanning, indoor and outdoor, continues to gain in popularity.
Although recommendations to use sunscreen and to wear hats for outdoor activities, both at home and school, may sound familiar, the basic steps could save lives in the future.
Back Aids
Results from a recent Johns Hopkins study show the use of continuous low-level heat wrap therapy (CLHT) significantly reduces acute low back pain and related disabilities, and can get some of these people back to work more quickly. The wraps are available without a prescription at many food and drug stores.
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