Is your neck pain caused by looking down at your mobile phone?

A study by Hansraj KK titled “Assessment of stresses in the cervical spine caused by posture and position of the head” published in Neuro and Spine Surgery found a significant increase is strain placed on the neck while in the typical posture of looking down at a mobile phone.  Looking down at an angle of 60 degrees increases the weight on the cervical spine to about 60 pounds compared with 10-12 pounds in a neutral position.  An article in The Washington Post observes that the “text neck” position is like carrying an 8-year-old around your neck several hours per day.”  A possible solution may be to look down with your eyes instead of your head, raise your phone or tablet higher to a more horizontal position, or spend less time on your device!