Increasing numbers of people are suffering from a stiff neck or muscle pain due to spending an excessive amount of time looking at a screen, a physical therapist in Taipei said yesterday, adding that some simple stretching or massage techniques help relieve tension in the muscles and can help people avoid other problems associated with bad posture.
Shutien Clinic physical therapist Tsai Pei-ling (蔡佩玲) said many people suffer from a stiff neck because they stretch their neck forward when looking at computer monitors, or tablet and smartphone screens for a long time, which can cause the neck and shoulders to feel tight.
“We used to think elderly people suffered from neck or shoulder pain more, but now many office workers suffer from these symptoms and I am seeing younger patients,” she said.
Tsai said if the neck and shoulders are held in an uncomfortable position for long periods of time the blood circulation between the head and the neck can be affected, causing people to feel sleepy, loose focus or even suffer a from a headache.
“If people do not pay attention to a stiff neck or shoulders, it might progress into arthritis, or when the bones compress the nerves, they might feel pain, weakness or numbness in the hands,” she said.
While some people like to twist their neck when it feels tight and make the bones “crack,” Tsai said these movements can cause more harm to the neck and can lead to the development of bone spurs.
She said people should first massage the upper part of the neck with finger tips, then tuck down the chin and gently push down the head to stretch the muscles in the back of the neck for a duration of five seconds.
Tsai said exercises to stretch neck muscles can be done sitting down or standing, but people should see a doctor if neck pain continues for more than three days.
Global bodies should stop excluding Taiwan for political reasons, President William Lai (賴清德) told Pope Francis in a letter, adding that he agrees war has no winners. The Vatican is one of only 12 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Taipei has watched with concern efforts by Beijing and the Holy See to improve ties. In October, the Vatican and China extended an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for four years, pointing to a new level of trust between the two parties. Lai, writing to the pope in response to the pontiff’s message on Jan. 1’s
A Vietnamese migrant worker on Thursday won the NT$12 million (US$383,590) jackpot on a scratch-off lottery ticket she bought from a lottery shop in Changhua County’s Puyan Township (埔鹽), Taiwan Lottery Co said yesterday. The lottery winner, who is in her 30s and married, said she would continue to work in Taiwan and send her winnings to her family in Vietnam to improve their life. More Taiwanese and migrant workers have flocked to the lottery shop on Sec 2 of Jhangshuei Road (彰水路) to share in the luck. The shop owner, surnamed Chen (陳), said that his shop has been open for just
TAKE BREAKS: A woman developed cystitis by refusing to get up to use the bathroom while playing mahjong for fear of disturbing her winning streak, a doctor said People should stand up and move around often while traveling or playing mahjong during the Lunar New Year holiday, as prolonged sitting can lead to cystitis or hemorrhoids, doctors said. Yuan’s General Hospital urologist Lee Tsung-hsi (李宗熹) said that he treated a 63-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙) who had been sitting motionless and holding off going to the bathroom, increasing her risk of bladder infection. Chao would drink beverages and not urinate for several hours while playing mahjong with friends and family, especially when she was on a winning streak, afraid that using the bathroom would ruin her luck, he said. She had
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry
RSS