The human body isn’t designed to sit at a desk all day, and a number of studies have connected poor office ergonomics with chronic neck pain.
If you’re one of the many workers who suffer from neck pain due to long hours of office work and computer use, the right office chair can make a significant difference. By providing the correct support for your spine and turning with you as your body turns, it can decrease pressure on your neck and shoulder muscles – preventing stiffness and neck pain.
Causes of neck pain at work
Unfortunately, many of us are guilty of hunching when seated at a desk. In a hunched posture, your spine is misaligned, and this can place strain on the neck muscles (as well as on the lower back). Over the course of a day, a build-up of tension can lead to chronic pain, as well as headaches.
Some of the common causes of neck pain in the workplace are:
- sitting too low, which causes you to tilt your head upwards to see a computer screen
- repetitive head movements – twisting your head to one side or constantly rotating your neck and back to the same side can aggravate joints and soft tissue in the back and neck
- reaching forward or to the side – these motions can put strain on neck and shoulder muscles
- poor head posture – for example, sticking your chin forward for long periods puts strain on your neck.
Laptops are especially notorious for causing and contributing to neck pain. This is because they encourage hunching of the shoulders and craning of the neck.
The best office chairs for preventing neck pain
When choosing an office chair, opt for one with a proper ergonomic design.
It should have a flexible backrest, which will tilt with you as your body tilts. The tension should be just right so it doesn’t tilt too easily or require that you use your body to force it back.
The chair’s backrest should be moulded to provide lower-back support, and it should naturally tilt just slightly back.
You should be able to adjust the height of the seat, and ideally of its armrests too, to suit your build and your workstation setup.
You also want a chair that can swivel easily on its base, so that you can turn without straining your neck.
Adjusting your chair to prevent neck pain
The best way to prevent neck pain is to keep your neck in a neutral, natural position when you’re working. You can achieve this by adjusting your chair in relation to your desk.
Start by adjusting the height of the seat so that your computer screen is at eye level, directly in front of you. This will prevent you from bending your neck downwards to look at the screen, and from sitting at an angle that twists your spine unnaturally.
Positioning your chair’s armrests at the correct height will help prevent straining and ease tension in the neck. Aim to make sure that your arms can lean on the rests with your elbows at a 90-degree angle, and with your shoulders in a neutral, relaxed position. If a chair doesn’t allow you to achieve this posture, it’s best to remove the armrests altogether.
Also, ensure that your feet are flat on the ground when you’re seated. If you can’t reach the floor without making the chair too low in relation to the height of your desk, use a foot-rest to elevate your feet. This may feel awkward at first, but your body will soon adjust to the correct posture.
