But what about your workstation? Is the area where you spend most of your waking hours designed with your body in mind? With a few adjustments, it can better match your body’s measurements and improve your comfort and productivity.
The National Institutes of Health Division of Occupational Health and Safety defines ergonomics as “fitting the job to the worker” through:
- Exercises and stretching
- Adjustable chairs, keyboard trays and the height of your monitor
- Proper posture
- The layout of your furniture
- The angle of your wrist when using your computer's mouse
Take a look at the NIH diagram below. When sitting at your desk, are your knees bent at a 90-degree angle? Is the top of your monitor at or slightly below eye level?
Along with workplace health and wellness programs, onsite nursing, a wide variety of physical exams, workers’ compensation services, medical surveillance exams, post-exposure evaluation and an occupational disease prevention program, Carilion Clinic’s Occupational Health team develops and conducts ergonomic evaluations to “fit the job to the worker” and minimize the risk of work-related illness and injury, such as back pain and carpal tunnel syndrome.
Their goal is to to ensure a safe and productive workplace by designing and improving workstations, tools, equipment and workflows to limit fatigue, discomfort and injuries.
The best way to ensure that your work area fits your body is to have a professional assessment from a trained occupational medicine clinician.
If that is not an option for you, there are some things you can do yourself to prevent your work from affecting your health. Among them:
- Adjust your seat height so that your legs are at a 90-degree angle and your wrists are not hyperextended on your desk
- Move your monitor up or down to align with your vision
- Be mindful of your posture when sitting
- Use anti-fatigue mats if you stand a lot at work
- Take regular breaks to stand, walk and stretch
And it is worth noting that the advice to "sit up straight" applies as much to surfing the internet on a laptop on the couch at home as it does to your work environment!
For more information and assessments you can take at home to evaluate your risk factors, visit the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
