New Technology May Damage Children's Health

Concerns have been raised for some time with regard to the increased incidents of RSI and MSDs amongst children, not just in the UKm but the world over.

Margo Fraser, the Executive Director of the Calgary-based Association of Canadian Ergonomists, said more and more children are experiencing the same types of computer-related discomfort that adults have complained about in the past decade.

She explained that the proliferation of computers, laptops, cellphones and e-mail devices in homes and offices open the door to musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and eye problems for tech-savvy youngsters.

"What we're seeing is children reporting levels of computer-related discomfort close to what adults are reporting," she noted.

A team of Australian and Canadian researchers, led by Dr. Leon Straker, conducted one of only a few investigations into the downside of new technology for youngsters, presenting their findings to the International Ergonomics Association Congress 2000 in San Diego. The title of their paper – “Scarring a Generation of School Children Through Poor Introduction of Information Technology in Schools” – speaks for itself.

One study investigated 24 schools in Canada and Australia and included assessments of physical environments and psychosocial environments in technology-rich classrooms. In addition, 1404 students completed questionnaires. They found that physical aspects of computer workstations earned the poorest ratings. The other study investigated three schools in Australia with mandatory laptop programs. A main finding was that 60 percent of the 314 students questioned reported discomfort using their computer.

Ergonomist Fraser's own study, of a Southern Alberta private school where every student in Grade 6 and up uses a laptop for several hours a day, found that 80 to 85 percent of sixth- and seventh-graders suffered from neck and lower back pain. Both groups also complained of pain or discomfort in the head, eyes, shoulders, upper back, hands, arms and wrists.

Subhash Dighe, a physiotherapist who owns Westend Physiotherapy in Hamilton, Ontario, told the Globe and Mail that part of the problem is that many of today's computer games aren't designed to fit properly in small hands.

But better ergonomic design of the game controls and devices are not the whole answer. Some manufacturers have recast their game controls to be more ergonomically correct, Dighe explained, but this has produced an unwanted side effect: since redesigned games feel more comfortable, children tend to play with them even longer than they used to.

Source: Globe and Mail, International Ergonomics Association


 


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