Seating - View All Seamless Medical & Lab Seating Next Generation Medical& Lab Seating Mobile Folding Tables - View All Multipurpose Carts - View All Specialty - View All Build Your Own Chair BioFit to Launch MVMT Multipurpose Ergonomic Seating Line at NeoCon 2014 Are you ready to learn more about MVMT—the next generation of workplace seating?Pregnancy and Workplace Safety More than half of all women work outside the home, with many working late into their pregnancies and returning to work less than three months after giving birth. While much attention has been paid to the importance of ergonomics in the workplace, practicing good ergonomics will provide comfort and support a woman’s health throughout the duration of her pregnancy. Decreasing the ergonomic risk factor by implementing reasonable accommodations are essential to make the workplace safe and comfortable for expecting moms. Ergonomic Hazards for Expecting Employees For any employee, sitting 8-10 hours a day behind a desk or in front of a computer screen can lead to back and neck injuries, stiff muscles and joints, poor circulation, worker’s fatigue, and more.
However pregnant women face even more challenges, as pregnancy alters the shape of the body and the way women interact with their workspace. For example, a growing abdomen alone causes backaches, progressive posture problems, and reduced agility and coordination. Similarly, to accommodate the growing fetus, joints in the spine become less stable, while hormonal changes affect ligaments and increase the risk of injury. As pregnancy progresses, women must lift items further away from their bodies, having to reach 15-20 inches to access their workstation. Since the growing fetus alters the center of gravity, pregnant women are also more susceptible to falling. In addition to affecting balance, lifting tasks, and posture, studies suggest that there is a link between ergonomic stressors and unfavorable pregnancy results. Things to avoid are standing for long periods of time, working long hours, and repetitive lifting. Pregnancy and Lower Back Pain Expecting mothers often develop a curvature in the lower back (also known as an accentuated lumbar lordosis) due to weight gained in the lower abdomen.
In fact, each pound a woman puts on during pregnancy can creative five extra pounds of pressure on the hips, knees, and lumbar spinal joints. Moreover, elevated hormone levels (Estrogen and Relaxin) lead to increased ligament laxity, predisposing pregnant women to joint instability and an increased risk of strains and sprains. Ergonomic Accommodations for Pregnant Workers To accommodate pregnant women, both employers and expecting moms themselves are advised to take make ergonomic friendly workplace modifications. Here are some expert tips to ensure the safety and comfort of working women during pregnancy. Advice for Pregnant Employees Neutral posture brings daily comfort: elbows level with the keyboard so your shoulders are relaxed, feet flat and supported, avoid awkward postures Take frequent breaks from sitting, walking and stretching to increase circulation in your legs and feet, which are prone to swelling and possible blood clots during pregnancy Invest in an adjustable ergonomic office chair with excellent lumbar support and well cushioned seat to support growing body and possible sensitive tailbone, or add a thin lumbar pillow for extra support and comfort to existing chair
For stable posture comfort, feet flat on floor or supported with a footrest. Use a footrest to reduce swelling and reduce pressure on the joints To accommodate your growing abdomen and the increasing curve in your spine, adjust the height of your monitor and desk Use a softer wrist rest with your keyboard to prevent the risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome caused by increased fluid in the joints during pregnancy Avoid heavy lifting (10-25 lbs or more) and do not lift items directly from the ground The ability to go from sitting to standing increases oxygen intake and circulation. Invest in a sit/stand desk or a Sit Stand Ergo Unit allowing you to alternate between sitting and standing positions throughout the workday; this very change of position is a mild form of exercise which helps prevent stiffness, swelling, and varicose veins Know your rights: Study the laws pertaining to the treatment of pregnant employees in your state and don’t hesitate to ask your employer for special accommodations
Protect pregnant employees by: Providing adjustable ergonomic office furniture. An ergonomic evaluation will help address poor habits and necessary changes for healthier working environment and increased productivity throughout pregnancy and beyond. Installing foot rests if needed Being flexible with work schedules Assigning fewer physical tasks Limiting standing time on the job Allowing for more frequent short breaks Removing obstacles from under desk Providing work areas with ample space for moving around Karen Burke is the President and Founder of Kare Products. Karen has over 30 years of expertise creating ergonomic furniture that helps avoid injury and promotes health for all types of discomfort and body sizes. Image: José Manuel Ríos Valiente/Flickr.Over the last few weeks, I’ve felt a nagging and persistent pain in my elbow, right between those two little bones on the underside (if you hold your arm slightly bent).
“Tennis elbow” was the first thing that came to mind, but I haven’t played in years.That got me wondering. Is tennis elbow—or “computer elbow”—another painful consequence of the writing life? Turns out, it is. The good news is you can do things to prevent it, or in my case, speed up the healing process. What is Computer Elbow? Tennis was the first sport to bring attention to this type of injury. Those who repeatedly whacked balls around often strained the muscles and tendons in the arm, causing the condition. Today, however, it’s much more likely to be those who type away at the computer for hours who complain of elbow pain. The medical term is “lateral epicondylitis,” though it’s also been called “shooter’s elbow.” A classic case of strain caused by overwork, it can develop in three ways: Muscle pain: If you have a dull ache up and down the arm from the hand to the elbow, that’s your muscles talking to you. Tendon pain: If you’re feeling more of a sharp, searing pain centered at the back of the elbow, that’s your tendons.
A combination of both: Got the dull ache and the sharp pain? Lucky you—both your muscles and tendons are involved. “Chronic exhaustion” is a good term for what’s happening here. We use the muscles and tendons over and over again, tensing them consistently without relaxing them often enough. The result is a repetitive stress injury. We experience inflammation in the muscles, and possibly in the tendons as well (though there is some medical debate about whether tendons actually become inflamed). There may be tiny tears in the fibers of both. What to Do First In most cases, the problem occurs because we’re typing with poor form. That’s good news, because it means we can make some adjustments to prevent the injury from happening again. If you’re already suffering, though, you have to heal first. Here are some tips to help you do that more quickly: Rest: Your body needs time to heal. This can be a tough one, though, particularly if you write (or work at the computer) for a living.
Try to cut back on your typing time at least for a little while. Give your tissues a chance to recover. Stretch: Computer elbow is the result of tensing the muscles and tendons too long without release. They become tight and shortened, so stretching will help relieve the pain. Massage therapist Paul Ingraham suggests this one: Extend your arm out in front of you and press the back of your hand against the wall with the fingers pointed out to the side. Straighten your elbow and press into the wall so you’re really flexing your wrist. Hold for one minute. Just stretching your wrist back and forth will also help. There are some other great stretches here. Ice it: Ice can help tame muscle inflammation, and can also stimulate the tissue to encourage healing. Ice as many times as you like as long as it seems to be helping. Alternate hot and cold: This helps stimulate circulation, and getting increased blood flow to the injury encourages healing. Ice for five to ten minutes, and then rotate with a heating pad or hot water bottle.
Try a self massage: Some great tips here. Watch how you sleep: Sleeping on the affected arm or elbow can pinch the nerves and slow healing. How to Prevent Computer Elbow Next, it’s time to make some changes. Keep in mind that if you continue to work the same way, you may end up with a chronic condition that gets steadily worse—eventually causing more pain, tingling, and numbness. Severe cases can interfere with your job or your daily writing goals. Don’t raise the back of your keyboard: This actually forces the wrists to work in a “cocked” position that increases strain. You want your hands and arms to be in a straight line. Consider lowering the back of the keyboard instead. If you can’t adjust it this way, try raising your chair a bit, or add something underneath the front of the keyboard to make it level. Use a wrist pad. You want your hands to be level with the keyboard. If they’re not, use a wrist pad to make it so. I’m checking into some for my laptop computer as well—like the Intelligel wrist rest, the Grafiti Palm Pads (for Macs).
Check your mouse: Make sure your mouse is close by and easy to use. If it’s too high or too far away, you’re extending the forearm too much (over and over again throughout the day), increasing risk of injury. Also, make sure the mouse fits your hand. If it’s too small, you’re finger, hand and wrist muscles will have to remain in a tense position to operate it. You want your hand to be as relaxed as possible. I use a tracking ball mouse and have found it to be the most comfortable of any I’ve tried. (My elbow pain is in my left arm, not the right, so the mouse is working well!) Relax your shoulders: Do you ever notice that your shoulders are up around your ears while you’re working? Remind yourself to relax. Muscle tension in the shoulders can radiate down into the arms. Keep your desk clear: Clutter causes you to reach and extend more often. You want a clear space between your keyboard, mouse, and working area to minimize muscle work. Remember that the problem here is “repetitive”—the more you lift, extend, tighten, etc., the more likely you are to suffer pain.
Stretch your fingers: Constantly curled fingers cause writer’s elbow. Stop every thirty minutes and stretch them back toward you. Get up and walk around with your hands down to allow the blood to flow into them. Maintain 90 degrees: This is the magic angle. Your forearms should form a 90-degee angle with your upper arm. If you find your forearms are too low or (worse) too high, adjust your chair and keyboard to fix it. Fingers in line with forearm. This is one of my problems with my current work setup. My fingers tend to be higher than my wrists and arms. Use a rolled up towel or other cushion to keep your fingers in line with the backs of your hands and your arms—close to how they are when you’re playing the piano, for instance. Get a split keyboard: These help your hands stay in a more natural line. I have one on my desktop computer, but of course my laptop, which I use just as much, doesn’t come with this convenience. I wish it did! I have found that propping my wrists up a bit so that they can move with my fingers has helped, though.