If you’re like most people, then it might not have occurred to you that sitting in the wrong chair for long periods can result in some serious health risks. The back pain is nothing compared to other side effects like changes in your breathing ability or even early death!
As a general rule, sitting in the wrong chair can lead to chronic health problems like diabetes and heart disease. You should get up every 20 minutes whenever you sit for an extended period of time to avoid becoming complacent. For your posture to be optimal, you need to move.
Poor posture is a problem for people of all ages, but it may be more prevalent among those who spend long hours sitting down. If you’re feeling slumped over in your chair and want to avoid letting poor posture take its toll on you.
Here, I will explain what problems a wrong chair can cause and how to select a chair that will benefit your posture and increase your comfort while sitting. Based on my recommendations, a chiropractor who has been practising for more than thirty years designs office chairs that work like a charm for anyone who follows my guidelines.
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10 Surprising Dangers of the Wrong Chair, Sedentary Lifestyle, Bad Posture, Wrong Sitting Patterns
Cognitive Deterioration
The sedentary behaviour of people is linked to memory thinning in brain regions critical for learning and remembering.
Insulin Spikes
It was found that blood sugar spiked higher pretty much right away in the group who had not taken any walking breaks.
Bones that are Weak
Active people are less likely to develop osteoporosis than those who spend a lot of time sitting.
Blood Clots in Legs
Continually sitting without getting up to move around may cause deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot in a deep vein.
Constipation
Long periods of sitting increase knuckles in the colon, which inhibit stool passage and cause constipation.
Heartburn
As the research into the incorrect sitting posture as contributing to gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) grows each year, corrections are being made to posture.
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Higher Rates of Cancer
Researchers have found that sitting for long periods can increase cancer risk, according to a sobering new study that examined inactivity and cancer mortality.
Heart Disease
In addition to being sedentary, it also increases the risk of heart disease. It’s proven that the more you sit, the less you move, and the less you move, the more you are at risk.
Incontinence
A sedentary lifestyle causes incontinence and can even exacerbate it when combined with other factors.
Inflexibility
When you sit too much, you can experience muscle degeneration, leading to decreased mobility
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How to Find the Right Chair
An office chair is the most important thing you can have in your workspace. You’re going to be sitting for hours every day, so it’s imperative that you get this right – and there are many different options out there!
There are endless ergonomic chairs on the market today but no one type of chair stands above all others because everyone has unique needs. The following qualities should be considered when choosing a new desk seat:
- Seat height– Your office chair’s seat should be able to adjust freely. All you’ll need is a gas shock control, which will help the height of your seat vary according to preference. A typical sitting position for an office chair ranges from 40-60 centimetres off the ground; if this doesn’t work for you, consider buying one that fits your needs with minimal effort on our part through tapping – all it takes is a rubber mallet and we’re ready!
- Seat depth and width. The seat should be wide enough to support you comfortably. It is typically 50cm in width, and the distance from the front of your chair to the back of it must allow for an 8 cm gap between where your spine meets the backrest so that there will not be any discomfort when sitting up straight.
- Lumbar support. It’s important to have a chair that your back can rest on. It should be wide enough and high enough for you so it doesn’t hurt or press in any wrong places.
- The back of the chair. You should be sitting in a comfortable chair with your back positioned at the correct angle. Your backrest must support you comfortably from mid-back to lower spine, and it must have an adjustable tilt so that you can find relief for different parts of your body where needed. It is important not only to make sure that this part of the chair has enough elevation but also safety! You will need a locking device on any seat recliner or lever-style armchair, which prevents them from going too far in either direction – forward or backward – because if they do there may be injury / potential damage done.
- Chair Fabric. Sitting in a chair for long periods can be uncomfortable and lead to some serious health problems. The fabric of the seat should flex with your weight, so it’s not pressing down on one spot all day. Make sure you have fabrics that are breathable – they’ll keep you comfortable during those endless meetings!
- Armrests. In order to make your arms and shoulders more relaxed, you need armrests that are adjustable. You should have the option of being able to position them up or down in a way that is most comfortable for you- this will help keep your elbows at their sides while working on anything from typing an email with one hand, dialling a phone number using your cell phone’s keypad with two hands (if it has large enough buttons), or holding something like drinks as well!
- Swivel. When you try to reach for something in the back of a room, it’s often easier if your chair rotates so that you can access what you’re trying to get. This way, even though there may be furniture along one side of the wall or other obstacles blocking things at different angles from where we are sitting right now – all these items will still be within our grasp and as accessible as they would have been had we just walked over with them ourselves!
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Takeaway
The 10 hidden risks of the wrong chair are just one example of how ergonomics can affect your health and wellness. If you’re looking for more information on this topic, be sure to check out our blog post series that dives deep into the concept and why it’s so important. We also offer a free guide with tips to help you find an office chair that will fit your body type perfectly, as well as some general considerations when choosing furniture in any space. Do you have questions about ergonomic seating or other aspects of healthy living? Let us know! Our experts are ready to answer all of them.