Writing is hard on your health

Cross posted from Blogetary:

I never thought of writing as a dangerous pursuit or past time, unless of course you were one of those journalists who traveled the world on assignment researching things like war torn Cambodia or travel writers who were sneaking into parts of China or Turkey they weren't supposed to be. But I know some writers with serious health issues. One of them died of heart failure as he was working all night on something that had a deadline of the next morning, and another had a serious stroke while sitting at his desk working. Sometimes those issues are just there, but many times it's because of their profession. Sitting at a desk all day researching or writing is hard on your body. It's stressful. Your body likes to move. Your eyes like to watch something other than a screen a couple of feet away that's constantly moving. And always working on someone else's deadline is also a serious strain.

Of course, writers aren't the only ones who have issues from sitting at a desk all day. Anyone - any freelancer or office worker who spends hours a day at a desk, in front of a computer and even on the phone is going to experience things like back pain, eye strain and carpel tunnel syndrome. Today Yahoo put up an article on six problems that people who sit at a desk all day can experience, as well as ways to alleviate those problems.

The most obvious solution to it all is to not sit at the computer all day. It's tempting to just sit there and switch over to Facebook, or tribe.net, or whatever game site you play on and think playing on those for awhile before going back to writing is good enough. But it's not. The best thing you can do is get up, get yourself a glass of water, stretch, go for a walk, go to the gym. In the long run, you'll be more productive.

Below is the list of ailments from the article and suggested ways to alleviate them:

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Problem: The tingling, numbness, itching or even sharp pain caused when a nerve that runs through the forearm is compressed by swollen ligaments and bones in the wrist.
Prevention: Stretching and other exercises may help release tension in the wrist.

Lower-Back Pain

Problem: Sitting for hours on end, particularly if you have bad posture, can be devastating to your body over time if you don't get moving on a regular basis.
Prevention: Besides being better aware of your posture as you're sitting at your desk, getting regular exercise including abdominal strengthening activities should relieve some of the pressure on your lower back.

Other Joint Problems

Problem: The human body is meant to move, and staying in one position for too long can make joints feel tight.
Prevention: Besides getting up from your desk at regular intervals and walking around a bit, the Mayo Clinic recommends a number of stretches that can help loosen up your hips.

Eyestrain

Problem: Office workers who spend hours a day staring at a computer screen might tell you that after a certain amount of time, their vision gets blurry and their eyes generally become more sensitive.
Prevention: Increase your font size so you don't have to squint, suggests Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT - News) (though the font on this informative page might cause readers to do just that). You may also want to rest your eyes frequently by looking away from your computer screen and reducing any glare on your monitor, the Mayo Clinic suggests.

Bacteria

Problem: "The desk, in terms of bacteria, is 400 times more dirty than your toilet," University of Arizona microbiologist Dr. Charles Gerba told WebMD (NASDAQ: WBMD - News). "People turn their desks into bacteria cafeterias because they eat at them, but they never clean them. The phone is the dirtiest, the desktop is next, and the mouse and the computer follow."
Prevention: If you frequently eat your lunch at your desk, you may want to make sure you have hand sanitizer and antibacterial wipes to wipe down your work surface daily. That can also protect you from germs sprayed into the air by your coughing and sneezing coworkers.

Stressful Situations

Problem: Stress can be a problem at work regardless of how physical your day-to-day activities are, but those who do exert themselves on the job can actually use some of their activities to ease their stress. If you're chained to a desk, however, you may be even more likely to have stress-related outbursts. About 22% of U.S. workers say they've been driven to tears because of workplace stress and 9% say that stress has led to physically violent situations, reports RJC Associates, a career development firm.
Prevention: Smaller stressors can be handled with breathing and relaxation techniques at your desk or a break outside of the office, but some conflicts may call for mediation by an unbiased party. And believe it or not, video games have been suggested as a method for easing workplace stress, according to CareerBuilder.com. With the job market recovering and more companies hiring, however, it's starting to look like new job prospects could be a promising way out of stressful work conditions as well.