Relieve and prevent back problems in the office

Back pain and neck tension have become true folk diseases. Many employees who only do light physical work are also plagued by it. However, by reasonably organizing the workplace, you can alleviate or at times avoid the symptoms.

Millions spend their working day sitting down
In Germany, millions of people spend their working day sitting, usually moving a little and constantly staring at a monitor. Therefore, it is only logical that it often results in muscle and skeletal discomfort. According to the German news agency dpa, 40 percent of men and 64 percent of women complain of neck pain, according to the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (baua). About every second person has a backache. However, you can do something about it. To avoid back problems caused by office work, you should, for example, occasionally get up in the morning and do some small gymnastics exercises for the blood circulation and flexibility.

Back pain due to permanent office work. Image: Andrey Popov - fotolia

Set up work well
In addition to fitness exercises in the office, it also helps to set up the workplace well. Professor Karsten Kluth, an expert in ergonomics and ergonomics at the University of Siegen, explained that the monitor should be set to look down on him. This is more relaxing for the eyes and neck. "To look upwards permanently, however, is hell for the spinal column and for the neck muscles anyway." Frequent consequence: A stiff neck and stinging in the neck. The head of the prevention field office at the statutory accident insurance VBG, Andreas Stephan, has another tip ready: He recommends to sit a height-adjustable office swivel chair with adjustable armrests. It is ideal if the seat depth can also be changed. According to Karsten Kluth, an exercise ball is not recommended: "You need a backrest. Otherwise you will be crooked in the back and tense. "

Grant for orthopedic chair
Employees who already suffer from back problems and need a so-called orthopedic chair, can apply for a subsidy of up to 435 euros for the German pension insurance. However, most of the forms must be completed by a doctor. Furthermore, Karsten Kluth advises a keyboard in which the keys are distributed on two mutually angular surfaces. Ideally, the keyboard should be flat. "You should not use the small levers for tilting, otherwise you have to bend your wrists too much when writing", explained Andreas Stephan. This can lead, inter alia, to wrist pain. As the expert further reported, the so-called Ergomaus did not fare well in a test at the University of Siegen. If you use one, you have to make the movements out of the forearm and not out of the wrist like a normal mouse. A scooter mouse, however, works great. The movements are done with a long staff and a small keypad positioned below the keyboard. A standard mouse is also ok.

Ensure good lighting conditions
Avoiding eyelashes or tired or cloudy eyes by practicing activities that lead away from the screen again and again. This can be, for example, going to the copier. In addition, you should avoid glare and reflection by light when working on the computer as possible. "They are the least when the light falls from the side," says Andreas Stephan. "But we also need natural light for our biorhythm. So if you do not have side light in the workplace, you should only partially shade windows. "The expert explained that artificial lighting should have at least 500 lux and should also be free of reflection and glare. With LED lighting in the office, make sure that the lamp is frosted. Unfortunately, there are many LED lights that are poorly built and therefore throw many shadows. "That sucks right," said Karsten Kluth, who has found that in tests with his students. (Ad)