Busy cleaning and waist protection during Chinese New Year

        Before the Lunar New Year, every household is busy renovating their old clothes. However, during the process of reorganizing household chores or shopping, one may accidentally get injured. This issue of the "Health Column" reminds everyone of some precautions and wishes everyone a healthy and good New Year.

        Correct posture is necessary to stay away from soreness

                When shopping and carrying heavy loads, poor posture often causes back pain and soreness. If combined with repeated extraction of items, it can easily exacerbate the symptoms of degenerative diseases. It is recommended to adopt a semi kneeling posture when lifting heavy objects to maintain a straight waist, which is less likely to cause muscle strains or disc herniation.

        In addition, during the Chinese New Year, it is common to experience neck and upper back pain, as well as upper arm numbness and weakness, due to prolonged lying down and sliding on the phone. Upon investigation, in addition to poor posture causing intervertebral disc herniation in the cervical spine, which compresses the nerves in the upper limbs, long-term poor posture leading to myofascial pain syndrome is also one of the causes. Reminder to everyone, whether using mobile phones, computers, or playing cards with friends and family during the Chinese New Year, it is important to get up and move around every hour to avoid shoulder and neck pain affecting the enjoyment of the festival.

        In addition, despite the advanced technology and the abundance of "sweeping tools" such as floor scrubbers and robotic vacuum cleaners on the market, some people still believe that the floor must be wiped clean with a cloth while kneeling. Reminder to everyone, even if you are used to kneeling for cleaning work, you should get up and rest regularly. After all, although the knee joint in the human body is covered by a sliding sac, which can provide lubrication and shock absorption, if you kneel for a long time and bear weight, it is easy to induce inflammation of the sliding sac, causing "maid knee". Do not be careless.

        Cultivate exercise habits and welcome the New Year in a healthy manner

        In addition to reminding everyone to avoid injury, we also urge readers to take advantage of the New Year holiday to cultivate exercise habits. As a rehabilitation physician, I used to be the eternal 'couch potato', always using the excuse of 'my daily work and taking care of my family are already hard enough, should I also be deprived of rest time?' to delay exercising. But as I grew older, I found that even after a long period of rest, I still easily felt tired and my sleep quality declined. So I made up my mind to exercise for at least one hour every vacation.

        Due to the lack of strong willpower, I self funded to hire a physical therapist from the rehabilitation department to assist with exercise guidance. At first, it was unbearable, and I wanted to take leave before every class to avoid it. However, after several attempts, not only did my physical fitness improve and my posture improve, but my sleep and breathing became increasingly stable. Laziness like me can develop exercise habits, I believe readers will have no problem. Why don't we take advantage of this New Year holiday to move towards a healthier path.

        Conclusion

                The Chinese New Year holiday is an important time to reunite with family and rest both physically and mentally, and health is the foundation for enjoying happy moments with peace of mind. Whether cleaning, shopping, resting, or exercising, as long as you pay more attention, you can reduce unnecessary burden on your body. In the new year, may everyone find a balance between busyness and relaxation, and face each day's challenges with a better state of mind. If you feel unwell, don't force yourself, seek professional medical and rehabilitation assistance in a timely manner. Wishing everyone a safe and healthy New Year.

        *Dr. Su Yitian's expertise includes: ultrasound examination and ultrasound-guided injection of skeletal and muscle soft tissues, nerve conduction and electromyography examination and nerve release injection, nerve rehabilitation, diagnosis and treatment of skeletal and joint diseases, sports medicine, soft tissue ligation, and voice rehabilitation. For detailed introduction, please refer to https://www.femh.org.tw/section/sectionDetail2.aspx?CID=0450&&DoctorID=92021

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