Health Issues for Webmasters

NZ findings on inactivity related to IT workers and web watchers

[Whitey]

It's been revealed that hours of inactivity behind a computer may be a major cause of ill health through deep vein thrombosis.

[nzherald.co.nz...]

A New Zealand study has warned that that office workers are at risk of developing deep vein thrombosis (DVT)from sitting immobile at their desks.

The Sunday Telegraph newspaper says sitting immobile at a desk for hours at a time will be revealed as a serious risk factor for so-called "economy class syndrome".

It says a study to be presented at the annual conference of the Thoracic Society of Australia and New Zealand later this month has found prolonged immobility at work is the most common factor shared by DVT patients.

If you spend lot's of hours researching, tweaking and trying to fix things without moving, consider you inactivity equavalent to a daily long haul flight in the context of the above.

[Whitey]

I'm amazed that no one's reacted to this. We get regular DVB warnings before flying, in yet little emphasis has cropped up in the "sit down - work" environment.

The worst-affected were managers, IT workers and taxi drivers, according to the research from the Medical Research Institute in Wellington.

DVT is the formation of a blood clot in a deep vein, most commonly in the legs, which may cause death if untreated.

Symptoms include pain, swelling, redness and dilated surface veins seen on the skin.

I found some of the symptoms and think it's worth checking out - i spend far to long at this computer :)

[vincevincevince]

I presume that the normal advice for flights applies to us as well then. As I recall it involves wearing flight socks, moving your legs and feet regularly, or taking a short walk every hour.

I tend to move my legs a lot during computer use - whether it is intentional movement such as tapping the feet to music, or involuntary shaking of the leg.

[ispy]

Putting your feet up on the desk sometimes works too.