The average adult in America will be driving in their car for 90 minutes every day. People are spending almost 2 days of their months just driving their car! With this much time spent driving, being able to sit with good posture in your car is critical for the health and safety of your neck and spine.
Here are some things that poor posture in your car can lead too:
- Weak back and neck muscles- Poor posture will lead to weakened back and neck muscles which will increase your chance of injury if in a crash.
- Spinal Injuries- Poor posture add extra stress to the spine and increases the risk for ruptured disc and other spinal injuries.
How modern day cars are designed
The way cars are being designed these days it is almost impossible to have proper posture. Most modern cars are being designed with a headrest that is pushed forward and prevents the driver from having his head placed properly over his neck and shoulders. This increase in the head and neck line will increase the chance of a spinal injury if a car crash were to happen.
The reason for this design was because the car companies noticed drivers were not sitting with their head against the headrest. In result they pushed the headrest forward to prevent whiplash if a car crash were to happen. The pushing of the headrest now leaves the driver with his or her head to far in front of his neck while he or she is driving.
How to properly sit while you are driving
- Sit with your butt all the way to the back of the seat- The bottom of your seat should be tilted slightly upward towards the driver with your butt tucked firmly into the cross section of the seat.
- Shoulders, neck, and head should all be over the top of each other- Your head should sit on the head rest but the way the cars are being designed it is impossible to have a proper head and neck line.
- Your back should be flat against the back of the seat- You should try to make as much surface contact with the chair as possible. This will help your body not absorb so much of the force if a crash were to happen. The back of your seat should be 10-25 degrees from vertical.
Ideally the seat should be at an angle similar to this:
If you do have a car with a headrest that is pushed forward the best advice would be to try your best to keep your neck and head over your body so that there is less stress on your spine.
If you ever have any injuries from a car crash please feel free to call Summit Chiropractor at 407-203-6745 and see how Dr. Fike and Dr. Warner can help relive you of your pain.
If you enjoyed this article I would recommend you read:
Is that Old Shoulder Injury Still a Problem?