Workstation ergonomics

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These days many of us use a computer at work or at home. Whether you use a computer 40 hours a week, or occasionally in the evening, this article can teach you some basic ergonomic principles to help you to protect your health while using a computer.

The more hours you spend at a computer, the greater your risk of developing a computer-related injury, such as carpal tunnel syndrome, tendonitis, tenosynovitis, and bursitis. Computer use can also contribute to back pain, headaches, and eye strain. Prevention is nearly always better than cure, so it's worth taking the time now to learn about ergonomics. If you are having problems, check out our RSI Tips for Computer Users article for some advice on coping.

Setting up your computer

The first thing is to make sure your workstation is set up correctly. The three tips below describe how to do this:

1. Your monitor should be an arm's length away from you and the top of the monitor should be roughly level with your eyes. If it needs to be higher you can use a telephone directory or two to raise the height. Have your monitor directly in front of you, rather than off to one side.
2. Your feet should be flat on the floor to give you maximum support. If you can't reach the floor, you should use a foot stool, and rest your feet on that. A solid box would make a good substitute. Your back should also be supported by your chair - don't slump or round your shoulders.
3. Your keyboard should be roughly at the height of your elbows when your arms are down by your sides. The aim is to make sure your forearms are level or sloping down slightly, so that you're not lifting your shoulders as you type. You might need to adjust your chair. If your chair does not have an adjustable height control then use a cushion to raise yourself.

How you approach your computer

As well as setting up your computer correctly, it is important to ensure that you are not causing strain by the way your are using your body. The following tips should help:

1. Make sure you don't rest your wrists on the desk as you type or use the mouse. Your hands and arms should move freely and your wrists should be straight rather than bent. If you have a wrist rest, use it only to actually rest the wrist during breaks, not while typing or mousing.
2. Don't hunch your shoulders as you type. If you are raising your shoulders, your chair is probably not high enough.
3. When using a mouse, try to train yourself to use either hand and swap regularly to avoid overusing one hand. This is a key strategy for those who are already showing signs of injury.
4. You should be taking regular breaks to help avoid injury. The rule is a micro-break (10 seconds or so) every 4 minutes, and a 10 minute break every hour. It is easy to become involved in your task and forget this, so you might want to try some break reminder software.
5. To help avoid eye-strain, always try to work in a well-lit environment, but avoid glare from your monitor screen. I find that lighting from behind, as well as a soft light behind the monitor is best for me. Every so often you should look away from the screen, preferably at a far off object. You can use your micro-breaks for this - and now you have the perfect opportunity to look out of the window!
6. Computers seem to be inherently stressful. Try to relax as you use your computer. If you find yourself becoming frustrated, take a break.

Useful resources

Break reminder software
Healthy Computing

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