Sitting well is important.
But move, even more!
"Our body is not made to sit all day,"
recalls Dr. Laurent Grange, rheumatologist at the CHU Grenoble Alpes.
"The sitting posture induces a loss of lumbar curvature and the permanent stretching of the back muscles"
, specifies the National Institute for Research and Safety (INRS), which works to prevent health problems in the workplace.
“The ideal posture does not exist,
notes the Institute.
On the other hand, there is a posture of least discomfort whose characteristics are as follows: the feet rest flat on the ground preferably […], the angle of the elbow is straight or slightly obtuse, the forearms are close to the body , the hand is in line with the forearm, the back is straight or slightly behind, and supported by the backrest.
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In these times of teleworking, it is therefore essential to have a work chair that meets these rules.
For this, there is a European standard (NF EN 1335) requiring the chair to have five casters, to be deep enough for you to lean against, padded (but not too soft) and above all adjustable (height , forward tilt of the seat, armrests, etc.).
Alongside these approved seats, many "ergonomic chairs" claim to prevent or cure back pain.
Designed by health professionals, their price often lives up to their promises!
No seat is perfect
However,
“it is difficult to say that they are superior, given the few independent studies they have been the subject of,”
notes Dr. Grange.
A team from Lyon even found that some increased the lumbar lordosis that they were supposed to reduce!
And as long as you slouch there, as Korean researchers asked teenagers, back pain inevitably arises in less than thirty minutes.
The fashion for ergonomic chairs with patellar support where one rests on the shins to help the spine straighten up naturally quickly passed: they were painful for the knees!
Dr Laurent Grange, rheumatologist at CHU Grenoble Alpes
“No chair is perfect”,
sums up the rheumatologist.
"The fashion for ergonomic chairs with patellar support where you rest on your shins to help the spine straighten up naturally quickly passed: they were painful for the knees!"
reminds the specialist.
Today, the merits of "adaptive chairs or stools", with a single movable leg, or even "balloon seats", inspired by the inflatable Swiss balls sometimes used in physiotherapy, which force the buttocks to be constantly "played", are praised. and abdominals to maintain balance…
“Studies, still few in number, confirm that these dynamic seats mobilize these muscles well, which can be useful.
But in the long run, their use is quite tiring,”
notes Laurent Grange.
It is therefore difficult to imagine spending all your days on it, especially since the constant attention that you must put into maintaining your balance can compete with that put into your work!
In addition,
“no study shows that they exert a positive influence on the development and management of low back pain,”
adds the rheumatologist.
He concludes:
“The only thing that is unanimous is that you have to vary your position and get up regularly!”
The INRS also recommends, in particular for those who work seated behind a screen, to take a break of at least five minutes every hour, leaving the workstation to move, in order to "break" any static posture. prolonged.
