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I remember how, as teenagers, we used to laugh at our elders' frequent admonitions to sit up straight. That was too oldfangled for us cool kids, like telling us to eat our peas and floss our teeth.
年輕時，老人總是告誡我們要挺身端坐，我依舊記得當初是如何不屑其勸告。對我們這群酷酷的孩子來說，這就像告訴我們吃豌豆和用牙線一樣過時。
admonition n. 警告
Well, I'm here to say that the old folks were right.
然而，在此我想說老人們是對的。
My body recently set me straight when it rebelled against my bad habit of slumping over to look at my phone, read the newspaper or pet the cat. A disc began pinching a nerve, sending knifelike pain through my back, shoulder and down my arm.
我的身體跟我抗議了。因為我有低頭看手機，讀報紙，擼貓的壞習慣。椎間盤開始刺激神經，在背部，肩膀和手臂之間傳遞著刀割般的疼痛。
It turns out that bad posture can contribute to this problem.
事實證明，不良姿勢會導致這樣的問題。
It could be worse: Doctors think physical therapy, doing specific exercises, working on my posture and medication may tackle my pain. In fact, it does seem to be working.
But this incident has made me reflect on how many people nowadays spend countless hours with their necks craned over the glowing smartphone genie. The website of the respected Cleveland Clinic said three years ago that this habit is causing a malady known as "text neck".
這件事不禁讓我反思，如今有多少人耗費大量時間，低頭盯著發光的智能手機。著名的克利夫蘭診所三年前便在網站上表明，這種習慣正在導致一種名為 “短信脖”的疾病。
malady n. 弊病；疾病；腐敗
"Typically, incidence of neck pain increases with age," pain specialist Dr. Robert Bolash said, according to the website. "But today we're seeing and treating more patients -- younger patients -- who never reported neck pain before."
疼痛病專家羅伯特·博拉什博士表示：“網站數據表明，通常頸部疼痛的發病率隨著年齡增長而增加。但今天我們看到並醫治了更多的年輕患者，他們之前從未有過頸部疼痛史。”
With the head weighing around 5 kilograms, looking down constantly can change the curvature of the neck and put a huge amount of stress on neck muscles. Bolash said the pressure can be the equivalent of as much as six times the normal weight of the head.
人的頭重約5千克，持續低頭會改變脖子的曲率，給頸部肌肉帶來巨大壓力。博拉什表示，這種壓力可能相當於正常頭重的六倍。
Dr. Rene Cailliet, professor emeritus at the University of Southern California School of Medicine and a musculoskeletal expert, has written about how forward head posture -- craning the neck -- can pull the entire spine out of alignment.
雷內·凱利埃博士退休於南加州大學醫學院，是肌肉骨骼專家。他曾寫了一篇文章，講述頭部前傾姿勢，即拉動頸部會拉動整個脊柱，使其不能形成一條直線。
emeritus adj. 退休的；名譽退休的
It also can reduce lung capacity by as much as 30 percent, which can even contribute to heart and blood vascular disease and affect the gastrointestinal system, Cailliet has written.
凱利埃寫道，這種行為還會減少多達30%的肺活量，甚至可能導致心血管疾病，影響胃腸系統。
While "text neck" is a worldwide phenomenon, it seems especially prevalent among hyperwired youth in China, home of the affordable smartphone. Just watch people, especially young people, on any subway or train car. I'd bet on an increasing demand for physical therapists and orthopedic surgeons.
I am also trying to take some practical steps to ward off neck pain and hopefully keep it from coming back or getting worse.
我也試圖採取一些實際措施防止脖子疼痛，希望避免再次疼痛或變得更痛。
ward off 避開；擋住
Since I work in front of a computer, getting a more adjustable, supportive chair has helped. I also have elevated my screen to eye-level height to avoid looking down for hours at a time.
我工作需要常用電腦，因此一把可調節的椅子會有所幫助。我也將屏幕抬高到了眼睛的高度，避免連續低頭看幾個小時的情況。
I've told my colleagues that if it looks like I'm flapping my arms as if trying to fly, I'm actually just exercising my shoulder and back muscles.
我告訴同事們，如果我像要起飛似地揮舞手臂，實際上只是在鍛鍊肩膀和背部肌肉。
I've reduced my smartphone time, but if I do take a look, I elevate the phone with my arms tucked against my abdomen like supports to avoid craning my neck. It may look weird, but it works. The alternative is a pain in the neck.
我已經減少了看智能手機的時間，但如果確實要看一下，我便會舉起手機，並用手臂頂住腹部，像支撐物一樣，這樣可以避免伸長脖子。這種行為可能看起來很奇怪，但確實有效。不然就更有我受得了。
About the author & broadcaster
Matt Prichard is a copy editor and writer who works on the front page team of China Daily. He has lived in China for more than five years, in Shanghai and Beijing. Before that, he had a 30-year career as a reporter and editor in the United States and Latin America. He has an ABJ from the University of Georgia and did postgraduate work at the Universidad Nacional del Sur in Argentina. He speaks Spanish fluently and is still learning Mandarin.
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