The weekly newsletter for Fed2 by ibgames

EARTHDATE: June 14, 2009

Official News page 6


REAL LIFE NEWS: MOBILE PHONES ARE BAD FOR YOUR HEALTH

by Hazed

We're always hearing stories about how various bits of new technology have hidden dangers. Here's a classic example of the genre. Doctors are now frightening us with warnings that too much yacking on a mobile phone can give you "mobile elbow".

They say that if you keep your phone glued to your ear for any length of time, the shape your arm has to hold - with the elbow bent and the forearm upwards - can overstretch and damage the arm's ulnar nerve. This can results in "cubital tunnel syndrome". The ulnar nerve extends underneath the funny bone and controls the ring finger and pinky, and if the blood supply is compromised, you'll get a tingling sensation.

US orthopedic surgeon Dr Leon Benson warned that, "The more you bend it, for example when using a phone, the more it stretches. It diminishes the blood supply, and the blood is not flowing through the nerves. While the nerves are designed for stretching, it's not normal to be in a position to be stretched for an hour."

Sounds serious! But actually, a simply cure occurs to me. If you're nattering on the phone and your arm starts to tingle... switch arms!

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