14 DAY TRIAL // The smaller mobile phones get, the happier we are, no need to drag around a brick-like phone, PDA, smart phone or whatever, so great, right? Not exactly! According to Italian newspapers (La Republica and Il Messagero), text messaging could cause serious injuries to your hands. The keyboard is, most of the times in modern cell phones, very small and the keys are sometimes hard to operate especially because of the limited space and them being jammed into one another.
In Savona, Italy, a 13 year-old-girl who sent about 100 text messages every day had to see an orthopedic expert because of the strain in her hands. She was prescribed anti-inflammatories and was advised either to make actual calls instead of write messages or send fewer of the latter.
This new aspect of modern communication could turn into a serious problem, especially in Italy, where according to recent studies, 37% of Italy's children are addicted to their cell-phones. Ergonomic computer keyboards are available for some time now and that there's even a number of organizations which warn about the risks of repetitive strain injury, so maybe a similar approach should be had in respect of mobile phones and other handhelds.
Unfortunately, until producers take this matter more seriously, only few operators are taking action towards protecting their customers, such as Virgin Mobile, which launched a safety guide for its customers that was called "How to Practice Safe Text." The campaign encouraged young text messengers to practice regular "textercises", including shoulder shrugs, finger spreads, and neck muscle stretches, before and after writing long or numerous messages. Sounds silly, but at least they claim it works.