Ask a gamer what they dislike the most, and they'll tell you "when they're asked to stop."
Well, gaming can be extremely addictive, especially if you're on a winning streak. Gamers often spend several hours at a stretch sitting in front of their PCs, disconnected from the outside world, immersed fully in the gaming world.
While playing games can help you relieve stress and feel good, too much of anything has its consequences. You may wonder "what consequences can an activity as harmless as gaming have?" That's the thing; gaming isn't as harmless as you think.
In fact, excessive gaming can put you at risk of developing serious, often long-lasting health complications.
One of the most commonly reported problems that most gamers often suffer from is a pain in the lower back. For some, it's just enough to cause them slight discomfort, while for others, it could mean bed rest for a while.
The good news is that you can prevent the lower back pain that's a common side effect of excessive gaming. The question that you should be asking us is "how can you prevent lower back pain while gaming?" because that's exactly what we're here to answer.
What Can Excessive Gaming Do to Your Health?
You may still not see why we're taking excessive gaming so seriously. You may wonder how bad can back pain possibly become? It's just back pain, after all! That's where you're mistaken.
If you're suffering back pain while gaming, it means something isn't right. Had everything been right, you wouldn't be suffering from consequences, right?
Excessive gaming can do a lot of harm to your health. Some of the major risks you put yourself by gaming too much for too long are listed below:
Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs)
One of the biggest and most pressing problems of excessive gaming is an increased risk of developing musculoskeletal disorders. These disorders are a result of poor posture.
Not many gamers invest in the proper gaming equipment. They use the regular computer tables and chairs for their gaming station. The problem with using the regular equipment is that you're sitting in a poor posture for several hours a day.
Most gamers sit at the edge of their chairs, with their back curved, neck raised upwards, and shoulders slouched while they aggressively hit the keys of their keyboard. This posture puts great stress on the back, shoulders, and neck muscles. Sitting in this posture for too long can lead to muscle fatigue. This will initially be reflected as back pain, but if you continue gaming in the same conditions, you'll soon be unable to even sit!
Eye Strain
How many gamers have you seen who've got a glare-protecting screen installed on their monitors? We bet not many! When you're gaming, your entire focus is on the screen. Your eyes are glued to your computer screen, and it stays so for several hours.
This puts excessive strain on your eyes. The light from the computer monitor and the colors from the game all put stress on your eyes. If you don't do something to reduce the glare, it won't be long before you start suffering from consistent headaches. It can even weaken your eyesight.
Tinnitus
One of the most important features of any computer game that make it a hit or flop is the sound effects. The more profound the sound effects are, the more enjoyable the game will be for gamers.
Gamers usually use headphones or speakers while they're gaming to enjoy the sound effects of their favorite games to the fullest. Now, hearing sounds that are too loud (from all the blasts and gunshots in most games) can damage your ears and lead to a condition called tinnitus, in which you feel like your ears are constantly ringing. This affects your hearing ability big time.
These are just a few of the many consequences of excessive gaming. However, you can protect yourself from the unwanted health complications and consequences of gaming by taking the right precautionary measures at the right time!
How to Prevent Back Pain while Gaming
Are you wondering why you suffer from lower back pain while gaming? Well, it's simple. You're sitting in an incorrect posture that's putting excessive stress on the muscles of your back. If you don't do something to reduce this stress, the muscles will soon experience fatigue, and you'll suffer from lower back pain, which can be very hard to get rid of!
Your best bet is to try and prevent lower back pain while gaming in the first place.
Let's see how you can prevent lower back pain while gaming:
Invest in a Gaming Desk
This is one of the most effective ways of reducing the chances of lower back pain during gaming. If your monitor is placed on a desk that's too high for you, you'll have to stretch your back and extend your neck and shoulders to get the best view of your screen and reach the keyboard placed on the desk's top. This is the primary reason why most gamers suffer from back pain following a long day of gaming.
Investing in a gaming desk will revamp the gaming experience for you. A gaming desk is a specially designed desk that's made keeping in mind the needs of a gamer.
The height of the desk can be adjusted to suit the gamer's comfort. It's big enough to accommodate multiple monitors, which is something many gamers want. The best thing about a gaming desk is its spacious design which enables the gamer to not just accommodate multiple monitors, but also place their keyboards, mouse, and their coffee mugs at just the right height. This way, they can sit in a relaxed posture throughout the while they're gaming.
Invest in a Gaming Chair
Another way you can prevent pain in your lower back during gaming is by investing in a gaming chair. The chair is what you're seated in during all the hours you're gaming. This means if the chair isn't comfortable, you're bound to feel uncomfortable. And the discomfort that you feel is due to the stress on the muscles of your lower back.
An ergonomic gaming chair will offer your back just the support it needs. When you're seated in a gaming chair, not only is your back fully supported, but you can also adjust the height of the chair to ensure your feet are flat on the floor and your bum is accommodated fully onto the seat.
You don't have to sit at the edge of your chair to be able to reach your keyboard or enjoy a better view of your gaming monitor. You can simply adjust your seat and enjoy the next-level gaming experience seated comfortably on your chair.
The best kinds of gaming chairs are the swiveling, ergonomic ones. You can swivel your chair to get better views of the multiple gaming monitors that you've installed. A swiveling gaming chair like the Rolling Swivel Game Chair 6627 ensures that you're seated at the right height, and you don't have to get up every time you've to move about your gaming room!
The best thing about a swiveling gaming chair is that your body won't feel stiff as it often does when you're seated in a regular chair.
Bring Home a Gaming Keyboard
Gaming keyboards are quite different from the regular keyboards that you use. When you're playing games, you've got to work around numerous keyboard controls. Regular keyboards aren't designed to facilitate and assist the gamers in any way.
However, you can enjoy gaming so much more if you've got a gaming keyboard. It offers easier access to various gaming controls and enables you to be in a much better place ergonomically.
A gaming keyboard features wrist support to ensure you don't have to lift your wrists in awkward positions during gaming. Also, the keys are arranged in 2 separate sections on the keyboard, with each section at an angle to facilitate a natural finger movement that reduces the risk of Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI) and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
Moreover, with a gaming keyboard, your hands are positioned more naturally, which means you don't have to stretch your back and shoulders to lift your arms to be able to use your keyboard. This also reduces the risk of lower back pain significantly.
The Bottom Line
You can prevent lower back pain from gaming by taking the right measures at the right time. Continuing to game with inadequate preparations will only mean lower back pain and pain in your neck and shoulders in the long run!
So, if you're an avid gamer, investing in the right gaming equipment seems like the wisest thing to do today!
