AIIMS study reveals how 'slouch-sit-scroll' lifestyle is impacting health of gadget-glued teens
NEW DELHI: Slouching over phones, sitting for hours in classrooms and skipping warm-ups before sports — lifestyle habits like these are already showing adverse effects on the health of Delhi's teenagers.
A new study by AIIMS, funded by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), found that many schoolchildren aged 15–18 years are developing forward posture, back pain, muscle tightness and reduced flexibility.
The two-year project, which began in Oct 2023 and will end this month, observed 380 students from two private schools. Researchers reported common problems such as pain in the neck and shoulder region, lower back pain, iliotibial (IT) band tightness, flat foot, forward posture and decreased hamstring flexibility.
"These issues are rooted in today's sedentary lifestyle — long hours on mobiles and computers, less outdoor play, no barefoot activities and even the decline of traditional postures like cross-legged sitting or using Indian-style toilets, which naturally build flexibility," explained members of the research team. The basic squatting and cross-legged sitting, they added, provide self-stretching movements that help maintain natural flexibility — habits now missing from most teenagers' daily lives.
The project—led by Dr Samarth Mittal, additional professor at JPNA Trauma Centre, AIIMS, with co-investigator Dr A S Moorthy, PhD, in-charge Physiotherapist, AIIMS Burns and Plastic Surgery Department—is testing whether physiotherapy interventions can reverse these trends.
At its core, the study aims to evaluate functional movement patterns and flexibility in teenagers and test the effectiveness of physiotherapy-based interventions in preventing sports injuries. Secondary goals include measuring hamstring and lower back flexibility through the Sit and Reach Test and correlating improvements before and after physiotherapy sessions.
A new study by AIIMS, funded by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), found that many schoolchildren aged 15–18 years are developing forward posture, back pain, muscle tightness and reduced flexibility.
The two-year project, which began in Oct 2023 and will end this month, observed 380 students from two private schools. Researchers reported common problems such as pain in the neck and shoulder region, lower back pain, iliotibial (IT) band tightness, flat foot, forward posture and decreased hamstring flexibility.
"These issues are rooted in today's sedentary lifestyle — long hours on mobiles and computers, less outdoor play, no barefoot activities and even the decline of traditional postures like cross-legged sitting or using Indian-style toilets, which naturally build flexibility," explained members of the research team. The basic squatting and cross-legged sitting, they added, provide self-stretching movements that help maintain natural flexibility — habits now missing from most teenagers' daily lives.
The project—led by Dr Samarth Mittal, additional professor at JPNA Trauma Centre, AIIMS, with co-investigator Dr A S Moorthy, PhD, in-charge Physiotherapist, AIIMS Burns and Plastic Surgery Department—is testing whether physiotherapy interventions can reverse these trends.
At its core, the study aims to evaluate functional movement patterns and flexibility in teenagers and test the effectiveness of physiotherapy-based interventions in preventing sports injuries. Secondary goals include measuring hamstring and lower back flexibility through the Sit and Reach Test and correlating improvements before and after physiotherapy sessions.
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