科學家爲“葛優躺”正名,稱慵懶坐姿對背部有好處大綱

Sit up straight! Stop slouching! It’s a familiar order barked at us since school days – and it remains the golden rule of how to sit.

坐直了！別沒精打采的！這是自學生時代我們就很熟悉的命令，而且一直是正確坐姿的標準法則。

Whether it’s balancing a book on your head, or imagining a piece of string pulling your shoulders towards the ceiling, we’ve all tried methods to practise ‘good’ posture.

無論是把一本書放在頭頂保持平衡，還是設想一根繩子把你的肩膀連接到屋頂，我們試過各種方法練習“好的”坐姿。

Health officials have long warned that slumping, whether at a computer or in front of the television, is a sure-fire route to crippling back and neck pain – or worse.

健康部門的官員們一直提醒人們說，不管是坐在電腦還是電視機前，慵懶的坐姿肯定會造成肩背疼痛，甚至引發更糟糕的後果。

Our dedication to a perfect seated position has fuelled an entire industry, geared to getting us to sit up straight. We spend billions of pounds each year on posture correcting chairs, apps and even clothing – but emerging evidence suggests that slouching may not be so evil after all.

我們對完美坐姿的執着推動了整個行業的發展，這也促使我們坐得筆直。我們每年花費數十億英鎊用於購買糾正坐姿的椅子、應用程序甚至服裝，但最新證據表明，懶散的坐姿也許並沒有那麼糟糕。

In fact, with research indicating that slumping may help to keep our spines in shape, experts are starting to advise against sitting up straight.

事實上，研究表明，癱坐有助於保持脊柱的形狀，專家們開始建議大家不要坐那麼筆直。

It has been thought that sitting slumped, with the shoulders hunched and back arched, can put excess strain on the vertebrae in the spine.

人們認爲彎腰弓背地坐着——聳起雙肩、背部呈弓形——會給脊椎帶來過度壓力。

This is because as the upper body leans forward, the weight of the brain and head increases, forcing the spine to carry a heavier load.

這是因爲，隨着上半身前傾，大腦和頭部產生的壓力增加，迫使脊椎承受更重的負荷。

But a slew of studies now suggests this is unlikely to cause the cascade of back troubles previously predicted.

但現在有大量研究表明，這種姿勢不太可能像先前預測的那樣引發一連串後患。

In fact, sitting slumped can keep the spine intact and even ease joint and muscle pain.

事實上，彎腰弓背地坐着可以讓脊椎不受損傷，甚至緩解關節和肌肉的疼痛。

In one 2018 paper, slump-sitting postures were seen to help to increase the amount of fluid in between spinal discs, reducing stiffness. The posture was also seen to increase spinal height over time.

在2018年的一篇論文中，研究人員認爲彎腰弓背的坐姿有助於增加椎間盤之間的潤滑液，緩解僵硬症狀。隨着時間的推移，這種姿勢還能增加脊柱的高度。

Physiotherapists at the University Hospital of North Tees in Stockton-on-Tees who carried out the investigation concluded that some slouching can ‘provide a valuable alternative to upright sitting’ in patients with lower-back pain.

開展這項研究的英國斯托克頓市北蒂斯大學醫院的理療師得出結論稱，對下腰痛患者來說，有時慵懶的坐姿“是一種替代筆直坐姿的不錯選擇”。

In addition, Australian studies have found that when interspersed with periods of sitting upright, slouching can relax strained muscles in the core and legs.

此外，澳大利亞的研究還顯示，在筆直坐姿期間穿插慵懶坐姿，可以使核心軀幹和腿部的緊張肌肉放鬆下來。

London-based osteopath Gavin Smith explains:‘While sitting straight activates muscles in the abdomen, pelvis and back, slump-sitting relaxes them.

倫敦正骨科醫生加文·史密斯解釋說：“坐直可以激活腹部、骨盆和背部的肌肉，慵懶坐姿則可以放鬆肌肉。”

‘Because these muscles are chronically over-active in people with lower-back pain, some periodic relaxation of them is helpful.

“因爲在下腰痛患者身上，這些肌肉長期過度活躍，定期放鬆一下是有幫助的。”

‘Alternating between comfortable and relaxed upright and slumped postures is probably the best way to sit at your desk.’

“在舒適、放鬆的直立姿勢和慵懶的坐姿之間切換大概是坐在桌前的最佳方式。”

Trying too hard to sit as we are told to at work – feet flat on the floor, back straight and shoulders back with an S-shape curve to the spine – can backfire, causing tension in the middle back and breathing problems over time.

在工作時我們被告知要坐直，雙腳平放在地上，背部筆挺，肩膀向後伸展，脊柱呈S形彎曲。但太過用力地筆直坐姿可能會適得其反，導致後背中部緊張，隨着時間的推移還會引發呼吸問題。

According to some experts, providing you get up and walk around every now and then, slumping is harmless.

一些專家說，只要你時不時地站起來走動走動，彎腰駝背是無害的。

Gavin Smith explains: ‘Sitting or standing in any position for prolonged periods is unwise. Slumping in itself is no worse for us than sitting up straight, provided we don’t do it all the time.’

加文·史密斯解釋說：“長時間以任何姿勢坐着或站着都是不明智的。只要我們不是一直彎腰駝背，那麼這一坐姿本身並不比坐直身子更糟。”

In studies published in the journal Spine, Australian researchers found a combination of slumping and sitting upright was far superior to sitting in one position for maintaining a stable spine and strong muscles.

發表在《脊柱》期刊的一些研究中，澳大利亞研究人員發現，在保持脊柱穩定和肌肉強健方面，慵懶坐姿和坐直相結合要比保持一個姿勢好得多。

Another study, published in the journal Ergonomics supports the benefits of switching positions throughout the day.

發表在《人類工程學》期刊的另一篇研究對於一天中轉換坐姿的益處提供了支持。

The researchers found that those only using ‘standing desks’ had significantly more leg and back pain. Adjustable desks that allow some sitting and some standing are better, but Smith says they are not a cure-all.

研究人員發現，那些只使用“站立式辦公桌”的人，腿部和背部的疼痛明顯更嚴重。可調節的辦公桌可以讓人或坐或站，效果更好。但史密斯說，這並不是萬能的。

‘If you are relaxed at a standing desk for an hour, then that is fine,’ he says. ‘But you should try not be in any one position for longer than an hour or so.’

他說：“如果你在站立式辦公桌前放鬆地站了一個小時，那就沒問題。但是儘量不要保持任何一個姿勢超過一個多小時。”

Prolonged sitting eventually causes the gluteal muscles in the buttocks to become lazy and the hamstrings in the backs of the thighs to shorten and tighten.

久坐最終會導致臀部的臀肌變懶，大腿後部的腿筋變短變緊。

It increases the risk of back and shoulder pain as well as strains when you get up to move immediately after sitting.

久坐會增加背部和肩膀疼痛的風險，也會增加你久坐後馬上起身活動時的肌肉緊張感。

This is why most physiotherapists now warn against long periods of continuous sitting – but not slumping.

因此大多數理療師現在警告人們不要長時間坐着，而不是警告人們不要彎腰駝背。

What matters more than correct sitting posture is that you simply fidget, move around and change position regularly.

比正確的坐姿更重要的是，你要多活動，經常走動和變換坐姿。