Good posture and taking time out to stretch can counteract the damage the daily office grind can have on your spine.

On an average day we shrink two centimeters. Slouch at your desk and you probably shrink more. It is grim to think of our bodies grinding down under the pressures of daily living, but that is essentially the cycle we go through every 24 hours, according to stretch therapist Chris Watts.

Wake up in the morning and our spinal fluids are pumped up, helping to push our vertebrae apart. As the day wears on, these spinal fluids are depleted, which in turn puts pressure on the vertebral discs that cushion the spine. The problem is aggravated if you sit improperly at a desk for hours on end.

Most office workers complain of lower back pain that can be traced to long periods of sitting, according to Mr Watts. Physiological ailments vary from tense neck muscles to aches in the lower back, but by far the most serious ailments arise from spinal compression.

“What worries me most is not the muscles. The muscles are actually quite superficial,” Mr. Watts say. “It is more the cartilage and the discs in between the vertebrae which can dehydrate. This can result in a pinched nerve, which causes everything around that nerve to tighten down.”

Pinched nerves are dangerous because they can have a snowball effect through the body, causing severe pain in the extremities.

Mr. Watts says it is not uncommon to trace and acute heel pain back to a pinched nerve in the spine. These ailments can take months to treat, and if can underlying imbalance in the posture is not corrected, the effects can become degenerative.

That may explain why a growing number of people in their early to mid-30s are seeking Mr. Watts’ help.

“They spend that much time sitting in front of a computer screen and do not exercise properly,” Mr. Watts says.

Much of the problem can be traced to a failure to practice good posture. Most people overload their lower backs with poor ergonomics and postures.

A proper desk posture entails sitting with your bottom flat on the chair, without shifting weight to either side. The spine should be upright. If you are working on a computer, the top of the monitor should be roughly in line with your eyes. An easy check to see if you are doing things right is to examine your chin and forearms. Both should be parallel with the floor.

Hands should rest on the keyboard roughly a shoulder length apart. Your shoulders should rest comfortably, without rolling forward.

Mr. Watts advises office workers to get up from their desks every half an hour to stretch their muscles and help circulation.

You should also take a break roughly twice a day to complete some simple stretches. These can be done at your desk and require only five minutes to complete.

A good back stretch involves sitting near the front of your chair with your legs spread apart. Roll forward until your head rotates downward. You should be able to see between your legs.

Another good stretch involves rotating your body 10 times to the left and 10 to the right, using the back of the chair as a leverage to give you more of a stretch.

To relieve tension in your neck, Mr. Watts recommends sitting with your back straight and your hands on the desk. Roll your head back until you are looking directly at the ceiling. Complete the exercise by rolling forward until you can feel your chin nuzzling the chest.

Our bodies are not designed to sit for prolonged periods. Being aware of how are shaped by our environment is crucial in diagnosing underlying conditions.

Mr. Watts recommends drinking plenty of water during the hot summer weather. Proper hydration will help to reduce both muscular tension and spinal problems.

Chris Oliver