Already, if you want ageless skin you can’t smile, frown, laugh, go in the sun, jog, smoke or sleep on your side. Now you can add another item to the I’m-worried-it-may-cause-wrinkles list: looking down at your iPhone.
So called “tech neck” — a phenomenon that happens when we look down at our laptops or iPhones too often — may cause etched lines, wrinkles, double chins and loose skin to occur, a plastic surgeon told Elle magazine. Put simply (and depressingly): your smartphone, tablet and laptop may be giving you the neck of a much older person.
While it’s unclear whether the technology is causing this “tech neck” or if we’re simply noticing our less-than-smooth necks more in this selfie-obsessed world, one thing is clear: more people than ever are demanding neck lifts. In 2013, plastic surgeons gave more than 55,000 patients neck lifts — up roughly 6% from a year prior. That’s compared with a 3% lift in plastic surgery procedures overall.
This “tech neck” obsession smacks of yet another way for the plastic surgery industry to make people — especially women — feel bad about themselves. And Dr. Albert Wu, the director of the Center for Health Services & Outcomes Research at Johns Hopkins, says that he doesn’t think this is a real phenomenon. “I think it would be a stretch to say that people are growing more wrinkled necks and extra chins because of gazing down at their phones,” he says. “I also doubt that texting is creating more wrinkly hands.”
Still, he says, people may be more aware of their appearance because so many more snapshots are being taken these days. That said, an invasive neck lift may not be the answer. “There are more non-invasive procedures, especially fillers, to help fix the ‘problem’ — at least temporarily,” he says.