Carly Wegren

Sitting is exhausting. Especially in stiff, synthetic plastic slabs that stab at your spine. I mean, forget chairs with cushions! Comfort is overrated. When I’m taking notes on the pythagorean theorem, I should not be comfortable and focused. No, I should have to worry about trying to find a position that won’t result in constant discomfort.

In addition to providing adequate discomfort, the desks here at LHS provide substantial health risks to students. According to a study conducted in 2015 by Canadian researchers in the Annals of Internal Medicine,  people who sat for prolonged periods of time had a higher risk of dying from all causes — even those who exercised regularly. The negative effects of sitting were even more pronounced in people who did little or no exercise.

Sitting for prolonged periods may also result in shortened hip flexors and overworked glutes, according to Dr. Joseph Michael Mercola who runs Peak Fitness, a world health website. The last thing I need is another part of my life in which I feel overworked; I’m overworked enough in school. Where does it end?

Now, I know there are probably a multitude of students who suffer back pain. Sitting puts more pressure on your spine than standing. Disks in your spinal cord are meant to move in order to absorb blood and nutrients. Sitting prevents this absorption of blood and nutrients and actually compresses these discs, which may result in loss of flexibility and future back injury.

Sitting in our awful, rigid desks hunched over Chromebooks only makes this worse. As you’re reading this, you’re probably straightening your posture on your laptop and suddenly becoming aware of those tight spots in your neck. Yeah, I have them too.

How’s your head feeling? Dr. Mercola found that when the body sits, blood flow becomes slow, constricting fresh oxygen to the brain. Cognitive function actually goes down, and your mood might just go with it. Now you even have scientific justification for being unhappy while you’re sitting in school!

I love LHS, don’t get me wrong, but we could step up the bar here. When I went to Stevenson High School about a year ago to take my ACT and SAT, I had the luxury of experiencing the seating they so graciously supplied. There were two-person-wide tables, each with two very comfortably padded rolling desk chairs. The backs of these chairs flexed comfortably with my spine instead of against it. They were an absolute dream. Gone were my feelings of dread, for I was happy to take my test in such a comfortable setting.

With the funding I believe LHS to have, I think it’s a great idea to invest in a more innovative classroom environment. We have Smartboards, let’s get smart desks and smart chairs.

No, not digitally advanced furniture, rather desks and chairs that allow students the opportunity for a healthier classroom experience, for their brain and their body. We need chairs that are more comfortable and that can move with us, not against us. Maybe desks that could be raised to use at a standing level as well as at a sitting level.

If “excellence is our standard” District 128, we need to deviate from the standard school seating. I implore you, students, take a stand – literally, it just might save your spine and your grade.