Social media star has carpal tunnel from 'phone addiction'

In this day and age you'd be hard-pressed to find someone without their phone permanently glued to them.

Some have even been able to forge themselves fully-fledged careers just from their phones, but it seems one person is paying the price from using it too much.

YouTube and Instagram star, Gabbie Hanna, who has over 6.5 million followers, recently took to her Instagram to reveal she has carpal tunnel syndrome.

According to Health Direct Australia, carpal tunnel is "caused by compression of the median nerve when it passes through the wrist", and it can be caused by wrist injuries, rheumatoid arthritis and activities which overuse the wrist and hand, which could be phone use.

Showing herself wearing two braces on both her hands, Hanna explained to her followers why they should always listen to their elders.

The social media star admitted when she first started in her online career, those around her were telling her to not use her phone and laptop so much as she would "going to get carpal tunnel".

Not taking their warnings seriously, Hanna continued to spend huge amounts of time on her phone and laptop - it is her career after all.

"Now I'm 28-years-old old and my body is not as supple as it used to be," she said. "And apparently neither are my joints, tendons and nerves.

"So, I, a 28-year-old female, addicted to my phone and technology, and having to work on my phone and my computer all day long, have carpal tunnel."

A study by Hong Kong’s Polytechnic University in 2017, compared a group of students who spent over fives hours a day on their phones, laptops or computers with those who spent less time on their devices.

It was discovered that a whopping 92% of those who spent more than five hours on their technology devices had suffered musculoskeletal pain in the last year, but was just 25% in the less frequent users.

So, maybe next time you're on a long commute rather than clutching at your phone swiping and scrolling, read a book or just do some good old fashioned people watching.