invention to zap driver’s backache makes it to TV show

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: London, UK May 2018

invention to zap driver’s backache makes it to TV show

Does your back ache after sitting behind the wheel for long? If so, you are amongst the vast majority of drivers and the chances are you’re not sitting or wearing your seatbelt correctly.

Worryingly, new figures suggest that most of us don’t wear our seatbelts in the way in which they were designed and safety-tested. A recent independently validated survey revealed that more than 90% of drivers don’t sit in the healthiest sitting position and most ‘wear’ their seat belts with slack in the belt, compromising safety. Being in a moving vehicle in this ‘slouched’ position puts strain on the supportive muscles of the lower back, often leading to back pain.

Several studies have found a link between driving and back problems with people who drive for a living being statistically more likely to suffer . Back pain affects an estimated four out of five UK adults (80%) at some point in life, costs the NHS more than £1.3 million per day and, together with neck and muscle pain, accounted for 31 million lost working days in the UK in 2013 .

New solution

Now SHOFT, a simple, palm-sized device that takes just two seconds to fit on to your seatbelt, could put an end to those troublesome twinges. The product is one of many that appear on Channel 4 series Buy It Now where inventors and sellers of new products have just 90 seconds to demonstrate their item in the hope of securing a potentially life-changing order with a national retailer.

SHOFT addresses the main cause of backache in drivers by helping to keep the spine aligned with the seat back. It does this by eliminating the slack that naturally creeps into the seatbelt as the journey progresses. When you buckle up, its unique inbuilt ‘brake pad’ made of GRIPtene engages the lap belt section of the seatbelt, keeping it tensioned across your pelvis for the whole journey. This helps you avoid slipping down in the seat and keeps your spine aligned with the car’s seat back, supporting your back muscles and preventing strain.

Besides improving posture, it helps you to sit in the same position that all crash-test dummies are in for car safety tests, and helps to comply with the safety guidelines from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA). “A slack seat belt means that your 5* crash tested car might be more like a 2* in an accident. Its that important” says co-inventor Dr Graham Cox who’s spent the past 7 years working on the problem with back specialists, and ergonomics and crash test experts along with his father Ron.

SHOFT has made the finals of the UK road safety charity BRAKE’s product safety awards and is anticipated by back specialists and ergonomics experts to significantly improve the health of the millions of Britain’s drivers as well as reduce injury and possibly save lives. In addition, expectant mothers have welcomed SHOFT as it stops the lap belt from riding up over the bump. SHOFT also helps keep children secure in their booster seats avoiding the usual tipping and rocking that every parent knows only too well. SHOFT has also been tested and highly recommended by back experts and gained top 5* reviews from the UK’s motoring press including AutoCar and the Sunday Times.

See how the inventors of SHOFT fared on Buy It Now hosted by Brian Conley, on Monday 14th May at 5:30pm.

“When your spine is stacked upright and supported by the back of your car seat, your muscles can relax and reduce the compression through your joints and discs. SHOFT stops you sliding down the seat, making a healthy position much easier to maintain – so you are highly likely to benefit from using SHOFT.”

Nell Mead, award-winning physiotherapist and clinical director, Victory Health & Performance (co-author of ‘HELP! My Car Is Killing Me’).

Price details

SHOFT packs (2 SHOFTs) costs just £24.99 delivered (UK Mainland) and £28.99 worldwide.

Ends

[i]Independent validated open on-line survey of 104 subjects carried out between April - May 2015. Data on file at TUTCH Designs Ltd.

[ii]Spine J.2014 Apr;14(4):592-7. doi: 10.1016/j.spine.2013.06.029. Epub 2013 Aug 27. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23992937

[iii]Chartered Society of Physiotherapy http://www.csp.org.uk/professional-union/practice/evidence-base/physiotherapy-works/musculoskeletal-disorders

[iv]NHS; http://www.nhscareers.nhs.uk/features/2012/october/

[v]Sickness Absence in the Labour Market, Office for National Statistics, February 2014 (UK); http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/dcp171776_353899.pdf

[vi]RAC http://www.rac.co.uk/pdfs/report-on-motoring/rac-rom-2014-v16-compressed

[vii]http://swns.com/news/drivers-spend-years-months-lives-cars-31446/