We were all told as kids to sit up straight at one point or another. While some parents probably thought of posture as more about manners, plenty others likely understood inherently a little about the importance of good posture on health, even if the didn’t fully comprehend just how crucial it is. Developing and maintaining poor posture as a child can lead to challenges with pain later in life as rounded shoulders, swayback, and hunchback become their new normal. These abnormal postures put stress on both your spinal column and the muscles supporting it, causing soreness and leaving a person more vulnerable to injury from even ordinary tasks.
But poor posture isn’t about just sitting right. In fact, even if you sit with good posture, doing so for long periods of time STILL isn’t good for you. Kids’ spines (and yours) need regular activity to stay healthy. That kid squirming around in his seat? He’s actually got the right idea! His body is telling him being still isn’t good! Taking regular, short breaks every so often to stretch and change positions is the best thing you can do for your posture when you have to be seated for long periods of time. The key is to break the pattern of poor posture to reduce likelhood of pain and injury.
Kids aren’t supposed to be in pain, so if yours is, we suggest that first you come in to your Premier Gilber Clinic, Better Chiropractic to get your child out of pain. From there, we’ll teach you the strategies to help your child Live Better through better posture practices. Don’t forget these posture tips to take along with you this week:
- More than 50% of kids have some degree of abnormal posture
- Increased bodyweight and decreased activity levels put kids at risk of postural issues
- Set aside times during the day for your kids to be active and support proper spine and muscular development
