Back to school: Encourage Good Back Health

back care advice for children from cliffs chiropractor southendFor many parents, September brings a sigh of relief as the kids go back to school and sanity levels can finally return to normal. But with another term comes another few months of worrying if your child is staying healthy beyond those school gates. While you can’t escape a few scraped knees here and there, you can encourage good spine health in your child and prevent their risk of developing future back problems.

Here our Southend chiropractor reveals four easy tips to ensure your child’s back-to-school is a healthy one:

1: Invest in a Good Back Pack!

Your child’s backpack should be light, snug and comfortable to wear with two wide padded shoulder straps and a waist strap. But remember a back pack is only as good as the way it is packed. Make sure your child unloads any unnecessary items every evening after school and carries the heaviest items at the bottom of the bag.

2: Encourage Good Health at Homework Time

You encourage good spine health in your child by ensuring he/ she uses a book stand while studying or reading. This will help to keep your child’s books at eye level and reduce the amount of strain on the shoulders and neck. And of course, there’s also the added bonus of creating extra desk space!

3: Warm Up For the New Term

If the typical British weather has kept your child away from many sports over the summer holidays, he/ she may need extra time warming up before they jump back into their school physical activities.

Good warm up routines should last for a minimum of 10-15 minutes and should include movements that simulate the sport about to be played.

4: Teach Good Posture

You may be able to remind your child not to slouch at home, but do your words resonate in the classroom? Instead of simply telling your child to sit up straight, educate them on the importance of good posture. Tell your child that maintaining the correct posture will reduce the amount of strain on his/ her neck shoulders and lower back and make him/ her more attentive in class!  The more your child understands the importance of good posture, the more likely they will be to practice it until it comes a natural way to sit. Encourage your child to sit with his/ her shoulders back and chin tucked in with a gentle “C curve” in the low back. You can check your child’s posture by seeing if his/ her ears, shoulders and hips follow a straight line.

Here’s to a term of A* back health!

Save

Is your child’s posture and spinal motion important to their health? Arif Soomro from Cliffs Chiropractor Southend explains more

How important is posture and spinal motion to your child’s health? Well in short the answer is VERY.

Arif, our resident Certified Chiropractic Paediatric Practictioner and Fellow of the International Chiropractic Paedriatic Association explains the importance of caring for your child’s spine.

Most people are amazed how many complaints are influenced by poor posture and joint or muscle problems especially in the back or neck.

Look at these new shocking statistics
• One quarter of UK secondary school pupils suffer from regular or daily back pain.
• School bag burden was associated with a ten-fold higher rate of back pain.
• Back pain was also linked to prolonged sitting.
• 14 year old school girls have the same incidence of back pain as the adult population.

Parents have their children’s teeth and eyesight checked with preventative and curative treatments, allowing normal development, but your spine is just as important to good health.

Our screenings take about 15 minutes and are £10 all of which will go to BackCare the charity for back pain. They include a questionnaire about your child’s health. Discussing the findings and recommendations directly with the parents and children is an important part of it. We are able to reassure and educate parents in what to look for, or recommend a more detailed investigation of children if treatment is indicated.

Children can suffer back and neck pain just like adults do. There is really no such thing as growing pains, bad posture and poor habits can cause joint and muscle problems exactly the same as adults.

One of the most common complaints we see in patients is scoliosis or spinal curvatures. The causes as to why these occur are still poorly understood, however, they develop in early life. These children will often have a dropped shoulder, one leg turned in or a crooked crease in the buttocks. One of the earliest symptoms can be knee pains or headaches. By the time these children reach adulthood they may have already had knee surgery or be taking painkillers on a regular basis. Early detection could prevent their suffering and reduce the severity of the scoliosis.

In 1994 The Cliffs Chiropractic Clinic pioneered the first spinal screenings for children, which went on to be a national campaign.

Over the last hundred years school furniture has reduced in height by 10 centimetres whilst children have increased in height by the same figure. Additionally the majority of school furniture does not meet the individual and variable requirements for children’s various sizes or support correct spinal posture. The correct sitting position will cause an open body posture with improved lung capacity and hence cerebral oxygenation aiding concentration.

Arif says “Ingatestone and Fryerning School asked me to advise and assist in obtaining and installing ergonomic desks and chairs for their students. They were Britain’s first school to do this with the aim of improving the children’s posture and aid concentration, combining it with a daily exercise routine.

I strongly believe prevention is better than cure and if spinal problems could be corrected early on a lot of suffering in adult life could be prevented.

Being a chiropractor is rewarding in its own right, no matter what age the patient, but to treat a child and see their spine changing shape literally before your eyes makes a lasting impression on their lives, altering their development.”

All proceeds from our child screenings will go to BackCare the charity that provides information and advice to all people and organisations affected by back pain.

A child will not reach its full potential unless it is healthy. As chiropractors, it is our duty to recognise and correct neuromuscular-skeletal disorders and restore postural imbalance, releasing the child or adult to their full potential.

To book an appointment for a child screening please call direct on 01702 430 430

Childrens’ Spinal Screening Week 5th – 11th October

BackCare Awareness Week from the 5th – 11th October focuses on the issue of back pain in children and in recognition of this campaign we at Cliffs Chiropractor Southend will be holding screenings for Childrens’ Backs during this week.

Parents have their children’s teeth and eyesight checked with preventative and curative treatments, allowing normal development, but your child’s spine is just as important to their good health.

We invite all parents to call 01702 430 430 and book an appointment now for their child’s screening. The screening will take about 15 minutes and is £10 all of which will go to BackCare the charity for back pain.

Arif treats Children – See Leo’s visit to Cliffs Chiropractor Southend

Chiropractic treatment for children is safe, effective and enjoyable. If you’re considering chiropractic for your child watch Leo’s experience with Southend chiropractor Arif Soomro.

Leo’s Visit to Cliffs Chiropractor Southend

As you can see by all the giggling and smiling, Leo had an enjoyable time!

As well as adults we also treat children here at Cliffs Chiropractic clinic Southend. It is often little recognised that children and youngsters can suffer with the same problems with the spine and joints as adults. These problems can in turn result in muscles in their neck, back and extremities to tighten. This tightening can cause the bones of the spine or other joints to lose their normal motion or move out of position.

At Cliffs Chiropractic Clinic Southend one of our highly experienced team of chiropractors, Dr Arif Soomro, is one of the country’s more established paediatric practitioners and the areas only Certified Chiropractic Paediatric Practitioner. The clinic also has the equipment and techniques that allow anxious patients or nervous children to gain confidence and achieve results.

If you have concerns over a back injury for your child then please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us as we offer a lot of help and advice in this area. Contact us on 01702 430430 or email us at info@CliffsChiro.co.uk to get in touch.

We treat children at Cliffs Chiropractor Southend

Chiropractor southendChiropractor SouthendAs a team of leading chiropractors in Southend we often treat a large variety of people with differing problems. We pride ourselves in providing excellent customer service alongside an expert delivery in our area. We aim to look at your problem, find a solution and lead you on your way to healing it.

We even treat children at Cliffs Chiropractic clinic Southend. It is often little recognised that children and youngsters can suffer with the same problems with the spine and joints as adults. These problems can in turn result in muscles in their neck, back and extremities to tighten. This tightening can cause the bones of the spine or other joints to lose their normal motion or move out of position.

It’s unfortunate that all too often a child’s pain may be put down to growing pains and further treatment is not sought.

It can be quite difficult to find a good chiropractor that is qualified to work with children. Additional chiropractic skills are required to diagnose and treat new babies and children as their spines are immature.

At Cliffs Chiropractic Clinic Southend one of our highly experienced team of chiropractors, Dr Arif Soomro, is one of the country’s more established paediatric practitioners and the areas only Certified Chiropractic Paediatric Practitioner. The clinic also has the equipment and techniques that allow anxious patients or nervous children to gain confidence and achieve results.

If you have concerns over a back injury for your child then please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us as we offer a lot of help and advice in this area.Contact us on 01702 430430 or email us at info@CliffsChiro.co.uk to get in touch.