It's Back to School Time! Has Your Child Seen the Chiropractor?
Want to ensure that your kids are ready for their return to the classroom? Add a visit to the chiropractor to your back-to-school checklist. Chiropractic care offers a variety of advantages for children, including these important benefits:
No More Pain
Whether your child spent the summer learning new skateboard tricks, playing outdoor games, or participating in a sports league, he or she may be feeling a little sore now. Falls and bumps during games can cause subluxations, misalignments in the vertebrae in the spine. Subluxations, a common source of pain, can also affect the range of motion in a joint and cause stiffness, swelling and numbness.
Pain can also be a concern if your child's favorite activity was reading or playing video games. Unfortunately, good posture may not be a priority when your kids are enjoying the adventures of their favorite fictional heroes or battling opponents online. Over time, poor posture pulls the vertebrae out of alignment, which may cause headaches and make muscles and tissues painfully tight.
It's not easy to concentrate on a math problem or remain seated for 7 or 8 hours a day when you're in pain, whether you have a minor ache in your knee or nagging neck or back pain. Luckily, your child's chiropractor offers several treatments designed to relieve pain and correct spinal misalignments.
Spinal adjustments realign the vertebrae in the spine, easing pain and loosening tight tissues. Massage, soft tissue mobilization, hot and cold therapy, and other techniques may also be used to treat pain. According to the American College of Physicians, non-drug treatments like spinal manipulation, are often helpful for back pain and should be tried before medication.
Better Sleep
Kids do better in school when they've had a good night's sleep. In fact, poor academic performance was linked to sleep problems in a Norwegian research study. Pain or stress may make it difficult for your child to fall asleep or stay asleep. Chiropractic care relieves pain naturally and also helps your child relax. Treatments prompt the body to release serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins, hormones that improve your child's mood, enhance relaxation, and relieve stress.
Fewer Illnesses
A crowded classroom is the perfect environment for germs to circulate. Although it's not possible to prevent all illnesses, chiropractic treatments can reduce your child's risk of getting sick. Adjustments relieve pressure on the nerves that serve the organs and immune system. When the nerves function normally, it's much easier for the immune system to do its job.
Visits to the chiropractor may lower the number of colds, ear infections, sinus infections, and other illnesses your child gets and also reduce allergy and asthma flare-ups.
Reduced Chance of New Injuries
Your child is more likely to become injured during gym class or sports practice if his or her spine is misaligned. Misalignments affect the body's balance, restrict normal movement of the joints, and cause one side or area of the body to become abnormally tight. When this happens, sprains, strains, and other injuries are more likely to occur, even if your child isn't involved in a particularly strenuous activity. Visiting the chiropractor throughout the year will help reduce the likelihood of injuries.
Backpacks are a common source of pain and injuries for school-age kids. Nemours Kids Health notes that shoulder, neck, or back pain can happen when kids arch their backs or bend forward in an attempt to redistribute the weight of the backpack. These unusual postures strain the vertebrae and tissues and cause a variety of symptoms ranging from pain to numbness.
Regular visits to the chiropractor keep your child's spine aligned correctly and his or her muscles loose and relaxed. If your child struggles with a heavy backpack, swap his current pack for a lightweight one. Ideally, the weight of the backpack should be about 10% of your child's body weight. Look for a backpack that offers several compartments for even weight distribution. Ask if your child can keep a set of school books at home, rather than carrying them back and forth every day. If the school district can't provide duplicate copies of books, you may be able to purchase them online.
Have you made your child's back-to-school visit with the chiropractor? If not, give us a call, and we'll arrange a convenient appointment time.
Sources:
Sleep Foundation: Improve Your Child’s School Performance with a Good Night’s Sleep, 4/29/2022
Nemours Kids Health: Backpack Safety, 5/2020