Backpacks and back pain. Solution

Backpacks and back pain. Solution

Back to school with Chiropractic: Is it a good idea or not?

Children’s backs are perfect, right?

And if that’s the case, then why take them to a Chiropractor?

This is what some parents think, who may not have heard about the latest research conducted in Burela-Lugo, Spain.

The scientists worked in the Emergency Department of the Hospital da Costa and conducted a study on 1403 children aged between 12 and 17 years in schools in northern Galicia, Spain. They wanted to know what type of relationship existed between the weight of backpacks and back pain.

As a rule, your child should not carry a backpack that weighs more than 10% of their body weight; otherwise, they could end up with back pain. This guideline was established by professional organizations such as pediatricians, neurologists, and chiropractors.

When the researchers weighed the children’s backpacks, they found that 61.4% of the children carried backpacks that were too heavy for their body weight.

Overweight backpacks increase the 50% risk of causing back pain and a 42% risk of developing scoliosis. Girls are at a higher risk of developing back pain than boys.

 

In another study of 1540 children aged between 11 and 14 years in the city of Los Angeles, researchers found that 37% of those children had back pain.

The children carrying heavier backpacks were the younger ones, were girls, and had scoliosis. They were at a higher risk of developing back pain. It didn’t matter whether the children used one or both straps of the backpack, as they still experienced back pain.

82% of the children with back pain realized that the source of their pain was their backpack or that the backpack worsened their pain. 34% of the children stopped certain activities due to back pain.

And 14% learned all about using medications to relieve pain at a very young age. (This is not recommended as many pain medications are potentially dangerous because they cause serious side effects or can even be very addictive).

Backpacks and back pain are related in 82%

 

Monitor your child’s backpack and protect them from back pain

The crucial point is that if your child carries a heavy backpack, they may develop spinal or back problems that will last their entire life. And that is not good. What parents want to hear that their child started developing health problems while under their care?

Benefits of Chiropractic for children

Taking your child to see a Chiropractor is actually a good way to keep your child’s immune system optimized. It helps maintain mood levels and improve posture. And of course, it helps avoid issues related to backpacks and back pain.

There are also reports from research on children with ADHD or others, that reading ability has improved after receiving a series of chiropractic adjustments.

Of course, if during a visit to your Chiropractor it is discovered that your child has the onset of a spinal or back pathology, it would be better to discover it sooner rather than later, and it would be the time to start correcting their posture. If you wait until a year passes, that would mean your child will be suffering.

Chiropractors use methods that can stimulate quick healing, reduce pain, inflammation, and congestion in tissues. It is important to know that Chiropractic is an painless treatment.

Many Chiropractors have affordable payment methods that allow your children to receive care for their back. (backpacks and back pain).

And by having Chiropractic care from an early age, they are being taught that the use of Natural Medicine works and can be very effective.

  Sources: Rodriguez-Oviedo, P., et al. School children’s backpacks, back pain and back pathologies. Arch Dis Child 2012 Aug; 97(8): 730-2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22408188

Skaggs, D.L., et al. Back pain and backpacks in school children. J Pediatr Orthop 2008 May-Jun; 28(3): 358-63.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16670549

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