The document discusses ways for parents to help prevent back problems in children by monitoring the weight of their backpacks and choosing lighter carrying options. It recommends that backpacks not exceed 15% of a child's body weight and provides alternatives like roller bags and digital textbooks. The document also stresses the importance of regular doctor checkups to identify potential back issues early through screening for problems like spine degeneration and bone spurs.
2. As a parent, you are always
looking out for your child’s health
and making sure they get the best
they possibly can. You make sure
you choose the right day care, the
right school, and keep an eye on
the friends they choose to play
with to keep them out of trouble.
While you are ensuring your child
has the happiest childhood
possible, don’t forget the little
things that may hinder their health
along the way.
3. It has been discussed in a New York
Times article that children are carrying a
higher weight amount in their backpacks
than they should be. Children that are
carrying more than 15% of their body
weight in their backpack are setting
themselves up to acquire a back problem
easier than others. If a child weighs
around 85 pounds, they shouldn’t be
carrying more than 12 pounds in their
backpack, and when you add
textbooks, extra clothes, and items for
after school activities, those 12 pounds
gets filled quickly
4. There are alternatives to look into to help with
this issue that may be easily overlooked. You
could purchase a roller backpack for your child
that allows for more room and easier time
transporting items around. You could also look
into renting or purchasing copies of their current
textbooks your child does not have to physically
carry so many books home. With technology
today, many schools are choosing books that
are available on other devices such as
electronic reading devices, or that can be
shared online. This is also to help bring down
the cost schools have to pay every year for new
edition textbooks.
5. A way to make sure that your child is properly taken care of, you need to have
them examined by a doctor regularly and often. Most schools have a
requirement of how many physicals a child must have within a year in order to
keep them eligible to attend school. By having your child examined, you can
make sure they don’t have any back problems that could lead to spine
degeneration or bone spurs in the future. Spine degeneration is caused when a
person’s day to day activities cause wear and tear on your spine’s invertebral
discs and eventually break them down. In order to correct this issue, the
treatment options are physical therapy, bed rest, or epidural steroid injections to
help control the pain.
6. Bone spurs are caused by a growth formed on
the bone and even though it’s usually a
smooth growth, it does cause pain if it begins
to touch ligaments, nerves, or tendons.
These can usually be found in areas such as
the shoulders, spine, hands, hips, knees, and
feet. Most bone spurs don’t require treatment
if they don’t hurt you, and a solution for them
may be as simple as losing
weight, massaging the bone spur area
frequently, or simply resting. By keeping up
on your child’s health, you can help reduce
the risk of these problems along with more to
ensure your child has a full and happy
childhood.
