There is a silent pandemic ready to strike our children; you don’t hear about it yet. It is going to impact even ones who look otherwise healthy. We call it BAD POSTURE. With our children spending a lot more time hunched over their screens, the risk of developing problems with spine now and in the future can be substantially increased.
Some of you might wonder what is posture?
Posture is the way in which you carry your body, as a result of the co-ordinated actions performed by various muscle groups to maintain stability. Good posture focuses primarily on alignment of the spine, neck, shoulders, hips and the feet. Posture is a matter of “habit”. If not attended at an early age, it will be carried into adulthood with elevated risk to chronic diseases.
With lesser physical activities and opportunity for active play bad poster has gripped our younger generation. You may look around and its quite possible to see children slouching. Their body has a forward curve, ending with their head which is few inches in front of the collarbones.
Slouching constantly can also puts pressure on the child’s internal organs and cause digestive issues.
When continued into adulthood, bad posture can lead to more serious problems like scoliosis, or abnormal bone growth and has been shown to have a link with varicose veins and elevated risk of heart disease.
A proper posture for a child would have neutral and relaxed spine, with its natural curvature.
It is important that parents build postural awareness in children. Children are usually not conscious of the way in which they are holding their bodies
- Spot the curve: Make it a sport! Every time a child spots someone sitting hunched back give them a star, smiley or a small token. This would make them aware of what good posture is.
- Practice sitting without back support: Make the child sit on stools or on the ground where there is no back support for short periods at a time and increasing it gradually. This will help strengthen the child’s back muscles hence making good posture easier.
- During the online class or any other screen use, get the laptop computer at eye level so the child doesn’t strain their neck or slouch
- Discourage use of handheld gadgets like tablets or mobile, prolonged viewing will strain their neck
How Sportyze can help?
Making children aware of the correct posture and strengthening it, is intrinsic to Sportyze’s gym curriculum. We measure the deviations and constantly work at improving it. Visit our website www.sportyze.com to know more about our programs.
If you’re concerned that your child’s posture is not correct, it’s a good idea to check with a paediatrician or visit you nearest Sportyze Centre.
