In the age of endless screen time, poor habitual postures are becoming more and more common. As it (regrettably) becomes the norm to introduce our children to screen time at younger and younger ages and for longer periods of time, it’s becoming increasingly important to hone in on good postural habits early on.
As with anything in life, prevention is better than cure. To avoid necessary ‘retraining’ of muscles and other corrective measures in adulthood, we as adults need to encourage our children to adopt great postural habits early!
Here are our top 7 tips for parents to achieve this:
- Beyond the age-old “Sit up straight!” order, we also need to remind our children to “Walk tall”. Longer strides are better than shorter ones as it promotes lengthening of the hamstring which helps reduce hunching of the back. Feet should be about 10cm apart.
- Shoulders and upper back should always be relaxed. They should not be ‘holding’ a stiff position.
- Chairs and desks where children work or remain for long periods of time should always be of an appropriate size. Feet should reach the floor and the chair in question should have adequate back support.
- Limit screen time to what is absolutely necessary. The best way to achieve this is by leading by example.
- When they’re wearing a backpack of any kind, ensure the straps are worn across both shoulders. Buy backpacks with additional padding and chest support if possible.
- No prizes for guessing this one! Adopt an active lifestyle in addition to incorporating regular exercise into their routine.
- Brace yourself; they will want to slouch and slump as much as possible. Keep firm and consistent with your reminders and don’t give up!
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