School is fast approaching, and students and parents have a lot on their minds: buying notebooks and supplies, learning the new drop-off and pick-up points at the the elementary school, and signing up for fall sports and activities. There is one concern, however, that parents and students often discard during this busy time of year, and that is health. For student athletes, this topic is a bit more difficult to avoid since Kimball Area High School and the Minnesota State High School League have required sport participants to get a physical every three years, but for students who are not involved in sports, physicals are just as important. “General check ups are important [for everyone] to make sure that they don’t have something [medical] going on,” said Dr. Michael Marty of Kimball Chiropractic. One important aspect of physicals is scoliosis screening. “Kids do enough stuff on a day-to-day basis to their growing spines,” Marty said. “If there is a problem that limits their function, eventually that can be a problem when they are in their middle 20s.” According to Marty, about 5 percent of the population has scoliosis, but many more people have various degrees of curvature of the spine. “Its just not as serious,” Marty said. “Mild cases we try to eliminate by making corrections to malaligned vertebrae. Curvature arises a loss of motion in one direction. The treatment goal is to restore motion and then improve muscle strength.” Pain in the neck One common opponent of children’s health is the ever popular backpack. For students who already have postural problems, the wearing of backpacks will accentuate their already poor posture. “Backpacks irritate areas that already have poor posture,” Marty said. To avoid backpack-induced problems, students should: a) Make sure their bags weigh no more than 5 percent to 10 percent of their body weight and b) Wear both shoulder straps to help spread the weight of the backpack and prevent neck pain, muscle spasms and lower back problems. The straight and narrow Marty describes posture as the equal weight distribution of the head and torso among the 25 vertebrae. By spreading the weight bearing equally, Marty said, one area of your body won’t be doing more work than it should. To maintain good posture Marty emphasized proper muscle tone and exercise. He also suggested some ways to improve posture when sitting, standing and lifting, and prevent problems. Sitting Students spend the majority of the nearly seven hours of the school day sitting in a classroom. This is one instance when students could benefit from evaluating how their spines are affected by preferred sitting posture. “It’s important to change your position once every 15 minutes by at least 10 degrees when you are sitting,” Marty said. Keeping the same position for too long trains muscles to be imbalanced from their normal standing strength. Slouching can even be good for a short time, because it shifts body weight to a different spot. “The problem is staying in that position for too long,” Marty said. Standing Whether waiting for the bus, lining up for lunch, or walking from one class to another, standing is also crucial spine time in a student’s day. “The main thing with standing is remembering to slightly contract the lower abdominal muscles,” Marty said. “This flattens the lumbar [part of the lower back].” This flattening forces the upper body to stand up straighter and gives the neck better support. According to Marty, good posture can be achieved when hips, shoulders and the mid-ear are aligned. If one of the three is not properly aligned, then posture is awkward. Lifting Although most students will only be lifting books and pencils at school, for those who may help a teacher move anything from boxes to tables, consider proper lifting techniques. “You contract that same lower abdominal muscle to protect the lower back muscles, bend at the knees and lift with the legs,” Marty said. “If afterwards your legs are as tired as your back, then you did it correctly,” he said. Gym class, team sports Students could also put physical stress on their bodies playing in gym classes and participating in team sports. Beginning her 24th year as a Health Aid for Kimball Area Schools, Linda Plamann has discovered certain ailments are more common than others. “There are a lot of bumped heads,” Plamann said. “And a lot of sprains. Sprains and strains in gym class are probably the number one injury we see.” The most important thing for students who become injured playing in gym class or team sports is to pursue treatment and allow recovery. “The full motion is restored so most of the time pain goes away,” Marty said. “But function is still lacking and muscles are imbalanced.” Footwear Selecting the proper footwear is one way to minimize injury risk. For athletes, Marty stresses proper arch support in shoes. “Proper arch support lacks the most in kids shoes,” he said. “If you experience shin or calf pain after a few days of wearing the shoes, the odds are good that arch support is the problem.” In most shoes athletes use, the arch supports are removable. New, custom-made arch supports can be inserted into these shoes to offer the athlete better protection. A popular trend among girls, high-heeled shoes, can also present problems. “Large heels increase lumbar sway back,” Marty said. Frequently wearing large heels trains muscles to sway back and may cause posture problems that will need to be addressed later. “If you wear them to a dance it’s no big deal, but frequent use may be harmful,” Marty said. Secret to success The road to a productive school year is paved with good health. “Proper nutrition with moderate exercise will make you feel better and therefore help you in your studies and general health,” Marty said. “Thinking about your health at this age will save you a lot of time and effort when you’re older, so train yourself now to have good habits for the future.”
