Todlers and Infants
"What is wrong with my child?!", frustrated parents often ask our chiropractors after their baby has been the reason of many sleepless nights. Research from Germany -among other countries- shows that out of 1.350 babies just 5 years old, 95 % have spinal misalignments. This is not surprising, according to chiropractor Jeroen Postma, considering the natural forces that an infant gets subjected to during birth.
Other research studies shows that out of 316 babies with infantile colic (stomach cramps), 94% of them experienced relief of symptoms after being treated by a chiropractor only a few times.
All this makes infantile colic the most common indication for chiropractic treatment of the baby's spine. Results are usually objectively visible within 2 weeks and after an average of just 3 visits.
You might ask yourself: "how does a chiropractor treat a baby?". At Chiropractie Leiden we like to treat infants and todlers together with a parent. We ask the parent (preferably the mother) to position herself on the treatment table and then place the baby on her stomach. The chiropractor will then palpate the spine and apply gentle manual adjustments to correct the spine or perform an 'Activator Technique®' using and adjusting instrument. The treatment is painless and safe.
Babies of Chiropractie Leiden's active adult patients (seen by us within the last 12 months) are intitled to an initial examination free of charge. We like to apply this policy to encourage parents to have their infants checked by a chiropractor and discuss any health concern they might have.
And who knows, your sleepless night might be over!
Teenagers
There is quite a lot you can do yourself to assess your child's posture.
Try this easy test: ask your child to stand against the wall with head, shoulder blades, calves and heels touching the wall. Ask him/her to drop the hands to the side. The back should arch so that the pelvis is against the wall. The distance between the wall and the arch of the lower back should be no greater that the thickness of one hand. Next have her/him face the wall, again, with the arms hanging to the sides. If the chest touches the wall first, this is excellent posture. If, however, the head touches the wall first, it will be considered average. If the stomach touches the wall first, the posture is poor.
Another thing you can do is check the way the shoes are scuffed at the heel. It is normal for growing kids to quickly wear our shoes -but compare the shoes side to side. Is one shoe more worn out than the other? Look at the heels of both shoes and compare them. Are they symmetrically scuffed? If this is not the case, it could be an indication of spinal imbalance.
Does your child stand up straight? Do she/he show a head tilt? How about the height of the ears? If you compare the hanging arms, is there a difference on how low the finger tips reach? Finally, place your hands on your child's hips on the one side and on the other. Are they even?
Bad posture can affect your child's health in more than one way and result in what is commonly referred to 'scoliosis' -a sideway curvature of the spine).
Research among school children show that more than 76% of the investigated subjects have a spinal misalignment. That is why it is so important to stress the need for good posture. Young adults and children are fortunate that spinal imbalances as a result of poor posture can easily be corrected with chiropractic care, followed up with postural advise and/or training. If your child complaints of back pain, it is wise to consult your chiropractor before they become chronic!
Heavy school bags can lead to bad posture in school children if they carry their bags or back packs the wrong way. At Chiropractie Leiden we like to advise kids to make sure they only carry the books they need for a particular school day and to make use of ergonomic back packs that can spread weight in an evenly manner. Ideally, one should consider bags with wheels that can be used as a trolley. We also like to remind them to stand tall and tuck in the tummy.
Children and Overweight
According to dr. R. Hirasing, professor at the V.U. Amsterdam: "Children today spend most of their time sitting down and something should be done about this!". In the Netherlands, 400.000 children are overweight and 45.000 are considered obese. In the past 20 years, the number of overweight children has more than doubled and for obesity, it has increased a shocking eight times over! It keeps increasing as we write, specially in children between 4 and 11 years of age. "An alarming situation", adds dr. M. Reeser, pediatrician and endocrinologist at Juliana Children's Hospital in The Hague.
Obesity in childhood can lead to health problem in adulthood such as cancer, high blood pressure, hear disease, lung and kidney malfunction, bad circulation and eye complications. More and more children are diagnosed with type II diabetes, which used to only occur in adults.
It is obvious that the cause of this tendency had to do with our modern life style. Children lack sufficient exercise and often spend too much time watching TV or at the computer. They are also eating too much and often not eating healthy foods (sweets and processed foods).
As parents, it is our responsibility to take charge and do something about it. Awareness is the first step.We would like to think that as a practice, we can help you and also your child obtain optimal health. Please feel free to come to us for advise.
Special Rates for Children
To show the importance we see as a practice in keeping track of children's health from an early age, Chiropractie Leiden applies special fees for children up to 15 years of age.
All sons and daughters, from active adult patients at Chiropractie Leiden (treated with the past 12 months) can be booked in for spinal screenings at no charge. Follow up treatments of all children up to 15 years benefit reduced rates.
Kindly check the information under the heading "Fees & Reimbursement" in this website.
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