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Posture Perfect
What Is Your Child's Posture
Telling You?
Telling You?
By Gina Roberts-Grey
Teens and tweens who spend a great deal of time on the computer or playing video games also fall prey to poor posture. Children will sit slouched in front of the monitor or on the floor and in bed for extended periods of time, playing games in positions that do not promote good spinal health and posture. "This type of repetitive sitting can lead to muscle imbalance and postural abnormalities," says Galante.
Spending a great deal of time studying at a desk can also cause your child to round his shoulders or hold his head down in front of him. "This often contributes to head and neck aches, which young children often describe as 'not feeling good' or being achy," Galante says. Poor posture that contributes to tension requires more energy. Prolonged tightened muscles, or tension, can lead to greater fatigue.
In addition to what your child's posture tells you about his physical health, looking at his posture can lead you inside your child's emotional and mental state of mind. How your child feels or how he did on his test is often evident in his posture. The degree at which he holds his head, the curve of his back or the height of his shoulders are all immediate indicators into your child's mental and emotional state of mind.
Subconsciously, posture also affects children socially. Girls who are self-conscious toward their height may slouch intentionally to appear shorter than they are. Young boys who carry extra pre-puberty 'baby fat' like to slouch to hide their chests. "My son was extremely self-conscious because h thought he was getting breasts," says Pietschman, who is also the mother of three. "He thought that by rounding his shoulders and back, no one would notice his front."