How to protect the spine of infants and children?

  The health of the spine has a bearing on the weight of a person’s life, and a healthy spine starts with children and adolescents. There is no better way to maintain a healthy spine than to pay attention to the maintenance, protection and exercise of the spine to prevent problems before they occur.  Protection of the spine should begin with infants and toddlers: parents should always pay close attention to observe any physical or postural asymmetries in the growth and development of children, and once found, promptly consult the relevant professionals or seek medical advice.  1, infants do not sit do too early: too early to let infants and toddlers sit up for a long time, easy to cause spinal curvature due to the weak spine is difficult to cope with.  2, young children should sit correctly: the height of the table and chair should be suitable, the child writing, reading posture should be correct, and at the same time should be appropriate to change position and rest.  3, the use of reasonable hardness of the bed: do not let the child sleep for a long time on a bed or sofa too soft, especially do not lie on a bed or sofa too soft to read books, watch TV.  4.Appropriate outdoor activities and exercise: appropriate sports and field activities can improve physical fitness and enhance muscle strength to maintain a reasonable posture.  5.Prevent accidental injuries during play or sports, the necessary safety awareness should be properly instilled, appropriate preventive safety precautions or give the necessary supervision to avoid accidental injuries.  6, moderate sun exposure, pay attention to the diet of calcium: the body’s absorption and utilization of calcium can not be separated from vitamin D, and the ultraviolet rays of the sun can help the skin 7-dehydrocholesterol synthesis of vitamin D, to promote the body’s absorption and utilization of calcium. Therefore, a moderate amount of sunlight every day to prevent rickets and other calcium deficiency diseases. In addition, you should always eat foods rich in high-quality protein and calcium in your diet, such as milk, eggs, poultry, fish, soybeans and soy products, to ensure adequate calcium intake.  Daily life to develop good posture: 1, sitting posture: hips to fully contact the chair, shoulders back, spine is straight, two feet on the ground. When writing, head slightly forward, the line between the two shoulders parallel to the edge of the table, the forehead is not compressed. The height of the table and chairs to the best state with their height ratio is appropriate, it is best to customize special tables and chairs to facilitate the adjustment of sitting, to avoid excessive head and neck back or excessive forward flexion, to reduce the fatigue caused by prolonged sitting.  2, standing posture: should be tucked in the abdomen and chest, shoulders braced and slightly backward; hands slightly closed, natural droop; jaw slightly tightened, gaze level; back waist tightened, pelvis up, leg muscles tense, knee clenching, so that the spine to maintain the normal physiological curve; from the side, ear, shoulder, hip, knee and ankle should be in a vertical line, there is a feeling of ease in a slightly tense.  3, walking posture: feet as far as possible to walk in a straight line, walk with the heel first, the palm of the foot after the ground, and the crotch followed by a rhythmic slight twist, hands slightly thrown behind you.  4, lying posture: sleep hip and knee joints slightly flexed, supine with an object (such as a pillow) behind the knee, side lying will be padded between the two knees, prone, the object will be padded in the lower abdomen. This will enable the spine to maintain a certain physiological curvature, so that the waist and back, hip and leg muscles in a relaxed state, both comfortable, but also to avoid strain; selected pillow, the height should be appropriate, the location should also be correct, in order to keep the head and neck and trunk basically at the same level (head and neck not too much forward bending or backward), so that the neck muscles in a relaxed state and maintain the normal physiological curvature of the cervical spine. Generally speaking, side lying pillow height = (shoulder width – neck width) ÷ 2, that is, about my two fist height, supine pillow height is about half or half of the pillow height when lying on its side slightly more. Pillow should be dedicated to each person, preferably customized according to their own size, when using should be placed under the pillow to the concave of the neck, especially should be fully filled the gap behind the neck (when lying on their backs) or face to the gap between the shoulders (when lying on their sides); choose the right bed and mattress. A reasonable mattress should be neither too soft nor too hard, preferably on a hard bed with a layer of cotton or thin mattress, so that both sufficient support hardness, keep the bed flat, but also have a certain degree of elasticity, in line with the curvature of the body, reduce the pressure on the body, sleep and feel comfortable.