Poor Posture in Children
Why do many children have such poor posture?
This question has been recently answered in a paper published by Prof / Dr Brian A Rothbart in the Journal of Bodyworks and Movement Therapy (2002). He discovered an embryonic foot type which he contends is responsible for many of the postural problems we see in children. "Children do not have poor posture because they are lazy, many have poor posture because of a weak foot."
Much like a building with a unstable foundation, a weak foot affects the entire posture (ankle to jaw). "Surprisingly enough, we see these postural problems in children as young as three to four years of age."
Dr Rothbart further states that poor posture in children is a harbinger of chronic musculolskeletal pain in adults.
So, how do we improve posture in children?
Dr Rothbart suggests that strengthening muscles alone is not the answer. Rather, he advocates using an innovative, holistic technique called Proprioceptive Stimulation: (1) proprioceptive stimulation sends a signal to the brain (cerebellum), which (2) acting on this signal, automatically improves posture. Do not confuse orthotics with this technique.
Read more about Proprioceptive Stimulation on this website.
