To mark Back Care Awareness Week the team at Cheadle Osteopathy are offering £10 off initial consultations (new patients) for the entire month of October.
Call 0161 478 1877 or use our 24/7 Online Booking system at cheadleosteopathy.co.uk.
‘BackCare’ is a British medical research charity dedicated to the management of back problem. Each year they focus on a different section of the community.
This year they are looking at childhood back pain. Conservative estimates suggest that between a quarter and a third of UK school children now suffer from back pain. However, the legislation designed to protect adults at work does not extend to children who are legally viewed as ‘visitors’ to their teachers’ workplace.
Back Care Awareness Week at Cheadle Osteopathy
In addition to the impact of the school environment, the UK is also home to three quarters of a million child carers, who are shouldering the combined physical and psychological impact of looking after an ill, disabled or elderly family member at home. Child carers are a greatly under recognised group, and are a high risk group for developing back pain.
New findings in 2015, BackCare surveyed 900 secondary school pupils (11-16 years) across the UK, revealing that two thirds of UK secondary pupils have experienced back pain. One in four UK secondary pupils suffers from back pain regularly or every day – this was higher amongst girls (27%) than boys (19%). Neck and shoulder pain were also very common, affecting a similar number.
School bag burden was found to be very common and strongly linked to back pain. Half of those surveyed said their school bag often or always felt tiring or too heavy for them. Back pain was ten times more common amongst pupils with heavy or tiring school bags. This situation is exacerbated as many schools no longer offer locker facilities.
Prolonged sitting – Pupils were also asked to estimate the number of hours they spend sitting per day in the classroom, at meal times, whilst travelling, when doing homework and during their free time. The survey revealed that UK secondary pupils sit for an average of 9 hours per day. Back pain was almost doubled amongst pupils with higher than average sitting times. Studies have linked sitting for more than 4 hours per day with increased risk of diabetes, obesity, heart disease, cancer, depression and dementia.
For Back Care advice and treatment please feel free to contact the clinic 0161 478 1877 and speak to one of our Osteopaths.
