This is the season when all of us with school-age children start thinking about back-to-school.  What will our kids need for the academic year ahead?  It starts with supplies.  Pencils and paper for the younger ones.  Pens and calculators when they’re a little older.  By college it’s textbooks and computers.  Then we start thinking:  do they need new clothes?  New backpacks?  What are they going to take for lunch and what are they going to carry it in?  When considering what your child needs, keep these tips in mind.

Survival Guide for back-to-school

Avoid stressing growing bones and muscles by wearing backpacks properly. Use both shoulder straps and don’t overload the bag.  This goes for university students as well as kindergardeners.

Fill lunch boxes with nutritious food, including plenty of protein, veggies, and fruit. Small containers with snap-on lids make it easy for your child to bring carrot sticks, hummus, sunflower seeds, and other healthy foods in appropriate portion sizes.  Companies target children with processed, prepackaged “lunch” food “for kids.”  It’s loaded with sugar and salt, heavily processed, and almost empty of the nutritional value that growing bodies need.  It’s also expensive and produces waste that clutters the environment.

Let your child be involved with making her or his lunch. Learning how to put together a healthy meal is a useful life skill.  Also, children are more likely to eat foods that they chose themselves.  Your job is to make sure they’re getting enough protein, vegetables, fruit and whole grains from the foods they picked, and properly sealing the containers for safe transportation.  Leftovers often make excellent choices for school lunches!

Refillable water bottles are environmentally friendly and healthier than sugary juices, sodas, or sports drinks.

Sports equipment, such as bike helmets, needs to fit properly to be effective. Replace damaged equipment immediately.  Remember that kids outgrow equipment and that too-small equipment doesn’t protect them properly.

Children’s injuries are often dismissed as “growing pains,” but children have spines too. Strains placed on growing muscles and bones can cause long-lasting effects.  Chiropractic care is safe and effective for the whole family.  Just as kids visit the dentist for regular check-ups, they should visit the family chiropractor, too.

Be in the best possible health for back-to-school

It might be more convenient to visit the chiropractor before the school year begins.  This is particularly true if your children are older and go to school elsewhere.  It also applies if you find it difficult to coordinate schedules for appointments during the school year.

If we haven’t seen your children lately, get your kids off to the best possible start.  Call Sheppard Chiropractic Centre at (506) 635-8182 or (506) 847-7172 for an appointment before the start of the school year.