Do you think teens are immune to low-back pain?  Think again.  Currently, record numbers of adolescents suffer from neck, mid-back and low-back pain.  And if the pain itself isn’t challenging enough, symptoms dramatically affect physical and emotional well-being.

In addition to chiropractic care, Dr. Smith recommends that adolescents follow the chiropractic lifestyle to boost overall well-being.  The chiropractic lifestyle involves chiropractic adjustments, stress reduction, daily exercise and a healthy diet — all of which slash the risk of common adolescent disorders, including back pain.

Following are examples of lifestyle changes that could have a dramatic effect on adolescent back pain:

Exercise more.  Exercise battles key issues during adolescence, such as moodiness, the blues and weight gain, but that’s not all:  Physical activity decreases the risk of adolescent back pain and poor posture.

Carry backpacks properly.  Does your teen complain of back pain more often during the school year than during the summer?  Encourage him or her to limit the weight in backpacks and use both shoulder straps.

We’re here to help.  Teaching your teenager how to tackle and solve the problem may be just as important as eliminating the pain.