How to Have a Healthy Back to School Experience in Tinley Park IL!

The back to school aisles in Tinley Park IL are loaded and parents are either ecstatic or dreading the new school year. While the free time during school hours may appeal to many parents, the crazy schedules, activities, homework projects and germ-passing may cause parents to dread the upcoming school year. There are things you can do to ease the transition and have a healthy back to school experience!

Rolling Back the Clock

Lazy summer days may have led to lax bed times and late mornings. Rather than wait until a few nights before school begins to make a drastic change in hours, wean back late bed times by 15 minutes a night and 15 minutes earlier in the morning. Changing bed times drastically can lead to insomnia and sleep struggles as your children (and probably you as well) have allowed their bodies to adapt to these late nights and late mornings.

Back-Packs

Have you lifted your child’s back-pack? As kids progress in grade levels, their back-packs get heavier and heavier. This can lead to excessive strain on their spinal column as well as their shoulder joints. You can help lesson this back-pack strain in a few ways.

For one, purchase a quality back-pack. The straps should be wide (at least 3 inches) and there should be a waist belt to help disperse the carrying load. Make sure the pack is adjusted well so there are no gaps in the straps or belt while your child is standing with good posture.

As well, find out whether your child will be carrying heavy text books back and forth from school. Many of today’s text books are available in electronic form and most schools will provide a second copy to be kept at home.

Brain Food

Generation after generation, we are told how important a nutritious breakfast is to the outcome of our day. Start thinking and creating pre-made breakfasts to ensure your child has awesome food to support brain health and immunity. Go to the bulk section at your grocery store and create a mix of oatmeal and grains to be quickly cooked in the morning or even in advance and stored in the fridge. Throw in some fruit and your child has a brain-healthy start to his or her day!

Breakfast bowls of egg, potatoes and veggies are also great as are whole wheat wraps with peanut butter and bananas. Get creative and figure some quick and easy breakfasts to create a great start to the school year!

Schedule an appointment today at Chiropractic Wellness of Tinley Park for all of your family’s health and wellness needs!