Editor's Message

Subscribe | Advertise | About Us | Contact Us | Home

October 2004

By Sarah Schmelling

Continuing Education
It may be primarily kids who are returning to classes this fall, but there are plenty of back-to-school lessons to be learned for adults too-both as rehab professionals and as parents.

One of the newest lessons is the importance of good old PE class. A study in the September issue of the American Journal of Public Health showed that giving first graders just one additional hour per week of physical education than they had in kindergarten may effectively reduce obesity rates among girls who are overweight or at risk of becoming overweight. This study, the largest yet to focus on obesity in children, highlights the importance of funding physical education in our nation's schools.

Another issue the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) emphasizes this season is the damage overloaded or improperly worn backpacks can do to the kids who wear them. Shelley Goodgold, PT, an APTA member at Simmons College, recently led a study in which 55% of children surveyed carried backpack loads heavier than 15% of their body weight, the maximum "safe" weight. Pain from backpack misuse can lead to missed school, increased doctor visits, and possible future back problems. For tips on proper ways to wear a backpack, see www.apta.org.

On a more serious note, pain in children (far beyond backpack wearing) is an understudied field in need of new research. As you will learn from Julie Silver, MD, who writes on this topic for this issue ("The Smallest Sufferers"), the prevailing belief before the 1970s held that children did not feel pain as intensely as adults because of their immature nervous systems. This has led to a void in proper studies looking at the reasons for pediatric pain. Silver outlines what actually happens physically to children in pain, and then suggests some ways for parents and rehab professionals to provide treatment and support.

Of course, there are plenty of other things going on this season for us adults. If you are overwhelmed by the back and forth between presidential candidates and are looking for some basic facts, our legislative expert, George Olsen, is here to help. Please see Legislative Watch, for a detailed comparison of each candidate's platforms on all of the major health care issues facing us this year. It may be a bit more complicated than your ABCs, but also-easily-just as valuable.

--Sarah Schmelling

LOOKING FOR EXPERT ADVICE?

Experts here are available to answer all your questions!

Please contact us for more information about this feature, or to become an expert.

MEDIA CENTER

Interactive Media

Resources

	Calendar
	Consumer Resources
	Media Kit
	Advertiser Index EAB Reprints Submit an Article

ADDITIONAL ONLINE RESOURCES

Allied Media
24X7mag Clinical Lab Products (CLP) Orthodontic Products The Hearing Review Hearing Review Products Rehab Management		Physical Therapy Products Plastic Surgery Practice Imaging Economics RT Magazine Sleep Review