HOME HEALTH GUIDE Body Mechanics

Northern Advocate, 1 October 1943, Page 6

HOME HEALTH GUIDE Body Mechanics

(By the Health Department) Good body mechanics is just another way of saying proper use of the body—the use of all parts of the body with proper balance, with ease and grace. In short, good posture. > Too little attention is.paid by par-] ents to the cultivation 'of good posture in their children, probably because the full implication of good posture is imperfectly understood. Posture, put simply, is the mnaner in which the bony framework is held while sitting, standing or lying. The organs of the body are arranged within this body framework. Consequently if the posture is not correct these organs will sag or be squeezed out of their right positions and will not function properly. Young bones are like young branches of a tree. They are more easily bent than older ones. Therefore, it is obvious that the body must be trained while young and flexible. Sport helps.good posture, but proper use of the child’s feet is necessary if the child’s body is to be held in good balance. When the feet are used correctly the child’s weight is on the balls and outer sides of the feet, the toes point straight forward, and the inner sides of the feet are parallel with each other. In the right standing posture, the chin is drawn in and backward; the head is up; the chest raised; the lower abdomen flat and drawn in; the knees straight and without strain; the feet together and pointed straight in front, the back almost straight. A line dropped from the ear should, if the body is correctly carried, cross through the middle of the top of the shoulder, touch the middle ,of the hip and pass through the knee, and touch the floor opposite' the most prominent part of the outer side of the foot.