Educational Intervention in the Postural Hygiene of School-Age Children

Healthy lifestyle habits formed in childhood provide the foundation for a healthy adult life; therefore, it is important to encourage healthy habits and to correct poor habits from an early age.

In this study, we aim to evaluate the influence of educational intervention in order to modify postural hygiene habits in school-age children.

We randomly selected three public primary education schools in the Galician provinces of Orense and Pontevedra based on stratified multistage sampling. A sample of 479 students was obtained, representing 2% of all 6- to 12-year-old children registered during the 2015/2016 academic year in those provinces.

Following the intervention, the students' postural hygiene improved. We found statistically significant differences regarding a reduction in the number of hours spent watching television (0.531 h/day); the way school books and supplies were carried, with an increase in the use of backpacks with wheels (from 58.5% to 64.1%); and an improvement in postural hygiene when watching television, with an increase from 63.7% to 80.8% of those surveyed opting to watch television whilst seated on a chair instead of lying down.

Educational intervention by inculcating healthy postural hygiene habits in children at an early age can improve and correct unhealthy behaviours.