Back to School - School Physicals and Sports Physicals

Happy Wellness Wednesday, everyone! Today’s topic is one that is very near and dear to our hearts not only as physicians, but also as fellow parents: school and sports physicals. If you have school age children, you’re likely familiar with school physicals but today we would like to discuss why they are important and what opportunities they offer parents for their child’s development.

Oftentimes physicals are looked upon as just a formality of needing a form signed to get your child into school, however, they are actually vitally important to your child’s current and future health. School physicals allow your child’s physician the opportunity to talk with you and your child to determine if specialized testing or additional resources (such as speech therapy, a nutrition plan, vision screenings, etc) are needed. Having yearly physicals helps in building a consistent medical history for your child as they go through school and long after completing their education. And, while it might seem insignificant, having routine visits also helps us to detect any concerning health patterns and address the issues before the situation gets out of control (such as diabetes, heart conditions, depression, etc).

Sports physicals allow us to discuss any sports-related concerns with you and your athlete. We can discuss ways to prevent overuse/overtraining, assess past or present injuries, provide stretches/program suggestions that would be helpful either for injury recovery or with muscle soreness from activity, develop or discuss a nutrition plan if needed, and go over any concerns you both might have for the upcoming season.

The start of each school year brings with it new physical, emotional and intellectual opportunities for your child. It can also bring with it new challenges and hurdles. Here at Family Tree Primary Care, we understand that you want to give your child the best start possible and we would like to help you do just that.

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