How can osteopathy help babies and children?
Many people believe that children and babies will not have any structural stresses or strains in their bodies, because they are ‘so young’. This is unfortunately often not the case. For example, at birth the baby is subjected to great forces, as the uterine contractions push the baby through the birth canal with it‘s varying degrees of natural resistance. At this time, the baby has to squeeze through the bony pelvis, this imposes twisting and turning motions on the young body. The baby’s head has an incredible ability to cope with these stresses during delivery. As delivery occurs, the soft bones overlap, bend and warp in order to reduce the size of the head. It is not unusual for babies to be born with odd shaped heads as a result of their birth. Within the first few days after birth, the head usually loses the extreme moulded shape. However, sometimes this re-shaping is incomplete, especially if the birth has been difficult. This can mean the baby has to live with some unresolved and
