Coping with Growing Pains
Growing pains are a well-known childhood phenomenon. Many children between the ages of four and twelve end up at their pediatricians’ offices, with pain in the bones of their legs. Often times, no actual medical cause is found, so the condition is dismissed as “growing pains,” and they’re sent on their way. Old wives’ tales say that growing pains happen because leg bones are lengthening, so they signify a growth spurt. However, this is not the case. So, growth spurts aside, what are growing pains, and how can they best be treated?
Growing pains are throbbing aches in the legs, usually in the shins, calves, or thighs. Sometimes, the pain is severe enough to cause children to wake up from a sound sleep. However, despite the moniker “growing pains,” there is no medical evidence that these aches have anything to do with growing. Most growth occurs at the ends of bones, near joints, and not in the area children generally report feeling pain. What’s more, not all children feel growing pains- only about twenty five to forty percent do, and those that do don’t end up growing any taller or any faster than children who don’t report feeling growing pains. Diagnosing them is generally done by exclusion. Doctors will check for other medical conditions, and, if no evidence of an underlying condition can be found, then the pains are diagnosed as growing pains. Some experts theorize that these aches are caused by injuries that active children sustain during the day, and simply don’t notice until evening, but this hasn’t been proven.
Treating them is relatively easy, and they should be handled just like any other musculoskeletal ache or pain. Gentle heat from a heating pad or warm bath can help, as can gentle massaging. Children’s strength acetaminophen or ibuprofen can also help, but young children should never be given aspirin due to the risk of Reye Syndrome, a potentially serious condition. Stretching has also been shown to help relieve some of the throbbing from growing pains, so kids that experience them frequently should be encouraged to take up yoga, or perform simple stretching exercises during the day, and before bedtime.
The good news is that while growing pains can be frustrating and uncomfortable, they aren‘t harmful, and most children won’t even have to experience them. Since it isn’t yet understood what causes growing pains, there isn’t really a way to prevent the aches from occuring, just ways to help make kids more comfortable until they finally outgrow having them. Get to know more on child care.
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