Most adults complain of neck pain from time to time, but the problem can seem even more concerning when it affects your child. While it may seem like youngsters should never suffer from neck pain, there are actually many neck discomfort triggers in the average child's life. Thankfully, most of the problems are easily dealt with. Here are 3 fairly innocuous potential causes of your child's neck pain:

Poor Posture

One of the major causes of neck pain in children is poor posture -- especially improper sitting positions at school. School children spend a lot of time either craning their neck upwards to look at the teacher and the whiteboard or hunching their neck forward to get on with work. These head and neck positions can easily lead to discomfort and pain because the neck has to work harder to support the head's weight. If you believe this is the cause of your child's neck pain, talk to your child's teacher about advising the class on how to properly sit up straight at school. If your child's seat is too low to see the front of the class without craning, ask the teacher if they can be provided with an adjustable seat or booster cushion.

PE Injuries

Physical education is, unsurprisingly, one of the most 'dangerous' classes in school. Even with proper monitoring, it's not difficult for children to hurt themselves while doing sports. Most injuries to the neck occur during collisions or falls, but even the repetitive movements of swimming, dancing or gymnastics can lead to neck pain. If your child has injured their neck in PE, after seeing a doctor, talk to the sports coach about how you can minimise the risk of this happening again. Sometimes better warm-ups and proper instruction are all that's needed. You should also ensure that your child sits out of vigorous exercise while their injury is healing.

'Text Neck'

While many causes of neck pain occur during the school day, your child's activities at home can also cause it. In particular, 'text neck' is one of the most common reasons for discomfort in young people. The term refers to the soreness people get after looking down at their phone for too long. In this digital age, children are spending more time than ever on devices like phones and tablets, and they rarely sit in healthy positions while doing so. If your child's device habit is hurting their neck, there are many ways to combat this. Encourage them to sit in an upright position while on their phone, make them take frequent breaks, and use a warning app that tells your child when their head is tilted too far forwards.

If your child's neck pain persists even after addressing the causes, they may need the help of a physiotherapist. Physiotherapy can quickly help address discomfort, stiffness and general pain in your little one's neck, and it's completely safe and natural.