Effect of Head Posture Education and Chin tuck Exercises on Head and Neck Alignment of Students with Forward Head Posture

Purpose:
Maintaining proper posture during childhood contributes to the preservation of postural patterns into adulthood. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of head posture education and chin-tuck exercises on head and neck alignment in students with forward head posture.
Methods:
This semi-experimental and applied study followed a pre-test/post-test design. A total of 42 female elementary school students were selected and randomly assigned equally into three groups: (1) head posture education (n = 14), (2) head posture education combined with chin-tuck exercises (n = 14), and (3) control group (n = 14). The intervention groups participated in training sessions three times per week for two months. Head posture angle and body awareness were assessed before and after the intervention using photogrammetry and a body awareness questionnaire, respectively. Data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA for group mean comparisons, LSD test for pairwise comparisons, and repeated measures ANOVA controlling for potential confounders.

Results:
The results showed a significant difference between the pre-test and post-test in both the head posture education group and the combined intervention group regarding the forward head angle and body awareness (P = 0.001). The combined intervention (head posture education with chin-tuck exercises) had a greater effect compared to head posture education alone, resulting in a significant improvement in head posture angle (P = 0.001). There was no significant difference in body awareness between the two intervention groups (P = 0.245); however, a significant difference in body awareness was found between the combined intervention group and the control group in the post-test (P=0.001).

Conclusion:
Both interventions—head posture education alone and in combination with chin-tuck exercises—can be effective techniques for improving forward head posture and body awareness in students. However, head posture education combined with chin-tuck exercises may yield more favorable results and could be recommended to corrective movement specialists.