A Pain in the Back: Backpacks Create Health Problems For Kids

Injuries are on the rise among children who carry backpacks laden with heavy textbooks. Read on to find out how to alleviate the problem.

They look so harmless, those cute little bags trimmed with key chains and good luck charms slung over schoolchildren’s backs. But in 2001 backpacks were the cause of 7,000 emergency room visits and countless complaints of muscle spasms, neck and shoulder pain.

More and more children are carelessly lugging backpacks full of heavy textbooks, causing alarm among health professionals and parents. The average student carries a backpack weighing almost one-fourth of his body weight. In one study, six out of 10 students ages 9 to 20 reported chronic back pain related to heavy backpacks.

Compounding the problem, some schools have eliminated lockers for safety reasons, causing students to carry heavy backpacks not only to and from school, but all day long. The growing concern over backpacks was the impetus behind the first National School Backpack Awareness Day in September 2002, sponsored by the American Occupational Therapy Association.

Backpacks themselves do not pose a health danger. The weight of the pack and the way a student carries it are the true culprits. It may be considered “cool” to sling a fully loaded backpack over one shoulder, but that is an invitation to back pain.

How to Wear a Backpack Properly
Health professionals recommend the following tips for wearing and handling backpacks correctly:

• Carry backpacks evenly weighted with straps over each shoulder. Place heavier items at the bottom of the backpack.
• Select a backpack with well-padded shoulder straps to help protect the shoulders and neck. These straps should be adjusted so the pack fits snugly against the child’s back.
• A loaded backpack should weigh no more than 15% of a student’s body weight. For example, a child weighing 100 pounds shouldn’t carry more than 15 pounds.
• The size and weight of the pack matter. Select smaller backpacks for younger children. The backpack itself should be light in weight.
• Wear a waist belt, if the backpack has one, to help distribute the weight of the pack evenly.
• To lighten the load, leave unnecessary items at home or at school.
• When placing a backpack on your back, bend your knees. Do not bend over at the waist when wearing or lifting a heavy backpack.
• Learn back-strengthening exercises to build up the muscles required to carry a backpack. A pediatrician, health professional or athletic trainer can suggest some proper exercises.

Alternatives to Heavy Backpacks
Here are some ways to help decrease backpack back pains:

• An innovative alternative to the backpack is the pack on wheels, similar to the carry-on valise used by frequent travelers. These “wheelies” make it easy to transport school supplies and books without injuring one’s back. However, these carriers are not for everyone, as they are difficult to maneuver in snow, and up and down stairs.
• Some schools are eliminating the whole backpack issue by providing students with two sets of textbooks; one to keep at home and the other to leave at school. In addition to alleviating back problems, two sets of books means that students can’t use the age-old excuse that they couldn’t do the homework because they left their book at school.
• Block scheduling, a class structure used in some middle and high schools in which classes meet for longer periods on alternating days, means students take home fewer books.
• Some schools are experimenting with eliminating textbooks altogether by using an Internet-based curriculum or school materials on CD-ROMs.
• Even politicians are getting into the act. In New Jersey and California, they have introduced legislation at the state level restricting the weight of textbooks.

What Parents Can Do
Parents can take preventative action by lessening the causes of back pain:

• Make sure your child has the proper backpack for his size, that he is not carrying too much in it and that he is carrying it properly.
• Offer to provide a backpack on wheels.
• Ask your school to consider providing two sets of textbooks, one for school and one for home, or alternatives to textbooks, such as CD-ROMs and Internet curriculum.
• Teach your child back-strengthening exercises and how to bend at the knees when putting on a backpack.
• Suggest that your school plan activities around National School Backpack Awareness Day or create its own school backpack awareness program.