Attack of the Killer Backpack

Article by healthybalance.com staff
Posted on February 01, 2007

Backpacks are all the rage these days. People of all ages appreciate the hands-free convenience of stowing their loads behind them. However, the backpack trend has caused an alarming health concern: back pain. School children seem to be especially prone because they often lug heavy textbooks back and forth—their backpacks bearing more weight than is healthy for growing spines and muscles.

To avoid backpack back pain, you should never carry a backpack that weights more than 15% of your total body weight. If your second grader weighs 60 pounds, she should never shoulder a packed backpack weighing more than 9 pounds. If you weigh 120 pounds, your pack shouldn’t weigh more than 18 pounds. No one, of any size, should carry a backpack weighing more than 25 pounds. Selecting a backpack constructed of lightweight material will help you stay within recommended weight guidelines.
“Although many factors may lead to back pain-increased participation in sports or exercise, poor posture while sitting, and long periods of inactivity-some children have backaches because they’re lugging around their entire locker’s worth of books, school supplies, and assorted personal items all day long,” said Mary L. Gavin, MD, Medical Editor of KidsHealth, Nemours Center for Children’s Health Media. “But most doctors and physical therapists recommend that kids carry no more than 10% to 15% of their body weight in their packs.”

Another way to avoid backpack back pain is to wear and pack it right.

• Travel light. Select a lightweight backpack with wide, padded, adjustable shoulder straps. Adjust the straps so they do not chafe under the arms yet support the load up higher on the back.

• Be hip. If your backpack has a hip strap, use it. This will help stabilize the load to your center of balance.

• Capitalize on compartments. Fill outside compartments first, with lighter fare. Save the heavy objects for the main compartment, close to the back.

• Minimize the load. Only bring what your really need! Encourage kids to only bring home the books they need or to keep a second set of books at home.

• The wheel deal. A backpack on wheels can save you, or your child, the wear and tear that leads to back pain.