Have you looked at your children’s backpacks lately? How large and heavy are they? I have seen so many children walking hunched over while carrying heavy backpacks. All this weight on a child’s spine is not good.
In an online article entitled Backpacks and Back Pain in Children, Dr. John Triano describes what can happen to a child’s spine. Carrying a heavy backpack can cause the following:
Distort the natural curves in the middle and lower backs, causing muscle strain and irritation to the spine joints and the rib cage. If the backpack is carried on one shoulder, the spine leans to the opposite side.
Lead to rounding of the shoulders
Cause a person to lean forward, reducing balance and making it easier to fall
Pull on the neck muscles, contributing to headache, shoulder pain, lower back pain, and/or neck and arm pain.
Some researchers suggest that the weight of the backpack should be limited to 10%-15% of the child’s body weight. Also recommended is using a separate bag for the child's laptop or other heavier electronic items.
Dr. Triano suggests that parents select backpacks with the following:
Lightweight material (canvas as opposed to leather)
Two padded, wide (2-inches), adjustable shoulder straps on the backpack
Padded back
Individualized compartments
Hip strap, waist belt, or frame to redistribute the weight of the backpack from the shoulders and back to the pelvis
Wheels so that the backpack can be pulled rather than carried.
Be sure to monitor what your children put in their backpacks. Often, they just continue to stuff things inside without cleaning them out and organizing them. This leads to them carrying a lot of unnecessary items.
To learn more, please read the entire article by clicking here.