Every year as summer draws to an end, I often get excited for many of my favorite fall pleasures: Fall afternoons with the family at the Orchard, Hawkeye football, family bike rides, and of course weekend afternoons snuggling with my kids in the hammock. All of these things also mean that school is just around the corner. As I look forward to all of those wonderful activities, I also find myself answering the same question every year: Does it really matter what kind of backpack my child wears? Every year the answer is the same “Yes, thanks for asking!” I then proceed to answer how the size, type, and fitting of a child’s backpack is a really big deal.
Most health care providers agree that backpacks are a problem for a child’s spine, not all agree on how it affects them long term. While a backpack alone doesn’t necessarily cause major problems, improper carrying and overloading of a backpack may lead to headaches as well as neck, shoulder, and lower back pain. It’s not pain alone that we are looking for; prevention is the key to avoid developing these problems in the first place. In an article published in Spine it states that with “74% of the backpack users surveyed, we classified as having back pain, validated by significantly poorer general health, more limited physical function, and more bodily pain.” Other signs of overloading and improper wear are postural changes, i.e. forward head, rounded shoulders, one shoulder higher than the other, and one leg shorter than the other.
Again, not all health care providers agree on the proper weight of a backpack, the general opinion is that a child carrying a backpack more than 10 percent of his or her body weight puts them at risk for neck pain; the majority of health care professionals think that a child carrying a backpack more than 15% or more of his or her body weight can suffer from significant back pain, headaches, neck and shoulder pain, and other spinal discomfort.
Let’s put this into perspective—if your child was 60-pounds, he or she should be limited to a backpack weighing no more than 9 pounds and the 100 pound adolescent, no more than 15 pounds!
Many parents ask, “How in the world is that possible?” or “Have you seen their books?” I simply encourage parents to talk to their children about their backpacks twice a month. They can weigh the backpack and discuss how to lighten the load. Many backpacks are stuffed with extra book binders, water bottles, and electronic devices. These unnecessary items can exceed 10 pounds or more.
The way in which items are loaded into a backpack is important. Parents need to show their children how to load the back pack instead of simply stuffing it full of all their gear. The heaviest items should be placed closest to the child’s back. This will distribute the weight more evenly.
I often see children slinging a backpack over one shoulder. This can be damaging to the developing spine. While doing this, all the weight is distributed to one side of the body, as compared to both shoulders. The only proper way to carry a backpack is with both straps over the shoulders and the backpack resting against the lower back.
I know that it is nearly impossible to keep kids from begging for the backpack with their favorite superhero or princess on them, however, we need to understand that the first priority in selecting a backpack is function over fashion. Trust me, I understand that this isn’t easy, but we must realize that long term improper fit and wear can lead to long term consequences.
Some things to keep in mind when purchasing a backpack: First, the backpack should not be too long or short. A properly fitting backpack will hang no lower than one to two inches below the child’s waist, and at the same time it should go no higher than the middle of their neck. Second, the shoulder straps should be adjustable and padded, and they should rest comfortably on the top of their shoulders. Finally, parents need to understand that the more support options a backpack has to offer, the less spinal stress their child will have.
Many parents also ask about roller bags. The simple answer to that is: in general the bags are heavier in the first place, and they tend to have a larger capacity. I understand that most of the time these bags will be rolled, however, when your child is getting in and out of the car or going up or down stairs they pose a larger risk for falling.
So what is the best backpack? There isn’t one answer. I encourage parents and children to shop around and find the right one for their child. We have had numerous parents report good luck with Lands End. The customer service representative will ask you your child’s weight, height, and distance from head to bottom. With this information, they will provide you with the backpacks that will fit your child.
Some parents merely roll their eyes at the suggestion his or her child’s backpack may be causing long term damage. I think this usually comes from the misconception that everything is fine unless we have pain. Numerous times in this article I mentioned long term damage or consequences from improper backpack wear. This is a much deeper problem for our children then we let on. As a Family Wellness Chiropractor, my goal is to see families grow and flourish with good health. The nervous system is at the core of this goal for me. With interference to a child’s nervous system, they will not be able to grow and function at their optimum potential. I know this is still a hard concept for many to hold on to, but imagine this, every function of our body is dependent upon the appropriate response from our nervous system. For example, if your child’s backpack it too heavy, therefore pulling the child back, the body will assume that this is normal and make changes to the child’s posture to compensate for this pull. As this happens over a long period of time, the body will then be in that pre-set posture, making “normal” postures then abnormal. As these changes occur in the body, the normal physiology changes to an alter physiology of stress. When our body is in that stressed state for long periods of time, it changes the body’s natural immune function to be weakened, it alters the way that we control blood sugar, and it elevates our heart rate. As, chronic infections or infections that are recurrent—diabetes is on the rise and high blood pressure is essentially an epidemic— it makes you think; if we make small changes with our children at a young age, can we change and shape their health for the future?
I am not saying that if your child follows all of the above recommendations they won’t ever have back pain, headaches, or other illnesses, but what I am saying is: Making a bunch of small changes can make a HUGE impact on their health potential.
If you would like to have us take a look at the fit of your child’s backpack, please let us know, and we would be happy to provide a complimentary fitting.
Dr. Ron
319-354-4186
| 1. American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons Bulletin, December 1999;47(6). 2. Sheir-Neiss GI, Kruse RW, Rahman T, et al. The association of backpack use and back pain in adolescents. Spine, May 1, 2003;28(9):922-9303. Arnsodorff M. Mounting research on backpack use.ICPA Newsletter, May/June 2002. |
Tagged as: pediatric, prevention, Wellness