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Cristina Speicher makes sure her daughter's backpack can zip around the heavy load she will carry to school this fall. (Carolyn Kimmel, Special to PennLive) | Image Source: pennlive.com |
As a baggage handler for an airline, Cristina Speicher expects to heft around heavy suitcases.
What the Dillsburg mom didn't expect was the weight she felt when she picked up her high-school-aged son's backpack last year.
"He only had two textbooks in there and the rest was folders and I thought it was too heavy," Speicher, 39, said. "He doesn't have time between classes to stop at his locker so he carries it with him all day. He doesn't think it's heavy, but I do."
Speicher also has two middle school-aged daughters whose backpacks are too heavy for her liking, but her pleas to get them to lighten the load fall on deaf ears. They aren't allowed to carry their backpacks to classes and get locker stops throughout the day, but they still have to carry the heavy packs to and from home and school, she said.
To help in any way she can, Speicher makes sure to buy backpacks that are durable and well-made, even if they cost more.
"My rule is the book bag has to zip shut. If it's lightweight and you pack too much in, it rips when you zip it," she said.
Risk for back, posture problems
On a long list of back-to-school supplies that includes anything from mechanical pencils to trappers and folders, one item deserving of more attention is a backpack.
Choosing the right backpack – and using it correctly – can have health implications that could last far beyond the notebooks and supplies it carries.
"Backpacks have been shown in research to pose risks to children's health from repetitious use," saidDr. Christine Curran of Cornerstone Chiropractic in Dillsburg. Studies have shown nearly three-quarters of children who use backpacks report having back pain, she said.
In addition to back pain, wearing a heavy backpack can lead to unhealthy posture changes, aggravation of other underlying back issues and increased potential for falling due to changes in how children balance with heavy weight on their backs, Curran said.
Scoliosis, an irregular curvature of the spine that can become more serious as a child gets older, is not caused or made worse by heavy backpacks, said Dr. Cynthia Elsner, a pediatrician with Hummelstown-based Pediatric Associates, which is a member of PinnacleHealth Medical Group.
"The most common problem would be back pain,'' Elsner said. "A lot of kids do complain of back pain, but it's usually sports-related."
Elsner added that a heavy backpack could aggravate sports-related back pain.
A history of back problems makes Monaghan Township resident Tammy Whitaker, 41, more aware of her children's heavy backpacks. She has spondylolisthesis, which is displacement of the vertebra.
"Spondylolisthesis can be hereditary and is usually not noticed unless another injury has occurred. With this being hereditary, I worry about my children developing it especially carrying the weight of their backpacks through school all day and home on the bus," she said.
Last year, her 15-year-old son, Cordell, was having back problems and had to do physical therapy because the muscles in his back were so tight.
"I found out after this that he carries every subject in his backpack all day all year because his locker is not convenient to where his classes are," she said. "I do not know for sure if the heavy backpack caused the back problems, but I am sure it didn't help."
According to a study published in the Journal of School Health, greater relative backpack weight is associated with complaints of upper– and mid–back pain and also with lost school time, lost school sports time, and greater chiropractic utilization.
Still, Curran said, using a backpack is preferable to other carrying bag options, if the backpack is used correctly.
Shop smart, wear it right
The first step is buying the proper one for your child's size.
"Make sure the pack is a good size for your child. The lower part of the pack should rest in the lower back area with padded shoulder straps that are tightened appropriately," Curran said.
Then, make sure your kids wear the pack correctly, doctors said.
"Our bodies are meant to do things symmetrically when it comes to carrying things on our backs," said Dr. James Mosher, pediatrician with JDC Pediatrics in Mechanicsburg. "Kids should always use both shoulder straps and place heavier items close to the center of the back that's the center of gravity."
At the store, he advises choosing a backpack with wide, padded shoulder straps, a waist strap, a padded back and one that is light-weight.
Just as important as the backpack is what goes into it – and less is definitely better.
"As a rule, a backpack should never be more than 10 to 20 percent of a child's body weight," Mosher said. "Anything heavier can cause muscle injury, pain and strain."
Curran suggests that parents keep the pack at 10 percent or less of the child's weight – and monitor the weight weekly.
"Heavy packs have been shown to decrease disc height in the lower back in children," she said. "One study showed that, of 1,403 school children analyzed, 61.4 percent had backpacks exceeding 10 percent of their body weight. Those carrying the heaviest backpacks had a 50 percent higher risk of back pain. Girls presented a higher risk of back pain compared with boys."
Enlist school's help
Curran advises parents to ask their child's school for a second set of textbooks to be kept at home if the child is repeatedly carrying home books.
"Parents who have requested this note for children under care in my office have always had an easy time obtaining that set of books," she said.
Pat Franko, principal at Dillsburg Elementary School, said the trend is toward electronic text books, which reduces the load that kids carry back and forth from school to home.
"I only had one parent throughout my tenure as principal who brought it up to me as an issue for her son,'' Franko said. "We resolved it by assuring that he had access to the books online or that he completed any work for which a book was needed at school so he didn't have to carry the heavy books home."
Parents should pay attention to signs that they need to check their child's pack, such as trouble getting the pack on and off easily, abnormal posture due to leaning to one side or head leading in front of the body while wearing the backpack, Curran said.
Although packs with wheels are an alternative, Curran said she doesn't recommend them.
"Some parents think this is the answer to a heavy backpack,'' she said. "But the child must still hoist the pack up and down multiple times daily, adding another repetitive stressor."
For more information on chiropractic care, visit this Dr. George Gertner blog.
Really? Thank you for a helpful and safety reminder.
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