Back-to-School Backpack Safety
Backpacks, when correctly worn, are designed to distribute the weight of the load evenly across the body’s strongest muscles. Unfortunately, many children and teens carry backpacks that are too heavy, which can contribute to musculoskeletal injuries over time. In fact, annual backpack-related injuries affect up to 14,000 kids each year. Researchers have found that children are carrying backpacks that weigh more than 40% of the student’s weight. One study assessed school children’s perception of their backpack loads and the results are concerning: 79% of the children surveyed said their backpacks were heavy, 66% felt their backpacks caused fatigue, and 46% said they had back pain due to the heavy load.
Carrying a backpack can have significant biomechanical and physiological impacts on the wearer during a critical time in a child’s growth, placing undue stress on the body, changing posture, and contributing to injuries of the back, neck, and shoulders. Back pain in particular is becoming more pervasive among kids and teens due to too heavy backpacks.
If a backpack is too heavy, this can cause a child to lean forward to compensate for the load. This forces a child to bend forward at the hips or arch their back to stay steady, which is an unnatural posture that can cause injury to the back, shoulders, and neck. If the backpack is worn with only one strap over one shoulder, this can cause a child to lean to one side to offset the extra weight, which contributes to lower and upper back pain and strain the neck and shoulders. A too heavy backpack or an improperly worn backpack can not only contribute to back pain, but also uneven or rounded shoulders and numbness or tingling in the extremities, particularly the arms.
If a child is experiencing backpack-related pain, check out these 7 tips to help minimize the strain on their growing body and consult a physical therapist who can assess the child’s backpack fit, work to improve posture issues, increase the child’s muscle strength, and treat pain that has resulted from improper backpack fit and function.
7 Tips for Back-to-School Backpack Safety
A child’s backpack should not weigh more than 10 to 15% of their total body weight. For example, a child who weights 100 pounds should not carry a backpack that is heavier than 15 pounds. It’s also important to keep in mind that a backpack itself usually weighs between 1.5 to 3 pounds and if your child uses a laptop at school, a laptop can weight between 2.5 to 5 pounds.
A backpack should be proportional to the child’s height and be fitted to the child’s body. A backpack should not be so big that it overwhelms the child. The backpack should rest evenly on both shoulders. The body of the backpack should fit snugly against the body in the middle of the back. The height of the backpack should extend about 2 inches below the shoulder blades to waist level, but should not hang down past the waist.
Shoulder straps should be wide and padded to reduce pressure on the shoulders. A child should always wear both straps on their shoulders and avoid carrying the backpack with only one strap as this can contribute to pain and injury. Tighten the shoulder straps to ensure the backpack is fitted to the body, which also keeps the load closer to the body and therefore less of a strain on the back. Avoid backpacks with tight narrow straps as this can dig into the shoulders and interfere with circulation and nerve function.
Use the chest and hip belts to distribute weight more evenly across the body and take strain off sensitive neck and shoulder muscles.
Load the heaviest items into the backpack first, placing them closest to the body and putting the lightest items toward the front. If the backpack has multiple compartments use them to distribute the weight of the load more evenly.
When lifting the backpack, use safe lifting technique. Lift with your legs, bending your knees, keeping your back straight, and using both hands. Don’t bend the body to one side and always place both straps on your shoulders.
Be mindful of the weight of certain backpack materials. Backpack fabric can impact weight, durability, and strength of the pack. Nylon pack cloth or nylon canvas are generally light-weight and durable. While stylish, leather backpacks tend to be heavier as leather is a heavier material.
