Each year, families shop to purchase backpacks for their children to take school supplies back and forth from home. There are a wide variety of different sizes and shapes out there for elementary to high school students. Of course, as kids get older they need new backpacks to accommodate the binders, books, and other larger items that need to get inside. The problem with this is that larger backpacks allow students to put dangerously heavy bags on their backs. This may not seem like it would be a problem in school, but it can directly impact instruction time.
Backpack injuries cause issues at school
When too much weight is inside a backpack, it can cause neck and back pain in students. If a child is suffering from this kind of pain, it may cause multiple issues at school. Pain could take away from the ability of students from concentrating on their studies. In addition to this, when a child hurts it may cause them to act out. Since younger kids are not hurt as often, they may not think about the cause of their pain.
It is important for those in school to think about the health of students. If we see them complaining about neck, back, or shoulder pain, we need to investigate. Teens with backpacks that are too heavy may have upper back pain, neck soreness and stiffness, lower back pain, and potentially nerve concerns in their arms and hands from picking up the bags.
Importance of backpack size awareness
Physical and occupational therapists within schools may help to spread the word to students and families about proper backpack use to avoid injuries. Research has shown that backpacks should not weigh more than 10% of a person’s body weight. This means that for a middle school student that weighs approximately 100 pounds, their bag should be no more than 10 pounds. In addition to this, it is important for backpacks to be worn on both shoulders and be above the waist. Books may be carried outside of the bag to reduce strain on the shoulders.
More often than not, students are not aware of how heavy their backpacks get with the things that need to go back and forth to school. Allow students to bring their bags to weigh them and see if they fall into the ten percent range. By educating kids on this safety concern, we can hope to see less back and neck injuries.