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Back Breakers
The Best – and Safest – Backpacks for Your Child
By Carma Haley Shoemaker
Each school year, parents become concerned with their children eating a good breakfast, studying, doing homework and getting enough sleep. But there is one issue weighing parents – and their children – down: overly heavy backpacks.
According to Backpack Safety America (BSA), medical experts agree that as a general rule, children should not carry more than 15 to 20 percent of their body weight in their backpacks.
A 50-pound elementary school student should not carry more than 7 to 10 pounds. A 100-pound middle school student's limit should be 15 to 20 pounds, and a 150-pound high school student's maximum backpack weight limit should not exceed 22 1/2 to 30 pounds. (The average high school student consistently carries anywhere from 35 to 42 pounds.)
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) estimates that 4,928 emergency room visits each year result from injuries related to backpacks and book bags. Consistent hauling is guilty of not only causing acute injury, but also contributing to long-term damage. How exactly does carrying a backpack affect the spine?
"Common sense tells us that a heavy load, distributed improperly or unevenly, day after day, is indeed going to cause stress to a growing spinal column," explains Dr. Marvin T. Arnsdorff, chiropractor and co-founder of the BSA school education program. "The old adage 'as the twig is bent, so grows the tree' comes to mind. We are seeing a growing concern about the improper use of backpacks and the relatively scarce amount of educational and preventive information available to young people."
With the growing concern, manufacturers and designers of backpacks and book bags are beginning to see – and include – the importance of various safety features in their products.
"JanSport is very concerned about...students carrying larger and larger amounts of stuff in their packs," says Gigi de Young, a representative of JanSport, Inc. "When students write to us requesting that we suggest a 'really large pack' or imply that they will be carrying a big load this school year, we send them this warning: 'We sympathize with your need to carry a lot of stuff, but remember that if used or packed improperly, a pack may actually affect your posture and cause shoulder or lower-back pain.' Safety and comfort are very important when it comes to backpacks."
