Children that carry Heavy Backpacks are putting themselves at risk for Health Problems such as Chronic Low Back Pain, Neck Pain, Forward Head Posture, and Upper Extremity Disorders
I just read an interesting post from one of the health bloggers, Dr. James Herndon, MD, on the always informative www.revolutionhealth.com. Dr. Herndon comments on the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) recommendation that children's backpacks weigh no more than 15% of total bodyweight based on their backpack research study. The article is entitled:
Heavy Backpacks Can Cause Back Pain In Children
The study found children carrying up to 30% of bodyweight. This puts tremendous stresses on the low back, neck, and shoulders...which can lead to back and neck problems, forward head posture, and early spine disease.
I have been practicing chiropractic in the San Francisco Financial District for over 16 years now, and I have seen my share of children with back problems. These backpacks are scary. Young spines are very vulnerable to heavy loads, day in and day out. And it's not like it's easy to communicate proper load distribution to a 10 year old.
Anyway, check out Dr. Herndon's blog post as it gives some good bullet points (from the study) for proper backpack use, and make sure you weigh your children's backpacks.
If your child has back pain, neck pain, shoulder pain, or arm pain...it may be due to a heavy backpack, and it's probably a good idea to have them checked by a chiropractor.
If you would like to have your child checked at Executive Express Chiropractic in downtown San Francisco at the Embarcadero Center...please call 415-392-2225, press ext#1. When our new clinic opens 10/1/2008, we will have Saturday hours from 9-1pm.
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