How to pack and carry school bag to prevent back problems in children

Suhavi, a Class eighth student, often complains of backache after returning from school. She is an intelligent and studious girl and carries a heavy backpack to the school daily. This situation is becoming increasingly common in households across India. These days, in addition to the school books, the children also need to carry various reference books, activity books etc. All these add to the weight of the bag which sometimes is close to 25-30% of child’s weight.

Many studies have been done on schoolgoing children in the recent past and a few of them in India also. All  these studies have documented the increasing incidence of backache in schoolgoing children, found  to be as high as 70% in a few of them. All these studies have clearly documented that the most common cause of backpain in  this age group is heavy school bags. Since, the children’s backbone is disturbed by the weight of their school bags during their growing years, the pain may result in a poorly shaped spine, if ignored. Overloaded school bags that are up to double the size of those carried ten years ago are contributing to this menance. The students routinely carry bags filled with heavy books, laptops, sports kit and packed lunchbox, music equipments etc. These children risk long-term and ultimately permanent damage if they regularly carry more than 15 per cent  of their body weight over their shoulders. To further add to the worry, recently few studies have also found the ill effects of heavy backpacks on the lungs and respiratory system of children also. These studies, out of which one was done in India also, clearly state that pulmonary function reductions are directly related to increment of backpack load. In addition, few other factors as poor quality of the backpacks or wrong technique of carrying the bag also contribute to the effect. 

Now the question is how to tackle this menance and what are the ways to effectively treat the problem. Various medical organisations have worked on the issue and have given their recomendations. After studying all the available evidence in the literature, we suggest that the problem can be tackled by a three pronged startegy which include - 1) Buying  the right kind of backpack 2) Make sure it is packed correctly and 3) correct lifting and carrying techniques.

For a proper backpack, always consider the following points. Your child should have a backpack, rather than a traditional schoolbag with handles. Don’t try to save money by buying the biggest backpack you can find – make sure the backpack is appropriate to your child’s size. Choose a backpack with a moulded frame and/or adjustable hip strap, so that the weight of the filled backpack will rest on your child’s pelvis instead of their shoulders and spine. The shoulder straps should be adjustable, and the rear of the backpack padded for comfort. To help with packing, the backpack should have a few separate compartments. Canvas backpacks are lighter than leather varieties. Consider buying a backpack with built-in wheels. Children are fashion conscious and vulnerable to peer pressure, so make sure you take your child with you when buying their backpack. If the style you choose is ‘uncool’, your child may compensate by carrying the backpack in a ‘cool’ way, such as over one shoulder, which will cause more harm than good.

Even if you got the best bag available, but if the way the bag is packed or is carried by your child is faulty, then the same problem is going to persist. So, the way things are packed in the bag are packed, is also important. The backpack should weigh less than 10 per cent of your child’s body weight – for example, a child of 40kg should carry less than 4kg in their backpack. Pack the heaviest items so they are closest to the child’s back. If the heaviest items are packed further away, this throws out the child’s centre of gravity and causes unnecessary back strain. Make sure that items can’t move around during transit, as this could upset your child’s centre of gravity – use the backpack’s compartments for this. Make good use of all the compartments on the pack to distribute things more evenly. While this doesn't reduce the weight, it does spread it out across your back, making it feel like less. 

The most important factor after the weight of bag, which contributes maximally to backache in my opinion is the faulty technique of carrying the bag, For this, adjust the shoulder straps so that the bottom of the backpack is just above the child’s
waist – don’t allow them to wear the backpack slung low over their buttocks. A backpack for school or college shouldn't extend 4 inches (10cm) below your or your child's waistline. When fitted correctly, the backpack should contour snugly to the child’s back, rather than hang off their shoulders. Your child should lift the backpack with a straight back, using their thigh muscles. The backpack should be lifted with both hands and held close to the body. Slip an arm through one shoulder strap, and then the other. If your child has to lean over, then their backpack is too heavy or incorrectly fitted or wrongly packed. Make sure your child understands that carrying the backpack over one shoulder will cause back pain and potential injury.

In addition, various strategies can also be worked out by the cooperation of school authorities and the parents, which can help in reducing the weight of the bag. The schools should offer student locker facilities to help all students store their study material such as text books, note books and similar educational aids or sporting kits etc, thereby reducing the load from the bags they carry to school every day. The government’s educational department should begin by reworking school syllabus to reduce the load of books that children are required to carry every day to school and back. Home-school co-operation is also of vital importance to tackle this strain on children. The schools should encourage the use of loose sheets instead of the bound notebooks for assignments and homework, which can later be filed in a folder for later use. This simple strategy of replacing notebooks with sheets can reduce the weight drastically. Technology, used in moderation here, can also help to reduce the weight. The more texts, papers and any other things that the child is allowed to use digitally and carry on your laptop, iPad or other digital device, the less you have to carry. Government schools and private schools may consider choosing desks with drawers that can be locked, for the use of students. Teachers can adopt a more positive approach such as giving clear instructions for the study material required for the next day. Parents should foster in children, the habit of packing school bags every day according to the day’s time table, so students bring to school each day only those books and kits which are definitely required for the day. Eliminating old papers and useless handouts can cut down on clutter in the bag, making it lighter. Also, it can cut down on clutter later caused by improperly stashed handouts and flyers; use thin binders or plastic sheets to hold things in one place instead of scrunched at the base of the bag, forgotten and building up! At the end of each week, go through your child's bag and remove anything that shouldn't be in there and anything not needed anymore (like the textbooks for a test now completed). This will help to ensure that the child is only carrying about what's needed and not building up a supply of forgotten weighty things. 

Although, the techniques cited above can help to take the burden off the children's tender back; but if your child already has developed the problem of backpain; then it is important not to ignore it and show to a doctor as any prolonged or repetitive trivial trauma on the growing bones of children can cause a permanent problem as scoliosis etc. 

Last but not the least, it is the collective responsibility of the school authorities, parents and education department to act swiftly and reduce the burden on children's back as well as mind, so that the shoulders and back of India's future is not weak or stooping, rather it is broad and strong.