Backpack Back Pain

Back pain in the lower back is a common concern, and up to 90% of Americans at some point in their lives suffer from this. Up to 50% will have more than one episode. Low back pain is not a specific disease. But, it is a symptom that may occur from a variety of different causes. In fact, in many cases of low back pain, despite a thorough medical examination, no specific cause of the pain can be identified.

As mentioned before, back pain is a symptom. Pain arising from other organs may be felt in the back. This is called referred pain. Several intra-abdominal disorders like appendicitis, aneurysms, kidney diseases, bladder infections, pelvic infections, and ovarian disorders, among others can cause pain to the back. Your doctor will have this in mind when assessing the source of your pain.

If you have children, backpacks are the tote of choice for most school-aged children with two books per class to lug around. As a matter of fact, it has been reported that between 92% and 94% of schoolchildren carry backpacks. And it appears they are evolving somewhat with sturdier-looking designs, heavily padded straps with pockets and accessories to accommodate pencils, house keys and other knick-knacks. However, although the sturdiest backpacks can withstand the pressure, how are your children's backs taking it?

On average, children load their backpacks to between 10% and 22% of their own body weight. During a study conducted in 2005, researchers set out to quantify the pressure and pain incurred when backpacks are loaded so heavily. For the study, 10 children wore backpacks loaded to 0%, 10%, 20% or 30% of their body weight for 30 seconds to decipher the amount of pressure under the backpack's shoulder straps.

While wearing the backpacks, the children were asked to report whether they felt any back pain and, if so, the severity of that back pain. According to the results, pressure below the shoulder straps was "notably increased" when the backpack was loaded at only 10% of the child's body weight on the low end of the reported average. Increased pressure also was associated with an increase in back pain, and fascinatingly the pressure was always greater on the right shoulder than the left shoulder. Over the long term, the researchers noted that uneven backpack loads could alter the curvature of a child's spine thus producing back pain.

The authors of that study amassed their results and offered some suggestions for parents of school-aged children and their parents: 1) Backpacks should be positioned high on the back. 2) Backpack straps should be worn over both shoulders to ensure that the weight is evenly distributed. 3) The weight in the backpacks should be minimized. 4) Backpacks should have wide shoulder straps.

It is imperative that you consider that 3 out of every 100 people have some degree of scoliosis which is an abnormal curvature of the spine that begins in childhood and has the potential of worsening as you get older. Having your children evaluated by a chiropractor is the best way to determine whether he or she has some degree of scoliosis. Chiropractic care is capable of managing any issues related to scoliosis, and a lightened load on their back can have long-term benefits.

Back To Home