Dr Steve's Chiropractic Blog

If you’ve ever had back or neck pain, you know how uncomfortable it can be.
The pain is often caused by pressure on the disks of the vertebrae. These
disks are responsible for spacing out the vertebrae, holding them in place,
and acting as shock absorbers. As you get older, your disks wear down or
degenerate, causing chronic pain, herniated disks, and nerve damage. Putting
pressure (like the added weight of a heavy backpack) on these disks wears
them down even faster.

So what’s a student to do? The stuff inside that pack is essential to
survival (or at least to passing math), but you don’t want to pay a painful
price in years to come. Fortunately, following a few simple rules can ensure
that you’re using your backpack properly and safely.

1. Choose
   the right sized pack.
   Adult-sized backpacks are made for adults, not children. Make sure to buy a
   pack that is appropriate for your body size. Most stores and catalogs list
   this information in the product description.
   If not, just ask. A general rule of thumb is that when the shoulder straps
   are adjusted so that they are snug, the bottom of the backpack should be
   about two inches above your waist.
2. Lighten
   your load. Your filled backpack
   should weigh no more than 15% of your body weight. (Multiply your weight in
   by .15 to get the maximum weight you should carry.) A 140 pound person should
   carry no more than 21 pounds, and an 80 pound child should keep it under 12
   pounds. To lighten the load, first remove any non-essentials. Even an extra
   hairbrush and a few notebooks can add
   weight. If your bag is too heavy, even when pared down to the basics, remove
   a textbook and carry it in your arms.
3. Lift
   with your legs. To lift and put on
   your backpack properly: face the pack, bending at your knees—not your
   waist—then lift with your legs and apply one shoulder strap and then the
   other.
4. Position
   your pack properly. Wearing
   your backpack on one shoulder can cause muscle strain and imbalance. Wear
   both shoulder straps, and adjust them so that they are comfortably snug. If
   the backpack has a waist strap, use it. It will distribute the weight of the
   pack more evenly. And position your body properly too, by maintaining good
   posture while you’re wearing your pack (and even when you aren’t!).
5. Get
   and stay fit. Maintaining your
   overall fitness by exercising and staying active can increase your strength
   and ability to carry heavy backpack loads, which will reduce your chance of
   injury. Cardio, strength training and flexibility are essential to your
   health and fitness.
6. Set
   a time limit. Try to wear your
   backpack for 30 minutes or less. Unless you’re on an all-day hike or jaunting
   across a sprawling campus, this rule shouldn’t be hard to follow. If you’re
   stuck wearing it for longer periods, try to carry the lightest load possible,
   and try to follow all of the other rules to a “T.”