Your Back Hates Your Backpack
Child and adult spines become misshapen when people don’t follow this advice
With some students returning to schools where lockers aren’t available due to Covid-19 prevention efforts, parents would be wise to make sure their children have the right backpack and that it’s packed properly and not overloaded, lest the load reshape a young spine and cause unnecessary pain.
In fact, potential posture problems and pain caused by inadequate packs and poor packing practices extend to anyone of any age who routinely carries a load, whether it’s in a briefcase, messenger bag, gym bag — perhaps a Covid-inspired backpack for rediscovering nature — or even a small purse. Especially if a person is mostly sedentary.
But “load carriage,” as researchers call it, doesn’t have to be such a headache if a person has the right bag for the job, understands how carrying it in various ways can affect their body mechanics, and takes a few simple precautions.
Degeneration in kids’ backs like never before
“I’ve been in practice for 30 years now,” says Scott Bautch, president of the Council on Occupational Health at the American Chiropractic Association (ACA), who I spoke to prior to the pandemic. “Degeneration that I never saw in…
