backpacks San Leandro Chiropractor Top Chiropractor in San Leandro, CA

I wrote a post in September of 2010 – “Backpack Safety – Back To School and 14 Helpful Tips.” Millions of kids wear heavy backpacks that affect their posture, which results in interfering with a proper functioning of nervous system and thus leads to sick days and unnecessary pain. A post about “Relationship of Nervous System and Spine to Organs”, will provide you a better understanding of what I am talking about. A developing young organism must be free of any obstacles for proper development. It is even more true for young girls. These individuals are the future of this society. With advancing technology our future generation can save their posture by carrying all of their heavy load of books on an electronic book reader. I am talking about iPad, Kindle, Nook and probably some other electronic gadgets that are available on the market today.

These devices are not as expensive as they used to be. It is a very minor investment in the future of your kids. My boy is turning four next month and pretty soon he is going to go to school. Currently he is practicing on my iPhone to play with different apps. Some of my patients are principles at schools and I have talked to them about this issue. With budget cuts in every State in the United States and over 26 billion dollars deficit for 2011 in a State of California alone it is not an easy task to accomplish. Education budget cuts are growing every year and with bureaucratic system that the State make the transfer to electronic book reader is a distant possibility.

What is the solution to this problem? I think parents must take action in their own hands and provide their kids with these light readers that weight less than a pound versus full back pack of books which can weight up to 15 pounds and sometimes even more. The solution is easy the implementation is not. Below are comparison videos of the Nook from Barnes & Nobles and Kindle from Amazon that your child can use in school.

Getting the books you buy onto as many readers as possible is a matter of great interest to educators. Right now, there are basically three ways to leverage e-books to increase distribution of titles in schools.

When Amazon came out with the Kindle, the company realized that book-buyers would want to be able to load their purchases onto more than one reading device. So the company made it possible for customers to load their purchases onto as many as six devices, in most case, if the devices were registered to the same account. As schools began to implement ereader programs, educators saw the benefit of this policy: if a school purchases six or more Kindle, every book they buy can be distributed to six devices, effectively cutting the cost of an already lower-priced e-book by a factor of six. It is like buying six copies for the price of one. And with a little extra management, this “sharing” of books among devices registered to the same account has worked well. Here is how it works for two major booksellers:

Amazon Kindle: You can download up to six copies of each book to different platforms.

Nook/Nook Color: You can download each book within devices on an account, limit six.

I think parents should take advantage of this program and send their kids to school with Kindle or Nook, pen and notepad. Make a change now before it is too late. Currently there several models available on the market: Kindle 3, Kindle DX, Nook Black & White, and Nook Color.

It is not a secret that heavy back (BP) packs for school children are the leading cause of lower back and shoulder pain. I have seen too many children in my almost ten years of my practice suffering from this problem unnecessary. About 40,000,000 students go to school every day. It is crucial that every child carries their schoolpacks properly in order to avoid neck, lower back and shoulder pain.

Make sure the backpack is the right size for your child. The proper size is equal to 75% of your child’s back, meaning the space between the waste and the shoulder blades.
* A child’s back pack weight should never exceed 15% of their body weight according to The Congress of Chiropractic State Association. So this little chart should be helpful.
50 pound child carrying copacity should be no more than 7.5 pounds
80 pound child carrying copacity should be no more than 12 pounds
100 pound child carrying copacity should be no more than 15 pounds
130 pound child carrying copacity should be no more than 19.5 pounds
150 pound child carrying copacity should be no more than 22.5 pounds
* Choose a backpack with padded shoulder straps that sit on both shoulders. BP with one strap such as messenger bags distribute all the weight on one shoulder instead of evenly on both shoulders. Also, bak pack without padded shoulder straps can cause pressure on the nerves that surround the child’s armpits.
Safety tips on how to avoid backpack injuries

Wear both shoulder straps evenly to properly distribute BP weight.
Get the correct size BP for your child.
The BP should not extend below the lower back. Bigger is not better.
Lighten the load and put the heaviest items in the BP first keeping them the closest to the body.
Lift the BP with your legs and not with your back and place it on one shoulder strap at a time.
Do not leave BP on the floor to avoid someone tripping on them.
Choose a quality BP that has wide well-cushioned shoulder straps with a lumbar support/padding.
Talk to teachers about reducing the need to bring home textbooks or if at all possible have an extra set for home use.
Bend at the knees.
Using both of your hands, check the weight of the BP.
Never sling the BP onto one shoulder and avoid swinging the BP.
Use both shoulder straps at all times. Make them snug but not too tight. Carrying on one shoulder can cause long-term neck, shoulder, back, and postural problems.
Use the stabilizing waste strap if the BP has one present.
Look for signs that BP is poorly fitted or overloaded on a daily basis. A couple signs that the BP is overloaded or not being worn properly is pain, red marks from the straps, or poor posture.

Being a Safe Backpack Advocate

School’s authorities and children’s parents must work together in resolving heavy BP issue. The following things can be done by school’s authorities:

allowing students more time in between classes to use lockers
purchasing paperback books
implementing school education programs about safe backpack use
purchasing books on CD-ROM or putting some curriculum on the school’s website, when possible

Adjustment of the backpack would be necessary if one of the following things happened:

Your child struggles to get the BP on or off have back pain and lean forward to carry the BP
If your child has back pain or numbness or weakness in the arms or legs, talk to your family doctor, chiropractor or physical therapist.

Some Facts were taken from The Founders of Backpack Safety America International TM. Visit them at www.backpacksafe.com

The International Chiropractic Pediatric Association (ICPA) endorses the use of Air Pack brand backpacks which are available at www.airpacks.com