The last days of summer are upon us once again, and as such, it’s time to start thinking about… sigh…. going back to school.
The return to school brings with it a whole lot of necessary purchases for parents of teens – pens, notebooks, sports kits, lunch bags – but perhaps most important of all is something to put them all in. A backpack is your child’s constant companion throughout the day, going with them as they journey back and forth across the campus, and it’s vital that it fits them well. An ill-fitting bag, or a bag worn incorrectly, has the potential to lead to a whole host of musculoskeletal problems. “Backpack Syndrome”, as it’s known, can cause fatigue, numbness, pain, and issues with balance and posture.
Here are three tips to help you and your child make the right decisions, and avoid unnecessary discomfort:
Buy the Right One
If your teen is in need of a new backpack, there are several things to look out for. For starters, as long as the material is good quality, you should buy as light a bag as possible. It sounds obvious, but is nevertheless worth reinstating - the less weight they’re starting with, the more they’ll be able to comfortably fit inside it.
After that, it’s a matter of choosing a bag that spreads the weight as much as you can, so the contents is not all gathered in a single area. With that in mind, be on the hunt for one with as many compartments as you can find. Wider, padded straps will stop the bulk of the pack from digging into your child’s shoulders; a waist and/or chest strap will further help to even the load. Although this will be more of an issue for smaller kids, it’s still important that the bag should not be bigger than your teenagers’ back.
Pack Wisely
The bulk of a child’s backpack should not exceed 20% of their body weight (though even less than that is optimum) – any more, and it risks causing damage to their backs, knees, and general posture. There will be enough facing them in their school day without adding literal unnecessary baggage!
As such, encourage your teen to not to carry anything in their bags that they don’t need. Where possible, get them to keep their heaviest books in their lockers. Any that they really have to have on them, make sure they are kept as close to their backs as possible; as well as dispensing the weight in the best possible way, the big, flat surfaces provide a shield from the awkwardly shaped items that might otherwise dig into them.
Wear Them Correctly.
So they have a great bag, that only contains the things they’ll need for that day, packed in a sensible manner. Now, it’s just a matter of wearing it in the right way.
This might be the trickiest part to convey to your teen. However unfashionable it may be, the higher their bag sits on their back, the better it is for them. A low-slung backpack plays havoc with posture, often pushing the wearer to lean forward in order to make up for that weight distribution – ideally, the top of the bag should be in line with their shoulder blades.
And wearing them on one shoulder is a definite no-no!
References
Comments