By Tony Garrow, D.C.

During my journey to become a Chiropractor, I went through 8 years of college education. Most of my classes were science classes with large, heavy books. I was also on the Montclair State swim team. On any given day you would have easily been able to find anywhere from 20 to 30lbs. of books and swim gear in my backpack. And I thought I was cool to wear my backpack on my right shoulder. Prior to college, I also carried my backpack around with me in high school. During those years I experienced a lot of headaches, right shoulder pain, and low back pain, but I just ignored the symptoms and did not fix the problem. Unfortunately, I did not realize what my heavy backpack was trying to do to me. Luckily, chiropractic saved me. When I began to learn about the negative effects of carrying heavy backpacks (especially on one shoulder), I decreased the weight of my bag and started care with a chiropractor to try to get my posture back as close to normal as possible. Now, I no longer have the chronic back and health problems that I once suffered from.
What is the actual problem with backpacks these days? The books are getting bigger, the kids are loading them with unnecessary items, and it is still cool to have a backpack hanging over one shoulder. Many kids are carrying almost 30 lbs. of books and materials in their bags. This can have a serious effect on their posture, spine, and health. One article from a journal called Spine, said that more than 50% of kids will experience low back pain by the end of their teen years. Much of this low back pain may be caused by the backpack problem. Using backpacks improperly over time may contribute to chronic problems later in life. Another Spine article showed that heavy backpacks alter the discs between the bones in the spine which may set the kids up for osteoarthritis and disc problems later in life. I have noticed that women who have carried purses on one shoulder for years tend to have chronic posture and spinal health problems. This situation may be worse for kids. Children under 18 may still be in the growing stage. Their bones and body structure are not fully developed. Flopping a big bag over one shoulder may cause children to grow into an unwanted chronic posture. One old saying goes "as the twig is bent, so grows the tree".