Choosing a Backpack to Prevent Back Pain

Backpacks can be quite heavy with all the different textbooks and school materials students have to carry to and from school. These loads aren’t getting any lighter either as schools often ask students to bring laptops or tablets to help boost their engagement during class. As school requirements increase each year, parents and students should choose a backpack that will give them adequate support and help prevent future back pain during the school year. Take a look at some of the best tips for choosing a backpack that will ensure your student doesn’t have to worry about back pain in the upcoming school year.

How Backpacks Can Cause Back Pain for Students

Backpacks can cause all kinds of different issues for students and adults. According to a recent study, roughly 60 percent of students had pain that stemmed from backpacks. If they’re not storing their items in a locker, students often have to carry backpacks to and from different classes during the day which means that there are plenty of opportunities to injure themselves while picking up and putting down the heavy bookbag or increase the strain placed on their back throughout the day.

According to the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, thousands of children are treated each year in emergency rooms due to backpack-related injuries. Students who try to ignore their backpack-related back pain and simply try to push through it can also develop muscle strains, pinched nerves, or load-carrying tendencies that will impact them throughout their lives.

Tips To Choose a Backpack to Prevent Back Pain

It’s important to choose a backpack that will provide adequate support and ensure that your student can focus on what matters most, doing well in school. We’ve outlined some key tips you should follow when trying to select a backpack to prevent back pain.

Prioritize Function and Comfort Over The Latest Fashion

Every year, one of the exciting things about getting ready for the upcoming school year is getting new clothes and school supplies based on current fashion trends. However, when it comes to selecting a backpack, you should prioritize function and comfort over the latest style.

There is no shortage of different backpacks to choose from each year, which means that you should still be able to find a backpack that looks stylish and can provide enough support and comfort for the upcoming school year. As students get older, you should expect both their workload and the weight of their school supplies to increase each year. This means that you should try finding a backpack that will give them enough storage space and support for heavier items like textbooks and laptops.

When looking at different backpacks, try to find a backpack that won’t force your student to alter their posture just to get comfortable. If the items in the backpack aren’t stored properly or don’t have adequate structural support, it could cause the student to alter their posture when standing or walking because they’re trying to find ways to deal with the pain that is built up over time.

When choosing between backpacks, you also want to try to find a backpack that has two straps over the shoulder instead of just one. Backpacks with multiple straps will help to avoid putting all the weight on one shoulder and will help to evenly disperse the weight. Some backpacks also have waist straps to ensure that the wearer can keep the backpack closer to their body to improve their posture when they go to and from their classes. Another important thing to look out for is how easily the straps can adjust. The backpack you choose should be able to adjust to the wearer and ensure a proper fit without having to struggle or break easily.

Supportive Padding on the Straps

The next thing to check when choosing a backpack to prevent back pain is to make sure that there is enough supportive padding on the straps. Some backpacks will meet all the criteria above but won’t have enough support in the straps and become uncomfortable after extended periods of use. Ideally, you want to try and find a backpack that has two to three fingers in width to ensure that the straps are wide enough to disperse the weight and avoid discomfort. Try to find a backpack that has enough cushion and padding in the straps so the wearer doesn’t develop pain as they’re wearing their backpack.

Dedicated Compartments to Keep the Weight Close to the Wearer

Backpacks that have dedicated compartments will help the wearer keep the heavier items closer to the correct position. Ideally, heavier items like textbooks and laptops should be closer to the student’s body and smaller items should be placed in tighter compartments. Some backpacks even come with zips or straps that you can use to adjust certain sections to compensate for variable sizes when the need arises. This helps to ensure that the weight is evenly distributed for the wearer to carry and the student won’t have to compensate for shifting items.

Choose the Correct Size

Buying a backpack can be expensive, which is why so many parents try to buy a backpack that will last for several years as their student grows. This cost-saving measure can contribute to back pain over time which is why parents should always try to choose the correct size in width and height. Backpacks should fit appropriately which means that they shouldn’t be too wide or too long.

To check if a backpack is too big, the length of the backpack shouldn’t be longer than 4 inches below the waist. Before discrediting a backpack for being too big, make sure that you’ve adjusted the straps and made all the corrective measures you can. Some backpacks will now allow you to adjust the width and length with some of those adjusting zip sections and elastic bands we highlighted earlier.

Consider Backpacks With Wheels

Backpacks with wheels can be a great option for those individuals who are looking to alleviate back pain without having to worry about proper sizes. Backpacks with wheels faded in style some time ago because they were quite limited and often came in sizes that made them difficult to squeeze into lockers. While the choices might have been limited years ago, there are plenty of different options to choose from now and come in all shapes and sizes.

Limit The Weight

Once you’ve chosen a backpack that matches all of the tips we’ve outlined above, the next step to limit back pain from a backpack is to make sure that you’re doing all you can to limit the weight inside the backpack. It’s important to regularly weigh a student’s backpack to make sure that it’s not too heavy. Oftentimes, students won’t complain about their backpacks even when they’re dealing with a heavy load.

The American Occupational Therapy Association recommends that the backpack with all of the items in it should not weigh more than 10 percent of the student’s body weight. If you find that the backpack is too heavy, there are some easy things you can do to alleviate the weight and make sure that your student isn’t carrying more than they should.

The first thing you can do to lighten the load of the backpack is to try and find alternative solutions for heavier items. Some of the big contributors to back pain are those big textbooks that get bigger each year. Plenty of textbook publishers now offer digital licenses for the textbooks and school districts or local libraries might even have a digital subscription you can opt-in to instead of carrying around a heavy textbook. Swapping from physical hard copies of textbooks to digital versions can help you lighten the load of those heavy backpacks and reduce the number of items that your student has to worry about as they’re trying to remember what they need to pack and for which class.

If digital versions aren’t an option, school lockers can be the next alternative. Storing items in a school locker between classes is a great way to alleviate some of those items that don’t need to be taken home or to and from each class every day. A school locker is a great way to lighten the load placed on a student’s back and shoulders every day.

Treat Backpack Pain with Physical Therapy

Our licensed physical therapists across the country can help individuals who experience back pain from heavy backpacks and over 100 other conditions. Don’t let back pain slow you down! Schedule an appointment today at one of our hundreds of clinics to work with a licensed PT who can help you alleviate those aches and pains and get you back to doing the things you love most.

1. Written by Kelly Rehan; Reviewed by Scott Bautch, DC. “Packing Pain: Study Reveals New Insights About Backpack Pain.” SpineUniverse, www.spineuniverse.com/wellness/packing-pain-study-reveals-new-insights-about-backpack-pain.
2. “Get Smart About Safety As Kids Head Back To School.” OnSafety, onsafety.cpsc.gov/blog/2018/08/29/get-smart-about-safety-as-kids-head-back-to-school/.