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Backpack Safety Big Concern in Press
In
a number of different articles backpack safety has become a big issue.
One article from the September 1, 2006 Ancaster News from Ontario, Canada,
reports that more than 7,000 people required a trip to the emergency room
in 2001 due to backpack-related injuries. These numbers were
reported by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Several other
interesting facts were noted. Among children age 12 to 18 it was stated
that 75 percent suffer from some form of back pain with backpack weight
being a large contributor to this statistic. According to an Italian
study, one-third of school children regularly carried more than 30 per
cent of their body weight in their backpack.
In The Sunday Times
from Ireland was a similar article on September 03, 2006 that also covered
this issue. In this article they noted that international guidelines
suggest that children should carry no more than 10 percent of their total
body weight in their backpack. Virginia Cantillon of the
Chiropractic Association of Ireland warned, "We see more kids with
problems and a lot is attributable to the weights they are carrying. They
are having neck problems, mid- and lower-back pain. They are candidates
for back pain down the road.”
Single shoulder bags
may not be a solution, and may even make matters worse, according to a
September 5, 2006 article from Montreal, Quebec, Canada in the "CBC News".
The article notes that these new single shoulder bags are fashionable, but
are a bad idea according to the British Columbia Chiropractic Association.
Dr. Don Nixdorf, executive director of the B.C. Chiropractic Association,
warns those who use these new bags, "You'll start to have some pain around
the neck, which can also lead to headache, and movement is going to be
mechanically impaired."
Another article
appearing in the September 2, 2006 Ottawa Sun, also notes that "Overloaded
packs can lead to damaged backs." In this article Dr. Dean Wright,
president of the Ontario Chiropractic Association (OCA) states, "Carrying
a poorly designed or overloaded backpack can place excessive weight on a
child's growing spinal column." He continued, "This kind of daily
stress and strain can lead to serious back pain, changes in posture and
gait, and potential irritation and injury of the spine, joints and
muscles." |